O objetivo desta tese é relacionar análises de segmentos transcritos de fala-em-interação de sala de aula de língua adicional e orientações acerca de metodologia de ensino. Em especial, esta pesquisa propõe colocar em discussão as orientações presentes em manuais de metodologia de ensino de línguas adicionais (Brown, 2007; Hall, 2001a; Harmer, 2009; Schlatter & Garcez, 2012; Scrivener, 2012) acerca do planejamento de tarefas pedagógicas e do gerenciamento interacional da participação dos alunos durante a realização de atividades pedagógicas. Para a realização do estudo, foram geradas 20 horas de registros audiovisuais em uma sala de aula de nível básico 2 de português como língua adicional que adota pedagogia de projetos em um curso em extensão de uma instituição federal de ensino superior. A partir do enquadre teórico-metodológico da Análise da Conversa, analiso neste relatório cinco ocorrências transcritas (de um total de dezoito) de fala-em-interação de sala de aula em que o status epistêmico de conhecedor da língua adicional de algum participante é posto em risco durante a realização de atividades pedagógicas. A realização de atividades pedagógicas foi analisada como constituída de três etapas: convite à participação (Ramos, 2010), produção e continuidade. Observou-se que as ações realizadas na etapa de continuidade da realização da atividade pedagógica foram centrais para a concretização de diferentes objetivos pedagógicos. Quando essas ações estavam implicadas sequencialmente em relação ao que fora feito imediatamente antes na etapa de produção da atividade pedagógica, o objetivo concretizado se relacionava ao uso da língua adicional para a realização de ações. Por outro lado, quando essas ações não exibiam essa implicatividade sequencial, o objetivo realizado dizia respeito à produção de elocuções com acurácia. Verificou-se que as ações realizadas pela professora que rebaixavam o outro participante epistemicamente com relação à língua adicional foram ofertas de reelaboração de elocuções. Já as práticas e ações mobilizadas pela professora que trabalhavam no sentido de assegurar o status epistêmico dos demais participantes como conhecedores da língua adicional foram a formulação (Garfinkel & Sacks, 1970) e a verificação de entendimento (Schegloff, Jefferson, & Sacks, 1977, pp. 379). Tais achados recomendam que manuais de metodologia de ensino de línguas atentem para a importância de a) antever, quando do planejamento de tarefas, a interação projetada na etapa de continuidade da tarefa de modo a maximizar a chance de que os objetivos projetados se concretizem e b) considerar as ações de formulação e verificação de entendimento como centrais para a materialização da atribuição do professor como ratificador do conhecimento produzido pelo aluno. / This thesis is aimed at relating classroom talk-in-interaction transcripts to guidelines on teaching methodology. This research discusses guidelines from additional languague teaching methodology handbooks (Brown, 2007; Hall, 2001a; Harmer, 2009; Schlatter & Garcez, 2012; Scrivener, 2012) on task planning and interactional management of students’ participation while carrying out pedagogical activities. Twenty hours of audiovisual data were generated in a Portuguese-as-an-additional language extension program at a Higher Education institution. The classes registered were a basic 2 level group, whose curriculum followed a progect-based methodology. Following Conversation Analysis framework, I analyse five transcribed segments (from a corpus of eighteen occurances) that portray participants’ epistemic status K+ concerning the additional language at risk during the accomplishment of pedagogical activities. The accomplishment of the pedagogical activity was constituted in three stages: invite for participation (Ramos, 2010), production and follow up. The actions co-constructed during the follow up stage were crucial to reach different pedagogical goals. When such actions were sequentially implied in relation to the action previously done in the production stage of the pedagogical activity, the goal reached was connected to a concept of language as doing social actions. On the other hand, when these actions did not display such sequential implication, the pedagogical goal was connected to accurate language production. The actions produced by the instructor that downgraded the other participant epistemic status in relation to the additional language were offers of reformulated utterances. The practices and actions that ratified the other participants’ epistemic status as K+ in relation to the additional langauge were formulations (Garfinkel & Sacks, 1970) and comprehension checks (Schegloff, Jefferson, & Sacks, 1977, pp. 379). Such findings suggest that additional language teaching handbooks take notice of a) the importance of predicting and projecting the actions to be done during the follow up stage so as to maximize the chances of reaching the pedagogical goals previously planned and b) the actions of formulating and checking understanding as central resources to enable the additional language instructor to ratify others’ production (and knowledge) in the additional language at hand.

