An evaluation of English language instruction in universities/colleges in Taiwan

The purpose of this study is about to survey the effectiveness of English teaching in universities/colleges in Taiwan and provide suggestions to the educational authorities for upgrading or improving the English language teaching techniques or methods currently in use. On the one hand, the suggestions of English teachers in universities/colleges are the main concerns in this study. On the other hand, equal attention is given to the opinions and learning attitudes of the students, including the interaction between the teachers and the students.^ A social investigation methodology, consisting of questionnaire and data analysis, is devoted to this evaluation and analysis of teaching effectiveness. Among the significant findings reported in this study is the fact that both students and teachers consider evaluation of teaching effectiveness as a very important aspect of English Language programs at the university/college level. Another significant finding is that students are less concerned about the grades earned or awarded in English Language courses and more concerned about how much they learned in these classes.^ The analysis and suggestions based on the results for English teaching evaluation of universities/colleges in this dissertation can help teachers modify their teaching techniques and methods, the students to adjust their learning attitudes, and the authorities to schematize the English teaching plan that can facilitate the teaching goals to be realized. ^

A comparison of the effects of classroom and Multi-User Virtual Environments on the perceived speaking anxiety of adult post-secondary English Language Learners

The population of English Language Learners (ELLs) globally has been increasing substantially every year. In the United States alone, adult ELLs are the fastest growing portion of learners in adult education programs (Yang, 2005). There is a significant need to improve the teaching of English to ELLs in the United States and other English-speaking dominant countries. However, for many ELLs, speaking, especially to Native English Speakers (NESs), causes considerable language anxiety, which in turn plays a vital role in hindering their language development and academic progress (Pichette, 2009; Woodrow, 2006). ^ Task-based Language Teaching (TBLT), such as simulation activities, has long been viewed as an effective approach for second-language development. The current advances in technology and rapid emergence of Multi-User Virtual Environments (MUVEs) have provided an opportunity for educators to consider conducting simulations online for ELLs to practice speaking English to NESs. Yet to date, empirical research on the effects of MUVEs on ELLs' language development and speaking is limited (Garcia-Ruiz, Edwards, & Aquino-Santos, 2007). ^ This study used a true experimental treatment control group repeated measures design to compare the perceived speaking anxiety levels (as measured by an anxiety scale administered per simulation activity) of 11 ELLs (5 in the control group, 6 in the experimental group) when speaking to Native English Speakers (NESs) during 10 simulation activities. Simulations in the control group were done face-to-face, while those in the experimental group were done in the MUVE of Second Life. ^ The results of the repeated measures ANOVA revealed after the Huynh-Feldt epsilon correction, demonstrated for both groups a significant decrease in anxiety levels over time from the first simulation to the tenth and final simulation. When comparing the two groups, the results revealed a statistically significant difference, with the experimental group demonstrating a greater anxiety reduction. These results suggests that language instructors should consider including face-to-face and MUVE simulations with ELLs paired with NESs as part of their language instruction. Future investigations should investigate the use of other multi-user virtual environments and/or measure other dimensions of the ELL/NES interactions.^

Foreign Language Education in Colombia: A Qualitative Study of Escuela Nueva

Since 2004 the Colombian Ministry of Education has been implementing the Programa Nacional de Bilingüismo (PNB) with the goal of having bilingual high school graduates in English and Spanish by 2019. However, implementation of the PNB has been criticized by English Language Teaching (ELT) specialists in the country who say, among other things, that the PNB introduced a discourse associated exclusively with bilingualism in English and Spanish. This study analyzed interviews with 15 participants of a public school of the Colombian Escuela Nueva, a successful model of community-based education that has begun a process of internationalization, regarding the participants’ perceptions of foreign language education and the policies of the PNB. Six students, five teachers, and four administrators were each interviewed twice using semi-structured interviews. To offer a critique of the PNB, this study tried to determine to what extent the school implemented the elements of Responsible ELT, a model developed by the researcher incorporating the concepts of hegemony of English, critical language-policy research, and resistance in ELT. Findings included the following: (a) students and teachers saw English as the universal language whereas most administrators saw English imposed due to political and economic reasons; (b) some teachers misinterpreted the 1994 General Law of Education mandating the teaching of a foreign language as a law mandating English; and (c) some teachers and administrators saw the PNB’s adoption of competence standards based on the Common European Framework of Reference for languages as beneficial whereas others saw it as arbitrary. Conclusions derived from this study of this Escuela Nueva school were: (a) most participants found the goal of the PNB unrealistic; (b) most teachers and administrators saw the policies of the PNB as top-down policies without assessment or continuity; and (c) teachers and administrators mentioned a disarticulation between elementary and high school ELT policies that may be discouraging students in public schools from learning English. Thus, this study suggests that the policies of the PNB may be contributing to English becoming a gatekeeper for higher education and employment thereby becoming a tool for sustaining inequality in Colombia.

A Comparison of the Effects of Classroom and Multi-User Virtual Environments on the Perceived Speaking Anxiety of Adult Post-Secondary English Language Learners

The population of English Language Learners (ELLs) globally has been increasing substantially every year. In the United States alone, adult ELLs are the fastest growing portion of learners in adult education programs (Yang, 2005). There is a significant need to improve the teaching of English to ELLs in the United States and other English-speaking dominant countries. However, for many ELLs, speaking, especially to Native English Speakers (NESs), causes considerable language anxiety, which in turn plays a vital role in hindering their language development and academic progress (Pichette, 2009; Woodrow, 2006). Task-based Language Teaching (TBLT), such as simulation activities, has long been viewed as an effective approach for second-language development. The current advances in technology and rapid emergence of Multi-User Virtual Environments (MUVEs) have provided an opportunity for educators to consider conducting simulations online for ELLs to practice speaking English to NESs. Yet to date, empirical research on the effects of MUVEs on ELLs’ language development and speaking is limited (Garcia-Ruiz, Edwards, & Aquino-Santos, 2007). This study used a true experimental treatment control group repeated measures design to compare the perceived speaking anxiety levels (as measured by an anxiety scale administered per simulation activity) of 11 ELLs (5 in the control group, 6 in the experimental group) when speaking to Native English Speakers (NESs) during 10 simulation activities. Simulations in the control group were done face-to-face, while those in the experimental group were done in the MUVE of Second Life. The results of the repeated measures ANOVA revealed after the Huynh-Feldt epsilon correction, demonstrated for both groups a significant decrease in anxiety levels over time from the first simulation to the tenth and final simulation. When comparing the two groups, the results revealed a statistically significant difference, with the experimental group demonstrating a greater anxiety reduction. These results suggests that language instructors should consider including face-to-face and MUVE simulations with ELLs paired with NESs as part of their language instruction. Future investigations should investigate the use of other multi-user virtual environments and/or measure other dimensions of the ELL/NES interactions.

Exploring Seventh Graders’ Perceptions of the Picture-word Inductive Model to their English Narrative Writing in China

In this exploratory study, the researcher interviewed 30 seventh graders in China about their perceptions of the newly tried method, Picture-word Inductive Model (PWIM), to their English narrative writing. Many student participants listed and exemplified positive influence of PWIM on their narrative writing in and from the PWIM trial.

Roadblocks to Teaching English as a Foreign Language in a Climate of Accelerated Curricular Change

This paper examines the global "English craze," in which non-Englishspeaking countries, especially in Asia, East Asia, and the Middle East, are engaged in a concerted push to get the language taught more widely and at increasingly lower grade levels. The goal of this paper is to document how this phenomenon has impacted teachers of English as a Foreign Language and how they can try to alleviate these problems.