Revisiting Language Learning Through the Self: Discovery Learning in the 21st Century

The implementation of computer-assisted language learning (CALL) has provided tremendous opportunities for language teachers to promote their computer literacy and adopt a learner-centered approach to teaching. Accordingly, with the rising advent of language learning technologies, language teachers would occupy a fundamental role in preparing and encouraging students to use various technologies for language learning purposes. In particular, the purpose of this study is to explore the attitudes of Iranian English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers toward the implementation of mobile-assisted language learning (MALL). The survey target participants were 168 EFL teachers who worked in a number of language teaching institutions in Iran. In-depth interviews with 55 EFL teachers were conducted as well. The findings from the survey and interview studies indicated moderately positive attitudes of the participants toward the use of mobile phones for language learning and teaching. The findings suggest that the presence of a couple of perceived challenges might be the reason for the nonuse of mobile phones for EFL learning and teaching in Iran. The teachers reported that they do not use any kind of MALL activities or software programs in their EFL courses. Results demonstrated that the EFL teachers did not have the required skills to use/develop MALL activities. The paper proposes recommendations and suggestions on how to implement MALL and remove potential barriers to MALL implementation in EFL contexts.

Most countries in the world have been influenced by the trends of globalization and interculturality; accordingly, the English language and related cultures have come to play more important roles in global communication. Educational research, a primary source for language teaching and learning development, has increasingly emphasized the importance of integrating language and culture in teaching and learning processes. However, it is not easy for students who use English as a foreign language (EFL) to speak English fluently in an environment where English is rarely used outside the classroom. Teachers nevertheless try to find out the most appropriate teaching approach to develop their students’ English skills in order to serve the demands for English in the labor markets. This article discusses the application of CLIL in an EFL context—a case study in Thailand—with an emphasis on explanation of CLIL framework and principles and how these are implemented in Thailand as guidelines for developing EFL courses or curriculum. Both advantages and disadvantages of applying CLIL are examined and the difficulties of applying CLIL in the classroom are clarified to help EFL teachers plan their courses more effectively. Key words: Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL), English communication, language teaching and learning, EFL context

Please fill up the following information accurately. (Please use Times New Roman, 12 pt. Timing of pedagogical intervention: Oral error treatment in EFL vs. CLIL contexts in primary education in Spain This study stresses the major circumstances in terms of timing of pedagogical intervention in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) and Content Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) contexts within the same school setting in Madrid (Spain). The rationale of the research lies in the EFL and CLIL Primary Education teachers' preferences for online and offline correction (Pawlak, 2014). In order to gather significant data, classroom observation took place to list teachers' timing of error correction in oral communication –i.e., whether EFL and CLIL teachers perform immediate, delayed, or postponed correction. As for content and language integration, recent literature (Coyle, 2010; Wewer, 2017) stands out that CLIL practice should reflect upon alternative teaching methods different to EFL instruction (i.e. focus on language forms). Contrary to the expectations, the results highlight that there are no major differences of the timing of pedagogical intervention between EFL and CLIL teachers: Mostly all oral errors committed during EFL and CLIL courses were immediately intervened. In light of the results, some recommendations are proposed concerning the focus on language functions; i.e., being able to develop communicative competence and collaborative work along with language teachers. Information about Author(s)* Author 1 Author (Last name, First name) Estrada Chichon, Jose Luis Affiliated institution (University) University of Cadiz Country Email address loseluis.estrada@uca.es Department & Rank Corresponding author (Yes/No) Write only one corresponding author. Yes Author 2 Author (Last name, First name) Otto, Ana Affiliated institution (University) UDIMA (Universidad a Distancia de Madrid) Country Email address anaisabel.otto@udima.es Department & Rank Corresponding author (Yes/No) Author 3 Author (Last name, First name) Affiliated institution (University) Country Email address Department & Rank Corresponding author (Yes/No) Author 4 Author (Last name, First name) Affiliated institution (University) Country Email address Department & Rank Corresponding author (Yes/No)

