Teaching and Learning English
in a Global Context
Unit Preview
Read the title to the short article below and discuss it with a partner.
Have you ever seen the word English in the plural (Englishes)? Do
you agree that there should be a plural form of the word English?
World Englishes in English Language Teaching
English is used as a lingua franea in academic, scientific, and
business communities in national and international communications
around the world among speakers of many languages. In some
countries, especially former colonies, English has government
recognition as one of perhaps many languages used in education,
commerce, and the law. In these countries, such as Ghana, India, and
Pakistan (Jenkins, 2015), English is a second or additional language
with one or more home languages serving primary means of
communication for daily interactions and schooling. In this way, local
communities build unique linguistic landscapes where English may
serve only one role in society.
For any lingua franca, and there are many in the world today
(Arabic, Mandarin Chinese, Spanish, and Swahili) the main goals are
for comprehensibility and intelligibility in communications, whether
in spoken or written form. In other words, when I speak or write, how
well can my audience understand me, and how easy was it for them to
do so? Knowing a lingua franca gives speakers access to a world of
knowledge, information, and cultural exchange.
Braj Kachru’s 1982 book (revised and updated in 1992), The
Other Tongue: English across Cultures, is still widely cited today. In
it, he analyzes how English serves the world but differently depending
on each government’s language policy or policies. Kachru’s three
circles model includes inner-circle Englishes, where English is the
home language in most families, and where government, education,
and commerce employ it in written or spoken exchange. Inner circle
varieties of English include Australian English, British English, and
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North American English, each with well documented dictionaries,
grammar books, and style manuals for writers. Outer-circle Englishes
according to Kachru are used in countries where English has an official
status alongside one or more national languages, all recognized by the
government. In Pakistan and India business, government, and
education may be conducted in English whereas home languages, such
as Punjabi or Urdu, are spoken in the family and community. In outer
circle countries, English may also serve as official languages of
government and schooling, but this is often up to the regional or local
government to decide.
The expanding circle of Englishes in Kachru’s model includes
countries where English is a foreign language and does not hold official
status. Countries such as China, Egypt, Indonesia and Nepal can be
classified as expanding circle countries in Kachru’s model. Regardless
of government policy, Kachru teaches us that whoever uses English
owns it, no matter nation of origin or circle of Englishes. David
Graddol (1997) took up Kachru’s message in his article “The decline
in the native speaker” in which he questioned the special status of the
native speaker and Anglo English as sole arbiter of correct English. He
argued that second language varieties of English can also be norm
setting — in other words, there are multiple valid and valued varieties
of English spoken and written by speakers of many languages. These,
too, can set standards for correct use within local communities.
In expanding circle countries, English may be offered or even
required in education with different levels of language proficiency
achieved by learners, but it is taught as a foreign language. By learning
and teaching English, whether as ESL (English as a second language)
to immigrants and refugees in inner circle countries or as EFL (English
as a Foreign Language) elsewhere, teachers provide students with
access to a lingua franca for transactional, intellectual, and cultural
exchange. In expanding circle Englishes — that is in the EFL context --
when our learners leave the classroom, they may be able to leave
English at the door. Teaching in an EFL context presents special
challenges since teachers must guide learners in engaging in
meaningful ways with English to enhance what was learned in the
classroom and to provide the broad access to language input needed for
strong proficiency.
540
- What is your home language?
- What does proficiency in a language mean?
- What is a lingua franca?
Discuss
- Now that you have read the reading passage, what 1s your opinion
about the use of the word Englishes? Did your opinion change?
- Kachru’s circles model has been criticized as Anglo Englishes
may still form the center circle around which all other countries
can be placed. Others argue that his model is useful in classifying
countries as to their language policies. What do you think?
Where is your community in terms of Kachru’s model?
- Describe your linguistic landscapes. What language resources are
available to your future students in and out of the classroom?
