LEARN Journal: Language Education and Acquisition Research Network

Current ‘Shifts’ in English Language Teaching

Roby Marlina — 2024-01-31

In this article, I offer my observations of the epistemological shifts that have taken place in the TESOL discipline as a result of the inexorable forces of globalisation. Specifically, the article highlights how the multicultural, multilingual, and multimodal nature of communication in the 21st century has disrupted various assumptions on how English is conceptualised, learned, and taught, prompting a shift in disciplinary discourses from a modernist to postmodernist orientation. Readers will gain insights into how the TESOL discipline is increasingly aligning itself with discourses that endorse inclusive plurality, emphasize processes and practices, recognize the role of everyday contexts, promote situated pedagogy, and advocate agency-giving.

Becoming Scholarly Writers through Professional Learning Community: A Phenomenological Case Study of Indonesian Teacher-Educators

Nina Wanda Cassandra — 2024-01-31

Due to the mounting pressure to publish international publications, faculty members around the globe must take the initiative to upgrade their writing capacity through various methods, including participation in workshops and training, obtaining professional support, and joining learning communities. This paper focuses on our experience, three female teacher educators, of becoming scholarly writers for international readership through PROSINAR, an Indonesia-based professional learning community (PLC). We present the PLC scheme for establishing a platform for faculty members to (re)construct and develop their professional identities. Based on findings from a phenomenological case study framed by Freire’s (1993) notion of dialogic encounters, we evaluate our professional identities as English teacher-educators while simultaneously constructing our identities as scholarly writers within our discourse community. We believe that in addition to being a platform for continuing professional development in the context of education, PLC has established itself as an emergent learning platform to improve faculties’ research competence and develop their scholarly writing capacity.

Factors Fostering General Pedagogical Knowledge Development of Vietnamese Pre-service English Teachers in the Connectivist Learning Environment

Thanh Van Nguyen — 2024-01-31

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, online learning has gained significant attention within the educational context of Vietnam. Nonetheless, there is a shared concern among educators about the effectiveness of the online platform that supports positive learning outcomes. To address this, the Connectivist Learning Environment (CLE), where learning activities were designed and aligned with connectivism theory, was introduced. This study explored whether or not the CLE helped develop the general pedagogical knowledge (GPK) of Vietnamese pre-service English teachers (PETs) and the possible factors that led to their GPK development. This study involved 40 pre-service English teachers at a university in Vietnam and 15 Vietnamese and foreign teachers of English. Data were collected through pre-tests, posttests, online reflective journals, an online survey, and a semi-structured interview. An independent paired sample t-test and repeated measures ANOVA were used to analyze quantitative data, while content analysis was used with qualitative data. The findings revealed that the GPK of pre-service English teachers is significantly higher after 9-weeks of participation. The participants stated that the CLE is a beneficial learning platform with various positive attributes. In addition to the theoretical and pedagogical implications, this study offers insights for future research studies.

The Theoretical Review and Practice of Multiple Intelligences in English Language Teaching

Mongkolchai Tiansoodeenon — 2024-01-31

Learner diversity has been identified as a barrier to language learning and teaching. The purpose of this article was to conduct an analysis of the implementation of Multiple Intelligences (MI) theory in the field of English language teaching. MI theory, as introduced by Howard Gardner (1983), offers a new concept of intelligence, one that has led to a profound questioning of what we call "intelligence". As a result, he proposed an alternative view of intelligence that can be incorporated into the range of abilities, as well as the existence of nine intelligences that are distinct from one another. Several studies have explored the incorporation of MI theory in the realm of language teaching since it provides instructors with a variety of teaching strategies and enhances their ability to design teaching methods to better meet learners’ expectations. Moreover, it recommends multiple testing methods based on all the proposed intelligences to evaluate students’ learning, as not all intelligences can be measured using standardized tests. To implement the theory into pedagogical practice, educators should be cautious when it comes to truly understanding the theory and also be prepared to create a variety of teaching techniques in order to engage all intelligences.

The Effect of Learning Management System on Reading Comprehension Across 3 Types of Readers

Shynta Amalia — 2024-01-31

Through the application of the experimental research method and the factorial design, the purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of the authoring tools SoftChalk medium and Hot Potatoes medium in the learning management system (LMS), as well as the types of readers (Avid, Passive, and Reluctant), on the reading comprehension achievement (ReComA) of second year university students (sophomores). In order to identify the different sorts of readers that took part in the study, a quick survey was given to all of the participants. Both the pre-test and post-test were administered to sixty second-year students in order to evaluate the students' ReComA. The findings suggested that the use of the Hot Potatoes medium was more successful in enhancing the students' ReComA and its features. On the other hand, the majority of components of reading comprehension contributed to ReComA (total) in both the SoftChalk and Hot Potatoes groups. In addition, despite the fact that there was no significant interaction on students' ReComA, the mean difference between the post-test and the whole sample indicated that the achievement of the Avid reader and Reluctant reader students in both the SoftChalk and Hot Potatoes groups were higher than the achievement of the Passive reader students.

