Textbooks play an undeniable role in education and training. The selection of textbooks, which are crucial materials for both teachers and learners in the teaching-learning process, requires careful consideration of specific criteria. Textbooks wield an effect on intrinsic motivation factors like interest, desire, and curiosity. They also impact…

When teaching Mandarin Chinese classifiers, teachers usually ask students to memorize 'classifier + noun', phrases as collocations. Given that Mandarin Chinese has a vast and complicated system of classifiers, the rote memorization of 'classifier + noun' collocations is challenging and monotonous. Therefore, the present study aims to improve that…

Language skills are central to refugee integration and the availability of language courses could thus be a limiting factor. We explore how the most important provider of language courses in Germany, adult education centers (VHS), adapted their course supply to the refugee wave of 2015/2016. Our results highlight two channels through which the…

While translation was once a key component of language teaching, throughout the twentieth century, it largely gave way to methods and approaches with a greater focus on communicative competence. However, efforts have been made in the past few decades to return translation and more generally multilingual language learning to classrooms. In the…

The purpose of this study is to describe the perceptions and expectations of German language students, especially in terms of receptive skills. This study asks two main questions: (i) what are the expectations of students towards learning German and (ii) how are students' perceptions of German learning, especially reading and listening, the data…

The German government requires all migrants without sufficient German language proficiency to enroll in integration courses. Many of these migrants had few prior experiences with formal education, yet, regardless of degree of literacy in any language, they are placed in classes based on language proficiency. How well do government-approved…

For decades now, researchers and academics have lamented the mismatch between the representation of English in the classroom and the way the language is used in real-world contexts. Much of teaching is bound by curricula that determine not only the contents of their teaching but also the materials and assessment methods they use, they are crucial…

Diary methods have long been used as pedagogic tools in learning, and as part of reflective practice in teacher education, but less often as data collection instruments in educational research. This is in part due to implementation challenges emerging from the time and literacy demands they place on participants. To illustrate the use of diary…

Research has identified 10 high-leverage teaching practices (HLTPs) that can impact student learning of a foreign language. While acknowledging the importance of this work, more research is needed to inform the preparation of novice teachers to enact these practices. In response, the researchers conducted a case study involving two foreign…

The abrupt shift to online instruction that occurred in spring 2020, often referred to as emergency remote teaching (ERT), caught many world language educators off guard. To prepare for future disruptions to face-to-face learning and illustrate promising online teaching practices that emerged during this extended period of time that could serve to…

With the rapid implementation of early foreign language programmes in the state of North-Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, first for Grade 3 (ages 8-9 years) in 2003 and then from Grade 1 (ages 6-7 years) in 2008, primary school teachers had to adapt to teaching a foreign language in Grade 1 quickly. Teachers had little experience with language teaching…

The effects of Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) on students' foreign language skill development have been overestimated by previous studies, as most studies needed to have considered selection and preparation effects appropriately. We used complete survey data from a 1996-2003 cohort to investigate English skill development of N =…

Previous research has established a connection between Standard Language Ideology (SLI) and prestige and power and has highlighted the existence of a dominant cultural narrative that idealizes Standard High German as a provider of cultural elevation and unity, viewing nonstandard Germanic varieties as exotic. Nevertheless, scholars have likewise…

Despite the importance of advanced language proficiency when teaching a foreign language, little research has investigated the oral proficiency of aspiring foreign language teachers across multiple countries and what their teacher training programs do to enhance it. In response, the researchers collected and analyzed both quantitative and…

This paper outlines how digital technologies support innovation in teaching and learning the English language across Palestinian Higher Education Institutes. A European project collaborated to build staff capacity in knowledge and skills, shown here through the redesign of curricula, pedagogical training, the design and implementation of…