Written by our Ordinary Members - Fiona Price and Damon Young. What an enjoyable experience on so many different levels. BALEAP: Caution! EAP under Deconstruction #BALEAP2023 was a three-day event held on campus at Warwick University from Wednesday 19 April to Friday 21 April. This joint post reports on our lovely Ordinary Members' experiences of sessions they attended. Day 1 (Fiona) Day 1 began with a SIG Fayre. As a member of the EAP for Social Justice (EAP4SJ) SIG, I volunteered to (wo)man the assigned table at the conference reception area until the rest of the team arrived. Their arrival was such an exciting start to the conference as I had never actually met any of the EAP4SJ members before. It was a delight. The first session I attended on Day 1 was Deconstructing spoken communication in the creative disciplines ( in memory of Gary Riley-Jones) presented by Jennifer Sizer, Clare Carr, Jane Vickers and Zoe Gazeley-Eke. The session began with an introduction by Conrad Heynes who told us about Gary’s life and shared fond memories. It was explained that Gary Riley-Jones was one of the founding members of the Creative Discipline SIG. We were invited to sit at specific tables for a specified time to deconstruct spoken communication. Each table was assigned a specific focus for deconstruction: in other disciplines, creative disciplines and spoken communication outside the classroom. These deconstructions produced interesting ideas and lively discussions and were encouraged to make notes on the paper tablecloths provided on each table. In the groups I was in, spoken communication priorities included being able to speak the language of the discipline for inclusion by learning and using the academic words used in a subject-specific context to build knowledge and understand concepts, and being able to develop the ability to adapt when communicating within different communicative contexts and with different audiences. The need to include an element of fun was highlighted as a priority. We also discussed the need for the introduction of virtual trips to accommodate communication outside the classroom during the height of the pandemic and in online delivery mode. My second session of day one was a plenary in the lecture hall Room 101 where we were invited to ‘banish concepts to oblivion’. I was delighted to see that the first concept to be consigned was IELTS. The use of IELTS as a gatekeeping tool for students whose L1 is not English is problematic in many ways. For example, it does not follow that a speaker whose first language is English is necessarily proficient in L1 as they may come from complex, multilingual backgrounds. Neither does separation in the use of labelling ‘home’ students mean that proficiency can necessarily be assumed. The extortionate cost of taking the IELTS test, and possibly having to take it multiple times, creates a barrier and the possibility of exclusion. These are issues of social justice. If IELTS is being used as a measure of academic ability, it is unfair to single out EAL students. If being used for this purpose, it should be a requirement for all novice students. Day 2 at BALEAP: Caution! EAP under Deconstruction (Fiona) Day 2 sessions began for me with a welcome un-plenary from Guy McElveney, who set the scene for discursive deconstruction and constructive examination through William Benjamin’s Arcades Project and his metaphor of sleeping vs waking for exposing myths. This exposure produces a shock - an awakening. Guy McElveny concluded by proposing the following discussion questions to think about and consider. My own awakening was the shock that I have followed the belief in a monolingual, English only approach from my background experience in ELT without questioning it for so long. I believe in exploiting any resource if it supports language learning and consider the use of learners’ own language as a resource to be actively encouraged in this regard. The next session I went to was Will the next student essay you mark be written by AI? Implications of the recent AI technology development on the future of the teaching of EAP writing skills presented by Helen Beech and Ling Angela Xia. This was a really interesting, informative session that was live streamed from a University in China. Firstly, they discussed the current landscape , answering their session question title as probably yes, in their context. They outlined what AI tools are available including ChatGPT-4, Bard AI and 2 Chinese AI applications. They noted the integration of AI with existing popular applications, such as Microsoft 365 + CoPilot and specialised applications targeting researchers and students: Jenni, Lateral and Consensus. Next, the focus shifted to examining why we are vulnerable to AI. Reasons highlighted were: · Massification of HE · Types of assessment set · Mixed reactions ranging between excitement and anxiety: ban it or embrace it Most universities are in the process of updating guidance. Comparing current guidance from different universities reflects these mixed reactions. They proposed the need for rethinking around plagiarism and cheating using key questions for consideration - one key question being where to draw the line. The session presenters also highlighted the need to rethink assessment practices in relation to AI and questioned what this need says about current assessment policy. They quoted Hyland (2006, p. 56) in reference to his description of the role of academic writing: and referred to John Warner (2023) to explore some of his ideas about the role of writing in relation to ChatGPT: The session presenters shared their potential approach to address embracing AI in their context in this slide... The next session I attended was Shouldn’t presessionals be inclusive of all? presented by Heléna Stakounis. Heléna Stakounis shared research that followed a class of students from both the UK and international students through an academic year and measured their preparation for a multicultural international classroom and programme against internationalisation criteria. She showed us that this produced the following findings that threaten internationalisation policy: She promoted the need for inclusivity instead of separation as the way forward to address this situation and proposed the following ideas for implementation: This was another excellent session on the theme of deconstruction to look at what needs changing in EAP and how these changes might be approached. As I am very interested in the implications of AI on EAP teaching and learning, I chose all the sessions I could with this focus and next was The Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Academic Writing: Implications for EAP presented by Debra Jones and Neil Adam Tibbetts. They started the session by explaining that their