Three EFL classrooms in primary schools in Greece were introduced to dyslexia friendly practices so as to explore whether dyslexic pupils’ inclusion was enhanced. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of the dyslexia friendly practices on dyslexic and non-dyslexic EFL pupils’ performance and motivation. EFL teachers’ experiences of the introduction of the dyslexia friendly practices were also explored. Classroom observations, focus groups and teacher and pupil interviews before and during the introduction of the dyslexia friendly practices were conducted. A personal research diary was kept throughout the whole study. It was shown that, the dyslexia friendly practices enhanced dyslexic EFL pupils’ participation in classroom activities and increased their motivation towards learning English. However, less visible changes were shown in their performance. In contrast to the dyslexic EFL pupils, most of their non-dyslexic peers showed improvements in both their motivation and performance. All three EFL teachers experienced positively the introduction of the dyslexia friendly practices while the need for more training on dyslexia was highlighted. These findings indicate that the dyslexia friendly practices enhance inclusion for dyslexic pupils in foreign language education and have positive effects on all classroom pupils and the teachers’ practice. This study contributes to the field of language teaching for dyslexic pupils and suggests a need for more studies on dyslexia support in foreign, second and additional language learning contexts.

This study examines gender roles, with a basis in the fundamental values of the Swedish curriculum. I analyse dialogues in two commonly used textbooks, Magic! Classbook 5 by Hedencrona, Smed-Gerdin and Watcyn-Jones (2009) and Happy textbook year 6 by Sutcliffe, Thunman and Mälström Timling (2011) for English, 4-6. The dialogues are analysed with a quantitative and a qualitative method. In the qualitative analysis, I investigate gender awareness, using levels from negligence to a high level of gender awareness. The result of this study shows that the dialogues in the two textbooks do not entirely correspond with the fundamental values in the curriculum as some stereotypes appears.

This mixed methods study aimed to provide some validity evidence for the use of the ESL sociopragmatics test developed by Roever, Elder and Fraser (2014) for formative purposes. The test developers recommend further validation of the tool, originally developed for the Australian context. In this study, the test items were used to reveal areas of weakness in sociopragmatic knowledge in a group of learners of an academically oriented English Intensive Program in Canada. Analysis of the test scores revealed a lack of knowledge of norms of appropriateness and politeness in English, which was further targeted with an instructional unit informed by the items of the test. Two weeks after the instructional unit was delivered, the participants were asked to complete a follow-up questionnaire. The questionnaire results provided insight into the participants’ perceptions of usefulness of the instructional unit. The learners found explicit instruction on ESL sociopragmatics useful for their language learning experience as well as day-to-day interactions in English. Particularly, they claimed to feel more confident communicating in English after receiving explicit instruction on ESL sociopragmatics. They were able to use information from the lesson in situations such as talking to their language instructors, communicating with university personnel, and participating in service encounter interactions. Therefore, the test proved to have potential for developing instructional materials in an academic context. Based on the findings of the study, suggestions on incorporating sociopragmatic competence into the institution’s EAP curriculum were made.

The purpose of this research was to conduct case studies to explore and describe Thai university students' awareness and application of cognitive and metacognitive strategies when reading and writing in English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL). Four participants, including two high and two low English language proficiency learners, were selected from 14 students enrolled in a five-week course called English for Social Sciences offered at Kasetsart University in Bangkok, Thailand in 2005. The major sources of data for the analyses included the transcripts of the participants' pair discussions, think-aloud protocols, interviews, and daily journal entries. In addition, field work observations, reading and writing strategy checklists, participants' written work, and the comparison of the pretest and posttest results were also instrumental to the analyses. The interpretive approach of content analysis was employed for these four case studies. Findings were initially derived from the single-case analyses, and then from cross-case analyses. Major findings revealed that strategic knowledge enhanced these English-as-a-foreign- language (EFL) learners' proficiency in English reading and writing. However, applying elaborative strategies for higher-level reading was challenging for most of the participants. Two crucial factors that impeded their development were the learners' uncertain procedural and conditional knowledge of strategy uses and their limited English language proficiency due to limited exposure to the second language (L2). The teacher's explanations and modeling of strategies, the participants' opportunities to discuss strategy use with peers, and extensive practice positively enhanced their development. Additionally, the learners' schema and knowledge of text structures played significant roles in their development of the two skills. These English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) learners also developed metacognitive awareness and strategy applications, but not to the level that always enhanced effective regulation and control of their reading and writing behaviors. Combining reading and writing in English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) instruction promoted the learners' awareness of the relationships of certain strategies for the two skills, and developed their literacy skills holistically.

Peer feedback and its role for students’ language learning receive considerable interest in thefield of English as a foreign language. A related area of interest is the ways in which teachersare trained in their use of peer feedback and its integration into their classroom practice. Yet,research on the ways in which English language textbooks include opportunities for andinstructions in peer feedback are sparse. Given the importance of textbooks in EFLclassrooms as one of the primary sources of L2 input, the aims of this study are to investigate:1) Whether commonly used textbooks for teaching English in Swedish upper-secondaryschools recommend or integrate peer feedback, and what a) the frequency, and b) type ofthese recommendations and exercises are. 2) How the recommendations and exercises alignwith a) recommendations and best practices as identified in the literature, and b) the nationalcurriculum and the syllabus for English 7.To answer these questions, we analyze one of the most commonly used textbooks for teachingEnglish 7 in Swedish upper-secondary schools, Blueprint C Version 2.0. The findings showonly two instances in the book where the use of peer feedback is promoted as a valuablestrategy for improving the quality of students’ productions. It also shows that the bookcontains a total of 52 writing and speaking exercises, out of which 30 include the use of peerfeedback that, to some extent, aligns with best practice recommendations. As for thealignment with the curriculum and syllabus, the identified recommendations and support forthe use of peer feedback, as well as the peer feedback exercises, are shown to specificallymeet one of the goals of the national curriculum and three of the bullet points listed in thecore content in the syllabus for English 7.

