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Six trends for the new future of english language teaching, by chia suan chong, 27 october 2021 - 08:48.
Poyraz Tütüncü/Pinhole Istanbul, Author MAHMUT CEYLAN
What has inspired your teaching and teacher development this year? Chia Suan Chong, writer, communication skills and intercultural skills trainer, who reported live from the ELTons awards in November 2021, lists her top six.
The announcement of the finalists of the ELTons, a.k.a. the British Council ELTons awards for innovation in English language teaching, has always been an interesting and revealing time. It is a time when teams and individuals are celebrated for their innovation in the courses, books, platforms, apps, projects, and more that they’ve contributed to the world of English language teaching. It is also a time when we get to learn about the current trends of our industry and the directions we are heading in.
As I excitedly clicked through the lists of finalists for the 19th year of the ELTons, here are some of the trends that became apparent.
Using the real world
One exciting thing about language teaching is the flexibility of the content of our materials. Science teachers teach scientific theories and facts and history teachers have historical events and stories as the subject content, but English teachers can use a variety of topics as vehicles to present the English language. We can teach English using fairy tales, workplace rules or quirky homes around the world. Some of the ELTons finalists have discovered the value in using real world events and acquainting learners with real-world scenarios where they might be using English. Sensations English (UK) for example uses news-based video and articles to help students learn about real-world events while improving their language skills. Immerse Virtual Language Experience Platform (Immerse VR, USA) puts students in a 3D world as they experience language and culture in real-world scenarios. And Vlogger Academy (Digital Learning Associates Ltd with The Weirdos and Creatives Collective, UK) uses real-life YouTubers and authentic content to expose learners to the global English used in the world today.
Using English to communicate with the world
There is no doubt that English is an indispensable tool for international communication today. Whether our learners are posting on social media, creating videos on video-sharing platforms or working in international project teams, the English language provides them with the opportunity to communicate not just with people who use English as a first language, but also those who use English as a second or foreign language.
This reality is reflected not just in products like the already-mentioned Vlogger Academy, but also Converse Across the Universe: Managing Cross-Cultural Communication (Yelena Golovatch, Margarita Kochan, Yauheni Radzetski, Belarus), where students develop critical thinking and communication skills in practical everyday situations where they might encounter different cultures and different attitudes and ways of behaving.
Even in Online English Pronunciation Course (Luke Nicholson, Improve your accent, UK) that is written for learners based in the UK, the emphasis is on intelligibility, i.e. being understood, and not only becoming someone that learners are not.
As Our Languages (Stand For/FTD Educação, Brazil) very appropriately describes it, English is a tool for our students to express themselves – a tool not unlike the language of art, music or social media – a tool used to communicate with the world. And like these different forms of expression, learners need to feel a sense of ownership of the English language and own their language learning experience. English will serve to express their identities – a theme that is explored in Communicating Identities (Routledge, UK), a teacher’s guide that supports learners in their exploration and reflection of the different aspects of their identities.
Life skills
As we provide our learners with opportunities to practise communicating in English, there is flexibility not only in the content of the texts we use but also in the tasks that we get learners to perform. Through these tasks, learners not only have the chance to enhance their language skills, but they are also able to develop other life skills. We saw the development of intercultural skills in the already-mentioned Converse Across the Universe: Managing Cross-Cultural Communication. This focus on expanding the learners’ knowledge of the world is also seen in Talk about China with Oxford (OUP China Ltd with Jingban Beijing Education Culture Media Co. Ltd, China), a series of courses that enable young learners to learn about China via the English language.
Other life skills that feature heavily among the finalists are problem-solving skills and collaboration skills – common features of materials that make use of a task-based learning approach to language learning. Escape the Classroom (Perceptia Press, UK/Japan) for example, requires students to work together in teams to figure out ways of solving puzzles and breaking codes in order to escape a room. Oxford Discover Futures (OUP – English language teaching, UK, Egypt, Mexico, Turkey, Spain and the Middle East) promotes critical thinking and collaboration skills through thought-provoking questions. And English Code (Pearson English, UK) uses code-breaking activities and creative tasks to help nurture the spirit of experimentation, collaboration, resilience and curiosity in primary school students.
Included in life skills are higher-order thinking skills and exam-taking skills, and this can be done in innovative ways. Literatu Scribo for IELTS Writing Success (Literatu Pty Ltd Australia, Australia), for example, uses an online platform to help students improve their core English writing skills. The approach that Fun Skills (CUP and Cambridge Assessment English, UK) takes to this is perhaps reflected in its title, as children prepare for the exams they need to take in the future through songs and entertaining stories.
