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.

Teachers' Perspective on Language Learning Strategies in Second Language Acquisition

"Teaching how to learn"has become very popular nowadays,and it is also very important to explore language learn ing strategies(LLS) in second language acquisition(SLA). Teachers' perspective will greatly affect the result of strategy instruction and training and how to help students acquire second language effectively is worthy researching.

Intercultural Language Education and the Challenges Chinese College English Teachers Face

Currently,intercultural language education is a topic which receives much interest due to the rise of globalization,but theories and practice in this field are on the preliminary stage of development in China.To understand ILE better,its background,theory basis,goals,related researches are reviewed and analyzed.Since ILE is relatively new in China,language teachers are facing new challenges in developing intercultural teaching competence to achieve the success of language education.Such challenges consist of understanding the language itself,the difficulty in understanding and teaching culture,designing practical classroom activities and selecting content.

Curriculum Innovation in Language Teacher Education:Reflections on the PGDELT Program’s Contributions to EFL Teachers’Continuing Professional Development

Initial teacher preparation and teachers’ continuing professional development are two significant pillars of the teacher education enterprise. The former encompasses a wide range of teachereducation initiatives at the levels of diploma, bachelor’s degree, postgraduate diploma, and even master’s degree for teacher licensure purposes. These are widely documented in the literature.What is important is how teacher professional development contributes to bolstering the teachereducator force, which is relatively insufficiently documented due to the very fact that different educational systems have somewhat different expectations of such programs in relation to the ideologies and theories underpinning the teacher professional development program design and curriculum offering. Taking stock of a postgraduate diploma program in English language teaching(PGDELT) for teachers’ continuing professional development with a 31-year history housed at a premier teacher education institution in Singapore, which has successfully graduated over 1, 000 English language teachers for colleges and universities in China, I intend to highlight some of its key features, as a former student and then a lecturer on the program, in order to draw implications for sustainable growth of language teacher education programs, especially those whose main purposes are to prepare teachers of English as a second or foreign language(ESL/EFL) and provide continuing professional development opportunities for such inservice teachers.

Talk about Graduate Student of educational teacher expanding the path of employment in the local comprehensive university - An example of Chinese Language and Literature in my school

With the increasing amount of college graduates every year, the employer needs structural contradiction, traditional college graduates employment difficulties. Chinese Language and Literature is as a strong tradition of employment facing unprecedented challenges. Based on the severe employment situation, Teacher Education in Local Comprehensive Universities need to start improving their own quality of graduates, and actively guide the graduates to change jobs ideas, updating the concept of employment, and use existing resources, and actively expand employment channels, and explore new ideas and open up new market, employment path is becoming more diverse to ensure employment stability and sustainable development.

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.

Teacher's Role in Intercultural Language Education

Internationalization and globalization bring encounter of different languages and cultures.International and domestic researchers have been discussing the necessity of developing language learner's intercultural competence,due to the limitation of traditional communicative language education(Corbett,2003).This paper intends to illustrate the significance of teacher's role in developing intercultural competence.The author defines language teacher as active information provider,guide and intercultural learner.

（Re）Constructing Pedagogical Knowledge in English as a Foreign Language Teacher Education Courses

English language teaching in the post-method condition demands the preparation of critical professionals capable of developing their teaching practice to enhance their pupils＇ language learning process. These professionals should also be able to recognize their prior knowledge as a potential tool to teach and to act autonomously in different educational contexts. Therefore, pre-service teacher education courses need to provide favorable conditions for teacher candidates to engage in reflective practice in order to foster continuous professional development. The main goal of this paper is to discuss the complexity of the pedagogical knowledge （re）construction process in an English as a foreign language （EFL） teacher education course, attempting to understand prospective teachers＇ pedagogical actions and strategies used to cope with classroom problems in their teaching practice. For this reason, some examples of this dynamic process, obtained by class recordings and reflective sessions with future teachers were examined. Results indicated that through self-assessment and reflection, stimulated by these sessions, student-teachers were able to recognize problems in their teaching procedures, as well as analyze their teaching practice and （re）construct their pedagogical knowledge, favoring their students＇ language learning process and their own teaching approach.

