Innovative Pedagogies: Enhancing ELT/TESOL Through Technology and Collaboration

This paper looks into the challenges and prospects of implementing teaching of English to speakers of other languages(TESOL) approaches in Nigeria against the background of the Nigerian National Policy on Education (2004) which legitimise the teaching of English as a the official language. The review paper is a shift from the usual approach of examining the teaching of English as a Second Language(TESL) to teaching of English to Speakers of other Languages(TESOL).The two approaches recognize previous knowledge of English language but TESOL has a wider conceptual view. However, challenges of TESOL are highlighted in order to call the attention of stakeholders. The challenges of TESOL require urgent attention as previous studies have dwelt much on prospects which are interrelated with functions of English and importance of teaching English as a Second Language.

This paper examines the evolving landscape of Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) in Pakistan. It analyzes the interplay between historical legacies, policy directives, teacher education, and global pedagogical trends. Although English holds the status of an official language and functions as a medium of instruction across various tiers of the education system, the implementation of TESOL in Pakistan remains fraught with challenges. These include inconsistent language policies, lack of alignment between curriculum and classroom realities, inadequate teacher preparation, urban–rural disparities, and limited access to sustained professional development opportunities. This study highlights how institutional frameworks have historically shaped the quality of English language instruction, and how recent efforts—such as PakTESOL initiatives and capacity-building programs funded by the U.S. Embassy and Regional English Language Office (RELO)—are attempting to professionalize TESOL in the country. The paper discusses how context-sensitive teacher training, inclusive curriculum development, and reflective pedagogical practices can help reorient TESOL towards local needs while maintaining global relevance. The growing integration of educational technology and computer-assisted language learning (CALL) is evaluated as a transformative factor in expanding access to language instruction, particularly in under-resourced regions. Critical pedagogy is also considered essential for empowering teachers and learners to engage with English in ways that support equity, identity, and meaningful communication. The paper concludes by offering practical and research-informed recommendations for strengthening TESOL in Pakistan. It also advocates for collaborative policy-making, initiate more teacher education programs, and equitable resource distribution. This study contributes to a sustainable, contextually aware TESOL framework that addresses Pakistan’s linguistic, social, and educational complexities.

This chapter describes the different aspects of teacher identity in Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) in terms of a frames model, building on related prior applications of the notion of framing to English language teaching and to program development and management. It discusses the two categories of the model: Practice-centered/Contextual Frames of Teacher Identity in TESOL. The first set of frames represents teacher identity in TESOL in terms of different orientations to the practices involved in TESOL work. The global facet of TESOL teacher identity connects to content and pedagogical knowledge, as it requires the teacher to be knowledgeable about different varieties of English and conscious of what variety of English is being taught and how it is being taught. The different framings of TESOL work offer different perspectives from which both future teachers and those already teaching can examine aspects of their work-related identity and map a course for change and career development.

In the field of Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL), studies and scholarly publications questioning the NEST/NNEST (Native-English-Speaker Teacher/ Non-native-English-Speaker Teacher) dichotomy have steadily increased over the last 25 years. This dichotomy has resulted in discriminatory practices against NNESTs, underpinning the contested assumption that native speaker status should be the gold standard in TESOL. This study explores how this problematic perception plays out in the specific context of the Preparatory Year Programs (PYP) in two Saudi universities. This study, based on the analysis of 18 teacher interviews, examines the lived experiences of university English teachers, both native and non-native, locally and internationally recruited, working in the same programs. This paper discusses two themes: the participants’ qualifications and their beliefs about the main reason why they were recruited. The data indicate that only a few teachers believe that being a NS is the main factor in being hired whereas the majority believe that qualifications are the most important requirements for job recruitment. As the most required and obtained certificate for English Language Teaching (ELT) in the PYP, The Cambridge Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults (CELTA) does appear to replace the NS status requirement based on the participants’ opinions. However, CELTA does not escape criticism as an English teaching qualification. The study argues that buying into the CELTA requirement perpetuates colonialism in ELT..

The rapid advancement of information technology and ongoing education reforms have introduced smart education as an innovative teaching model. This study aims to explore the application and impact of smart education platforms in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) within four junior high schools in China. Through a detailed analysis of questionnaire responses from English language teachers, the study investigates the impact of these platforms on teaching practices. Results indicate that using smart teaching platforms has increased teachers’ engagement, motivation, and satisfaction. Additionally, teachers have reported a deeper understanding of smart education concepts, improved practical teaching skills, and overall professional development. Despite these benefits, the study highlights the challenges of implementing smart education platforms. The findings suggest that while smart education platforms can potentially enhance TESOL effectiveness, further improvements, and extensive research are necessary to optimize their use fully.