The power of stories
Learning through stories is another clear thread that we see in many of the finalists this year. Fiction Express (Fiction Express, Spain/UK) develops literacy skills through well-supported reading texts while BOOKR Class (BOOKR Kids, Hungary) uses a gamified library app to provide interactive books from the classics of world literature and original stories.
In this age when we have access to an incredible selection of stories in the form of TV shows we watch through online streaming services, Days Crossing (Chasing Time English, New Zealand) provide learners with original TV series that are specifically made for English language learners.
Inclusion and wellbeing
Perhaps Link Online Learners a.k.a LOL (hundrED, Finland, with volunteers and educators from 13 different countries) is an example of how the trends of life skills, using real world content and helping learners to English to communicate with the world can all be embodied in one product. LOL provides a platform for teachers and students as a way of connecting with a diverse global youth network in order to develop curiosity, empathy for other cultures and an understanding of different perspectives and ways of life. The volunteers and educators involved in this project are from a diverse range of countries, demonstrating the inclusive nature of this project.
The importance of diversity and inclusion in English language teaching was highlighted at the ELTons 2020 when the British Council created the new judge’s commendation category for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion – celebrating finalists whose resources bridge educational inequality, reflect diversity and promote the inclusion of typically underrepresented groups. ( Click here to find out more about last year’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion winners)
This year, we continue to see the importance of this theme as we look at the finalists across the different categories of the ELTons. From English competency courses for Para Powerlifters (World Para Powerlifting, Germany, with International Paralympic Committee) and grammar for the deaf and hard of hearing (General Directorate for special education and continuous education, Ministry of Education in Sultanate of Oman with AI ROYAA NEWSPAPER, Sultanate of Oman), to Helping Matters – an English course for social workers (Perceptia Press, UK/Japan) and guides for volunteers at conversation clubs (Learning and Work Institute with Learning Unlimited, UK), we see products that are catered for learners and teachers with a wide range of needs and backgrounds.
The importance of inclusion can also be seen in CIELL-Comic for Inclusive English language learning (Lancaster University, UK, with AKTO Art & Design College, Greece, Innovation in Learning Institute, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität, Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany, Language Centre, University of Cyprus, Cyprus) and many of the finalists in the category for Local Innovation awards, such as Mosaik Dogme Toolkit , a toolkit that helps English teachers of refugees make learning communicative and engaging. Teaching in challenging circumstances (Cambridge University Press, UK) is another example of support provided to teachers involved in formal or informal teaching in areas with a growing number of refugees and displaced people.
Many of these projects focus on including diverse student groups and providing support for both their learning and their wellbeing. But in the process of doing so, we should also remember to look after ourselves. Teacher Wellbeing (Oxford University Press, UK) provides teachers will a variety of practical ideas to support and maintain teacher wellbeing as teachers while nurturing the professional relationships they have.
Our next normal
The last couple of years have no doubt presented teachers with new challenges, and so it is no surprise that these new challenges are reflected in several ELTons finalists this year. The Teachers’ Classroom App (PeacheyPublications Ltd, UK) makes the transition to online teaching easier by offering teachers training of common digital tools and ready-made lessons that teachers can launch and deliver from their desktop. LearnCube Homework Application (LearnCube, UK) provides a digital solution to teachers who have to or want to manage homework and give personalised feedback for their online classes. Engaging language learners in contemporary classrooms (Cambridge University Press) recognises the distractions that learners face today and helps teachers consider the aspects of learner engagement that they have power to influence more directly. And the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary App (OUP, UK, with Paragon Software, Germany/Russia) gives learners to autonomy to improve their vocabulary and pronunciation anytime, anywhere as they navigate flipped learning, online learning and blended learning.
Previous-ELTons winner, The HandsUp Project, also adapted in response to the school closures in 2020/21. Their Facebook Live Team teaching for the Palestinian English Curriculum (The Hands Up Project, UK with UNRWA, Gaza) delivered daily live team-taught classes remotely, led by a Palestinian English teacher and a teacher in another country. This push towards online lessons in the past couple of years has also resulted in us embracing global communication and increased learner autonomy.
As we reflect on the current trends of our industry through the ELTons finalists of 2021, we realise that the events of 2020/21 might have fast-forwarded some of the trends that were already developing in our industry, but none of them come as a surprise. If anything, this serves as confirmation as to where English language teaching and learning is going and will be going in the years to come.
