The fact that people tend to alternate between languages for various communicative purposes seems to increasingly interest researchers all over the world. Thus, the linguistic phenomenon of codeswitching has been given more academic attention in recent years than ever before. This particular topic has also been infused by new research because of an ongoing pedagogic debate about whether languages other than the target language should be used in foreign languages classroom or not. The debate consists of two major opinions. On one side, adherents claim that use of non-target languages limits natural target language-input and therefore damages the learning process. On the other, it is argued that non-target languages may even be beneficial for the learning process since they carry many pedagogic opportunities with them otherwise gone lost. This paper aims to find out how, and to what extent, foreign language teachers at a Swedish for Immigrants-school codeswitch into English in class. Moreover, it is also of interest to investigate how they think about their own codeswitching and how their reasoning may reflect their codeswitching self-awareness. In search for answers to these questions, three teachers have been observed in class. Later, the teachers have been interviewed to reflect upon their own codeswitching. The study revealed clear differences in the teachers’ codeswitching and codeswitching-reasoning, However, similarities were also found, and that all three teachers shared the main objective to develop their students’ communicative competence. Moreover, they also proved to have a rather realistic picture their own codeswitching. Not only were they able to roughly estimate how, and how much, they each codeswitched. Their individual results also went in line with their reasoning to a high extent, suggesting that they all have a high degree of codeswitching self-awareness.

The World-Readiness Standards for Learning Languages (ACTFL, 2014) encourage teachers to help their students use the target language to “investigate, explain, and reflect” on the relationships between cultural products, practices, and perspectives. However, while most language instructors agree that language and culture should be connected, many fail to teach culture explicitly because they are so focused on the language components of their courses. Of those who do teach culture explicitly, many either teach only about the cultural products and not the perspectives, or they teach the culture in English because of its complexity. This project explores the use of e-portfolios for explicitly teaching culture in the target language across all three communicative modes. The project was implemented in a 4th semester university Spanish course in the fall of 2013. Students were required to view and interpret culturally authentic materials such as newspapers, proverbs, documentaries, news reports, and videos about pop culture. In addition, students interacted with native speakers both within and outside the United States using technology. Students were also asked to produce business plans, commentaries, community projects, ethnographic interviews, stories, and videos in the target language. The project evaluation revealed that when culture is explicitly taught in the target language, the following changes may occur: a positive attitudinal shift towards the target culture, a desire for learning the language beyond the classroom, an increase in autonomous learning, and an improvement in linguistic skills. Pedagogical implications and principles that might be applicable in foreign language instruction include the fact that technology appears to be one promising way to provide increased access to culture. In addition, scaffolding is found to be important to both students' experiences with culture and their interaction with technology. Also students may find the exploration of current social issues and problems very motivating and engaging. This has the potential to give students increased opportunities to think critically.

The purpose of this research synthesis is to investigate how using blogs and Facebookin foreign language teaching can improve pupils´ writing skills in the target language.According to the theoretic framework around which the results of this researchsynthesis are organized, linguistic, pragmatic, intercultural and strategic competence arepart of writing skills. The results show that out of the 8 studies included in the researchsynthesis five showed an improvement in linguistic competence, three out of those fiveshowed an improvement in pragmatic competence as well, and another three studiesalso showed an improvement in pragmatic competence. None of the studies showed animprovement in intercultural or strategic competence.

