Teaching learners to communicate effectively in the L2: Integrating body language in the students\u2019 syllabus

In communication a great deal of meaning is exchanged through body language, including gaze, posture, hand gestures and body movements. Body language is largely culture-specific, and rests, for its comprehension, on people\u2019s sharing socio-cultural and linguistic norms. In cross-cultural communication, L2 speakers\u2019 use of body language may convey meaning that is not understood or misinterpreted by the interlocutors, affecting the pragmatics of communication. In spite of its importance for cross-cultural communication, body language is neglected in ESL/EFL teaching. This paper argues that the study of body language should be integrated in the syllabus of ESL/EFL teaching and learning. This is done by: 1) reviewing literature showing the tight connection between language, speech and gestures and the problems that might arise in cross-cultural communication when speakers use and interpret body language according to different conventions; 2) reporting the data from two pilot studies showing that L2 learners transfer L1 gestures to the L2 and that these are not understood by native L2 speakers; 3) reporting an experience teaching body language in an ESL/EFL classroom. The paper suggests that in multicultural ESL/EFL classes teaching body language should be aimed primarily at raising the students\u2019 awareness of the differences existing across cultures

Integrating Critical Multiliteracies Pedagogy in ESL/EFL Teaching

This article argues for enacting a synthesis of English language teaching (ELT) and critical pedagogy into what we call critical multiliteracies pedagogy (CMP) in the context of ESL/EFL teaching. CMP challenges and expands language and literacy instruction beyond a skills-based pedagogy to be inclusive of diverse modes, voices, and identities to address critical issues across local, global, and transnational contexts in ESL/EFL classrooms. Particularly, we share how an international professional development program has promoted CMP for 20 Korean English teachers working with adolescent multilingual learners in South Korea. Findings show how participating teachers critically reframed their vision of ELT, enacting and envisioning new ways of teaching English through CMP despite challenges at the systemic level. Implications discuss how TESOL professionals can integrate CMP into diverse ELT contexts, responding to the call to uptake powerful new ways to communicate and create knowledge and ideas for a more just society

The Central Characteristics of Successful ESL/EFL Teachers

Achieving optimal success in teaching English as a second language (ESL) or English as a foreign language (EFL) requires teachers to demonstrate varying essential characteristics that consist of several underlying and interacting constructs. The purpose of this article is to orient the reader and succinctly identify the key variables that lead ESL/EFL teachers to distinctive success. It clearly delineates the characteristics of successful ESL/EFL teachers embedded within five central dimensions, along with their underlying structures. It also provides common taxonomies of successful EFL teachers’ attributes without burdening the reader with unnecessary detail concerning the many other validated attributes associated with ESL/EFL teachers’ salient attributions of success. To this end, this discussion contributes to a theoretical understanding of the development of successful ESL/EFL teachers and to improved knowledge of the key characteristics of successful ESL/EFL teachers

Using Short Stories to Teach Language Skills

The notion that the main objective of EFL teaching is to help students to communicate fluently in the target language cause many teachers still believe that an EFL class should focus on mastering linguistic elements only. However, recent trend in EFL teaching indicates the necessity of integrating literature because of its rich potential to provide an authentic model of language use. Among literary genres, short stories seem to be the most suitable choice for this due to its potential to help students enhance the four skills—listening, speaking, reading and writing—more effectively because of the motivational benefit embedded in the stories. The purpose of this article is to familiarize EFL instructors with the effectiveness of using short stories in EFL instruction. After presenting criteria for selecting a short story, discussion is focused on how to exploit a short story for enhancing students\u27 language skills

Using Short Stories to Teach Language Skills

The notion that the main objective of EFL teaching is to help students to communicate fluently in the target language cause many teachers still believe that an EFL class should focus on mastering linguistic elements only. However, recent trend in EFL teaching indicates the necessity of integrating literature because of its rich potential to provide an authentic model of language use. Among literary genres, short stories seem to be the most suitable choice for this due to its potential to help students enhance the four skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing) more effectively because of the motivational benefit embedded in the stories. The purpose of this article is to familiarize EFL instructors with the effectiveness of using short stories in EFL instruction. After presenting the criteria for selecting a short story, the discussion is focused on how to exploit a short story for enhancing students' language skills

The Importance of Including Culture in EFL Teaching

Language and culture are two inseparable entities. Therefore, language learning is at once a cultural learning. One’s mastery of the linguistic elements alone does not guarantee he will be able to communicate through a language. Mastering the cultural element is a must. This paper discusses various research findings and opinions on the integration of culture into the teaching of foreign language teaching. The discussion aimed to highlight the foundation, the existence, impact, and technical integration of cultural elements into the teaching of English as a foreign language

The Importance of Including Culture in EFL Teaching

Language and culture are two inseparable entities. Therefore, language learning is at once a cultural learning. One's mastery of the linguistic elements alone does not guarantee he will be able to communicate through a language. Mastering the cultural element is a must. This paper discusses various research findings and opinions on the integration of culture into the teaching of foreign language teaching. The discussion aimed to highlight the foundation, the existence, impact, and technical integration of cultural elements into the teaching of English as a foreign language

Using Drama in EFL Classroom

Due to the many potential benefits and drama can offer in language learning, there has been a growing interest to use drama in ESL/EFL classrooms. However, the practice still causes many difficulties to both teachers and students due to several factors. This article reviews current theories and research findings on the use of drama in ESL/EFL teaching and learning to provide a better understanding of the use of drama to facilitate learning in EFL classrooms. It begins with current theories behind drama use in English learning. This section tries to clarify what drama is in the context of ESL/EFL, what benefits it offers, and what challenges teachers potentially meet. After that, the discussion focuses on a practical guideline for using drama in the classroom. It proceeds with a brief description of some useful drama techniques. The article ends by offering some concluding remarks

Corpora as Digital Humanities Tools for Learning Foreign Languages

Concurrent Session