Watch recordings of the ELTons online and meet the winners. Chia reported live from the event alongside teacher, writer, editor, and conference speaker Callie Massey.
Chia also guest tweeted live using the username @BCEltons . Join in the Twitter discussion using #ELTons.
Teachers, visit our TeachingEnglish website for lesson plans and activities.
View the discussion thread.
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Our Best Education Articles of 2020
In February of 2020, we launched the new website Greater Good in Education , a collection of free, research-based and -informed strategies and practices for the social, emotional, and ethical development of students, for the well-being of the adults who work with them, and for cultivating positive school cultures. Little did we know how much more crucial these resources would become over the course of the year during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Now, as we head back to school in 2021, things are looking a lot different than in past years. Our most popular education articles of 2020 can help you manage difficult emotions and other challenges at school in the pandemic, all while supporting the social-emotional well-being of your students.
In addition to these articles, you can also find tips, tools, and recommended readings in two resource guides we created in 2020: Supporting Learning and Well-Being During the Coronavirus Crisis and Resources to Support Anti-Racist Learning , which helps educators take action to undo the racism within themselves, encourage their colleagues to do the same, and teach and support their students in forming anti-racist identities.
Here are the 10 best education articles of 2020, based on a composite ranking of pageviews and editors’ picks.
Can the Lockdown Push Schools in a Positive Direction? , by Patrick Cook-Deegan: Here are five ways that COVID-19 could change education for the better.
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How to Teach Online So All Students Feel Like They Belong , by Becki Cohn-Vargas and Kathe Gogolewski: Educators can foster belonging and inclusion for all students, even online.
How Teachers Can Help Students With Special Needs Navigate Distance Learning , by Rebecca Branstetter: Kids with disabilities are often shortchanged by pandemic classroom conditions. Here are three tips for educators to boost their engagement and connection.
How to Reduce the Stress of Homeschooling on Everyone , by Rebecca Branstetter: A school psychologist offers advice to parents on how to support their child during school closures.
Three Ways to Help Your Kids Succeed at Distance Learning , by Christine Carter: How can parents support their children at the start of an uncertain school year?
How Schools Are Meeting Social-Emotional Needs During the Pandemic , by Frances Messano, Jason Atwood, and Stacey Childress: A new report looks at how schools have been grappling with the challenges imposed by COVID-19.
Six Ways to Help Your Students Make Sense of a Divisive Election , by Julie Halterman: The election is over, but many young people will need help understanding what just happened.
Train Your Brain to Be Kinder (video), by Jane Park: Boost your kindness by sending kind thoughts to someone you love—and to someone you don’t get along with—with a little guidance from these students.
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Language Learning Motivation in Diverse Educational Contexts
- Published: 24 May 2024
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Motivation plays a pivotal role in language learning success, influencing learners’ progress and achievement (Al-Hoorie & MacIntyre, 2019 ; Thompson & Liu, 2021 ). However, motivating language learners remains a complex task for educators worldwide, whether in compulsory language learning contexts or voluntary ones (Lamb, 2017 ). Macaro ( 2013 ) reports that when asked what kind of research would be most helpful for practice, the greatest concern expressed by teachers in the 11–18 sector was motivation. While adult learners also face motivational challenges, these issues are particularly pronounced during the school years, where compulsory language learning prevails and motivation tends to wane (e.g. Graham et al., 2016 ; Lo Bianco, 2009 ; Pufahl & Rhodes, 2011 ).
The field of language learning motivation has been characterised by extensive theorisation. From Gardner's ( 1985 ) socio-educational model to Dörnyei's ( 2009 ) L2 motivational self-system, the field has developed a degree of sophistication that allows insights into the complex and dynamic nature of language learning motivation. In its beginnings, much language learning motivation research was rooted in motivational psychology and cognitive theories, focusing on the role of internal learner traits. A shift towards complexity theories has inspired researchers to consider a more holistic and dynamic perspective on motivation, with Ushioda’s ( 2009 ) person-in-context-relational view and the notion of directed motivational currents reflecting this shift (Dörnyei et al., 2016 ). These notions have attracted considerable interest because they can move from static understandings of motivation to see it as dynamic and responsive to classroom ecologies. The same shift has seen an increasing interest in exploring how context plays a part in language learning motivation, prompting researchers to understand better the L2 experience construct within Dörnyei’s L2 motivational self system. Arguably, the emergence of complex and dynamic understandings of language learning motivation has created a theoretical and conceptual space for researchers to consider the role of teaching practice in language learning motivation.
