An Investigation of Pre-Service English Language Teacher Attitudes towards Varieties of English in Interaction

English has become the default language of global communication, and users around the world are adapting the traditional standards of grammar and interaction. It is imperative that teachers of English keep pace with these changing conceptualizations of the language as well as the changing expectations of its users so that they can best prepare language learners for the sociolinguistic realities they will encounter. Teacher training programs have a critical role to play in that they must keep pace with both the changing global linguistic landscape and how these changes influence pre-service teachers. It is therefore imperative to understand the attitudes of pre-service teachers towards the varieties of English that their students will encounter. This study considers the attitudes of pre-service TESOL teachers towards varieties of native and non-native English as used in naturalistic communicative situations. It considers personal factors that may play a role in how participants evaluate the interactive speech samples and whether TESOL training programs influence the development of attitudes towards language-in-use. To this end, a mixed methods design involving three primary components was used: an online survey of 70 respondents from 26 institutions, four focus group interviews, and a curriculum analysis of five teacher training programs. This study is unique in that participants evaluate speech-in-action that is representative of the types of language found in many English as a lingua franca (ELF) settings. Among other things, primary results suggest that (a) standard language ideology influences many participant assessments of both native and non-native speech, (b) teacher training programs exert at least some influence on the attitudes of pre-service teachers towards varieties of spoken English in discourse, and (c) engagement with non-native speech in teacher preparation courses and language learning as a component of a curriculum can benefit pre-service teachers. Implications for applied linguistics, teacher training, and ELF are considere

Adult Educator Views On Impact And Learner Fit In Integrated Digital English Acceleration (I-Dea) Classrooms

The Integrated Digital English Acceleration (I-DEA) teaching method uses a Flipped Classroom (FC) design to fast-track the English Language Acquisition (ELA) and digital literacy skills development of adults enrolled at Community and Technical Colleges (CTCs) and Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) in the United States. I-DEA projects and programs are in various stages of implementation throughout the U.S., but few accounts of the method’s impact on teaching and learning and fit for adult English language learners (ELLs) have been published. I-DEA is a “flipped” (blended) instructional delivery method for Adult Basic Education (ABE). Evaluation of its impact and fit contributes to the literature on Flipped Classrooms, Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL), and Integrated Education and Training (IET). To evaluate the I-DEA method’s impact and fit, an online questionnaire was administered to current and former I-DEA instructors in the United States. Respondents (n=8) provided Likert scale ratings of agreement or disagreement, along with written responses to explain their rating selections. Instructors overwhelmingly agreed that the I-DEA method’s FC design has helped students acquire English at a faster pace than they would in non-I-DEA classes. Support for the method’s learner fit was not as robust: Fifty percent of the sample group voiced concerns about the linguistic complexity of its lessons for beginners (NRS 1 & 2). The results of this small-scale, mixed-methods study provide evidence to support claims about the I-DEA method’s impact, while raising new questions about its fit for adult ELL beginners. Our findings suggest that the Flipped Classroom may be most impactful and suitable for English learners in High Beginner (NRS 3) classrooms. Modifications to IDEA lessons are recommended for classrooms with NRS 1 and 2 level students. Further study, including action research in I-DEA classrooms, is recommended