Dialect Task
Language variety demonstrates that language is not static and
that languages change according to contact with speakers of other
languages, media, and generational differences. Varieties of a
language are called dialects. What varieties or dialects of English are
you familiar with, and how do you know the variety? Make a list of
some English dialects that you recognize. Alternatively, you might
complete a search on the internet for different language varieties (see
Technology Tip below). A few examples have been placed into the
chart for you. After you complete this for English, consider varieties of
Arabic you know and fill in Arabic varieties on the following page.
Language features
Trilled /t/
Possible mix with other
languages, such as Hindi
Tag of ‘eh’ at the end of
sentences with rising
intonation
Language features
Egyptian Arabic “is
referred to as a
Ca:mmiyah (language of
the common people)” (p.
31).
How do you know
about it?
Heard a Scottish
speaker online
Heard a recording of a
Gandhi speech
Saw a Canadian movie
How do you know
about it?
Read about it
(Bassiouney &
Muehlhaeusler, 2018)
English
Variety
Scottish
English
Indian
English
Canadian
English
Arabic
Variety
Cairene
Arabic
Questions
What can we learn about the lingua franeas of this world by
completing the above activity for both English and Arabic?
Which of these varieties of English or Arabic is suitable for
foreign language teaching? Why do you think so, or why not?
You might discuss how comprehensible or intelligible these
varieties of English or Arabic are. Make a list of features that
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l.
make one variety of a language more suitable to teach foreign
language students than others.
Activity
Your university already offers courses in English as a foreign
language. What if your university administration decided that they
wanted to open an Arabic as a Second Language program on your
campus to train students in academic and conversational Arabic?
Prepare a short letter that could be published in a school newspaper or
newsletter discussing whether you think this is a good idea and what
advice you would have for such a program.
Technology Tips
When you search on dialects or varieties of English or Arabic
online, try first to look for news broadcasts from specific areas. Over
the years, many students have posted misleading samples of so-called
dialect use where a single individual will present several samples of
dialect and while well intended, these may not accurately represent an
authentic speaker from that area. Therefore, we recommend that you
search selectively for samples of dialect. One idea is to search for
newscasts since these are generally broadcast in the most intelligible
form of the local variety.
See below for web links to current sources of language, the first is
toa Canadian News network, CTV, and the second is a language lesson
in Egyptian Arabic for a local. As with all links on the internet, what is
here today, may be gone tomorrow. Also, on some channels like
Youtube, you may have to skip advertising. Do you think this is an
authentic Egyptian Arabic speaker? Is he speaking Cairene Arabic
from Cairo or a broader Egyptian dialect?
Canadian English Example - CTV News
Cairene/Egyptian Arabic Example
Teaching English as a Foreign Language
Teaching English in the Arab world means teaching English as a
foreign language. When students leave the classroom, they are unlikely
to encounter much English unless they seek opportunities, or their
teachers structure such opportunities to use English beyond the school
walls. Teachers of English (or any foreign language) need specific
training and expertise, and the following are qualifications for the
English language teaching profession:
Language
Language Teachers should:
have good command of English, both spoken and written.
have intelligible pronunciation, broad vocabulary, and
understanding of how English 15 structured and used.
read on general topics fluently and with excellent
comprehension. Knowledge and proficiency with varied text
types, such as email, narrative, and fiction, and genres
including language practices in specific fields (science, social
sciences, and humanities) is helpful.
write on a variety of topics, using varied text types and forms.
Cohesion and coherence in writing is expected,
have knowledge of Arabic for contrastive language study in
order to predict challenges for English learning and use.
have broad understanding of world geography, history, and
contemporary civilization, including understanding and
competence in intercultural and international communications.
read and love world literature. Exploring history, cultural
contacts, and ethnic survival in literature written in English or
Arabic allows us into the events through the worldview of an
author who aesthetically crafts a voice of human identity.
Narrative as form and fiction as stage is used widely in
education through young adult literature to help youth find
voice using all their linguistic resources. Literature builds
literacy. Supporting Arabic and English literature supports
youth in biliterate practices, the ability to read in two
languages (Zakharia & Bishop, 2013).
