The opposition between learning as a process of self-cultivation ("Bildung") and learning as a form of vocational training for the workplace ("Ausbildung") is becoming ever more deeply entrenched in the twenty-first-century university. In language education in particular, the distinction between these two competing aims…

In this chapter, I examine the problematic issue of identifying as a 'linguist' for graduates who have studied languages, in an employability context. I challenge them to reframe their identity as 'global graduates', with reference to the competencies outlined in the "Global Graduates into Global Leaders" report (NCUB, 2011). In the…

Increased trade, commerce and business transactions at the international level are placing a substantial demand upon working professionals and college students who must learn English, the lingua franca of international business, in order to thrive in a competitive global workplace. Learning English as a second language (L2) can be a daunting task…

The United States is formally represented around the world by approximately 14,000 Foreign Service officers and other personnel in the U.S. Department of State. Roughly one-third of them are required to be proficient in the local languages of the countries to which they are posted. To achieve this language proficiency for its staff, the State…

Authentic materials, if appropriate to the learning situation, might turn the classroom environment into a more engaging place, where motivation might be generated through the performance of meaningful tasks. This article describes how a Text-Based Instruction approach can provide the basis for the design of an ESP syllabus based on relevant,…

The article examines the importance of bridging the gap between America's collective cultural heritage and its citizens who speak a language other than English, and how this can be fostered and encouraged through foreign language and immersion programs, international education, and study abroad. Effectively addressing this disparity in order to…

Departing from the dominant trend of favoring flexibility, flattened relations, and deterritorialization in featuring the transnational, this autoethnographic inquiry theorizes and exemplifies how the gravity of place may give rise to the evolvement of scholarship in the context of transnational mobility. I examine my own career trajectory to…

The paper considers whether bilingualism has an economic value in Slovenia's two ethnically mixed regions, or whether its value is more related to identity, and restricted primarily to the personal, educational and cultural spheres. Specifically, it asks whether bilingualism is rewarded on the labour market and what local people think about this…

LSP performance assessment has become a special focus for language testers in recent years where experts have debated how testing tools and processes can be strengthened to more accurately and more validly assess professional communication at work. Suggestions to achieve this include ethnographic studies of the target language situation; authentic…

In today's globalized, connected world, fixed and stable identities are increasingly uncommon. The means and modes of online communication and engagement, themselves powerful contributors to identity formation, are likewise in a constant state of flux. Participating in emerging online communities may require users to develop new skills, acquire…

This talk is about finding "unity in diversity". I ask how we can best focus our research efforts and then design our teaching for those of us involved with teaching language for specific business purposes in the Asia Pacific region and the Middle East. In parts 1 and 2 of the presentation I discuss how we need to (i) refer to empirical…

This paper reports on the problems faced by students in the second language classroom. It focuses on their integration of social and cultural aspects in language learning, because every language is an amalgamation of both. The author adds that the learner of a second language finds difficulty in learning the culture of the first language and it…

In 2013, the Austin Independent School District began administering a voluntary online exit survey to all professional and administrative employees leaving the district. Responses and respondent characteristics are described for 2014. A separate research brief also was published. [For the research brief, see ED626496.]

In the light of recommendations made by the Tomlinson and Dearing reports, this article explores the distinctive contribution that vocational language courses can make to the language learning experience of secondary-school pupils. It starts by presenting an overview of vocational options currently on offer to stem the disaffection with modern…

Hiring increasing numbers of paraeducators can provide additional learning support and a linguistic/cultural link to the community. However, such personnel may have frenetic schedules, responsibilities divided among several schools, and inadequate supervision and communication links. Recommendations for principals, teachers, and bilingual…