Systematizing Teacher Development:A Review of Foreign Language Teacher Learning

Foreign language teaching practice is developing rapidly,but research on foreign language teacher learning is currently relatively fragmented and unstructured.The book Foreign Language Teacher Learning,written by Professor Kang Yan from Capital Normal University,published in September 2022,makes a systematic introduction to foreign language teacher learning,which to some extent makes up for this shortcoming.Her book presents the lineage of foreign language teacher learning research at home and abroad,analyzes both theoretical and practical aspects,reviews the cuttingedge research results,and foresees the future development trend,painting a complete research picture for researchers in the field of foreign language teaching and teacher education as well as front-line teachers interested in foreign language teacher learning.This is an important inspiration for conducting foreign language teacher learning research in the future.And this paper makes a review of the book from aspects such as its content,major characteristics,contributions and limitations.

Let’s Talk LGBTQIA+:Strategies and Activities for Teaching Diversity and Inclusion in the Foreign Language Classroom at the College Level

In this presentation,the author explores strategies and activities that create a welcoming and nurturing environment for LGBTQIA+foreign language students at the college level in the United States.Indeed,as it is commonly stated,there is a clear lack of visibility,acceptance/tolerance,and inclusion of LGBTQIA+voices(active and proactive)in foreign language teaching and learning(pedagogical material as well as in-class attitudes and delivery).The reasons for this deficiency are diverse since they cover not only outward discrimination against and/or indifference(passive-aggressive behavior)toward the LGBTQIA+community and its plight,but they also illustrate the sheer,physical inexistence of quality material that can be used to create,present,and foster a welcoming and all-encompassing classroom environment that addresses the diverse spectrum of the LGBTQIA+community while its members try to learn a foreign language and(positively)negotiate how to express their very identity in their new language of choice.Moreover,the scant material that is available in the United States as well as in other Western countries where the LGBTQIA+community by and large is accepted-at least from the legal point of view-hardly represents and covers the subject matter in a satisfactory way.To address this gap,the author will provide some examples in European Portuguese(EP)and Italian(IT),followed by a courtesy translation in English,to illustrate some positive activities and strategies for including LGBTQIA+-related subject matter in the foreign language classroom at the college level.It is his desire that instructors of other foreign languages duplicate in their respective vernaculars the strategies and activities herein presented in order to create a welcoming and safe classroom environment that embraces the LGBTQIA+community as it goes through the enjoyable journey of learning a new language and culture.

An Empirical Study on Foreign Language Majors’Needs for Ideological and Political Education Elements in Chinese Universities

The paper takes 2076 undergraduate students majoring in foreign languages from 15 Chinese universities as the research subjects to investigate their demand for ideological and political education elements in foreign language courses.The results show that:(1)Students have high needs for ideological and political education elements in foreign language courses;(2)There are differences in students’needs for ideological and political education elements across different dimensions.Students have higher demand for dimensions such as personal qualities,cultural literacy,moral cultivation,and patriotism,while their demand for dimensions related to constitutional law and political identity is relatively low.Therefore,foreign language majors in Chinese universities should optimize the supply of ideological and political education elements in their courses according to students’needs,and improve the effectiveness of moral education in these courses.

An Empirical Study on Students’Evaluation of Moral Education in Foreign Language Education in China

Students’evaluation of moral education is of great significance for improving the quality of teaching.Through a survey of 2715 undergraduates majoring in foreign languages,this paper analyzes their evaluation of the moral education.Findings show that students speak highly of teachers’competence in moral education,teaching methods and the integration of moral education in the textbooks,but not in the course assessment and the overall effect of moral education.Suggestions were proposed accordingly to improve moral education of foreign language education in China.

Research on Foreign Language Talent Cultivation Mode Based on the Concept of Language Security

Language security is an important part of national security,and in the current complex international environment,the issue of language security is becoming more and more prominent and has become an unignorable part of national security strategy.As the bridge and link of international communication,foreign language talents’language skills and the level of national security awareness directly affect our country’s international image and the effect of international communication.Therefore,the establishment of a foreign language talent cultivation mode based on the concept of language security is not only an important way to improve the quality of foreign language education but also a realistic need to safeguard national security and promote international exchanges.Starting from the influence of the language security concept on foreign language talent cultivation,this paper analyzes the foreign language talent cultivation mode based on the language security concept,with a view to providing new ideas and methods for the development of foreign language education.