Professionalism
Language teachers should:
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1)
a) b)
6)
d)
f)
g)
II)
a) put learners first by considering how to meet their needs while
serving the administrative function of the school.
b) keep current with teaching trends and best practices,
specifically within the EFL context. This includes continuous
professional development beyond completing a university
degree.
c) be current with technology to support language learning in
schools and communities. Make sure that the technology
serves the goal of learning, not that learning serves
technology. Prepare carefully and ensure learner safety online.
d) work in schools with colleagues and supervisors to ensure
learning experiences and opportunities connecting the
curriculum and enhancing learning across content areas and
fields of study. Knowing what the science teacher is doing in
the science class, for example, may create opportunities for
English to support science inquiry and integrate learning as a
wider school project. Connect English to real uses and real
learning, not just language learning for no particular purpose.
e) commit to learning both in and out of the classroom with
support from families and communities.
SAQ
- Which of the above are areas of your expertise?
- Which will you need to improve to be an excellent language
teacher?
- Would you add any requirements?
Writing Activity
Write in a journal or prepare a blog entry in which you note down
your reflections and action plans for professional development.
Language Acquisition and Learning
Language acquisition theorists make a distinction between
explicit language learning and teaching and implicit language
acquisition, the latter being the more natural through input and being
surrounded in the environment. Through schooling, standard language
norms and literate practices are reinforced, but children learn a home
language mostly implicitly. Many children around the world live in
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bilingual or multilingual communities where more than one language
is used in families and communities. Children grow up naturally with
more than one language, many from birth where parents and
communities practice multilingualism (Cunningham, 2011) or commit
to language revitalization projects like Welsh in Wales or Maori in
New Zealand. Explicit instruction is considered necessary to boost
language competence, especially for advanced literacy learning and
schooling. Children build language proficiency from the input in their
environment depending on the frequency and intensity of contact with
speakers and writers of different languages, language resources
available, and societal need and support.
Wray (2002) demonstrates that learning changes throughout youth
into adulthood. For example, the very young learn holistically, in
chunks (so songs, poems, and repeated stories work well with the very
young), whereas during school ages, children apply more analysis to
how discovering how language works, making connections between
languages, as well as noting their differences. As children approach
adulthood, learning changes to a balance between holistic and analytic
learning, and by adulthood, then, Wray notes that we again learn more
holistically, drawing connections between meaning and language and
processing language in chunks (not isolated words). Teaching methods
should meet the analytic needs of school-aged learners, for example,
by grouping them together for problem-solving, idea sharing, and task
accomplishment. Giving short mini lessons on language form while
focused on meaning will challenge school-aged learners to engage with
their peers to learn together.
Rod Ellis (2011, cited in Richards, 2017, p. 4) summarizes
second language acquisition studies and concludes with the several
principles for instructed language learning. Teachers should take note
of what works for language development toward proficient use.
|. Learners need formulaic expressions and rule-based
competence.
- Instruction should focus on meaning.
- Learners should be shown how to focus on form — this leads to
awareness of forms for implicit learning.
- Teaching should focus on developing implicit knowledge
(learning by picking it up) with some attention to explicit
knowledge (learning by being taught).
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- Teaching must help students develop learning skills and
strategies.
- Teachers should take learner differences into account (different
ways of knowing).
- Students need lots of rich language input, output, and
interaction opportunities to negotiate meaning and form
together with peers.
- Assessments should include both controlled practice (e.g., fill in
the blanks) and free practice (e.g., write some words/sentences
on a topic of their choice).
SAQ
- What is explicit learning?
- What is implicit learning?
Discussion Questions
- Do you think that your learning has changed over time? How did
you learn as a young child? How about now? How does your
history of learning compare to that of a partner?
- Which of Ellis’ principles of language teaching do you think are
most important? Why? Which will you be able to do easily as a
teacher? Which will be more difficult for you?
