Presenting comprehensive research conducted with learners and educators in a range of settings, this volume showcases self-reflection as a powerful tool to enhance student learning. The text builds on empirical insights to illustrate how language professionals can foster critical self-reflection amongst learners of English as an additional language. This text uses ecologically sensitive practitioner research that addresses issues of both practical and pedagogical significance in the fields of TESOL, language teaching and learning, and teacher education. By synthesizing interdisciplinary research and theory, chapters show how various types of self-reflection—including guided and non-guided; group and individual forms; and written, oral, and technology-mediated reflection—can promote autonomous, self-regulated learning amongst students at various levels. Whilst offering readers a strong grounding in the theoretical and empirical knowledge that supports self-reflection, the volume gives constant attention is given to praxis, with a focus on effective pedagogical strategies and tools needed to implement, encourage, and evaluate critical learner reflection in readers’ own teaching or research. This volume will be a critical resource for language-teaching professionals interested in critical learner reflection, including in-service, pre-service, and teacher educators in the field of TESOL. Scholars and researchers in the fields of applied linguistics and language education more broadly will find this volume valuable.
This book brings together a wide range of studies, practical applications and reflective accounts written by academics working at a university in Japan to present a cohesive overview of their collaborative efforts to promote learner reflection within their institution. The book contributes to a shift in language education towards promoting learner responsibility and ownership of their learning through developing a deeper sense of awareness of and motivation for the learning process. It makes a convincing case for showing that not only is promoting reflection possible, but it can also be effectively integrated into language learning activities with significant benefits to the learners. The chapters are highly practical for researchers and practitioners, with the research chapters containing instruments which make them ideal for replication studies. The text includes a wealth of practical tools and activities for practitioners, who will be able to experience first-hand how to facilitate student success and increase satisfaction.
This volume encompasses the range of research questions on language-related problems that arise in language teaching, learning and assessment. The [150] chapters are written by experts in the field who each offer their insights into current and future directions of research, and who suggest several highly relevant research questions. Topics include, but are not limited to: language skills teaching, language skills assessment and testing, measurement, feedback, discourse analysis, pragmatics, semantics, language learning through technology, CALL, MALL, ESP, EAP, ERPP, TBLT, materials development, genre analysis, needs analysis, corpus, content-based language teaching, language teaching and learning strategies, individual differences, research methods, classroom research, form-focused instruction, age effects, literacy, proficiency, and teacher education and teacher development. The book serves as a reference and offers inspiration to researchers and students in language education. An important skill in reviewing the research literature is following a study’s “plan of attack.” Broadly, this means that before accepting and acting upon the findings, one considers a) the research question (Is it clear and focused? Measurable?), b) the subjects examined, the methods deployed, and the measures chosen (Do they fit the study’s goal and have the potential to yield useful results?), and c) the analysis of the data (Do the data lead to the discussion presented? Has the author reasonably interpreted results to reach the conclusion?). Mohebbi and Coombe’s book, Research Questions in Language Education and Applied Linguistics: A Reference Guide, helps budding researchers take the first step and develop a solid research question. As the field of language education evolves, we need continual research to improve our instructional and assessment practices and our understanding of the learners’ language learning processes. This book with its remarkable 150 topics and 10 times the number of potential research questions provides a wealth of ideas that will help early career researchers conduct studies that move our field forward and grow our knowledge base. Deborah J. Short, Ph.D., Director, Academic Language Research & Training, Past President, TESOL International Association (2021-22) As a teacher in graduate programs in TESOL I frequently come across the frustration of students at centering their research interests on a particular topic and developing research questions which are worth pursuing so as to make a contribution to the field. This frustration stems from the fact that our field is so vast and interrelated, that it is often impossible to properly address all that interests them. Hence, I wholeheartedly welcome this most relevant and innovative addition to the research literature in the field of TESOL and Applied Linguistics. Coombe and Mohebbi have created a real tour de force that stands to inform budding researchers in the field for many years to come. Additionally, the cutting-edge depiction of the field and all it has to offer will no doubt update the research agendas of many seasoned researchers around the world. The 150 chapters are organized in a most powerful, yet, deceptively simple way offering a positioning within the topic, suggesting questions that might direct inquiry and offering a basic set of bibliographic tools to start the reader in the path towards research. What is more, the nine sections in which the chapters are organized leave no area of the field unexplored. Dr. Gabriel Díaz Maggioli, Academic Advisor, Institute of Education, Universidad ORT del Uruguay, President, IATEFL
