Dialogic teaching and iPads in the EAP classroom

© 2015 Elsevier Ltd. Abstract Mobile learning technology in the form of iPads has gained considerable attention recently in the literature on pedagogy and learning. This has led to a change in the roles of teachers and students, and the nature of the classroom interaction. What is not clear so far however, is how iPads have changed the nature of classroom talk and dialogic teaching. The present study aimed to examine the impact of iPad use on the opportunities for dialogic teaching in English for Academic Purposes (EAP) classes in an English medium university in the United Arab Emirates. The study reveals that although opportunities for dialogic teaching are both created and inhibited in classes utilizing the iPads, the most influential contributor to opportunities and restrictions lies depends on whether the teachers and students have adopted a dialogic stance. The study also revealed the need to examine dialogic teaching within the specific sociocultural and educational context of learning

The affordances of iPad for constructing a technology-mediated space in Hong Kong English medium instruction secondary classrooms: A translanguaging view

Despite the widespread use of mobile digital devices such as iPads in teaching and learning, there is little research on the ways in which content teachers make use of the technological affordances of the iPad to achieve pedagogical goals in bilingual/multilingual classrooms. This article adopts translanguaging as an analytical perspective to explore how the use of the iPad extends the semiotic and spatial repertoires for enabling the English Medium Instruction (EMI) teacher to create a translanguaging space for supporting multilingual students’ learning of new academic knowledge. The data for this article is based on a linguistic ethnographic project in an EMI mathematics classroom in a secondary school in Hong Kong. Multimodal Conversation Analysis is used to analyse the classroom interactional data, triangulated with the video-stimulated-recall-interviews that are analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. The article argues that the iPad provides opportunities for the EMI teacher to fully exploit the semiotic and spatial resources for creating a technology-mediated space in the classroom. Such a space in turn allows the teacher to accomplish content teaching and build a more engaging environment for learning

Utilizing Chromebook in Ontario Elementary Schools: Teachers’ Perspectives

In-service teachers’ voices must be heard in order to understand the status of technology integration in Canadian elementary schools. In this qualitative case study, two Ontario private school teachers were invited to share their experiences and perspectives about their daily instruction with Chromebook through the lens of the TPACK theoretical framework. The study’s objectives were twofold: (a) to identify participating teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and experiences teaching with Chromebook in a convincing narrative manner; and (b) to provide recommendations concerning the use of this type of digital technology device to other teachers and educators in practice. This research study once again affirmed the advantages of using Chromebook in the elementary classrooms in across three categories: saving funds, granting stable and durable hardware, and offering seamless and continuous learning. Additionally, the study attempted to add two new benefits: using Chromebook in teaching enables educators to keep their students on task and helps educators differentiate their teaching by providing more options and accommodating students’ different learning styles and abilities. Participants in the study also found it difficult to make sure students stayed on task and were not lured by the out-of-class digital world. The study also found that a better filtering system of apps working on Chromebook can benefit students’ and teachers’ experience alike. The study concludes with a discussion and implications for future research

What do teachers need to know about grammar?

The literature regarding teacher knowledge endorses the importance of English language specialist (ESOL) and mainstream teachers’ grammatical knowledge for teaching and assessment purposes. In the New Zealand primary and secondary school context, key documents produced for teacher support of English language learners require grammatical knowledge, as they contain a considerable amount of grammatical terminology. These include the English Language Learning Progressions (ELLP) (2008), the English Language Intensive Programme (ELIP) (2003), and Supporting English Language Learning in Primary School (SELLIPS) (2009). The aim of the current study was to classify grammatical terminology in these documents according to language level (phonology, word class, sentence and text), language skill, and stage of the progressions. Conclusions were drawn about the grammatical knowledge considered essential for teachers to effectively use the support materials. The results of the study are relevant for ESOL, primary and secondary teachers, and those involved in the professional development of teachers

