The Effects of Differentiated Instruction on Students’ Language Attitude and Critical Thinking in an ESL Context

Acknowledging the inevitable differences between learners in terms of learning capabilities, readiness, and aptitudes, some educators have strived for a more responsive teaching practice. The approach, which is labelled differentiated instruction, aims to help teachers to accommodate all types of learning needs in a single classroom. The present study investigates the effects of an English language module developed using the differentiated instruction framework in an ESL (English as a Second Language) context in Malaysia. Much of the impetus to integrate differentiated instruction as a teaching framework in the Malaysian classroom stems from the requirement for differentiated teaching as stated in the Malaysia Education Blueprint 2013-2025, a Ministry of Education’s document seeking to improve the country’s education system. The study was designed to promote evidence-based classroom practice in Malaysia by developing a differentiated teaching module and measuring its effects on students from an intact classroom of 16-year-old students at a government-funded school. The research design was facilitated by the mixed methods approach; the data collection was conducted through pre- and post-tests and later through a series of semi-structured interviews. Prior to the intervention period, the study began by developing a differentiated lesson checklist based on the literature. The differentiated module was then created in accordance with the national curriculum and the student-participants’ language learning style preferences and implemented for 13 weeks. The first part of the data collection and analysis measured the student-participants’ language attitude and critical thinking through pre- and post-tests. The two-tailed paired-samples t-test on language attitude suggested that the participants scored significantly higher in the post-test with a large effect size (d=0.89). On measuring critical thinking, it was also revealed that the participants scored significantly higher in the post-test but with a medium effect size (d=0.58). Meanwhile, the interview data were discussed around three main themes: a) similarity and differences between differentiated instruction and conventional teaching approach, b) impact of differentiated instruction on students’ language attitude and critical thinking, and c) future of differentiated instruction in Malaysia. The study suggested positive effects albeit of varying degrees on students’ language attitude and critical thinking with encouraging feedback from both teacher and students. The effects concurred with previous studies in that differentiated instruction had induced autonomous learning experience and it resulted in a student-centred classroom. The findings were in line with the government’s vision for the education sector, suggesting the possibility for further similar studies to be carried out gradually across the nation to increase the generalizability of the reported findin

Exploring ESL Teachers’ Insights on Corrective Oral Feedback in a Malaysian Secondary Education Context

Feedback is one of the most significant elements in the process of teaching and learning. It serves as a tool to enhance students’ second language proficiency. Thus, the purpose of this study is to investigate how oral feedback is viewed and how it has been maneuvered to assist second language learner’s linguistic competence from the viewpoint of English teachers. Teachers’ perception of feedback is very important because it will determine the amount of feedback used in the process of teaching and learning. This is a qualitative study employing case study research design. It was conducted to 10 English language teachers from secondary schools in Malaysia The instrument used in this study was a semi-structured interview. Data collected from the interview were analyzed using thematic analysis. Several themes have been found during data analysis such as feedback as tool for motivation, oral feedback and learning from mistakes, students’ acceptance of teachers’ oral feedback and feedback as a medium to develop language proficiency. The result indicated that English teachers in Malaysia generally showed positive perception of oral feedback. Furthermore, teachers also reported to have noticed improvement in students’ language competence by listening to teachers’ feedback. Therefore, appropriate measure should be taken to ensure that teachers can provide effective oral feedback during teaching and learning

Zadovoljevanje potreb učencev s posebnimi učnimi težavami pri poučevanju jezika na daljavo in v živo: prepričanja in prakse učiteljev

Drawing on communities of practice and social cognitive learning theories, this paper explores language teachers’ beliefs, knowledge and practices concerning the provision of high-quality education to learners with specific learning difficulties in various educational settings around the world. The data sample for this paper comprises qualitative data (video-recorded interviews and teaching resources) collected from six teachers working across various educational settings (primary, secondary, college and university) across several geographical areas (Europe, Middle East, and Southeast Asia). Thematic analysis was adopted to analyse the data. The findings suggest that teachers continue to experience challenges in educating learners with specific learning difficulties regardless of the educational setting. Limited opportunities for receiving specialised training in this area have been identified by several teachers as one of the key factors affecting the quality of their practice. The change in the mode of instruction from face-to-face to online was not always reported as negatively affecting the quality of educational provision to learners with specific learning difficulties. Technology-assisted online lesson delivery was seen as being advantageous to learners with some types of learning difficulties. Findings from this paper can be useful to teacher-practitioners and teacher-educators who are interested in improving the quality of language education for learners with specific learning difficulties. (DIPF/Orig.

