scholarly journals Assistant Foreign Language Teachers in Japanese High Schools: Focus on the Hosting of Japanese Teachers

2002 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Greta Gorsuch
Keyword(s):  
High Schools ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Team Teaching ◽  
English Language ◽  
National Level ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Foreign Language Teachers ◽  
Language Classrooms ◽  
English Speaking

For both political and social reasons, the learning of English as a Foreign Language in Japanese secondary schools has become the focus of a variety of new educational policies applied at a national level. The backdrop of this article is the JET program, which in 1998 employed 5,361 assistant language teachers (ALTs) from various countries for the purpose of team teaching in Japanese junior and senior high school foreign language classrooms. The article focuses on Japanese teachers of English (JTEs) and their responses to team teaching with ALTs, particularly in terms of JTEs' perceptions of their own English speaking skills and English language learning experiences. Drawing from the questionnaire responses of 884 JTEs in high schools in nine randomly selected prefectures, the author also outlines patterns in assignment of ALTs in both academic and vocational high schools, providing a more complete picture of the JET program.

scholarly journals English language pre-service and in-service teachers’ self-efficacy and attitudes towards integration of students with learning difficulties

2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-38 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivana Cimermanová
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
General Education ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Elementary School Teachers ◽  
Regular Education ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Foreign Languages ◽  
Special Educational Needs ◽  
Foreign Language Teachers

Abstract The study of foreign languages is obligatory for all pupils in Slovakia, where the first foreign language is English. Conforming to integration legislation, pupils with special educational needs (SEN) are taught in mainstream classes. Foreign language teachers, however, lack training and where not prepared how to apply teaching methods and techniques for pupils with SEN in the regular language learning class. In the study presented, 187 elementary school teachers filled out questionnaires dealing with integration of pupils with SEN and possible inclusion of learners with disabilities in Slovakia and a group of 56 university FLT students - teachers-to-be. Teachers are not forced and/or encouraged to take part in in-service courses or other education on how to teach these pupils. The pre-service teachers are offered courses on SEN teaching, however, these are not compulsory and mostly general education oriented. The majority of in-service and pre-service teachers felt that pupils with SEN should be taught in regular education class. The article also describes the current situation concerning integration of students with SEN using the official statistical data.

scholarly journals EFL Teachers’ Autonomy Supportive Practices for Out-of-Class Language Learning

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 63-78
Author(s):  
Tuba Işık ◽  
Cem Balçıkanlı
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Autonomy Support ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
State University ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Learner Motivation ◽  
Supportive Behaviors ◽  
Language Classrooms

Autonomy support is a recently defined role for teachers, and they are expected to help learners engage in autonomous out-of-class learning. With a focus on English language learning outside the classroom, this study intended to uncover English as a foreign language teachers’ practices related to autonomy support and to discuss the challenges faced by the teachers in this process. Eleven teachers working at the tertiary level at a state university in Turkey were interviewed. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in three sessions to find out the extent to which the teachers help their learners become autonomous. The findings revealed that the teachers perform many autonomy-supportive behaviors which are feasible in language classrooms such as motivating students, giving language advice and promoting peer collaboration. In doing this, the teachers utilize five different support mechanisms: affective, resource, capacity, technology, and social support. On the other hand, the findings uncovered such constraints as crowded classes, overloaded curriculum, and low learner motivation. These challenges were perceived as barriers hampering teachers’ efforts for autonomy support. This study highlights the feasibility of creating an autonomy-supportive language learning environment and provides implications for teachers of English as a Foreign Language.

PROFESSIONAL FOREIGN LANGUAGE COMPETENCE FOR SUCCESSFUL INTEGRATION INTO THE LABOUR MARKET

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. 594
Author(s):  
Anna Vintere ◽  
Inese Ozola ◽  
Santa Krumina
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Service Industry ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Foreign Language Teachers ◽  
Training Environment ◽  
Language Competence ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Business Sectors

Good knowledge of a foreign language is an important factor contributing to the professional recognition and career prospects. In order to improve professional foreign language competence, the study of the situation in professional foreign language teaching and learning was carried out in three business sectors: logistics, transport, service industry. The survey was carried among three target groups: employers, foreign language teachers and students. Employers were asked to name language skills which employees need most to perform work, to express an opinion on the role of employers in the English language learning process as well as to identify topics, most common words, phrases, or specific professional terms which would be important for their employees to know. Students were asked about motivation and foreign language needs, training environment and teaching methods as well as about their learning styles. Foreign language teachers' questionnaires contained the evaluation of teaching process and methods used, lessons preparation and evaluation of learning. The study results show that foreign language competences are considered by employers as one of the most important for the employees. However, the level of language competences varies according to the position and role within the company. Based on the findings, suggestions and recommendations were developed for acquiring a professional foreign language in the three business sectors. 

