Earlier research has shown that translation holds the potential to combine close reading and critical authorship practices. But despite that, translation has occupied a marginal position as a creative writing practice in classrooms. Through practice-based research involving the students, the translators and the authors of the translated poems, the…

Having opportunities to write about their cultures and identities validates and engages students of English as a second language (ESL) by giving them a voice and a platform to promote ideas and values that the dominant society may marginalize (Christensen, 2000; Cummins, 2001; Cummins & Early, 2011). Identity-based pedagogies, however, tend to…

Teacher educators strive for student engagement in their pre-service curricula. Recent studies of university-level engagement have focused on the need for active learning pedagogies. Grounded in anti-deficit approaches that are relevant, responsive, and sustaining for diverse cultures and literacies, this article discusses the use of…

This article considers the influence that assessment exerts on poetry education. By means of research conducted in a post-16 educational context in Malta, it shows that teachers' and students' practices in the poetry lesson are determined by the kind of examinations that candidates sit for. When the mode of assessment is constituted solely by the…

This article describes a pedagogical project designed to optimize opportunities for individual, creative expression in L2 academic writing. Conducted in four EFL Composition classes in a university in mainland China, a writing project using poetry as a research methodology, first introduced by Hanauer (2010), was implemented and assessed for…

Ideas and step-by-step instructions for creating and using chants, poetry, and songs in the English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) classroom are presented. The technique is offered as an alternative to conventional pattern practice, emphasizing rhythms of the spoken language and reinforcing structures, sounds, and functions of American English. Ideas…

In this collection of essays, a group of innovative teachers and writers describe the approaches and techniques they have incorporated into their own language teaching. The articles are designed to help classroom teachers make language classes more participatory and communication oriented. The book is divided into three sections: (1) What Is…