Most debates about the so-called research-practice gap in TESOL have focused on a one-way transfer of research evidence from the context of origin to the context of application. Rather than continuing such debates, Knowledge Mobilization in TESOL: Connecting Research and Practice sheds light on what happens after research is transferred to contexts of practice such as the classroom. It explores whether or not, and under what circumstances, research can make contributions to teachers’ professional learning and development. By featuring English language teachers’ first-hand accounts of research utilization, the book highlights the complex processes of making research-based knowledge meaningful for pedagogical practice. It shows why the success of any knowledge mobilization project depends on sensitivity to context and teachers’ interpretive engagement with research-based recommendations. Written in a lucid and accessible style, Knowledge Mobilization in TESOL: Connecting Research and Practice will appeal to a broad readership interested in research utilization in the field of education, especially in TESOL. It will be an informative text for pre-service and graduate courses in TESOL, ELT, applied linguistics, teacher education, and education policy studies. In-service teachers, teacher educators, program administrators, and funding agencies will also find it to be a valuable resource. Contributors are: Chris Banister, Leigh Yohei Bennett, Xin Chen, Tiffany Johnson, Kendon Kurzer, Cynthia Macknish, Michael McLelland, Nashwa Donna M. Neary, Gina Paschalidou, Aysenur Sagdic, Nashaat Sobhy, Nguyen Thi Thuy Loan, Lorena Valmori, and Robert E. White.
This edited volume explores the impact of recent events worldwide that commanded rapid transformation with the areas of teaching, learning, assessment, administration, and academic support systems in today’s higher education institutions globally. It draws on a range of theories and research to provide global perspectives on student and instructor-centered approaches, such as, teaching, learning, assessment, technology use, student and instructor success, curriculum and instructional design, professional development, and academic and administrative support systems. The chapters in this volume capture the personal experiences of educators, educational support professionals, and emerging teachers who encountered crises in the form of disruptions (i.e., COVID-19 pandemic), advancements (i.e., technology), and transformations (i.e., practices, procedures). Educators, administrators, and policymakers benefit by learning about the ways other institutions of higher education continue to adapt to address emerging gaps.The 33 chapters in this volume were authored by international researchers, practitioners, and experts from 20 countries. This diverse group of authors share their experiences in creating opportunities from challenges to address gaps in higher education exposed by disruptions from the external and internal environments.
This book examines critical literacy within language and literacy learning, with a particular focus on English as an Additional Language learners in schools who traditionally are not given the same exposure to critical literacy as native-English speakers. An important and innovative addition to extant literature, this book explains how English language teachers understand critical literacy and enact it in classrooms with adolescent English language learners from highly diverse language backgrounds. This book brings together the study of two intersecting phenomena: how critical literacy is constructed in English language education policy for adolescent English language learners internationally and how critical literacy is understood and enacted by teachers amid the so-called ‘literacy crisis’ in neoliberal eduscapes. The work traces the ways critical literacy has been represented in English language education policy for adolescents in five contexts: Australia, England, Sweden, Canada and the United States. Drawing on case study research, it provides a comparative analysis of how policy in these countries constructs critical literacy, and how this then positions critical engagement as a focus for teachers of English language learners. Empirically based and accessibly written, this timely book will be of interest to a wide range of academics in the fields of adolescent literacy education, English language learning and teaching, education policy analysis, and critical discourse studies. It will also appeal to teachers, post-graduate students and language education policy makers.