On professional identity of English language teachers

10.12737/3591 ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 98-108
Author(s):  
Галина Чудайкина ◽  
Galina Chudaykina
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Personal Experience ◽  
English Language ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Foreign Language Teachers ◽  
Professional Background ◽  
English Language Teachers ◽  
English Speaking

A vast majority of English language teachers in Russia are not native speakers with no or inadequately little personal experience of living in an English-speaking country. What are the specifics of teaching in view of such an authenticity-lacking professional background, and how does the personality of a teacher reveal itself and is transformed in the course of teaching? How does language teaching affect self-identification? What should a teacher focus on attaining or, by contrast, avoiding in view of the above-raised issues? A significant number of foreign language teachers who are not native speakers demonstrate a clear non-target-language-specific accent, thus, either inadvertently or purposefully, revealing and asserting their national identity. The author of the article aims at identifying the problems that the teacher’s explicit target-language-alien accent may cause to both learners and teachers, and the root causes of the accent resilience.

scholarly journals Fostering Learner’s Critical Thinking Skills in EFL: Some Practical Activities

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (29) ◽  
pp. 126
Author(s):  
Marsela Harizaj ◽  
Veneranda Hajrulla
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
English Language ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Critical Thinking Skills ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Foreign Language Teachers ◽  
Learning And Teaching

Developing student’s critical skills is one of the major concerns of foreign language teachers. Professional teachers and novice ones try to find ways to motivate their students. Developing communicative competence requires students to develop learning strategies and focus on language function and context. In every course assignments, learners understand and realize better that communication is not an easy thing. Developing accuracy and fluency in foreign language classes enhance students critical thinking too. However, What is critical thinking? What is the perception of learners about it? What communicative activities can foreign language teachers use in the classroom to enhance student’s critical thinking? These are some research questions that this paper brings in focus, from theory to practice. The study is based on observations in EFL classes. From observations, it was found that developing critical thinking skills help learners to enhance their communication, enlarge their vocabulary, and help them to learn how to use language for different purposes in a variety of contexts. Foreign language teachers can help learners develop critical thinking skills. In this paper, some suggestions for foreign language teachers to use practical activities to foster critical thinking will be presented. Thus, in English language learning and teaching contexts, critical thinking becomes more dynamic.

scholarly journals EFL Teachers’ Perceptions of the 2014 Curriculum in Cameroon French-medium Secondary Education

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (9) ◽  
pp. 41-57
Author(s):  
Yepdia Leundjeu Walter
Keyword(s):  
Secondary Education ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Professional Growth ◽  
English Language ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Instructional Materials ◽  
Foreign Language Teachers ◽  
Teachers Perceptions

This paper explores English foreign language teachers’ perceptions of the 2014 English language learning programme in Cameroon French-medium secondary education. It considers aspects such as the quality of the programme of study, the teaching of skills and competencies in the instructional materials selected, the teaching and testing approaches, the challenges encountered, and teachers’ personal and professional growth. Hall and Hord (1987, 2001) theoretical paradigm was chosen to conduct this research and the method of data collection was quantitative in nature. A total number of 80 English foreign language teachers were surveyed and administered a 38-item questionnaire. It came out of the findings that the vast majority of teachers deemed the new curriculum innovative and a developmental tool for bilingualism. Also, the majority of the respondents appreciated the skills and the competencies taught in the textbooks selected as they met with real-life situations. Further, these teachers in their great number claimed that they had a good knowledge of the Competence-Based Approach (CBA) and had grown cognitively and pedagogically while implementing the reforms of the new learning programme. Finally, they wish the implementation of the curriculum continued. Among the pitfalls of the curriculum, the testing approach and the exposure of learners to other learning sources revealed themselves limited. The overcrowded nature of classrooms impeded the unfolding of lessons and personalised pedagogy and above all obstructed the effective and efficient implementation of the Competence-Based Approach. Ultimately, teachers frowned at the filling of pedagogic documents which in their perspective was too bureaucratic. Some recommendations were made at the end of the investigation in order to improve the curriculum.