Shifts in the conceptualisation of language learning motivation have inspired methodological developments in research, too. While L2 motivation research was previously dominated by survey methods, particularly single time-point surveys, more recent research has shown an increasing interest in mixed methods or qualitative approaches that may better capture the complex nature of learning environments and their interplay with learner motivation. Also of increasing interest are studies that track students’ motivation across different periods, enabling the exploration of changes over time. These studies also adopt a qualitative approach, enabling the exploration of the time-context intersect. Such developments allow the field to offer richer insight into the why of motivation.
Compared to other subjects on the school curriculum, language learning motivation research has reached an enviable level of maturity. Nevertheless, the majority has focused on learners rather than teachers and on adult learners rather than school-aged learners (for notable exceptions, see the review by Zhang et al., 2022 ). Two avenues remain particularly under-explored: (1) understanding the contexts and factors that support or inhibit school-aged learners’ motivation for language learning and (2) exploring the teachers’ role in language learning motivation.
Language learning motivation in school settings is under-researched, even though school is where most language learning takes place. Studies suggest that motivation for language learning declines throughout the school career (e.g., Dörnyei et al., 2006 ; Gardner et al., 2004 ). Notwithstanding an initial honeymoon period (Graham et al., 2016 ), the transition from primary to secondary is a pivotal moment in this decline (e.g. Butler, 2015 ; Carreira, 2011 ; Kim & Seo, 2012 ). Despite the global status of English, motivating learners in the school setting can prove just as challenging (e.g. Hennebry-Leung, 2020 ; Hennebry-Leung & Hu, 2023 ); the role of high-stakes examinations and the compulsory status of English in many contexts, for instance, can make for adverse conditions (Graddol, 2006 ). Too little is known about the nature of language learning motivation among school-aged learners, the learner, institutional, and sociocultural factors that interplay to shape and direct motivation, or how classroom features dynamically interact with motivation over time. Similarly, though interesting research is emerging in classroom engagement, most of this has been conducted in university classrooms, not in schools (Hiver et al., 2024 ).
The teachers’ role in motivation, including their motivational practice and how they create learning environments that generate and sustain motivation, also demands further attention. The L2 learning experience is recognised as pivotal to motivation, though the precise nature of its relationship to motivation requires further elucidation. Studies so far have tended towards surveying teachers’ perceptions of the effectiveness of given motivational strategies (Lamb, 2020 ). Yet, understanding how teachers’ actual practices interact with student motivation is central to informing teacher education that adequately addresses the needs of teachers and contributes to theorising the teacher’s role in learner motivation and deepening our knowledge of teachers’ professional lives and identities (Kubanyiova & Crookes, 2016 ).
This Special Issue showcases studies across the two areas identified, seeking to expand knowledge in this area and to inform practice. The Issue includes five papers, three of which focus on pre-/school-aged learners. Murray, Chen, and Liu explore using gamification to support reading engagement at home for preschool language learners. Getman explores features that support task engagement in speaking assessment among primary school language learners. Hu and Hennebry-Leung explore the process of (de)motivation among secondary school learners of English in the context of student-centred and teacher-centred instructional settings. The remaining two involve adult learners in the tertiary sector and focus on key features of teaching practice. Li examines the interplay between classroom language choice and language learners’ possible selves, while Poupoure seeks to uncover how project-based learning intervention contributes to students’ directed motivational currents.
Adopting the L2MSS as a framework, Hu and Hennebry-Leung’s study addresses the two concerns at the heart of this special issue. The study sets out to understand how the learning experience interacts with the actual, ideal, and ought-to L2 selves of secondary school-aged learners of English in Mainland China, specifically with demotivation. Secondary school students are particularly vulnerable to demotivation (e.g. Kikuchi, 2009 ; Song & Kim, 2017 ) and motivational decline (e.g., Chambers, 2019 ; Graham et al., 2016 ). Hu and Hennebry-Leung track the one-year motivational trajectories of three students in three schools and their interplay with the instructional setting on a continuum from more teacher-centred to balanced to more student-centred. The study draws on classroom observations, focus groups stimulated recall interviews, and individual semi-structured interviews to uncover students’ perceptions of their L2 selves and experiences of (de)motivation within these instructional settings.