CoordenaÃÃo de AperfeÃoamento de Pessoal de NÃvel Superior / Programa de Doutorado-sanduÃche no Exterior / O objeto de estudo do presente trabalho à o conhecimento lexical evidenciado em produÃÃes escritas de aprendizes de PortuguÃs como LÃngua Adicional (PLA). AtravÃs de um design exploratÃrio, a partir do corpus (Recolha de Corpora de PLA da Universidade de Coimbra), investigamos os estÃgios de desenvolvimento da interlÃngua (IL) na tentativa de comparar a diversidade lexical, examinando a variaÃÃo dos nÃveis de proficiÃncia estabelecidos de acordo com os Ãndices calculados pela ferramenta texinspector workflow. A pesquisa encontra apoio em estudos de conhecimento lexical de Cobb (2003), Engber (1995), Hulstijn (1996, 2001, 2011, 2015), Laufer (1995, 1998, 2004), Meara (1980, 2005), Milton (2009), Nation (2001, 2004, 2011, 2012), Read (2004) e Jarvis (2013a, 1013b), que consideram os textos escritos como uma fonte potencialmente rica de informaÃÃes sobre o desenvolvimento do vocabulÃrio da L2 ou da lÃngua adicional (LA). O pressuposto subjacente à que o estÃgio de desenvolvimento da interlÃngua (IL) pode servir como um indicador de proficiÃncia mais elevada, juntamente com a noÃÃo de um nÃcleo comum de uso da lÃngua em questÃo. Partindo de uma primeira investigaÃÃo, realizamos uma anÃlise ANOVA de 129 textos, estabelecendo como variÃveis qualitativas independentes os nÃveis de proficiÃncia (B2 e C1), a lÃngua materna (RomÃnica e NÃo RomÃnica) e os diferentes tÃpicos (sobre o IndivÃduo, a Sociedade e o Meio-ambiente). Como variÃveis quantitativas dependentes, foram considerados os Ãndices de variabilidade (TTR) e diversidade lexical (MTLD). Os resultados sugerem variaÃÃes significativas nos Ãndices TTR e MTLD apenas entre as produÃÃes escritas desenvolvidas sob diferentes temas. As implicaÃÃes do estudo sÃo discutidas do ponto de vista pedagÃgico da avaliaÃÃo escrita, considerando a importÃncia da operacionalizaÃÃo de descritores de diversidade lexical como feedback, tendo em vista a dinamicidade dos nÃveis de proficiÃncia. Corroboramos com as noÃÃes de Housen e Bultà (2013) de que complexidade linguÃstica tem dimensÃes de carÃter cognitivo e linguÃstico, com facetas de desenvolvimento e desempenho, podendo se manifestar em todos os nÃveis estruturais e de uso. / The present study aims to investigate the lexical knowledge evidenced in written productions of learners of Portuguese as an additional language. Through an exploratory design, from the corpus (PLA Corpora Collection of the University of Coimbra), the developmental stages of interlanguage (IL) were investigated in an attempt to compare the lexical diversity by examining the variation of the indexes established by the tool textinspector workflow. This research is supported by lexical knowledge studies of Cobb (2003), Engber (1995), Hulstijn (1996, 2001, 2011, 2015), Laufer (1995, 1998, 2004), Meara (1980, 2005), Milton (2009), Nation (2001, 2004, 2011, 2012), Read (2004) and Jarvis (2013a, 1013b), who take written texts as potentially rich sources of information on the vocabulary development of a second or additional language. The underlying assumption is that the interlanguage (IL) stage of development of may serve as an indicator of higher proficiency along with the notion a common core use of the language in question. Departing from a first investigation, an ANOVA analysis of a sample of 139 texts was conducted, establishing as independent qualitative variables: the proficiency levels (B2 and C1), the mother tongue (Romance and non-Romance), and the different topics (on the Individual, Society and the environment). As dependent quantitative variables, the variability index (TTR) and lexical diversity (MTLD) were considered. The results suggest significant changes in TTR and MTLD indexes only between the different topics provided by the corpus. The implications of the findings are discussed from a pedagogical point of view of writing assessment, considering the importance of lexical diversity descriptors for feedback in view of the dynamics of the proficiency levels. Also, the study corroborates the notions of Housen and Bultà (2013) of linguistic complexity as having dimensions of cognitive, linguistic, performance, and developmental facets that can be found in all structural levels and use.

