A contrastive analysis of vocabulary teaching Australian and Chinese university settings

1995 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
pp. 268-280
Author(s):  
Wang Zhenya
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Classroom Interaction ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Linguistic Distance ◽  
Formal Instruction ◽  
University Of Technology ◽  
Language Classrooms ◽  
Target Languages ◽  
University Settings ◽  
Different Characteristics

Abstract Vocabulary learning is an aspect of language learning. However, in language classrooms vocabulary teaching can be practiced in different ways in different contexts. This paper first describes and compares vocabulary teaching at BUAA (the Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics) and CUT (Curtin University of Technology) in Australia and then examines the causes of the methodological differences found in vocabulary teaching in these two educational institutions. In these two universities, methodological differences exist in vocabulary teaching at the levels of both formal instruction and classroom interaction. In the formal instruction of vocabulary teaching, these two universities exhibit different characteristics at the presentation, repetition and exploitation stages. The contrast between foreign and second language teaching, the cultural and educational contexts in which the target language is taught, the way in which the learners’ first language is learned, the linguistic distance between the learner’s native and target languages, and learner and teacher characteristics cause to a greater or lesser extent the methodological differences observed in vocabulary teaching in the two universities in question.

Bringing Cross-Cultural Communication Analysis Into Foreign Language Classrooms

2019 ◽  
pp. 71-97
Author(s):  
Trudy O'Brien
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Intercultural Communication ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Complex Nature ◽  
Linguistic Features ◽  
Cross Cultural Communication ◽  
Language Classrooms

The teaching of a second or foreign language has always incorporated some aspect of cultural information, but the full and rather complex nature of cross-cultural and intercultural communication has not always been an explicit pedagogical focus. The chapter outlines the key components of cross-cultural and intercultural communication (CCC/ICC), and reviews some major theories that have dominated the area. It is suggested that providing explicit instruction in CCC/ICC to language learners will prepare them for interacting appropriately in the target language in whatever global context they may wish to use it. Learners need to be not only linguistically and pragmatically but culturally competent as well as they move into multicultural contexts of interaction in that language. Specific elements of cross-/intercultural communication with regards to linguistic features and potential points of confusion in the EFL (English-as-a-foreign language) classroom are discussed as accessible examples. The chapter then relates some ways that cross-/intercultural mindfulness and understanding can form an active part of the teaching of a second/foreign language in order to enhance the full language learning experience and subsequent entry to successful communication.

Kommunikation und "Kommunikation" im Schulischen Fremdsprachen -Unterricht

1983 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 122-149
Author(s):  
Henning Bolte
Keyword(s):  
Language Development ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Classroom Interaction ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Conversational Analysis ◽  
Functional Perspective ◽  
Response Formats ◽  
Teaching Learning

The article deals with the relationship between verbal communication as a teaching objective and as a medium of teaching/learning. This relationship is of special interest for foreign language teaching/ learning aiming at ccmnunicative competence in spoken language. The article enters into the question in which ways teaching/learning ob-jects are constituted in the course of ongoing interaction, how acti-vities with regard to such objects are stimulated and steered, and what kinds of activities are defined by the participants themselves as LEARNING or count for them as such. Psycholinguistic input-(in-take) output models are being argued against, because classroom learning is not simply characterized by ready-made prestructured in-put and predetermined output, but both have first to be constituted through some strategic form of social interaction. Two examples of foreign language learning in the classroom are pre-sented: first of an EFL lesson, where the distortion of target langu-age function potential is demonstrated and the "staged" production of language prof iciency within a pedagogic interaction pattern is shown; and second of a German FL lesson, where a grammatical item is focussed and exercised. The sequence is an example of rigorous reali-zation of the I(nitiation)-R(esponse)-E(valuation) pattern as the ba-sic pattern of sequential organization in the classroom. It clearly shows how LEARNING is defined/executed as standardized response for-mats and "conditioned" chains of I-R-pairs. Many of the performed linguistic deviations(of the target language)seem due to interaction mechanisms rather than to general principles of language development. Conversational analysis of teaching-learning discourse shows that learning is not merely to be considered as a direct conventionalized consequence of ( initiating ) teaching ( acts ). On the one hand the inter-action pattern is merely a framework wherein "inner" mental processes are evoked and organized, which can manifest themselves in various forms. On the other hand there is a strong tendency for the teacher to control the entire learning process and to make expected outcomes collectively significant and thus for the learner a tendency mainly to adjust to prefabricated response formats, which at the same time serve as evidence for didactically intended cognitions. Hence, the stronger the predetermination and imposing of LEARNING by the teach-er, the more learning tends to become a mere guessing game and pure-ly mechanical. The restrictions of traditional classrooms are obvious from these examples: restrictions with regard to the experience of functional potential of the target language and with regard to the embedding of focussed learning-items into a functional perspective. These re-strictions have to be changed in order to enable learners to parti-cipate in problem-constitution, to bring in own perceptions of con-cepts/problems and to bring in own problem-solving strategies as systematic parts of language development and as systematic parts of official classroom discourse, i.e. as objects of active mutual indication and interpretation. Conversational analysis can be an important tool for the study of such "alternative" structuring of classroom interaction and its con-tribution to a more learner-centered and functionally oriented (foreign)language LEARNING.