Various aspects of this study are important. First, a critical missing component of the L2MSS in much research is the actual self, which is necessary for the central notion of discrepancy to be operationalised. Including the actual self in the study allows the theorisation of this concept in relation to the L2MSS and (de)motivation and offers a benchmark for interpreting participants’ possible selves. Second, focusing on students in year one of high school provides much-needed insight into the motivational experiences of school-aged learners, specifically on learners transitioning between primary and secondary schooling. Third, the study adopts a longitudinal, qualitative design, enabling a view of (de)motivation as complex and dynamic.
The findings point to the significance of competence-related experiences in shaping learners’ L2 selves and in their motivation to attain those possible selves. Specifically, perceived competence and L2 self-efficacy emerge as core components of the actual L2 self. This actual L2 self provided the basis from which student participants adjusted their ideal and ought-to L2 selves. The study thus highlights the significant role of the actual L2 self in students’ aspirations and motivations. Further, the study highlights the importance of instructional settings in shaping positive self-perceptions that, in turn, contributed to positive L2 selves and supporting motivation with students. Of particular importance were the emotional experiences arising from teacher-student interactions. Students’ interpretations of these interactions and their broader learning experience were an important determiner of demotivation.
The study has important implications for theory and practice. First, it highlights the critical role the actual self plays in the development of ideal and ought-to L2 selves and the need for further research on this. Second, it points to the significance of the L2 learning environment in shaping L2 selves and motivation. Both the actual L2 self and the L2 learning experience are under-theorised aspects of the L2 MSS. Both also have implications for practice, as Hu and Hennebry-Leung explain.
Li’s study also adopts the L2MSS framework. The study used a sequential survey and interview design to examine whether language learning motivation, as understood through the L2MSS, can help to explain differences in students’ perceptions of classroom language choice. Interesting results emerge. The research is conducted in a monolingual setting where all learners share an L1 (Chinese). Li’s findings indicate that most students exhibit positive attitudes towards the judicious use of the L1, reflecting previous research that points to its benefits in assisting comprehension and promoting effective classroom communication. However, the associations between students’ self-guides and attitudes towards classroom language choice are particularly interesting. Li finds that the ideal L2 self significantly and positively predicts students’ attitudes towards exclusive L2 use. Aligning with previous work by Hennebry & Gao ( 2021 ), Li suggests that students’ exposure to the L2 may help to narrow the discrepancy between students’ actual L2 self-state and their ideal self visualisations. Li further reports the ought-to L2 self as a significant and positive predictor of students’ attitudes towards the use of L1 use and their ought-to L2 self. Noting that the ought-to L2 self is characterised by a wish to avoid adverse outcomes (Dörnyei, 2009 ), Li suggests that this association may reflect students’ belief that the use of L1 provides a ‘safer’ environment, where errors of comprehension and therefore failure are less likely. Qualitative data supports this interpretation and points to the need for L2 use to be supported by creating safe learning environments where errors are seen as learning opportunities. Importantly, Li notes that assessment of classroom participation needs to consider students’ effective use of their full linguistic repertoires, not just their use of the target language. Such an approach supports the development of learners’ bi/multilingual identities (Liu & Fang, 2022 ; Rafi, 2022 ). Li’s findings highlight the importance of learners’ goals in shaping their attitudes towards classroom language choice. More intrinsic goals, manifested in an ideal L2 self, seem to result in more favourable attitudes towards the use of L2, presumably because that approach is more likely to offer opportunities to develop an L2 identity and, therefore, to attain the ideal L2 self. On the other hand, more extrinsic goals focused on the expectations of others and avoiding failure, as manifested in the ought-to L2 self, are associated with more favourable attitudes towards L1 use where the risk of errors and failure is mitigated.
Li’s study contributes to understanding associations between learners’ ideal selves and the L2 learning experience. It also highlights the potential role of motivation in explaining mixed findings on students’ attitudes towards classroom language choice. Li encourages practitioners to consider the ways in which translanguaging practices may contribute to the judicious use of L1, creating spaces where learners’ ideal L2 selves can be strengthened but also where the potential benefits of L1 use can be maximised. In this vein, he suggests that policymakers may also usefully recognise the potential of translanguaging as a principled pedagogical approach that supports learners’ possible L2 selves. He notes the importance of tasks that allow for authentic communication and provides opportunities for translanguaging, enabling students to develop their bi/multilingual repertoires and identities.