Research Nexus and Implications of Learner Identity in Foreign Language Education

One of the most obvious markers of an individual’s identity is their language.However,in some ways,the relationship between identity and language acquisition seems to be missed.In fact,a lot of studies have shown that identity may influence the reasons behind language acquisition,especially in bilingual or multilingual societies.Learning English can provide EFL(English as a Foreign Language)students with a good sense of identity and encourage them to practice their agency,which can improve learning efficiency and effectiveness.This paper examines how the efficacy and results of language learning are influenced by the learner’s identity.

Research on the Status Quo and Improvement Needs of Foreign Language Teachers’ Teaching Competence in Curriculum-Based Ideological Education in Xinjiang Colleges and Universities

This study investigated the status quo and further improvement needs of foreign language teachers’teaching competence in curriculum-based ideological education(CIE)in Xinjiang colleges and universities.The results show that the teachers’teaching competence in CIE is generally good,with the“cultivating quality”being the highest and the“scientific research quality”the lowest;there still exist several problems,such as teachers’lack of theoretical knowledge in CIE,lack of teaching resources,and insufficient abilities in teaching design and research.It is hoped that with the support and efforts from university administrations,teachers can improve their teaching competence in CIE through various approaches adopted and multiple measures taken,thus optimizing their teaching effectiveness,promoting the construction of CIE in Xinjiang colleges and universities in the new era,and contributing to Xinjiang’s high-quality development.

Review of Studies of Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety

Anxiety is considered to be one of the key psychological variables as well as one of the important emotional factors that affect language learning. Taken into account that classroom is the main place in which Chinese college students learn English,it is of great significance to study students' language anxiety in the classroom environment. Based on the previous researches, this paper reviews the relevant studies in this area conducted at home and abroad.

A Study on Left-behind Junior Students'Foreign Language Learning Anxiety

Since the 1960s, foreign language educators and researchers home and abroad have started to pay attention to the influence of the affective variables including language learning anxiety on foreign language learning. This thesis tried to find out the factors that may influence the foreign language learning anxiety level of left-behind students and put forward ways to help lower down the foreign language learning anxiety level of the left-behind junior middle school students.

An Analysis of the Foreign Language Anxiety among Chinese Non-English Majors

In college English learning, many learning variables are considered to influence the proficiency of studying, among which, anxiety is one of the most important affective variables. There is a negative correlation between anxiety and foreign language learning. The present study explores the correlation between foreign language anxiety and language performance. It put forward two suggestions concerning what language teachers can do to help Non-English Major students lower their foreign language anxiety.

Researches on Foreign Language Learning Anxiety

Foreign language anxiety is one of the factors of affecting foreign language achievement. It is negatively associated with language skill learning. This article will show some researches on foreign language anxiety from certain aspects.

Foreign Language Enjoyment and Anxiety:Associations With General and Domain-Specific English Achievement

Recent research has confirmed the predictive effect of general foreign language(FL) achievement on Foreign Language Enjoyment(FLE) and Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety(FLCA).However,few studies have examined the effect of domain-specific language achievement in shaping FL learning emotions.The present study thus aims to examine how FLE and FLCA are linked to overall FL achievement and self-perceived achievement in six different domains across listening,speaking,reading,writing,vocabulary,and grammar.A total of 1,415 Chinese senior secondary students participated in the questionnaire survey.Regression analyses showed that 1) both FLE and FLCA were predicted more by self-perceived general English proficiency,while less by actual English achievement;2) perceptions of speaking and grammar competence were significant predictors of both emotions;3) perceived reading competence predicted FLE significantly but not FLCA;and that 4) perceptions of listening,writing,and vocabulary competence predicted neither FLE nor FLCA.The implication is that domain-specificity should be taken into consideration in future explorations of FL emotions.

A Brief Analysis About the Function of the Communicative Approach -- It Can Lighten Classroom Anxiety in Foreign Language Teaching

Classroom Anxiety is very common and to some extent it influences students＇ achievements in foreign language learning. So, how to solve this problem in order to help students have a good performance in foreign language learning is a very urgent issue. According to the writer＇s study, communicative approach is an effective method to deal with it.

