Promoting Continuous Professional Development of English Teachers Through Action Research

The current study adopts a mixed-method research design to foster English Language instructors’ attitude toward professional development, self-efficacy beliefs, and reflective thinking. Vygotsky's sociocultural theory constituted the base and the professional development program was designed accordingly. The participants of the study were nine English Language instructors working at three different universities. Throughout the 16-week program, it was aimed to equip the participants with action research skills to conduct their own study in their own context according to their needs and/or interests. All the participants completed the Plan, Act, Observe, and Reflect stages of the Action Research Cycle.

Talking about oneself

Second language instructors often have students talk about their own experiences rather than abstract impersonal topics. Intuitively, such topics seem more likely to encourage student engagement. Unfortunately, virtually no empirical research has examined the effects of personal prompts on spoken output. To address this gap in research, the current study (N = 117) compares the spoken output of Japanese university English students who responded to a personal prompt with students responding to an impersonal prompt. Output was recorded in transcripts and then analyzed using a battery of measures related to complexity, accuracy, and fluency. Findings showed that personalized prompts were associated with greater fluency. Moreover, there was some evidence that impersonal prompts led to output with greater lexical complexity. Rates of accuracy were similar in both groups. Correlational analysis suggested that lexical sophistication was associated with reduced fluency. The conclusion addresses practical implications and avenues for further research.

Factors that Affect the implementation of Teaching Writing Skills: Focus on Second Cycle Primary Schools in North Shoa

The purpose of this study was to determine the variables affecting the implementation of writing skills instruction and learning in grades 7 and 8 in North Shoa Zone Second Cycle Primary schools. The study's primary purpose was to determine the difficulties encountered by English language instructors and students while teaching and learning to write in English classes. The research included the participation of 25 English language instructors and 1484 pupils from 14 Second Cycle Primary Schools. A questionnaire and an interview were used to obtain the required data. Questionnaires were completed by instructors and students, and English language teachers were interviewed. The questionnaire data was tallied and examined statistically in terms of frequency and percentage. Similarly, interview data were categorized and qualitatively characterized. The investigation revealed that the majority of instructors and students struggle with teaching and learning writing skills. Additionally, although both English instructors and students believe they are engaging in writing activities in the classroom, the students' writing performance is not as promising as shown by open-ended questions and comments from English language teachers interviewed. Several key suggestions are made in light of the results of this research in order to mitigate the issues that impede the efficient implementation of writing instruction and learning in second cycle primary schools. The primary recommendation is to offer enough training for English language instructors on how to teach writing skills, which will then be conveyed to students in order for them to enhance their writing performance.

Understanding Austria from Afar: Treating Regional Variation in the Virtu-al German as a Foreign Language Classroom.

The COVID-19 pandemic has influenced nearly every aspect of the academic world, and study abroad is no exception. Particularly in the foreign language learning sector, the unprecedented switch from in-class lectures to distance learning brought with it many challenges. Not only were language instructors tasked with creating an interactive language learning atmosphere from afar but continuing to spark student motivation while catering to a broad range of learning goals constituted a seemingly insurmountable obstacle. The following case study therefore seeks to provide an easily adaptable and interactive task-based activity for the German as a foreign language classroom that should support learners in gaining a deeper understanding of the social dimensions and usages of Austrian regional varieties. Furthermore, the activity is designed so as to be applicable in both an online as well as face-to-face classroom and accommodate foreign language instructors with less experience in digital course delivery and/or minimal access to learning management systems. Abstract in German Die COVID-19 Pandemie hat nahezu jeden Aspekt der akademischen Welt beeinflusst, und Study Abroad ist keine Ausnahme. Gerade im Bereich des Fremdsprachenerwerbs hat die beispiellose Umstellung von Präsenzunterricht auf Fernlehre viele Herausforderungen mit sich gebracht. Nicht nur wurden Fremdsprachenlehrer:innen mit der Aufgabe konfrontiert, eine interaktive Sprachlernatmosphäre aus der Ferne zu schaffen, sondern auch die Motivation der Schüler:innen trotz der Situation zu wecken, aufrechtzuerhalten und gleichzeitig ein breites Spektrum an Lernzielen zu berücksichtigen. Dies hat eine scheinbar unüberwindbare Hürde dargestellt. In der folgenden Fallstudie handelt es sich daher um die Bereitstellung einer leicht adaptierbaren und interaktiven task-based Aktivität für den Deutsch als Fremdsprachenunterricht, die Lernende dabei unterstützen soll, ein tieferes Verständnis der sozialen Dimensionen und Verwendungen österreichischer Regionalvarietäten zu erlangen. Darüber hinaus ist die Aktivität so konzipiert, dass sie sowohl im Online- wie auch im Präsenzunterricht Einsatz finden und von Fremd-sprachenlehrer:innen mit wenig(er) Erfahrung in der digitalen Abhaltung von Lehrveranstaltungen und/oder minimalem Zugang zu Lernmanagement-systemen umgesetzt werden kann.