Learning language with technology in a hybrid university EAP course

Today’s college campuses are offering increased alternatives to the traditional face-to-face classroom, including hybrid or blended courses that combine online and face-to-face elements. Language learning is no exception. This instrumental case study examines the affordances and constraints of integrating technology into a hybrid language classroom, following one teacher’s construction of an undergraduate, hybrid English for Academic Purpose (EAP) grammar class for ten international students in their first year of study at an American university. Drawing on data from this single classroom case, findings address both the instructor’s and students’ perceptions of course content and delivery, knowledge expression activities, and classroom assessments. An understanding of multivoiced interpretations of hybrid learning illuminates the benefits and challenges of technology integration. Data sources include teacher, student, and focus group interviews, student pre-, mid-, and post-class surveys, document analysis of instructor lessons and course design, classroom observations, and reflective journaling over the course of the semester. Data analysis drew deeply from the phenomenological approach to data organization and interpretation. Findings were presented using textural, structural, and composite phenomenological elements. Through active collaboration with the language instructor, I document one teacher’s experience in purposeful hybrid course development and design, carefully recording and describing the essence of integrating technology tools to teach and the meanings that students articulate as they engage in new learning modalities. The research found that not only did the international students display a typical range of course success, they also articulated a value for learning how to use the technology in a new and unfamiliar learning environment. While there was some confusion on the students’ part about the distinction between learning independently and completing online activities/homework, the students reported that the self-reliant nature of the hybrid format better prepared them for their future studies. This dissertation yielded empirically-based, practical implications to support the implementation of knowledge-driven, pedagogically sound hybrid learning environments

INNOVATION IN TEACHING ENGLISH FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT: A TECHNOLOGY-INTEGRATED APPROACH

Nowadays, innovation is seen as a process of change, whose implementation is supposed to bring about more effectiveness in those organizations that envision such reformative initiatives. In language education, innovation is often related to the emergence and experimentation of both pedagogical and technology-integrated approaches to teaching and learning. The technology-based language teaching refers to the integration of modern technology into the language class, either as a tool or as a resource. From this perspective, the article starts with an overview of the literature regarding key-concepts we operate with throughout the paper and is organized in several subsections attempting first to define what innovation in language education is, then to clarify what English for Law Enforcement is against the distinction between English for Specific Purposes as opposed to General English. Further the paper focuses on the use of ICT in English language teaching, enumerating and illustrating how the technology-based approaches can be employed in language classes. This section makes the shift to the next one, which discusses a concrete case of teaching English for Law Enforcement students in Romania, exemplifying the “what” and “how” of the use of technology in such a language learning environment, pointing out both its benefits and drawbacks for both teachers and learners

Text-Influenced Expressions of Understanding: Differences in Kindergartners’ Discourse and Written Retellings of Traditional and Digital Texts During Buddy Reading

Buddy reading a text is a collaborative act that typically generates discourse that provides researchers with a glimpse of the comprehending taking place. However, in recent years, the infusion of technology in classrooms has resulted in many traditional texts being replaced by digital versions. Thus, this qualitative case study examined the spoken and written discourse of 12 kindergartners (6 dyads) as they buddy read a traditional and digital text. Drawing upon two distinct lenses—sociocultural and comprehension signifier—video recordings, transcriptions, and written retellings were analyzed. Specifically, process coding and in vivo coding were used to construct categories and uncover sociocultural patterns in the discourse. Provisional coding was used to identify explicit (character, setting, initiating event, problem, outcome resolution), implicit (feelings, causal inference, dialogue, prediction), and reading strategy (repeats, questions, connects, dramatizes) comprehension signifiers. Findings indicate a mismatch between the kind of discourse that transpired and how it translated into the written retellings. When children engaged in conversation as they read the traditional storybook, the discussion exemplified high-frequency use of explicit and implicit comprehension signifiers. However, few of the written retellings utilized implicit comprehension signifiers. The discourse surrounding the digital texts consisted mostly of implicit comprehension signifiers and reading strategy signifiers. Conversely, the writing reflected a more extensive comprehension signifier use with many of the children’s retellings containing examples from two or more different subcategories

E-learning, language education and the role of writing : a case study

This case study of a Swiss adult-learning institution investigates changing literacy practices and skills in adult foreign language education with relation to e-Iearning and with reference to the role of writing. Aspects concerning autonomous learning, teaching presence, and factors influencing the e-learning adoption-innovation process including access, pedagogical and policy-making implications were examined. The study uses both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies. It is underpinned by thinking in the New literacy Studies tradition and hopes to fill an existing gap in research, as much of the available literature seems to focus on children or higher education. The main results indicate that currently there is a mix of, on the one hand, low digitally skilled and reluctant teacher-adopters and, on the other, highly enthusiastic an~ digitally motivated ones, There is also an indication that access to simple infrastructure, with a relatively small investment, could produce good results in helping practitioners move along the path from innovation to adoption. Digital literacies and changes in literacy practices tend to put writing at the centre of communication. Writing is intended both as a subject area and as a means of communicating digitally, The results also reveal that the role of writing is closely linked to whether practitioners and learners alike consider the communicative value of writing to be on par with communication using the spoken word, i.e, whether collaborative writing in particular can be considered 'talk', The data points to a joint need by policy-makers and practitioners to acknowledge new digital literacy practices and to include them in a holistic way in local contexts and curricula, It also points to the need for institutions to take responsibility for providing links between research and practice and to provide integrated training in the field of e-learning and blended learning