Developing academic literacy through a decentralised model of English language provision

ABSTRACT

Students entering English-medium universities frequently struggle to cope with the language demands of their degree programmes, despite having met the English language entry conditions stipulated by their receiving institutions. This can have significant repercussions for the teaching-learning process, for the student experience and for universities’ reputations. Most universities, therefore, have in place some form of in-sessional English language support to develop students’ language proficiency. Such provision tends to be centralised and to offer English for general academic purposes rather than language development that responds in a more nuanced way to the particular literacy needs of students’ disciplines. In this article we report on an alternative, decentralised model of language support, implemented in a School of Nursing and Midwifery, and which seeks to develop students’ competency in the language skills required for their Nursing studies and professional practice. Results to date have been encouraging and provide further evidence that such tailored provision offers a potentially fruitful language development strategy.     

Perspectives of Iranian University Students on Learning English: A Practical Need and/or an International Policy-push?

While English is embraced worldwide as a global means of communication, its teaching and learning is a contested arena of contacts between the so-called English native-speaker culture and local learner cultures. In this study, we investigate Iranian university students’ viewpoints on the necessity and justifications for learning English and their awareness of international policies of promoting this language. A group of 855 male and female students of different fields of study at six major universities of Tehran responded to a researcher-made questionnaire and 28 participants were interviewed for more in-depth explanations about their standpoints. The findings indicate that the participants are in absolute favour of learning the English language as an undeniable necessity as a multifaceted communicative instrument. Moreover, they seem to have limited sensitivity to the potential sociopolitical functioning of English and the policies and plans for promoting the teaching and learning of this language around the world.     

Ten ‘Good Practice Principles’ … ten key questions: considerations in addressing the English language needs of higher education students

In response to social, political and educational imperatives, Australian universities are currently reviewing the way in which they provide for the growing number of students for whom English is not a first language. A document recently published by the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations has increased the sense of urgency surrounding this activity, for it looks set to form the basis of future audits conducted by the Australian Universities Quality Agency. This paper considers how, in attempting to respond to the document and more effectively meet the needs of this student cohort, universities will need to reflect on a number of fundamental questions. In light of the increasingly global nature of education and the resulting multicultural and multilingual student populations that have become commonplace in higher education, these questions are likely to have resonance not only in Australia, but elsewhere, where English-medium universities face similar issues.     

以语言应用为目的的英语教学模式设计

英语已经成为我们国家的第二语言,从小学、到中学再到大学,只要是学生的受教育阶段,都有英语教学,但是英语教学的效果并没有理想中的好,在英语教学中很容易将学生的学习能力差异性忽视,学生的学习主动性也并不是很高。随着我们国家教育制度的改革,英语教学在各大高校中不再重视课堂教学,开始以语言的应用为目的进行英语教学。针对以语言应用为目的的英语教学模式设计等相关的内容进行研究分析。     

Student Evaluations as Effective Indicators of Learning Outcomes:Evidence from Japanese University Students in English Language Courses

The term"student learning outcomes"refers to the knowledge, skills, and abilitiesthat students achieve during a course, and is typically assessed based on student evaluations conducted at the end of the semester. Previous studies in this area have investigated the effects of instructional quality and academic demands separately and have been limited primarily to examining findings using student samples fromthe United States. With Japanese college students' perceptions of self-improvementin English language courses as the dependent variable, the present study directly tests the hypothesis that students who perceive instructional quality to be higher, andcourse demands to be greater, also estimate higher levels of self-improvement in English language skills. The analysis provides strong support for this hypothesis.Higher ratings of instruction and academic demands have already beenshown to increase levels of student learning(Greimel-Fuhrmann and Geyer 2003;Nois and Hudson 2006; Mc Fadden and Dart 1992). The present study is the first toprovide direct evidence of the relative importance of student evaluations ofinstructional quality and academic demands as predictors of student learning and thefirst ever to do so with a sample of Japanese college students enrolled in a required English as a foreign language course. Our hypothesis is that Japanese students whoperceive instructional quality to be higher, and course demands to be greater,estimate higher levels of self-improvement in English language skills. Thus we test Japanese students' attitudes toward instructional quality and course demands asindependent variables predicting their perceptions of self-improvement in English language courses. The research focuses on Japanese students' improvement in English language skills because English education in Japan is an arena in which thedebate over limited English proficiency rages on, and because other research suggests reconsideration of English education in light of the demands of the rapidly expanding global era(Amaki 2008).     

