English Language Education Policies and Practices in the Mediterranean Countries and Beyond


Book Description

This edited volume seeks ways to present a unifying picture of TESOL policies and practices from different contexts in the broader Mediterranean basin and beyond. The main topics are: English language education; English language teacher education and recruitment policy; English language testing policies and practices in different contexts.




Worldwide English Language Education Today


Book Description

This book explores the ideologies, policies, and practices of English language education around the world today. It shows the ways in which ideology is a constituent part of the social realities of English language teaching (ELT) and how ELT policies and practices are shaped by ideological positions that privilege some participants and marginalize others. Each chapter considers the multiple ideologies underlying the thinking and actions of different members of society about ELT and how these inform overt and covert policies at the national level and beyond. They examine the implications of investigating ELT ideologies and policies for advancing socio-political understandings of practical aspects such as instruction, materials, assessment, and teacher education in the field. Introducing new persepctives on the theory and practice of language teaching today, this book is ideal reading for researchers and postgraduate students interested in applied linguistics and language education, faculty members of higher education institutions, English language teachers, and policy makers and planners.




Language Teacher Education for Global Englishes


Book Description

This practical resource book showcases both the theory and practical application for teacher educators in diverse contexts bringing a global Englishes perspective into their teacher education courses, both at pre- and in-service levels. The recent Global Englishes paradigm serves as a promising response to the complexity of identity, interaction, use, and instruction surrounding the English language. It is increasingly important to enhance teachers’ knowledge base—their specialized knowledge, skills, competencies, and commitments—vis-à-vis the changing needs of English Language Teaching. The chapters in the book provide accessible theoretical orientation to different aspects of the Global Englishes paradigm, from instructional materials to language assessment, and are complemented by a range of practical applications that promote teacher development. The volume is recommended as a viable professional development resource for teacher educators who are looking for activities and resources in preparing teachers for diverse teaching contexts, realities, affordances, and constraints.




Second Language Learning Motivation in a European Context: The Case of Hungary


Book Description

This book provides an overview of second language (L2) motivation research in a specific European context: Hungary, which has proved to offer an important laboratory for such research, as a number of major political changes over the past 30 years have created a changing background for L2 learning in an increasingly globalized world. The book provides an overview of theoretical research on L2 motivation, together with detailed information on large-scale L2 motivation studies in Hungary. Further, it presents a meta-analysis of the most important investigations, and qualitative data on teachers’ views regarding success in L2 learning. In turn, the interdisciplinary nature of L2 motivation is taken into account and relevant antecedent constructs to L2 motivation are investigated. Lastly, the book outlines possible future directions for L2 motivation research.




Second Language Writing Instruction in Global Contexts


Book Description

This book revisits second language (L2) writing teacher education by exploring the complex layers of L2 writing instruction in non-English dominant contexts (i.e. English as a foreign language contexts). It pushes the boundaries of teacher education by specifically examining the development of teacher literacy in writing in under-represented L2 writing contexts, and re-envisions L2 writing teacher education that is contextually and culturally situated, moving away from the uncritical embracement of Western-based writing pedagogies. It explores and expands on writing teacher education – how language teachers come to understand their own writing practices and instruction, and what their related experiences are in non-English dominant contexts across the globe. Chapter 4 is free to download as an open access publication. You can access it here: https://zenodo.org/record/7096127#.YymCsHbMLcs




Engaged Language Policy and Practices


Book Description

Engaged Language Policy and Practices re-envisions language policy and planning as an engaged approach, drawing on and portraying theoretical and educational equity perspectives. It calls for the right to language policy-making in which all concerned—communities, parents, students, educators, and advocates—collectively imagine new strategies for resisting global neoliberal marginalization of home languages and cultural identities. This book subsequently emphasizes the means by which engaged dialectic processes can inform and clarify language policy-making decisions that promote equity. In other words, rather than descriptions of outcomes, the authors emphasize the need to detail the means by which local/regional actors resist and transform inequitable policies. These descriptions of processes thereby provide all actors with ideological, pedagogical, and equity policy tools that can inform situated school and community policy-making. This book depicts ways in which engaged language policy embodies the intersection of critical inquiry, participant involvement, and ongoing engaged language planning processes. It further offers an alternative to the traditional top-down approach to language education policy-making. Engaged Language Policy and Practices is essential reading for scholars, teachers, students, communities, and others concerned with worldwide language and identity equity.




