Instructed SLA: A practical guide for teachers (original) (raw)

The Relevance of SLA Research to Language Teaching from Teachers" Perspective

2015

Second language acquisition (SLA) research, the mostly said and heard term in recent years among second language researchers, is regretfully a kind of Cinderella term for the majority of EFL teachers. Strictly speaking, when SLA research began to emerge as a separate discipline, one of the hopes was that it would benefit language teaching (Corder, 1973). Oddly enough, in recent years SLA research has mostly seen its role as raising teachers" awareness of SLA concepts rather than affecting teaching directly. By and large, it supposedly sounds that EFL teachers" taking advantage of SLA research results is not widespread. Accordingly, the current paper is an attempt to meticulously analyze and evaluate some articles so as to reach a sound conclusion in this regard. The overall result revealed that although there are some gaps between SLA research and teachers, those gaps can universally be bridged by moving EFL teachers from the more usual and traditional role as consumers of...

SLA: What It Offers ESL/EFL Teachers

In G. Anderson & M. Kline (Eds.), Proceedings of the CATESOL State Conference, 2007. Orlinda, CA: CATESOL, 2007

What does SLA offer the practicing ESL/EFL teacher? This paper answers this question, making five main points. By referencing current research and literature on SLA and noting how they are relevant to teachers, it points readers to issues that can help them better understand their students’ learning and their teaching.

EFL Teachers' Perspectives on SLA Research and EFL Pedagogy:

Iranian EFL Teachers' Perspectives on SLA Research and EFL Pedagogy: Do Majors Matter, 2022

Considering the issues of EFL (English as a Foreign Language) teacher education, recruitment, and supervision system in Iran, this study investigated the Iranian EFL teachers' familiarity, involvement with, accessibility to, and their judgments about usefulness of SLA (Second Language Acquisition) research. The sources the teachers consult about teaching and SLA research were also explored. Moreover, the mentioned issues were explored in terms of the teachers' majors in order to find any significant associations between the teachers' majors and the raised issues or any significant differences between the two participating groups of teachers' perspectives in the above-mentioned subjects. Quantitative data were collected through a questionnaire. 142 participating Iranian EFL teachers were divided into two groups of TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) and Non-TEFL majors based on their university degrees and their opinions were compared. Significant associations were found between the teachers' majors and their familiarity with and their access to SLA research and materials. Moreover, significant differences were found between the opinions of two groups of teachers about the relevance and usefulness of SLA research for classroom teaching as well as two of the items under the topic of teacher-researcher relationship. However, both groups of the Iranian EFL teachers seemed to be willing to cooperate with the SLA researchers and no significant difference was revealed between them. To improve the condition, creating a culture of collaboration as well as the amending of the language teacher education programs and supervision system are vital steps to be taken in Iran. Keywords: Second language acquisition (SLA) research, SLA research and EFL pedagogy in Iran, EFL teacher education and supervision, Iranian EFL teachers' majors and perspectives 1. Introduction Considering the context of Iran, as Dahmardeh (2009) stated, language has been neglected within the Iranian educational system though it is a compulsory academic subject in the Iranian national curriculum. Atai and Mazlum's (2013) investigation revealed "the lack of any ELT-specific document for material development and absence of research-based needs assessment as the foundation of the programs" (p. 389). According to them, There are no pre-defined linguistic and professional criteria for evaluating teachers, and planning for students' assessment is limited to a set of general guidelines. Moreover, there is neither a programme evaluation nor an ELT evaluation model and national-level policies are not reexamined at planning level. … Politico-ideological beliefs of material developers are as important as their expertise and communication channels between planning and practice levels are of a top-down nature. It is argued that the gap between planning and practice results from a highly centralised policymaking process in which local policymakers (i.e. teachers) are not involved. (p. 389) Likewise, Davari and Aghagolzadeh (2015) stated, neither English nor any other foreign language teaching academic settings in Iran have received much attention until recently and no formal document in English language policy, whether national or educational, has been developed or implemented, yet. What inspired the researchers of this study to conduct this research was, at first, the issue of EFL teacher recruitment in Iran. To teach English in Iranian public and private schools and private institutes, being certified in TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) is not a must. Not only the English university students, graduates, and postgraduates with specialization in TEFL, English Literature, Translation Studies, (Moghaddas & Zakeri, 2012) and Theoretical Linguistics, but also those whose majors are not relevant to English at all and have never passed any creditable TEFL courses, yet have impressive command of English, are teaching in English language institutes in Iran (Karimi, 2011). As Karimi (2011, p. 90) stated, most of the courses the teachers who are majored in English-related fields other than TEFL "have passed during their studies have been subject matter rather than pedagogical courses. They have, however, had a minimal number of courses on EFL instruction." Talebinejad and Moattarian (2015, p. 7) found, "teachers in language Flourishing Creativity & Literacy

Second Language Teacher Education

Relc Journal, 2008

One of the simple facts of life in the present time is that the English language skills of a good proportion of its citizenry are seen as vital if a country is to participate actively in the global economy and to have access to the information and knowledge that provide the basis for both social and economic development. Central to this enterprise are English teaching and English language teachers. There is consequently increasing demand worldwide for competent English teachers and for more effective approaches to their preparation and professional development.

Teaching English as a Second Language (SLA)- Written Theory of Practice

This paper presents my Written Theory of practice, composed for Viva Voce examination on June 11th, 2014. Herein I provide a written and in-depth supported view on how I see myself as an English teacher. I refer to what I have studied, how I view my current teaching practice, and how I aim to improve. I create dialogue between theories and practice in rationalising my language teaching philosophy and ideology, to portray a clear personal and professional view of teaching English as a second language as a profession. This will be done in the following five compromised categories: a) personal view on learning & teaching b) managing learning behaviour c) language learning and teaching d) reflection and professional development e) personal input. These categories are subdivided in fourteen questions, for each of these I will summarise relevant theories and findings, and present examples of (hypothetical, if lacking actual) implementation in my teaching practice. I will conduct the STARRT method, to visualize situations clearly.

English Language Teachers and Trained Teachers.pdf

English Language Teachers and Trained Teachers in Pakistan: Ground Realities, Discernments and Practices, 2015

The purpose of this descriptive analysis is to evaluate international profile of language teachers‟ training programs, their significance, effectiveness and the ground realities of Pakistan in mentioned areas. The study describes the European standards of language teachers and their training necessities, the problems that are faced by Pakistani English Language Learners, the ground realities related to the phenomenon of English Language teaching, the need for the affective language teachers training and some recommendations and suggestions in this regard. It is suggested to the concerned authorities to invest sufficient capital to facilitate the process of teaching and learning English language. It is strongly advised to take valiant decisions in order to improve the quality of English language teaching and learning in Pakistan. Sustained teachers‟ training programs are one of the most effective stratagems in the present scenario because those who dare to teach must never cease learning.