The Effects of Peer Feedback and Self-Regulated Learning on Thai EFL Students’ Writing Ability and Self-Regulation

Jantra Prompan — 2024-01-31

Conceptualized in formative assessment and sociocognitive theory, peer feedback and self-regulated learning (SRL) instruction were used in this mixed-method study to investigate their effects on Thai EFL university students’ essay writing ability and their self-regulation. During the 12-week online instruction period, 35 third-year students majoring in Business English at a public university were taught essay writing using the integration of peer feedback activities and SRL. An essay writing test, a self-regulation questionnaire, and semi-structured interviews were used to collect data. Findings revealed that students’ essay writing ability and self-regulation had significantly improved after the intervention. Our findings shed light on the feasibility and necessity incorporating the interdisciplinary dimensions of education such as instruction, assessment, and social-cognitive theory, in enhancing learners’ academic performance and their lifelong learning strategies. Our findings also suggest that students can be trained in peer feedback and SRL strategies via online platforms, which has implications for the continuing tendency towards online instruction in the post-pandemic era. Pedagogical implications are also provided to help teachers improve their students’ writing performance and self-regulation.

Hate Speech in YouTube Comments on Rohingya Refugees in Thailand and Syrian Refugees in Europe

Parichart Chimkhlai — 2024-01-31

This research aims to analyze language patterns in hate speech found in comments on YouTube about Rohingya refugees in Thailand and Syrian refugees in Europe. Data were collected from 4,113 comments in Thai and 13,960 comments in English and appeared on a video-sharing website specifically from news clips about Rohingya refugees in Thailand during the year 2015-2019 and news on Syrian refugees in Europe during 2013-2019. After applying critical discourse analysis theory on the data, three types of hate speech were found: 1) name calling; 2) verb phrases; and 3) modifiers. The hate speech addresses race, religion, gender, body shape, taste, potential, ability, and individual or group identity. There were five types of name-calling, namely regarding race, religion, threats, animals/evil, and being unwanted; three types of verbs, namely danger/threats, behaviors/actions, and eviction/expulsion; and two types of modifiers, namely degrading quality and degree intensity. The three sets of vocabulary equally form hate speech in Thai and in English. In both languages, refugees are portrayed as villains, devalued as unwanted, dangerous, and offensive. Modifiers are used to magnify the degree of intensity driven by the underlying emotional implications.

A Corpus-based Study of English Synonyms Clear, Obvious, Apparent, and Evident: Implications for ELT

Thanut Panrat — 2024-01-31

This study analyzes four English synonyms -- clear, obvious, apparent, and evident -- concentrating on meanings, distribution across genre, collocations, and semantic preference and prosody. The data were drawn from learner’s dictionaries and the Corpus of the Contemporary American English (COCA). It was discovered that the four synonyms share the same core meaning but differ in terms of detailed meanings, collocations, semantic preference, and semantic prosody. Apparent and evident were found to be the most formal synonyms in this study. Obvious is mostly associated with negative meanings. Clear has a wide range of detailed meanings and is usually involved with nature and the physical world. The results of this study also shed light on ELT as they can guide teachers and students in practicing skills of corpora and applying them to classroom, autonomously.

Developing an Online Formative Assessment Instrument for Listening Skill through LMS

Joko Slamet — 2024-01-31

Traditional methods of assessing listening skills in language learners suffer from drawbacks such as subjectivity, inconsistency, and time-intensive grading processes. To overcome these limitations, we introduce an innovative assessment instrument designed to efficiently and effectively evaluate students’ listening skills while offering instructors a dependable means to track progress. This study proposes the development of an online assessment instrument tailored to measure language learners’ comprehension of spoken language. The two instruments incorporate a questionnaire and a variety of question formats, each gauging students’ grasp of spoken discourse across diverse contexts and accents. Additionally, the online assessment assesses their proficiency in identifying main ideas, supporting details, and inferred implications within spoken communication. Accessible through a dedicated learning management system (LMS) platform available at http://lms.elsida.ac.id/, this instrument empowers instructors with a robust mechanism to gauge their students’ advancement. By providing a thorough assessment of listening skills, the instrument stands as a powerful resource for educators seeking to drive ongoing improvement. The study’s findings highlight how this assessment instrument can improve language learning through ongoing feedback. Through ongoing enhancements and testing in language learning contexts, the instrument contributes to a more effective evaluation of listening skills in language education.

Implementing Gamification to Enhance Reading Engagement and Reading Comprehension of Thai EFL University Students

Tatchakrit Matyakhan — 2024-01-31

Gamification is one of the innovative teaching approaches implemented in English classrooms nowadays. However, using gamification to enhance reading engagement and reading comprehension in language classrooms at the university level has not been much explored. This present study investigated gamification's effects on enhancing reading engagement, reading comprehension, as well as perceptions of gamification among Thai EFL university students. The participants in the research were 70 first-year students selected randomly. A mixed-methods research design was adopted to examine the effects of gamification between control and experimental groups. The quantitative results collected by the pre-test, post-test, pre-survey, and post-survey showed that the experimental group significantly improved reading comprehension and higher reading engagement after the implementation of gamification, compared to the control group that studied traditionally. Furthermore, the participants in the experimental group reported positive perceptions towards gamification, such as promoting reading engagement and creating a fun learning environment. Therefore, this study supports an alternative and innovative way to shift a reading class from a teacher-centered approach to a student-centered approach through gamification.

