Acquiring and improving advanced foreign language communication skills are considerable challenges for graduates, especially when they require a specialised approach. Additionally, their specific needs and time limitations condition their possibilities of getting suitable programmes once they finish their higher education. This research tries to…

Although there is a wealth of literature on improving the reading skills of EFL learners at Saudi universities, very little work has been done on struggling readers in lifelong and continuous learning programs. To address the issue, this study seeks to explore the needs of struggling learners in reading comprehension classes. Interviews were…

While the use of digital technologies is increasingly prominent in higher education, research suggests that adult English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) learners within the English Further Education (FE) sector have fewer opportunities to access them as part of their language learning. This paper explores whether the use of authentic…

The author reports on a qualitative investigation of the language attitudes of multilingual British South Asian English language teachers. Data are drawn from both interviews and focus groups to demonstrate the participants underlying conception of language and their awareness and attitudes toward Indian English and how they coalesce their…

Education Scotland's publication, "External Quality Arrangements for Scotland's Colleges, Updated August 2013", specifies that HM Inspectors (HMI) will produce a number of subject aspect reports over the four-year period 2012-16. Colleges should act on the recommendations contained in these reports. College inspectors will monitor action…

This paper describes a teacher's reflections on a technology-enhanced project-based learning approach to teaching an ESP-business lesson on product development, which is part of the curriculum for Conference English and Meetings Practice (CEMP), a business-track course for the Adult Continuing Education program at a private university in southern…

Studies undertaken since the introduction of Web 2.0 have focussed mainly on open educational resources (OERs) such as email, blogging and virtual learning environments. No consistent efforts have been undertaken to study the use of social networking sites as a tool for learning in the second language classroom. This study examined the use of…

This paper reports on the development and implementation in 2012 of McGill University's French at Work program for McGill employees, using a blended learning model. The program is an example of how a reduction in face-to-face teaching presents one solution to employees' scheduling constraints and how this model might offer suggestions for the…

Educationalist Fred Korthagen elaborated a model in the 1980s for the relationship between the teacher educator and the teacher which embraces reflective practice as its guiding principle. In the present study, research was carried out into teacher development among a small group of language teachers working in continuing education in France.…

The Skills for Life (SfL) initiative followed the Moser Report (1999) and incarnated a Third Way agenda that sought to address England's perceived adult skills deficit. SfL marked a large investment in adult education but also a distinct shift to a more focused, instrumentalist role for Further Education (FE) in England. A new structure of teacher…

This article explores teacher learning in the UK English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) context. We draw on data from a continuing professional development (CPD) initiative to understand how learning is shaped by collaborative discussion with others and by reading from the language classroom research literature. The CPD programme--designed…

Britain remains well and truly in the slow lane when it comes to learning languages--despite the repeated commitment of politicians to reversing this historical trend. But, as the author proves, even the least able linguist can learn the few words of a foreign language which can make all the difference when traveling abroad. In its recent briefing…

The Victorian ESL (English as a Second Language) Framework is currently undergoing renewal as part of the reaccreditation process. This ESL curriculum framework, developed in Victoria, Australia, is currently used in TAFE Institutes and private and community adult ESL programs. It provides a framework for 10 certificate courses across three…

This article reports on the practitioner research conducted by the English participants in a European Co-operation Programme project entitled "Lateral Language Learning." The project was based on the belief that there is much that teachers of a first foreign language can do to prepare their students to access other languages in the…

Observation of machine or production operators in a Singapore factory for insight into their need for English language skills, existing skills, and the results of a basic English language program in which many were enrolled revealed that, although the workers were generally poorly educated and had minimal English skills, they were able to decode…