This research attempted to identify the psychological factors that affect the speaking performance of students enrolled in Postgraduate English Language Teaching programs in Pakistan. A quantitative approach was used to address the main aim of this study. The participants of the research were 100 postgraduate students enrolled in English Language Teaching (ELT) and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) programs of public sector higher education institutions and universities in Pakistan. The findings revealed that many students in this study reported finding it difficult to speak in English in foreign language classrooms due to psychological factors like lack of selfconfidence, lack of self-esteem, fear of making mistakes, shyness, anxiety and motivation mainly. The findings also revealed that almost all the psychological factors are interlinked with each other and have a direct effect on the speaking performance of the students in this study.

Global Englishes Language Teaching (GELT) is still in its infancy in Japan as educators struggle to implement tangible and practical classroom methods to promote its principles. The lack of awareness regarding GELT and lingering attitudes that privilege monolingual orientations to teaching and conceptualizing the English language—exacerbated by the construct of native speakerism—persist among teachers, learners, and other educational stakeholders alike. This chapter examines how three Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) practitioners teaching in three different university contexts in various regions of Japan attempted to instill GELT-informed principles in their classrooms. As the reflective teaching movement has helped to enhance the knowledge base by highlighting the importance of reflection on classroom practices, this chapter adopts a collective narrative approach to reflect on the materials choice, curriculum design, and lesson activities to share the strategies undertaken by the teachers to promote multilingualism, diversity, and pluralism in the GELT classroom. We discuss the implications for curriculum development and program administration in fostering the use of multilingualism in other English language teaching (ELT) settings outside of Japan.

ABSTRACTThe emerging linguistic landscape of English as a global language calls for practitioners in Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) to move beyond monolingual instruction and adopt a more plurilingual pedagogy. Despite substantial research on implementing global Englishes language teaching (GELT) across the three circles, a research gap persists, especially in secondary education. To bridge the gap, this qualitative study explored the possibility of GELT integration in English classrooms from the lens of 18 students, nine teachers, and nine administrators at nine secondary schools in southern Thailand through focus group discussions and semi‐structured interviews. The data from the qualitative content analysis revealed participants’ positive perceptions of GELT since it was viewed as instrumental in preparing learners to take a practical approach when utilizing English beyond specific forms and norms. However, challenges remained in establishing GELT, especially in contexts dominated by native‐speakerism and linguistic imperialism ideologies. Achieving this goal demands coordinated efforts among TESOL practitioners at all levels. These initiatives involve both policymakers who shape English education through top‐down directives and educators, who implement these strategies from the bottom up. The success of this collaboration is critical in revisiting English learning aims, repositioning English proficiency assessment, embracing sociocultural relevance in ELT, introducing translanguaging pedagogy for ELT, and redefining English instructional models to reflect the global diversity of English more accurately.

The United Nations’ Education 2030 Framework (2015) clearly stated that initial teacher-training should be enhanced to support education for sustainable development (ESD) practice. Instrumental to the acquisition of ESD learning objectives and key competencies is the advancement of trainee-teachers as agents of change (Mundy et al, 2008). Holding knowledge of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and transformative pedagogies for ESD enables educators to positively contribute to their communities. Trainee-teachers of English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) are preparing to teach in a diversity of countries yet the inclusion of ESD in their training is not visible. This case study reports on the utilisation of the CoDesignS ESD Toolkit Planner (‘Toolkit’) for the learning design of a 15-credit module titled Introduction to embedding sustainability in TEFL and TESOL. The module aims to enable trainee-teachers to develop an understanding of the implications of local, national, regional, and global learning contexts upon their teaching practice. Micro-teaching was developed as part of the module to provide trainee-teachers with opportunities to tailor their pedagogical practice to the needs of their learners. The intended outcome of the learning design was to enable the trainee-teachers to feel better equipped to incorporate localised sustainability issues into their classes without detracting from delivering authentic English language learning. This case study report reflects upon the effectiveness of the design in achieving its goals at the completion of a first term of delivery to final year TEFL undergraduates and first term TESOL and Applied Linguistics postgraduates at the University of Essex, UK.

Based on a year-long, qualitative study of five East Asian women, pre-service teachers enrolled in U.S. Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) teacher education programs, this article examines one Korean woman's journey as she navigates through her multiple identities as a daughter, spouse, mother, and language teacher inside and outside of Korea and the United States. In narrative accounts audiotaped during in-depth interviews conducted over a period of seven months, Han Nah shared experiences that have been shaped by her gendered identities while also being transformed by these identities. Han Nah's identities are viewed as a site of struggle in multiple contexts: (1) Han Nah was influenced by how her parents positioned her as a traditional Korean woman in the larger Korean patriarchal society, which in turn impacted her own decisions navigating through both Korean and U.S. educational and professional contexts; and (2) Han Nah's “mothering” and “spousal” identities influenced and somewhat superseded her professional aspirations, which led Han Nah to claim her dominant language and race in the Western educational system. This article concludes with TESOL teacher education implications.