Effectiveness of the QARR Strategy to Enhance Thai EFL Students' Performance in Reading Comprehension Test

Chatchanan Yathip — 2024-01-31

The Question-Answer-Relationship (QAR) strategy has been suggested to improve EFL students' reading comprehension. Nonetheless, disappointing outcomes when using the QAR instruction were noted. The current study seeks to 1) add the Review (R) component to the instruction and 2) assess the effectiveness of the developed Question-Answer-Response-Review (QARR) instruction to improve reading comprehension among Thai EFL university students. Instructional concepts such as common question types (Yathip & Chanyoo, 2022), the Question-Answer-Relationship strategy (Raphael & Au, 2005), the experiential learning approach (Kolb, 2014), and the reading instruction principle (Raphael, Highfield, & Au, 2006) were synthesized to create the instruction. The developed curriculum was implemented with 58 Thai EFL students. Data were examined using frequency, mean, standard deviation, and F-test. As for the findings, the experts' high degree of agreement (M = 0.96) demonstrated the efficiency of the developed instruction. One-way repeated measures revealed that the posttest (M = 21.74, SD = 4.12, d = 0.89) and delayed posttest (M = 22.19, SD = 4.23, d = 0.95) were substantially higher than the pretest mean scores (M = 16.86, SD = 5.59, p <.001) with a large effect size (η2= 0.209). Participants' satisfaction surveys strongly agreed with the created instruction (M = 4.36, SD = 0.63), consistent with interview data.

Corpus-based Teaching of English Conversation and Potential Integration of Conversation Analysis (CA) for the Benefit of EFL Teachers and Learners

Patson Jaihow — 2024-01-31

Even though corpora have transformed language education, the majority of corpus-related research focuses on the teaching of writing. Via a systematic review of previous studies and a survey of language corpora available, this study aims to ascertain whether and to what extent the teaching of speaking, especially of conversation skills, to EFL learners, has been informed by existing language corpora, to identify spoken English corpora available and discover whether they have been informed by insights from such an approach to studying conversation as Conversation Analysis (CA). Finally, the study suggests possibilities for incorporating CA insights such that CA-informed, corpus-driven language pedagogy can be materialized. Previous studies on the use of corpora for teaching speaking were examined and spoken language corpora available were identified along with how they have been recommended and applied to the teaching of speaking, as well as possibilities for developing CA-informed corpora of spoken English for conversation teaching. The study revealed that conversation teaching in the EFL context remains to be informed by corpus linguistics. Accessible spoken English corpora are not yet geared towards language teachers and learners, and there remain issues to be resolved before employing the available corpus data and confirming its efficacy in teaching EFL conversation or speaking in general.

The Relationship between Self-regulated Learning Strategies and English Language Abilities and Knowledge of Undergraduate Students

Charinee Chansri — 2024-01-31

This paper aimed to explore the impact of self-regulated learning strategies on English language abilities and knowledge of 421 final-year undergraduate students at a public university in Thailand. The instruments used in the present study were 1) the 65-item Questionnaire of English Self-Regulated Learning Strategies (QESRLS), and the English Exit Exam (EEE) comprising 80 multiple-choice items, namely, 20 items for the grammar part, 20 items for the reading part, 20 items for the writing part, and 20 items for the language function (speaking) part. Descriptive statistics of frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation as well as inferential statistics of Pearson Correlation Coefficient and Multiple Indicators Multiple Causes (MIMIC) Model were utilized to analyze the data gained. The findings reveal the correlation between the participants’ use of self-regulated learning strategies and the overall English language abilities and knowledge as well as the four aspects of them: grammar, reading, writing, and language function (speaking). Besides, the interpretation guessing strategies, the self-evaluation strategies, and the persistence strategies when faced with challenges were positively associated with the English language abilities and knowledge. The findings shed some light on the integration of self-regulated learning strategies into English language courses or curricula.

From Crisis to Hope: University Students’ Construction and Implications of COVID-19 Discourses in Thailand Through English Essay Writing

Udomsak Sirita — 2024-01-31

The outbreak of the global COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted educational institutions worldwide. This study aimed to examine how students constructed discourses about COVID-19 and related terms in their cause-and-effect essays. The sample consisted of 89 essays written by English majors at a large public university in Northern Thailand who completed the English Essay Writing course. This study employed Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) as the main theoretical framework in which texts were analyzed by using a combination of corpus and content analyses. The findings revealed that students did not explicitly provide a definition of the term “COVID-19” in their essays at the lexical level, but the implications were inferred based on content word selection. The discourses surrounding COVID-19 were classified into four main categories: economy, health, government, and education. In addition to the main discourses, the essays highlighted the concept of global citizenship, as students expressed their opinions about the government as citizens, calling for practical actions to address the challenges faced during the pandemic. In addition to describing these challenges, the essays also reflected a discourse of hope, implying positive psychological responses to the crisis.