One of the most significant recent developments in L2 learning motivation theory has been the attention given to the concept of engagement, defined broadly as “the amount (quantity) and type (quality) of learners’ active participation and involvement in a language learning task” (Hiver et al., 2024 : 202). Engagement is important because it represents the translation of motivation into action and is therefore likely to be a better predictor of ultimate learning achievement. Of course, successful learning of an L2 demands engagement in many different types of activity, and the remaining three papers in this Special Issue illustrate this by focussing on learners’ engagement in reading (Murray, Chen & Liu), speaking (Getman), and project work (Poupore).
Most practising teachers have used games at some point during their career to motivate learners, where their curriculum allows. Meanwhile ‘Gamification’ — the use of competition, rewards and other game-like elements — has become a popular strategy for creators of digital language learning resources (e.g. in apps like Duolingo) to maximize learner involvement. Murray, Chen and Liu describe a quasi-experimental intervention in which they use non-digital gamification techniques to motivate preschoolers to read English language stories. Apart from the very young age of their participants (5–6 years old), what makes their study especially original is that their focus is on at-home gamification, working with the children’s parents/carers to promote their interest in L2 reading.
The 8-week research study took place in a bilingual English-Mandarin private school in Taiwan. Control and treatment groups had 30 students each, and all regularly read story books in class with their teacher. The intervention was focussed on the 30-min extra reading that the learners had to do at home with their parents, spread over 3 nights. While children in both groups received scaffolding of various kinds from their parents, the treatment group children were also given Pokémon trading cards as rewards for good performance, following the principles of Self-Determination Theory for gamification (i.e. catering for the learners’ autonomy, competence and relatedness). The children’s reading fluency was then measured after 4 and 8 weeks, and it was found that those in the treatment group had made significantly more progress than those in the control group; what is more, their parents reported them to be much more enthusiastic about reading English stories than they had been before.
While the results represent a strong endorsement of non-digital gamification techniques with younger learners in out-of-school contexts, the authors are up front with provisos for implementation. For example, the design needs to be very closely tied to the learning objectives, so the learners are stimulated to do relevant activities. The rewards themselves need to be individualized (e.g. here, allowing choice of Pokémon cards) and should be regularly refreshed so that the appeal persists. Indeed, while Murray et al. should be applauded for carrying out such a challenging real world intervention study, their study clearly needs replication on a larger-scale and over a longer period, to confirm that the motivational benefits last.
Getman was also concerned with the engagement of young learners (YLLs) of English, in this case in assessed speaking tasks. In order to get valid measurements of learners’ speaking abilities, it is necessary to design tasks that are guaranteed to motivate them to speak as fully as possible. His study focused on four particular characteristics of tasks which, based on motivation theory, he believed would maximize engagement — choice of topic, lexical scaffolding to promote success, novelty and video animation. He then analysed the level of emotional engagement of over 400 YLLs on the TOEFL Primary speaking test, which aims to assess the ability to communicate in routine daily social contexts through 11 different tasks — this was done by identifying acoustic indicators of excitement such as shimmer (moment-to-moment perturbations in pitch) and harmonicity (degree of hoarseness). He also measured their affective reaction to doing each of the test tasks, and obtained the scores for each examinee on each task. Structural equation models were then built to examine the relationship between task characteristics, levels of engagement and speaking performance.
Results showed that task characteristics did affect performance — topic choice enhanced it but vocabulary support, novelty and video animation inhibited it. Only topic choice and novelty affected the learners’ engagement, in the latter case helping to mitigate the potential negative impact on performance. Getman argues that these findings show the need for test designers to consider how far tasks engage younger learners when making validity claims for their assessments. Of course, the range of possible task characteristics go well beyond those taken into account in his study and future studies will be needed to identify these, and their effects. The study also provides researchers with a new method of measuring emotional engagement through acoustic features of voice.
Sustained and intense engagement in an activity over a longer period — of weeks, months or even years — is probably quite rare, but can lead to profound change when it does happen and so is worth pursuing by educators. Such periods of engagement have been called Directed Motivational Currents (DMCs) (Dörnyei et al., 2016 ) and an increasing body of research has validated their existence, and their potential importance for learning an L2, which is inevitably a long-term endeavour. It has also identified common features of DMCs, notably strongly visualized and self-concordant goals, routine and largely automatized behaviours, short-term ‘milestones’ along the way, and a recognized outcome which represents successful achievement. DMCs can be individual, as when someone is training to run a marathon for instance, but they could also be group phenomena, as when people share a goal and work towards it together.