A Case Study of Adult Learners' Second Language Acquisition Strategy and Cultural Connotation in Vocabulary Learning

Continuing education is one of the most important components of modern education. In continuing education, due to the aging and the constraints in foreign language proficiency, the second language acquisition(SLA) strategies adopted by adult learners are distinguished from what of the college students. This case study explores adult learners' SLA strategies in order to find the most frequently used ones and manages to discover better teaching approaches for teachers and efficient learning skills for learners. The conclusions are drawn as follows:(i) the six strategies are adopted only at a medium level, which means that none of them reveals a conspicuous higher or lower preference. Even though, metacognitive, compensation, affective and social strategies are of higher averages. Metacognitive and compensation strategies, with lower standard deviations, are more commonly and widely employed by learners.(ii) to better orientate adult learners' learning habits, the cultural connotation pedagogy in vocabulary teaching, welcomed by students, has greatly intrigued the study interests and promoted teaching efficiency.

On Learner Autonomy in Foreign Language Education

Previous studies abroad and at home on learner autonomy have provided a variety of definitions from different perspectives as a framework of reference for the essence of LA. Therefore, based on the characteristics of LA, ways such as cultivation of LA beliefs and learning strategies, construction of a favorable LA environment and promotion of learner autonomy through teacher autonomy can be employed to foster students'autonomous learning ability.

Native-speakerism in China:An Investigation of Foreign Language Education Policy and Learners’Attitudes

With the development of globalization,the use of English is no longer restricted to native speaker(NS)but also widely spread to non-native speaker(NNS).The importance of English learning is also acknowledged by Expanding and Outer Circle,and English as a foreign language(EFL)education plays a significant role in China’s education.Admitting the fact that non-native English teachers(NNESTs)take up a large proportion of English teachers,English language teaching(ELT)is still greatly influenced by native-speakerism.This research aims to investigate language ideologies reflected in Chinese foreign language education policy(FLEP)at higher education level,and Chinese English learners’attitudes towards native-speakerism and English teachers.A mixed method of policy analysis and survey is adopted in this research.After conducting analysing two FLEPs in higher education level,it is found that linguistic instrumentalism is the prominent language ideology,although native-speakerism and standard English ideology is implicitly demonstrated.Questionnaire is used to investigate 58 Chinese English learners’attitudes,revealing that most participants do not demonstrate bias towards either NESTs or NNESTs.Instead,the strengths and weaknesses of both NEST and NNEST are identified,though participants adhere to native-speakerism in terms of English variety.Overall,English learner’s attitudes are consistent with language ideologies in FLEPs.This research may provide implications for future studies on addressing native-speakerism in Chinese FLEPs,as well as relationship of students’attitudes and language policies.

Self-development of the Teachers and Improvement on EnglishTeaching

For a long time, there have been extensive and deep studies and researches about how to upgrade the level of language education in universities. Now people have realized that the key factor that influences the language education most is teachers＇ self-development and the promotion of teachers＇ personalities. A new teaching concept -- reflective teaching has become very popular in the educational circles. It emphasizes that students should become positive and active learners while teachers should bear more dynamic and capacities for self-development.

Learner Autonomy in the National English Language Curricula for Chinese Universities 1978-2007:A Historical Analysis

This historical study investigates the concept of learner autonomy in the national English language curricula for Chinese universities.It seeks to understand the meaning of learner autonomy in China and the intentionality of promoting this concept through the curricula from 1978 to 2007.By adopting Quentin Skinner’s intentionalist approach to analyzing the history of ideas,this study conducted a systematic document analysis of three national curricula in relation to their linguistic and practical contexts constituted of 169 Chinese academic articles in total.The study revealed that learner autonomy mainly referred to students’motivation and ability to work hard on their own outside the classroom in the Chinese context.Importing this concept,however,caused ideological confusion and exacerbated the disempowerment of teachers within the dynamics of China’s English language education at the tertiary level.The study raises awareness for borrowing concepts across different cultural contexts and has implications for research,policymaking,teacher development,and pedagogical practice in second language education in China.

Critical Thinking in Language Learning and Teaching

This paper focuses on current theoretical research in second language education and on how the Language Awareness Approach, specifically, is key to successful second language teaching. LAA methodology gives students the tools and confidence to internalize the second language for the long term. Through the Language Awareness Approach, students become highly motivated self-learners, expertly analyzing the syntax of their native language as well as that of the second language. As students become more skilled in understanding how language works, they are able to internalize the new language and make it their own. Eventually, students do not have to ＂change the chip to the target language＂ when they walk through the classroom door.