The field of teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) brings people from various racialized backgrounds together in teaching, learning, and research. The idea of race, racialization, and racism are inescapable topics that arise in the contact zones created by teaching English worldwide and thus are valid topics to explore in the field. Nonetheless, unlike our peer fields such as anthropology, education, and sociology, the field of TESOL has not sufficiently addressed the idea of race and related concepts. This special topic issue is one of the first attempts in our field to fill the gap. This introductory article will survey key concepts and theories defined and debated in various fields, including race, ethnicity, culture, racialization, racism, critical race theory, and critical White studies, to provide a foundation for future explorations.

Reflective practice has been around the field of TESOL for some time now, with most educators in agreement that some form of reflection is desirable. However, there is still not much agreement of what reflective practice is or how it should be operationalized within the field of TESOL. The danger is that because it has reached a status of near orthodoxy, it may have become a ritualized and mechanical method far different than its original intention to empower teachers. Such is the motivation for this Special Issue devoted current applications to the concept of reflective practice in the field of teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL). I begin with a trip down my own memory lane as I reflect on reflective practice to see where we are with the seven papers included in the issue, and where we should move forward with this interesting, yet complex topic of reflective practice in TESOL.

This article presents select findings from a case study about applied theatre at a school for girls with refugee backgrounds in the United States. The data were collected through direct observations, semi‐structured interviews, and analysis of students' work. The study uses an intersectional analysis to explore relationships between gender, race, heritage cultures, and language use in arts‐based activities. The author describes one assignment in which students researched a woman from history and then wrote and performed a first‐person monologue from this person's point of view. The researcher discusses ways that the assignment's structure limited students' choices about whom to learn about and portray. In particular, the assignment centered gender over other aspects of students' identities related to heritage cultures, heritage languages, and race. Findings are also reported from interviews with students about how they navigated these parameters and their experiences as writers and performers. Finally, the author considers ways audiences may shape the narratives students are encouraged to tell. Findings highlight ways arts‐based practices directly and indirectly influenced the narratives students with refugee backgrounds created and performed in their resettlement community. The author concludes by discussing implications for arts‐based practices for teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL).

This study analyzes research trends in dictogloss within the field of Teaching Korean to Speakers of Other Languages (TKSOL) and proposes directions for future research. Data were collected from studies published in Korea through June 2025 using major Korean academic databases, including RISS, KISS, and DBpia. Following the PRISMA-ScR guidelines, 72 relevant studies were selected and categorized by publication period, research domain, participant characteristics, methodology, and topic. The results indicate that research on dictogloss in TKSOL has been conducted consistently since 2008. Grammar instruction emerged as the most frequent research domain (26 studies), and intermediate-level learners were the most common participant group (36 studies). However, most studies failed to specify participants’ nationality or learning purposes. Regarding methodology, quantitative research predominated (31 studies), followed by mixed-methods (7), qualitative (3), and meta-analyses (2). In terms of topics, verifying instructional effectiveness was the most prevalent (35 studies), followed by the proposal of teaching models (24 studies). This study is significant as it provides a comprehensive overview of research trends over the past two decades, incorporating both peer-reviewed journal articles and grey literature, such as dissertations and research reports. These findings are expected to serve as a foundational resource for future research on dictogloss.

The purpose of this Action Research study was to examine and improve the instructional practicesand social-emotional learning for multilingual learners in third-grade, urban public school classrooms. Participants and data collected in Cycle 1 consisted of six interviews with third-grade classroom and special education teachers, three classroom observations of a content lesson specific to multilingual student achievement, and two post-observation student focus groups. Analysis of Cycle 1 interviews and observation of grade 3 educators led to the emergence of the following themes: the need for culturally responsive teaching practices to aid MLLs in accessing the content and the need to embed social-emotional learning practices in daily instruction. Action steps for a Multilingual Learner (MLL) instructional series were then designed, implemented, and evaluated for a second research cycle. Action steps included instructional and cooperative learning sessions with 3rd-grade educators, followed by professional learning observations. The sessions aimed to educate and inform 3rd-grade teachers of the best practices for teaching MLL students and to provide educators with strategies to implement SEL instruction to increase MLL achievement and a sense of belonging in the classroom. Findings from Cycle 2 action steps included the current curriculum not being culturally relevant to multilingual learners, student collaboration, and implementation of Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) strategies increased multilingual participation in the classroom, and lastly, peer observations improved instructional quality and student outcomes. Implications for the organization included integrating culturally responsive materials into the curriculum, increasing student opportunities for collaborative learning, and continued mentorship and peer observations for educators.--Author's abstract