Global or Local Identities? How Thai Learners in an English Program Project Themselves through L2 Pronunciation in ELF Encounters

Pichet Prakaianurat — 2024-01-31

This study combines qualitative and quantitative methods to explore 15 English program (EP) students’ attitudes toward English varieties and how they negotiate social meanings and construct their identity through stylistic practices in classroom discourse and English as a lingua franca (ELF) interactions. Through a verbal guise test, semi-structured interviews, and auditory impression analysis, the results indicated a strong preference for native-based English varieties, with American English linguistic resources being more prevalent in the speech of EP students than those of British English. The findings revealed that in ELF talks all EP students adopted native-like speech styles, which were perceived as more socially prestigious and communicatively advantageous, to indexically construct a “proficient” English speaker identity and establish a sense of in-group global community membership. However, within EP classroom discourse, certain participants demonstrated style-shifting by the local variants of Thai-accented English to project a “Popular” identity, distancing themselves from the “Bookishness” group within the EP community of practice. The study underscores the importance of native-based norms and socially sensitive pedagogical approaches, enabling students to construct their distinct identities through L2 pronunciation while also recognizing the plurality of English varieties present in their particular linguistic landscape.

Linguistics Study and Critical Thinking: Two Sides of the Same Coin?

Nu Anh Vo — 2024-01-31

From a linguistic perspective it seems intuitive that a strong link would exist between the study of linguistics and critical thinking (CT). After all, linguistics is about making sense of language analysis, which contributes to the enhancement of CT while CT, in reciprocation, enables meaningful analysis. Yet this link has virtually never been clearly defined or made explicit either in studies on linguistics teaching and learning or in those on CT development. This paper explores the relationship between linguistics study and CT in the Vietnamese context from the perspectives of undergraduate English Linguistics students and their lecturers, with a view to improving both students’ linguistics study and their CT. Drawing on data collected in questionnaires and interviews at a public university in Vietnam, the findings of the study reveal a variety of aspects of linguistics tasks and classroom activities where the link is significant as well as a range of specific CT skills and dispositions that are related to linguistics teaching and learning. In general, the students and the lecturers showed a positive attitude towards the integration of CT into linguistics teaching and learning, but challenges and barriers to this integration were identified. The study suggests the use of problem-solving tasks and open-ended questions for fostering the reciprocal relationship between linguistics study and CT.

Learner Autonomy and Interaction in English Language Learning among Thai EFL Undergraduate Students

Piyanud Treesattayanmunee — 2024-01-31

This study explored the learner autonomy of Thai EFL undergraduates in English language learning and the extent to which they conducted learner-learner interaction, learner-instructor interaction, learner-content interaction, and overall interaction. Moreover, the study investigated whether there was a significant difference in overall interaction for different learner autonomy levels. The sample included 83 English major freshmen enrolling in an online English Phonetics course at a public university in Bangkok, Thailand. The data were collected through an online learner autonomy and interaction questionnaire. Descriptive statistics, one-way ANOVA, and post-hoc Tukey tests were utilized to analyze the data. The findings revealed that the participants possessed a high level of overall learner autonomy. While they had a high level of ability to learn English autonomously, they had a moderate level of responsibility for their learning process. Further, the participants had a high level of overall interaction. Although they had a high level of learner-content and learner-instructor interaction, they possessed an average level of learner-learner interaction. The participants with a low learner autonomy level had significantly lower overall interaction scores than those with a moderate or high level of learner autonomy.

Indonesian Non-ELT Pre-service Teachers’ Self-Efficacy in EMI Context: Voices from International Teaching Practicum in Thailand

Tifani Yuris Signori — 2024-01-31

As the trend for English as a medium of instruction (EMI) increases, teacher self-efficacy to teach the contents of their teaching materials in an EMI context has become one of the major challenges. This study investigated the self-efficacy of Indonesian non-ELT pre-service teachers to teach in an EMI context. Two Indonesian non-ELT pre-service teachers, in charge of teaching biology and chemistry in English, in a secondary school in Thailand were interviewed to gain an in-depth information about their experiences. The data from their teaching reflections and interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis. The study shows that both participants perceived that their self-efficacy to teach in EMI context was quite high despite various obstacles during their teaching practicum. Furthermore, four sources of efficacy information appeared to influence the Indonesian non-ELT pre-service teachers’ self-efficacy to teach in the Thailand EMI context. Mastery experience (the personal experience of success) was the most influential source of efficacy information, followed by the other instances of self-efficacy sources including social persuasion, emotional state, and vicarious experience. The implication derived from this study is that the teacher training institutions in Indonesia need to facilitate the pre-service teachers to help them perceive their self-efficacy to teach in EMI context.

Critical Consciousness Development through Teaching English Reading: A Context of EFL Students in Thailand’s Northeastern Area

Thidawan Wichanee — 2024-01-31

EFL reading in non-English environments often expose students to texts from different cultures. However, reading comprehension alone is inadequate to prepare the students to be critical readers, due to different sociocultural and sociopolitical factors that affect interpretations of EFL students who should be prepared with critical perspectives to read more meaningfully and to be able to demonstrate a desire to challenge and transform perceived socio-political inequities and oppressive structures. This study aimed to investigate the extent of enhanced reading ability and to develop critical consciousness by using critical dialogue-oriented reading instruction. The participants were 30 students majoring in English at a university located in Northeastern part of Thailand. The data were collected by using a self-evaluation questionnaire, reading comprehension pretest and posttest, field notes, students’ reflective journals, and interview transcripts. The findings show an increase of the participants’ reading comprehension abilities, moving beyond the lexical comprehension level, and being able to perform critical literacy through reading to writing practice. Also, their developed critical consciousness was manifested through their awareness of social relations and power, their reflections on ongoing circumstances and living systems, and their action against injustice. The findings suggest aspects of critical literacies that challenge normative practices of reading instructions implemented in hegemonic spheres.