Данная работа посвящена исследованию социальных сетей ВКонтакте и Инстаграм в качестве новых элементов информационно-коммуникационных технологий на занятиях английского языка в высшем учебном заведении. Особое внимание уделяется вопросам интеграции популярных социальных сетей в учебный процесс с целью дополнительной отработки учебного материала, пройденного в рамках аудиторных занятий со студентами радиотехнических направлений подготовки Уральского федерального университета. Активное и повсеместное использование мобильных устройств и социальных сетей в повседневной жизни обеспечивает актуальность их применения для студентов. Цель данного исследования разработать этапы работы с социальными сетями, определить актуальные методы использования социальных сетей в процессе обучения английскому языку. В работе представлены четыре этапа, которые необходимы для организации процесса обучения иностранному языку: организационный, подготовительный (технический), процессуальный и оценочный. В работе предлагается детализацию данных этапов на пятнадцать шагов. В зависимости от целей и задач образовательного процесса, темы, уровня группы набор предлагаемых шагов изменяется. Практика внедрения социальных сетей в процесс организации самостоятельной работы студентов Института радиоэлектроники и информационных технологий Уральского федерального университета демонстрирует возможность использования разнообразных типов заданий для решения различных учебных задач и повышение эффективности обучения английскому языку. Авторы исследования анализируют не только достоинства использования социальных сетей в обучении иностранному языку, но и недостатки, к которым, в основном, относится маркетинговый контент социальных сетей. / The thesis is devoted to the study of the social networks Vkontakte and Instagram as a new element of information and communication technologies in the classroom of the English language in higher education. Particular attention is paid to the integration of popular social networks in the educational process in order to further development of the educational material given in the classroom with students of radio engineering training areas of the Ural Federal University. Active and widespread use of mobile devices and social networks in everyday life ensures the relevance of their application for students. The purpose of this study is to develop stages of work with social networks, to determine the actual methods of using social networks in the process of learning English. The study presents four stages that are necessary for the organization of the process of learning a foreign language: organizational, preparatory (technical), procedural and evaluation. The authors of the study offer the details of these stages for fifteen steps. Depending on the goals and objectives of the educational process, topics, group level set of proposed steps changes. The practice of introduction of social networks in the process of organization of independent work of students of the Institute of radio electronics and information technology of the Ural Federal University demonstrates the possibility of using different types of tasks to solve various educational problems and improve the efficiency of English language teaching. The authors of the study analyze not only the advantages of using social networks in teaching a foreign language, but also the disadvantages, which mainly include the marketing content of social networks.

Международное сотрудничество в различных областях науки и экономики подразумевает наличие не только профессиональных компетенций у современных выпускников высших учебных заведений, но и умение наглядно демонстрировать результаты своей научной и профессиональной деятельности, в том числе, на иностранном языке. Умение описывать различные типы инфографики представляется актуальным направлением в обучении студентов высших учебных заведений. Целью данного исследования является теоретическое обоснование и разработка методики обучения описанию инфографики на иностранном языке с использованием мультимедийных средств. В работе рассмотрены понятие, история, функции и классификации инфографики, определены основные подходы и принципы методики обучения описанию инфографики на иностранном языке, обозначены необходимые мультимедийные средства и цифровые компетенции, разработана поэтапная методика обучения описанию инфографики на иностранном языке с использованием мультимедийных средств. Методика содержит различные типы заданий для каждого этапа. Эффективное применение инфографики на иностранном языке объединяет знания в области инфографики, информационно-коммуникационных технологий и лингвистических особенностей иностранного языка, что и определяет набор заданий на каждом этапе обучения. Методика была апробирована на студентах группы УГИ-104011, обучающихся по образовательной программе 44.03.01 «Методика преподавания иностранных языков». Анализ опросов студентов показал, что после ряда занятий по описанию инфографики изменилось отношение к ее применению для демонстрации результатов своих исследований. / International cooperation in various fields of science and economics implies not only the professional competence of modern graduates of higher education institutions but also the ability to demonstrate the results of their scientific and professional works in a foreign language. The ability to describe different types of infographics seems to be an actual trend in the education of students of higher education institutions. The purpose of this study is to provide a theoretical basis and develop a method of teaching the description of infographics in a foreign language with the use of multimedia tools. The paper considers the definition, history, functions and classifications of infographics, defines the basic approaches and principles of teaching methods for describing infographics in a foreign language, identifies the necessary multimedia tools and digital competencies. A step-by-step method of teaching the description of infographics in a foreign language with the use of multimedia tools has been developed. The method contains different types of tasks for each stage. Effective application of infographics in a foreign language combines knowledge in the field of infographics, information and communication technologies and linguistic features of a foreign language, which defines a set of tasks at each stage of training. The method was tested on the students of the UGI-104011 group studying on the educational programme 44.03.01 "Methods of teaching foreign languages." Analysis of student surveys showed that after a series of lessons on infographics description, the attitude towards its application to demonstrate the results of their research has changed.

