The picture behind an intensive English language curriculum reform in Turkey: concerns of English teachers

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Zehra Yedigöz Kara ◽  
Nilay T. Bumen
Keyword(s):  
Curriculum Reform ◽  
English Language ◽  
English Teachers ◽  
Intensive English ◽  
Language Curriculum

scholarly journals Investigating Cascade Training of CEFR-Aligned Standards-Based English Language Curriculum (SBELC) in Rural Malaysia

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (7) ◽  
pp. 100-117
Author(s):  
J. W Ong ◽  
A. J. Ahmad Tajuddin
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Quantitative Study ◽  
Curriculum Reform ◽  
Thematic Analysis ◽  
English Language ◽  
Training Experience ◽  
Language Curriculum ◽  
Training Structures ◽  
Teachers Training

This article describes a study to understand teachers’ experience in implementing the CEFR-Aligned Standards-Based English Language Curriculum (SBELC) in rural Sabah, Malaysia. The literature review revealed many cases where curriculum reform was not implemented as intended due to factors such as inappropriate training structures and inadequate training, understanding, and resources. Compared to other regions in Malaysia, rural Sabah schools may face a more acute situation due to teachers’ lack of experience and resource shortages for the implementation of training and teaching. In this study, the researchers interviewed six teachers, with two of them also serving as trainers of the new curriculum. Transcripts were analysed using deductive thematic analysis. The codes revealed that teachers in general had a positive training experience that was reflective, open to reinterpretation, and with a degree of decentralisation of expertise. There were also issues where quality of training deteriorated as the levels progressed, due to lack of resources allocated. This article offers some suggestions to enhance rural Sabah teachers’ training experience. A quantitative study of a larger scale should be done to further confirm the findings of this study.

‘A2 is Normal’ – Thai Secondary School English Teachers’ Encounters with the CEFR

RELC Journal ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 322-338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jens Franz ◽  
Adisa Teo
Keyword(s):  
Policy Change ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Curriculum Reform ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
Labour Force ◽  
Student Assessment ◽  
English Teachers ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Learning And Teaching

Thailand has seen several English language curriculum reforms over the last 20 years, all of which were found to have failed to lift Thai students’ standard of English language proficiency across all levels of study. In 2014, the Thai Ministry of Education announced the introduction of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), in combination with Communicative Language Teaching (CLT), as its latest policy to improve the standard of English learning and teaching in Thailand’s schools. The establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) in 2015 and concerns about the economic competitiveness of the Thai labour force were provided as the underlying rationale for this policy change. This case study, using Grounded Theory Methodology combining semi-structured in-depth interviews, a questionnaire and document analysis, addresses the question of how this education policy change was experienced and perceived by English language teachers at state secondary schools across four provinces in the south of Thailand. A marked divergence in individual teachers’ knowledge and appreciation of the policy plans was observed, with the majority of respondents displaying indifference to and ignorance of the policy. The Ministry had in 2015 tested all civil servant English teachers in a CEFR-referenced online placement test, where 94% had failed to reach the targeted proficiency level of B2. Consequently, the framework was perceived primarily as an English proficiency test for teachers, a European assessment scale which had been applied to them, but which had had no further application to either classroom teaching or student assessment. These findings are framed in the wider context of curriculum reform and English language teaching in Thailand. Comparisons with other English curriculum reform policies based on the CEFR are made, and the emphasis on testing teachers’ language proficiency is reflected upon through the wider debate on language teacher proficiency.

Can-Do descriptors – Realigning English Language Curriculum at Higher Education Institution to CEFR

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 84
Author(s):  
Erda Wati Bakar
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
English Language ◽  
Education Institution ◽  
Ministry Of Education ◽  
Language Curriculum ◽  
English Curriculum ◽  
The Common ◽  
The University

The Common European Framework of Reference for Language (CEFR) has become the standard used to describe and evaluate students’ command of a second or foreign language. It is an internationally acknowledged standard language proficiency framework which many countries have adopted such as China, Thailand, Japan and Taiwan. Malaysia Ministry of Education is aware and realise the need for the current English language curriculum to be validated as to reach the international standard as prescribed by the CEFR. The implementation of CEFR has begun at primary and secondary level since 2017 and now higher education institutions are urged to align their English Language Curriculum to CEFR as part of preparation in receiving students who have been taught using CEFR-aligned curriculum at schools by year 2022. This critical reflection article elucidates the meticulous processes that we have embarked on in re-aligning our English Language Curriculum to the standard and requirements of CEFR. The paper concludes with a remark that the alignment of the English curriculum at the university needs full support from the management in ensuring that all the stakeholders are fully prepared, informed and familiar with the framework.