A Contrastive Genre-Based Study of English and Indonesian RAIs in the History Discipline

Warsidi — 2024-01-31

Genre studies of Research Articles (RAs) have increased over the years. However, our review indicates that RA studies on RAs in the history discipline are still limited both to English and Indonesian languages. By identifying this gap, we are encouraged to analyze their rhetorical structures in the introduction section because this section plays an important role in publishing RAs in journals. For analyzing the rhetorical structure of both data sets, we employed the Create Research Spaces (CARS) model (Swales, 1990). The results showed that the rhetorical structures of English Research Article Introductions (RAIs) are similar to the CARS model, while the rhetorical structures of Indonesian RAIs in the present study do not conform to the model. This finding implies that Indonesian RAIs in the present study have different rhetorical structures from those found in English RAIs both in the present study and those in the CARS model. Besides, it implies that Indonesian authors in the History discipline meet challenges when they want to publish works in English journals.

Is Non-Standard English a ‘Broken Language’ or ‘Linguistic Innovation?’ Exploring Higher Education ELF Linguistic Features in Thailand's Deep South

Fatimah Jeharsae — 2024-01-31

The global prevalence of English as a lingua franca (ELF) across diverse linguacultural communities within the three circles invites an in-depth analysis of its phonological and lexicogrammatical features, especially among non-native English speakers. This qualitative study investigated these features among 30 Thai students from English and non-English programs, emphasizing natural occurrences in academic settings. Participants were directed to record audio and video during collaborative activities with peers and lecturers inside and outside the classroom. Through Conversation Analysis, findings revealed a significant divergence in the phonological and lexicogrammatical features of ELF participants compared to speakers of standard British English (BrE) and American English (AmE). Specifically, non-standard lexicogrammatical features concerning verb, noun, article, word choice, tense, and preposition emerged predominantly. Furthermore, common phonological deviations included omission of final consonant sounds, mispronunciation of the schwa sound, confusion in pronouncing the article ‘the,’ mispronunciation of words ending with ‘-ine,’ and substitution of /ʌ/ with /ɔ/. The data suggests widespread use of non-standard English norms, indicating linguistic adaptation beyond traditional boundaries in various environments. Significantly, this study contributes by highlighting how ELF participants reshape language for effective communication, prioritizing intelligibility over native-like proficiency, with insights extending beyond the Thai context, valuable for educators, linguists, and intercultural communication practitioners.

Challenges of Lecturers in Material Selection to Foster EFL University Students' Self-Regulation

Saber Alavi — 2024-01-31

This study investigates EFL university lecturers' challenges when selecting resources to facilitate students' self-regulation. Using a mixed-method design with 89 participants from Thai universities in this research sheds light on lecturers' difficulties, such as time constraints and limited access to reliable resources. It underscores the importance of considering diverse perspectives and practical strategies, such as adapting existing materials and involving students in the selection process. Furthermore, it highlights the direct impact of material choices on students' self-regulation outcomes. The study provides strategies to enhance self-regulation among EFL university students and suggests improvements for resource selection procedures. Despite its limitations, this research contributes valuable insights and pedagogical recommendations. Future avenues of study may explore the influence of digital learning resources, teacher-student collaboration in material selection, and cross-cultural perspectives on self-regulation and material choice.

Active Learning in English at Work: Assessing Effectiveness and EFL Undergraduate Student Attitudes

Patcharakorn Seemanath — 2024-01-31

Active learning is recognized as an instructional approach that engages students in active participation and encourages them to reflect on the learning process. This research study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of implementing active learning in the English at Work course and to explore EFL undergraduate students’ attitudes towards the active learning lessons. A one-group pre-test-post-test design was employed in this research, involving 67 EFL undergraduate students enrolled in the English at Work course during the second semester of the academic year 2021. Upon the study’s commencement, the English at Work test was administered as a pre-test. This was followed by a post-test and the completion of questionnaires at the course’s conclusion. Additionally, 12 students were randomly selected to participate in semi-structured interviews. Both quantitative and qualitative analyses were conducted on the collected data. The findings indicated that the lessons developed based on the active learning conceptual model had a positive impact on students' English language proficiency and their attitudes towards learning English. The difference in the mean scores of the pre-test and post-test demonstrated significant improvements in students’ English language acquisition. Furthermore, the implementation of active learning lessons, coupled with a variety of engaging activities, fostered positive attitudes among students, enhancing their attention, motivation, and participation in the classroom.