Instrucción diferenciada y su impacto en la actitud lingüística de los estudiantes preuniversitarios de ESL

Modern education has acknowledged the importance of differentiating lessons to meet multifarious needs for learning within a single classroom. The diverse needs are especially evident in language classrooms as they are often comprised of learners with different levels of proficiency and motivated by different learning triggers. This study examines the impacts of differentiated instruction (DI) on ESL students’ language attitude in a tertiary education setting following a four-week classroom intervention. Through the longitudinal study, 21 second semester students (age 18) from a matriculation college in South Peninsular, Malaysia were involved. The student-participants’ English language attitude was measured through three constructs, namely cognitive, affective, and behavioural and was analysed and reported separately before they were amalgamated to form a general report of language attitude. Through a purposive sampling, the participants were selected and their learning styles were using Grasha-Reichmann Scale Survey prior to the intervention. Driven by the learning style preference test results, differentiated learning activities were designed to accommodate the different types of learning style preference. The intervention, which spanned four weeks, included a pre- and post-test based on Gardner’s Attitude and Motivation Test Battery to measure and re-measure the participants’ language attitude. The findings revealed no statistically significant difference between the mean scores of the pre- and post-test. However, a new pattern was identified when the three constructs were ranked as opposed to previous studies. Some pedagogical implications were discussed at the end of the paper for ESL instructors to consider in enriching their teaching repertoire.La educación moderna ha reconocido la importancia de diferenciar las lecciones para satisfacer las múltiples necesidades de aprendizaje dentro de un solo salón de clases. Las diversas necesidades son especialmente evidentes en las aulas de idiomas, ya que a menudo están formadas por alumnos con diferentes niveles de competencia y motivados por diferentes factores desencadenantes del aprendizaje. Este estudio examina los impactos de la instrucción diferenciada (DI) en la actitud lingüística de los estudiantes de ESL en un entorno de educación terciaria después de una intervención en el aula de cuatro semanas. A través del estudio longitudinal, participaron 21 estudiantes del segundo semestre (18 años) de una universidad de matriculación en el sur de la península de Malasia. La actitud del idioma inglés de los estudiantes participantes se midió a través de tres constructos, a saber, cognitivo, afectivo y conductual, y se analizó e informó por separado antes de fusionarse para formar un informe general de la actitud del idioma. A través de una muestra intencional, los participantes fueron seleccionados y sus estilos de aprendizaje estaban utilizando la Encuesta de Escala Grasha-Reichmann antes de la intervención. Impulsados ​​por los resultados de las pruebas de preferencia de estilo de aprendizaje, las actividades de aprendizaje diferenciadas se diseñaron para acomodar los diferentes tipos de preferencia de estilo de aprendizaje. La intervención, que duró cuatro semanas, incluyó una prueba previa y posterior basada en la Batería de prueba de actitud y motivación de Gardner para medir y volver a medir la actitud lingüística de los participantes. Los hallazgos no revelaron diferencias estadísticamente significativas entre las puntuaciones medias de la prueba previa y posterior. Sin embargo, se identificó un nuevo patrón cuando las tres construcciones se clasificaron en comparación con estudios anteriores. Se discutieron algunas implicaciones pedagógicas al final del documento para que los instructores de ESL las tengan en cuenta al enriquecer su repertorio de enseñanza

Meeting the Needs of Learners with Specific Learning Difficulties in Online and Face-to-Face Language Classrooms: Teacher Beliefs and Practices

Drawing on communities of practice and social cognitive learning theories, this paper explores language teachers’ beliefs, knowledge and practices concerning the provision of high-quality education to learners with specific learning difficulties in various educational settings around the world. The data sample for this paper comprises qualitative data (videorecorded interviews and teaching resources) collected from six teachers working across various educational settings (primary, secondary, college and university) across several geographical areas (Europe, Middle East, and Southeast Asia). Thematic analysis was adopted to analyse the data. The findings suggest that teachers continue to experience challenges in educating learners with specific learning difficulties regardless of the educational setting. Limited opportunities for receiving specialised training in this area have been identified by several teachers as one of the key factors affecting the quality of their practice. The change in the mode of instruction from face-to-face to online was not always reported as negatively affecting the quality of educational provision to learners with specific learning difficulties. Technology-assisted online lesson delivery was seen as being advantageous to learners with some types of learning difficulties. Findings from this paper can be useful to teacher-practitioners and teacher-educators who are interested in improving the quality of language education for learners with specific learning difficulties

Improving students’ classroom participation through creative pedagogical strategies

