An Evaluation of Preposition Representation in the Omani Basic Education ELT Textbooks

The chapter employed a corpus-based approach to evaluate the representation of prepositions in the Omani Basic Education English language teaching (ELT) school textbooks in Grades 1-4. In doing so, it sought to investigate English preposition distribution patterns in the textbooks in order to understand more about how Omani learners are introduced to them. To achieve this, a corpus of Omani ELT school textbooks was used and a qualitative page-by-page content analysis performed through manual content analysis. Findings indicate that prepositions were not presented with enough frequency for learners to be adequately exposed to them across all grades. Moreover, results suggest that the textbook writers have not considered the frequency distribution of patterns of prepositions during the textbook design phase. Practical implications of these results are offered.

Social Strategy Use Among Omani Undergraduate Students

This chapter reports on social strategy use among undergraduate students in one of Oman's private universities. It examines interactive strategy use in three main language-learning contexts: in class, on campus outside the classroom, and off campus. Data was collected through interviews and the online questionnaire social strategy inventory for language learning (SSILL). One-hundred twenty-four students enrolled in their second-year diploma program participated in the questionnaire, while 12 were interviewed and administered a mock IELTS exam. Results indicate that participants used all social strategies at only a moderate frequency. It is concluded that different language learning backgrounds, proficiencies, and power relations between students' L1 and English may impede the use of interactive strategies in spite of the supportive classroom environment. The chapter concludes by urging practitioners to pay closer attention to learner identities, power struggles, and group memberships in the English language classroom.

Omani English Language Learners' Perceptions of Interactive and Online Listening and Speaking Activities

Online learning calls for a revolution in course development for English language teaching. This chapter examines the effects of interpersonal interaction, computer-mediated tasks, and podcasting on engagement in listening and speaking activities by exploring instruction that promotes fluent and accurate speech, in addition to the potential benefits of employing student podcasts as authentic listening materials. Fifty-one L1 Arabic English language learners (ELLs) from an intermediate English cohort of the Foundation Program for English Language (FPEL) at Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) in Oman responded to a 24-question online survey that addressed their perceptions of classroom-based and online listening and speaking activities. To further ascertain students' motivations, the researcher interviewed a focus group of seven learners from the cohort and examined willingness to engage in speaking activities inside the classroom and as part of extracurricular activities. Findings suggest an influence of foreign language anxiety (FLA) on participation.

Curriculum Reform Due to Project-Based Learning Methodology Implementation in Teaching an ESP Course to Russian University Natural Science Students

This chapter investigates the didactic potential of a project-based learning (PjBL) methodology as a means of modernizing curriculum and improving an ESP course at the university level. The chapter outlines in detail the main elements of the negotiated teaching framework and discusses why such a methodology is appropriate for teaching communicative competence and developing learners' performance in English in a professional context. It also presents practical devices for the implementation of the designed conceptual framework. The first part of the chapter focuses on outlining methodological aspects of the undertaken case study. The second part concentrates on the quantitative and qualitative assessment of the results of the PjBL framework intervention. Within this context, a discussion about the influence of the PjBL course implementation on 48 students is provided. The authors also specify some factors contributing to the effectiveness of the development of learners' target skills attributed to the introduction of the featured model for the ESP project-based course.

Academic and Personal Impact of Peer Tutoring on the Peer Tutor

This chapter features results of a mixed-methods study of the academic and personal impact of peer tutoring on tutors at the Tutorial Centre, Centre for Preparatory Studies at Sultan Qaboos University, Oman. The perceptions of the impact of peer tutoring were gained by interviewing 12 experienced current and former peer tutors who have not yet graduated, that is, former peer tutors who had only recently finished peer tutoring. Transcriptions of the audio-recorded interviews were analyzed using a process of thematic analysis to explore emerging themes. In addition, participants' GPAs before they began tutoring were compared to their current GPAs after they had completed at least two semesters of tutoring through a paired samples t-test. Practical implications of findings for future peer tutoring practice are discussed.