Unlocking Student Behavioral Engagement in a Thai EFL Writing Class with a Multimodal Project Approach: Students’ Perspectives

Weerinthira Krongyut — 2024-01-31

The effects, from a students’ perspective, of implementing a multimodal project in a Thai EFL writing class were studied. The research objectives included: 1) examining the effects of the multimodal project on student behavioral engagement, both overall engagement and various interactions, including with peers, the teacher, and the course content, and 2) exploring students’ opinions on the use of a multimodal project in the writing class. A quasi-experimental mixed-method design was utilized, with 35 grade-11 students, recruited through purposive sampling, from a school in Bangkok. The research instruments comprised a pre-post student behavioral engagement questionnaire to gauge changes in engagement, as perceived by the students themselves, and a student reflection form to gather qualitative insights from the students regarding their experiences. Quantitative data underwent analysis using descriptive statistics and t-tests, while qualitative data were thematically analyzed. The study revealed a significant increase in overall student behavioral engagement. When examining student behavioral engagement in terms of interactions, the results showed the greatest difference in peer interactions, followed by interactions with the teacher, and then the content. Results from the students’ reflections showed positive perceptions towards the utilization of the multimodal project in the writing class. The findings of this study also have implications for teaching writing in EFL contexts.

Effects of Dynamic Assessment on Improvement of Academic Vocabulary Knowledge of Thai EFL Low-Proficiency University Students

Duangkamon Klungthong — 2024-01-31

Academic vocabulary is necessary for university students. Vocabulary learning strategies (VLS) assist students to enhance their vocabulary knowledge and should be examined in accordance with their dynamic nature (Gu, 2020). Dynamic assessment (DA) is considered an alternative assessment that simultaneously and systematically assesses and teaches students to reach their zone of proximal development (ZPD) by utilizing assistance from more capable others (Lantolf & Poehner, 2004). This study combined DA and VLS to enhance academic vocabulary knowledge of Thai low-proficiency university students by employing mixed-method research with an emphasis being placed on qualitative methodology. Intensive tutorials were conducted with five second-year students purposively recruited from their academic and general vocabulary scores. The research instruments included four DA tasks, mediation stages, academic words of four main word classes, recordings of DA sessions, verbal reports, field notes, students’ diaries, a pretest, an immediate posttest, and a delayed posttest. The findings from two DA tasks (the part of speech strategy and the use of a new word to form a sentence strategy) revealed that the participants understood word meaning but not grammatical functions. Their use of VLS was fair, and inappropriate strategies were also found. Teaching background of syntax, longer intervention, and adjustment of the task designs were suggested to further assist students in their vocabulary acquisition using DA and VLS.

Writing Enjoyment among EFL Postgraduate Students in Indonesia: The Interplay between Students’ Writing Self-Efficacy and Research Literacy and Teachers’ Immediacy and Clarity

Priyatno Ardi — 2024-02-01

The present study aims to investigate the interplays among students’ writing self-efficacy, students’ research literacy, teachers’ immediacy, and teachers’ clarity in facilitating the writing enjoyment of EFL postgraduate students in Indonesia. This quantitative research was designed by using Partial Least Square-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) as a model analysis. A questionnaire of 40 items adapted from previous studies was used to measure the variables. One hundred fifty EFL postgraduate students in Indonesian universities filled out the questionnaire. Path analyses demonstrated positive relationships among the variables, meaning that students’ writing self-efficacy and research literacy and teachers’ immediacy and clarity impacted writing enjoyment. Nevertheless, the findings demonstrated that correlations between teachers’ immediacy, teachers’ clarity and students’ writing enjoyment are not statistically significant, indicating that teacher-related factors, namely teachers’ immediacy and clarity, may not have significantly impacted students’ writing enjoyment. The pedagogical implications and future research directions are examined further.

The Impact of the SMILE Project on Thai EFL Learners: Collaborations between Thai and Japanese L2 Learners

Prapaipun Pornthanachotanan — 2024-02-01

This study presents an international collaboration in the Students Meet Internationally through Language Education (SMILE) project and investigates how the SMILE project impacts Thai EFL students. This program provides students with opportunities to use English as an Authentic Communication Tool (E-ACT) by sharing their experiences and culture with high school peers in Japan online. Thirty-one Thai twelfth graders from a public high school in Bangkok participated in the SMILE project in the 2022 academic year. The course of the SMILE project we describe in this paper consisted of four collaboration classes (50 minutes, four times), and each class consisted of two sessions (25 minutes, twice). In each session, the Thai students met Japanese students in the same school grade in small groups with four or five students in total. These classes were conducted via online channels. Thai students’ data were collected from class observations, interviews, and questionnaires. The results revealed that the Thai students 1) increased their confidence in using English, 2) gained broader perspectives from the cultural exchange sessions, 3) were eager to have similar collaborations with new Japanese students, and 4) showed clear enjoyment in their activities. Given these benefits, we conclude that the experience that student participants gained through the SMILE project had a substantial impact on them, which is likely to change their attitude toward studying English in the future. Besides, we discuss how current approaches to learner psychology may or may not be applied to our findings. Based on the results, the authors argue that having students with different first languages meet online should be conducted more widely in EFL circumstances.

