Australian Review of Applied Linguistics - Volume 48, Issue 2, 2025

Abstract

This qualitative study reports Vietnamese Australian children’s perspectives on their learning experiences at their community language schools. The study draws on interview data with three mothers and their four children (aged 10–12), who used to attend or are currently attending community language schools in the state of Victoria, Australia. Against the backdrop of the current limited research on children’s experiences at community language schools, this study is a contribution to the existing literature in two ways. First, it contributes a children’s voice into research on these so-called marginalised educational sites. Second, it provides a nuanced exploration of the children’s experiences through the lens of Bourdieu’s (1984) constructs of habitus, capital, and field by discussing how their perspectives towards their community language schools are shaped by their lived experiences in the fields they participate in. The findings reveal a mismatch between the children’s habitus, their linguistic capital and the field of community language schools that they participate in, which explains the children’s unfavorable feedback towards their community language schools.

Abstract

The need to incorporate Global Englishes (GE) awareness and informed practices into English language teaching (ELT) has encouraged practitioners to revisit their language curricula and include Other Englishes in their language teaching practices, impacting how language is taught and learned. The present study explores how five non-native English language teachers at a university in Thailand are aware of and view their accents when speaking English and how such awareness is reflected in their language pedagogy for Global English Language Teaching (GELT). Findings from the in-depth semi-structured individual interviews reveal that participants are aware of their accents and have a favorable disposition toward their own accent, linking it to their heightened sense of linguistic ownership based on their nationality and race. In their pedagogical practices, such awareness enables the participants to innovate their language teaching, giving an important implication in integrating GE awareness and informed practices into ELT. The findings also demonstrate how important teachers’ accents are in encouraging and incorporating GE-informed practices into ELT.

Abstract

Gender-fair language (GFL), a linguistic practice that aims to avoid gender bias or discrimination by using gender-inclusive terms, has been increasingly recognized in various contexts. Despite this growing recognition, the question of how Filipinos view the use of GFL in the workplace remains underexplored. The present study contributes to this evolving discourse by investigating the perceptions of Filipino professional writers in English toward GFL, an area that has received relatively little attention in the literature, particularly in more restrictive cultural contexts such as the Philippines. Using a qualitative survey with 34 Filipino professional writers, ten of whom participated in follow-up email interviews, I examine the views of these writers on GFL and the aspects that influence them in using GFL in writing. The findings demonstrate that while GFL is seen as positive for social change, practical and contextual considerations affect its use. Factors that facilitate GFL adoption are identified, such as confidence and awareness, commitment to gender equality, and professional growth. In contrast, hindering factors include cultural and ideological resistance, practical and linguistic challenges, and the lack of comprehensive GFL guidelines and resources.

Abstract

This longitudinal mixed-methods study tracked the informal language contact and phrasal verb knowledge of 21 Chinese foundation program students in the United Kingdom (UK) during the 2019–2020 academic year through three rounds of data collection. Because of the disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the study was able to capture the impact of a global crisis on the experiences of international students studying abroad and learning a second language (L2). Data from a Language Contact Questionnaire, a Study Abroad Social Network Survey, and semi-structured interviews indicated significant changes in their L2 use and social networks. Our findings showed that the students sharply reduced their L2 contact and increased their use of first language (L1) during the pandemic. Productive and receptive tests assessing phrasal verb knowledge revealed that the students did not make significant gains after the pandemic lockdown. The study suggests that significant changes in the living environment can directly impact students’ L2 usage and their formulaic language development.

Abstract

Many studies have reported language problems faced by international students in cross-cultural study-abroad settings. The present study investigated Chinese international students’ linguistic insecurity during their study-abroad in Australia, and the strategies that they deployed to manage this. Based on interviews with ten students from two different international programs, we found that the students felt anxious and insecure about their language ability in the English-only environment, which provided limited support for their academic and social survival. Moreover, their other linguistic resources remained unrecognized in the prevailing discourse of standardized English with its concomitant linguistic and social prejudices. Realizing that linguistic insecurity was affecting their study, life, and wellbeing, they implemented a series of measures and strategies to manage their language problems and achieve a sense of linguistic security. The findings can assist international students in developing an understanding of their language life in study-abroad settings, and education institutions in providing appropriate support to international students to enhance their linguistic security in the host society.

