A needs survey of overseas Irish language learners

The vast majority of endangered languages are expected to have vanished from community use within one to two generations (Lackaff & Moner, 2016). One such language, Irish, may die out as a vernacular within a decade in the Irish-speaking regions of Ireland (Ó Giollagáin & Charlton, 2015). However, there is growing interest in the Irish language overseas, particularly in the USA (Schwartz, 2020). In this study, a survey was conducted with 92 respondents to identify the needs of learners living outside of Ireland. The findings of this needs assessment suggest that overseas Irish learners would benefit from the provision of an online Irish language community that connects members through communicative and collaborative language activities. Positioned in the context of similar developments and innovations internationally (e.g. Henry, Carroll, Cunliffe, & Kop, 2018), this research builds on existing literature in online sociocultural language learning.

CRITICAL-COLLABORATIVE LANGUAGE EDUCATION THROUGH ENGLISH: AN EXPERIENCE WITH YOUTH AND ADULT EDUCATION STUDENTS

ABSTRACT This study takes a cue from the biography of Maya Angelou and aims to intertwine her life experiences to a critical-collaborative language education through English approach. To reach our goal, a group of four Youth and Adult Education (YAE) students departed from Instituto Federal de Goiás (IFG) and metaphorically went to the U.S.A. through the story of the black woman aforementioned. Our reflections during this adventure were drawn on the works of many scholars, such as Almeida (2017); Figueiredo (2008, 2018); Figueiredo & Lago (2018); Lago & Cintra (2016); Magalhães (2014); Morrison (1975); Pessoa (2014); Rosa & Flores (2017); Scarcella & Oxford (1992), among others. We find it paramount to mention that our problematizations also stemmed from our very own experiences with the study participants as well as our personal narratives and struggles against racism, sexism, poverty and other types of prejudice in our classes. Our empirical material was generated through an open-ended questionnaire, the letters the students wrote to themselves in class, and the discussions carried out in a yarning circle about an experience the study participants had with students from three first-year high school integrated courses – Foreign Trade, Construction and Chemistry. We conclude that this investigation allowed us and the study participants to reflect upon and rethink our opinions about our bodies, complexion, and the very process of language education through English.

Effects of Social Network Information on Online Language Learning Performance

This study examines the value and impact of social network information on a user's language learning performance by conducting an online experiment in a peer-to-peer collaborative language learning marketplace. Social information or information about others in one's network can present a socially networked learning environment that enables learners to engage more in the learning process. Experimental research design in an online language learning marketplace was conducted. The study finds evidence that the mere visibility of social network information positively impacts a learner's learning performance. Learners that engage with social interaction perform better than those that do not. In addition, active social interaction has a stronger impact on learning performance as compared to passive social interaction. The study concludes with implications for platform developers to enable the visibility of social information and engineer the user experience to enhance interactive learning.

Critiquing Collaborative Language Learning: A Qualitative Study of Teachers’ Perceptions

Collaborative language learning, followed as a language teaching and learning methodology in many countries, is often critiqued with mixed arguments. To some, while keeping in view its social aspect where learners work on common projects intending to partake in collective decision making and intellectual engagement, collaborative language learning is more productive than the traditional way of teaching and learning a second/foreign language. To others, because of different requirements for its successful implementation, collaborative language learning becomes a difficult practice where the cost exceeds the benefits. To know the problems and prospects of collaborative language learning, in the present study, data were collected through semi-structured interviews from teachers of both public and private sector schools of district Mardan. Through purposive sampling, data were collected from 40 teachers (20 each from public and private sector schools). The findings reveal that besides many positive aspects, there are some negative aspects of collaborative learning where the prominent one is the loss of an individual's authority and creativity, promotion of totalitarian approach, and overlooking of the shy students. It can be a useful tool for language education provided some requirements including teacher training, availability of proper space, and classroom size, etc. are tackled properly.

Friendship Group Activities: Voices from Chinese EFL Learners

Friendship group activities, as one of the learner-centered applications of collaborative learning, promotes learners’ overall abilities and have been warmly welcomed into English as a foreign language (EFL) classes in China. However, because of the complexity of the multi-level classroom life, sometimes this application becomes problematic in the actual practice. To tackle this problem and illustrate the dynamic characteristics of collaborative language learning, further investigation into friendship groups from the students’ perspective is necessary. The present study was conducted through qualitative research with six semi-structured interviews, which aimed to elicit learners’ in-depth views on group work in the actual language classrooms and create a more suitable facilitative classroom environment for future students. The findings show that the fundamental factors, such as culture, teacher guidance and group processing have significantly impacted students’ performance and participation. This impact may have important implications for implementing collaborative language learning in future EFL contexts.