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Content Type: 1
Title: My 5 Favorite Simple Ways to Use Video in Class
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From http://ddeubel.edublogs.org/
This post looks at five ways of using video in class. Some activities will appeal to students with different learning styles and the article also includes links to specific examples and other ideas, as well as a screencast on how to easily create a listening cloze.
Access the article at http://ddeubel.edublogs.org/2015/04/21/my-5-fav-simple-ways-to-use-video-in-class/
Source: EFL 2.0 Teacher Talk
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Content Type: 3
Title: L2 Pragmatics and Subjectivity
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Noriko Ishihara is Professor of TEFL/Applied Linguistics at Hosei University, Japan. Her primary interest in language teaching is the incorporation of pragmatics into the L2 curriculum and language teacher education. She has developed class-based and online curricular materials for L2 English and L2 Japanese pragmatics, and facilitates teacher development courses in instructional pragmatics in Japan and the U.S.
What is pragmatics and why is it important?
Pragmatic competence is about how we understand others’ messages and how politely or casually, formally or informally, or directly or indirectly we express our intent orally or in writing in the given context. In each sociocultural context meaning is not necessarily spelled out directly. Whether speaker and listener, we jointly construct meaning through verbal and non-verbal means based on the context. In the process, we may confuse, mislead, misunderstand, or offend others inadvertently even in our first language. Understandably, the task becomes even more challenging in a second language (L2). In fact, comprehending socioculturally negotiated meaning can take an extended period of time, perhaps over ten years even in the target language context. Although pragmatic aspects are often neglected in language teaching, research has shown that the learning process can be accelerated through explicit pragmatics-focused instruction in either the second or foreign language context (Jeon & Kaya, 2006).
What is subjectivity and how is it related to pragmatics?
In pragmatic-focused instruction, a current approach includes enhancing learners’ awareness of what language forms are often preferred in the L2 community and how language choices and the context are mutually constitutive (Kasper & Rose, 2002). Another important consideration in instruction is learners’ subjectivity, such as their multicultural identities, values, personal principles, attitudes, and investments. Pragmatic language use is known to be intertwined with subjectivity. Although learners often attempt to accommodate to pragmatic norms and community practices of the target language, they sometimes elect to diverge and behave in a unique manner in order to negotiate their subjectivity or maintain an optimal distance from the target community (Ishihara, 2010; Siegal, 1996). Given such deliberate pragmatic resistance, it would be unfair to penalize them for their pragmatically divergent behavior.
What can we do to teach language in a culturally sensitive manner?
Given the above, what would culturally sensitive instruction in pragmatics look like in the classroom? While learner subjectivity should be respected, teachers still need to assess the extent of learners’ pragmatic awareness as well as their production. It is therefore important for language teachers to address pragmatic awareness in the classroom so that learners understand typical interpretations and likely consequences of their pragmatic choices (Thomas, 1983). Teachers should also assess learner language based on what learners know as typical responses in the target language community (by asking, for example, What would be a preferred response in this situation?) rather than how learners would choose to behave (by asking, What would you say in this situation?). Discussions of cultural reasoning behind L2 norms as well as instruction in communication strategies would also support learners’ development of multicultural subjectivities (Ishihara & Cohen, 2010).
References
Ishihara, N. (2010). Maintaining an optimal distance: Nonnative speakers’ pragmatic choice. In A. Mahboob (Ed.), The NNEST lens: Nonnative English speakers in TESOL (pp. 35-53). Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Press.
Ishihara, N., & Cohen, A. D. (2010). Teaching and learning pragmatics: Where language and culture meet. Harlow: Pearson Education.
Jeon, E. H., & Kaya, T. (2006). Effects of L2 instruction on interlanguage pragmatic development: A meta-analysis. In J. M. Norris & L. Ortega (Eds.), Synthesizing research on language learning and teaching (pp. 165-211). Amsterdam: Benjamins.
Kasper, G., & Rose, K. R. (2002). Pragmatic development in a second language. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing.
Siegal, M. (1996). The role of learner subjectivity in second language sociolinguistic competency: Western women learning Japanese. Applied Linguistics, 17(3), 356-382.
