Utilizing Internet Resources in TESOL

The continuous claim about the unsatisfactory performance of Malaysian graduates during interviews and at workplace in relation to their communication skills in English is alarming. This raises questions about the extent to which future workforce is prepared for this globalised world which requires them to interact and collaborate with individuals not only from their own country but also from other countries. At higher learning institutions, many English language educators face challenges in creating language learning environment that supports intercultural communication. In preparing future workforce for international communication, English language teaching and learning needs to go beyond the four walls of a classroom, over to other regions. An alternative to provide such language learning environment is by designing e-collaborative learning that provides opportunities for language learners to learn the language with students from other countries in a meaningful way. This paper showcases the impacts of e-collaborative English language learning conducted between engineering students of one technical university in Malaysia and one higher learning institution in Bordeaux, France for about one semester. At the end of the semester, the students from both countries wrote a reflection of their experience. The data from the reflective writing were analysed using thematic analysis to highlight the impacts of the e-collaborative learning on students' intercultural communicative competence. This study highlights key considerations to structure e-collaborative language teaching and learning among students of different regions.

Enrollment of English language learners (ELLs) in United States schools has increased more rapidly than general enrollment, resulting in an urgent need for teachers to be prepared and to meet the needs of ELLs in their classrooms. This study examined the language learning beliefs and attitudes toward ELLs among 286 pre-service teachers in a large public university. Results show that pre-service teachers demonstrated neutral attitudes toward ELLs. Participants’ language learning beliefs exhibited four components: “difficulty of learning,” “ease of learning,” “motivation” and “traditional view” of language learning. Controlling for language learning status, pre–service teachers tended to demonstrate less supportive attitudes toward ELLs when they held traditional views of language learning and when they viewed language learning (in general and English in particular) as relatively easy or not difficult. These findings suggest preservice teachers need evidence-based coursework in language development and language learning processes to overcome potential misconceptions and biases regarding ELLs.

Gamification in English language learning comprises of game mechanics which involve points, badges, leader boards and rewards. It is one of the approaches that has been used by the educators to change the pace of lesson in learning English. This approach has been used in the class because of the benefits that it can offer in English language learning. This paper focuses on the use of gamification in English language teaching (ELT) and learning by looking at the advantages it has brought to language skills. Gamification can be used in the teaching of the different skills in English and in terms of its benefits to English language learning, gamification makes learning more effective by making grammar learning more pleasurable, vocabulary memorisation more successful, communication and cooperation easier to be practiced and others. It is hoped that this paper will add to the literature on the applications of gamification in ELT and lead to the betterment of ELT in second language setting particularly in Malaysia.

English learning as a foreign or second language is no more complicated process in modern era. In Pakistan, the young generation is trained with different aspects of life not only in academics but also in professional, social and in psychological domains. This study investigates the effects of teachers’ attitude on learning English as a foreign language. The study used survey questionnaire to find the effects of teachers’ attitude. Almost 106 participants volunteered for this study from three departments of one university of Pakistan. The gathered data was analyzed through SPSS version 20 to find percentage, mean score and SD. The study offered the most promising results based on teachers attitudes on learning English. The results revealed teachers’ caring attitude as significant factor related to the cognitive and communicative abilities of the students. Further, the results of this study indicated that the success of the class always depend on teachers’ behavior with the most effective impacts on learners’ social and academic success. Moreover, this study discusses the detailed information about teachers’ attitude on students’ language learning, classroom performance and future impact on language teaching and learning.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the application of and attitude towards the use of mobile phones in English language learning amongst Taiwanese university students. The proliferation of mobile phones makes them the most available device for transmitting language learning instruction aids and facilitating mobile learning. For the purpose of the research students with a mean age of 19 were randomly selected in 89 separate colleges and asked to complete a questionnaire (Application of Mobile Phones in English Learning). GM(0,N) was employed to analyze the assembled data and determine the weighting and ranking of responses. The major findings of this study were: Searching for word meaning (dictionary use) is the most frequent mobile phone application in English learning while writing and oral practice are the least frequently used. Most college students consider English learning with mobile phones feasible and especially effective in vocabulary building. The study also gave rise to some suggestions for future research.

