scholarly journals Teachers’ Perceptions of Assessment and Feedback Practices in Finland’s Foreign Language Classes During the Covid-19 Pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (Sp.Issue) ◽  
Author(s):  
Toni Mäkipää ◽  
Kaisa Hahl ◽  
Milla Luodonpää-Manni
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Teachers Perceptions ◽  
Core Curricula ◽  
Final Assessment ◽  
Education Data ◽  
Language Classes ◽  
Quantitative And Qualitative Methods

In this paper, we examine how the Covid-19 pandemic affected the quality of teachers’ assessment and feedback in Finland’s foreign language classes during the remote teaching period in spring 2020. Multifaceted assessment and feedback practices are underscored in Finland’s core curricula, forming a focal aspect of learning. Therefore, we studied teachers’ perceptions of their assessment and feedback practices at different school levels during the remote teaching period and how they considered the remote teaching period in students’ final assessment at the end of basic education. Data were collected through an online questionnaire and analysed using both quantitative and qualitative methods. Most of the 176 respondents felt that assessment and feedback practices were implemented successfully, and the final assessment was realistic and reliable. However, teachers’ perceptions were mixed on several issues, and differences were found in the amount and form of feedback between respondents and school levels or what competence demonstration or assignments to count towards the final assessment. In addition, the remote teaching period usually had less influence on students’ final grades than the last few months of basic education. The results suggest that more attention should be paid to enhancing feedback practices and connecting with students during remote teaching periods.

scholarly journals Constructiveness as a quality of academic dialogue in Russian as a foreign language classes

2020 ◽  
pp. 103-108
Author(s):  
Еkaterina Yu. Tolmacheva
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Educational Environment ◽  
Constructive Dialogue ◽  
Language Classes ◽  
University Training

The article defines the main qualities of the academic dialogue, highlights the criteria that ensure constructive communication in the educational environment. The specificity of constructive dialogue in teaching Russian as a foreign language at the faculty of pre-university training at the levels of A1 - B1 is characterized.

scholarly journals Benefits and Difficulties of Learning in Group Work in EFL Classes in Saudi Arabia

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 247 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nurah Alfares
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Adult Students ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Group Work ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Telephone Interviews ◽  
Language Classes ◽  
Emotional Aspects ◽  
Quantitative And Qualitative Methods

This study investigates learners’ perceptions of the benefits and the difficulties of group work (GW) in EFL (English as a foreign language) classes. The purpose of this study is to explore the possible effects of GW, in order to better understand learners’ attitudes towards GW, and to inform language teachers of students’ views of using GW. A mixed-methods approach (quantitative and qualitative methods) was used to collect the required data for the study. Questionnaires were collected from 188 students in five private language institutions. These institutions specialise in teaching EFL to adult students studying in intermediate and secondary schools. From this sample, 20 students were interviewed in more detail in follow-up telephone interviews. The questionnaire examined learners’ general perceptions, and the telephone interviews further explored the questionnaire findings. The findings revealed that many language learners consider the advantages of GW to be mainly related to (1) cognitive aspects, i.e. benefits that help learners in the learning process; and (2) emotional aspects, which are benefits that enhance motivation for learners. However, some learners identified difficulties, mostly related to learners’ behaviours, which can result in uncooperative work in groups. These findings revealed that Saudi learners regard GW as effective in learning, but that some students’ negative behaviours may prevent them from obtaining the benefits of GW.

scholarly journals TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS ABOUT ORAL CORRECTIVE FEEDBACK IN EFL SPEAKING CLASSES: A CASE AT COLLEGES IN THE MEKONG DELTA, VIETNAM

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ngan Kim Tran ◽  
Cang Trung Nguyen
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
Corrective Feedback ◽  
Mekong Delta ◽  
College Teachers ◽  
Teachers Perceptions ◽  
Area Of Interest ◽  
Language Classes ◽  
Oral Corrective Feedback

Corrective feedback has received much attention in language teaching and learning, including English as a foreign language. However, little research has been done with regard to college teachers’ perceptions about this area of interest in speaking language classes. The present study, therefore, focuses on teachers’ perceptions about oral corrective feedback and its types at tertiary contexts within a local province of the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. This paper draws on data collected as part of a larger study consisting of questionnaires. The findings indicate that teachers had positive perceptions about oral corrective feedback. However, some considered oral corrective feedback as optional since they were concerned with learners’ uptake when provided with corrective feedback. Elicitation was the most favored technique, followed by meta-linguistic feedback. Furthermore, implications are also presented. <p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/edu_01/0629/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>

scholarly journals Raising Student Consciousness About Machine Translation

2021 ◽  
Vol 2020 (1) ◽  
pp. 386
Author(s):  
Tim Newfields ◽  
Ivan Botev
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Machine Translation ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Consciousness Raising ◽  
Learning Framework ◽  
Language Classes ◽  
Efl Students ◽  
Speed Up ◽  
Translation Services