Abstract

Challenges with writing have been identified as a key factor in the timely completion of PhD programs. Doctoral writing groups, where students provide peer feedback on drafts, are increasingly being implemented as a potential solution to support and develop student writing. This paper presents an exploration of the impact of an online doctoral writing group program at a large Australian university. The group supports students in writing a research article for publication in an academic journal and includes both facilitator-led instruction and peer feedback. We explored the group’s impact on the participants’ writing ability, feedback literacy, and general well-being. Data were drawn from two doctoral writing groups and derived from several sources: session transcripts, focus groups, anonymous surveys, student drafts, and published samples of students’ academic journal articles. We found that instruction was key to demystifying the writing process and developing feedback literacy. Furthermore, the online delivery mode provided access to support for cohorts traditionally excluded from these opportunities, as well as a safe space that fostered a sense of well-being. This approach suggests a sustainable and effective model for implementation in graduate programs.

Abstract

Evaluative language is crucial in English for Academic Purposes (EAP) writing, particularly in expressing authorial stance and supporting arguments. Among various linguistic frameworks, appraisal in Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) has been extensively used to map and assess evaluative linguistic features. Since its inception in the early 1990s, appraisal has been widely applied to EAP writing studies. This synthesis reviews EAP writing studies using the appraisal framework published over the past decades, synthesizing 69 publications. We developed coding schemes based on research questions, focusing on learner levels, subjects studied, text type, and generated findings. Our findings indicate that appraisal has been applied by EAP writers at different levels to perform a range of functions in their writing. However, previous studies show that there is a lack of longitudinal study of appraisal resources used by EAP writers at different levels. We recommend systematic and explicit instruction in the use of appraisal resources in EAP writing. Based on our findings, we offer pedagogical suggestions for EAP writing and teaching, aiming to enhance the effectiveness of EAP instruction and the quality of student writing.

Abstract

Foreign language anxiety and enjoyment have been shown to correlate with each other (Botes et al., 2022), but few studies to date have considered whether distinct groups of learners within the one class may experience these variables differently. This article considers whether learners who have arrived in Australian university intermediate language classrooms via two different pipelines, either having studied the language at university the year before or entering directly from high school, report diverse levels of enjoyment, anxiety, or out-of-class study behaviours. The study draws on data from 141 students studying at an Australian university who allowed their questionnaire data to be matched to their final grade for the unit. While there was no significant difference in the final grades awarded to students from each pipeline, the two groups reported differences in their experience of anxiety, and study behaviours. When it came to final grades only Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety (FLCA) was clearly predictive of performance.

Abstract

This study compared the effects of task repetition only (TR), task repetition with grammatizing (TR+GR), and grammatization with no task repetition (GR) on 94 EFL learners’ oral task performances. Participants’ productions were measured both in terms of complexity, accuracy, and fluency as well as receptive knowledge (measured by an error correction test) and productive knowledge (measured by a sentence-level oral production test) development. Immediately after performing a narrative task, the TR+GR and GR learners were required to restore the target structure, namely the English regular past tense, which had been deleted in a grammatized text. Learners in the TR group received no grammatization, and only the TR+GR and TR groups repeated the same task twice. Results revealed that although both TR conditions led to enhanced receptive knowledge, the TR+GR performed better than the TR in fostering learners’ receptive knowledge and improving accuracy and productive knowledge at a delayed posttest. The GR group improved their receptive knowledge in the immediate posttest, but this improvement tailed off in the delayed posttest. Lastly, the TR+GR group could also improve the complexity and accuracy of their narrative task performances–albeit at the expense of fluency.