By reconceptualizing successful communication in a foreign language as an enjoyable and uplifting experience, this volume moves beyond a focus on grammatical accuracy and fluency to foreground the ways in which foreign language learners can be encouraged to build on previous achievements and communicative successes in the target language and so develop confidence, commitment and cross-cultural relational ability. Building on Mugford’s previous volume, Addressing Difficult Situations in Foreign-Language Learning (2019), this text draws on grounded qualitative data collected through questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and conversations with Spanish-speaking learners of English, to illustrate how learners’ experiences and insights can be used to inform a productive pedagogy centred around language users’ communicative objectives and interactional successes. Chapters highlight bilingual speakers’ conscious language use, practices and choices in the target language and the reasons and implications for such deliberate communicative practices and relational behaviour. In doing so, Mugford is able to outline a critical relational pedagogy designed to better equip language learners with the confidence and pragmatic resources they require to engage in positive cross-cultural relational work. As a valuable, student-centred contribution to teaching and learning of modern foreign languages, this volume will be key reading for researchers, scholars and educators with an interest in language education, TESOL, World Language teaching and Applied Linguistics.
Praise for How Learning Works "How Learning Works is the perfect title for this excellent book. Drawing upon new research in psychology, education, and cognitive science, the authors have demystified a complex topic into clear explanations of seven powerful learning principles. Full of great ideas and practical suggestions, all based on solid research evidence, this book is essential reading for instructors at all levels who wish to improve their students' learning." —Barbara Gross Davis, assistant vice chancellor for educational development, University of California, Berkeley, and author, Tools for Teaching "This book is a must-read for every instructor, new or experienced. Although I have been teaching for almost thirty years, as I read this book I found myself resonating with many of its ideas, and I discovered new ways of thinking about teaching." —Eugenia T. Paulus, professor of chemistry, North Hennepin Community College, and 2008 U.S. Community Colleges Professor of the Year from The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education "Thank you Carnegie Mellon for making accessible what has previously been inaccessible to those of us who are not learning scientists. Your focus on the essence of learning combined with concrete examples of the daily challenges of teaching and clear tactical strategies for faculty to consider is a welcome work. I will recommend this book to all my colleagues." —Catherine M. Casserly, senior partner, The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching "As you read about each of the seven basic learning principles in this book, you will find advice that is grounded in learning theory, based on research evidence, relevant to college teaching, and easy to understand. The authors have extensive knowledge and experience in applying the science of learning to college teaching, and they graciously share it with you in this organized and readable book." —From the Foreword by Richard E. Mayer, professor of psychology, University of California, Santa Barbara; coauthor, e-Learning and the Science of Instruction; and author, Multimedia Learning
The literature on service-learning in TESOL has developed over the last two decades to include over 50 publications in peer-reviewed journals and several edited collections. Collectively, the research to date indicates that service-learning gives English Language Learners (ELLs) insight on U.S. culture, provides authentic speaking and listening situations, enhances literacy skills, and has a positive effect on retention. When incorporated into TESOL teacher education programs, service-learning enhances pre-service teachers' understanding of ELLs, language learning theories and practices, and the communities in which they serve. Service-learning scholarship in TESOL has not only increased our collective understanding of engaged teaching and learning in diverse settings, but also demonstrates increased theoretical maturity by systematically applying empirical methods to examine a range of assorted research phenomenon. Key articles in the existing research base tell us powerful stories about language, culture, race, and nationality. They contribute to public discourse on immigration, globalization, education, and civic engagement, to name a few of the issues to which English Language Learners and their teachers can contribute. With detailed examples and case studies in K-12, Intensive English, Academic English, immigrant and adult education, and community-based programs around the world, the present volume provides the most complete discussion of best practices in TESOL service-learning research and praxis in TESOL to date.