research had started pre ChatGPT and that they had taken an ethnographical approach to their research exploring the views of EAP teachers and subject teachers on a foundation programme. Their findings revealed that teachers were more positive about students using tools for vocabulary and reading and less positive about them using tools for writing. Most disapproved of students using translation tools. Many chose to answer by saying it depends with some reasons for this including: some tools are built into other applications, the purpose of the task assessment, motivation, attitudes to learning - students being result- orientated. The majority thought that there should be more guidance for students on how to use them but there was uncertainty towards what was ok or not ok on an institutional level and the need to open up a dialogue. Findings emphasised the lack of guidance apart from rules about plagiarism. Their findings also showed that students seem to be experiencing similar problems with how to best use online tools. This situation reinforced the need for discursive deconstruction and constructive examination for exposing myths, as previously discussed in the (un)plenary session,. In terms of AI, it highlighted the urgent need for opening up a dialogue to gain a basis of understanding in order to critically engage and evaluate the potential afforded to teaching and learning and to establish the creation of ethical guidelines. The next session I attended (late) was BALEAP - Name Change. Since 2010, BALEAP has been known by its acronym only in conjunction with the strap line - The global forum for EAP professionals - without reference to the former full use of The British Association of Lecturers in English for Academic Purposes. Suggestions for a name change have arisen because of the lack of clarity about this for people outside BALEAP and to clarify the idea of BALEAP as a global forum. Maybe BAL is also to be included in EAP under deconstruction… Blurring the boundaries between teaching EAP and teaching the subject specialism was presented by Jill Northcott. Jill Northcott likened the situation for insessional EAP tutors as one of walking a tightrope with the need for developing strategies to avoid the abyss. Blurring boundaries are a result of a moving towards a requirement for language specialists to also study the subject discipline and pressure on subject specialists to develop knowledge of academic literacies. Jill Northcott suggested that recognition is gained through expertise and an alternative pathway was discussed as in EAP becoming a discipline in its own right. The fact that there is a tendency for EAP tutors to feel “lucky” if a subject tutor is prepared to collaborate was discussed (certainly the situation in my experience) and the need for expectations around collaboration to be coming from both sides with maybe the need for training to ensure this. Ideally the blurring could be between the actual content and language rather than the role of the tutors. The session came to a close discussing EAP tutors specialising within a discipline rather than becoming specialists in a subject. The last two sessions of Day 2 were presented by EAP4SJ members. Firstly, provocations in What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now! Practitioners demands for socially just EAP. Calls for provocations for this session were collected via social media and Jisc mail before the convention and compiled for discussion in the session by embedding the into ppt slides and recording audio transcriptions. Listening to the provocations was a pretty harrowing experience. Tables were organised for discussion into possible solutions to address these instances of injustice experienced by EAP colleagues and shared on a Padlet, which will be available on the EAP4SJ website. Discussing possible solutions was a very positive and empowering experience. ...over to Damon.... Damon provides the following review of Becoming socially just educators: A trioethnographic study of exploring professional identity through dialogue, ethics of care, and creativity - by Tomasz John (University of Strathclyde), Lorraine Mighty (University of Birmingham), and Iwona Winiarska-Pringle (University of Glasgow). The session was a powerful and thought-provoking talk that made a lasting impression on me and others. There were several reasons why I found this talk to be of immense significance. It addressed the urgent need for social justice in education and emphasised the crucial role educators play in promoting equity and inclusivity within educational settings. By examining professional identity through the lens of social justice, the study shed light on the transformative power of education and its potential to create a more just society. The trioethnographic approach used in the study was particularly compelling. The collaboration between the three researchers provided a rich and multi-dimensional perspective on professional identity formation. Their shared experiences and reflections offered a nuanced understanding of the complexities and challenges faced by practitioners striving for social justice. This collaborative and reflexive approach added depth and authenticity to the research, making it even more impactful. The intersectionality and overlapping experiences made it a memorable talk that I will not forget. The session focused on three key aspects—dialogue, ethics of care, and creativity—that are essential in shaping a socially just professional identity. The exploration of dialogue as a means to foster understanding, empathy, and inclusivity resonated deeply with me. The emphasis on ethics of care highlighted the importance of nurturing relationships, empathy, and responsiveness in educational practices. Additionally, the session encouraged educators to embrace creativity as a catalyst for innovative and transformative approaches to teaching and learning. These insights were not only enlightening but also provided practical strategies for creating inclusive and equitable educational environments. The interactive element of 'Blackout Poetry' during the presentation, the audience members were provided with a unique opportunity to actively engage with the research being discussed and participate in the reflection process. 