Low-proficient students’ low performance in English as a second language (ESL) descriptive writing was observed to be related to their lack of participation in the teaching and learning process. This presents a need to explore alternative pedagogical strategies that could boost their participation, and thus their performance. This action research explored the effect of using creative pedagogical strategies on the classroom participation of 38 students at one of the secondary schools in Petaling Perdana District, Selangor. Focus group interviews, observation, and researcher’s reflective notes were utilised for data collection. Results show that students’ participation levels systematically improved at every cycle. Findings also revealed that the creative teaching strategies utilised caused active involvement in lessons and fostered cooperation among students in completing tasks. The multifarious materials and interactive tasks used during the lessons inspired communication and discussions among students. Learning from multiple resources provides enthusiasm to learn among students. Lastly, teaching strategies that require active participation developed positive mindset that developed positive attitude towards learning among the students. In conclusion, creative pedagogical strategies that are based on the students’ learning needs have a straightforward and positive effect on boosting the students’ participation in learning

COVID-19 insights and linguistic methods

The emergence of COVID-19 affects the world population in many ways, resulting in its own specialised discourse. In addition to providing a source of data for analysis, this discourse has also led to a rethinking of multifarious research methods. This section presents a series of articles by scholars from different parts of the world with macro- and micro-linguistic perspectives, ranging from corpus-based analysis to content analysis studies. At the macro level, these scholars explored ways through which government bodies communicate with the public. Official announcements, parliamentary proceedings and COVID-19-related corpora are examined and a comparative textual analysis between the Malaysian and British governments is provided. At the micro level, the scholars analysed selected corpora with lexical, semantic, and discourse foci and personal posts of short narratives and photos to encapsulate meanings from human life and experience. The main takeaway from these studies is the application of a wide range of methods for different focus and perspectives that may be customised to the researcher’s unique context

Exploring English descriptive writing vocabulary acquisition through creative pedagogical strategies

Review on previous English as a second language (ESL) interventional programmes in Malaysia has indicated limited emphasis on creative pedagogy. Particularly in writing classes that include descriptive writing, a genre that requires writers to be creative and expressive, a significant portion of learners were found to suffer from poor proficiency. Therefore, the present study aimed to explore the impact of creative pedagogical strategies on ESL learners’ descriptive writing. Under classroom research, it adopted the action research design with a single case study to monitor upper secondary school learners’ writing with an emphasis on sentence construction and vocabulary. The data collection involved focus group interviews, written tests, and evaluation of students’ written work. It was revealed that creative pedagogical strategies were effective in improving students’ descriptive writing performance. The main findings derived included five themes as the following: ability to describe pictures using complex vocabulary, learning new words, acquisition of various adjectives and verbs, ability to show emotion or feelings, and acquisition of skill for delivering meaning with precision. We propose a chain of parallel action-related research plans to further investigate creative teaching approaches and to encourage similar creative pedagogical strategies by English teachers in the country

Workplace writing in English: insights from Malaysian bank managers.

This paper discusses the findings of a series of interviews with three local commercial bank managers, describing workplace writing among Malaysian bank executives as writers of English as a second language (ESL). Existing studies on workplace writing are found to be limited in number, particularly those that investigate writing among bank executives. In addition, the status of English as a second language (L2) poses an inherent linguistic challenge for Malaysians and, thus, results in a different set of writing needs than for native writers of English. These factors illustrate the need for an in-depth investigation of the Malaysian banking institutions context. This study is part of a larger research, and data from this study was collected through semi-structured interviews,involving three managers as experienced informants. Their feedback was divided into four categories: the language of correspondence, the writing responsibilities at each bank, the roles of computers and writing software to assist in writing tasks, and the future of writing software programs in Malaysia. The findings can be summarized as follows: 1) English was the correspondence language in two out of the three banks; 2) writing was a frequent responsibility among most of the executives; 3) the executives were generally not provided any assistance with regard to writing; and, 4) a writing software program tailored for ESL writers was deemed a necessary form of assistance in consideration of the multiple tasks that need to be performed by the bank executives

Perbandingan kemahiran generik pelajar opsyen bahasa Melayu di sebuah IPTA dan IPGM

Kajian ini bertujuan untuk mengkaji perbandingan kemahiran generik pelajar-pelajar opsyen Bahasa Melayu yang belajar di sebuah Institut Pengajian Tinggi Awam (IPTA) dan Institut Pendidikan Guru Malaysia (IPGM). Tiga kemahiran generik digunakan bagi membuat perbandingan, iaitu kemahiran komunikasi, kepimpinan dan kerja berkumpulan. Seramai 127 orang pelajar dijadikan responden kajian. Daripada jumlah tersebut, seramai 77 orang pelajar IPTA dan 50 orang pelajar IPGM. Instrumen MyGSI digunakan. dalam mengukur perbandingan kemahiran generik pelajar opsyen Bahasa Melayu ini. Data dianalisis menggunakan statistik deskriptif dengan menggunakan kekerapan, peratusan dan min. Dapatan kajian menunjukkan bahawa pelajar IPTA lebih banyak menggunakan ketiga-tiga kemahiran generik berbanding pelajar IPGM