EFL classrooms in Sweden are multilingual spaces which consist of a wide range of learners with different backgrounds; constantly forcing teachers to adapt their practices to what they believe will be most beneficial for the students’ learning outcomes. This study focuses on teachers' language practices in EFL classrooms in lower secondary education. The study will present if English teacher practices involve translanguaging patterns or not through classroom observations. The observed practices will be examined and compared with additional data from post-observation interviews to gain context and the teachers’ beliefs to the observed practices. The study aims to map and increase our understanding of teachers' language practices in the EFL classroom, focusing on the perspectives of the teachers. Three different teachers were observed at two different schools in Stockholm, working with students in grades 7 and 9. Field notes and results showed that the observed practices were mainly English only and connected to “English as a base language” + Swedish. Only one teacher translanguaged but all teachers were aware and conscious of their teaching choices and their impact on students’ learning outcomes. Two out of three teachers could imagine incorporating translanguaging patterns in their teaching, while the third teacher believed in an English only approach with ultimate language immersion for proficiency development. The study showed that there is a slight difference in the role of the English language in the observed classrooms, which was expected since the syllabus (Lgr22) neither encourages nor prohibits the use of Swedish when teaching English; so naturally the different teachers use their linguistic resources differently. However, all teachers proclaimed to be aware and have conscious thoughts behind their teaching decisions and they all emphasised on “being understood” as the most important aspect. Lastly, it was revealed that students mirror the teachers' linguistic behaviour even if the teacher specifically tells them not to.

Vocabulary is a crucial component for language acquisition and EFL lessons are often dictated by the usage of textbooks and workbooks. The current study therefore aims to investigate how effective textbooks are in helping learners acquire high, mid, and low-frequency words as well as to what degree high and mid-frequency words are repeated throughout the textbooks. Additionally, the study explores the types of exercises presented in the EFL teaching materials, with a particular focus on the extent to which they promote learners' active engagement and use of the vocabulary presented. The findings suggest that EFL teaching materials could benefit from more comprehensive and systematic approaches to vocabulary instruction, which emphasize the active use and recycling of high and mid-frequency words in meaningful contexts. The present study recommends that teaching materials and EFL teachers incorporate more varied and interactive exercises that promote learners’ active engagement and use of the target vocabulary. Additionally, the study uses corpus-based methods to investigate the frequency level of text bodies compiled from EFL textbooks targeting sixth-grade pupils in Sweden. Furthermore, the accompanying workbooks are examined to establish the types of exercises pupils are exposed to through their use. In addition, the study suggests that teachers using the included teaching materials should incorporate additional vocabulary exercises in their EFL instructions to promote the repetition of words found in the textbooks.

The aim of this study is to examine the use of EFL learning materials, such as pre-constructed textbooks, workbooks and teachers guides, in a small group of teachers. The study set out to investigate how and in that case, why the teachers use the material and in addition their attitudes towards the materials advantages and disadvantages. Also, the study aimed to illustrate to what extent the teachers considered the material beneficial in terms of developing students' social interaction and oral skills in English. Finally, the study investigated if any additional activities were used by the EFL teachers. Data was collected through qualitative interviews conducted with eight certified English teachers that currently worked in Swedish middle school, years 4-6. The results showed a variety of usage where some teachers used learning materials a few times during a school year while others implemented the material practically every lesson. The teachers considered the most prominent advantage to be that the pre-constructed materials not only eased their workload by being timesaving but also served as a basis for their teaching. Furthermore, the teachers differed greatly in their opinions as to what the materials disadvantages were and also to what extent the material was regarded as beneficial in terms of enhancing students social interaction and developing oral skills. Finally, there appeared to be a conflict between the teachers’ didactical ambitions and their actual teaching.

Dyslexia is a widely known disorder that impairs the diagnosed students’ literacy in multiple ways. There is a lot of research done on how dyslexia hinders literacy skills in a person's first language; however, not as much research has been done on how the disorder affects the reading skills in English as a second language (ESL). The purpose and aim of the literature review is to examine and evaluate how dyslexia affects the reading skills and reading comprehension, and to explore what pedagogical tools that are available to better facilitate reading skills for dyslexic students in ESL. The method used for conducting this literature review was through searching peer-reviewed scientific articles in two separate databases. Furthermore, the results showed that dyslexic students’ reading skills were impaired by poor working memory and poor phonological awareness. Nevertheless, the results also indicated that there are several pedagogical tools available, such as computer-based instruction for example, in order to aid dyslexic students in developing their reading skills in ESL. Consequently, the findings of this literature review coincided with the Swedish curriculum and the Swedish syllabus for the English courses in the upper secondary school concerning using various teaching strategies and pedagogical tools in the teaching of ESL. The almost certain inevitability of teaching dyslexic students in ESL in the future profession as an ESL teacher further validates and amplifies the importance of this study.