'Blackout Poetry' involves selecting words or phrases from a given text and creatively redacting the rest, resulting in a poem that conveys new meaning and perspective. By inviting the audience to take part in this activity, they were able to immerse themselves in the research findings, examine the themes and concepts presented, and contribute their own interpretations and insights. This interactive involvement not only enhanced the audience's understanding of the research but also fostered a sense of ownership and connection, transforming them from passive listeners to active participants in the exploration of the research topic. Below is my attempt at ‘Blackout Poetry’: The talk had a profound impact on me. By unravelling the factors that contribute to the development of a socially just professional identity, the session seemingly equipped practitioners with actionable insights and recommendations, including creative reflectivity for personal growth. These valuable takeaways empowered attendees to incorporate social justice principles into their teaching practices, ultimately fostering inclusivity, equity, and social change within their classrooms and beyond. The most important point for me during this talk was the collaboration among the researchers, Tomasz, Lorraine, and Iwona. The power of interdisciplinary and collaborative efforts in addressing complex educational and social issues. The session served as a reminder of the importance of sharing knowledge and experiences across institutions to advance research and practice in the field of EAP, but also education context on the whole, for a more just world. ...and back to Fiona... Day 3 at BALEAP: Caution! EAP under Deconstruction Twisting the screw the other way: Legitimising EAP differently was the first session I went to on the final day of the conference. This session was presented by Alex Ding and Laetitia Monbec. Deconstructing EAP through socio-analysis and reconfiguring to legitimise the field differently and transform the way we see it sounds like fascinating research. Looking forward to the possibility of reading this chapter when published. Meanwhile, I intend to do some background reading highlighted in the session. One step forward, two steps back - Let’s not lose the gains we made during the pandemic! by Guy McElveny. Really liked the speaker’s description of teaching during the pandemic as “…the usual focus on ‘what’ we teach was replaced by ‘how’ as the mode of delivery became the central question”. Guy McElveny shared the digital gains that he had made when provision was moved online and then opened the session up for attendees to share theirs. I was happy to find myself with likeminded practitioners who also seemed to have no intention of losing the gains made. I totally agree that the pandemic compelled us towards implementing online delivery and as a result, I think it instigated an opportunity for us to propel ourselves forward into discovering how best to exploit the tools available within this mode of delivery. Deconstructing in-sessional: underpinning theories and practical implications to define our EAP practice presented by Lisa Hanson, Paul Hendrie, Katherine High, Debra Jones and Neil Tibbetts. Another fascinating exploration into the deconstruction of the field of EAP. In this session, it was by exploring theoretical underpinning to focus on how insessional tutors implement current theory to define current practice. Deconstruction was initiated through reading circle sessions to explore what academic language and literacy (ALL) is. Underlying theory was identified and evaluated to understand the what and why, and how this translates in practical application. The outcomes of the reading circle sessions included an initial alignment of approach to be used for insessional induction with tutors joining from presessional and foundation programmes and to look at how insessional is different from other provision. Such a useful framework idea on many levels. ...Damon will wrap up by providing his final reflection from Day 3 of the conference on the following session... Examining the academic path of LGBTQ students in doctoral scholarship: Should academic literacies be redefined from a queer perspective? – Micky Ross, University of Glasgow Micky’s presentation probed into the complexities and tentativeness surrounding the experiences of LGBTQ students in academia. By exploring various aspects such as homo-normativity versus queerness, assimilation versus liberation, and conforming to the heteronormative mainstream world versus queering the mainstream, the talk brought attention to the multifaceted challenges faced by LGBTQ students in their scholarly pursuits. One of the main points of the presentation was the recognition that academic writing is not merely an individual endeavour but a social act situated within a wider institutional and sociocultural context. Micky highlighted that academic writing is influenced by cultural and social practices, and it reflects the interplay between the self and the social world. The notion that the self is indeterminate rather than fixed further emphasised the complex relationship between personal identity and the act of writing. Micky also emphasised the importance of protecting authenticity and voice in academic writing. It underscored that voice is an essential aspect of academic discourse and successful academic writing, particularly at the doctoral level. Micky argued that authorial voice brings authenticity to scholarly work by allowing individuals to bring their personal history and identity into their writing. This notion was particularly relevant to LGBTQ students, as having a voice and being heard was seen as crucial to experiencing a meaningful existence within norm-providing institutions and organisations. The presentation delved into the intersection of LGBTQ literacies, emphasising that LGBTQ scholars offer unique insights and perspectives that can enrich scholarship across diverse disciplines. By incorporating queer frameworks and perspectives into academic literacies, institutions can create an inclusive and progressive environment that values the contributions of LGBTQ individuals. This inclusive approach not only enhances the academic sphere but also has wider implications for LGBTQ rights and representation within society. The significance of Micky's presentation lies in its ability to generate awareness and understanding of the challenges faced by LGBTQ students in their academic journeys. Micky tentatively posed questions and encouraged critical reflection, the talk fostered a dialogue about the need to redefine academic literacies from a queer perspective calling for a shift away from the dominant heteronormative frameworks, advocating for a more inclusive and diverse approach to knowledge production and academic discourse. Micky's presentation provided valuable insights into the complications and tentativeness surrounding LGBTQ students' experiences in academia. By examining the intersection of personal identity, scholarly writing, and institutional structures, the presentation contributed to the ongoing discussions on LGBTQ inclusivity, representation, and the redefinition of academic literacies. It served as a catalyst for positive change, promoting an environment where LGBTQ voices are heard, valued, and celebrated within educational institutions. What an enjoyable, thought-provoking deconstructive experience this conference was from start to finish!