Motivating the Class
Motivation is key to learning, but each individual learner is
different. Unfortunately, within even a relatively homogeneous class
of students, there are always a range of English proficiencies, and a
topic that really sparks the imagination of one youngster may be boring
for another. Learners achieve language proficiency at different rates,
and this also affects motivation. Meeting all students’ needs at their
individual level and readiness for learning is a challenge for language
teachers. By differentiating instruction and varying content, text
types, and genres, teachers provide language instruction designed to
help learners improve their English and claim ownership of it for
learning. Differentiating instruction might include preparing slightly
different activities for different proficiency learners. For example, you
might ask the advanced learners to read an entire news article and
prepare a summary in addition to defining a list of vocabulary items
you provide based on the reading. Your intermediate learners could just
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do the vocabulary items, and you could give the lowest level learners a
shorter list of vocabulary words and perhaps a shorter segment of the
text to read. You could make these learner groups fluid as well,
sometimes grouping more abled with less abled learners to teach and
learn from each other.
Classrooms where learners are engaged mean that they are
using multiple modes of learning from listening and completing a chart,
to formulating questions, to negotiating with partners. Lessons build
activities and tasks that engage learners and keep them active while
working toward larger units of instruction. People learn through
observation, analysis, and activity. Young learners especially need
kinesthetic activity (movement), where they physically change spaces
within the classroom even in simple ways like forming work groups or
turning to collaborate with a partner. More active learning through
simple experimentation with objects (such as measuring lengths of
classroom objects), playing competitive games, or engaging in simple
drama and role playing activities keeps learners fresh and helps
learning through action.
Younger learners need brief activities and connecting a series
of activities builds lessons systematically while engaging learners’
attention in real world use of English. As an example, pairs of learners
can complete a graphic organizer (for example, a chart with some
commerce or science data shared by a school colleague) together. To
make an information-gap activity you first have to translate the
business or science data chart and perhaps simplify it in English. You
then partly fill in two versions of the chart, an A and a B version. Your
learners then must look only at their own version of the chart, perhaps
by sitting back to back. They ask questions to fill in the parts that they
are missing but that their partner has. Partners can then write up the
results as a short paragraph or several sentences that can be displayed
around the classroom for everyone to read.
By varying activities and making sure that learners have handson opportunities to build language and knowledge through English,
learners keep motivated because they see connections across the
curriculum and they understand that English can be used to learn
content, not just learning about language for no particular purpose.
Youngsters are forming their identity through family, community, and
schooling practices, and a foreign language can play a role in how they
envision and shape their futures.
Activities in class motivate learners because youth enjoys
learning from one another. In learner-centered pedagogy, learning
shifts from the teacher as all-knower to the student as co-contributor
and co-constructor of knowledge. Learner-centered pedagogy does not
mean that the teacher is inactive. In fact, teachers actively organize
instruction for learners with structured language instruction and
opportunities to practice, develop language skills, and consolidate
knowledge together. Teachers recognize learners’ accomplishments
but also their errors. Expert teachers know when to jump in with a quick
correction and when it would be better to wait and systematically
prepare a lesson on learner errors. A shift from teacher-centered
pedagogy to more learner-centered approaches means that the teacher
can work more intensively with students who may be struggling while
challenging more proficient learners to push the boundaries of their
own English use. In learner-centered pedagogy, tasks and projects are
designed for language learners to make decisions about how to meet
curriculum goals. This moves the focus away from the teacher
spending most of class time talking to students and telling them about
language to having the students themselves discus how to solve
problems posed by a task with the teacher as support and assistant and
using English as a means to communicate.
Knowing our learners and their needs is key to preparing good
language instruction and to motivating our learners. Teachers know
best what, how, and when their learners may need English, now or in
their futures, depending on local concerns such as whether the school
is located in an urban or rural setting. In urban settings, learners may
have more access to English outside the classroom in the environment
through bilingual signs, radio programs, tourists, and the like. Building
motivation in foreign language teaching is a challenge that can be met
through teacher enthusiasm, active learner-centered approaches, and
demonstrating English in world use. Languages are tools for learning,
creating, and communicating, so multilinguals have access to tools not
available without the foreign language(s).