Abstract Task-Based Language Teaching has long been a method for education in different subjects. This study investigates the use of Task-Based Language teaching regarding vocabulary acquisition in English upper secondary/high school students. Through the use of a database, multiple scientific studies and research papers on vocabulary acquisition through TBLT have been included. This study contains the results of the use of TBL through similar teaching methods with the focus on vocabulary development in the L2 classroom. The findings show that studies have different results regarding what tasks to include but present a similar conclusion regarding what method to use; TBLT. The results also show that regardless of what task is used, communication could be beneficial and even played a big role in multiple studies where it increased students vocabulary acquisition. The conclusion of our study suggests that TBLT is an efficient method for developing vocabulary acquisition in upper secondary and high school students. All research papers analysed concluded that TBL and TBLT can be used as means for motivating students which aided the task engagement, thus helping develop their vocabulary acquisition.

This paper is a synthesis of research that presents and reflects on the possible benefits of integrating media information literacy and critical thinking into the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) curriculum with the intention of facilitating for students' development in their critical thinking and media information literacy when engaging with English-language social media content. English is of major significance in the Swedish society and students get some of their news feed from social media in the English language along with their native language of Swedish. The aim of this paper is to investigate which strategies are currently used to promote students’ critical thinking and media information literacy when engaging with English-language social media content as well as which potential strategies which could possibly be incorporated by Upper-Secondary school EFL teachers in Sweden. Relevant academic articles were analysed showing various findings such as 1) the general importance of critical thinking and media literacy skills, 2) the importance of incorporating media information literacy in teacher training and practice, and lastly 3) the continuous development of critical thinking and media information literacy by age throughout the schooling years. This is an important field to continue to study in order to transform teaching practices and materials with the inclusion of media information literacy and critical thinking in the teaching of EFL in Sweden. In a wider perspective this can be seen as one of many tools to strengthen the state of democracy in Sweden.

This paper explores the impact of incorporating songs in the English classroom and will focus on young student’s development of vocabulary and language acquisition. The aim is more driven towards singing, and how that can be a beneficial communicative tool for young language learners in a Swedish context. By it being from the Swedish context, the Swedish curriculum will be reviewed on how songs are incorporated for the ages seven to twelve. The result of the aim has been produced through the analysis of various collected research sources and lays on the role that singing can have in the early stage of learning EFL(English as a foreign language). When searching for the sources different collecting databases, such as “ERIC”, and specific keywords were used to find the most reliable and relevant sources. The results of the collected sources were then compared to each other. Overall, all results showed a beneficial impact when using singing as a communicative tool in students’ vocabulary development. The different sources also point out the perspectives on teachers’ and students’ attitudes towards songs and singing in the lessons. Where results showcased a positive attitude toward the use of singing songs in the EFL classroom. The essential findings of this paper show that singing can be used as a valuable communicative tool for the EFL classroom. Likewise, can it have some problematic factors. For example, if the teacher and students do not like the song or are not interested in singing in the first place. We summarize and discuss the sources in separate parts of this paper. This is so you can get a deeper understanding of the objective results that have been found

Incidental vocabulary learning is a form of acquiring new words without having a specific intention in the acquisition, and it can occur in or out of the educational frame (Hatami, 2017). In the digital age, incidental vocabulary acquisition is increased as learners encounter and assimilate new words through different online platforms and technological tools. The study was conducted by searching digital databases ERC and ERIC using keywords such as "EFL," "L2," "reading," "listening," "viewing," and "watching" over 15 years (2008-2023). The studies that focus on traditional strategies or word frequency over incidental learning were excluded. Consequently, the results include diverse locations and learners and aim to capture a comprehensive view of incidental vocabulary learning.  This study explores the efficacy of incidental vocabulary learning modes—reading, listening, and watching—in an English as a foreign language classroom, considering the influence and the role of digitalization. While reading appears as the most potent mode of input for incidental vocabulary acquisition, listening and viewing also contribute significantly, but not as significantly as reading. Moreover, combining reading with listening has the most multifaceted approach and superior results in incidental vocabulary learning for foreign language educators. However, due to the lack of research on specific age groups and diverse situations, further studies are needed to explore various student types and effective methods for learning new vocabulary, particularly in Swedish schools.

The EF English Proficiency Index has presented high English proficiency levels for Swedish students. Previous investigations have studied different factors that contribute to high proficiency in a second language, such as the engagement with the language in the free time, or personal characteristics such as motivation or learners’ home environment. The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate correlations between Swedish 9th grade studentsʼ grades in the English subject with three factors; 1) their extramural activities, 2) their home environment, and 3) the students’ personal characteristics. The participants in this study were 49 students of ages 15-16 years old from a primary school in northern Stockholm. They answered an online survey with four open-ended questions and 35 statements in which the participants answered on a Likert scale between 1-6. The results suggest a weak correlation between extramural activities and the students’ English grades, a weak correlation between home environment and the students’ grades in English, and a moderate correlation between individual differences and students’ English grades. Given the small sample size and potential limitations of the study, the results cannot be generalized to a larger population and further investigation, such as a qualitative study through interviews with students and EFL practitioners, may provide us with a more in-depth understanding of the connections between the investigated factors and Swedish students’ proficiency levels in English.

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