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by anonymousThese past few weeks have been defined by strikes and strikers. We have witnessed the strange spectacle of a World Cup happening on the borders of Christmas. Some have been cheering on Harry Kane or Gareth Bale and others Kylian Mbappé or Lionel Messi. But regardless of who we support in that tournament, most of us in higher education (HE) have offered either physical, financial or moral support to the UCU strikes that’ve also been happening. These are a result of a situation within contemporary HE that has many echoes of what’s been happening in the background to the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
There has been a lot of talk in the western media about the fate of migrant workers in Qatar where the World Cup is being held. There has been talk too about a rotten underbelly beneath the glitzy surface of high-tech stadiums and slick marketing. Somewhere within that, we can find analogies with what’s been happening in HE over these past few decades. Many of today’s universities have become like those scintillating stadiums in the desert. They are peopled by high-powered executives on soccer-star salaries. Sometimes, these are people who have lost touch with how the stadiums were built and what they were created for. They’ve become so blinded by balance sheets and customer satisfaction that they’ve forgotten who the main players are in the world of academia. They’ve commodified and colonised the language of social justice so that it just becomes another net to phish in more customers. The end goal is ultimately short-term profit. That though is not a sustainable model of business, if we even accept the growing mantra that education must be framed in such a lens. If Britain’s universities want to be the champions of international education there has to be some kind of change. There’s something as rotten in the state of HE as in Hamlet’s fictional Denmark. Although that decomposition is not necessarily universal, it exists in too many quarters for the good of our futures. Too many of our universities are operating to survive on a short-term basis, trying to cut costs and cut corners, pleading poverty in the face of some management salaries that hit six figures. Simultaneously, the economy of too many universities is built on the sweat of migrants as forgotten in the grand scheme of things as the world’s migrant workers. These past few weeks, aside from following the football when my work allows, I have been thinking of a situation that encapsulates a sense of where HE has gone wrong. Just over seventeen months ago, I was a manager of migrants on the edge of university systems. Although not officially in a management position at a post-92 university, I was tasked every summer with going beyond the remit of my contract. This was in an environment where an absurd sense of hierarchy existed, with Pre-Sessionals occupying an almost pariah status. These courses which should have been a showcase for the university simply existed on the sidelines, a cash-cow staffed by teachers on zero hour contracts. And I was tasked with the equivalent of bringing a football team together on a Friday night and expecting them to perform in a major tournament on Monday morning. It was beyond my pay grade to do so – to be interviewing teachers on the day of the 2018 World Cup final for example – but … there’s a cleverly worded phrase in the contracts of most people in academia. It states that we have to fulfil whatever duties are expected. Such a line gives rise to a situation where academics are now expected to go beyond the call of duty in many places to the extent that the business model cannot survive without that. In my case, I had to manage a course without being contractually in a management position. Therefore, on a Saturday evening in June 2021, at the start of the men’s football European Championships, I found myself stressing over the thought of another such summer. And that stress was not just for me but the academic migrants I’d have to manage. I couldn’t face the thought of going out or watching football on the TV or doing anything because I knew what lay ahead when the Pre-Sessional courses kicked off that same month. That same evening, the Danish footballer Christian Eriksen suffered a heart attack on the pitch in a match against Finland. I didn’t see it live because I was trying to get my head around the thought of what was coming up. That of course does not compare to a young man almost dying on a football pitch but is also very damaging to the health of those involved. Every summer in that role, I witnessed how little academia cares for those at the bottom and how greatly the practice of some managers contradicts their sense of themselves. In the seminal words of one colleague ‘they’re tweeting about Corbyn and talking of revolutions in the pub and then tomorrow they’ll be lecturing us about KPIs.’ I have rarely heard a line that so greatly captures the delusions of some senior managers in our field. In one memorable case I witnessed a colleague from a mixed ethnicity family not getting paid in due time for their work and having to struggle financially. That struggle was so real it was at a point of having to face the prospect of bare cupboards. But when I tried to rectify this out of compassion rather than contractual responsibility, I experienced absolute disinterest on the part of management to address the problem. They couldn’t even countenance the reality of such a situation because it challenged their entire projection of their identities. The fate of a staff member on a zero hours contract at the bottom of academia’s hierarchy just did not matter. Exploitative practices had become so normalised, it seemed there’d been a desertification of compassion, decency and empathy. And yet in the same month as this family faced unnecessary financial hardship, something contradictory was happening. The workplace had been selling itself to the wider world as a champion of social justice, particularly in the area of racial justice. But where was the justice for the staff member on a zero hours contract who hadn’t got paid that month? Though that was to do with status rather than race, there still seemed an unhealthy contradiction in what was happening there. Nobody cared to the extent that if we use the Eriksen comparison again, they turned their backs and walked off the pitch when someone was down. The university cared only for this person’s labour, not their welfare. That labour was helping to bring in plenty of money and deserved to be accorded more respect. So too