Education of undergraduate: Epistemic and cultural beliefs as obstacles to technology

2021 ◽  
pp. 002072092098431
Author(s):  
Fahad SS Alfallaj ◽  
Ahmed AH Al-Ma'amari ◽  
Fahad IA Aldhali
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
English Language ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Cultural Beliefs ◽  
Cultural Barriers ◽  
English Learning ◽  
Mixed Method Research ◽  
Language Curriculum

This study aims to identify the epistemological and cultural beliefs that act as barriers in English learning by Saudi undergraduate learners. English is a compulsory component of education from the early school years in Saudi Arabia, and the Ministry of Education invests a great deal of workforce and financial resources in this sector in a concerted effort to ensure that Saudi students attain language proficiency. The study employed a mixed-method research design and was conducted with 85 undergraduate learners at Qassim University. It used a questionnaire and interviews to obtain insight into the factors that inhibit the English learning experience. Results revealed that the respondents' resistance to the learning of others' culture stems mainly from the epistemic and cultural barriers embedded in English language learning. Implications of the study will provide the basis to policymakers, educationists, institutions, and learners for contextualizing the English language curriculum of Saudi Arabia.

Engaging Exam-Oriented Students in Communicative Language Teaching by ‘Packaging’ Learning English Through Songs as Exam Practice

RELC Journal ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 003368822097854
Author(s):  
Kevin Wai-Ho Yung
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
High Stakes Testing ◽  
Communicative Language Teaching ◽  
High Stakes ◽  
Secondary English ◽  
Language Curriculum ◽  
Teachers And Students

Literature has long been used as a tool for language teaching and learning. In the New Academic Structure in Hong Kong, it has become an important element in the senior secondary English language curriculum to promote communicative language teaching (CLT) with a process-oriented approach. However, as in many other English as a second or foreign language (ESL/EFL) contexts where high-stakes testing prevails, Hong Kong students are highly exam-oriented and expect teachers to teach to the test. Because there is no direct assessment on literature in the English language curriculum, many teachers find it challenging to balance CLT through literature and exam preparation. To address this issue, this article describes an innovation of teaching ESL through songs by ‘packaging’ it as exam practice to engage exam-oriented students in CLT. A series of activities derived from the song Seasons in the Sun was implemented in the ESL classrooms in a secondary school in Hong Kong. Based on the author’s observations and reflections informed by teachers’ and students’ comments, the students were first motivated, at least instrumentally, by the relevance of the activities to the listening paper in the public exam when they saw the similarities between the classroom tasks and past exam questions. Once the students felt motivated, they were more easily engaged in a variety of CLT activities, which encouraged the use of English for authentic and meaningful communication. This article offers pedagogical implications for ESL/EFL teachers to implement CLT through literature in exam-oriented contexts.

Multimodal discourse analysis in the blended teaching of college English flipped class

2021 ◽  
pp. 002072092110042
Author(s):  
Qiang Dou
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Curriculum Reform ◽  
English Language ◽  
Wearable Technology ◽  
Multimodal Literacy ◽  
College English ◽  
New Era ◽  
English Teaching ◽  
Multimodal Discourse ◽  
Teachers And Students

With the development of the new curriculum reform in China, the traditional college English teaching model is no longer suitable for the needs of college English teaching tasks in the new era. The multimodal literacy teaching in the college English multimodal teaching mode is to help students internalize their English language skills after learning and understanding English knowledge, thus improving the efficiency of English learning. The hot spots and topics in the information age are always inseparable from technological innovation. Wearable technology is becoming more and more popular, the scope of research is expanding, and innovations are constantly emerging, showing interdisciplinary and integrated features. This paper introduces the wearable technology in detail, and takes the college English teaching as an opportunity. Through the questionnaire survey of teachers and students, this paper analyzes the survey data. The results of the survey show that wearable technology can stimulate academic interest in college English. This research attempts to conduct interdisciplinary research on multi-modal semiotics and humanistic teaching methods in the following areas, which expands the scope of research and, to a certain extent, enhances the vitality of multi-modal discourse analysis.

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