Self-monitoring—the ability to detect and correct errors during speech production plays an important role in second language production. Despite its importance, it has received little attention within English as a Foreign Language (EFL) contexts, particularly with regard to self-monitoring foci, speed, and its association with pausing behavior. This study aims to contribute to this area by investigating self-monitoring foci, speed, and the relationship between self-repair and pausing behavior within an EFL context. Sixty six EFL learners were recruited to perform picture-based description tasks. The research employed repeated measures and correlation analysis to address the research questions. The findings revealed that EFL learners frequently made more grammatical repairs compared to other repair types. Grammatical repair also took significantly longer to process than other repair types, implying that Grammatical repair might be challenging for EFL learners. Furthermore, the findings revealed a weak negative correlation between the frequency of Grammatical repair and pauses between clauses, suggesting that between-clause pauses in EFL speech might be associated with self-monitoring process. These insights shed light on the psycholinguistic aspects of self-monitoring in EFL contexts, carrying significant implications for research and theory.

This study explores the self-efficacies, self-concepts and self-esteems as readers of English of 20 undergraduate students and pre-service teachers (PSTs) enrolled in an English as a foreign language (EFL) teacher education programme in Chile. This study examines their beliefs about themselves as EFL readers and discusses PSTs’ internal landscapes and their potential to influence their students’ reading motivation in English. Qualitative data were gathered through 7 focus group sessions via Zoom and analysed through codebook thematic analysis. The findings reveal that participants’ self-beliefs are complex, dynamic and multidimensional. Their self-efficacy, self-concept and self-esteem as readers of English are informed by preconceptions about EFL reading, mainly understood from intensive (IR) and extensive reading (ER) approaches, as well as their beliefs about an idealised EFL reader, and motivation for reading in EFL. The implications of this study relate to the importance for EFL teacher education programmes in the country to consider affective and internal dimensions in positive EFL reading instruction. It emphasizes the importance of nurturing positive self-perceptions to promote EFL reading motivation and engagement vital for both teacher development and student success in EFL contexts. By fostering self-confidence and promoting a flexible approach to EFL reading, teachers can create a supportive learning environment, encouraging EFL reading motivation and engagement. Keywords: EFL reading, EFL pre-service teachers, self-concept, self-esteem, self-efficacy

Information and communication technology (ICT) is an effective tool which can support young children’s reading skills in English as a foreign language (EFL), while teachers’ perceptions influence their classroom practices; however, there is limited empirical evidence on students’ perceptions on the use of ICT to enhance early reading skills in EFL. This study investigated early childhood student teachers’ perceptions regarding children’s reading skills in EFL via ICT, in Vietnam. A questionnaire was administered to 100 students. Students expressed positive perceptions indicating their willingness-intention to use ICT in teaching reading in EFL to young children. The skills and strategies most reported were that they will use computers high percentage of agreement in their classrooms for the extension of children’s vocabulary and the motivation of children to read and to like reading. Students perceived as major barriers the technical support and the availability of resources. The greater the year of study, the more positive were their perceptions. Implications for early childhood pre-service teacher training and educational policy are discussed.

<em>In this 21st century, the incorporation of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has become a prominent practice in various educational domains, including the learning of languages in the classroom. However, there are a small number of teachers who are not familiar with incorporating ICT in their classrooms due to numerous causes. By the given situation, this study aims to identify the disparities in students' engagement between English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classrooms that utilize Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and those that do not. Additionally, it seeks to determine the predominant and higher forms of engagement in these two types of EFL classrooms. A descriptive qualitative approach was applied in this research. To obtain the data, the authors examined the level of student involvement during teaching and learning activities in two types of classrooms: those that employed ICT (Information and Communication Technology) and those that did not. Subsequently, the acquired data was scrutinized and categorized based on the parameters of students' involvement (behavioral, cognitive, and emotional). The results indicate that both classrooms are primarily characterized by students' behavioral involvement. The class that included ICT in its teaching and learning process experienced a 9.5% increase in students' cognitive engagement. The implication of this research is to encourage teachers to incorporate ICT in the classroom so that the students’ three engagement types can be achieved better proportionally.</em>

