This book examines a neglected area of foreign-language teaching and learning: difficult and aggressive situations. The author presents the real-life experiences of language users and analyses how these individuals have dealt with confusion, impoliteness and hostility in target-language contexts in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom and within their home country. By constructing a student-centred pedagogical model around the data collected, the author considers the choices available to language learners in difficult situations, as well as tools for language learners to develop pragmalinguistic and sociopragmatic resources.

Classroom observation has become a tool for analysing and improving English Language Teaching (ELT). This book represents the state of the art in language education and classroom interaction research from a data-driven empirical perspective. The micro-analytic, multimodal, and videographic approaches represented here understand classrooms as sites of complex, naturally occurring interaction. The volume demonstrates that the investigation of this communicative setting is the basis for insights into the inner workings of classrooms and the development of strategies for teacher education. The introductory article complements the volume by giving a comprehensive overview of the theories and methods that have come to bear in classroom observation.

Winner of the 2015-16 Kenneth W. Mildenberger Prize awarded by the Modern Language Association Many educators aim to engage students in deeply meaningful learning in the language classroom, often facing challenges to connect the students with the culture of the language they are learning. This book aims to demonstrate that substantial intercultural learning can and does occur in the modern language classroom, and explores the features of the classroom that support meaningful culture-in-language-learning. The author argues that transformative modern language education is intimately tied to a view of language learning as an engagement in meaning-making activity, or semiotic practice. The empirical evidence presented is analyzed and then linked to both the theorizing of culture-in-language-teaching and to practical concerns of teaching.

This book contributes to the growing field of foreign language teaching and testing by shedding light on mediation between languages. Stathopoulou offers an empirically-grounded definition of mediation as a form of translanguaging and offers tools and methods for further research in multilingual testing. The book explores what cross-language mediation entails, what processes and strategies are involved, and the challenges often faced by mediators. As well as stressing the importance of administering tests which favour cross-language mediation practices, the author encourages the implementation of language programmes which promote the mingling-of-languages idea and target the development of language learners' effective translanguaging practices. Researchers studying translanguaging, multilingualism, multilingual testing and the use of mother tongue in the foreign language classroom will all find this book of interest.

Digital Storytelling in Second and Foreign Language Teaching offers a concise overview of the theoretical underpinnings, rationales, and related pedagogical implications of second and foreign language learning (S/FLL) through digital storytelling for those readers who want to begin experiencing this mode of teaching and learning. It provides educators and language teachers with a research-oriented, evidence-driven knowledge base of the current digital storytelling tools that are apt for learning/teaching different language skills at K-12, college, and university contexts, empirically assessing their effectiveness. In addition to depicting a consolidated picture of digital storytelling (DST) for second and foreign language learning in theory and practice, the book helps readers gain a better understanding of the possible challenges and constraints against the effective integration of these tools for language learning purposes. In addition, case studies conducted in different contexts add to the existing body of research, providing researchers in the fields of language teaching and educational technology with an opportunity to benefit from research designs, findings, and methods. Further, the book expands readers' knowledge base on students and teachers' perception toward language learning by means of digital storytelling tools. The implications discussed in different chapters of this book offer insights for the readers who are interested in conducting further research on this subject in other disciplines. As digital storytelling tools and presentation software which are specifically designed for educational purposes are becoming more accessible and widely applied, a nuanced understanding of how these tools should be best applied for educational purposes including language practice is becoming an imperative. The present publication aims at offering such an understanding, acting as a reference guide, and making DST a tangible instructional design for teachers, educators, learners, curriculum designers, and policy makers in the field of S/FLL and educational technology.

This book analyses the role of writing as an integral part of communicative competence in the teaching/learning process, particularly in TEFL at Slovak primary schools. The author chooses primary schools in the Nitra Self-governing Region in Slovakia as the sample, with an intention to find out if primary school learners in Slovakia understand the instructions to the written exercises they are given. He analyses the mistakes/errors they usually make, and judges the criteria for reaching the expected level of writing proficiency in English. Using the very same methodology, he compares a previous research with the current situation, taking all aspects into account.

Language teachers are key figures in preparing young people for participation in an increasingly multilingual and culturally diverse world, yet little is known about how they go about this in practice. This book uses examples of classroom interaction to reveal how teachers of languages act as intercultural mediators and the implications of this for practice. To date, there has been little exploration of how teachers mediate language and culture learning from an intercultural perspective, and what underlies their mediation practices in terms of their conceptions of intercultural language teaching and learning. This book offers an account of what teachers are thinking, feeling and doing as they enact an intercultural perspective on language teaching and learning.