Bridging the Gulf Between the Campus and Workplace

This chapter explores the way involvement in student organizations contributes to an effective form of learning, particularly at the tertiary level. This can be seen to be part of experiential learning, which has long been the backbone of western education, increasingly being implemented in universities in the Arab Gulf, where education has hitherto followed a more traditional route. Based on the theories in the literature, this qualitative research outlines the multiple roles student organizations play in a context where learning independence, mixed gender interaction, and English language use are still developing concepts. Using personal interviews with stakeholders in a university in the Arab Gulf, this chapter ascertains the extent and the way in which student organizations succeed in enabling students to move beyond traditional learning to enable self-reliance by establishing social and professional networks and offering real-time instruction in such skills as time management and cultural communication, in addition to giving opportunities to use English in real-world contexts.

A Cognitive Style-Inclusive Approach as a Means of Learner-Centered EFL Teaching Mode Implementation

This chapter describes a methodology for developing English as a foreign language (EFL) communicative skills with respect to students' cognitive styles in the context of intercultural communication. A cognitive style-inclusive approach is now considered one of the most efficient ways to tailor teaching frameworks to the needs of each student. The chapter explores a number of psychological and pedagogical conditions that contribute to the efficient implementation of a learner-centered paradigm in the context of EFL education at the university level. Such aspects as students' involvement in the intercultural context, modelling the conditions of intercultural dialogue, the variability of content types and forms of learning activity, the complexity of information processing strategies, and polymodal cognitive experience are described, and their potential value for the developed methodology analyzed. Ways these can support students' communicative and cognitive development in EFL courses, in addition to teachers' efforts to create a rich and effective learning environment, are explored.

Online Collaborative Learning as a Way of Boosting Language and Teaching Proficiency

A pedagogical attempt to increase the effectiveness of foreign language teaching led to pairing Russian students who are obtaining a Master's degree in language teaching methodology with those of a distance department learning English as a foreign language to collaboratively solve educational problems online. As a course instructor plays the role of a facilitator gradually giving students more and more academic freedom, the educational process increases learner autonomy. Current research findings indicate that such a course is effective for both target groups of learners. By directly applying the received competence to online practice, those who study language teaching methodology learn more effectively and acquire new skills associated with successfully working with computer technologies, while those who study by distance learning receive better academic guidance and a more individualized approach from their senior peers.

Bringing Back the L1 From Exile

This chapter examines the effectiveness of second and foreign language learners using their L1 within their zone of proximal development to improve their L2 acquisition, and explores the usefulness of assessing specific L1 language skills to provide a more accurate analysis of learner acquirement. This theoretical approach will be examined in light of Lev S. Vygotsky and Vivian Cook's concepts of using the L1 in teaching and assessing the L2. One of these methods is the “new concurrent method” which identifies “code-switching” as a one of its important elements in creating real life situations in the classroom. In addition to theory, this chapter provides practical ESL/EFL assessments and trends of their application. By briefly exploring some of the justifications behind banning the L1 in ESL/EFL classrooms, the chapter criticizes and refutes the pedagogical claims and assumptions made throughout the reform movement which have affected many generations of students and influenced teacher training and instruction for a number of years.

CLIL in the Japanese University Context

The Japanese education system is currently in the midst of reforms, particularly with regards to way the English language is taught. At the university level, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology (MEXT) is not only endeavoring to improve Japanese students' proficiency in English but also their intercultural communicative competence. This comes at a time when universities in Japan are trying to enhance their international competitiveness in an increasingly globalized world. The chapter argues that the approach to English education known as content and language integrated learning (CLIL), and the principles on which it is based, will help to address many of these issues of concern. By adopting this approach, not only will students be exposed to a more motivating learning experience, they will also be encouraged to critically examine issues from different cultural standpoints. Finally, the chapter examines instances of CLIL in Japanese universities where it is already being used, as well as effective ways in which it can be implemented from now on.