Exploring the Interplay between Well-being, Mindfulness, Creativity, and Work Engagement among EFL Teachers

This study investigates the effects of teacher self-compassion, emotion regulation, and emotional labor strategies on teacher resilience in the English as a foreign language (EFL) context. The study aims to understand the relationships between these variables and their potential implications for promoting teacher resilience. A sample of 711 Chinese EFL teachers participated in the study. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted to assess the psychometric properties of the instruments used to measure teacher self-compassion, emotion regulation, emotional labor strategies, and teacher resilience. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to examine the relationships between these variables. The results of the study revealed that teacher self-compassion and emotional labor strategies had direct positive effects on teacher resilience. Specifically, higher levels of self-compassion and effective use of emotional labor strategies were associated with greater teacher resilience. Furthermore, teacher emotion regulation was found to indirectly predict teacher resilience through the mediation of emotional labor strategies. This suggests that the ability to regulate emotions influences the adoption of effective emotional labor strategies, which in turn contributes to higher levels of teacher resilience. The findings of this study highlight the importance of teacher self-compassion, emotion regulation, and emotional labor strategies in promoting teacher resilience in the EFL context. Interventions aimed at enhancing teacher emotional regulation skills and fostering self-compassion may have significant implications for supporting teachers in managing the demands and challenges of their profession, ultimately enhancing their resilience. These findings contribute to the understanding of factors that can promote teacher resilience and inform the development of targeted interventions in the EFL context.

The recent growth and sustainability in online education have led to a greater demand for language teachers to accept online teaching and a heightened focus on language teachers’ emotions in an online setting. Based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), this study attempted to investigate the relationship between English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers’ acceptance of online teaching and their emotional labor in online teaching. A questionnaire was distributed to 338 EFL teachers working at 19 middle schools and 24 high schools in China, and 10 teachers were interviewed. Following a series of analyses of the data, a structural relationship model integrating acceptance of online teaching and online teaching emotional labor strategies was developed and tested. The results indicate that EFL teachers’ acceptance of online teaching significantly predicts three emotional labor strategies in online teaching. Specifically, EFL teachers’ acceptance of online teaching positively influences deep acting and expression of naturally felt emotions, while negatively affecting surface acting. The obtained results address important theoretical, methodological, and practical gaps by examining the interplay between acceptance of online teaching and emotional labor in the context of online language education, a dimension that previous studies have largely overlooked.

To move with the technologically advancing times, the Government of Zimbabwe in 2016 proposed an information and communication technology (ICT) policy for implementation in educational institutions. This policy demanded that ICTs be integrated into teaching and learning for a higher quality of education. However, a noteworthy point is that this policy is largely a theoretical document with no clear indications of how the mandate could be put into practice, especially in secondary schools located in rural areas where ICT infrastructure limitation is a real challenge. That this policy applies a blanket ICT integration ideology that fails to consider disparities in advantage between rural and urban schools creates a fundamental problem about the extent to which the policy can achieve holistic success. In this article, extracted from a doctoral study, we question the extent of the success of the ICT policy implementation in rural secondary schools in Zimbabwe, particularly with reference to English second language (ESL) teaching and learning. Drawing on findings from a multiple case study research project that utilised interviews and focus group discussions to collect qualitative data, we argue that there are salient discrepancies between the ideologies that the Zimbabwean national ICT policy panders and the realities that ESL teachers and learners face on the ground about ICT usage.