This book is directed at lexicographers and professionals in Translation Studies and English Language Teaching. Chapters by translation scholars alternate with chapters by teachers of English; within them, sections on the contents of the works discussed alternate with sections on their use and/or usability. Each of the chapters offers a glimpse of interesting research possibilities that practice raises, the issues we need to investigate and explain, as well as how to turn some of this research into practical action. The book proves that dictionaries continue to play an important part in our daily and academic lives, though it is not always clear how they should fit into the overall pattern of curriculum design, teaching materials or learning styles.

Writing centers in universities and colleges aim to help student writers develop practices that will make them better writers in the long term and that will improve their draft papers in the short term. The tutors who work in writing centers accomplish such goals through one-to-one talk about writing. This book analyzes the aboutness of writing center talk-what tutors and student writers talk about when they come together to talk about writing. By combining corpus-driven analysis to provide a quantitative, microlevel view of the subject matter and sociocultural discourse analysis to provide a qualitative macrolevel view of tutor-student writer interactions, it further establishes how these two research methods operate together to produce a robust and rigorous analysis of spoken discourse.

This book explores the place of consciousness in second language learning. It offers extensive background information on theories of consciousness and provides a detailed consideration of both the nature of consciousness and the cognitive context in which it appears. It presents the established Modular Online Growth and Use of Language (MOGUL) framework and explains the place of consciousness within this framework to enable a cognitively conceptualised understanding of consciousness in second language learning. It then applies this framework to fundamental concerns of second language acquisition, those of perception and memory, looking at how second language representations come to exist in the mind and what happens to these representations once they have been established (memory consolidation and restructuring).

This book explores the place of consciousness in second language learning. It offers extensive background information on theories of consciousness and provides a detailed consideration of both the nature of consciousness and the cognitive context in which it appears. It presents the established Modular Online Growth and Use of Language (MOGUL) framework and explains the place of consciousness within this framework to enable a cognitively conceptualised understanding of consciousness in second language learning. It then applies this framework to fundamental concerns of second language acquisition, those of perception and memory, looking at how second language representations come to exist in the mind and what happens to these representations once they have been established (memory consolidation and restructuring).

Why are second language learners in Japan's universities so silent? Using an innovative mixed-methods research approach, Jim King investigates the perplexing but intriguing phenomenon of classroom silence. With its exciting new conceptual framework of Dynamic Systems Theory, Silence in the Second Language Classroom offers a unique insight into the true complexity behind why some learners are either unable or unwilling to speak in a foreign language. This highly interdisciplinary book draws on ideas from fields such as psychology, sociolinguistics and anthropology, and delves deeply into themes relating to Japanese society and the country's education system. Written in an accessible and engaging style, this timely volume will be of interest to researchers, students of educational and applied linguistics, language education policy makers and, indeed, anyone who has ever taught.

The Teaching of Chinese as a Foreign Language (TCFL) is expanding rapidly worldwide, resulting in a substantial increase in the number of Chinese as a Foreign Language (CFL) teachers, which in turn draws greater attention to a variety of global aspects. In Denmark, TCFL is a newly established profession and CFL teachers face numerous challenges when adapting to their intercultural experience. Using empirical data from 18 CFL teachers in different educational institutions in Denmark, this book explores the dynamics of factors shaping both Chinese and Danish CFL teachers' beliefs in the Danish classrooms, and their belief change during the course of teaching. Understanding Teacher Beliefs in an Intercultural Context presents state-of-the-art knowledge of the beliefs and experiences of the different groups of CFL teachers in the Danish context. This book is useful for professionals, researchers, graduate students who have an interest in education in general, foreign language education and teacher education.