Thomas, J. (1983). Cross-cultural pragmatic failure. Applied Linguistics, 4(2), 91-109.
Source: CASLS Topic of the Week
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Content Type: 2
Title: Broken Links in Last Week's Activity of the Week
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You may have noticed that the links to the handouts to accompany last week's Activity of the Week didn't open. We have corrected the problem, and they should now work if you go to the online version of the activity at http://caslsintercom.uoregon.edu/content/19319. Unfortunately, we cannot change the links in your email itself once it has been sent. Thank you to our alert subscribers who informed us of the problem!
Source: CASLS
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Content Type: 5
Title: Student Workers Bring Fresh Ideas to CASLS
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Loreli Mann is a CASLS Fellow, and is currently contributing to the launching of CASLS' database for place and experience based language-learning projects. Loreli received her BA in Spanish and Spanish American Studies at Mills College in 2014. She is currently an MA student in the Language Teaching Specialization program in the University of Oregon Department of Linguistics. Loreli says she's "excited to be a part of the CASLS team!"
Ben Pearson is a CASLS Fellow and comes as an MA student from the Language Teaching Specialization program in the University of Oregon Department of Linguistics. He has been doing research on gaming pragmatics and task-based language teaching and is currently working on the Games2Teach website. Ben says, "CASLS has given me the opportunity to work in a very specialized field that I really enjoy. I am grateful to be professionally developing myself in the field of Linguistics, as well as applying my knowledge and expertise to gaming. I am looking forward to contributing to the work everyone does here, and learning some more along the way."
Colin Riegler is a student web developer at CASLS. He spends much of his time doing tech support, web design, and generally making things look good and run well. Colin says, "I’m very interested in cognitive science, and enjoy investigating the mathematics of neuroscience."
Colin, Loreli, and Ben in front of the Baker Center
Source: CASLS
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Title: April 2015 Issue of Reading in a Foreign Language
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From http://nflrc.hawaii.edu/rfl/
The April 2015 issue of Reading in a Foreign Language, a twice-annual free online publication from our sister LRC the National Foreign Language Resource Center, is now available at http://nflrc.hawaii.edu/rfl/April2015/ In this issue:
Effects of forward and backward contextual elaboration on lexical inferences: Evidence from a semantic relatedness judgment task
Akira Hamada
Reading and learning from L2 text: Effects of reading goal, topic familiarity, and language proficiency
Yukie Horiba & Keiko Fukaya
First language grapheme-phoneme transparency effects in adult second-language learning
Elizabeth Ijalba & Loraine K. Obler
Language learner strategy by Chinese-speaking EFL readers when comprehending familiar and unfamiliar texts
Jia-Ying Lee
The influence of translation on reading amount, proficiency, and speed in extensive reading
Nobuko Sakurai
The issue also includes reviews and a discussion of the question “What constitutes extensive reading?”
Access the issue at http://nflrc.hawaii.edu/rfl/April2015/
Source: NFLRC
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Title: Book: Assessing Multilingual Children
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From http://www.multilingual-matters.com/display.asp?isb=9781783093113
Assessing Multilingual Children Disentangling Bilingualism from Language Impairment
Edited by Sharon Armon-Lotem, Jan de Jong, and Natalia Meir
Published by Multilingual Matters
This book presents a comprehensive set of tools for assessing the linguistic abilities of bilingual children. It aims to disentangle effects of bilingualism from those of Specific Language Impairment (SLI), making use of both models of bilingualism and models of language impairment.
Visit the publisher’s website at http://www.multilingual-matters.com/display.asp?isb=9781783093113
Source: Multilingual Matters
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Title: Book: Foreign Language Learning as Intercultural Experience
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Title: Foreign Language Learning as Intercultural Experience: The Subjective Domain
Edited by Arnd Witte and Theo Harden
Published by Peter Lang International Academic Publishers
Learning a foreign language in its cultural context has a significant effect on the subjective mind, ranging from the unsettling to the inspirational. The complex interplay between native and foreign languages, their cultural conceptualisations and discourses and the mind and body of the learner results in the subjective construction of individual positionings located «in between» the languages and cultures involved. These processes are not restricted to the cognitive level of learning but also involve deep-seated habits, values and beliefs. These habits, values and beliefs are to a certain extent the result of subjective experiences and feelings; however, they are also embedded in a socio-cultural network of concepts, norms, traditions and life-worlds, so that they are characterised both by the learner’s subjectivity and by the sociality and (inter-)culturality of their environment.