The study aims to reveal the implementation CLIL approach in improving students’ English language use and learning in the science classroom. A descriptive study was employed where data were collected using observation and interview to two classes at of Private Islamic Boarding in West Sumatera. The students for CLIL Strategy are the first grade of junior high school at science classrooms. The result of the research revealed that the use of the CLIL strategy across the curriculum is an effective strategy to develop English language use and learning. The pedagogical implications of the study for the EFL students in science classrooms include the need for teachers to consider underlying theories of teaching English in EFL context taking into account students’ constraints; a focus on the various types of students’ English ability and consider students’ interest in topic selection; teachers to be aware of the significance of the relationship between their attitude and background in classroom practice; teachers to be trained formally on the implementation of the CLIL Strategy.

This research study investigated the attitudes and motivation toward English language learning in senior high schools using Accra Senior High School as a case study. The study employed a quantitative approach using descriptive-correlational design to investigate the relationship between students’ motivation and attitude in the learning of the English language toward their English language achievement. This study adopted a questionnaire to gather data from 100 English students and 5 English teachers who were randomly selected through a simple random and convenience non-probability sampling technique. The findings revealed that students are instrumentally driven to learn the English language in comparison to integrative and personal motivation. The majority of the students indicated they learn English because they need it for their studies. The majority also indicated they learn English because it makes it easier to contact English-speaking people and get a well-paid job. Second, students' attitude towards the learning of the English language was found to be positive. The study revealed students were very interested in speaking the English language. The teachers attested to this and revealed students take active participation in class and make an effort to speak English. Lastly, there existed a moderate positive and statistically significant correlation between English learners' motivations (r = .45) and attitudes (r = .35) towards the English language with their English performance. It was concluded that as English learners’ motivations and attitudes in learning the English language grow, their English Performance improves. In addition, there existed a strong positive correlation between English learners' motivations in the English language and their attitudes towards the language. This implied that learners' motivation in learning English had an influence on their attitude towards the English language. The study recommends that instructors or teachers should assist in the creation of an environment that is favourable to reducing feelings of nervousness or shyness.

Given the widened access to Chinese higher education, a large proportion of students studying at Chinese colleges come from rural lower-class families and encounter different challenges in English language learning. By using Bourdieu’s social theoretical lenses, this case study explores how the interplay of capital, habitus and social fields affected ten rural lower-class college students’ English language learning. This study finds that these students inhabited difficult and inferior positions because they lacked different forms of capital needed for accessing language and cultural learning resources, solidifying their English language foundation, and developing intercultural understanding and competence. Their narrow, test-oriented focus, and the lack of confidence and initiative in English language learning stemmed from their habitus formed in their situated socio-cultural and educational fields. Through reflecting on these complexities and conditions in English language learning, teachers and rural lower-class college students may move from a deficit lens in terms of their knowledge foundation and learning styles, which leads to the lack of confidence in teaching and learning; instead, they might collaboratively explore appropriate strategies and resources that cultivate students’ comprehensive English language competence and intercultural competence.

English at college level serves not just as a compulsory subject but also as the medium of exploring knowledge in different specialized fields. Many first-year students lay little emphasis on the English language learning and lack awareness of the potential impact of English proficiency on their academic performance at college level. To help first-year students adapt to the increased academic demand and rigor in the new learning environment, the study investigated the English-leaning problems and challenges that confronting 308 freshmen on three different English proficiency levels. The study's purpose was twofold: to gain insight into the difficulties in learning English from a student's perspective, and to suggest practical instructional strategies to facilitate English teachers' curriculum planning. In anonymous questionnaire, students were asked to identify the difficult aspects in learning English as well as to pinpoint the extent to which their English skills demand improvement on a 5-point Likert scale. The results of the study revealed that grammar seemed the crucial factor on how well students perceived their speaking, reading, and writing competency; moreover, the results also revealed some issues that English teachers might want to take into consideration in planning curriculum to respond to students with varied English proficiency and to address their learning needs.