In the final paper in this Special Issue, Poupore describes a deliberate attempt to create a group DMC through project work in a university language classroom. The project — rehearsal and performance of a play in small groups of intermediate learners at an American university — was set up to incorporate the motivational conditions that theory and previous pedagogic research (e.g. Muir, 2020 ) tell us should maximize the chances of the students experiencing a collective DMC. After describing some of the practical activities which the project involved, the paper presents data on three groups’ experiences. Based on the group members’ journal entries, questionnaire responses and interviews, the researcher argues that one of the groups met the criteria for being in a DMC during the process, while another almost certainly was not. By analysing the data for these two groups more closely, Poupore is able to identify the project elements which appeared to facilitate or inhibit the development of a DMC. He then incorporates these elements within an adapted version of the Noels et al. ( 2019 ) model of sustained learner engagement, showing how they satisfied the participants’ needs for competence, autonomy and relatedness, promoted positive group dynamics, led to periods of intense engagement and produced valuable outcomes in terms of students’ L2 willingness to communicate, self-confidence, sense of well-being, groupwork skills amongst others. This is not to say that the DMC group had a stress-free ride; on the contrary, they faced many challenges during the project, giving rise to group tension and individual anxiety and hardship. But where the other two groups succumbed to these pressures by reducing their levels of engagement, the DMC group had “a powerful motivational force that was able to confront and rise above these complex and challenging realities.”
The studies in this Special Issue give attention to two important areas that would particularly benefit from further research, namely motivation and engagement among young learners and school-aged populations, and motivational language teaching practices. These articles address motivational challenges in extremely diverse educational contexts, from pre-schoolers reading English texts with their parents, through primary school pupils preparing for exams and teenagers learning in secondary school classrooms to more advanced level university students. In this they reflect the diversifying nature of formal language learning itself, and the fact that in most contexts the learners’ desire to perform well and make progress is intimately connected to the actions of others — their teachers, parents or peers. The researchers deal both with the psychological mechanisms that push learners to act, such as future-self concepts, and the social structures that frame and infuse their thoughts, feelings and actions. The articles also illustrate the diversifying nature of motivation research; here we see the use of traditional data collection tools such as questionnaires and interviews, but also voice recording, journaling, class observation, and practical pedagogic interventions. Robert Gardner ( 2006 ) concluded his authoritative review of the language learning motivation field nearly 20 years ago with the words “(c)learly, much more research is required to investigate the issue of motivating students in language classes to determine whether or not it has the desired effect in terms of achievement and willingness to use the language” (p. 354). We can confidently assert that the challenge he issued is being met with vigour by new generations of scholars.
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Hennebry-Leung, M., Lamb, M. Language Learning Motivation in Diverse Educational Contexts. English Teaching & Learning (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42321-024-00179-8
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English Education. English Education is the journal of English Language Arts Teacher Educators (ELATE), formerly the Conference on English Education (CEE), a constituent organization of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). The journal serves teachers who are engaged in the preparation, support, and continuing education of teachers of English language arts/literacy at all levels ...
The rise of English as a global language has led scholars to call for a paradigm shift in the field of English language teaching (ELT) to match the new sociolinguistic landscape of the twenty-first century. In recent years a considerable amount of classroom-based research and language teacher education (LTE) research has emerged to investigate ...
What has inspired your teaching and teacher development this year? Chia Suan Chong, writer, communication skills and intercultural skills trainer, who reported live from the ELTons awards in November 2021, lists her top six.. The announcement of the finalists of the ELTons, a.k.a. the British Council ELTons awards for innovation in English language teaching, has always been an interesting and ...
Write for Us. English Education is the journal of English Language Arts Teacher Educators (ELATE), formerly the Conference on English Education (CEE), a constituent organization of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). The journal serves teachers who are engaged in the preparation, support, and continuing education of teachers of ...
On Tuesday, 24 May we discussed the role of English in education globally. Angeliki Salamoura, Head of Learning Oriented Assessment Research (English) at Cambridge University Press & Assessment, reflects on the recent event. There is currently little doubt that governments, schools and parents around the world endorse the need for learning ...
English in Education is NATE's academic journal, designed to keep teachers and academics informed about the most recent research into the teaching of English, and to contribute to national and international debates about the subject.Published by Taylor and Francis, it is one of the leading academic journals in the field, with an international reputation.
