Volume 12, Issue 2

It is undeniable that English has become the worldwide lingua franca for the academic world. Many countries have therefore opted for Higher Education programmes fully in English, of which the Netherlands is the frontrunner. Language policies that include drawing on students plurilingual repertoires could offer the opportunity to employ several languages in the classroom (Duarte and van der Ploeg 2019). Although the attitudes of lecturers have been studied before, students are often overlooked when creating language policies and in particular students in language-related courses. This mixed-method study aimed to map the affordances and constraints associated with the implementation of a plurilingual policy from the students’ perspective. First, 20 h of classroom observations showed that plurilingual approaches were used when explaining concepts, yet were refrained from when struggling with the language of instruction. Second, a survey with 103 students attending language-related courses showed general positive attitudes towards using plurilingual approaches, in which being proficient in a large number of languages played a significant role. Overall, the affordances of a plurilingual policy, such as new ways of thinking, and the use of a student’s full linguistic repertoire, surpassed the constraints, such as the lack of inclusion, and as a result, the advantage for Dutch students was mentioned.

Students with a mother tongue other than English often struggle with the demands of an academic programme at tertiary institutions where the medium of instruction is English. If their English language proficiency is inadequate, it may hamper their academic progress. Students feel that their command of English is unsatisfactory, and this causes tension and anxiety. This influences their motivation, self-confidence, self-image, and self-efficacy and serves as an affective filter which prevents comprehensible input necessary for successful learning. Therefore, a study amongst first-year university students was carried out to establish the relationship between language learning strategies, affective factors, and language proficiency. The aim was to find a connection between these three elements and to see whether they have an impact on each other. A combination of Krashen’s Affective Filter Hypothesis and the Comprehensible Input Hypothesis was used as the theoretical framework for this study. The data were collected using a quantitative and qualitative method, a language proficiency test and a questionnaire based on language learning strategies and affective factors. The results show a positive correlation between compensation and affective strategies and language proficiency, which are directly linked to affective factors. It is essential for teachers to be aware of these factors, because they have a huge bearing on second language learning, academic development, and success. The conclusion is that affective factors can either enhance or hinder language proficiency, and that the use of language learning strategies have an influence on the outcome. This study contributes to the field of second language acquisition by creating an awareness of these factors in language education.

Although foreign language anxiety (FLA) and student engagement have both been found to have significant effects on a number of behavioural and academic outcomes for language students (Awan et al. 2010, Gargalianou et al. 2016). FLA is poorly understood in university students studying English as a second language. However, limited research shows it is present (Haley et al. 2015). Additionally, the relationship between FLA and student engagement has seldom been explored. Therefore, the present exploratory study investigated the relationship between FLA and online learning in university students, particularly focusing on online learning as the new mode of instruction since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. We wanted to explore to what extent FLA is present among international students studying in L2 English at UK universities and whether FLA affects engagement with online learning. We tested 65 international students, studying at UK universities, using two newly developed scales for measuring FLA and student engagement with online learning. Participants completed an online questionnaire with background questions, the FLA scale, and the students’ engagement scale. The results of our multiple linear regression analyses suggest that FLA has a significant negative influence on students’ engagement with online learning.

The implementation of emergency remote teaching (ERT) in many institutions has led to radical changes in both teaching and studying approaches in Higher Education institutions worldwide. This pilot study examines the changes in study strategies from the first to the second term in the 2019–2020 academic year in the Foreign Languages and Literatures Department at the University of Verona. A survey was conducted with a group of 19 language students, all of whom studied English as a foreign language. They completed a questionnaire, which consisted of both closed and open-ended questions, as part of a mixed methods study of their perceptions of ways in which their learning strategies had changed from the first to the second term. They were also asked to identify which elements of the ERT experience they considered effective. The aim of the study was primarily to examine the changing strategies with an eye to determining elements to be integrated into our pedagogical approach in the future: to establish which factors had been positive and where the problems lay. This paper focuses mainly on the findings from the qualitative analysis of the open-ended questions section of the questionnaire, which underline the changes that came about as a consequence of the emergency. Whilst many strategies remained the same, a positive evaluation of the blending of asynchronous online resources with synchronous online lessons held in video-conferencing contexts also emerged. A partially mixed message, however, was noted. This was because, despite their endorsement of social interaction when studying in groups during streamed lessons, a preference for “studying alone” to prepare for their exams was also highlighted by participants.