Thesis (M. A. (Language Education)) -- University of Limpopo, 2017 / This study investigates the methods of teaching poetry to English First Additional (EFAL) secondary school learners in the Shiluvane Circuit, in order to establish whether their teaching and learning methods equip them as second or additional language poetry teachers at secondary school level. Although English plays a significant role as a language of instruction at the secondary level in South Africa, underperformance at secondary school examinations has generated a continuous debate with many suggesting that the standards of English language competence has declined. Also the role of teachers is usually questioned whenever issues of learners’ performance are raised. The study focuses on the methods of teaching that English first additional language teachers use in poetry to instil the passion for the genre. This study was conducted in rural secondary schools. Forty learners from grade ten classes and their teachers participated. The study used qualitative approaches for gathering information through lesson observations, learners’ focus group interviews and teacher interviews at four secondary schools to evaluate the application of English poetry teaching. A case study design was used using 4 schools. This study is informed by Lev Vygotsky’s constructivist or socio-cultural theory (1978). Literature consulted points to the fact that the Shiluvane Circuit secondary teachers seem to avoid teaching poetry. This reveals that only four out of eleven secondary schools exposed their learners to poetry during their EFAL lessons. The findings also revealed that most respondents lacked interest in English poetry. Instead the learner interacting through cooperative or collaborative group work they competed against each other and believe in witchcraft should they share their learning experiences with fellow learners. The study recommended the use of different methods, such as cooperative learning, to teach poetry. Culturally relevant poems also add to the interest of the learners.

In today’s society there is a discussion regarding students’ level of knowledge and personalisation. The classrooms consist of heterogenic groups of students with different learning needs and levels of knowledge. The purpose of the present study is to find out how the students who participated perceive the teaching of English as an additional language with regards to personalisation, and how they believe differentiation can help develop and deepen their learning.   This study has been conducted using a qualitative method with interviews as the core, complemented by observations. The results have been analysed and interpreted hermeneutically.   The results show that those students who have a positive attitude to English education, irrespective of their grade, are those who see the benefit of knowing English outside the classroom, and thereby create a connection between reality and studying English. Those who lack this connection have a negative attitude. Basing teaching in reality renders personalisation viable for the individual within a teaching group. Even when the students give some examples of how the teaching can be adjusted to their needs, most of them believe that the teacher must adjust the teaching to fit the class as a whole and they do not expect any personalisation. / I dagens samhällsdebatt om skolan diskuteras elevers kunskapsnivå och möjligheten till individanpassning. Klassrummen är sammansatta av heterogena grupper bestående av elever med olika inlärningsbehov och på olika kunskapsnivåer. Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur några betygsmässigt hög- och lågpresterande gymnasieelever upplever att engelskundervisningen är individanpassad efter deras behov, samt hur de anser att den ska vara utformad för att de ska kunna utveckla och fördjupa sitt lärande.   Undersökningen har genomförts utifrån en kvalitativ metod med intervjuer som det centrala och med observationer som bakgrund. Resultatet har analyserats och tolkats hermeneutiskt.   I studien framkom att elever som har en positiv inställning till engelska, oberoende av betyg, är de som ser nyttan utanför klassrummets väggar och därmed verklighetsanknyter engelskundervisningen. De som saknar en koppling till verkligheten har en genomgående negativ inställning. Det är således genom verklighetsanknytningen som individanpassningen möjliggörs. Även om eleverna kommer med förslag på hur undervisningen kan tänkas anpassas till dem, säger flera av dem att läraren måste anpassa undervisningen till klassen som helhet och de förväntar sig ingen individanpassning.