Educational psychology has recently reflected a policy shift from focusing on “what goes wrong” in schools, including psychological, physical, and educational disabilities, to recognizing and promoting strengths and positive aspects of students and their environments. Within this scope, some lines of research have examined the extent to which setting personal high standards influences such positive outcomes as educational achievement and high level of motivation. The present study was motivated by the concern that Iranian English language teachers' setting high standards, i.e. perfectionism, may predict English language learners’ motivation and language achievement. Through cluster random sampling, a total of 30 English language teachers with more than one year of experience and 300 elementary English language learners were selected from English Language Institutes in Fars province, Iran. Frost Multidimensional Perfectionism scale and Motivations Underlying English Language Learning questionnaire were used to measure teachers' perfectionism and learners’ language learning motivation, respectively. The learners' final scores in the English courses were collected as a measure of their language learning achievement. The result of simple regression analysis revealed that the teachers' perfectionism did not predict English language learners’ motivation and language achievement. In other words, Iranian English language teachers' perfectionism did not account for any variance in these two variables of interest. Keywords: Perfectionism, Motivation, Language Learning Achievement

Purpose – To highlight and discuss a framework for promoting effective classroom assessment practice that supports the language and literacy development of English Learners (ELs).Design/methodology/approach – Though it includes some practical recommendations, it primarily synthesizes the work found in theoretical books on EL assessment.Findings – Provides information on the main issues teachers need to consider for engagement in effective assessment practices at the classroom levels, with particular attention to classroom-based assessment. It highlights the need for considering a multiliteracies approach.Research limitations/implications – It focuses on ELs in the U.S. K-12 system, therefore, it does not encompass all the possible types of ELs. It does not focus on high-stakes testing.Practical implications – A very useful source of information for both preservice and in-service teachers of ELs.Originality/value – This chapter offers an overview of essential elements involved in the assessment of special populations of students as is the case of ELs in U.S. public schools.

Linguistics as the scientific study of language has very crucial role in running language instruction. Changes in language teaching-learning method reflect the development of linguistic theories. This paper describes how the three broad views of linguistic theories, namely traditional grammar, generative grammar, and functional grammar work in relation to English language teaching and learning. Since both linguistics and language learning have the same subject to talk about, the knowledge of the language, then, is the core. Linguistic features analyzed are on the levels of Phonology, Morphology, Syntax, Semantics and Discourse as the basic components, supported by Psycholinguistics and Sociolinguistics. In relation to language teaching and learning, especially English, such knowledge on the English language gives learners the chance to apply in social communication and in any occasion. The use depends on the viewing of linguistic theories (English) in certain era, which reflects the need of learners in using English. It is assumed that the more linguistic competence someone has, the easier he/she can run his/her instructional activities. As the consequence, in the English language learning, the syllabus designer should notify the mentioned levels of linguistic components while constructing English instructional materials, methods, and evaluation based on the stage of learners to avoid misunderstanding in use. In this case, English instructors/teachers should also update their linguistic competence, especially on Psycholinguistic and Sociolinguistic points of view. Key words/phrases: linguistics, English, language instruction, linguistic competence

The last two decades have witnessed many studies reporting factors that promote second language (L2) learners" pragmatic competence such as pragmatic input, language proficiency, and pragmatic instruction.Length of formal study, although it may relate to language proficiency indirectly, has been a rather neglected aspect in pragmatic acquisition research.This study analyses the effects of length of time spent learning English formally on English language learners" ability to evaluate impoliteness and the foundations by which they evaluate it.Empirical data were collected by means of questionnaires and a semi-structured interview from one hundred EFL teacher trainees at a private university in Central Java Indonesia.The participants were divided into two groups.Group 1 (n = 50) studied English for nine and half years and group 2 (n = 50) studied English for eight and half years.The overall results revealed that the length of time spent learning English affected the learners" capability of comprehending impoliteness in particular off-record impoliteness.The English learners in the present study mostly used Quality face violation as the foundation of impoliteness evaluation.

This study aims to explore the gender differences in the majors' of students who experienced English language learning anxiety at a University of Technology in Taiwan. The participants were 245 randomly selected students at this university in Taiwan. A questionnaire about English language learning anxiety was adopted as data collection. The results show that students attributed the cause of anxiety to the fear of speaking, the fear of exam consequences, a lack of both learning motivation and self-confidence, as well as the teacher's influence. Also, the finding of this study indicates that male students have stronger feelings of English learning anxiety than female students, and non-English majors have stronger feelings of English learning anxiety than English majors. The findings of this study suggest that EFL teachers in Taiwan should strive towards making classrooms more relaxing with a less formal atmosphere, and move away from the exam paradigm.

The interplay between perceived teacher support, grit, and academic engagement among Chinese EFL learners