Syntactic complexity has been extensively approached in the fields of corpus linguistics and academic discourse studies. However, works focusing on disciplinary variation in terms of linguistic complexity and comparison of professional and novice academic writing are scarce. Addressing these issues is likely to have important implications for EAP/ESP practitioners in terms of selection of target structures and learning material design. This study is a corpus analysis of the use of clausal complexity features in two social sciences, management and economics. The research is based on two kinds of corpora: expert corpora which comprise articles published in peer-reviewed journals, and learner corpora of L2 undergraduate students’ research papers. This work aims at answering two questions: Do clausal complexity features vary in the texts in management and economics? What are the differences in syntactic use between the academic texts written by professional authors and learner writing? The data showed that economists and managers tend to use the structures under consideration with significantly different frequencies. The professional writing was found to demonstrate more signs of clausal complexity than the learners’ texts.

A good command of English for Specific Purposes (ESP) among Czech engineers seems to be of crucial importance since the engineering field has been developing rapidly and the Czech labour market is becoming increasingly international (Eurostat 2020). The authors of this article, who supervise the ESP courses offered to the students of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering (FST) at the University of West Bohemia (UWB) in Pilsen (Czech Republic), attempt to meet the changing needs of the engineering field by conducting needs analyses among students, university graduates and prospective employers, and keeping their ESP courses’ syllabi up-to-date and relevant to their engineering students. This paper presents a comparative analysis of a questionnaire that was distributed in the year 2021 among UWB engineering students and graduates. Having analysed the responses that dealt with graduates’ needs and students’ expectations of using ESP in a workplace, the authors noticed several discrepancies between the answers they received from the students and those they received from the graduates. Based on the analysis, a hypothesis that current students sometimes have misconceptions about their future work life has been formulated. To confirm this hypothesis, in the next stage of the research, selected students and graduates are to be interviewed to gather additional information. The authors also wish to examine this hypothesis by having prospective engineering employers reply to the same survey questions.

In this paper, we will examine the problematic concept of the native speaker, which is central to much linguistic theory, to studies of language acquisition, and to language teaching and assessment. It is a notion which can have ramifications when it comes to the recruitment of language teachers in schools and in university language centres. Often, in private language schools or in the case of language assistants in university language centres and in state schools, whether applicants can describe themselves as native speakers may even determine the fact that they are considered as qualified for a position. In recent years in many areas of linguistic research, the relevance of the native speaker has been increasingly questioned. In the case of international lingua francas, such as English, it has been argued that the contribution of non-native speakers is not to be underestimated (Kachru 1985, Seidlhofer 2005, 2011). Problems regarding the status of native speaker arise within the specific context of language teaching because the concept itself is often conflated with other issues such as language competence and the questionable advocacy of the so-called direct method. In this paper, we will look at the fundamental differences between native and non-native speakers and the place of each on assessment scales such as the CEFR (Council of Europe 2001). We will examine the arguments that have been made against treating the native speaker as the only legitimate point of reference for language teaching and assessment (Cook 1999, Rinvolucri 2001, Graddol 2007). We will also comment on the role of the native speaker in language teaching.

Sustainable literacy in language learning and teaching is a relatively new area of research. The majority of volumes and articles have been published since 2010. This bibliographical review traces the main factors influencing the development of sustainable literacy in foreign language (FL) learning and teaching: ecolinguistics, the ecology movement, and environmental humanities. The author delves into the origins of education for sustainable development (ESD) in FL teaching and highlights the impact that American FL academics have had in enhancing ESD through curricular and module design. This teaching and learning enhancement is connected with the publication of the Modern Languages Association report in 2007, which called for the renovation of FL education in Higher Education due to a decrease in the number of students interested in learning languages. The article continues with a description of the main common features among the main publications. The bibliographical review ends outlining the two main edited volumes in this field.

With Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) gathering momentum in Irish universities and elsewhere, this paper provides insights into a language curriculum re-designed around the Sustainable Development Goals, thus responding to the urgency of the global challenges encapsulated in Agenda 2030 (UNESCO. 2016. Transforming our world: the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. https://documents-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N15/291/89/PDF/N1529189.pdf?OpenElement (accessed 13 March 2022); UNESCO. 2021. Reimagining our futures together: a new social contract for education. Report from the International Commission on the Futures of Education. https://reliefweb.int/report/world/reimagining-our-futures-together-new-social-contract-education (accessed 13 March 2022)). The revisited language curriculum that used ESD as a driving principle, is a final year undergraduate module entitled Current Affairs in France and francophone countries . The outcome of the review is a strong integration of content and assessments following the sustainability agenda, as well as a broader coverage, contextualization and understanding of the sustainability agenda for students of this module than before. The paper details some of the new content and assessment methods. It also reports on the lecturer’s observations and a small-scale student survey that shows an overwhelming support for the initiative. Overall, this paper aims to encourage practitioners to re-think their curriculum in light of the SDGs as a means of enhancing relevance and depth to students’ learning while also bringing new perspectives to lecturers’ practice.

