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This study investigates awareness and use of communicative language teaching methodology (CLT) in a foundation programme at an institution of higher learning in the Sultanate of Oman, where rapid expansion and a reliance on expatriate skills has resulted in the employment of predominantly native English teachers, many with inadequate formal teacher training. The qualitative research methodology employed involved a core of five teachers using three data-gathering instruments and ten additional English language teachers who responded to a questionnaire. The study finds that the majority of teachers have inadequate knowledge of the CLT approach and do not use it in the classroom. The findings suggest that an adapted version of CLT which embraces local contextual and sociocultural conditions may be pedagogically viable. The study draws comparisons between the idea of a hypothetical, “adapted” version of CLT and the notions of “particularity, practicality and possibility” as suggested by Kumaravadivelu (2006). / English Studies / M.A. (Specialisation in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages, TESOL)

This study investigates awareness and use of communicative language teaching methodology (CLT) in a foundation programme at an institution of higher learning in the Sultanate of Oman, where rapid expansion and a reliance on expatriate skills has resulted in the employment of predominantly native English teachers, many with inadequate formal teacher training. The qualitative research methodology employed involved a core of five teachers using three data-gathering instruments and ten additional English language teachers who responded to a questionnaire. The study finds that the majority of teachers have inadequate knowledge of the CLT approach and do not use it in the classroom. The findings suggest that an adapted version of CLT which embraces local contextual and sociocultural conditions may be pedagogically viable. The study draws comparisons between the idea of a hypothetical, “adapted” version of CLT and the notions of “particularity, practicality and possibility” as suggested by Kumaravadivelu (2006). / English Studies / M.A. (Specialisation in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages, TESOL)

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The aim of the present theoretical-empirical thesis is to present the topic of court interpreting for non-native speakers, focusing on criminal proceedings in the Czech Republic. At first, the study looks into the context of Czech court interpreting, taking into account interpreters' tasks in individual stages of criminal proceedings and concentrating on communication situations in which non-native speakers take part. The topic of the second chapter is interpreting for non- native speakers in general. This chapter consists of findings and conclusions of studies published by Michaela Albl-Mikasa as well as other authors who address the topic of conference interpreting through lingua franca. The third chapter looks into interpreting for non- native speakers in the area of court interpreting. It is based on an analysis of findings obtained by lingua franca research in the field of conference interpreting against the background of general court interpreting theories. The empirical part provides a description of research based on hypotheses of a survey carried out by Michaela Albl-Mikasa transferred into the context of Czech court interpreting in criminal proceedings. The aim is to find whether interpreters, judges, state prosecutors, police officers and lawyers use different strategies when...

[pt] O desenvolvimento desta pesquisa visa aprofundar entendimentos sobre a produção, principalmente na modalidade oral, do inglês como língua estrangeira (ILE). Após perceber-me detentora de questões relacionadas às minhas identidades e à forma com que poderia ser percebida por demais indivíduos ao utilizar tal língua estrangeira, realizei uma entrevista-conversa semi-estruturada e informal com outras duas professoras de ILE. Através de uma abordagem qualitativa interpretativista dos dados obtidos, percebi que nós vivenciávamos tensões semelhantes. A análise do discurso gerado nas entrevistas-conversas teve como foco as crenças das professoras com relação ao papel da língua inglesa, como língua nativa e estrangeira, em contextos sociais contemporâneos e as questões de identidades pessoais e profissionais. Na segunda fase da análise dos dados, norteada pelos princípios da Prática Exploratória e da Prática Reflexiva, promovi outras entrevistas-conversas com as mesmas professoras, separadamente. Refletimos sobre nossas percepções e crenças expressas durante a primeira fase, além de tratarmos sobre nossos posicionamentos nesse novo momento. Ao analisar os dados das duas fases da pesquisa com o arcabouço teóricometodológico adotado, entendi a complexidade de nossas questões e a mutabilidade de nossas identidades e crenças de acordo com as experiências que vivenciamos e os contextos nos quais estamos inseridas. No entanto, algumas ideias ainda encontram-se profundamente enraizadas, resultando em tensões que nos levam a habitar um entre-lugar de posicionamentos. / [en] The development of the current research aims at searching for understandings about the production, especially in the oral modality, of English as a Foreign Language (EFL). After perceiving myself as having issues related to my social identities as well as to how I could be perceived by other individuals when using such foreign language, a semi-structured conversation-interview was arranged with two other participating EFL teachers. Through an interpretativist qualitative approach towards the generated data, it was possible to realize that the two participant teachers suffered from tensions similar to mine. The analysis of the discourse generated through the conversation-interviews focused on the teachers’ beliefs about the role of English, as a native and a foreign language, within contemporary social contexts and on personal professional identity issues. The second phase of this work, guided by the principles of Exploratory Practice and of Reflective Practice, led us to other conversation-interviews with the same participant teachers, separately. We reflected upon our perceptions and beliefs expressed during the first phase, besides dealing with our positioning at that moment. By connecting the insights obtained during the two research phases, I could understand the complexity of the issues raised and the changeability of our identities and beliefs according to the situations we experience and the contexts we are part of. However, some ideas are deeply ingrained in our minds, resulting in tensions that lead us to inhabit a middle-place of perspectives.

