The world universities’ response to COVID-19: remote online language teaching

This collection of case studies is special for several reasons. Firstly, because of the geographical and institutional diversity of the authors, bringing together experiences of teaching under COVID-19 restrictions in the university language classroom from 18 countries and five continents. Secondly, the publication is interesting because of the variety of case studies that testify to different strategies and emphases in dealing with pandemic-related challenges. Finally, the case studies collected strikingly demonstrate the creative responses of language teachers in a variety of contexts to meet the challenges of the pandemic crisis (Dr Sabina Schaffner).

Author(s):  
Sabina Schaffner

I was very happy to accept the request to write a foreword to this publication. This collection of case studies is special for several reasons. Firstly, because of the geographical and institutional diversity of the authors, bringing together experiences of teaching under COVID-19 restrictions in the university language classroom from 18 countries and five continents. Secondly, the publication is interesting because of the variety of case studies that testify to different strategies and emphases in dealing with pandemic-related challenges. Finally, the case studies collected strikingly demonstrate the creative responses of language teachers in a variety of contexts to meet the challenges of the pandemic crisis.


2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Desy Damayanti ◽  
Adin Fauzi ◽  
Azizatul Mahfida Inayati

Among some components of effective language classroom, learning materials indisputably play a focal role. They improve the quality of language teaching; facilitate teachers in doing their duties, and lead students to a higher level of understanding in learning. This research aims to discuss the notion of materials in language teaching. It made use of works of literature to outline the importance of materials in language teaching, and to analyze kinds of materials, which are relevant to language teaching. The analysis resulted in the classification of materials into two broad categories namely (1) created materials, which include course book, audio materials, and video materials; and (2) authentic materials, which cover authentic texts, movie/film, radio broadcasting, television program, graphs, maps, tables, and charts. This paper serves as an invaluable resource to facilitate language teachers in selecting appropriate materials for effective language teaching.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 171-193
Author(s):  
Lucía Pintado Gutiérrez

AbstractThis article explores the agency of the student in translation in language teaching and learning (or TILT). The purpose of the case study discussed here is to gain an overview of students’ perceptions of translation into the foreign language (FL) (also known as “inverse translation”) following a module on language and translation, and to analyse whether there is any correlation between students’ attitude to translation, its impact on their language learning through effort invested, and the improvement of language skills. The results of the case study reveal translation to be a potentially exciting skill that can be central to FL learning and the analysis gives indications of how and why language teachers may optimise the implementation of translation in the classroom. The outcome of the study suggests that further research is needed on the impact of translation in the language classroom focussing on both teachers’ expectations and students’ achievements.


1997 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 117-118
Author(s):  
Joan Kelly Hall

This collection of 28 papers was first presented at the 1994 GURT. The theme of the conference was educational linguistics, crosscultural communication, and global interdependence. The vastness of the theme is reflected in the diversity of the chapter topics. Twelve of 28 deal with curricular issues. Of these, those by Kachru, Nyikos, D. Freeman, van Lier, Loew, and Richards discuss issues and concerns broadly related to the preparation of language teachers. D. Freeman's chapter is worthy of note because it offers an interesting discussion on the various strands of scholarship, which he suggests comprise the knowledge base of language teaching. Six of the 12 chapters center on curricular issues for the language classroom. Matters relating to the teaching of culture are dealt with by Oxford and Bamgbose. Brown discusses “responsive language teaching.” Citkina reports on innovative foreign language methods recently introduced in the Ukraine. A good discussion on computer-mediated communication and its usefulness to the language classroom is offered by Stauffer. Pica provides an excellent overview of the research on task-related learning and an equally useful discussion of its pedagogical implications.


2015 ◽  

The Cambridge Guide to Blended Learning for Language Teaching makes the case that it is pedagogy, rather than technology, that should underpin the design of blended learning programmes. The book is organised into five sections: Connecting Theories and Blended Learning; Implications for Teaching; Rethinking Learner Interaction; Case Studies; The Future of Blended Learning. With its research-informed and practitioner-focused approach, this book is ideal for language teachers and language centre managers looking to broaden their understanding of pedagogy and blended learning. It will also be of interest to anyone working on blended learning course design or delivering teacher training courses.


