Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 2012, vol. 2, no. 4

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    Contents, Notes
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012)
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    Editorial
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012) Munyangeyo, Théophile; Pichette, François
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    Does Euro-English have native speakers? Making sense of conflicting views
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012) Gozdawa-Gołębiowski, Romuald
    This paper examines the status of European English (EE) in current linguistic theory, in particular the hotly debated issue of whether or not it is possible to treat EE as an endonormative linguistic variety in its own right. Alternatively, EE may remain a form of English as a foreign language (EFL), and the decision has far-reaching socio-political consequences. Some relevant data from Polish English is discussed in this context. It is argued that there is no reason to reanalyse the observed deviations from English native standards as simplifications or innovations characteristic of a new language. The debate is shown to relate to the opposition between utilitarian and epistemic goals in foreign language teaching methodology, as exemplified by the dichotomy between competence and performance or between training for interaction and training of the faculties of the mind.
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    Glocal Arabic online: The case of 3arabizi
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012) Bianchi, Robert Michael
    The term glocal has been used to describe phenomena that simultaneously blend both global and local elements (see Featherstone, Lash, & Robertson, 1995, p. 101). Nowhere is this more evident than in the existence of 3arabizi, itself a blended language composed of English and Vernacular Arabic, written in Latin letters but using arithmographemes, that is, numerals as letters to represent hard-to-transliterate sounds because they do not exist in English (see Bianchi, 2012).1 As part of a doctoral study investigating online language choice involving Arabic and English, this paper examines the unique stylistic and topical functions of 3arabizi when compared with its linguistic forbears, that is, Arabic and English in a multilingual web forum. The findings indicate that 3arabizi is used for more informal, intimate and phatic communication than either Arabic or English, though these latter two languages or codes are not entirely formal in form and purpose either
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    Working with corpora in the translation classroom
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012) Krüger, Ralph
    This article sets out to illustrate possible applications of electronic corpora in the translation classroom. Starting with a survey of corpus use within corpus-based translation studies, the didactic value of corpora in the translation classroom and their epistemic value in translation teaching and practice will be elaborated. A typology of translation practice-oriented corpora will be presented, and the use of corpora in translation will be positioned within two general models of translation competence. Special consideration will then be given to the design and application of so-called Do-it-yourself (DIY) corpora, which are compiled ad hoc with the aim of completing a specific translation task. In this context, possible sources for retrieving corpus texts will be presented and evaluated and it will be argued that, owing to time and availability constraints in real-life translation, the Internet should be used as a major source of corpus data. After a brief discussion of possible Internet research techniques for targeted and quality-focused corpus compilation, the possible use of the Internet itself as a macro-corpus will be elaborated. The article concludes with a brief presentation of corpus use in translation teaching in the MA in Specialised Translation Programme offered at Cologne University of Applied Sciences, Germany.
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    Cross-cultural perspective of FL teaching and learning in the Polish context
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012) Sobkowiak, Paweł
    This study examines whether learners’ capacity to use a foreign language (FL) successfully in the global world is developed in the FL classroom in Polish high schools. The article reports results of the quantitative research which aimed at assessing whether and to what extent homogeneous FL classes in Poland are conducive to developing learners’ intercultural (IC) sensitivity and competence. The results obtained from the two study samples, namely learners and teachers, are contradictory: In the students’ opinion, IC teaching/learning plays a marginal role, whereas the teacher respondents claim they practice IC teaching moderately. Thus, to be able to get a broader picture of IC teaching/learning in Poland the current research should be complemented by a separate qualitative study, that is, lesson observations and interviews with teachers and students. Only then could more valid conclusions be drawn.
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    Intercultural challenge to language learning
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012) de Cote, Luz María Muñoz; van Dijk, Sylvia
    This paper presents the findings of a qualitative research project set to investigate the piloting process of an innovative language program for university students. It challenges traditional English language teaching courses celebrating a view centered on learning; classes become spaces for students to understand the language they are learning through the development of small projects. The approach moves from a teaching transmission paradigm to one where the most important agent is each student who has to engage with a topic of his or her interest. Students are seen as individuals whose knowledge and understanding of the world is valued and not as people whose lack of language skills prevents them from engaging in discussions of complex topics. The objective of this innovation is to enhance students’ understanding and use of academic English in their field of interest. In this project, we argue that knowledge and understanding of the mother tongue and culture play key roles in the development of a second language. A number of studies suggest that students who had strong first language literacy skills achieved higher proficiency levels in their second language. Based on this argument and Vygotsky’s sociocultural learning theory, we designed disciplinary content language learning workshops for first-degree students. The main tenet is that students can develop academic English given that they know about their discipline. Findings so far reveal the difficulty of students to take distance from their previous learning experiences. They also show that students’ ideas expressed in English are far more complex than what would be expected of them given their second language skills. The complexity is not only related to the content, but to the way they construct their paragraphs and the understanding of how the register of their field may be used.
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    The rhetoric of disenchantment through symbolism
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012) Munyangeyo, Théophile
    The symbolism of flowers has always been a significant part of cultures around the world due to their functional meaning in daily life. From their decorative to their aromatic role, flowers and their symbolic meaning trigger emotions, convey wishes and represent thoughts that can not be explicitly expressed. In this regard, an elaborate language based on flower symbolism was developed in many societies, to convey clear messages to the recipient. However, in some cultural contexts, although the flower symbolism has social connotations, it is mainly associated with economic references. As flowers are an essential precursor to fruits, they are inevitably a source of expectations and hence foster a set of hopes and dreams, which can ultimately lead to excitement or disappointment. Through a discourse analysis based on factional narratives, this article explores the parameters through which the symbolism of bifaceted meaning of flowers fictionalises a space that refers to the social reality. This association between the fictional world and social reference has highlighted that writing can profoundly be a means of representing social events through the rhetoric of symbolism. Through a sociological reading approach, this paper aims to analyse how the symbolism of flowers informs the rhetoric of disenchantment that can foster a content-based pedagogy in language learning where silencing practices engender imagery to exercise the freedom of expression.
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    Reviewers for Volume 2/2012
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012)