No description available.

[pt] Esta pesquisa teve por objetivo investigar o potencial do ensino de língua estrangeira na promoção de uma educação intercultural. Examina diferentes propostas para uma educação intercultural, considerando tanto o pensamento educacional mais amplo como as propostas originadas da reflexão sobre ensino de língua estrangeira, em particular o trabalho de Kramsch, Byram e Guilherme. Segundo esses autores, a aprendizagem de línguas deveria possibilitar aos alunos o desenvolvimento de uma competência comunicativa intercultural e de uma consciência cultural crítica. A pesquisa de campo adotou uma abordagem qualitativa, escolhendo a entrevista semi-estruturada como sua ferramenta. Foram entrevistados quatorze professores de língua inglesa, atuando nos diferentes contextos educacionais da escola pública e da particular, bem como em cursos de idiomas. Os professores foram selecionados com base em sua formação e experiência no magistério. As entrevistas foram gravadas e transcritas. Posteriormente, foi realizada uma décima quinta entrevista, desta vez através de correio eletrônico, com a coordenadora pedagógica do Centro Interescolar de Línguas de Brasília. Esta entrevista teve o objetivo diferenciado de explorar um caso de sucesso no ensino de idiomas na rede pública. A pesquisa mostrou a preocupação dos professores com o ensino de cultura, com a valorização da língua e cultura materna dos alunos e com a necessidade de desenvolver neles uma reflexão crítica. No entanto, alguns dos aspectos de uma educação intercultural definidos por Guilherme (2003) tais como uma preocupação com uma ação transformativa não foram evidenciados. / [en] This study had the objective of investigating the potential of foreign language teaching in promoting an intercultural education. It examines different proposals for an intercultural education considering both educational thought as well as proposals originating from reflections on foreign language teaching, particularly those put forward by Kramsch, Byram and Guilherme. According to these authors, language learning should make it possible for learners to develop intercultural communicative competence and critical cultural awareness. The empirical research adopted a qualitative approach, selecting the semi-structured interview as its tool. Fourteen interviews were carried out with English language teachers working in the different educational contexts of both state and private schools as well as language institutes. The teachers were selected on the basis of their training and teaching experience. The interviews were recorded and transcribed. At a later stage, a fifteenth interview was carried out through e-mail with the pedagogic coordinator of the Centro Interescolar de Línguas in Brasília. This interview had as its especial objective to explore a successful example of teaching foreign languages in the state school context. The study revealed the teachers concern with the teaching of culture, with valuing the learners mother tongue and culture and with the need to help them develop critical reflection. However, some of the aspects of an intercultural education as defined by Guilherme (2003) such as a concern with transformative action did not become evident.