<p><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt / line-height:150% / font-family:&quot / Times New Roman&quot / ,&quot / serif&quot / ">The use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) both in the General Education and Training (GET) and Further Education and Training (FET) bands is viewed as an innovative tool in enhancing a learner-centered approach to teaching and learning.&nbsp / As a result, a number of schools in rural and urban environments in South Africa have been provided with computers and other digital resources to facilitate teaching and learning. This study investigated the use of ICT in the teaching and learning of English First Additional Language (FAL) at Grade 10 level. It set out to discover digital resources and literacies to which teachers and learners were exposed in the English (FAL) classroom, and how these resources were used to enhance learners&rsquo / reading and writing skills. Following a qualitative research design, this study made use of classroom observations and interviews to collect data from teachers and Grade 10 learners. The collected evidence was from a single school which uses Khanya Project ICT materials.&nbsp / The school is located in one of the disadvantaged black townships in Cape Town. The study made use of Second Language Acquisition (SLA) theory and the constructivist theoretical framework to make sense of classroom interaction and the extent to which ICT and other teaching strategies were used to facilitate acquisition of English language skills, particularly reading and writing. The findings of the study show that there are a number of factors influencing ICT integration in Grade 10 English (FAL).&nbsp / These factors include teachers&rsquo / and learners&rsquo / limited access to ICT and digital literacy.&nbsp / Other factors relate to pedagogy and support in the use of ICT in teaching and learning.&nbsp / All the identified factors indicate that there are a number of barriers to ICT integration in English teaching and learning.&nbsp / The study concludes that ICT use has great potential in providing creativity and innovativeness to facilitate language teaching and learning. Given the lack of adequate ICT resources and under-utilization of ICT resources in disadvantaged schools, there is a need to improve teacher and learner access to ICT, especially in disadvantaged schools.&nbsp / This could be done through monitored support and adequate teacher training and active involvement of higher education institutions through teacher training programmes which should prioritize ICT integration in their curricula.&nbsp / <br type="_moz" /> </span></p>

<p>In today’s society there is a discussion regarding students’ level of knowledge and personalisation. The classrooms consist of heterogenic groups of students with different learning needs and levels of knowledge. The purpose of the present study is to find out how the students who participated perceive the teaching of English as an additional language with regards to personalisation, and how they believe differentiation can help develop and deepen their learning.</p><p> </p><p>This study has been conducted using a qualitative method with interviews as the core, complemented by observations. The results have been analysed and interpreted hermeneutically.</p><p> </p><p>The results show that those students who have a positive attitude to English education, irrespective of their grade, are those who see the benefit of knowing English outside the classroom, and thereby create a connection between reality and studying English. Those who lack this connection have a negative attitude. Basing teaching in reality renders personalisation viable for the individual within a teaching group. Even when the students give some examples of how the teaching can be adjusted to their needs, most of them believe that the teacher must adjust the teaching to fit the class as a whole and they do not expect any personalisation.</p><p> </p> / <p>I dagens samhällsdebatt om skolan diskuteras elevers kunskapsnivå och möjligheten till individanpassning. Klassrummen är sammansatta av heterogena grupper bestående av elever med olika inlärningsbehov och på olika kunskapsnivåer. Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur några betygsmässigt hög- och lågpresterande gymnasieelever upplever att engelskundervisningen är individanpassad efter deras behov, samt hur de anser att den ska vara utformad för att de ska kunna utveckla och fördjupa sitt lärande.</p><p> </p><p>Undersökningen har genomförts utifrån en kvalitativ metod med intervjuer som det centrala och med observationer som bakgrund. Resultatet har analyserats och tolkats hermeneutiskt.</p><p> </p><p>I studien framkom att elever som har en positiv inställning till engelska, oberoende av betyg, är de som ser nyttan utanför klassrummets väggar och därmed verklighetsanknyter engelskundervisningen. De som saknar en koppling till verkligheten har en genomgående negativ inställning. Det är således genom verklighetsanknytningen som individanpassningen möjliggörs. Även om eleverna kommer med förslag på hur undervisningen kan tänkas anpassas till dem, säger flera av dem att läraren måste anpassa undervisningen till klassen som helhet och de förväntar sig ingen individanpassning.</p>

As academic and professional knowledge is available around the world through publications in English, the ability to read in English is now widely seen as an essential basic skill for university graduates in countries, like Thailand, where English is a foreign language. However, students often fail to reach a level of reading ability that allows them to read these publications with confidence. It is important that instruction in Reading skills should be improved. It has been claimed that instruction in the use of reading strategies is helpful in improving the reading skills of EFL learners. Research has suggested that explicit instruction can be particularly valuable. This thesis investigates the reading strategies used by Thai university students and investigates whether a short course based on explicit reading strategy instruction can be effective in encouraging the use of strategies and improving reading skills for Thai university students. Based on a literature review on Reading strategy instruction, a framework was developed and applied in the adaptation of a set of materials for use in providing English major Thai university students with explicit instruction in the use of reading strategies. The following research questions were investigated: What are the reading strategies that Thai undergraduate English major students employ in the EFL reading process? Does reading strategy instruction affect students’ use of reading strategies in English? How much improvement do the students show on measures of reading performance after receiving a programme of reading strategy instruction? In a quasi-experimental research design, one class of fifteen students, the Experimental group, was given a twelve-week course in Reading that included explicit instruction in reading strategies while a second group of thirteen students (matched for background characteristics), the Control group, was given a parallel course that did not include explicit strategy instruction. Both quantitative and qualitative comparisons were made. Students were given reading tests and responded to questionnaires about their use of strategies at the beginning and end of their courses. They were also interviewed and performed think-aloud verbal protocols in which they reported in their use of reading strategies as they carried out reading tasks. Participants in the Experimental group reported using a wider range of strategies than those in the Control group following instruction and generally made greater improvements in their reading test scores. The findings support the value of explicit instruction in reading strategies for Thai university students. However, concerns remain about Thai students reliance on translation and slow, careful reading even following instruction in more strategic approaches.