Integrating written communication skills: working towards a whole of course approach

Australian universities, through their graduate attributes, claim that graduates have the ability to communicate, an attribute encompassing, at the least, written and oral literacies. Despite this claim, Australian universities have been criticised over the past decade for their lack of rigour in assessing this attribute; a criticism generally linked to perceived weaknesses in graduates’ English language proficiency (ELP). Indeed, evidence suggests that programmes designed to develop students’ English language skills are invariably add-ons, despite ELP being a significant facet of the ability to communicate. This paper explores the development, over a six-year period, of wide-ranging ELP policy and strategies within one Australian university. Basing decisions on research pointing to good practice, evidence collected through various trials, dialogue with stakeholders, and ongoing evaluation of all actions, this paper illustrates key factors in moving towards the integration of ELP within courses.     

汉语教学在香港

香港作为东西文化交汇的国际都市,语言使用和语言教学呈多元化的发展模式。随着香港与内地联系的日益紧密,针对本地学生的汉语教学以及众多外籍人士的对外汉语教学都有了很大发展,并已初见成效。     

论英语教师的课堂教学语言

教学语言是教师在传授知识、组织课堂教学活动时使用的语言。一个教师的课堂语言的质量在一定意义上就是教师基本文化素质的体现。英语教学的目标，在总体构建上，特别重视语言运用，注重听说和交流，突出语言的实践性。用英语组织课堂教学，巴成为英语教学界的共识。英语教师的教学语言不仅是教学手段，也是英语学生所学的目的语。     

汉语对高校学生英语写作的影响及其应对策略

我国高校英语专业学生的作文存在着“汉语式英语”的现象，究其原因在于学生在英语写作过程中受到汉语的影响。本文主要从英文写作时受汉语书面表达与思维方式两个方面的影响着手，分析其根源，提出相应对策及解决方案。     

汉语对高校学生英语写作的影响及其应对策略

我国高校英语专业学生的作文存在着“汉语式英语”的现象,究其原因在于学生在英语写作过程中受到汉语的影响。本文主要从英文写作时受汉语书面表达与思维方式两个方面的影响着手,分析其根源,提出相应对策及解决方案。     

An action research study into the role of student negotiation in enhancing perceived student engagement during English speaking classes at university level in Turkey

A major issue in English language teaching in Turkey and other monolingual countries is the teaching of spoken English. This article reports the initial and final stages of an action research study which used student negotiation to enhance student engagement in speaking classes. The research was conducted in the English Language Teaching Department of a university in Turkey and involved the provision of student-negotiated speaking classes for one term during which qualitative and quantitative data collected from students through questionnaires on a weekly basis informed the design of the speaking activities. The results of content analysis and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests showed that student negotiation promoted student engagement through providing speaking classes appropriate to students’ needs and interests, which resulted in more positive perceived speaking ability and greater willingness to communicate. This study demonstrates the significance of student negotiation in speaking classes and has implications for enhancing student engagement in speaking classroom activities.     

Teaching English language learner students in US mainstream schools: intersections of language,pedagogy, and power

This study explored to what extent two groups of mainstream teachers in the Midwestern region of the USA with differing degrees of English language learner‐specific university preparation reportedly engaged in practices that incorporated the native languages of English language learner students in instruction. The study further examined specific strategies reported by mainstream teachers in promoting native language use in instruction as well as challenges identified in implementing this practice. The study used a mixed‐method design that included analyses of survey data from a quantitative study (n = 227) and qualitative analyses of teacher discourse from course documents and open‐ended survey questions. Findings indicated that while both groups of teachers reportedly engaged in practices that promoted native language use in instruction to some extent, teachers with at least three courses of English language learner‐specific university preparation appeared to engage in these practices to a much greater extent than those without such preparation. This paper explores the implications of results from this study for teacher education programmes in the USA with the responsibility of preparing teachers effectively to serve growing numbers of culturally and linguistically diverse student populations.     

How Can Chinese English Teachers Create a Communicative,Intercultural Classroom to Achieve Optimal Student Learning Outcomes

The main goal of English language teaching is to train the students’ ability to listen,speak,read and write in English,and develop their communicative competence.Traditional English teaching cannot meet the requirements of the learners and society as more and more international opportunities could be accessible.Teachers are no longer the controllers in the classroom;they act as facilitators,assessors,organizers,prompters and participants.This paper,therefore,aims to discuss how Chinese English teachers can create a learner-centered,communicative and intercultural classroom to achieve the best student learning outcomes.     