Incorporating project-based language learning into distance learning: Creating a homepage during computer-mediated learning sessions

2020 ◽  
pp. 136216882095445
Author(s):  
Fumie Kato ◽  
Ryan Spring ◽  
Chikako Mori
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
The United States ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Mediated Learning ◽  
Learning Program ◽  
Spring Semester ◽  
Technical Problems ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
Target Languages

This quasi-experimental study reports on the outcomes of a video-synchronous learning program in which an element of project-based foreign language learning was integrated. The project chosen was to cooperatively create a homepage. American students learning Japanese in the United States and Japanese students learning English in Japan made pairs and communicated in both their native and target languages via Skype to complete the project. The goals of this educational program were to increase intrinsic motivation in learners and improve their target language oral abilities, and identify challenges and problems with implementation. The program was conducted during the spring semester in 2017 and evaluated both quantitatively (via pre- and posttests) and qualitatively (via surveys and reflection papers). The results show that both groups of students had improved their mean length of utterance in their target language, a strong indicator of increased speaking ability. Furthermore, qualitative analysis showed their motivation levels increased as compared to previous similar programs. Although the majority of the students were interested in creating a homepage, there were some technical problems with the homepage creation software.

Principles for code choice in the foreign language classroom: A focus on grammaring

2012 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 332-348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Glenn S. Levine
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Curriculum Design ◽  
Social Space ◽  
Classroom Interaction ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Language Pedagogy ◽  
Code Choice ◽  
Language Classroom ◽  
Effective Use

The social and cultural ‘turn’ in language education of recent years has helped move language teaching and curriculum design away from many of the more rigid dogmas of earlier generations, but the issue of the roles of the learners’ first language (L1) in language pedagogy and classroom interaction is far from settled. Some follow a strict ‘exclusive target language’ pedagogy, while others ‘resort to’ the use of the L1 for a variety of purposes (see ACTFL 2008). Underlying these competing views is the perspective of the L1 as an impediment to second language learning. Following sociocultural theory and ecological perspectives of language and learning and based on the findings of research on classroom code-switching and code choice, this paper lays out an approach to the language classroom as a multilingual social space in which learners and teacher study, negotiate, and co-construct code choice norms toward the dynamic, creative, and pedagogically effective use of both the target language and the learners’ L1(s). Learner use of the L1 for the purpose of grammatical or lexical learning is also considered, and some examples for instruction are offered.

A Non-Language Learning Courseware and its Challenges

2011 ◽  
pp. 151-164
Author(s):  
Jowati Juhary
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Technologies ◽  
Target Language ◽  
National Defense ◽  
Kuala Lumpur ◽  
National Defense University ◽  
Language Classrooms ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
E Learning ◽  
The Subject

This chapter analyses the challenges in adapting a non-language learning courseware (NLLC) for a military learning environment. The National Defense University Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur (NDUM) was the subject for observations and an informal survey. The findings of this chapter argue that there are technical, theoretical, and pedagogical challenges that need to be overcome when using an NLLC in language classrooms. With the rise of information and communication technology (ICT) and the Internet, tertiary military institutions are pressured to implement e-learning technologies in their learning environments. However, not many institutions have the capacity to do so. The author argues that the adoption of an NLLC for an institution that has resources constraints can help determine the potential of using e-learning technologies to help students acquire the target language better.