the students who deserve much more than to be taught by people struggling to make ends meet. But to me the message was simple and is something that many of today’s institutions still have to face up to – Lives Matter most when such lives are those of potential customers. Student satisfaction has been weaponised and every worthwhile cause commercialised from LGBTQ+ to BLM. But – that is not the case in classrooms. Academic staff are committed to these causes and enact them not in grand statements or slogans but in their everyday practices. Even those on zero hour contracts go above and beyond the call of duty for students too. So too do many of our colleagues in the administrative wings. To paraphrase something I saw on Twitter a few weeks ago, it’s not the Vice Chancellors running universities – it’s someone in an admin office on a back corridor somewhere whose name the senior managers don’t even know. And it’s that anonymity which adds to the hurt felt by so many on HE’s present day team-sheet. Possibly, the worst thing about that summer evening’s stress that I experienced was the fact that I knew how thankless the efforts of me and those zero hour migrants would be. It’d be expected and then forgotten as if all that sweat n’ stress had never happened. Surely it doesn’t have to be this way? Life and cultures can change very quickly. In the world of sport, Christian Eriksen recovered and played for Denmark in the World Cup in Qatar less than eighteen months later. I too moved away from the Deliveroo world of Pre Sessionals. I found a place where talk of compassion is genuine and free of zero hour contracts. The whole of HE should be like that if UK universities truly want to be world leading and champions of progressive causes. The present mindset is a short term one and a culture prevails where exploitation is rewarded, even celebrated. The weak are exploited thanklessly. Those in positions in power exhibit signs of believing in a kind of preordinance. They are worthy of better treatment by virtue of their status in what they see as a natural meritocracy. The great irony too is that many of those who facilitate this culture would not see anything of themselves in this critique. But they must surely see that if staff are so dissatisfied, there is something wrong with the system. It needs changing to a model that is more sustainable. To preserve Britain’s reputation as an educational heavyweight, our universities need to become places of justice and equity as immediately as possible. Summer Pre-Sessional courses might be a good place to start in those institutions where they are not accorded the respect and justice they deserve. Such actions as making them not-for-profit would be a fitting first step. Ethical values should also be embedded into them combining economic justice with a sense of fairness for all concerned. Delivery, not Deliveroo.
Background and aims of the study The idea of finding a dissertation topic which I was passionate about whilst having access to the resources required to carry out the research was very daunting for me when I started my MSc in TESOL & Intercultural Communication at the University of Strathclyde. However, when I began volunteering as an English tutor in an English language school for adult refugees, asylum seekers and forced migrants in Scotland in January 2022, it became very clear that I had to take advantage of the unique position I was in. I started on an observation basis, which allowed me to sit in on English classes for a variety of levels for a period of two months, and from there I was able to act as teaching assistant in a pre-intermediate class (equivalent of A2 level) as well as help with covering classes, both online and in the classroom. Despite completing my Master’s degree in TESOL, I am in the very early stages of my teaching career, with only this experience as a volunteer tutor and experience as an English teacher to young learners in France under my belt. Therefore, my observations at the school combined with my position as a novice teacher allowed me to have an overview of the potential obstacles to language learning for these students, and pushed me to want to explore them further, which was the starting point of this study. Although Scotland’s current ESOL strategy stresses that TESOL plays a significant role in facilitating the inclusion of migrants, it fails to provide an overview of the language learning profiles which help TESOL practitioners determine the barriers to language learning and the necessary strategies to overcome them. I decided to focus on foreign language anxiety (FLA) as despite there being a large body of research exploring this barrier to foreign language acquisition, there is very little which explores this barrier within the context of adult migrants in Scotland. The study did not follow a specific previous research design, however the literature review built a framework for the study's design and provided a theoretical foundation and empirical justification for it. The first point which was illustrated in previous research is that FLA affects adult learners in particular as their ability to understand others and make themselves understood is challenged which leads them to no longer view themselves as competent communicators as they would in their L1 (Horwitz et al, 1986). There is a great deal of research aiming to determine the causes and effects of FLA. Horwitz et al (1986) were amongst the first researchers to identify some of the possible causes of FLA, which include fear of negative evaluation, communication apprehension and test anxiety; and since then a number of researchers have continued to develop this list. The fear of making bad impressions, of receiving negative feedback, of feeling less capable than others, of being unable to express themselves clearly and correctly, and of being unable to achieve their goals of expressing themselves effectively have been found to be linked with the feelings of embarrassment and shame that FLA causes (Dovchin, 2020; Matsumoto et al, 1988; Williams & Andrade, 2008). It is only in more recent years that research has been carried out to look into FLA within the context of migrants, and found that matters such issues such as a fear of being misunderstood by members of the host community, and the added pressure of being expected to speak the native language of their country of residence perfectly (Dryden et al, 2021; Lang, 2019; Sevinç and Backus, 2019). With regards to the effects of FLA in a more general sense, studies have shown that it can have an impact on language achievement, on the degree of agency that learners have in achieving their goals, and can impair their willingness to communicate in the target language (Horwitz et al, 1986; Horwitz, 2001; Liu & Hang, 2011; Khajavy et