ELT Journal - current issue

ELT Journal Debate 2010 at IATEFL

Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

Announcements

Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

Dealing with learner reticence in the speaking class

Zhang, X., Head, K. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

This paper describes an oral English course for non-English majors at a university in the People's Republic of China. In the first year of the course, the students were very resistant to participating in group-based speaking activities, and their end-of-year results were disappointing. In the second year, the teacher decided to involve the students actively in designing their course and planning activities which would meet their needs and reasons for wanting to speak English. The aim was to increase their motivation and overcome reticence by getting them to talk about what and how they wanted to learn. It was expected that both their confidence and their ability to speak English would improve through more personal engagement with the course. The effectiveness of this approach was assessed using self-evaluation forms, classroom observations, and tests which showed significant progress in the students’ speaking.

Why are students quiet? Looking at the Chinese context and beyond

Xie, X. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

This paper is part of a larger project on teacher–student interaction and the contextual issues which shape them. It reported that the reticence of English majors is caused by the communicative environment that the teachers create in their interactions with their students. The data were collected through observations, audio- and videotaping, and stimulated reflection across a two-and-a-half-month period. Informed by Vygotsky's (1978) sociocultural theory which puts talk at the core of successful teaching and learning, the analysis presented reveals how the teachers’ thematic control leads to students’ low interaction levels. Based on the findings, implications are discussed and some possible changes to teaching practices proposed, which are applicable not only to the Chinese context but beyond.

Help seeking in English language learning

Skinner, B., Madden, M. C. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

An examination of literature on the issue of help seeking (HS) has revealed a common theme: students will not always ask for help, even when they are aware that help is needed. The purpose of this action research study was to examine HS and help avoidance in the context of setting tasks in two types of English language-learning environment: a formal classroom situation and an informal community group. This action research study aimed firstly to explore whether and how instances of HS to understand tasks set could be increased, and secondly to examine the effects the two very different language-learning environments had on students’ HS. It was found that changes in HS behaviour were small and that regardless of interventions to support HS, learners will only seek help when the environment in which they are learning is relaxed and informal.

Student views on learning grammar with web- and book-based materials

Jarvis, H., Szymczyk, M. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

This paper reports on a study which examined students’ attitudes to learning grammar in autonomous contexts and their preferences for the learning materials with which to do so. In all, 38 students were surveyed and 13 of these then spent some time working in a language resource centre (LRC) with web- and paper-based materials. Students then completed a series of questionnaires concerning what they liked and disliked about the two types of materials. Four participants were then interviewed in more detail about their responses. The data suggest that despite the well-documented advantages of the tutorial role of computers and the notion of the ‘digital native’, participants generally preferred working with paper-based materials. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications of this for materials that LRCs stock and for the changing role of computers in self-study contexts.

Culturally responsive L2 education: an awareness-raising proposal

Porto, M. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

The increasing prevalence of multilingual, multiethnic, and multicultural classrooms in varied educational contexts worldwide points to the importance of cultural factors in language education and education in general. In the EFL/ESL classroom of this century, ELT is seen as including much more than purely linguistic aspects as it focuses also on broad literacy issues which acknowledge the importance of global economic, social, historical, and cultural factors in language learning and teaching. In other words, ELT in the twenty-first century means culturally responsive literacy education. It is argued here that foreign/second language education viewed in these terms requires cultural responsiveness in educators. This paper will offer a concrete proposal aimed at raising foreign language educators’ awareness of this topic.

Balancing the dual functions of portfolio assessment

Lam, R., Lee, I. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

While research on portfolio assessment (PA) has focused largely on the summative aspects of writing assessment, not much has been done to find out its formative potential. Drawing upon student questionnaires and student and teacher interview data, this paper aims to explore the formative functions of PA and, specifically, how the formative potential of PA can be better utilized in the EFL writing classroom. The findings of the study indicate that although students responded positively to the formative aspects of PA, they still preferred summative grading and tended to believe that grades were the best way to inform their current standards of writing. The paper ends with a discussion on how the formative aspects of PA could be strengthened and how PA can integrate teaching and assessment to benefit students’ learning of writing.

A case study: two teachers' reflections on the ELP in practice

Sahinkarakas, S., Yumru, H., Inozu, J. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

We conducted an action research study with a group of EFL teachers in our local area in order to establish the grounds for the use of the European Language Portfolio (ELP) and the Common European Framework of Reference in local state schools. This paper reports on the way we conducted this study and the cycles we went through, specifically focusing on two teachers’ experiences of the ELP in practice.

Views on creativity from an Indonesian perspective

Tin, T. B., Manara, C., Ragawanti, D. T. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

With an increasing emphasis on creativity in education and language teaching, it is important for teachers and students to examine their own views on and perceptions of creativity. What is regarded as creativity may vary from one context to another. This paper examines the perceptions of creativity reflected in the evaluation of creative poems by students and teachers in an Indonesian context. The participants evaluated short poems written by a group of Indonesian university students. This resulted in several characteristics of creativity being highlighted: honesty, reality, truthfulness, and personal value. The poems were voted on and the ones which received the greatest number of votes were also analysed. The more creative poems demonstrated higher degrees of language play and creative language use. This paper1 suggests several activities which could be conducted by teachers and students in other contexts to help them examine their own explicit and implicit views on creativity.

'Dearest beloved one, I need your assistance': the rhetoric of spam mail

Viswamohan, A. I., Hadfield, C., Hadfield, J. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

Ellis's corrective feedback in a problem-solving context

Kozlova, I. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

An Introduction to Foreign Language Learning and Teaching

Swan, M. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

Intonation in the Grammar of English

Marks, J. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

Listening in the Language Classroom

Cross, J. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

English Language Learning Materials: A Critical Review

Vilches, M. L. C. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

IATEFL 2008 Exeter Conference Selections

Eastment, D. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

From Teacher to Manager: Managing Language Teaching Organizations

Renart, L. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

Lessons from Good Language Learners

Frith, J. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:27 PST

Foreigners and Foreign Languages in India: A Sociolinguistic History * Negotiating Empowerment: Studies in English Language Education

Maley, A. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:28 PST

Blogging

Eastment, D. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:28 PST

Correspondence

Lebowitz, A. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:28 PST

iatefl

Williams, M. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:43:28 PST