The teaching of English in multilingual contexts such as Zimbabwe, where English is often not the primary language of the Black majority public school student population, is a highly contested issue. Though generally considered as necessary in an increasingly globalized, English language dominated world, this conventionally Eurocentric, elitist-oriented English education system is imbued with colonialist discourses that tend to shape and complicate educators' understandings about the place of diverse sociocultural backgrounds, ethnic-identified indigenous languages, indigenous knowledge systems, and differently abled learners within its conventional structures. In Teacher Stories, the author utilizes postcolonialist theoretical lenses and a poststructuralist-inflected narrative inquiry approach to self-reflexively analyze her impressions of three veteran Zimbabwean teacher educators' interpretations of what they understand to be their experiences of learning and teaching English. The purpose of this research is to provide English education scholars and policy makers with some insights into what veteran Zimbabwean English teacher educators perceive as the efficacies and challenges of implementing policy-mandated inclusive education pedagogical practices. Since English teacher educators' perspectives are a much under-researched area of English in a Zimbabwean context, this study makes a meaningful contribution to the international field of English education.

This text illustrates the crucial role of the mother tongue literacy in second language acquisition by presenting findings from a comparative study conducted in primary schools in Senegal. In addition, the volume provides an in-depth look at the linguistic history of Senegal before, during, and after French colonialism. The Impact of Mother Tongue Illiteracy on Second Language Acquisition discusses the socio-linguistic landscape and ethnolinguistic composition of Senegal and its effect on the second language acquisition. An in-depth analysis of children's phonological awareness, decoding, and reading comprehension in French reveals significant disparities in the literacy skills of Wolof children who have been exposed to Arabic and Qur'anic texts prior to schooling, and those who have not. In doing so, the text explores the impacts of post-colonial language policies in Africa, highlights the pedagogical consequences of mother tongue illiteracy, and questions the use of French as the only language of instruction in Senegalese schools. This detailed research text will of great interest and use to graduate and postgraduate students, researchers, academics, professionals and policy makers in the field of Second Language Acquisition, Multicultural Education, Applied Linguistics, French language education and, Language Policy and Planning.

Starting from the key idea that learners and teachers bring diverse linguistic knowledge and resources to education, this book establishes and explores the concept of the 'multilingual turn' in languages education and the potential benefits for individuals and societies. It takes account of recent research, policy and practice in the fields of bilingual and multilingual education as well as foreign and second language education. The chapters integrate theory and practice, bringing together researchers and practitioners from five continents to illustrate the effects of the multilingual turn in society and evaluate the opportunities and challenges of implementing multilingual curricula and activities in a variety of classrooms. Based on the examples featured, the editors invite students, teachers, teacher educators and researchers to reflect on their own work and to evaluate the relevance and applicability of the multilingual turn in their own contexts.

The creation of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) has given rise to interest and debate among policy makers, testers, teachers and researchers alike in the reliability and feasibility of the assessment of second language (L2) proficiency. This volume brings together concrete ideas on identifying and measuring L2 proficiency from different branches of SLA research (psycholinguistic, sociolinguistic, corpus-based, applied linguistics) to contribute to a deeper understanding of what it means to be proficient in an L2. The chapters introduce a wide range of tools that are innovative, reliable, and easy-to-use for the evaluation of learners' language level with respect to both productive and receptive skills and provide a variety of answers to the question of how to assess L2 proficiency in a valid, reliable and practical manner. The collection will therefore inspire language teachers, teacher trainers and language testing specialists and help them adapt their assessment practices when necessary, and will also be a valuable resource for postgraduate students and researchers.

In Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL), content and language learning proceed in parallel, the one supporting the other. CLIL has spread widely and has attracted a large number of studies. While most of these studies have focused on the language benefits of CLIL, this book focuses on both language and subject achievement. Against the background of autonomy theory and motivation, the author investigates to what extent learners at different proficiency levels are able to work in self-directed ways in CLIL settings. The analysis of data obtained from CLIL learners and teachers shows that the majority of participants do not see this integration as problematic, while data concerning student achievement point in a different direction. While results are positive concerning motivation and self-perception of achievement for both beginning and more advanced CLIL learners, this positive picture is not confirmed by performance data in the area of self-directed learning.

This book closes the gap between theory and classroom application by capitalizing on learners' individuality in second or foreign language learning. The book examines the existing literature and theoretical underpinnings of each of the most prominent learner characteristics including anxiety, beliefs, cognitive abilities, motivation, strategies, styles and willingness to communicate. This strong foundation, coupled with the wide variety of activities that are suggested at the end of each chapter, arms the reader with ideas to conquer the problems created by negative affect and to capitalize on positive, facilitative emotions. The tasks are unrestricted by language and can be modified for use with technology, emergent learners and large classes, making this book a useful resource for both in-service teachers and pre-service teachers in university language teacher education programs.