A Corpus-based Investigation into English Synonymous Verbs ‘Restrict’ and ‘Constrain’

Nateethorn Narkprom — 2024-02-01

Through consultations with the online version of the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (LDOCE) and the Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA), this study focuses on distinguishing between the two synonymous verbs ‘restrict’ and ‘constrain’, both part of Coxhead’s (2000) Academic Word List, in terms of formality and collocations. The COCA-informed findings revealed that both near-synonyms are most prevalent in academic genres, sharing an equally high level of formality, and exhibit six overlapping groups of noun collocates. Interestingly, the target synonyms, along with their left- and right-sided noun collocates, form context-specific clusters. The verb ‘restrict’ is associated with terms related to governance and rights (i.e., laws and regulations restrict liberties) while ‘constrain’ with governance and commerce (i.e., rules constrain spending). The two are also characterized by unique patterns of collocating with nouns that have opposite morphological meanings: ‘restrict’ pairs with noun collocates containing morphemes representing inbound activities (e.g., acc- in access, as in restrict access), while ‘constrain’ with those indicating outbound directions (e.g., ex- in expansion, as in constrain expansion).

Examining EFL Teachers' Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) and their Attitudes towards Online Teaching

Ibtihal Sabah Ghali Alhamid — 2024-02-01

Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) is a model of CALL competence to integrate technology into education. Cultivating attitudes of EFL teachers in light of online instruction and examining its relationship with TPACK seems to be a crucial aspect of current teaching practices. Thus, this correlational study attempted to explore the relationship between Iraqi EFL teachers' attitudes towards online instruction and TPACK components. Sixty teachers of English as a foreign language from Thi-Qar, selected via availability sampling, took part in the study. They responded to two questionnaires, one with 28 items on TPACK and the other containing 16 items on online teaching English. A series of Pearson correlation tests were conducted to examine the seven research hypotheses about the participants' attitudes towards online instruction and technological pedagogical content knowledge components, including CK, PK, TK, TCK, PCK, TPK, and TPACK. The findings demonstrated a range of low to moderate positive associations between instructors' attitudes towards online instruction and TPACK domains. It was indicated that the teachers with positive attitudes were also positive about their perceived TPACK. The present research increases our understanding of TPACK in relation to online teaching in contexts where EFL is practiced.

Investigating Beliefs, Attitudes and Motivation toward English Language Learning among Thai and Chinese Undergraduate Students in Different Study Programs

Lu-Geng Sun — 2024-02-01

This study investigated the beliefs, attitudes, and motivation of Thai and Chinese undergraduate students in relation to English language learning. Utilizing a mixed-method, explanatory sequential design, it aims to provide a better understanding of the three variables mentioned above. The quantitative data analysis showed disparities between the cohorts, with Chinese undergraduate students often displaying more robust orientations. However, the qualitative data analysis showed that both groups valued immersive learning experiences and technological integration. The research advocates for pedagogical frameworks in English education that align with overarching global paradigms while respecting individual cultural nuances. Such revelations are important for refining teaching practices and curricula to enhance genuine global literacy. It is also recommended that future research efforts diversify their cultural purview and give due consideration to variations in socio-economic contexts.

Improvement in the EFL Learning Process in VET Studies. A Structural Equations Model of Affective Variables: English Language Anxiety, Willingness to Communicate and Self-efficacy in English

Beatriz Chaves-Yuste — 2024-02-01

Vocational Education and Training (VET) is undergoing an international and national improvement process in order to achieve internationalization, among others. To this end, it is necessary to optimize the EFL level of VET students. Structural equation modeling (SEM) is used to analyze the direct and indirect effects of English language anxiety, willingness to communicate in English, and self-efficacy in English on the academic performance in EFL among VET students. The sample consisted of 100 Spanish VET students (75% female - 25% male) aged between 18 and 40 years old. Questionnaires on English language anxiety (FLCAS), willingness to communicate in English (WTC), and self-efficacy in English skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) were administered. In addition, academic grade was used to measure the performance in English. The proposed model received a satisfactory fit. The results show that English language anxiety significantly influences academic performance and has a medium effect on willingness to communicate in English. Practical implications for organizing English classes to improve English proficiency in VET are discussed.

The Efficiency of Priming Techniques for the Word Recognition and Sentence Comprehension of EFL Learners: Conceptual and Perceptual Priming in Comparison

Mohammad Saber Khaghaninejad — 2024-02-01

This study attempted to examine the impacts of conceptual and perceptual primes on the word recognition and sentence comprehension of beginner, intermediate and advanced EFL learners. Consequently, 246 EFL learners were recruited for study and categorized into three English proficiency levels. The needed data was collected via Lexical Decision Tasks (LDTs) and a constructed multiple-choice sentence comprehension test. The findings indicated that both priming techniques improved word recognition and sentence comprehension of the participants significantly, however the conceptual primes were more facilitative for both word recognition and sentence comprehension tasks. Moreover, language proficiency was found to be determinant of priming efficiency, in the way that, as the learners become more proficient their performance would be more positively affected by both conceptual and perceptual priming techniques. Finally, the pedagogical implications and suggestions are discussed in the light of the findings.