The urgency for education to participate in the plan of action of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (SD) poses challenges to language education in university language centers. This paper discusses the potential of Higher Education (HE) language center courses to provide students with the knowledge and skills of inclusive, respectful, and equal communication needed in promoting SD and global citizenship. Education for sustainable development (ESD) in language teaching often focuses on integrating the content of SD topics into the language course. This paper focuses on the skills dimension and reports on a case study of a dialogue approach, a pedagogical method that could be central in ESD. A two-credit optional B2-C1 CEFR level university English course with the name Dialogue: Constructive Talk at Work is described to give a practical example of how to bring ethical thinking and interaction into an HE language classroom, by introducing the ethical concepts of Bohmian dialogue to students, and by creating a safe place for them to practice ethical dialogue through English as a lingua franca (ELF). The reflections of one group for this case study were analyzed to show how a dialogue approach to teaching ethical communication, interaction and collaboration can raise students’ awareness of using ELF in ethical dialogue and perhaps transform their ways of thinking and interacting. The student reflections showed that the pedagogical dialogue method has potential in developing abilities needed in ESD as well as in working life.

This work is a contribution to the usefulness of climate-related authentic material for pedagogical purposes in Higher Education. The two case studies had the aim of raising environmental awareness of a sustainable future among university students, while encouraging them to explore language use and draw their own conclusions and considerations through different methodologies. Specifically, we highlight how posts from the social networking platform Instagram can help learners with different levels of language proficiency in Higher Education, approach specific topics using authentic language samples and visual data, and simultaneously develop new skills that may be integrated within their field of study. The case studies occurred in a distance learning context at the University of Calabria and Humboldt University of Berlin. They present two possible ways of increasing climate change awareness among university students while applying data-driven and research-based learning interdisciplinary approaches to climate change communication.

This paper considers the cultural aspects of Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) in Higher Education and its contribution towards cultural literacy and sustainable development in health sciences. It reports on a study conducted within a pharmacy degree programme at a Spanish university which seeks to examine the study plan and CLIL activities and explore pharmacy lecturers’ insights into the cultural impact of the integration of English in their content subjects. As one of the main components of the conceptual framework of CLIL, culture by default is an integral part in any activity in a foreign language and thus has the potential to foster intercultural competence and cultural literacy. This literacy, in turn, is essential for the attainment of the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda and each of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Although science subject lecturers may have reservations about the contribution of English towards cultural literacy and tend to treat culture as merely transmitting knowledge about other cultures, they recognise its significance regarding the pursuit of SDGs. CLIL activities and support from English teachers clearly internationalised the contents of their subjects, which abound with opportunities for the development of cultural literacy and sustainability awareness. Further collaboration and joint actions between content and language specialists can help to exploit them more fully in class and reinforce the role of languages and language teachers at university.

This paper is an activity report that draws on the experience of embedding sustainability into the mainstream curriculum in the Language Centre, School of Languages, Cultures and Societies at the University of Leeds, UK. It describes and reflects on programmes that delivered the concept of sustainability and how learners developed their academic and sustainability literacies. The programmes in question are Language for Engineering and Language in Context Sustainability module. These programmes are developed and delivered in the context of English for Academic Purposes to pre-sessional postgraduate and undergraduate international students. The former programme prepares students for their postgraduate studies in the receiving schools, such as Engineering, Computer Science and Transport. The latter is an elective programme for a cross-discipline student cohort primarily to develop language specific to the concept of sustainability. Both programmes focus on expanding subject specific lexis and developing criticality skills. Positive student engagement and response – student feedback – is an effective indicator that there is a demand for programmes in the mainstream curriculum that promote sustainability literacies. It is time for sustainability to move from the margins and occupy its place at the forefront in language learning.

Our society is affected by the climate crisis, which is largely a consequence of human activity. For this reason, the education and awareness of society plays a fundamental role. Spain and Andalusia are committed to the 17 sustainable development goals established by the United Nations and their fulfilment by 2030, representing an important part of the Challenges of Andalusian Society (CAS). One of the goals to be achieved is to “improve education, awareness and human and institutional capacity for climate change mitigation, adaptation and early warning”. Education and environmental awareness in relation to CAS remain one of the main challenges, especially in foreign language teaching and learning. By means of an innovative educational strategy, this project aims to address four CAS in university language learning/teaching of French as a foreign language (FFL): 1. Climate action, environment, resource and raw material efficiency, 2. Smart, green and integrated transport, 3. Safe, clean and efficient energy, and 4. Health, demographic change and social well-being. The aim is to train and raise awareness of key concepts among undergraduate students through the integration of the CAS as didactic units in FFL subjects of the Bachelor’s Degree in French Studies at the University of Granada (Spain). This project may well have a positive impact on the environmental attitude, interest and motivation of students towards the CAS and the acquisition of linguistic competences in the French language.