The Role of Language Awareness in Promoting Intercultural Coexistence

2015 ◽  
pp. 59-70
Author(s):  
Witold Tulasiewicz
Keyword(s):  
Language Awareness

Developing conversational competence through language awareness and multimodality: the use of DVDs

ReCALL ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 283-301 ◽  
Author(s):  
María Moreno Jaén ◽  
Carmen Pérez Basanta
Keyword(s):  
Language Learners ◽  
English Language ◽  
Oral Communication ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Language Awareness ◽  
Multimodal Texts ◽  
Conversational Interaction ◽  
Conversational Competence ◽  
Oral Interaction

AbstractThe argument for a pedagogy of input oriented learning for the development of speaking competence (Sharwood-Smith, 1986; Bardovi-Harlig and Salsbury, 2004; Eslami-Rasekh, 2005) has been of increasing interest in Applied Linguistics circles. It has also been argued that multimedia applications, in particular DVDs, provide language learners with multimodal representations that may help them ‘to gain broad access to oral communication both visually and auditory’ (Tschirner, 2001: 305). Thus this paper focuses on an exploratory study of teaching oral interaction through input processing by means of multimodal texts.The paper is divided into a number of interconnected sections. First, we outline briefly what teaching conversation implies and examine the important role of oral comprehension in the development of conversational interaction. In fact, it has been suggested that effective speaking depends very much on successful understanding (Oprandy, 1994). In this paper we pay special attention to the crucial role of context in understanding oral interactions. Therefore, we outline the theory of context in English Language Teaching (ELT). The discussion draws on approaches to teaching conversation and it also offers a brief reflection about the need for materials which might convey the sociocultural and semiotic elements of oral communication through which meaning is created.We then discuss the decisions taken to propose a new multimodal approach to teaching conversation from a three-fold perspective: (a) the selection of texts taken from films, and the benefits of using DVDs (digital versatile disc); (b) the development of a multimodal analysis of film clips for the design of activities; and (c) the promotion of a conversation awareness methodology through a bank of DVD clips to achieve an understanding of how native speakers actually go about the process of constructing oral interactions.In sum, the main thrust of this paper is to pinpoint the advantages of using multimodal materials taken from DVDs, as they provide learners with broad access to oral communication, both visual and auditory, making classroom conditions similar to the target cultural environment (Tschirner, 2001).

Language as a Symbol of Identity and a Tool of Politics and Power in Pakistan and Bangladesh

2016 ◽  
Vol 67 (3) ◽  
pp. 207-218
Author(s):  
Anna Rácová
Keyword(s):  
British Empire ◽  
Religious Identity ◽  
Indian Subcontinent ◽  
The State ◽  
Foreign Languages ◽  
Official Language ◽  
Language Awareness ◽  
Social Prestige ◽  
State Language

Abstract This study aims to demonstrate the roles that domestic and foreign languages have played and play as signs of national or religious identity and social prestige and as tools of political and economic power in multilingual Pakistan and Bangladesh. Before the countries gained independence from the British Empire in 1947 and before the formation of the Indian Union and Pakistan (which was divided into Pakistan and Bangladesh in 1971), the role of an official language, remote to the majority of population in Indian subcontinent, had been gradually played by Sanskrit, Persian, and English. After gaining independence, the new countries decided to replace English as the official language with domestic languages. Their efforts encountered many problems and resulted in various solutions. Urdu became the state language in Pakistan, which caused resistance in local ethnolinguistic groups because the language had been imported by refugees from India. This resistance was the strongest in East Pakistan, where a strong national and language awareness eventually contributed to the formation of an independent Bangladesh with Bengali as the state language. Despite struggle for the dominance of domestic languages, English has preserved its prestigious position both in Pakistan and Bangladesh, as a symbol of higher social position, a language of education and science, and a tool of economic and political power.

scholarly journals THE ROLE OF LANGUAGE AWARENESS ON GRAMMAR LEARNING IN INDONESIAN EFL CONTEXT

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 37
Author(s):  
Andhi Dwi Nugroho ◽  
Novita Sumarlin Putri ◽  
Nur Aida Arifah
Keyword(s):  
Language Awareness ◽  
Efl Context ◽  
Grammar Learning

scholarly journals Two key concepts of language endangerment : language obsolescence and language death