2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 133
Author(s):  
Jason D. Hendryx

Después de más de una década de observaciones en clases de más de una docena de idiomas, en múltiples instituciones de educación secundaria y de educación superior en varios países, se puede afirmar que existen tres usos pedagógicos clave para una introducción exitosa de la tecnología por parte de los profesores. Los tres usos identificados son: el direccional, el de desarrollo, y el crítico. En lo sucesivo, llamados usos 3D. Los datos de observación obtenidos sugieren que cuando un profesor de idiomas introduce la tecnología en el aula por medio de cualquiera de los tres usos indicados, incrementa el éxito de resultados. El éxito aquí debe entenderse como un mayor nivel de interacción, de motivación, de compromiso y de producción de lenguaje por parte de las estudiantes. Mientras tanto las observaciones de profesores que introducen la tecnología en el aula sin tener en cuenta los usos 3D, revelaron aplicaciones rígidas y aburridas de los medios tecnológicos para la enseñanza y el aprendizaje de idiomas. Dichas aplicaciones muchas veces se caracterizan por desdeñar el contexto pedagógico de manera que generan entre los estudiantes escasos o nulos niveles de interacción o de producción de lenguaje.Grounded in over a decade of language classroom observations, in multiple institutions of secondary and higher education in several countries, across over a dozen languages, three key features of what appear to be successful applications of technology by instructors in these classes for language teaching emerged. These features came to be identified as directional, developmental, and decisive—Hereafter referred to as the 3Ds. Observational data suggests that when an instructor embraces any of the 3Ds while using technology for teaching and learning purposes, the more successful that application of technology seems to be. Success here should be understood as higher levels of student interaction, engagement, and motivation, with more kinds and types of student language being produced.  Meanwhile, observations of instructors who did not utilize any of the 3Ds, revealed stiff, uninspiring uses of technology, oftentimes devoid of context, which did not result in much, if any, student interaction or language production.  


2022 ◽  
pp. 143-167
Author(s):  
Anne Cummings Hlas ◽  
Jesselyn J. Nadolny ◽  
Christopher S. Hlas

This chapter outlines creativity in the world language classroom through the results of a mixed-methods study during the COVID-19 pandemic. While there has been a growing interest in creativity within education, little has been researched related to creative and uncreative factors in the language classroom, specifically in an online teaching context. For this reason, this research study explores creativity in the online world language K-12 classroom by examining teaching artifacts self-selected by K-12 language teachers, as well as interviews with interested participants. Findings suggest that creativity is multidimensional with creative factors overlapping within artifacts. Additionally, teachers have persisted throughout the pandemic to integrate creativity in order to engage students with the content in various ways, harness student attention, and give students choice. In addition, teachers have used various technologies to provide opportunities for students to work asynchronously and synchronously.


2000 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian MacKenzie

Linguists have recently suggested that a large proportion of linguistic performance in naturally acquired languages is enabled by the internalization of a huge number of institutionalized utterances, or lexical phrases, or fixed and semi-fixed expressions. This research parallels the discovery, earlier this century, of the oral-formulaic nature of Homeric poetry. Furthermore, although written literature (as opposed to oral epic poetry) is generally assumed to be anything but formulaic, it can be shown that it too necessarily contains a lot of institutionalized expressions, or at least transformations of them, and that our own repertoire of memorized phrases almost certainly comes from literary as well as oral sources. Foreign language teachers clearly need to give serious consideration to the prevalence of lexical phrases, in both speech and writing. Literature can be used in the foreign language classroom as (among many other things) a source of institutionalized phrases.


HOW ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (27) ◽  
pp. 7-9

New ways of thinking are constantly emerging in English language teachers around the world, new ways that open windows to other horizons in English language teaching and learning. In this first issue of HOW Journal in 2020, the English language teacher-authors articulate themes related to colonial issues, ethics in research, self-reflection, and novel implementations concerning teaching progress.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 607-623
Author(s):  
Simon Coffey ◽  
Constant Leung

AbstractIn this paper we investigate the ways in which creativity is understood and enacted by language teachers. Although the term ‘creativity’ has gained enormous traction in language pedagogy, and in education more generally, we suggest that the concept remains a floating signifier carrying different personal connotations that are shaped by wider institutional and professional constraints. We report on interview data with practising language teachers who discuss their interpretation of creativity and how it manifests in their classrooms. Our analysis considered how teachers positioned themselves and their students in relation to each other and how the agency of the different actors was shaped by discursive constructions (of creativity) which were, in turn, underpinned by broader socio-historical and disciplinary frames. In particular, we focus on distinctions between creative language and creative language teaching and how these are construed differently across professional contexts. While teachers are keen to adopt creative approaches, findings show that there are significant differences in their interpretations of the concept that point to deeply rooted epistemological dissonances in the perception of language and personhood in the pedagogical encounter. In the final section we develop the implications of these findings for professional cultures and identities, in particular some of the critical but under-explored issues surrounding the idea of creativity in language teaching, including the ever-present ‘teacher-ledness’, the curricularised nature of taught languages and the absence of personal development.


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