SAQ
- Are you multilingual?
- What does it mean to ‘differentiate’ instruction?
- What is teacher-centered instruction and what is student-centered
instruction?
- What bilingual or international signs are posted in your
community?
Discussion Questions
- How motivated were you as an English language learner? What
about other subjects that you studied?
- How did your motivation affect your learning in and out of class?
How are your experiences similar to or different from that of your
peers?
- Did you have access in your communities or in your schooling to
other foreign languages? What were they and how did they affect
your motivation to learn and teach English?
Expert and Novice Teachers
We teach as we were taught, or so the saying goes, but teacher
education programs, such as the one you are enrolled in, assist teachersin-training to expand their experience, build their knowledge of good
teaching, and experiment with innovations in education by taking new
techniques and technologies into account. Teaching methodology has
come to include all aspects of school learning from daily lessons with
multiple activities, larger units of instruction crossing multiple days,
and materials design and supplementation that draw on learner
background knowledge and other school learning. There is no single
right way to teach or learn language, Each learner (and each teacher)
has preferences, predispositions, aptitude, and skills.
Teachers draw on many resources in developing as teachers.
Novice teachers, such as you in your teacher preparation program, are
putting together various techniques and considering different
approaches in addition to those you were exposed to as learners.
Teaching is part craft, part applied research, part skill, and part context.
Teachers develop from novices to experts over a lifetime of experience.
As novices, we challenge our own notions of best practices while
considering more research-oriented perspectives on children learning
foreign languages. As expert teachers, we continue to develop skills
through collaborations with colleagues in schools and directorates, and
we keep up with developments in the field as we continue to learn from
each class of students, each lesson we teach, and each parent we
interact with on their children and community language learning.
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نيا
SAQ
- What is a novice teacher?
- What is an expert teacher?
- How can a novice teacher gain experience?
Activity
Think about the language teachers you have had, and then complete
this chart with a partner and answer the questions below:
Good Language Teacher Poor Language Teacher
- Compare your response with classmates. Do you agree on what
makes a good language teacher and what characteristics are less
desirable?
- Do you think that teachers follow a single method? If so, how
would you describe the method your favorite (or least favorite)
teacher followed?
Cultural Studies in Language Teaching
English Language Teaching, or ELT, is part of the broader field
of applied linguistics studies, which includes language teaching,
language translation, and specialized study of the language of genres,
such as business English, or English for the medical professions.
Linguistics provides tools for understanding how languages are
structured and used. Sociolinguists, such as Kachru and Graddol cited
above, use linguistic tools and social dimensions, such as age and
gender to study human interactions and discover how we choose from
among the many linguistic features we have at our disposal. Should we
use a passive or active verb with different writing or speaking tasks?
This may depend on the age of the person we are speaking to or the
goal of a written communication. Sociolinguistics, or understanding
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culture and language connections, includes research and teaching
practices in areas such as world Englishes, language in contact
situations (such as border zones), and community, family, and or
school bilingualism and multilingualism.
Findings from sociolinguistic study are important in language
teaching, such as communicative competence, which involves
linguistic competence and contextual competence, which means
knowing when and how to use the language. Someone who is
linguistically competent has knowledge of grammar, vocabulary,
spelling, and pronunciation. Pragmatic competence includes knowing
language functions, speech acts (such as promises or requests), and
discourse strategies (such as cohesive devices in written and oral
arguments — first, second, and so on). Strategic competence is
achieved when speakers and writers can solve communication
problems by themselves, as in using circumlocution when they don’t
know the correct word, or by negotiating with someone else to achieve
meaning together. In conversation, we can use such techniques as
changing the topic if we are uncomfortable or in order to present a new
idea.
Intercultural and interpersonal competence, also studied by
sociolinguists, involve using language (and other means) to negotiate
meaning, or be sensitivity to communication breakdowns, and flexible
when interacting (in speaking or writing) with someone who speaks a
different language or dialect. For teachers, this might include
understanding language formality and register, cultural allusions and
mores, and beliefs, habits, and practices of English and your students’
home languages to best predict where they may struggle in intercultural
communication. Language teaching promotes fluency, complexity, and
accuracy in the foreign language in addition to communicative
competence.