Abstract

This paper uses content analysis to analyse a set of websites of English language teaching companies in the Philippines and highlights the contradictions between the language ideologies espoused, advertised language policies, and recruitment of local non-native English-speaking teachers. The study highlights trends in recruitment that contrast with language ideologies, thus demonstrating a bias against local teachers, whilst supporting notions of native speakerism and discounted nativeness. The augmentation of non-native English-speaking teachers in ELT institutions in Asia is reflected in the Philippines, which has become a prominent centre of English language teaching in the region. It would be an encouraging development in attitudes and policy within ELT private schools if the increase in NNEST employment was related to a recognition of how the English language landscape in the 21st century is evolving, yet it seems apparent that economic factors are the motivating force as native speakerism maintains its prominence.

Abstract

Although the terms ‘heritage speakers’ and ‘heritage languages’ are relatively new, the phenomena themselves date back to the beginning of migration. In many situations heritage languages do not survive these changes, but in others they are maintained successfully. This research explores the individual factors that promote the maintenance of Spanish as a heritage language in Australia. To achieve this, we preselected the most relevant individual factors found in the literature, that were then included in a questionnaire that reflected the research questions of this study and was distributed online. Participants in this study were 27 adult Australian heritage speakers who were either born in Australia or have lived in Australia since childhood. The results suggest / indicate that the preselected individual factors: the feeling of identification with the heritage language, the motivation to speak the heritage language, and the prestige that is given to Spanish by both the parents and the heritage speakers correlate statistically with the maintenance of Spanish as a heritage language.

Abstract

This paper draws on language socialization theory and uses narrative frames and interview to investigate an international student’s socialization into feedback literacy practices in an EAP classroom. The analysis of findings shows that using a narrative frame methodology is an effective assessment tool that helps students assess and reflect on their own learning because they help students develop an ability to: (1) learn to judge their own and their peers’ performance and develop evaluative judgment, (2) socialize themselves and be socialized into literacy norms of their academic context, and (3) follow up their own learning trajectories and learning to learn by reflecting on their current and possible future performance in familiar and unfamiliar work and life contexts. The study concludes that socialization into feedback practices becomes significant when the linguistic, literate, and cultural practices of students are recognized as resources and assets in their classroom community.

Abstract

This study explored how teachers undertook listening instruction with learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) through investigating teachers’ authentic classroom practices. Eight experienced EFL teachers working in Iranian private language schools participated in the study. Each teacher was observed six to nine times and each complete teaching session of each of the participants was audio-recorded. Findings revealed that teachers had knowledge of an extensive repertoire of listening techniques, and their teaching was composed of strategies at pre-, during-, and post-listening stages. Teachers also mostly drew on metacognitive and comprehension-based practices. While teachers employed a number of metacognitive classroom practices, there was a lack of teaching and explicitly discussing these strategies. Findings provide some pedagogical implications for novice teachers with regard to expanding their repertoires of practice and employing various classroom activities. The findings might also help inform teacher educators and curriculum developers regarding classroom realities and the extent to which research findings can inform teaching methods and classroom practices.

Abstract

This paper explores the number marking challenges faced by L2 learners of English whose L1 is one of the classifier languages Mandarin Chinese (henceforth Chinese) or Bahasa Indonesia (henceforth Indonesian). It examines whether these groups differ in their marking of English number, and how the speaker’s level of proficiency, as well as linguistic factors including countability, concreteness, and determiner use, interact and influence their performance. The present study differs from previous studies in that it offers unique insights from authentic spoken data. The authors extracted 4000 tokens from the Chinese and Indonesian spoken monolog components in the International Corpus Network of Asian Learners of English (ICNALE), involving 150 Chinese-speaking and 100 Indonesian-speaking learners across beginner and intermediate proficiency; the tokens were part-of-speech tagged and annotated. Although the analysis, using mixed-effects binomial logistic regression, revealed no performance differences between the groups and no significant proficiency effects, the study found a strong relationship between ungrammatical number marking and count nouns, particularly abstract count nouns (e.g., taking part-time job), as well as the absence of determiners (e.g., smoking in restaurant). These findings confirm that learners from classifier languages face significant challenges with count nouns and that inaccurate number marking often occurs where nouns appear unmarked for number in their L1. The paper concludes with pedagogical suggestions.

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