10. TEACHER-STUDENT INTERACTION AND LANGUAGE LEARNING

2002 ◽  
Vol 22 ◽  
pp. 186-203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joan Kelly Hall ◽  
Meghan Walsh
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Student Interaction ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Sociocultural Perspective ◽  
Teacher Student ◽  
Language Classroom ◽  
Teacher Student Interaction ◽  
Language Classrooms ◽  
Recent Developments

This chapter reviews literature on recent developments in teacher-student interaction and language learning. Based on a sociocultural perspective of language and learning, the studies are drawn from three types of classrooms: first language classrooms; second language classrooms, which include contexts in which the language being learned in the classroom is also the language of the community; and foreign language classrooms. Foreign language learning contexts are those in which exposure to and opportunities for target language interaction are restricted for the most part to the language classroom. Across these three areas, attention is given to studies that investigate the specific means used in teacher-student interaction to promote language learning.

scholarly journals Target languages, types of activities, engagement, and effectiveness of extramural language learning

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. e0253431
Author(s):  
Ruofei Zhang ◽  
Di Zou ◽  
Gary Cheng ◽  
Haoran Xie ◽  
Fu Lee Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Empirical Research ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Digital Games ◽  
Language Instruction ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Affective States ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Target Languages ◽  
The Relationship

Since Sundqvist introduced the term “extramural English” in 2009, empirical research on extramural language learning has continued to expand. However, the expanding empirical research has yet yielded incommensurate review studies. To present a timely picture of the field of extramural language learning, this study conducts a review of 33 relevant articles retrieved from Scopus and Web of Science databases. The results showed the five types of target languages frequently investigated in this field (i.e., English, German, French, Chinese, and Japanese) and seven main types of extramural learning activities (i.e., playing digital games, watching videos, reading, listening to audios, having technology-enhanced socialisation, having face-to-face socialisation, and writing compositions). People’s engagement in extramural language learning was overall high, especially listening to audios and playing digital games, mediated by the relationship between the difficulty of the activities and people’s target language proficiency levels, gender, and the interactive environment. Extramural language learning was overall effective for language development and enhancing affective states in language learning. The effectiveness may be influenced by the involvement of language inputs and outputs and the amount of engagement time. Implications for practitioners were suggested concerning encouraging digital gameplay, emphasising formal language instruction, and creating positive interactive environments for extramural language learning.

Interaction as method and result of language learning

2009 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 202-215 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joan Kelly Hall
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Student Interaction ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Teacher Student ◽  
Language Knowledge ◽  
Teacher Student Interaction ◽  
Language Classrooms

The premise of this paper is that the interactional practices constituting teacher–student interaction and language learning are interdependent in that the substance of learners' language knowledge is inextricably tied to their extended involvement in the regularly occurring interactional practices constituting their specific contexts of learning. After laying out the central components of a theoretical framework for understanding the interdependent nature of interaction and learning, I provide an overview of the Initiation–Respond–Feedback organization (IRF), a ubiquitous classroom interactional practice, and then examine two instances of the IRF taken from two language classrooms. I pay particular attention to actions in the IRF that give shape to learners' developing understandings of, and skills for, using the target language. After briefly discussing the likely consequences of extended participation in the IRF in terms of L2 outcomes, I suggest directions for future research.

scholarly journals The Use of L1 in the Foreign Language Classroom

2011 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi-chun Pan ◽  
Yi-ching Pan
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
Language Classrooms ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
L1 Use

L1 use is a common occurrence in foreign language teaching contexts despite the fact that it often receives criticism for its interference with target language (TL) acquisition. While foreign language teachers should maximize their use of the TL, there is indeed a place for the teacher to use the students’ L1 in their pedagogy. In this paper, an argument derived from theoretical perspectives and empirical research within existing literature supporting the appropriate use of L1 in foreign language classrooms is presented. The argument addresses three key issues—rationales for L1 use, positive effects L1 has on both foreign language learning and instruction, and ways that L1 assists instructors on foreign languages.

scholarly journals Kohdekielisyyden normin oikeutus ja toteutus venäjänkielisessä CLIL-alkuopetuksessa

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maarit Kaunisto
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Primary Education ◽  
Classroom Practices ◽  
Classroom Interaction ◽  
Russian Language ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Language Practice ◽  
Teacher Researcher ◽  
Language Content ◽  
Native Tongue

This article examines the pedagogical-didactic legitimacy of an institutional language practice called the target language norm, and its implementation in Russian-language content-and-language-integrated (CLIL) classroom in primary education with 6–8-year-old students. Here, the language norm refers to an arrangement in which the teacher uses only the target language and restricts the students' use of their native tongue. The data consist of video recorded classroom interaction and ethnographic notes by the teacher-researcher, both collected during a two-year period. The microethnographic analysis shows that the students gradually adopt the norm as a part of their everyday school routine as they are socialized into classroom practices. The study argues that in certain contexts it is justified to introduce a language norm that supports the systematic and goal-oriented nature of language learning.

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