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Educational Applications and Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered tools have been a source of creativity but also controversy in recent years, also in the EFL classroom. From questions of spell checkers to automated text-generating technologies, educators and researchers alike have debated the utility and limitations of AI-powered tools. This paper looks at the historical development of educational technology, mainly the role of AI in ELT and argues for a creative engineering approach to language learning that leverages the best of the analogue and digital world. Taking the example of the Midjourney bot, this article outlines how AI-powered tools can be used as an assistive catalyst for teaching, such as providing linear remedial drills, grading cloze exercises, analyzing texts, but also generating fully coherent, grammatically, and lexically sound texts. It also identifies key competencies, such as interdependency, required to effectively use AI-powered tools. These skills include being able to use language chunks produced by the AI to adapt and remix texts for new activities and contexts, a skill referred to as “creative engineering”. Drawing on examples from specific EFL teaching scenarios, this paper emphasizes the need for teachers to understand and use AI-powered tools in their teaching, pointing to their potential to elevate language learning in the 21st century ELT classroom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last decade, policymakers have been experimenting with competency-based education, an instructional reform that relies on flexible pacing to enable students to achieve content mastery at their own pace. In this paper, we draw on mixed-methods data from teacher surveys and interviews to examine the use of flexible instructional pacing in five Michigan school districts implementing competency-based education. While implementing flexible pacing was challenging for all five districts, we identified several promising practices that facilitated flexible pacing in their districts. These included the adoption of school-wide interventions and the ability of teachers to share students across classrooms. These practices resulted from explicit prioritization of flexible pacing in some districts, whereas in others, they occurred somewhat by happenstance. In all cases, structural challenges (e.g., the division of time and space and the allocation of students to individual classrooms) inherent in "the grammar of schooling" impeded some or all efforts to implement flexible pacing. It will be essential to tackle these structural challenges to flexible pacing in future efforts to implement competency-based education reforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Grammar is the structural foundation of successful communication, language use, and literacy development. Grammar is therefore sometimes viewed as the heart of language with an important place in language teaching. In a classroom setting, regulation of grammar knowledge through teachers is strongly influenced by teachers' linguistic competence and beliefs. In this paper, we will first show the diversity in this knowledge by means of teacher interviews and speeded grammatical-acceptability data from pupils and students. We will then sketch a socio- and psycholinguistic perspective on several selected morphosyntactic variables in German. These will be discussed with reference to social forces that determine what is standard in a language (language norm authorities, language experts, model texts, and codifiers). Finally, we will draw a roadmap for teachers, language practitioners and editors looking for a qualified solution to grammatical cases of doubt in contemporary German and provide practical examples by drawing upon the German reference corpus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the mother tongue (MT) in English as a foreign or second language (EFL/ESL) classrooms is indispensable, especially in beginner classes. This paper aims to add to the present literature on this issue by highlighting the attitudes of both students and teachers towards MT use in English as a foreign language (EFL) classroom, the justifications for its use, and some of the actual interaction practices in grammar classes. It investigates the attitudes of 110 Saudi EFL female beginners and their two teachers toward using the Arabic language in EFL grammar classes at Jazan University. It also investigates the students' reasons for using or avoiding their MT. Moreover, it presents some of the functions that MT serves in EFL grammar classes. To collect the data, the researchers used two questionnaires and classroom observations. For data analysis, they used Microsoft Excel and thematic content analysis. The results indicated that, although both students and teachers generally have positive attitudes toward using the MT in EFL classes, they are also aware of the adverse effects of its overuse. The results also revealed that the teachers and students use MT in EFL classes to serve different classroom functions that ease the teaching and learning processes. Based on these findings, the study provided recommendations for teachers, curriculum designers, and future researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While technology has undoubtedly improved and has become an essential component of modern life, technological advances' consequences have both beneficial and detrimental impacts on students' writing skills in the classroom. Technology has accelerated and simplified work for students, but it has also instilled the belief that there is no need to put significant effort into the texts they write. This study examines the effects of technology and auto-correction on students' writing skills at three different universities in Sulaimaneyah city, Iraq. Case studies and research into the impact of electronic and communication devices on English writing skills among university students has been analyzed to determine the effect of autocorrection on grammar, vocabulary, spelling, and punctuation. Furthermore, the study also aims to show that auto-correction affects students' writing and to compare auto-correction and handwriting to prove that students make mistakes while writing due to technology. In addition, the study examines writing tasks undertaken by students in the English language to assess students' lack of writing skills, particularly in spelling. Finally, the study identifies why students have poor writing skills and corroborate previous research into an auto-corrections negative impact on students' writing abilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Student response systems (SRS) have been used to provide teachers with immediate feedback on learners' performance to understand their weaknesses and strengths. This exploratory study is aimed at focusing on both distractive and facilitative aspects of using SRS in English as a foreign language (EFL) classes to assess learners' understanding of grammar lessons. Eighty university students majored in English language and literature attended a grammar course accompanied by Kahoot, a free online game-based application as an SRS. Students' perspectives about positive and negative aspects of the application were explored prior and subsequent to its implementation through open-ended surveys and interviews. In addition, their classes were observed for more in-depth information. The results revealed that despite its positive features, most of the students were not willing to take part in this game-based application. They mentioned the Internet connection problems, the high pace of the game, its competitive nature and the lack of detailed explanation after the game as the main reasons for their unwillingness toward using this application in the classroom, which made most of the learners demotivated and distracted. The implications for teachers are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Argentinian Journal of Applied Linguistics is the property of Federacion Argentina de Asociaciones de Profesores de Ingles and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This study