The Common European Framework of Reference


Book Description

A comparative study of the impact of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages produced by the Council of Europe in 2001, this book asks writers in European countries and countries in the Americas and Asia to explain the influence of the CEFR. For each country there is a policy-maker and an academic perspective.




English as a Language of Teaching and Learning for Community Secondary Schools in Tanzania


Book Description

This book examines the challenges posed by English, a foreign language, as a language of teaching and learning for community secondary schools in Tanzania in terms of academic performance. The book probes the necessity for having two languages of instruction in the Tanzanian educational system. While Kiswahili, the native language, is predominantly understood by the majority of people, the discussion in this book indicates that most students in community secondary schools in Tanzania are incompetent in understanding, writing, listening, reading, and speaking English, a language they use in learning and doing their examinations, especially in the early stages of their secondary studies. The incompetence in the above-mentioned skills is mostly caused by their inability to cope with the abrupt transition in the languages of instruction from their pre-primary and primary school study [Kiswahili] to secondary school study [English]. Moreover, most teachers are unable to use the English language as a means to impart knowledge or facilitate learning to their students, leading them to code-switching and code-mixing. This book poses a challenge to countries whose students pass through a transition from one language of instruction to another in their educational systems, helping them to make appropriate decisions in regard to the appropriate language of teaching and learning.




Assessment for Learning in Primary Language Learning and Teaching


Book Description

This volume provides a detailed account of the practical use of Assessment for Learning (AfL) in primary language classrooms. It gives an in-depth account of the ways in which eight experienced primary language teachers incorporated this type of assessment into their practice and discusses the possible impact of AfL on primary language learning. Key themes discussed in the volume include the relationship between AfL and language learning in childhood, which assessment methods are appropriate for primary-aged language learners, which methods support learner agency and engagement in the learning processes, and possible paths for future action, with a focus on implementation and researching AfL in primary language contexts. The findings of this book are relevant to global contexts and it will be of interest to postgraduate students and researchers in the fields of language education, language assessment and teacher education, as well as to primary and language teachers and school leaders.




The Handbook of Informal Language Learning


Book Description

Provides a comprehensive and unique examination of global language learning outside of the formal school setting Authored by a prominent team of international experts in their respective fields, The Handbook of Informal Language Learning is a one-of-a-kind reference work and it is a timely and valuable resource for anyone looking to explore informal language learning outside of a formal education environment. It features a comprehensive collection of cutting edge research areas exploring the cultural and historical cases of informal language learning, along with the growing area of digital language learning, and the future of this relevant field in national development and language education. The Handbook of Informal Language Learning examines informal language learning from both theoretical and practical perspectives. Structured across six sections, chapters cover areas of motivation, linguistics, cognition, and multimodality; digital learning, including virtual contexts, gaming, fanfiction, vlogging, mobile devices, and nonformal programs; and media and live contact, including learning through environmental print, tourism/study abroad. The book also provides studies of informal learning in four national contexts, examines the integration of informal and formal classroom learning, and discusses the future of language learning from different perspectives. Edited by respected researchers of computer-mediated communication and second language learning and teacher education Features contributions by leading international scholars reaching out to a global audience Presents an exciting and progressive selection of chapters in a rapidly expanding field of research and teaching Provides a state-of-the-art collection of the theories, as well as the historical, cultural and international cases relating to informal language learning and its future in a digital age Covers 30 key topics that represent pioneering findings and new research The Handbook of Informal Language Learning is an essential resource for researchers, students, and professionals in the fields of language acquisition, English as a second language, and foreign language education.