A Dynamic Interplay of Professional Identities: Teacher-Researcher’s Identity (Re)Construction

While recent years have seen a research interest in the concept of teacher identity, still less is known about the interplay between teacher-researcher identity. This issue is important for the fields of applied linguistics and teacher education because it sheds light on teacher-scholars’ identity realizations. In this study, I examine the interrelations of teacher and researcher identity across different contexts and spaces. Namely, I analyze the trajectories of one teacher as he moved through countries and educational experiences. Data sources included semi-structured interviews, artifacts, and email correspondence. Beginning with the assumption that identity is a complex, dynamic, multidimensional, negotiated, and co-constructed process, I generated and analyzed data through holistic coding (Saldaña, 2016). I found that the participant demonstrated perception of his professional identity as a teacher in terms of duty. I discuss the points of transition, where the participant’s identities were re-shaped. My findings contribute to the conversation about the dichotomous view of teaching and researching

“Life Is Splendid Here in the U.S.”: Intercultural Learning in Contemporary Chinese Students’ Academic Adjustment

The increasing numbers of Chinese learners studying at American universities and the high mobility across borders have recently challenged prevailing stereotypes of Asians in education. While studies of Chinese students are abundant, there has been scant research on how intercultural learning unfolds in these students’ adjustment to both academic and social settings. To address this research gap, I center my case study around six of my former students from China and examine their progress at different U.S. institutions. Data from their journals were coded and analyzed qualitatively. In tracing my participants’ first semester trajectory and their strategies to adapt to the new environments, I draw on critical approaches to the established models of ICC (Byram, 1997; Deardorff, 2006; Dervin, 2016). Through investigating my students’ previous exposure to Western education and its role in their adjustment, their intercultural encounters in the U.S., and the learning that emerges from such encounters, this project offers insights into how previous linguistic and educational experiences can be mobilized and optimized to enhance intercultural learning and what frictions can occur in the process of adaptation. I also delineate characteristics of a new type of students from China, namely individuals who move fluidly between cultures in hybridized ways. I conclude by providing pedagogical implications for language educators who work with multicultural learners

Perceiving Identity through Accent Lenses: A Case Study of a Chinese English Speaker’s Perceptions of Her Pronunciation and Perceived Social Identity

Despite globalization making English a lingua franca, little is known how accent relates to learners’ identity. In this case study, I focus on a second language (L2) English user’s perspective. Specifically, I examine a Chinese speaker’s of English perceptions of the relationship between identity and pronunciation (accent). Drawing on Norton’s (2000) notion of identity, I applied a 6-point Likert scale questionnaire and conducted an in-depth semistructured interview. My findings indicate that accent and identity are closely linked, but my participant was not willing to sacrifice intelligible speech to identify with the American society. For this participant, speaking comprehensibly was more important than developing a new L2 identity. I delineate possible pedagogical implication and suggestions for future research

Interview with Martha Bigelow

Martha Bigelow is a Professor in Second Language Education at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. She has been engaged in community-engaged and school-based research with East African youth for more than ten years on the intersections of literacies, language learning, schooling and (racial, religious, gender) identities. She has published numerous journal articles and two books related to her work with adolescent Somali refugees in the United States: Literacy and Second Language Oracy (2009, Oxford University Press) with Elaine Tarone and Kit Hansen and Mogadishu on the Mississippi: Language, racialized identity and education in a new land (2010, Wiley Blackwell). She is the co-editor with Johanna Ennser-Kananen for the Routledge handbook of educational linguistics (2015) and she is currently working on a book with Doris Warriner entitled Relationships, reciprocity and research with minoritized communities: Methodological meta-reflections on power and equity (Multilingual Matters)

Interview with Andrea Révész

Andrea Révész is a senior lecturer in applied linguistics and TESOL at Institute of Education, University College London. Her research interests lie in the areas of second language acquisition (SLA) and second language instruction. In particular, she has conducted research on the roles of tasks, implicit/explicit learning and teaching, and individual differences in instructed second language development

Teaching and Learning English through Songs: A Literature Review

This literature review presents a report on research studies exploring the benefits of music at the cognitive, linguistic, and pedagogical levels. Ten studies that deal with the effects of music for young learners carried out in various contexts and countries were included in this account. Increasing motivation, gaining vocabulary and grammar understanding, and recalling information are the main recurrent themes mentioned as a result of implementing pedagogical interventions using songs, and, in some cases stories. To conclude some ideas for further research were briefly considered

Textbook Review- Anders Gedacht: Text and context in the German-speaking world

Anders Gedacht is an intermediate high/advanced level German textbook, appropriate most likely for 3rd or 4th-year students in a 4-year undergraduate German program. This textbook is content-based, written entirely in the target language with an accompanying workbook with supplemental exercises and activities, some of which are tasks. This book seeks to integrate aspects of German, Austrian, and Swiss culture through the use of culturally authentic materials such as stories, works of art, poetry, and film. This textbook offers additional exercises and materials through an online portal. The online component offers the opportunity for a hybrid curriculum as well as flipping the classroom

The Implementation of ISLA in MALL Technology: An Investigation into the Potential Effectiveness of Duolingo

Following the increased implementation of mobile learning across the globe, specifically in the area of mobile-assisted language learning (MALL; Burston, 2015; Duman et al., 2015), the current paper provides an evaluation of the highly popular MALL application Duolingo. Specifically, this evaluation targets how effectively instructed second language acquisition (ISLA) research and theory has been implemented by Duolingo programmers. While current frameworks for the evaluation of MALL technology (e.g., Reinders & Pegrum, 2015) place a significant focus on the learning affordances available, less emphasis has been placed on the implementation of ISLA theory. As such, Chapelle’s (2001) evaluation framework, originally developed for computer-assisted language learning programs, is revisited due to its basis in ISLA theory. Six criteria thus serve as the basis of this evaluation: Language Learning Potential, Meaning Focus, Authenticity, Learner Fit, Positive Impact, and Practicality. While certain benefits of Duolingo as a language learning tool are discussed, overall the evaluation indicates that the benefit of Duolingo is more likely as a learning support app than as the sole tool for autonomous learning