SAQ
- What are the different types of competence necessary for good
communication?
- Do different cultures determine what is considered competent? In
what ways?
Basic Communication Skills
CASAS (Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment Systems,
2016, cited in Richards, 2017) proposes guidelines for ‘real-world’
basic communication, which informs instruction in foreign languages.
CASAS is a non-profit organization focused on curriculum and
assessment development for adult and youth language programs for
business, industry, vocational or other education. In their framework,
basic interpersonal interactions can be broken down into the following
linguistic and extralinguistic behaviors:
7 Using non-verbal behavior (e.g., handshaking) in a culturally
appropriate way;
Using language for informational purposes (identify, describe,
state needs, agree/disagree, etc.);
7 Using language to persuade (advise, negotiate, recommend, etc.);
” Using language appropriately in social situations (greetings,
introductions, giving thanks, making apologies, etc.);
7 Clarifying or seeking clarification when meaning breaks down
(e.g., asking a speaker to repeat something);
7 Giving and following instructions (e.g., using commands and
polite requests);
7 Using language to express state of being and emotion (e.g.,
amused, sleepy, satisfied).
Discussion Questions
- Does communicative competence vary from culture to culture? In
what ways?
- Do you agree with the guidelines for Basic Communication
developed by CASAS? If you were teaching Arabic to speakers of
other languages, how might you help students learn your language
for basic communication?
References
Bassiouney, Reem & Muehlhaeusler, Mark (2018). Cairo: The
linguistic dynamics of a multilingual city. In D. Smakman & P.
Henrich (Eds.) Urban sociolinguistics, (pp. 27-44) NY:
Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.
فى
Cunningham, U. (2011). Growing up with Two Languages: A
Practical Guide for the Bilingual Family. New York: Routledge.
Graddol, David (1997). The decline of the native speaker. In D.
Graddol & U.H. Meinhof (Eds.), English in a changing world, pp.
57-68. The AILA Review 13. Guildford: Biddles, Ltd.
Jenkins, Jennifer (2015). Global englishes (3rd edition). London:
Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.
Kachru, Braj (1982). The other tongue: English across cultures.
Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press.
Richards, Jack C. (2017). Curriculum Development in Language
Teaching, 2™ edition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Zakharia, Zeena & Bishop Laura M. (2013). Towards positive peace
through bilingual community education: Language efforts of
Arabic-speaking communities in New York. In O. Garcia, Z.
Zakharia, & B. Otcu (Eds.), Bilingual community education and
multilingualism (pp. 169-189).
Glossary
Applied Linguistics (n) — the broad field covering language teaching
and learning, linguistics, translation studies, and language for
specific purposes (English for biological or physical sciences)
Bilingual (adj) — the meaning is two languages, and it describes an
individual, a family, a community, an institution, or a nation,
Coherence (n)— the extent to which a text (oral or written) make sense
— 15 there a natural progression of ideas, were enough examples
given, were new or innovative words explained, etc. Adjective
form, coherent
Cohesion (n) — the extent to which a text (oral or written) holds
together logically through linguistic devices such as clear pronoun
referents, or linking adverbials to show chronology (first, second,
etc.). Adjective form, cohesive
Comprehensibility (n)— the extent to which a speaker or writer can be
understood by others. Adjective form, comprehensible
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Contrastive Language Study (n) — analysis comparing two or more
languages so as to understand why learners make errors in any
language feature, including structure, pronunciation, or word
formation,
Differentiating Instruction (n) — creating lesson plans that allow
different levels of learners to improve their language proficiency in
meaningful ways. This might mean shortening a reading or writing
assignment for weaker students and encouraging more proficient
learners to challenge themselves.
Discourse Competence (n) — understanding and application of text
beyond the sentence. For example, if someone asks a question, the
other person should try to answer. Knowing that a question should
be followed by a response or a clarification demonstrates discourse
competence.