al, 2017; Liu & Jackson, 2008). However, when looking at this context more specifically, Dryden et al (2021) and Palanac (2019) also include reluctance to engage in language learning, social withdrawal and avoidance behaviours as effects of FLA. When focusing on how FLA can be mitigated, previous studies argue that preparation (Kondo & Yin-Ling, 2004), affective strategies such as relaxation training (Hauck & Hurd, 2005), humour (Oxford, 1990), peer-seeking (Kondo & Yin-Ling, 2004) and positive self-talk (Toyama & Yamazaki, 2021); collaborative learning (Williams & Andrande, 2008; Palanac, 2019), translanguaging (Dryden et al, 2021), and trauma-informed ELT pedagogy (Palanac, 2019) have been effective in alleviating FLA. This study aimed to demonstrate their effectiveness for this particular teaching context. This study therefore aimed to understand the extent to which FLA is prevalent in an ESOL classroom for migrant learners in Scotland, its causes, its effects and the ways in which it can be mitigated. It followed a qualitative approach, using a questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. The rationale for using this approach was that the development of a questionnaire in a first instance would minimize the amount of pressure on the students, making them more willing to participate; and that the semi-structured interviews would provide participants with the opportunity to discuss their questionnaire responses further and explore the issues on their own terms. Unfortunately, the scope of the study was still limited by the lack of responses from students. 6 students and 11 teachers were willing to participate in the study and whilst the teachers’ responses provided an in-depth understanding of how they perceive the role of FLA, the study would have benefited from more of the student perspective. Some possible explanations for this include, firstly, that the majority of classes were being held online due to the Covid restrictions in place at the time meaning that I had to rely on email to communicate with the students; and secondly, that the questionnaire was created for all students rather than according to language levels. I also argued that FLA could have also played a part in the students’ willingness to participate in the study. Findings The data was analysed using thematic analysis, through which various themes emerged in response to each research question. The prevalence of FLA The findings revealed that FLA is prevalent, but that there is a correlation between FLA and language aptitude. On the whole, it was clear from both the students and the teachers that FLA does affect the students’ language learning process – almost all teachers could give concrete examples of how FLA has manifested itself in their classroom, and the majority of students shared common daily activities in English which are a source of anxiety for them, such as going to the supermarket, communicating with people at their children’s schools or using public transport. However, the responses also demonstrated that the students in the more advanced stages of their learning either claim/report that they do not experience it or if they do, they do not find it necessarily debilitating, that is to say that they did not report any effect on their learning or usage of English. The causes of FLA A theme which emerged is that FLA can affect migrant learners very differently than an adult learning a language for pleasure in their home country. The data showed that, for these students, FLA is caused not only by psychological factors which existing studies show are common to adult learners in general, but that there are also factors which are very specific to this particular demographic of learners. These include socio-cultural factors as well as the learners’ personal circumstances which affect the degree of anxiety that they feel when learning and using English which are not necessarily common amongst all adult language learners. The results from the student perspective especially revealed that their acquisition of English could be impeded by their apprehension of what they perceived to be the negative behaviour of native speakers and their perceptions of them based on a fear of being in a situation in which they are unable to understand or make themselves understood as well as their perceived lack of linguistic ability. When asked about they hoped to achieve by taking classes at the school, one student shared “And do not be afraid that when they ask me about something, I will not understand and will not be able to answer because now I avoid such conversations, because I'm shy and afraid that I will not understand something and will not be able to answer correctly and I'm afraid of their reaction to this”. This same student, as well as others, expressed that the behaviour of the people around them when communicating in English often causes anxiety, as they feel that they are being looked down on, that they are being criticised, and that they are being ridiculed. Finally, the results revealed that one of the most prominent source of FLA for the students is the pressure due to the circumstances surrounding their move and their language learning. Many of the teachers highlighted that language learning is very different for most of the students at the school because of their motivations. Their circumstances mean that their motivations for learning the language are very different to someone learning a foreign language for pleasure in their own home country, as well as how quickly they need to learn it, which can be a significant source of FLA. The study also found that their past learning experiences and the also plays a part in their language learning process. A few teachers highlighted that many students at the school have had very little experience of education, poor experiences, or that the level of education that they have reached in their native language is often unknown, and some students come to Scotland already struggling with literacy in their L1, which makes them more likely to be anxious when learning English than a student who had a full education Whilst these factors are unique to these particular learners, it is important to note that fact that they are unexpectedly having to learn English as an adult is another factor which was highlighted by both teachers and students. This is in line with the existing studies which suggest that this is something that is common to all adult foreign language learners. The impact of FLA on English learning and usage Whilst the teacher perspective demonstrated that FLA can affect their learning of English, the student perspective showed that it also affects their usage of English. The primary way in which FLA manifests itself is through a reluctance to communicate both in and out of the