English-Only Policy and Bilingual/ESL Teacher Education in the US＂ From Insiders＇ Perspectives

This paper is based on a study that was done to explore the perspectives of teacher candidates and faculty members of teacher education programs of a university of Arizona. The purpose of the study was to look into K-12 language teacher education programs in the backdrop of globalization. The data of the study came from a sample of 200 prospective teachers/candidates and students, and 24 faculty members/program administrators of teacher education programs of a university of Arizona. The results of the study showed that the majority of teacher candidates felt underprepared to teach diverse student populations. Similarly, most participants expressed their concerns over English-only policy of Arizona and they reported it as a major barrier for the education of English language learners.

The Internet in EFL Teacher Education： Investigating the Possibilities and Challenges in a Pre-service Education Programme

The paper reported on a small-scale qualitative study on EFL （English as a Foreign Language） teacher education with a two-fold objective, investigating the possibility of integrating the Internet for academic purposes in the context of a pre-service English teacher education programme in Egypt, and suggesting some guidelines based on the specific context of Assiut University College of Education. Semi-structured interviews were conducted online with some student teachers （n = 10） and teacher educators （n = 10） at the university to identify their personal viewpoints, experiences and concerns regarding integrating the Internet into this teacher education context. For triangulation purposes, content analysis was conducted on 12 online documents. Results reveal some difficulties, challenges and concerns related to the process and some new forms of literacy needed for this context. Based on this, some guidelines are suggested for integrating the Internet into pre-service EFL teacher education programmes with special reference to the Egyptian context.

In-Service LTE Program for Chinese Private Institute English Teachers

This paper describes a half-year in-service Language Teacher Education(LTE)program,targeting the trainee teachers who work in Chinese private English institutes.This is to better prepare them at the outset of their career.Primarily intending to build the trainee teachers' professionalism and raise their awareness,an overall illustration of adopted training courses and choice of activities are introduced in this paper.Focusing on integrating instructional knowledge from ESL and English language teaching,the LTE program schedule will allow majority of readers to implement during their daily teaching and research activities.Principles underpinning this program design are illustrated one by one.A course like this may not foster all teachers to become professionals at once,but to be a reflective practitioner can be a reachable goal,as accumulation of professional expertise is based on teachers’ capability of understanding how to reflect on teaching.

An Assessment of English Instruction for Elementary-Level Students in Jeddah Governorate, as Perceived by English Supervisors and Educators

This study investigated the perceptions of English educators and supervisors in Jeddah Governorate regarding the process of teaching English to elementary students.A survey was conducted using a sample size of 94 educators and 10 supervisors.The data indicate that respondents considered English instruction at the elementary level essential for expanding kids’perspectives,improving academic performance,and promoting international involvement.The main advantages cited are the development of English language skills and the promotion of early education.Although not as easily noticeable,the disadvantages include potential negative impacts on an individual’s proficiency in Arabic and their sense of national identification.The highlighted challenges encompass insufficient teacher training,student reluctance towards English,limited resources,and school disparities.The proposed techniques focused on prioritizing English instructors’training,ensuring the use of appropriate content,utilizing technology,and promoting awareness of students and educators.The current research found different obstacles in teaching English at elementary stages.To overcome these obstacles,it will be essential to enhance teacher competencies,develop efficient teaching methods,get the backing of stakeholders,assign adequate resources,and carry out continuous evaluations.Further research can also contribute to a better understanding of how early English learning impacts on Arabic identity and proficiency.

An EFL Teacher Education Program Proposal

A 3-month teacher education program is proposed to enable teachers to teach more effectively and develop constantly by familiarizing them with social demand,informing them of modern language learning and teaching theories and training their ability in pedagogical reasoning and decision making.The knowledge base,rationale and overall implementation of the whole program are elaborated respectively.

TEACHER AUTONOMY IN SECOND LANGUAGE EDUCATION

With the rise of learner autonomy as an important goal in second/foreign language education, the idea of teacher autonomy has recently come to the fore. In this paper, I first review the literature to explore various definitions and meanings of teacher autonomy. I then present an overview of current perspectives on the relationship between teacher autonomy and learner autonomy. This is illustrated through a discussion of the literature about teachers' responsibility and capacity to support learner autonomy. Finally, I examine how action research, reflective practice, and exploratory practice are argued and demonstrated in the literature as major processes of teacher (autonomy) development in second language education.