For many decades, English language educators across the world have been locked in a paradigm of ESL/EFL/ESD methods that have circumvented the growth of any pedagogical will for Immersion in English (IE) or the Sustained Use of English (SUE) in speech environments where other languages challenge English-in-use and the preparation of teachers of English to facilitate IE or SUE in classroom praxis. There is an opportunity to advance this scholarship from an international perspective to build a distinct post-method pedagogy for English language teaching in the Caribbean and other global teaching-learning contexts. English Language Teaching in a Post-Method Paradigm is a critical scholarly publication that provides relevant teacher initiated theoretical frameworks and the latest empirical research findings in English language teaching that promote English as the tool for global integration and communication. Highlighting topics such as curriculum, pedagogy, and teacher education, this book is ideal for professionals, researchers, policymakers, academicians, and educators.

This book takes the reader through a journey into the practical and theoretical aspects of partner-based learning in bilingual early childhood environments. The authors begin by presenting compelling arguments for the significance of this approach noting the parallels between partner-based collaborative learning and developmentally appropriate practices for young learners. Part 1 weaves in tenets of a LatCrit perspective to highlight intersections of a social justice orientation to learning and teaching and a collaborative approach that capitalizes on Latinx bilingual children's linguistic repertoire and cultural capital. The authors unpack the translingual partner construct unveiling the potential of bilingual children as meaning-makers and language problem solvers. Part 2 contextualizes the concept of translingual partner interactions in two early childhood classrooms. Then, to bridge theory and praxis, Part 3 reveals what the authors have learned after thousands of observations, conversations, and interactions with bilingual teachers and young learners throughout the United States. Readers will find considerations for the design of partner-based interactions. Specifically, the authors address criteria such as language proficiency, academic strengths, and learning styles. The authors include general guidelines for effective partner collaboration to assist teachers in the assessment of partner-based work. To bring the discussion full circle, the authors close with an example of a real-life partnership. Chicano leaders Dolores Huerta and Cesar Chavez's partnership is portrayed in terms of their agency, impact, and connectedness with the community.

Tim McNamara's work has had a fundamental impact on language testing. This volume brings together over 20 leading scholars in language assessment whose work has been influenced by Tim McNamara. Their papers cover issues of the social impact of language tests, such as fairness and justice of test use and language testing in the context of migration. They also address testing of interaction, and teachers' and students' views of language tests. The volume concludes with papers discussing the future of language testing in the face of contested concepts of validity, the rise of social media, and lingua franca language use.

This volume brings together ten contributions to the study of untutored (mainly) second but also first language acquisition. All chapters have been written from a functionalist perspective and take as the main theoretical framework a model of spontaneous second language acquisition centered on the "basic variety" as proposed by Klein and Perdue. The chapters in the volume are grouped around two research themes. The first theme concerns the acquisition of scope phenomena (negation, scope particles), the second one deals with referential movement (reference to person, time and space). Both parts provide insights in the structure of learner varieties at various stages of development, and are followed by a discussion chapter. Scope phenomena, such as negation and frequency adverbials present an important learning problem, as learners have to reconcile the logical structure of their utterances with the syntactic specifics of the language being learned. Their acquisition has been relatively neglected in studies up to date, however, and we even lack detailed knowledge about the interpretation of scope particles in the target languages. The chapters in this part of the volume set out to provide more knowledge about scope phenomena in general; more detailed descriptions of the particles in the languages under consideration; and a more general understanding of how scope is acquired. Strong findings resulting from the "ESF" project suggested universal trends in how untutored learners deal with acquisition in the very early stages (the basic variety). Chapters in this second part of the volume on referential movement look at acquisition at more advanced stages, including the production of near native speakers. Learners who progress beyond the basic variety increasingly grammaticalise their productions. This later development is supposedly more variable, as more specific aspects of the target languages are now being acquired. Chapters in this part allow to shed more light on the question regarding universal and language-specific influences on language acquisition.

Until now, the picture painted of French second language learning in Canada has tended to focus on successful French immersion. This volume offers a broader representation, in response to the demographic changes that have made the French language classroom a more complex place. Focusing on inclusion and language maintenance, the chapters discuss how a multilingual population can add the two official languages to their repertoire whilst maintaining their languages of origin/heritage; how the revitalization of Indigenous languages can best be supported in the language classroom, and how students with disabilities can be helped to successfully learn languages.