谈高职院校校园英语角的建设

语言教学的最终目的是使学生具备语言交际能力。校园英语角活动的展开是课堂教学的延伸,它使学生在一定的氛围下有更多的机会使用英语,从而培养和提高他们的英语自主学习能力。针对高职院校的培养目标和高职院校学生英语底子薄弱的现实,本文提出了开展英语角建设的必要性和具体方案,并指出了英语角活动的意义所在。     

工作英语概念下的英语语言霸权主义解构

英语的霸权地位及我国英语教育无序的现状对于英语教育工作者及整个民族应是一个严峻的问题。一方面要让学生走出文化的单一性，不以自己的国家利益为终极利益采考虑一切问题。另一方面，要让学生拥有立场、有民族文化的构建能力。对待任何外来物，包括语言，诸如英语的普及我们应有东方人所特有的细腻，有应对措施和民族的长久打算。我们应有科学的语言政策和语言规划。绝不能像菲律宾那样最终放弃自己的母语。文章从语言的任务内核入手来阐释国人英语学习的基本意义和目标，将英语学习的本质放在工具论的层面。以缓解学习者和教育者的意识压力，尝试以工作语言概念解构英语语言霸权对我国外语教育的绝对控制地位。     

Do secondary school-leaving English examination results predict university students’ academic writing performance? A latent profile analysis

Abstract

Secondary school-leaving English examination results are often regarded as indicators of students’ competence to study in English-medium universities, which is usually demonstrated through source-based academic writing. In English as a second or foreign language (ESL/EFL) contexts, many English-medium universities require local undergraduates to enrol in an academic writing course, unless they received outstanding English results in secondary school-leaving examinations. This study investigates the relationship between ESL undergraduates’ secondary school-leaving English examination results and their academic writing performance through latent profile analysis. Results show that students can be grouped into four classes of academic writing performer (AWP), namely Complex-AWP, High-AWP, Medium-AWP and Low-AWP. Surprisingly, the Complex-AWP group had the highest means in structure, argument and language, but the lowest in citation. Secondary school-leaving English examination results can generally predict students’ class membership in language, argumentation and, to some extent, structure, but not citation. An important implication is that students with high English proficiency do not necessarily do well in all aspects of academic writing. This study can inform university senior management on how to set policies about who needs an academic writing course and provide appropriate training in various aspects of academic writing for university students with diverse English proficiency.     

Graduating as a ‘native speaker’: international students and English language proficiency in higher education

The current concern about low levels of English proficiency among international students who graduate from degree courses – that students’ English language skills are not being developed during their higher education experience – reflects negatively on the quality of Australian higher education and its graduates. More careful selection of students and increased use of English language testing are among the solutions put forward. These debates over English language proficiency tend to construct English language as a skill that can be applied in any context and ‘native‐speaker’‐levels of language ability as essential for employment. Within such a formulation international students can only ever be defined as in deficit. Drawing on socio‐cultural theories of language learning and academic literacy, alternative understandings of language proficiency in internationalized higher education are explored. Improved communication skills among graduates are likely to be achieved through a better understanding of issues beyond classroom instruction, such as barriers to social integration with native‐speakers, which reveal many international students unable to access adequate levels of language experience. Without wider perspectives on the debate over English language proficiency in higher education, the many benefits of having international students in higher education institutions are obscured by negative attitudes and unrealistic expectations.     

少数民族学生英语学习中语言迁移及其影响探讨

随着跨文化交际的不断深入与发展,英语学习也在各院校得到普及,并延伸到少数民族地区。然而,由于少数民族自身的特点,即受到母语与汉语的双重影响,因而其语言迁移更为复杂。作者解读了少数民族学生英语学习中语言迁移的含义,对比分析了少数民族母语与汉语在英语中的语言迁移现象,探究了双语迁移现象的影响作用,以期为少数民族学生的英语学习尽绵薄之力。     

Towards a More Appropriate University English Curriculum in China in the Context of English as an International Language

The rapid and wide spread of English has given rise to its lingua franca status, which in turn, changes the nature of English and English teaching at the tertiary level. This paper, based on a survey, discusses some of the problems with the current English curriculum used in Chinese universities and proceeds to offer some suggestions for a more appropriate university English curriculum in China in the context of English as an international language.     

第三学段学生汉语思维对英语句法学习的影响研究——基于武威市凉州区6所小学的调查

中国式英语与汉语思维对武威市凉州区第三学段小学生英语句法学习中发音、句子表达方面有极为显著的影响。因此,我们必须了解语言与思维的密切关系下所产生的语言迁移,同时教师应该充分了解中介语在中国式英语中的重要定位,对学生英语句法学习中的中国式英语采取宽容的态度,合理利用中介语理论,采取科学合理的方法来纠正学习者的中国式英语,培养学生的英语思维,以利于他们克服句法学习中汉语思维的干扰,提高他们英语句法的学习水平和能力。