Expert Teachers (n) — teachers with experience who continue to
develop professionally by expanding their knowledge, keeping up
in the field, and collaborating with other professional teachers.
EFL (n or adj) — English as a foreign language. People who learned
English as a school language with limited opportunities to use
English outside of class are learning EFL. Kachru attributes this to
outer-circle English contexts,
ESL (n or adj) — English as a second language is when people are
learning English in an English-speaking environment, such as
Canada or Australia.
Genre (n) — literary specialists refer to genre as literary text type, such
as poetry, plays, and novels. Applied linguistics use the term genre
to mean text types of any discipline, so for example lab reports and
case notes required in training to become a nurse.
Graphie Organizer (n) — any mechanism to organize data from simple
data tables (often presented at T charts with binary data) to Venn
diagrams showing circles of overlapping content to mind maps
showing semantic webs of information.
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Home Language (n) — generally a person’s first language, mother
tongue, or language spoken in the home; however, some people
learn two or more languages from birth.
Inquiry (n) — a type of learning by actively questioning and
participating in research, often organized by teachers but conducted
in student learning groups. Verb form, inquire
Intelligibility (n) — is a measure of how clear and understandable
pronunciation and intonation are in spoken communications or how
clear a written communication is in terms of word choice or word
form using the lexicon as example. Adjective form, intelligible
Intercultural Competence (n) — ability to interact effectively in
spoken and written language with speakers of other languages or
cultures,
Information-Gap Activity (n) — a learning activity in which two
students have different information, but they must share the
information to complete the task.
Language Policy (n) — policy is generally government policies such as
laws or constitutional provisions governing some part of societal
behavior, in this case in relation to language.
Language Proficiency (n) — this is a learners’ level of language
attainment as measured by some standardized tool, such as the
European Framework of Reference.
Learner-Centered Pedagogy (n) — Teachers organize and orchestrate
lessons for maximum student participation and output, whether
working with a partner, in small work groups, or as a class, all
learners participate in the learning process.
lingua franea (n)—a language that serves many people across national
boundaries for communications and information sharing. Spanish,
Mandarin Chinese, and Arabic are all lingua francas.
Linguistic Landseapes (n) — each community has its own linguistic
landscape where public signs, radio broadcasts, news sources, and
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community language uses come together to form a mosaic of
language uses, monolingual, bilingual, or multilingual.
Morphology (n) — the study of words and their parts. Morphology is
always tied to syntax and semantics.
Monolingual (adj) — the meaning is only one single language, and it
describes an individual, a family, a community, an institution, or a
nation.
Multilingual (adj) — the meaning is more than two languages, and it
describes an individual, a family, a community, an institution, or a
nation.
Novice Teacher (n) — new teacher or pre-service teacher
Professional Development (n) — training and education are the first
steps in professional development; a lifelong commitment to
professional development will mean interactions with colleagues
near and far, continued reading, and continuous improvements and
updates.
Semantics (n) — the meaning of words, utterances, sentences, and
discourse. Semantics is often tied together with morphology at the
word and syntactic levels of language.
Sociolinguistics (n) — a field of research within applied linguistics
where demographic information such as age, gender, and ethnicity
are used to understand linguistic practices, such as language choice
among levels of formality
Strategic Competence (n) — using strategies such as error repair in
effective communications in spoken or written language.
Syntax (n) — the grammar of the sentence; how words and phrases fit
together to make simple and complex sentences.
Systemic Functional Linguistics (n) — a school of linguistics that
seeks form and function connections between grammar, content,
and discourse construction, often in field specific terms like
business or sciences.
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Teacher-Centered Pedagogy (n) — a traditional way of teaching in
which the teacher is the focus and point of most communication
and learners are passive.
Text Type (n) — a kind of writing or speaking that follows a genre
pattern, such as the business letter of complaint or the sports
announcer on radio announcing a winning play.
Unit of Instruction (n) —a series of lessons that fit together to build a
larger content unit.