With the rise of virtual assistants and the proliferation of digital translation software, such as Google Translate and Weblio that speed up the translator’s work, it is time to question what role, if any, machine translation services should have in foreign language classes. In this paper, the authors describe some activities designed to raise awareness about the use and misuse of machine translation within a task-based learning framework. Inspired by Sharwood-Smith’s 1981 notion of “consciousness-raising”, we outline three activities highlighting the benefits and problems of machine translation. An analysis of two translation exercises by 86 tertiary students in Japan indicated how many felt uncertain of the quality of their translations. Moreover, semi-structured interviews with six respondents following these activities underscored how students felt ambivalent about their translations. We conclude the paper with a discussion of some resources for EFL students seeking to improve their translation skills. デジタル翻訳ソフトの普及に伴い、外国語の授業で機械翻訳サービスが、もしあるとしたらどのような役割を担うべきかを問う時期にきている。本稿では、タスクベース学習の枠組みの中で、機械翻訳の使用と誤用についての認識を高めるためにデザインされたいくつかの活動について説明する。 本稿では、機械翻訳の利点と欠点を強調する三つのアクティビティーを概説する。日本の高等教育機関で学ぶ86人の学生によるふたつの翻訳演習の分析から、多くの学生が自らの翻訳の質に不安を感じていることがわかった。、さらに、これらのアクティビティーの後に実施した6人の学部生への半構造化面接から、多くの学生が翻訳の質を判断するのに苦労していることが明らかになった。締めくくりとして、翻訳スキルの向上を目指すEFLの学生向けのリソースについて考察した。

Teachers’ perceptions on inclusion in basic school

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 409-419 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Lucia Manrique ◽  
Ely A.T. Dirani ◽  
Annie F. Frere ◽  
Geraldo E. Moreira ◽  
Pedro M. Arezes
Keyword(s):  
Assistive Technology ◽  
Inclusive Education ◽  
Mathematics Teachers ◽  
School Environment ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
Special Educational Needs ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Teachers Perceptions ◽  
Support Materials ◽  
Education Data

PurposeDespite dealing with special educational needs (SEN) students, many teachers feel unprepared for this task. This situation reveals the urgent need for studies in different areas, directed toward the inclusion of students in regular classrooms. Therefore, a diagnosis about the situation of inclusive education and the resources available in schools offering regular teaching becomes of paramount importance. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to present the results of an investigation that sought information on pedagogical work in inclusive education and in the use of support materials by teachers of basic education in Brazil and Portugal.Design/methodology/approachIn order to carry out this investigation, a questionnaire was developed by a partnership between researchers from the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo, Brazil and the University of Minho, Portugal, and applied to mathematics teachers. The study participants consisted of 197 mathematics teachers, working in primary school, secondary school and young people and adult education. Data collection was carried out through a questionnaire, available online and designed in Google Forms, with 48 questions (both open and closed formats).FindingsFrom the results obtained, there is a clear need not only for promoting initial and further teacher training that takes into consideration the profile of this teacher, but also for promoting the development of support materials (games, software, devices and assistive technology) in a collaborative way, involving users, teachers, engineers in a way to ensure a good usability and adequate adaptability. Thus, the inclusion of SEN students in schools must not take place only with their physical integration, but also must consider their integration at social, emotional and educational levels.Originality/valueIt is understood that the teacher should receive a solid training in successful inclusion experiences in terms of technological, educational and didactic experiences. Another problem that seems to be recurrent is that support materials have been developed in a way that is somehow disconnected from the reality of the classroom. The context in which the support material is inserted is fundamental to the success of its utilization. What is more, it cannot be isolated from the individuals who will use it. It thus becomes urgent to prepare the school environment for the reality of inclusion. This involves aspects from changes in infrastructure and development of assistive technology to assist the student with SEN in their learning, to the establishment of public policies that involve teacher initial and further training, specialized support and curricular discussions.

scholarly journals Double responsibility of foreign language teachers: Primary student-teachers’ perceptions of linguistic and cultural content

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 137-159
Author(s):  
Gabriel Sanchez-Sanchez ◽  
Marek Krawiec ◽  
Francisco Javier Ibañez-Lopez
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Student Teachers ◽  
Prospective Teachers ◽  
Interpersonal Relations ◽  
Cultural Knowledge ◽  
Cultural Issues ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Teachers Perceptions ◽  
European Universities ◽  
Cultural Content

Scholars all over the world have been arguing for foreign language instruction which combines linguistic and cultural content. Eliminating the cultural side results in a deficient process. This study explored prospective teachers’ perceptions of both constituents, since they will ultimately be responsible for their implementation in the foreign language classroom. To this end, 137 students from three European universities were chosen and asked to fill out an online questionnaire with Likert scale items. Data was collected and interpreted using the free statistics software package R (R Core Team, 2019). The findings confirmed that the relevance of linguistic / cultural issues was unanimously acknowledged (98,5%), speaking was appointed as the most desired target skill (97,1%), interpersonal relations (88,3%) as the most important aspect of socio-cultural knowledge, and lessons with native speakers (94,2%) as the most relevant classroom resource

scholarly journals The Research on Cooperative Learning in English Reading Teaching in College

