Journal of Practical and Pedagogical Issues in English Education
Volume:2 Issue: 3, Sep 2024

Source use in writing, commonly known as integrated writing, involves drawing insights from listening or reading input to compose a text. Such source-informed writing has gained ground in L2 writing instruction and assessment. However, the extent L2 learners find integrated tasks effective in promoting their writing ability has been rarely touched upon. In addition, research should consider students’ needs and perspectives when it comes to the differences between integrated tasks and traditional independent writing practices in satisfying their writing requirements. In this paper, we report on the attitudes of non-Anglophone undergraduate students toward the incorporation of integrated writing tasks as part of essay writing classes and whether they perceive these tasks as effective compared to default independent practices without source use. A researcher-made self-report scale consisting of 44 items on integrated and independent writing tasks was distributed among undergraduate students following their participation in an integrated essay writing program and a regular undergraduate writing course at the university. We interviewed 15 participants to gain further insights into their attitudes toward source use in writing classes. We found that non-Anglophone students significantly favored the inclusion of integrated tasks in their classes. However, they hold fairly positive attitudes toward independent writing tasks, as our interview analysis disclosed. We think that source use could be integrally integrated into L2 writing classes, which seems proportionate to students’ needs in non-English settings.

The use of Concept Checking Questions (CCQs) has gained increasing attention in English Language Teaching (ELT) as a practical tool for assessing students' comprehension. This technique helps teachers to identify learners who may be struggling and determine whether additional practice is needed. However, the full scope of CCQs' effects on various language skills, systems, and learner motivation has yet to be thoroughly investigated. To address this gap, the present study explored the effect of CCQs on two language systems, namely vocabulary and grammar, as well as motivation of Iranian EFL learners. Accordingly, a total of 36 EFL learners from a private language institute in Iran participated in the study. Using a quasi-experimental design, the learners were divided into an experimental group and a control group. The findings from independent samples t-tests showed that students in the experimental group significantly outperformed their peers in vocabulary and grammar development. Additionally, a chi-square test indicated a strong relationship between the use of CCQs and increased motivation among the learners. The study's implications are discussed in light of these findings.

Validation has always been a significant part of assessment in educational settings. However, due to its complexities, most officials prefer to use ready-made tests to avoid validating their own tests. This study validates a screening writing test in an EFL context using an evidence-based validation approach. This study reflects the researcher’s attempts to collect evidence to justify the newly developed test use and interpretation. The participants of this study were 53 Iranian B1 English language learners. To collect the required evidence, the researcher employed a questionnaire to investigate the learners’ cognitive processes that they went through to write the texts. Furthermore, the scores were correlated with the participants’ scores on a First Certificate in English (FCE) writing task to attain the criterion-related validity evidence. Evidence related to scoring validity and consequential validity was also collected by employing simple statistical measures, such as correlation, t-test, and percentage, that are easy for teachers to run. The findings of the study showed the (cognitive, context, scoring, consequential, and criterion-related) validity of the developed test. The pieces of evidence collected in this study supported the validity of the test for the intended use. The present report can enlighten novice teachers as to how to collect a body of evidence to ensure different stakeholders about the validity of their tests. While validation might be perceived as a complicated process, which is not within teachers’ ability, this study can provide a blueprint to guide teachers on how to show their accountability through easy-to-implement steps.

The field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has undergone a profound transformation, significantly affecting a multitude of industries through enhanced productivity and efficiency. In the realm of language education, AI has offered substantial improvements through automatized tasks, real-time support, and individualized presentation assistance. However, AI in language education is still a fledgling research line, and it is crucial to understand user experiences and expectations to guide further advancements. Drawing upon insights from recent research on AI literacy and usability, in this paper, I present a comprehensive overview of the current state of AI-driven presentation assistant technologies in language pedagogy. To do so, an online qualitative questionnaire was designed and validated to capture practitioners’ perspectives on the status quo of AI presentation assistants and possible challenges and suggestions. The findings revealed key areas where practitioners seek improvements, such as enhanced accessibility, real-time support, and advanced personalization features. The analysis showed a strong interest in making AI tools more intuitive and user-friendly, with suggestions for incorporating voice commands, assistive technologies, and adaptive learning systems. In addition, the findings indicate a demand for better performance, accuracy, and creativity in AI-generated content. This study calls for further AI development that is informed and fostered by user experiences to ensure high performance and cultural sensitivity.

As higher education institutions implement varied modes of instruction, it is important to understand how these impact students' language development. However, few studies have compared proficiency levels between academic streams in Ethiopian context. This study aimed to investigate and compare English language proficiency across regular, extension and distance learning streams at a Technical and Vocational Institute of Ethiopia. A total of 108 undergraduate trainees (25 regular, 40 extension, 43 distance) completed the Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE) listening, speaking, reading and writing assessments. Descriptive statistics, Mann-Whitney U tests analyzed quantitative data. Significant differences were found between streams for listening, speaking and writing proficiency but not reading. Overall, regular trainees outperformed extension and distance learners. Specifically, regular trainees scored higher than others in listening and speaking, while extension trainees did better in writing. Modes of instruction may differentially influence specific language skills. Regular classroom interactions seem to benefit oral abilities, while alternative schedules provide time to develop writing skills. The findings stress the need for tailored teaching approaches based on context to support balanced proficiency development. Future research should explore underlying factors and track proficiency longitudinally across streams.

Test-taking strategies (TTSs) have been found to be closely related to EFL learners’ successful language acquisition. However, such strategies have received scant attention from a language testing perspective (Bachman, 1990). The current mixed-methods study aimed to investigate Iranian freshman and senior high school EFL learners’ use of TTSs in reading comprehension tests and their perceptions of TTSs. To this end, 30 freshman and 30 senior high school EFL learners were selected from a public high school in Tabriz, Iran. The participants were asked to complete a questionnaire on TTSs. Afterward, six participants (three from each grade) were randomly invited for semi-structured interviews. SPSS software (version 27) was used to analyze the quantitative data gathered from the questionnaires, while the content analysis approach was utilized to analyze the qualitative data collected from the semi-structured interviews. The results indicated that senior participants used monitoring strategy the most, while freshman participants mostly used planning strategy. It was also found that both groups of participants had positive perceptions towards learning, teaching, and using TTSs. Implications are also presented as to the need for incorporating TTSs into teaching/learning methodologies, curricula, and materials.

 Viewed as the defender and legitimizer of Western Imperialism, travel writing has been the object of paranoid reading and examination by postcolonial critics like Edward Said. When the Orient becomes Western travelers’ destinations, their travel accounts, Said argues, envision their encountered spaces as the embodiment of a dysfunctional world serving as a perfect foil for the Occident's masculinity, vitality, stability, rationality, and normality. In doing so, they, according to Edward Said, perpetuate and reinforce the fictitious pictures of the Orient. Though Said’s critical analysis is persuasive and incontestable, his perspective does not cast light on the moments that some Western travelers eschew the cultural trap of an Oreintalistic frame of thinking. Accordingly, the present study seeks to illustrate this textual divergence from Orientalism in Edmund O’Donovan’s The Merv Oasis relating his journey to and captivity in Merv when Turkmen in their anti-colonial resistance against the Tsarist regime in the second half of the nineteenth century. The study argues that O’Donovan illustrates anti-Orientalist moments in his travel account in three ways, firstly, when he becomes his travelees’ object of incessant gaze rather than the sole gazer, secondly, when he depicts Tsarist travelers as thieves rather than local people, and thirdly when he sketches a humane picture of his travelees by highlighting their tolerance towards Jews, and finally, when he steers clear of bolstering the myth of Oriental indolence.