classroom, and that this can lead to social withdrawal and an unwillingness to engage in language learning at all. A key takeaway from the results of my research was that although the number of students enrolled in the school continues to grow, this only reflects the number of migrants in Scotland that are confident enough to attend English classes at all, and that there are still many migrants in Scotland who are not engaging in language learning, and it is possible that FLA has a part to play in this. Overall, it is clear that the main impact of FLA is that it can create a barrier to successful integration for the students who experience it the most. The impact that FLA can have on this particular demographic highlights the importance of having cohesive language learning profiles and of having a deep understanding of the barriers to language learning to allow for the development of mitigating strategies. Creating a learning environment in which students feel safe and comfortable as a way of alleviating FLA It was important to understand the ways in which the teachers who have an awareness of their students’ FLA attempt to mitigate it in their classroom. The overwhelming response was that, in general, the teachers aim to create an environment where their students feel safe and comfortable and that they hope that this will mitigate their FLA. They do so by creating a positive and friendly learning environment, building learners’ confidence and acknowledging the challenges of foreign language acquisition. Figure 1 shows what each of these strategies involves. Figure 1: Strategies to create a learning environment to make students feel safe and comfortable The starting point of the study was that it can be challenging to navigate the “minefield” (term used by one of the teachers) that is teaching migrant learners and to account every potential challenge that they face when learning English, especially for a new teacher like myself. It was therefore important for me to put forward some general guidelines, based on the existing research and my findings. Lack of acknowledgment of FLA at a wider level in Scotland reflected in practice Despite the measures which the teachers put in place in hoping to mitigate FLA, many of the teachers expressed also feeling at a loss with regards with how to help their students cope with their FLA, especially when it stems from socio-cultural factors and their personal circumstances. Many teachers admitted to sometimes neglecting to account for their students’ FLA as they do not have an awareness of the strategies that they can use in class to actively mitigate it. This was further demonstrated by their lack of awareness of the existing anxiety-reducing strategies in the current research, which raised some some questions about the effectiveness of these strategies for this particular context. Two recommendations were put forward based on these findings. The first is that there is a need for teacher-training courses to sensitise ELT practitioners to the barriers to language learning for this demographic, and that perhaps training on trauma-informed pedagogy (Palanac’s, 2019) would be beneficial in supporting both students and teachers. Secondly, the findings showed that there is a need for the development of anxiety-reducing strategies that are more appropriate for this demographic, therefore further exploration into this would be helpful in providing teachers a foundation for the development of anxiety-reducing strategies that migrant learners can use in their daily lives. Post-research reflections I think the school does an extraordinary job of providing these students with free or low-cost access to English lessons, and every teacher, whether they have previous experience of ELT teaching or not, is so committed to making sure that their students feel that they can come back every week to the school. Volunteering there whilst doing this research project has been a very eye-opening experience for me, especially with regards to the importance of practitioner self-care. Many of the teachers I spoke to shared with me how thought-provoking taking part in the research had been for them, and how valuable having these discussions had been for their teaching progress. I hope that my research can start useful conversations at policy-level to help future students overcome any potential barriers to successful integration, but also to ensure that the teachers who are volunteering in these schools across Scotland are getting the support that they need to continue their amazing work in helping their students reach their goals. With the increasing attempts to widen participation in Higher Education and initiatives provided by organizations and initiatives, such as University of Sanctuary, Student Action for Refugees, CARA, Screen Share, and RefugEAP, this topic can be also relevant to EAP practitioners. If you have experienced teaching refugees and asylum seekers on Pre-sessional EAP and In-sessional EAP courses and would like to comment on it or perhaps share advice or resources that informed your pedagogy, we’d like to hear from you. References: Dovchin, S. (2020). The psychological damages of linguistic racism and international students in Australia. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 23(7), 804–818. https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050.2020.1759504. Dryden, S., Tankosić, A. & Dovchin, S. (2021). Foreign language anxiety and translanguaging as an emotional safe space: Migrant English as a foreign language learners in Australia. System, 101, 1-11. Hauck, M., & Hurd, S. (2005). Exploring the link between language anxiety and learner self-management in open language learning contexts. Eur. J. Open Dist. e-Learn, 1–12. Horwitz, E. (2001). Language anxiety and achievement. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 21, 112-126. Horwitz, E.k., Horwitz, M.B. & Cope, J. (1986). Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety. The Modern Language Journal, 70(2), 125-132. Khajavy, G.H., MacIntyre P. and Barabadi, E. (2017). Role of the Emotions and Classroom Environment in Willingness to Communicate. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 40(3), 1-20. Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0272263117000304 Kondo, D.S. & Ying-Ling, Y. (2004). Strategies for coping with language anxiety: the case of students of English in Japan. ELT Journal, 58(3), 258-265. Lang, N. W. (2019). Teachers’ translanguaging practices and “safe spaces” for adolescent newcomers: Toward alternative visions. Bilingual Research Journal, 42(1), 73-89. https://doi.org/10.1080/15235882.2018.1561550 Liu, M. & Huang, W. (2011). An Exploration of Foreign Language Anxiety and English Learning Motivation. Education Research International, 12(5), 1-7. Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2011/493167 Matsumoto, D., Kudoh, T., Scherer, K., & Wallbott, H. (1988). Antecedents of reactions to emotions in the United States and Japan. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 19, 267–286. Oxford, L. R. (1990). Language learning strategy: What every teacher should know. New York: Newbury House Publishers. Palanac, A. (2019). Towards a trauma-informed ELT pedagogy for refugees. Language Issues, 30(2), pp.3-14. Sevinç, Y. & Backus, A. (2019). Anxiety, language use and linguistic competence in an immigrant context: a vicious circle?. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 22(6), 706-724. https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050.2017.1306021. Toyama, M. & Yamazaki, Y. (2021b). Anxiety reduction sessions in foreign language classrooms. The Language Learning Journal, 49(3), 330-342. Williams, K.E. & Andrade, M.R. (2008). Foreign Language Learning Anxiety in Japanese EFL University Classes: Causes, Coping, and Locus of Control. Electronic Journal of Foreign Language Teaching, 5(2), 181-191. Emerging Voices: An Interview with Dr Vijay Ramjattan from the University of Toronto, Canada7/13/2022 In this podcast Wil Hardman (our EAP4SJ Secretary) interviews the fantastic Dr Vijay Ramjattan about accent racism and linguistic discrimination at university and in the workplace more generally. The interview was originally organised as part of the project ‘Accent racism, linguistic stereotyping and ethnic bullying’ funded by the University of Liverpool Equality Kick Start Fund. As usual, we are asking you to reflect on to what extent these issues are relevant for the EAP community. Feel free to share and comment, thank you!
Author: Fiona Price - our EAP4SJ SIG extraordinary member I really enjoyed attending the BALEAP PIM: EAP and Intercultural Communication on Friday 17 June and appreciated the online option which made attending possible. 9:45 Welcome & Plenary Session 1 by Professor Adrian Holliday: Unlocking the intercultural expertise our students bring with them. Professor Adrian Holliday began his plenary session by denying the relevance of equating cultural difference in terms of nationality to ability, attitude or expectation around academic writing, saying there was no evidence to support this view and that such problems arose from institutional circumstances rather than cultural differences. He said that academic writing was problematic for all students entering university, given that all admissions enter university courses at the required level. He proceeded to present his ideas by highlighting essentialist views of how culture is perceived, which create blocks to intercultural communication, and the dichotomy between alternative non-essentialist views as threads that invite intercultural communication to flow. Holliday defined culture as “ …a seamless extent of diverse practices, values and products within which we construct ‘cultures’ for organisational identity and political purposes”. He emphasised that cultural hybridity is a natural state and this view of inhabiting and negotiating multiple, hybrid realities is not new but was in practice before the arrival of modernist colonialist thinking. He went on to define intercultural communication as being, “Whenever and wherever we encounter cultural practices and values that lead us to position or re-position ourselves”. I loved his description of EAP tutors as insider / outsiders who can accompany students in ethnographic exploration and his description of ‘so-labelled’ international students as intercultural travellers. He used ‘so-labelled’ in reference to the essentialist use of labelling, as in for example, learner types, saying that a decolonised state means we can get rid of the use of labels. Professor Holliday ended his plenary by establishing the need to create spaces for intersubjectivity and saying we all need help to get to the emergent world. It was a such a fascinating, informative session that I’m looking forward to watching it again when the recording becomes available on the BALEAP website so I can pick up on all the things I missed and / or didn’t quite catch, the first time. 11:00 -11:35 Debra Jones followed on with her session Towards an Intercultural Pedagogy: What Role Can EAP Play? She highlighted her research interests on the impact of internationalisation and how teaching and learning has adapted to more diverse cohorts, adaptations, to which she annotated – “if at all”. I thought this made a very relevant and immediate connection to Professor Adrian Holliday’s initial comment that problems of academic writing relate to institutional circumstances rather than cultural differences. Evidence of contributing institutional factors can be found within the internationalisation process. The impact of institutionalising has been visibly economic rather than academic. Widening participation and the inclusion of a more diverse and less prepared student population to higher education has not been matched with adaptations to systems, in response and to accommodate this change, to support more diverse cohorts, meaning that equity and equality of language level on entry to courses cannot be assumed as given. Debra Jones’ session made clear links echoing Holliday as to the need for questioning and challenging essentialist views. In addition, she made explicit reference to social justice. 11:50 – 12:25 Jim McKinley expanded on Holliday’s definition of culture as ‘a seamless extent of values, practices and products’ to offer 10 top tips for Fostering intercultural competence in and beyond EAP classes in UK higher education. 12:30 – 1:05 Christina Laporda took us on an exploration of what intercultural competence encompasses and what it does not. 2pm Plenary Session 2 by Professor Prue Holmes The second plenary of the day was by Professor Prue Holmes – EAP and IC: Understanding our Intercultural (dialogical and embodied) selves – as practitioners, as learners. Professor Holmes highlighted the following implications for the EAP practitioner: 3:50 – 4:25 Ramzi Merabet presented his session on De-essentialising the international students: belonging, interculturality and endured realities. Making a clear connection to Holliday’s plenary, his session raised awareness of the realities of the everyday experience of students labelled as international and raised thought-provoking questions. All in all, a lot to reflect on and interesting references to follow up on when slides and recordings are published. Exploring the implication of intercultural spaces through the lens of social justice is a view I am particularly interested in and it seemed to be both an implicit and explicit focus within the content of the day.
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