Background: Although previous studies have reported WTC variables in the EFL context, limited studies have investigated learners’ perceptions of WTC outside the classroom. In addition, insights into learners’ perceptions from qualitative data have rarely been presented in this study area. Purpose: This study investigated the perceptions of willingness to communicate (WTC) of Thai English as a Foreign Language (EFL) first-year university students. It focused on their perceptions of situational factors of WTC inside and outside the classroom. Also, it investigated the reasons behind the perceptions. Methods: As a mixed-method study, a questionnaire adapted from Baghaei’s (2013) and Peng and Woodrow’s (2010) was used to collect quantitative data, while reflective reports and semi-structured interviews were used to reveal explanations for the quantitative data. Results: The present study found that the students were more willing to speak outside the classroom than inside the classroom. Interlocutors were significant factors affecting WTC both inside and outside the classroom. Also, speaking topics that are suitable for students' perceived level of proficiency but still pose a challenge for their language development have the potential to increase WTC in the classroom. At the same time, a stimulating environment was powerful for WTC outside the classroom due to a lack of an English-speaking environment in the EFL context. The qualitative data revealed that foreign language anxiety concerning the interlocutor’s competence, familiarity with the interlocutor, and language classroom experiences, as well as social support from friends, were the rationale behind the impact of the situational factors. Conclusion: Teachers can apply the results of this present study to enhance WTC in the classroom and increase students’ opportunities to speak inside and outside the classroom through pedagogical support.

This study explores the effectiveness and broad adoption of online instruction for English as a Foreign Language (EFL). Considering the difficulties that instructors and students encounter in this kind of instruction, the study uses an extensive literature review approach. The goal is to underscore the positive impact of online learning on the sustainability of education and identify key factors that contribute to its effectiveness. Drawing literature from academic databases, journals, books, and reputable online platforms, the collection process is guided by specific terms like "EFL" and "Online Learning." Inclusion criteria target studies addressing the positive impacts and challenges of online learning in EFL. Thematic coding is applied to organize the literature into sections covering positive impacts, challenges, and influencing factors. Thematic analysis identifies common themes, while a comparative analysis emphasizes differences and similarities across studies, ensuring a cohesive exploration of the topic. The research suggests potential avenues for future studies to further enrich our understanding of online learning in the EFL context.

<p>'A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words'. Pictures can stimulate and increase the interest<br />and imagination of students so you can easily encourage a creative storyteller in them by<br />providing them an inspiring picture on which to base their story. Picture Storytelling has long<br />been recognized as a very useful method of language learning as it enhances students' language<br />skills through creative writing. The aim of this paper is to explore the possibilities of how<br />picture storytelling can effectively be used to foster students' motivation, creativity and learning<br />in EFL (English as a foreign language) classes. This paper presents a pilot study focused on 88<br />EFL first-, third- and fourth-year students of the Faculty of Educational Sciences in Sarajevo,<br />implementing picture storytelling tasks into our EFL classes in order to increase students'<br />motivation and creativity as well as to develop their basic English language skills. At the end<br />of semester, a questionnaire was given to all student participants in this project in order to<br />evaluate their attitudes towards using picture storytelling tasks in our EFL context and whether<br />they see such creative writing as a tool with positive effect on their motivation and developing<br />their EFL language skills. The results of the questionnaire reveal that students had an overall<br />positive attitude towards using picture storytelling tasks as an appropriate medium both for<br />sparking their imagination while engaged in creative writing tasks and for practicing their<br />English language skills.</p>

As part of a larger qualitative case study, this article explores the notion of teacher leadership in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) context and a higher educational institution in Saudi Arabia. Twelve EFL teacher leaders were interviewed to understand their perceptions of teacher leadership practices in the EFL context. Qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews and opened-ended questionnaires, and analysed using NVivo10. Data analysis led to 18 main categories and four overarching themes; however, four major categories and one key theme are part of this article that represent the EFL teacher-leaders’ perceptions of their leadership practices and roles at the English Language Institute (ELI). The findings reveal that teacher leadership is a novel concept at the ELI and teacher leaders operate in hierarchical leadership structures. However, their wide range of leadership roles, both instructional and operational match with the three historical waves of teacher leadership (Silva, Gimbert & Nolan, 2000) in the US context. The impact of hierarchical structures on teacher leadership practices is evidently found as EFL teacher leaders encounter various difficulties, such as heavy administrative workload and lack of autonomy. Nevertheless, their shared leadership practices within the groups help them deal with these challenges.