In Shanghai, an increasing number of parents believe that learning English at an early age will bring their children an advantage in future competition. As a result, kindergarten English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classes have become popular in recent years. Although previous studies revealed that picture books are frequently used as teaching materials in kindergarten EFL classes, what is happening in these kindergarten EFL classes and the ways teachers use picture books to teach children English still remain largely unknown. To have a better understanding of the kindergarten EFL classes in Shanghai, this study aimed to explore kindergarten EFL teachers’ perspectives on and usage of picture books in their classes, as well as the challenges they face. Four experienced kindergarten EFL teachers selected by a criteria survey were invited to participate in this qualitative study. Data were collected from them by interviews, classroom observations and documents. Results showed that participants believed that picture books have linguistic, cognitive and cultural awareness values. Findings of this study also revealed the ways participants use picture books to teach children English and the challenges they faced. Findings of this study were discussed in connection with previous studies of picture books, Krashen’s language acquisition hypotheses, and Five Big Ideas on how children learn to read. This study also led to suggestions for further implications based on the findings of teachers’ reported challenges. Teachers faced great challenges in developing EFL classes, on self-development, and on building relationships with parents. To work on solutions to these problems and improve the quality of kindergarten EFL classes in Shanghai, it was determined that both the Chinese government and kindergartens or language training institutions should make efforts to support teachers. Shanghai’s kindergarten EFL classes are the product of market choices and are still in their beginning phase of development. As such, they need the support from those in all walks of life to better develop in the future.

Due to an increasing number of students in the Swedish schools who has another first language than Swedish, multilingualism is now a feature all teachers must consider – and language teachers in particular. While multilingualism previously was believed to cause intellectual disabilities, more current research has showed the benefits of being proficient in several languages. Pedagogical strategies such as translanguaging, in which a students’ entire linguistic repertoire is recognized, has been developed, and studies have shown that this has increased students’ metalinguistic awareness. Despite this, a policy analysis of steering documents shows that other languages possibly could be interpreted as a problem in English education. By conducting interviews with English teachers I have identified positive as well as challenging aspects of using students’ first languages in English education in a multilingual classroom. This has concluded in a number of suggestions to policy makers, educators and researchers, in order to better make use of the positive aspects of multilingualism and solve some of the challenges.

This phenomenological study examines Saudi students’ perceptions of writing difficulties in U.S. universities as they have experiencing EFL and ESL contexts. The reason for focusing on Saudi students as participants is to limit linguistic, educational, cultural, and social factors that may affect the findings. The participants are seven Saudi graduate students at Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIUC). Interview is used as a research instrument to provide a space for each participant to recall as many memories and perceptions as possible in order to manifest comprehensive presentations of their experiences in the Saudi and U.S. contexts. The two research goals are: (1) exploring the similarities and differences between the two contexts based on the participants’ perceptions; and (2) identifying potential effects of these similarities and differences on the participants’ writing during graduate studies in the U.S. Participants’ perceptions focus on the differences between the Saudi and U.S. contexts, rather than similarities, and their comparisons of the two contexts are discussed based on eight key factors: student’s role, students’ expectations, teacher’s role, relationship with instructors, writing process, feedback and grading, off-campus social life, and educational policies. The potential effects of these differences on Saudi students’ writing in the U.S. context are classified into three domains: educational procedures and academic standards; pedagogies; and writing processes. I conclude this study by offering recommendations for U.S. professors and instructors who may teach Saudi students and future Saudi students who plan to come to the U.S. universities.

The aim of this study is to investigate 1) students’ attitudes towards English, 2) students’ attitudes towards reading in English and 3) if there is a correlation between students’ attitudes and their results in a reading comprehension test. In total, 39 students from three different classes volunteered for this study. The data were collected by using a questionnaire regarding students’ attitudes towards English and reading in English as well as by letting the participants take part in a reading comprehension test. The results show that students’ attitudes towards English does not necessarily play a part in how well they perform in a reading comprehension test.

This study explores Swedish English language teacher’s (ELT’s) attitudes towards EE, their reasons for or against its inclusion in their classrooms, and how these views affect their planning, instruction and assessment. Themes for investigation are established through thorough review of literature in the field in a Swedish context and explored through thematic analysis of interviews and a survey study. The ELTs in this study view EE as a positive contribution to students’ language development and a good source of authentic materials. Inclusion of EE is seen as a way to increase student engagement. However the causal relationship between EE and language proficiency is questioned. EE and ELTs’ attitudes towards it can be clearly seen to affect lesson planning, classroom activities and assessment. Inclusion of students’ EE is used by some ELTs as a tool to bridge differences caused by heterogenous levels of proficiency and authenticity gaps. Lastly, content and language integrated learning (CLIL) teachers viewed inclusion of EE as a critical aspect in their instruction. Municipal teachers saw inclusion of EE primarily as a method to increase student engagement.