applied Edmodo as a supplementary environment for additional language practice in a semi-technical English course in an EFL context, with a quasi-experimental between-subjects (control versus experimental group) design. In addition to conventional classroom instruction and practice, the experimental group practiced additional language exercises using Edmodo application while the control group participants worked on similar exercises during extended classroom meetings. The results of paired and independent sample t-tests conducted on both groups' using 48-item, multiple-choice (vocabulary, grammar, and reading comprehension) pre and posttests revealed that while both groups demonstrated a statistically significant performance in the achievement posttest which was administered at the end of the course, the performance of the experimental group was significantly better than the control. The findings suggest that Edmodo is a valuable and cost-effective tool for language learning/practice beyond the physical and temporal confinements of conventional language classrooms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of mother tongue (MT) in EFL classrooms has been a controversial topic among researchers and teachers. While some claim that MT should not be used in EFL classrooms, others argue that MT can contribute to English language learning. The present study was conducted to investigate the use of Arabic as a mother tongue in EFL grammar classroom in the Centre for Languages at Ibb University in Yemen with a view to identifying when EFL learners favour the use of MT and the impact of that on learners and their English learning. Data were collected from EFL intermediate learners through a questionnaire administered to (51) learners and focus group discussions in which 22 learners participated. The collected data were analysed quantitatively using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics (t-test) and qualitatively. The findings showed that although the EFL learners favoured English as a medium of instruction, they showed positive attitudes towards a judicious use of their MT for some functions. Regarding the impact of MT use, the findings revealed that the EFL learners believe that the use of their MT in EFL grammar classroom is necessary due to the vital role that it can play in facilitating and enhancing their language learning as well as their cognitive ability. Statistically significant differences were not found in the mean scores of responses according to gender. Based on the findings, some recommendations to be considered to ensure effective use of MT in EFL classroom and suggestions for further research were given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on the second language (L2) acquisition of the Spanish copulas has been central to our understanding of key concepts and issues in the field of SLA such as stages of development and variability in L2s. However, this research has focused nearly exclusively on native English-speaking learners. The present study examined native Korean-speaking learners' acquisition and use of the Spanish copulas with adjectives in oral production. Analyses of the range and frequency of copula forms produced across four levels of Spanish language study revealed an increase in ser and estar use and a decrease in developmental omission as learner level increased. Predicate type, resultant state, and Spanish grammar score significantly influenced use of estar over ser. Comparison with native English-speaking learners revealed differences between first language groups in terms of rates of form use, but similar developmental trends and predictors of estar use overall. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We examine Scouse in middle-class school settings. • Stances towards Scouse range from tolerance, to distance to rejection. • Scouse is placed in lower scale levels of indexicality. • Our participants' local positioning reflects a grammar school pressure. • The grammar school ideology intersects with the middle-class bias that dominates education in Britain. This paper explores the use and position of Scouse in middle-class secondary schools. Despite a wide circulation of a 'variation ideology' (Cameron, 1995) that embraces and positively values regional speech in the UK, we discuss the hierarchical relationship between Scouse and standard English that is naturalised in the specific school settings. We focus on classroom talk and interviews from teachers and students in two all-girls grammar schools. We observe that student language use in the classroom, the social values indexed by Scouse and the stances towards Scouse in metapragmatic talk range from tolerance, to distance, to complete rejection of the local variety in the specific setting. We discuss how middle-class school settings can enforce and sustain homogenising language ideologies and address the power implications this practice has on non-confident speakers of standard English in relation to the wider issue of educational failure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the effectiveness of four types of grammar instruction and the extent to which students' learning style affects the learning outcomes of these instruction types. Our focus is on a complex grammar structure, viz. English conditionals. A total of fourteen Dutch classes with senior secondary school students aged 1517 and their ten teachers participated in the study. Teachers and their classes were randomly distributed among implicit, incidental, inductive and deductive treatment groups and a control group. A pretestposttest design, including a grammaticality judgement test and a semifree writing test, was used to study the effective ness of the treatment groups for students with a learning style focused on either learning from active experimentation or from reflective observation. Results of a multilevel covariance analysis indicate that explicitinductive instruction effectively raises students' performance concerning complex grammatical sentences and it does so more effectively than incidental instruction but no more than other forms of grammar instruction. Post hoc comparisons reveal that these outcomes hold for all students, irrespective of their learning style. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the effect of frequent testing on students' ability to retain the vocabulary and grammar materials learned in the classroom. A quasi-experimental research was employed, involving a sample of 50 Thai vocational students that was purposively recruited for this study. They were divided into two groups, each comprising 25 students. The experimental group received a test and corrective feedback after each unit of the course while the control group did not receive any unit test. The retention test scores were then compared to gauge the performance of the experimental and control groups. In doing this, the experimental group significantly outscored the control group in the retention test. The study found that frequent testing of the students in the course of their study had helped them retain vocabulary and grammar knowledge. The frequent testing may, therefore, be considered as one of the teaching methods to help students to have better retention of vocabulary and grammar knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Linking adverbials are important for creating textual cohesion in both written and spoken English. While there are reference grammar books describing the usage patterns of linking adverbials and studies investigating learners' difficulties in using these cohesive devices, there is little discussion on how to effectively teach and learn them. By testing the adequacy of existing textbooks and drawing on corpus findings of the usage patterns of linking adverbials in English, this article suggests principles to guide the teaching and learning of linking adverbials in the English language classroom. The principles suggested in this article will also provide useful guidelines for EAP teachers in different stages of classroom teaching, from pre-class planning, in-class teaching to after-class learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]