Volume 21, Number 2, December 2024
DOI: 10.56040/e-flt.212

Editorial DOI: 10.56040/koos2120

Articles

Félix Estrella

Using WhatsApp to Practice Essay Writing Skills: Perspectives From Ecuadorian Undergraduate Polytechnic Students

DOI: 10.56040/ifdi2121

Abstract
Through a mixed-methods design, this paper aims to identify the positive impact of using WhatsApp in and outside the classroom to practice writing skills and improve persuasive essays. The study used a questionnaire to obtain learners’ feelings, their ideas about the advantages and disadvantages of using the app, and their level of acceptance. Findings conclude that participants have a positive attitude and a high level of acceptance toward the app. The most significant advantage noted is that the application is free, while the long time spent on the chat group is seen as a major drawback.

Beatriz López-Medina 

Pre-Service Teachers' Beliefs About Language Learning and Communication Strategies: Does Language Proficiency Make a Difference?

DOI: 10.56040/btlm2122

Abstract
This study examined pre-service teachers’ beliefs about language learning and communication strategies in the process of acquiring English as an additional language. Two groups of participants from a Spanish university’s School of Education (n = 50) completed the Horwitz (1985) Beliefs About Language Learning Inventory (BALLI). The bilingual group, which primarily received instruction through English, was compared with the non-bilingual group, which was predominantly trained in Spanish (their first language). After administering the t-test, differences were found between both groups in their beliefs on learning and communication strategies although they were not statistically significant. Since learning strategies play a key role in language learning, both in reception and production processes, these findings suggest that both groups (particularly the non-bilingual group, which had a significantly lower study load during their degree programme) may benefit from explicit instruction on communication strategies to promote awareness of the effectiveness of these strategies. In addition, such instruction might lead to improvements in their future experience as foreign language teachers.

Najib Noorashid and Haziq Jamil

An Exploratory Investigation on Foreign Language Anxiety Among English for Islamic Education Learners in Brunei Darussalam

DOI: 10.56040/nnhj2123

Abstract
Amidst the global demand for learning English, a proliferation of scholarship continues to highlight learner difficulties and anxiety to master English as a second/foreign language, particularly in classroom settings. This study is significant as it is the first empirical study on foreign language anxiety (FLA) in a Malay-Islamic higher education teacher training setting that is concerned with formal Islamic edification in Brunei Darussalam. By utilising the FLA theoretical framework by Horwitz et al. (1986) and Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS), this study found that the general observation on FLCAS among Islamic trainee teachers at-tending English for Islamic Education as part of English for Specific Purposes module does not show a clear indication of FLA. However, further analysis shows that Test Anxiety and General Anxiety in classrooms have contributed to high levels of FLA among these learners. Our study also proposes some pedagogical and research implications that can be applied in other contexts sharing similar tradition and cultural settings in language education, and as part of comparative and transnational studies across the globe.

Sean Henry Toland and Tony Cripps

Reflections from a Blended Professional Learning Network for Japanese Teachers of English

DOI: 10.56040/shtc2124

Abstract
Over the years, the problematic issue of teacher isolationism has been well documented by researchers. In the Japanese public school system, many English as an international language (EIL) educators find teaching to be a lonely and frustrating endeavour as they have limited interactions with colleagues and face increasing job demands. This paper highlights a research project that aims to provide Japanese junior and senior high school EIL teachers with emotional and practical support. The pedagogical strategies and lesson ideas that are dis-cussed in this paper emerged during a series of interactive teacher-directed professional development (TDPD) workshops and informal online conversations that took place over an 18-month period during the COVID-19 pandemic. The researchers utilized Chen and McCray’s (2012) Whole Teacher (WT) conceptual framework for in-service professional development to establish the online and face-to-face training sessions that were part of a blended community of practice. In our current post-COVID-19 world, the growing popularity of video conferencing platforms (e.g., Zoom) coupled with concerns about cost, time, and environmental issues means that virtual workshops will become increasingly commonplace (Zimmermann et al., 2021). Unfortunately, many virtual training sessions are beset with a host of technological and logistical problems. This paper also highlights five strategies that workshop leaders can utilize to facilitate successful interactive digital learning experiences for pre-service and in-service teachers.

Zongling Mao and Naomi Kurata

Japanese Language Learners' Motivational Types and Trajectory: Accounts from University Students in Australia

DOI: 10.56040/zmnk2125

Abstract
Self-determination theory (SDT) was developed to analyse the motivation behind human behaviours, but it has been adopted and utilised in language learning contexts in recent years. Past second language (L2) motivation studies utilising SDT have mostly focused on English as Foreign Language learning and significantly fewer studies have applied SDT to learners of other languages, including Japanese as a foreign language (JFL). Therefore, this study examined the motivation types of JFL learners and the major factors influencing their motivation, and how it changed during a university semester and a semester break. The study found that the students’ motivational trajectory during the semester was relatively stable and that they were mostly driven by intrinsic motivation and identified regulation (goal-driven). The most prominent factors that influenced the students’ motivation were learning content, teaching methods, and perceptions of competence and relatedness. As expected, all the participants were not motivated to study Japanese using formal content during the semester break although some of them maintained their motivation by engaging with informal or semi-formal Japanese learning content. The study carries implications regarding the pedagogical directions for improving tertiary students’ motivation during the semester as well as the semester break.

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