L2 listening research has moved toward a focus on understanding the process of listening. However, there are still few detailed studies of L2 listening that reveal learners’ comprehension processes when listening to scripted and unscripted listening texts. Studies in which such processing has been discussed have lacked detailed diagnoses of how bottom-up and top-down processing interactively affect listeners’ comprehension. This study was designed to show how listeners’ process and comprehend texts, with a focus on how their bottom-up and top-down processing either assist or impede their comprehension. In this study, a group of 30 L1 Japanese university English language learners’ listening abilities were diagnosed. The 30 participants were at three listening proficiency levels—high, mid, and low—based on TOEIC listening proficiency scores. The diagnostic procedure involved participants listening to two scripted and two unscripted listening texts and then reporting what they comprehended through three tasks—L1 oral recalls, L2 repetitions, and verbal reports. Other data was also collected in the study to relate the comprehension of listening texts to other important listening-related variables including listening proficiency, lexical knowledge, listening anxiety, study abroad experience, short-term phonological memory, and working memory. The main finding of the study was that miscomprehension of listening texts was invariably multi-causal, with a combination of both bottom-up and top-down factors leading to comprehension difficulty. Although not a new finding, the study offered more detail than current research about how bottom-up and top-down processing occur interactively. Regarding the overall difficulty of the listening texts, unscripted texts were more difficult to comprehend than scripted texts, and high-proficiency participants had fewer listening difficulties overall than mid- and low-proficiency participants. Quantitative and qualitative results revealed common processing difficulties among all participants due to L1-related phonological decoding issues (e.g., /l/ vs. /r/), connected speech, unknown lexis, and a lack of familiarity with unscripted speech hesitation phenomena (e.g., um, like). Qualitative transcript examples showed how top-down knowledge influenced misinterpretations of words and phrases interactively with bottom-up information, making inaccurate understandings of listening difficult to overcome. In addition to revealing participants’ difficulties and the severity of their comprehension difficulties, the diagnostic procedure showed common strengths—key words and phrases understood well by participants. High-frequency vocabulary and shorter utterances were both shown to be comprehended well. Finally, quantitative results in the study revealed relationships of participants’ listening comprehension with other important listening related variables. Listening proficiency and listening anxiety had strong relationships with listening comprehension of the listening texts. Working memory and short-term phonological memory had no relationship with listening text comprehension. Finally, study abroad experience showed a relationship with comprehension, but with many caveats, and listening vocabulary knowledge was not related with comprehension, but again, with numerous caveats to consider. Based on the results, theoretical and pedagogical implications were posed. Theoretical implications from the study relate to the understanding of four concerns in L2 listening research. Mainly, data in the study will aid researchers’ understanding of how L2 English listeners process speech interactively (i.e., with bottom-up and top-down information) for comprehension, how L2 English listeners experience connected speech, how L2 listeners deal with unknown lexis, and how L2 listeners experience difficulties with features of unscripted speech. Pedagogical implications of the study include the need for increased teacher and learner awareness of the complexity of L2 listening, the need to have learners to track their own listening development, and the need for teachers to expose learners to unscripted listening texts and make them familiar with features of unscripted speech. Finally, suggestions for further research are posed, including conducting diagnostics assessments of L2 listening with listeners of different L1s and with more varied proficiency levels, using different diagnostic procedures to examine L2 listening comprehension, and using more instruments to understand listening-related variables’ relationships with L2 listening comprehension. / Teaching & Learning

Although foreign language instruction in mixed-age (M-A) is gaining popularity (Heizmann and Ries and Wicki 2015; Lau and Juby-Smith and Desbiens, 2017; Shahid Kazi and Moghal and Aziz 2018; Thurn 2011), the research is scarce. Drawing from multiple data sources, this study investigated to what extent do peer interactions among M-A and same-age (S-A) pairs aid L2 development and how students perceive their interactions. In this study, the same learners (N=24) aged between 10 and 12 interacted with the same and different age partners during common classroom lessons in two EFL classrooms. The results suggest that both S-A and M-A peer interactions aided L2 development. Although S-A pairs outperformed M-A pairs on the post-test, the results are not statistically significant. The analysis of students’ perceptions revealed that the majority of students prefer working in S-A to M-A pairs. In addition to age/proficiency differences, factors such as students’ relationships and perceptions of one’s own and partner’s proficiency greatly impact how they interact with one another.

The study of a foreign language can never be seen in isolation, but forms part of the social and cultural setting in which it functions. Therefore, teaching English to multicultural groups of adults in Qatar, cannot be done effectively and efficiently, without taking the influence of cultural diversities and values, as well as the requirements of the adult learner, into account. This research deals with how native English speaking lecturers at one specific language centre in Qatar acknowledge these cultural diversities and values and how they accommodate adult learners in the multicultural classroom environment, by means of a literature study and an empirical investigation. Qualitative data collection was done by open-ended questionnaires to lecturers and learners, focus group interviews with lecturers and learners, individual interviews with lecturers, classroom observations and keeping of field notes. Findings revealed that lecturers are aware of the cultural diversities and values of learners who come into the classroom from different nationalities, and accommodated these learners without bias. These differences however, did not necessarily influence their teaching styles and lecturers remained focussed on teaching English as effectively as possible. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Adult Education)