<p><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt / line-height:150% / font-family:&quot / Times New Roman&quot / ,&quot / serif&quot / ">The use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) both in the General Education and Training (GET) and Further Education and Training (FET) bands is viewed as an innovative tool in enhancing a learner-centered approach to teaching and learning.&nbsp / As a result, a number of schools in rural and urban environments in South Africa have been provided with computers and other digital resources to facilitate teaching and learning. This study investigated the use of ICT in the teaching and learning of English First Additional Language (FAL) at Grade 10 level. It set out to discover digital resources and literacies to which teachers and learners were exposed in the English (FAL) classroom, and how these resources were used to enhance learners&rsquo / reading and writing skills. Following a qualitative research design, this study made use of classroom observations and interviews to collect data from teachers and Grade 10 learners. The collected evidence was from a single school which uses Khanya Project ICT materials.&nbsp / The school is located in one of the disadvantaged black townships in Cape Town. The study made use of Second Language Acquisition (SLA) theory and the constructivist theoretical framework to make sense of classroom interaction and the extent to which ICT and other teaching strategies were used to facilitate acquisition of English language skills, particularly reading and writing. The findings of the study show that there are a number of factors influencing ICT integration in Grade 10 English (FAL).&nbsp / These factors include teachers&rsquo / and learners&rsquo / limited access to ICT and digital literacy.&nbsp / Other factors relate to pedagogy and support in the use of ICT in teaching and learning.&nbsp / All the identified factors indicate that there are a number of barriers to ICT integration in English teaching and learning.&nbsp / The study concludes that ICT use has great potential in providing creativity and innovativeness to facilitate language teaching and learning. Given the lack of adequate ICT resources and under-utilization of ICT resources in disadvantaged schools, there is a need to improve teacher and learner access to ICT, especially in disadvantaged schools.&nbsp / This could be done through monitored support and adequate teacher training and active involvement of higher education institutions through teacher training programmes which should prioritize ICT integration in their curricula.&nbsp / <br type="_moz" /> </span></p>

Teachers undergo changes in their beliefs, knowledge and practices on an individual level as they learn how to teach. If society undergoes significant change, as Hong Kong did during the transition from British to Chinese rule in 1997, then social groups within society such as teachers are likely to react to change in different and complex ways. The purpose of this investigation is to exam.ine the changes experienced by teachers of English in Hong Kong, with a focus on teachers who received their teacher preparation at one Hong Kong institution during the final years leading up to the transition. The educational, linguistic, social and political context of Hong Kong is first described through a study of the research literature and a number of theories and models of change are presented through which the findings of the investigation are analysed. The main sources of data for the investigation consist of questionnaire responses, interview transcriptions and lesson observation reports of trainee English teachers during and after graduation from a BA course in TESL at a Hong Kong university. The main conclusions of the investigation are: (i) Educational issues and particularly those affecting ELT became more high-profile and politicised in the lead up to and after the changeover. (ii) English teachers in Hong Kong experience conflict between their desired approaches and the realities and constraints of the Hong Kong teaching context. These constraints provide a common justification for lack of innovative behaviour and make it possible for teachers to put off being innovative in the classroom indefinitely. (iii) At the same time, English teachers in Hong Kong are becoming more empowered within the educational system in reaction to challenges to their competency and as they have realised that they can affect educational policy through individual and collective action. The findings suggest that colonial discourses as documented by Pennycook (1998) of English language teaching still persist in Hong Kong, as they have been shown to do in other post-colonial societies, and Hong Kong is undergoing a post-handover period of change as it struggles to synthesise the educational legacies of the colonial period with new initiatives adopted to address Hong Kong's changing educational and social needs. The results of the research are developed into an original model of the factors impacting English language education in Hong Kong. The generic model is then elaborated in two versions, one of which applies before the changeover and the other after it.