Reflections on Cultivating Critical Thinking in Foreign Language Courses in the Context of Integrating Ideological and Political Theories in All Courses

The education reform of integrating ideological and political theories in all courses is crucial in fostering virtue through education.In the new era,foreign language courses are increasingly prominent in moral education.Learning a language is not just about mastering its language form but also about critically examining the cultural connotations and thinking patterns embedded within it.Therefore,cultivating students’critical thinking skills should be a key focus in foreign language education.First,this paper examines the importance of fostering students’critical thinking in foreign language courses.Second,considering the characteristics of Chinese college foreign language courses,we propose that if we want to cultivate critical thinking among students through foreign language courses,we need to effect pattern transformations across four aspects:teaching philosophy,teaching content,teaching methodology,and teaching evaluation.These transformations also present requirements for foreign language teachers.They should focus on enhancing their comprehensive literacy,including ideological and political literacy,teaching design skills,and the ability to integrate teaching materials with logical thinking.And China’s Standards of English Language Ability(the CSE)serves as an important reference indicator for implementing these transformations.

Study on the relationship between the reading anxiety and the reading strategy in foreign language learning

This study is concerned with the possible relationship between language anxiety and language learning strategies in reading process among the students of English as a foreign language （EFL）. Participants consist of a volunteer pool of 120 sophomore non-English majors. Versions of previously published measurement scales, the Foreign Language Reading Anxiety Scales （FLRAS） and the Survey of the Reading Strategies （SOR）, were administered to the subjects as measures of foreign language anxiety and foreign language learning strategy preferences. Based on the collected data, the statistics descriptions were performed to investigate the students＇ anxiety state and strategy use level. The analyses suggest that most of students have the anxiety level above the mean, and the anxiety regarding the reading confidence is mainly responsible for the students＇ reading anxiety, and meanwhile, students use more cognitive strategies in their reading and the level of their language learning strategies are relatively low. Results indicate no significant differences between males and females on their anxiety level, as well as their strategy use. Furthermore, a Pearson correlation analysis reveals that, for the most learners, the anxiety state do hinder them from choosing effective strategies in their reading. The study explores the relationship between the reading anxiety and the reading strategy, demonstrates the effects of the anxiety reduction training on the strategy use, provides the implications for foreign language teachers that in reading comprehension teaching they should focus more on students＇ anxiety, especially their reading confidence anxiety, and encourage them more.

Ways to Overcome Foreign Language Anxiety in Listening and Speaking for Middle School Students

Listening and speaking, being important components in English language learning, are affected by many factors,includ-ing one negative emotion, foreign language anxiety. This paper discusses the effects of foreign language anxiety on middle schoolstudents in English listening and speaking. It analyzes the causes of this anxiety in terms of teachers, students, schools, methodolo-gies and cultural background. The relevant teaching strategies are presented to reduce students' language anxiety and improvetheir listening and speaking.

The Situation, Policies, and Development of Foreign Language Education in Contemporary China

Foreign language education is an important part of Chinese education,but the overall foreign language education in China is still relatively underdeveloped.Foreign language education and policies in contemporary China are closely related to China’s political,economic,and social development.The contemporary Chinese foreign language education and policies,since the establishment of New China in 1949,can be divided into four periods.The first period is a period of domination by the Russian language(1949–1956),the second period is a period of exploration and transformation(1956–1966),the third period is a period of interruption(1966–1978),and the fourth period is a period of development and improvement(1978 to present).Understanding foreign language education and policies in contemporary Chinese universities can contribute to the future development of foreign language education and policies in China.

An Analysis of Foreign Language Learning Anxiety in Junior English Classes

There are many factors influencing junior students’English learning and this paper focuses on one aspect of affective factors—foreign language learning anxiety.It has negative effects on students’learning,so suggestions are given in the paper.Students are supposed to be more confident and have a proper awareness of language learning and competition;teachers are expected to change beliefs about language teaching and create a relaxing atmosphere in class.

How to Overcome the Negative Effect of Language Anxiety on Foreign Language Learning

Language anxiety is an important emotional variable affecting language learning. There are three factors that cause the foreign language anxiety. The effective measures should be taken to overcome the negative effect of language anxiety.

Development of International Chinese Language Education in Iran:An Analysis in the Context of Iran’s Foreign Language Policy Characteristics

This paper focuses on examining the relevant policies concerning Chinese language education within Iran’s foreign language education policy framework from the perspective of its historical context.By analyzing the characteristics of Iran’s foreign language policy and the current situation of Chinese language teaching in Iran,this paper studies the future development of international Chinese language education in Iran.