Linguistica ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre Swiggers
Keyword(s):  
Accurate Information ◽  
Minority Languages ◽  
Language Awareness ◽  
Language Death ◽  
Language Endangerment ◽  
Linguistic Rights ◽  
Speech Communities ◽  
Major Loss ◽  
Coherent Frame

In the contemporary context of world-wide language endangerment, of linguistic imperialism and regression of minority languages, it is of vital importance to take initiatives for the maintenance and protection of linguistic biodiversity.  Languages that become extinct are a major loss, not only for the communities concerned but also for humanity in general. The role of linguists should not be confined to documentation and recording of threatened languages, but should be extended to policies  aimed at the revitalization of languages in the process of obsolescence and extinction, and to programs for stimulating language awareness and language cult. Although practical work and immediate political interventions remain the most urgent tasks, there is also need for a theoretical discussion on the value of language maintenance and preservation. It is important to define adequately the basic concepts to be used in discussions, as well as in scholarly and "bureaucratic" writings in the field of language endangerment. The aim of the present paper has been to clarify the concepts of 'language obsolescence' and 'language death', with an eye at offering a general characterization and typology of both phenomena. Accurate information on the causes and contextual factors involved in language obsolescence and language death can help to elaborate a theoretically coherent frame for construing open-minded language policies and for arousing a widespread feeling of respect for the linguistic rights of speech communities, however small and unprotected they may be.

scholarly journals Teacher Educators’ Professional Identity in English-Medium Instruction at a Finnish University

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 9-33
Author(s):  
Sotiria Pappa ◽  
Josephine Moate
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Professional Identity ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Sense Of Self ◽  
Language Awareness ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
English Medium Instruction ◽  
The Relationship

Although different forms of English-medium instruction (EMI) are being recognised, the different ways in which EMI can impact the pedagogical activities and expertise of higher education educators have received less attention. Using face-to-face and written interviews with nine teacher educators at a Finnish university, this study examines the most important aspects teacher educators perceive in their work through EMI and how these aspects connect to the understanding of their professional identity. The study is theoretically premised on the interconnected concepts of pedagogical doing, pedagogical being, pedagogical relating, and pedagogical language awareness. The thematically analysed data highlighted the ways in which pedagogical being, doing, and relating revolve around the presence and role of the foreign language in EMI, as well as the concurrent disjunctures and opportunities EMI creates. Pedagogical being informed EMI teacher educators’ orientation to their work and the different ways language impinges on the sense of self as the teacher educators share how they try to understand and respond to the disjunctures of EMI. In terms of pedagogical doing, EMI impinges on how teacher educators enact their practice and the relationships developed with students. However, the focus of pedagogical relating addresses the relationship between the EMI teacher educators and their workplace. The findings from this study will hopefully contribute to the development of EMI teacher preparation and support critical discussions on the ‘Englishisation’ of higher education.

Dynamics of Fluency, Lexical Resources and Language Awareness: Investigating the Role of Pre-speaking Strategies Instruction

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (10) ◽  
pp. 912
Author(s):  
Nasim Abdi ◽  
Mehran Davaribina
Keyword(s):  
Strategic Planning ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Language Awareness ◽  
Lexical Resources ◽  
Planning Time ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Strategies Instruction ◽  
And Control ◽  
Experimental Group

The purpose of the present study was to find out the effect of using pre-speaking strategies coupled with strategic planning on Iranian EFL learners’ fluency, lexical resources and language awareness. The study involved 70 intermediate male and female learners divided into two groups-experimental and control. Prior to the main phase of the study, Nelson test was carried out to check the homogeneity of the participants. In the pre-test stage, a picture-cued narrative task was administered to the two groups. Next, during ten treatment sessions the experimental group received pre-speaking strategies instruction and strategic planning with ten minutes of planning time while the control group did not receive them. To answer the research questions, Independent-samples t-test and Mann-Whitney U test were used. Data analyses showed the experimental group outperformed the control group. Therefore, for effective speaking, strategic planning should be coupled with pre-speaking strategies.

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