The role of language learning in academic education

1997 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 19-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony J. Liddicoat ◽  
Chantal Crozet ◽  
Louise M. Jansen ◽  
Gabriele Schmidt

Language learning has rarely had a secure place in perceptions of teriary education and is coming increasingly under threat as the result of tightening budgets in Australian Universities. This paper examines the role of language learning as a part of tertiary education. It argues that language learning is of itself an important element in the educational mix of tertiary education and that, as language learning goes beyond learning of the code, it provides aspects of education which are central to modern global concerns. It is argued that the value of language learning, including ab initio learning, in tertiary education can be see through the substance of language learning, the process of language learning and the outcomes of language learning.

2014 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 107-118
Author(s):  
Fahri Haswani

In  response  to  an  appeal  from  Indonesia’s  Ministry  of  Education  and  Culture  to  all universities and colleges to improve the quality of tertiary  education toward regional and international standard, language institutions are making great efforts to further promote the  foreign  language  learning  process.  In  the  last  few  years  there  have  been  dramatic changes  in  the  ways  that  languages  are  taught  by communicative  approach  and  the introduction of technological tools. In recent years, the use of technological aids, especially those related to computers, has increasingly become  a common feature of the classroom. There is no doubt that computer based instruction will occupy a more central role in the foreign language classroom in the future. Information technology has drawn the interest of teachers of English as a second or foreign language in non-English speaking countries. The technology integration into  the curriculum is not a single concept which is generated from one  single  theory  nor  does  it  give  full  guidelines  for  the  implementation  in  practical situation. This issue constitutes ideas from many different theories. This paper  discusses the issue of technology contributions in EFL classroom. The question raised in this paper is how technology facilitates  the attainment of course goals.  The answer of the question will help  English  teachers  to  clarify  the  real  problems  of  the  initiative  so  that  the  innovation and possible changes can be aligned with the need of the students. However, this literature review  only  covers  limited  issues  related  with  the  role  of  technology  in  EFL  classroom. Further  discussion  from  other  different  points  of  view  is  still  needed  to  create  more complete description of conceptual foundation of the innovation.


Neofilolog ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (42/2) ◽  
pp. 181-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maciej Mackiewicz

A language biography is most often a reflection on one’s own linguistic development and therefore can be termed “language autobiography”. In its a broad sense, a language biography may include mother tongue acquisition, yet this article focuses solely on foreign language learning, with a special emphasis on the German language. The article provides insights into factors that motivate learners of German and into changes in these factors over a period of time, including the role of intercultural motivators. A theoretical and methodological introduction is followed by the results of a qualitative study conducted in five Polish institutions of tertiary education on a group of 73 students learning German. The excerpts of biographies quoted provide a picture of motivation as a dynamic process and moreover indicate that as present-day students get older, they are increasingly more thoughtful about their learning.


1991 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 10-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Felicity Allen

This paper considers the employment of women academics in Australia and describes ideological sources of individual cognitions about the acceptability of the jobs typically performed by women in academia. A cognitive-behavioural model is used to explore the role of certain group behaviours in maintaining power divisions between the sexes. It is suggested that women can control aspects of their interactions with others in ways that might facilitate their promotion. The importance of time and resource management in making these changes is emphasised. The questions of reconciling the issues of feminism and behaviourism in dealing with co-workers in tertiary education are discussed. The context is not a client/therapist interaction and the model of behaviour change underlying this article is participant rather than administrative, in that it assumes that at least some members of both sexes within Australian universities will take responsibility for self-directed behaviour change. The purpose of this paper is to consider the areas of academic politics, both micro and macro, which might be susceptible to change by people using self-directed behaviour modification techniques.


2012 ◽  
pp. 182-195 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul J. Moore

The role of learning advising in improving the educational outcomes of students for whom English is an additional language (EAL) in Australian universities has received significant attention in recent years. A combination of research findings, governmental pressure and media scrutiny has provided renewed impetus for universities to address issues of language proficiency and academic literacy amongst the growing population of onshore international students for whom English is an additional language (EAL). In this paper, I discuss the role of academic language and learning advising in the Australian university context, including how this practice is influenced by a range of political, pedagogical and practical factors. In doing so, I draw on Carson and Mynard’s (2012) analysis of the aims, practices, skills, locations and discourses of advising in language learning to explore how the two fields might inform each other.


Accurate pronunciation has a vital role in English language learning as it can help learners to avoid misunderstanding in communication. However, EFL learners in many contexts, especially at the University of Phan Thiet, still encounter many difficulties in pronouncing English correctly. Therefore, this study endeavors to explore English-majored students’ perceptions towards the role of pronunciation in English language learning and examine their pronunciation practicing strategies (PPS). It involved 155 English-majored students at the University of Phan Thiet who answered closed-ended questionnaires and 18 English-majored students who participated in semi-structured interviews. The findings revealed that students strongly believed in the important role of pronunciation in English language learning; however, they sometimes employed PPS for their pronunciation improvement. Furthermore, the results showed that participants tended to use naturalistic practicing strategies and formal practicing strategies with sounds, but they overlooked strategies such as asking for help and cooperating with peers. Such findings could contribute further to the understanding of how students perceive the role of pronunciation and their PPS use in the research’s context and other similar ones. Received 10th June 2019; Revised 12th March 2020; Accepted 12th April 2020


Author(s):  
Mark Sanders

When this book's author began studying Zulu, he was often questioned why he was learning it. This book places the author's endeavors within a wider context to uncover how, in the past 150 years of South African history, Zulu became a battleground for issues of property, possession, and deprivation. The book combines elements of analysis and memoir to explore a complex cultural history. Perceiving that colonial learners of Zulu saw themselves as repairing harm done to Africans by Europeans, the book reveals deeper motives at work in the development of Zulu-language learning—from the emergence of the pidgin Fanagalo among missionaries and traders in the nineteenth century to widespread efforts, in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, to teach a correct form of Zulu. The book looks at the white appropriation of Zulu language, music, and dance in South African culture, and at the association of Zulu with a martial masculinity. In exploring how Zulu has come to represent what is most properly and powerfully African, the book examines differences in English- and Zulu-language press coverage of an important trial, as well as the role of linguistic purism in xenophobic violence in South Africa. Through one person's efforts to learn the Zulu language, the book explores how a language's history and politics influence all individuals in a multilingual society.


Think India ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 455-457
Author(s):  
Y.L MARREDDY

Y.L MARREDDY English is recognized as a universal language. Learning English is inevitable in this present global scenario. It also acts like a link language. Especially, English literature enables learners to develop critical thinking skills, helps to discover and enlighten themselves. It is quite challenging task to teachers to teach literature for studentsin non native English countries like India. The role of the language teachers becomes predominant and the methods of teaching literature according to the students’ level of understanding also play a significant role because studying literature assists students’ tohave real time experiences, passion for language acquisition and think innovatively. In this context, it is necessary for teachers to distinct between teaching literature for special purposes or it is used as a resource language for teaching this foreign language. This paper throws light on the importance of teaching literature, several approaches and methods of teaching literature at graduate level. Literature connects the cultures across the world, throws challenges to solve and even to heal some cultures. It really provides an individual space for learners to express themselves and improve competence levels among them. It allows learners to share their participation in the experience of others, strengthens to shape, alter their attitude and meet their expectations.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document