Latest articles. 'Latest articles' are articles accepted for publication in this journal but not yet published in a volume/issue. Articles are removed from the 'Latest articles' list when they are published in a volume/issue. Latest articles are citable using the author (s), year of online publication, article title, journal and article ...
by Cambridge English , 31/08/2021. As Covid-19 restrictions ease in many parts of the world, we are seeing clear evidence that students are picking up their plans for international travel and Higher Education. Prospective students need to know that their education will give them the skills they need for success. Teaching , Language.
In recent years, K-12 education has become one of the nation's leading investors in computer technology. In 2015, for example, schools and districts across the United States spent $13.2 billion on digital devices and software — more than 10 times the amount spent by the federal government (International Society for Technology in Education, 2018; Technology for Education Consortium, 2017).
English Education is published by CEE, the Conference on English Education (a constituent organization of the National Council of Teachers of English), and serves as a forum for discussion of issues related to (1) the nature of the English education discipline, especially as it spans all levels of instruction, and (2) the education and development of teachers of English at all levels.
OUP ELT blog. We'll bring you resources you can use in your classrooms, hints and tips for teaching, insights into the lives of publishers and authors, and hopefully a few surprises you won't find on any other publisher blogs. Publishes research for all those involved in English Language Teaching. Content links the everyday concerns of ...
The Journal of English Learner Education's objective is to disseminate emerging research and best practices and seeks articles and commentaries concerning any aspect of educating English language learners in P-12 classrooms in the contexts where English is the main language of instruction, education approaches, standards-based education, best ...
Our most popular education articles of 2020 can help you manage difficult emotions and other challenges at school in the pandemic, all while supporting the social-emotional well-being of your students. In addition to these articles, you can also find tips, tools, and recommended readings in two resource guides we created in 2020: Supporting ...
Four Ways to Engage Multilingual Learners With The Times. A teacher of both English as a New Language and World Languages suggests ideas for bringing a global perspective to the news. By Sarah E ...
Learn English as you read and listen to news and feature stories about education and study in the U.S. Our stories are written at the intermediate and upper-beginner level and are read one-third ...
As I argued in a recent editorial (EIE 57:2), the absence of the term "Knowledge about Language" in the 2022 Curriculum Research Review of English published by Ofsted, the UK school inspection authority, implies a wilful neglect of the long tradition of critical media study in English education.
Almost one in 10 U.S. students in grades K-12 — about 5 million children total — are pulling double duty in school, learning English as a second language while absorbing math, science, social ...
The field of language learning motivation has been characterised by extensive theorisation. From Gardner's socio-educational model to Dörnyei's L2 motivational self-system, the field has developed a degree of sophistication that allows insights into the complex and dynamic nature of language learning motivation.In its beginnings, much language learning motivation research was rooted in ...
Language Arts. Language Arts provides a forum for discussions on all aspects of language arts learning and teaching, primarily as they relate to children in pre-kindergarten through the eighth grade. Issues discuss both theory and classroom practice, highlight current research, and review children's and young adolescent literature, as well as ...
Based on the 'Dogme ELT' approach to teaching, its origins lie in an article written in 2001 by Scott Thornbury and Luke Meddings called 'The roaring in the chimney'. They later wrote 'Teaching Unplugged', a comprehensive guide to this type of teaching and winner of the British Council ELTons award for Innovation in 2010. 1.
Despite the identified challenges, a majority of lecturers recognize the value of EMI in higher education, acknowledging English's role as a global language of science. However, only by recognizing lecturer agency and implementing their solutions, can the quality of EMI courses be enhanced and thus better fulfill the evolving demands of higher ...
STOUGHTON, Mass.—Eighth-grader Sandla Desir spoke softly in a classroom recently while reading the Dr. Seuss book, "One fish, two fish, red fish, blue fish," aloud in accented English. The ...
Introduction. This paper reports an exercise in agenda setting for the next 10 years of research in English education. We defined English education as education in literature or language in a first language context, that is, in countries where English is the main language. It therefore included the teaching of students who have English as an ...
US News Education provides rankings of over 1,400 best colleges and universities and hundreds of best graduate school programs. Learn how to pay for college and get advice on the admissions process.
Among women in households with dependent children aged 0 to 4 years, the proportion with higher education qualifications tended to be higher in areas with higher levels of childcare access. ... English regions, 2023. Embed code. Embed this interactive Copy. Download the data for childcare access by transport mode and region (XSLX, 18KB)
Arizona taxpayers on hook for legal fees after Horne lost English teaching lawsuit State schools chief Tom Horne has been ordered to pay more than $120,000 in legal fees over his unsuccessful bid ...