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 678
Author(s):  
Yayan Yu
Keyword(s):  
Cooperative Learning ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Teaching Method ◽  
Reading Practice ◽  
English Reading ◽  
Education Data ◽  
Dynamic Factors ◽  
New Strategy ◽  
Reading Teaching

There are four basic skills in English learning, namely, listening, speaking, reading and writing, while reading is the most fundamental and important skill. It is also the main and effective way to learn English, so improving the quality of reading teaching is the key to improve the quality of foreign language teaching. However, in traditional teacher-centered teaching method, students gain knowledge passively and cannot effectively show their personality and abilities.Cooperative learning is a new strategy in English teaching, which can make improvement by the application of interactive teaching dynamic factors, so cooperative learning is an effective way to solve the problems in education. Data analysis points out that cooperative learning strongly promotes the efficiency and has good prospects for development. The study also finds out the problems in the application of cooperative learning in English reading practice.

scholarly journals Project-based learning usage in L2 teaching in a contemporary comprehensive school (on the example of English as a foreign language classroom)

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (33) ◽  
pp. e16754
Author(s):  
Alla Guslyakova ◽  
Nina Guslyakova ◽  
Nailya Valeeva ◽  
Ludmila Veretennikova
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Comprehensive School ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Young Learners ◽  
The Third ◽  
Language Class ◽  
Language Classes ◽  
Language Classroom ◽  
Effective Analysis

The article covers the problem of project-based learning (PBL) in present-day foreign language classes. The main aim of this research is to identify how PBL method can be implemented in teaching a foreign language (for example, English as a second language) in a modern comprehensive school and to give recommendations on organizing a foreign language class with the help of PBL. The working hypothesis of the study says that PBL method can be a relevant and effective methodological technique allowing educators to improve the quality of school education and motivating young learners to work hard at L2 classes and study a foreign language better. For the effective analysis and estimation of project-based learning in teaching ESL a two-step experiment was conducted. Overall, the results of the study demonstrated the importance of introduction of project-based learning in foreign language classes as an essential component of the teacher’s work in the present-day education. They also proved that project-based learning should be a must in every educator’s pedagogical “piggy-bank” because PBL is an effective professional instrument which may overcome the latest demands and challenges of the third millennium society.

scholarly journals Sociocultural competence under the scope of 5th and 6th grade EFL Primary school teachers

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (29) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrés Canga Alonso ◽  
María Alonso Álvarez
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Primary School ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Daily Practice ◽  
Cultural Knowledge ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Teachers Perceptions ◽  
Language And Culture ◽  
Efl Teachers ◽  
La Rioja

English as a Foreign Language (EFL) educational curriculum in La Rioja (Decreto Nº24, 2014) fosters the introduction of sociocultural and linguistic competence in EFL teaching. This research focuses on the study of 5th and 6th grade Primary School Education EFL teachers’ views on the inclusion of the sociocultural competence in their teaching practice. The study is based on an online questionnaire sent to fifteen teachers from public funded schools in La Rioja. The study revealed that, according to EFL teachers’ views, students and teachers showed a positive attitude towards the foreign language and culture. However, teachers noticed a lack of cultural knowledge on their students. Teachers tried to bring culture closer, considering that language and culture are closely linked. The results also purported that teachers adopted a communicative approach in their daily practice, and they preferred to teach cultural topics related to festivities and customs. Further research could be conducted in different grades of primary or secondary education in the same region to provide a complete picture of teachers’ perceptions. Students’ views would be also worth exploring.

scholarly journals Teachers’ Perceptions of Using Drama- and Other Action-Based Methods in Language Education

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 27
Author(s):  
Kaisa Hahl ◽  
Nely Keinänen
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Easy Access ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Teachers Perceptions ◽  
Open Questions ◽  
Improve Student Learning ◽  
Complex Activities

This article examines teachers’ perceptions of the use of drama- and other action-based methods in teaching a foreign or second language in Finland. Prior research reveals that much foreign language teaching is textbook-based and does not utilize the target language effectively. International research on drama- and action-based methods shows that these instructional techniques are beneficial to student learning and language acquisition. The data for this study were collected through an online questionnaire with closed and open questions and analyzed inductively with content analysis. The findings indicate that a majority of the participants (n=130) used action-based methods regularly. Teachers used these methods because they believed they improve student learning, increase motivation, and liven up lessons. However, teachers lacked training in action-based methods and some also felt there is no time for these methods in busy schedules. Using drama methods was much less common than other action-based methods, such as different word games with movement. The findings show that although textbooks provide ideas for dramatized reading of texts, teachers found most activities online or made them up themselves. Drama and other action-based methods should be incorporated into teacher education and language textbooks so that teachers would gain confidence and competence in using them and have easy access to different, even more complex activities.

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