This thesis deals with teaching English at Secondary school level considering the educational theory of Maria Montessori. The aim of the thesis is to find out specifics of teaching English. The theoretical part presents Maria Montessori, who is considered to be a founder of Montessori pedagogy, her methods, principles and specifics. In the next part the thesis is focused on the role of the teacher and the pupil in this educational system. Next part is focused on the language teaching and on the acquisition of mother tongue and foreign language. In the conclusion of the theoretical part there is an introduction of General Educational Program of English language. The practical part describes teaching English at the Secondary school level considering the General Educational Program and thus by observing the classes and thanks to conversations with the teacher of English and pupils.

The purpose of this study was to better understand student learning in asynchronous computer-conference discourse (ASD) for non-native speakers of English in India through the Community of Inquiry (COI) framework. The study looked at ASD from an online course taught in the fall of 2015 to 25 students in a seminary in South India. All but one of the students were non-native speakers of English. The class consisted of 22 men and 3 women. Eight students spoke languages from the Dravidian family of languages (Malayalam, Tamil, Telegu and Kannada). Eight students were from the Northeastern states of Manipur, Nagaland and Tripura, where most languages are from the Sino-Tibetan family. Three students were native speakers of Indo-Aryan languages (Odiya and Assamese). Five students were from Myanmar representing several Sino-Tibetan languages. The COI is a framework used to understand learning in ASD, often used in online learning. To study the ASD of this group, critical discourse analysis (CDA) was used with the COI to capture the unique socio-cultural and linguistic conditions of this group. The study revealed that non-native speakers of English often reach the Exploration phase of learning but rarely show evidence of reaching the Resolution phase. This phenomenon was also observed in native English speakers as reported in the literature. Also, the structure of ASD showed that students took an examination approach to discussion shaped in part by their epistemology. This examination approach shaped how knowledge was constructed. CDA also showed that the discourse acquired an instructor-centered structure in which Resolution and Repair were initiated and finalized by the instructor. The study advances the COI framework by undergirding it with a theory of asynchronous discourse using critical discourse analysis and capturing cognitive, social and teaching presence phenomena for non-native speakers that were not observed through the traditional COI framework. These phenomena were driven by cultural, epistemological, and linguistic forces and require a rethinking of the COI for contexts outside of North America. The study also demonstrates that learning for non-native speakers in ASD is challenged by these very same forces. Therefore, design for online learning should account for these phenomena.

Introduction: Presently, there are more people who speak English as a second and foreign language than there are native speakers. This situation results, among others, in the fall of the native speaker model and subsequently in gradually changing attitudes to standard(s) and to language and teaching authorities in general. Present thesis reflects these current developments, which are sometimes referred to as 'a paradigmatic shift'. Objectives: The first goal of the thesis was to decipher the terminological pluralism pertinent to the domain. Next, this research set out to investigate, how familiar the phenomenon of English as a lingua franca (ELF) is in the Czech Republic, and consequently to raise awareness about it. Finally, it was our goal to conduct vast research exploring if and how the questions of language ideology are reflected in the teaching practice and in teacher training. Methodology: Both quantitative and qualitative research methods have been applied throughout the research process. The quantitative research included nine originally devised questionnaires. Qualitative data were obtained via conducting semi-structured interviews. Altogether, data were collected from 595 respondents (298 teachers, 285 students and 12 scientists). Results: First, the research results revealed the...

This dissertation thesis deals with lifelong education, specifically a programme provided by the Department of English Language and Literature at Charles University, Prague. The thesis is divided into two parts: theoretical and research. In the theoretical part, the theoretical basis of lifelong education is analysed, as well as trends in selected aspects of it. In the research part, data about appropriate programmes from other European countries as well as curricula from other universities and colleges in the Czech Republic and from abroad are analysed. The results of the pilot stage, the questionnaire distributed among the successful participants of the lifelong education programme, which are followed by semi-structured interviews, are presented and compared. In addition, semi-structured interviews were conducted with the teachers teaching in this programme. Content analysis is used to process, compare and interpret the collected data with regard to the programme in question and to the aims of the thesis. The main aims of the dissertation thesis are to find out how similar programmes are structured in the Czech Republic and abroad, what expectations the participants had before starting the programme at Charles University and the extent to which they were met, and whether or not they regard the...