Abstract: As researchers and teachers, we have particular beliefs about the world and how it works, and about classrooms and how they work. Borg notes that "beliefs colour memories with their evaluation and ...

Abstract: Learning the grammar of a language is an integral part of learning a second or foreign language. Studies on teacher beliefs, teacher language awareness (TLA) and grammar teaching have reported that the majority of English language teachers recognise the importance of teaching grammar (Borg, 2001; Borg and Burns, 2008). At the same time, many teachers lack sufficient grammatical awareness, or appropriate skills, to successfully impart grammatical knowledge in a way that facilitates effective language learning (Brinton and Holten, 2001; Gordon and Harshbarger 2003). This article presents findings from a study that investigated teachers' attitudes to, and opinions about, grammar teaching in ESL and EFL contexts (Petraki and Hill, 2010). It reports on teachers' beliefs about the keys to successful grammar teaching, and their understanding of the skills and knowledge needed by beginning English language teachers. The findings have implications for language teacher education and suggest that raising awareness of what is needed to be an effective grammar teacher may contribute to the development of confidence in those who are beginning, or struggling with, grammar teaching.

Abstract: The paper outlines a practical six-hour workshop and assessment activity for students enrolled in a Graduate TESOL/Applied Linguistics program at La Trobe University, Australia. The program attracts teachers from preschool to university contexts from many different countries. The workshop draws explicit connections between in-service teachers' awareness of language, education theory and classroom practice. The first part focuses on language teaching, learning and practice in which in-service teachers explore their views and situate themselves within theoretical debates. The second engages in-service teachers in structured activities around the joint preparation and planning of language lessons for different learners. These language lessons highlight prior learning in current teaching practice, how grammar is taught to different age-cohorts, and the interconnection of theory and practice. The assessment activity consolidates student learning and provides insight into how individual students are positioned so that program lecturers can develop subsequent activities and assessment tasks to engage with teachers' different points of learning. We end with some suggestions of ways in which the approach that we take could be used in other teacher development contexts.

Abstract: Review(s) of: New English file advanced student's book, by Clive Oxenden and Christina Latham-Koenig, Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 2011, ISBN 9780194594585, (168 pp).

Abstract: There has been increasing interest recently in the way that additional language learners' identities are affected and changed by their experiences in developing proficiency in another language. In the case of migrants, this is also affected by familiarity with their new country and language, and their transition into life in a new social and cultural environment. National and linguistic elements of identity are only part of people's multifaceted identities. However, these are of particular significance for language teachers and central to identity shifts involved in language acquisition and settlement in a new country. We present data from two adult EAL (English as an additional language) learners' accounts of their developing bilingual identities in the Adult Migrant Education Program (AMEP). In particular, we focus on one student's self-reflexivity as she described how her experiences of travelling back to her homeland of People's Republic of China (PRC) contributed to the development of her emerging bilingual identity. This is supported by a shorter extract from a Colombian student's experience, as she described her difficulties in communicating something of her Australian experience to her family in Colombia. The study suggests ways in which language teachers can assist their adult immigrant learners to explore this aspect of their growth as bilingual speakers in their new language.

Abstract: In second language classrooms, listening is gaining recognition as an active element in the processes of learning and using a second language. Currently, however, much of the teaching of listening prioritises comprehension without sufficient emphasis on the skills and strategies that enhance learners' understanding of spoken language. This paper presents an argument for rethinking the emphasis on comprehension and advocates augmenting current teaching with an explicit focus on strategies. Drawing on the literature, the paper provides three models of strategy instruction for the teaching and development of listening skills. The models include steps for implementation that accord with their respective approaches to explicit instruction. The final section of the paper synthesises key points from the models as a guide for application in the second language classroom. The premise underpinning the paper is that the teaching of strategies can provide learners with active and explicit measures for managing and expanding their listening capacities, both in the learning and 'real world' use of a second language.

Abstract: The action research project entitled Engaging pre-service TESOL teachers in authentic workplace learning aimed to enhance the TESOL practicum experience of pre-service teachers in the Graduate Diploma of Education at Edith Cowan University in Perth, Western Australia. Integrated into the relevant TESOL curriculum unit was the requirement that pre-service teachers work with a small group of Year 8-10 ESL students for one hour a week for six weeks in a partner school. During this time they conducted a needs analysis with the students, determined proficiency levels against the relevant progress map and then prepared and taught lessons designed to assist the students in their English language development across the four macro skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing. The results of the action research project indicated strong support for this form of authentic workplace learning and the continuation of its integration into the curriculum unit.

Abstract: Review(s) of: International express: Pre-intermediate student's book, by Liz Taylor, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2010, ISBN 978 019 4576512, (144 pages and DVD).