Trash-talking versus Toxicity: An Analysis of /All Chat Exchanges between Southeast Asian Players of an Online Competitive Game

Eng How Lim — 2024-02-01

With the advent of online gaming becoming such an inherent part of popular culture, the issue of toxicity, particularly in online competitive games, has never been more relevant. In the /all chat, however, where communication between players of opposing teams is expected to be hostile, there have been debates in community forums about whether that type of communication constitutes as toxicity or another form of aggressive discourse, trash-talking. Because both concepts have never been reconciled together in past studies, this study attempts to develop a preliminary framework using categories and definitions from prior studies of each discourse, for the purpose of analyzing instances of toxicity and trash-talking in the /all chat. Thus, a total of 26 /all chat logs from the Southeast Asian server of the online competitive game Dota 2 were procured. Using content analysis, the /all chat logs were then coded for toxic and trash-talking instances to determine how they are manifested among players in the /all chat with key reference to context. It was found that toxic instances occurred rarely in the /all chat and were mostly derived from in-fighting between players of the same team. Trash-talking particularly dominated the /all chat and though the talk appears unpleasant, it is representative of an aggressive discourse with competitive stakes. Finally, new types and categories were also found and documented for each discourse, further contributing to the existing literature of both toxicity and trash-talking.

An Exploration of Thai Primary School Teachers’ Experience of Using Scaffolding Techniques in an EFL Classroom

Muanchan Utthavudhikorn — 2024-02-01

The aim of this study is to investigate teachers' experiences with the utilization of scaffolding techniques, such as translation, modeling, feedback, group work, activating prior knowledge, pre-teaching vocabulary, and visual aids, in elementary school classrooms. The primary objectives are to gain insights into the techniques employed by teachers, the challenges they encountered, and their problem-solving strategies. The study involved nine elementary school teachers instructing in a regular English program located in Petchabun Province, Thailand. Data was gathered through semi-structured one-on-one interviews and non-participant classroom observations. The findings of the study revealed that teachers employed various scaffolding techniques during their lessons, with the choice of techniques often guided by their experience and personal judgment. Notably, teachers encountered challenges related to students' motiv

ation, concentration, proficiency levels, and self-confidence, which influenced their use of scaffolding strategies.

A Case Study of an Interplay of an In-Service Teacher’s Possible Selves in His Professional Development

Maytinee Kammayee — 2024-02-01

Professional development is a vital process enhancing in-service teachers’ professional qualities. This case study investigated an in-service teacher’s possible selves and factors influencing his professional development. The participant was a project-based teacher in a constructionism school in Bangkok, Thailand. He was selected as the subject for this study due to the rich data he shared with the researchers in a larger-scale research study. Semi-structured interviews and personal diaries were the main instruments employed to reveal his possible selves, goals, and investment in the professional developmental process. An interplay of possible selves and the factors involved were analyzed and presented using narrative inquiry techniques. The findings revealed that the teacher invested heavily in the professional development process to improve his project-based learning pedagogy and English proficiency. The congruence of his ideal and ought-to selves, his clear goal, and his positive attitudes toward professional development were clearly observed. This clearly influenced his investment in professional development. Implications and suggestions for the teacher’s professional development and future research were discussed.

Using a Mobile Application to Enhance English Communication Skills of Paramedic Students in the English for Specific Purposes Classroom

Nareuporn Sangsrichan — 2024-02-01

The purposes of this study were to 1) develop an English communication mobile application based on emergency medical service situations to meet efficiency criterion E1/E2 = 80/80; 2) compare the students’ English communication skills before and after implementing the mobile application; and 3) examine the students’ attitudes toward the use of the mobile application. The participants were 14 second-year students enrolled in an English for Specific Purposes course. The instruments were 1) a mobile application for English communication, 2) lesson plans, 3) Process E1 and Product E2 tests, 4) a role-play pretest and a posttest, and 5) an attitude questionnaire. The mobile application included videos featuring speakers with different English accents who used English as their lingua franca. Data were analyzed through Means, Standard Deviation, and the efficiency criterion of E1/E2. The findings revealed that the efficiency of the mobile application was 82.50/82.38 higher than the standard criteria (80/80). The students’ English communication skills improved significantly following the use of the mobile application. The students held positive attitudes towards all aspects of the mobile application. The mobile application could prove valuable not only to paramedics but also to other medical professionals dealing with patients from different linguistic backgrounds.

Routledge Encyclopedia of Translation Studies By Mona Baker and Gabriela Saldanha (eds.)

Rujeeluck Seelakate — 2024-02-01

Routledge is a world’s renowned publisher of academic handbooks in Humanities and releases major theoretical works regularly. Their Encyclopedia of Translation Studies is no exception. The book has been considered as one of the most authoritative and complete collections of literature in translation studies to date. With 131 entries, this is a vital read for any scholars interested in the subject and has benefitted from updates and revisions in each edition according to developments in the field. The first edition was published in 1998, the second in 2009 and the edition under examination, the third, in 2020. This recent edition has categorized three types of translation: oral, written and audiovisual. Each entry contains definitions and concerns theory or questions, varying between 1- 5 pages each. However, most entries seem to overlap or share core issues despite being about different types or fields — making this rich but somewhat confusing reading for beginners.

Questionnaires in Second Language Research: Construction, Administration, and Processing By Zoltán Dörnyei and Jean-Marc Dewaele

Samira Mohamadi — 2024-02-01

Questionnaires constitute an essential part of conducting quantitative or mixed-methods research. Despite their seemingly straightforward nature, the use of questionnaires requires adequate knowledge and skill. However, many researchers, particularly novice individuals, often lack sufficient information regarding developing, administrating, and processing questionnaires in conducting their research.