Pre-Service English-as-a-Foreign-Language Teachers’ Views on Their Experiences of Project Preparation for Young Learners: “I Felt Like a Real Teacher”

2021 ◽  
pp. 105678792110159
Author(s):  
Gülten Koşar
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Teaching English ◽  
Foreign Language Teachers ◽  
Young Learners ◽  
Qualitative Survey ◽  
Semistructured Interviews

This study targets unveiling junior pre-service English-as-a-foreign-language teachers’ ( N = 80) perceptions of the process they went through as preparing projects for young learners and their views about the effect of project-based learning on teaching English to young learners. The data gathered from a qualitative survey and semistructured interviews were analyzed using an inductive content analysis. The results indicated that while the participants encountered a number of difficulties in the preparation process, they believed the use of project-based learning could promote young learners’ English language learning, and preparing projects for young learners made them feel like a real teacher.

scholarly journals Ideal Classroom Setting for English Language Teaching Through the Views of English Language Teachers (A Sample from Turkey)

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 31
Author(s):  
Canan Demir Yıldız
Keyword(s):  
High Schools ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Classroom Environment ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Classroom Setting ◽  
English Language Teachers

English is the most common foreign language given as a class in Turkey. Although English language education has been given for many years, it is seen that there is not a desired result yet. There are many factors that affect this situation such as language, program, method, language education policies, teacher, and student. One of the factors affecting language education is the pysical classroom setting. Within this context, it is searched for ideal classroom setting in language education at high schools. 22 English language teachers from 9 different high schools participated in the study. Views of teachers were reported to Word and analyzed through content analysis. In the context of the current research, it is stated that there are some technological problems, the areas where foreign language materials are exhibited in the classroom environment are limited, and the classrooms do not allow different seating arrangements. According to English language teachers, it was stated that there should be technological equipment and hardware in an ideal language learning setting, there should be sufficient areas for displaying visual materials, furniture should be flexible and classroom population should be at an ideal level.

scholarly journals The use of movie in forming English-speaking lexical competence of Vietnamese students

2017 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 39-47
Author(s):  
Денис Ершов ◽  
Denis Ershov
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Pedagogical Practice ◽  
Cognitive Approach ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Lexical Competence ◽  
Main Components ◽  
Germanic Languages

The article is devoted to the development and testing of the method of using authentic films for the formation of English-speaking lexical competence of Vietnamese students. The results of the work have shown their effectiveness in the course of scientific and industrial practice in teaching students in the department of phonetics and vocabulary of the English language. Their significance (scientific contribution) and conclusions were noted during the defense of the master's thesis by the members of the State Examination Commission, in Moscow State Pedagogical University on the 11th of February. The field of application of the results is quite extensive: the results of the research can be useful both for teachers of a foreign language, and for students studying in the field - Pedagogical education. The limitations and directions of future research will be related to the study of "Germanic languages" and their application in pedagogical practice using a different methodological base and didactic approaches. In the absence of a language learning environment, ways of creating it are created by working on authentic works of art-films shot abroad. The subject of the study is the technology of forming English-speaking lexical competence among Vietnamese students in Russia on the basis of foreign experience. The aim of the article is to develop a methodology for the formation of English-speaking lexical competence among Vietnamese students. Research hypothesis: the technology of forming English-speaking lexical competence among Vietnamese students will be more effective if: -the theoretical basis for the formation of foreign vocabulary lexical competence among students of the teacher training Universities with the use of an authentic film in the studied language was singled out, and their main components were singled out; - as a methodological reference point, a communicative-cognitive approach to the formation of lexical English-speaking competence was chosen in combination with such approaches as intercultural, personal-activity and competence; -developed a system of exercises and tasks to learn foreign language lexical material using an authentic film.

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