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the impact of Same-Language Subtitles (SLS) on the subject-specific comprehension and the academic literacy levels of EAL students on the Vaal Triangle Campus of North-West University (NWU). Essentially, the study aimed to determine whether exposing students studying through English as an Additional Language (EAL) to subtitled lectures (live or recorded lectures) would help improve their comprehension of the academic content as well as their receptive academic literacy skills, compared to students who were not exposed to subtitled lectures. This study stems from the identification of an academic performance-related issue on the Vaal Triangle Campus of NWU. Indeed, campus statistics show that the throughput rate of EAL students remains low, and that these students‟ academic literacy levels are inadequate. In other words, EAL students on this campus are underachieving and seem to have difficulties in mastering academic English. Based on various studies that showed SLS to be a valuable tool in terms of learning and academic literacy, this study proposed to introduce SLS (both live via respeaking and offline) in the university classroom as a learning aid, thus optimising the time students spend in lectures. Very little information was available in South Africa on the impact of SLS on the subject-specific comprehension of EAL students in a tertiary academic context. Furthermore, it had been anticipated that a certain number of technical constraints were likely to be encountered during the empirical investigation. These two factors made it difficult to predict what other factors could influence the outcome of the study. As a result, the study was based on the principle of Action Research, a research method characterised by the fact that the research is carried out in as many cycles as may be necessary in order to achieve the optimal conditions for a specific intervention. Three cycles were necessary to reach the optimal design of the present study so that a confident conclusion could be made regarding the impact of SLS on comprehension and academic literacy. For each cycle, the intervention was carried out over an academic semester. In the first cycle, a test group composed of EAL first-year Economics students was exposed to live SLS via respeaking during class, while a control group (also composed of EAL first-year Economics students) attended the same class at a different time, without SLS. In the second cycle, the live SLS via respeaking were replaced with offline SLS. The intervention was taken out of the regular classes and was carried out in the context of practical revision classes scheduled specifically for the purpose of the intervention. The test group viewed subtitled videos of lectures, while the control group viewed videos without subtitles. After each viewing, all participants were required to complete a short comprehension test. This cycle was also conducted in first-year Economics. The basic design of the third cycle was similar to that of the second cycle, but for the fact that the intervention took place in the context of a Psychology module, which, unlike the Economics module, was taught without the lecturer making use of slides. After these three research cycles were completed, it could be concluded that offline SLS indeed have a positive impact on the subject-specific comprehension and the receptive academic literacy skills of EAL students in a tertiary academic context. This conclusion was supported by the following findings: 1. The first research cycle pointed towards a slight, but statistically insignificant benefit in terms of both comprehension and academic literacy. However, at this stage of the empirical investigation, the technical constraints made it difficult to draw a precise conclusion in that respect. 2. In the second research cycle, the SLS seem to have had a significant impact on the receptive academic literacy skills of the test group, compared to the control group. However, no such impact could be noted in terms of subject-specific comprehension. This was attributed to the presence of a confounding variable, namely slides used during the lectures. This once more made it impossible to draw a confident conclusion regarding the impact of SLS on comprehension. 3. The third research cycle made a more confident conclusion regarding the impact of SLS on subject-specific comprehension possible. Indeed, the results of the statistical analyses show that the test group performed significantly better in their semester test (covering the work done in all the recorded lectures) than the control group, which was not exposed to any videos at all. On the basis of these findings, it was concluded that SLS in their offline form have a positive impact on the subject-specific comprehension and the receptive academic literacy skills of EAL students in a tertiary academic context, specifically if the students are given sufficient time to get used to the mode. This study seems to indicate that the benefits of SLS for comprehension can be recorded provided that students are exposed to the intervention over a longer period of time. However, there may be further scope for refinement as far as this study is concerned. It is therefore important that the topic be investigated further. / MA, Language Practice, North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2012