The Dynamics of Individual Differences in Teaching/Learning of English as a Second/Foreign Language

The subject of individual learner differences (IDs) in English as a Second/Foreign (ESL/EFL) Language teaching and learning is an area which has been much debated and investigated. Since these differences vary according to the geographical or cultural influences of the learners, variations in results and opinions among language instructors are inevitable. However, the indubitable fact is that these differences considerably influence the ESL/EFL language learners’ performances. Individuals are different in personality styles, and these personality styles are influenced by age, cultural background and a whole lot of other factors. These IDs lead to dynamism in language acquisition. The current study thus examined three set of IDs to determine how they affect the learning style preferred by individuals. The individual differences analyzed in this study include: race, exposure to English Language, and personality type (i.e., introvert or extrovert). The study concluded that while race and exposure to English Language affected the preferred learning style significantly as expected English language acquisition, personality style, however, did not have an influence on the preferred learning style for this study sample. IDs are extremely complex, with a large number of variables. As a result, it is critical for researchers as well as English language instructors to identify the source of the problem from a psychological standpoint and consider variables that would aid in Second Language Acquisition (SLA) improvement.

The Impact of Instructors’ Perceptions of E-Learning on the Quality of Online Teaching: A Case Study of the French Language Instructors at the University of Bahrain During COVID-19 Pandemic

French language instructors at the University of Bahrain faced many challenges in adapting their teaching practices during the sudden transition to online teaching due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In this case study, we explore the French language instructors’ perceptions of e-learning and their attitudes toward technology during the pandemic as well as their students’ perceptions of the quality of their online teaching. The objective of this study is to analyze the relationship between instructors’ perceptions and teaching performance. We conducted the study during the beginning of the sudden change to online teaching and administered online survey-based data collection instruments to gather information about French language instructors’ perceptions and undergraduate students’ satisfaction with the quality of French language online teaching. One year later, we completed data collection with semi-structured interviews of the instructors’ perceptions and online teaching experience. The findings indicated that despite the abrupt switch to online teaching, instructors showed a prominent level of technology acceptance. However, the results indicated effective online teaching was highly correlated to instructors’ pedagogical preparedness and self-efficacy level. Consequently, this study outlines key factors influencing the efficacy of e-learning, including pedagogical preparedness, instructors’ self-efficacy, and information and communications technology literacy. In addition, in this study we propose implications for instructors’ preparation and development.

Distanced Language Education during the Pandemic from the Perspectives of Foreign Language Instructors

This study aims to examine the opinions of foreign language instructors who teach at preparatory classes through distance education during the pandemic. Based on this objective, five instructors working at a School of Foreign Languages at a state university in Turkey were interviewed and their opinions regarding the positive and negative aspects of distance language teaching were revealed. Moreover, the problems they faced, materials they used, and their willingness to teach through distance education after the pandemic were questioned. Qualitative research method was used in the study. The interviews were decoded and themes were determined. The themes and codes were organized and interpreted using the ATLAS.ti qualitative data analysis programme. The findings revealed four main categories: learning, student, teaching, and assessment and evaluation. Giving education without time and space restrictions, encouraging individual learning, fostering digital learning, and being economical were some of the positive aspects. As for negative aspects, it could be stressed that the instructors were not able to interact with the students adequately and, particularly, they were unable to teach and support the students’ speaking and writing skills at the desired level. From the findings, the use of distance education partially after the pandemic can be suggested as it offers various advantages of time, place, and economy to learners and teachers in education.