The essays in this volume explore the subjective dimension of intercultural language learning, ranging from theoretical considerations to empirical studies and providing stimulating insights into this important area of study.
To purchase the book or see the table of contents go to http://www.peterlang.com/index.cfm?event=cmp.ccc.seitenstruktur.detailseiten&seitentyp=produkt&pk=84517&concordeid=431879
Source: Peter Lang International Academic Publishers
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Content Type: 1
Title: Call for papers: 34th Annual Second Language Research Forum (SLRF)
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From http://alsl.gsu.edu/second-language-research-forum-2015/
The Department of Applied Linguistics & ESL at Georgia State University is pleased to host the 34th annual Second Language Research Forum (SLRF) in Atlanta, Georgia, on October 29-31, 2015. The organizers invite proposals for papers, posters, and thematic colloquia (consisting of 3-4 papers each) for SLRF 2015. While they are especially interested in proposals that align with their conference theme, “Application, Context, and Language Use,” they welcome proposals from researchers from a variety of disciplines who represent all areas of second language research.
The deadline for paper and poster submissions for SLRF 2015 has been extended to Monday, May 11, 2015 (11:59pm Eastern Standard Time). Please visit http://alsl.gsu.edu/second-language-research-forum-2015/ for details.
The direct link to submissions can be found here: https://www.softconf.com/e/slrf2015/
Student Awards:
The organizers are also pleased to announce the availability of three SLRF 2015 Student Travel Awards. Abstracts with a current graduate student as first author will be considered for one of three $500 travel awards (to be awarded during the conference). Abstracts already submitted will already fall under consideration. Please email slrf2015 gmail.com if you have any questions.
For all the information go to http://alsl.gsu.edu/second-language-research-forum-2015/call-for-papers/
Source: Georgia State University
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Title: Call for papers: CLASP IV
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From http://www.colorado.edu/clasp/conference-cfp.html
The program in Culture, Language and Social Practice (CLASP) at the University of Colorado Boulder is pleased to invite submissions to its graduate-student-run interdisciplinary conference. Abstracts for 20 minute papers covering topics in various areas of sociocultural linguistics are invited and are due by June 15th, 2015. They encourage papers that focus on the broad connections between language, culture and society and are grounded in empirical research. Examples of possible frameworks or analytic traditions may include, but are not limited to:
Sociolinguistics
Linguistic anthropology
Critical discourse analysis
Narrative Studies
Conversation analysis
Language and identity
Computer-mediated discourse
Discourse-pragmatics
Ethnography of speaking
Language and literacy
Bilingualism and code-switching
Verbal art and performance
Language and globalization
Intercultural communication
Language socialization
Interactional linguistics
Abstracts are due by June 15, 2015.
For all the information go to http://www.colorado.edu/clasp/conference-cfp.html
Source: University of Colorado
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Title: MOOC: Shaping the Way We Teach English, 2: Paths to Success in ELT
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From https://www.coursera.org/course/shaping2paths
Last January the University of Oregon started the second round of MOOCs for ELT professionals. Here you can see the first part that was offered.
This second part starts May 11 and the topics include:
• Week 1: Integrating skills and using tasks to motivate learners; project overview, introductions
• Week 2: Alternative assessment that shows what learners can do with language; lesson plan phase 1 is due
• Week 3: Incorporating individual learning differences in instruction; peer and self-evaluations are due
• Week 4: Ideas for effective classroom management; final lesson plan is due
• Week 5: Improving practice with reflective teaching; final peer and self-evaluations are due.
Learn more about this MOOC and register for free at https://www.coursera.org/course/shaping2paths
Source: Coursera
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