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BackgroundAlthough students in teacher education programmes in Namibia study through the medium of English, their academic language (AL) proficiency remains a challenge for most of them. In the Junior Primary Education programmes, they are not only required to master AL for their own studies, but they must also learn how to teach emergent academic AL in the primary school.AimThis study aimed to address this dual challenge, a practitioner research study was undertaken to assess and compare students’ AL proficiency skills in English cross sectionally in 2020.SettingThe study was conducted online with (N = 78) student teachers at one of 12 campuses of the University of Namibia during the COVID-19 pandemic period.MethodsA standardised test compiled by Uccelli et al. was administered to 78 randomly selected students to measure their core AL skills.ResultsThe assessment results revealed distinct gaps in students’ AL proficiency. In addition, the findings demonstrated a statistically significant variance in assessment outcomes across different year groups.ConclusionThe university, despite provision of several courses, has taken note that AL should ideally be integrated across the curriculum.ContributionThe study revealed usable evidence about students’ AL proficiency, indicating patterns across cohorts.

Background: In the intermediate phase of schooling, learners’ academic success is largely dependent on their ability to read and write academic texts. Teachers need to teach academic language intentionally and explicitly. In order for teachers to do this, they themselves need knowledge of academic language and its features. Teacher education students, therefore need to be explicitly taught about academic language and provided with sufficient opportunities to develop their own proficiency. Aim: This article aimed to explore the academic language proficiency of a cross-sectional sample of teacher education students at a Johannesburg university. Setting: This study took place at a South African university that implements a universityaccredited primary school teacher education qualification. The university is located in an urban area, but attracts students from both urban and rural contexts. Methods: Students’ test scores on a core academic language skills instrument were utilised as data for this study, with descriptive and inferential statistical analyses procedures used to make sense thereof. Results: Findings from a cross-sectional analysis between first- and second-year students’ scores indicated that students’ academic language proficiency does not appear to improve after their initial year of study. Conclusion: The article concludes with a discussion of the implication hereof for teacher education and for the profession.

Purpose: Narrative interventions are a class of language interventions that involve the use of telling or retelling stories. Narrative intervention can be an efficient and versatile means of promoting a large array of academically and socially important language targets that improve children's access to general education curriculum and enhance their peer relations. The purpose of this tutorial is to supply foundational information about the importance of narratives and to offer recommendations about how to maximize the potential of narrative interventions in school-based clinical practice. Method: Drawing from decades of cognitive and linguistic research, a tutorial on narratives and narrative language is presented first. Ten principles that support the design and implementation of narrative interventions are described. Results: Clinicians can use narrative intervention to teach story grammar, complex language, vocabulary, inferencing, and social pragmatics. Storytelling, as an active intervention ingredient, promotes the comprehension and production of complex language. Conclusion: When narrative intervention is implemented following a set of principles drawn from research and extensive clinical experience, speech-language pathologists can efficiently and effectively teach a broad set of academically and socially meaningful skills to diverse students.

English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses are instrumental in preparing students for the linguistic demands of academic settings, particularly in disciplines such as psychology. In Iran, beyond addressing various academic needs, students aiming to pursue higher education must also succeed in the national university entrance examination, known as Konkur . EAP courses are purported to equip them with the necessary skills to perform well in this test, but the extent of this effect remains uncertain. Furthermore, while these courses are thought to enhance the General English Proficiency (GEP) of independent English users, the degree to which EAP contributes in this area is not well documented. Using a quasi-experimental design, this study analysed data from 120 undergraduate Iranian psychology students through pre-test and post-test assessments. Results from paired samples t-tests indicated a significant improvement in academic outcomes among the experimental group, suggesting that students enrolled in EAP courses achieved better Konkur test results. Initial t-tests also showed higher GEP levels in the experimental group compared to the control group, with further enhancement observed after the course. Although this research did not investigate the underlying mechanisms of improvement, it supports the effectiveness of EAP courses in developing academic skills, as reflected in improved Konkur scores and increased GEP. Future studies can explore procedures, techniques, and course materials in more depth, with greater attention to potential confounding factors.

In recognition of the integration of Information and Communications Technology (ICTs) along with Artificial Intelligence (AI) into education, several educational organizations have recommended cultivating 21st-century digital skills as part of every educational curriculum. The computational thinking skill, which is at the core of 21st-century digital skills, has gained research in several fields, such as physics and psychology (Barkela et al., 2024 ). However, applied linguistics and computer-assisted language learning (CALL) have overlooked this crucial skill, which might stem from the lack of language teachers’ computational thinking competency. For this reason, in the present study the researchers developed a new theoretical framework, and it’s corresponding scale specifically designed for applied linguistics and CALL, namely the Language Teachers’ Computational Thinking Competency in Computer Assisted Language Learning (LTCCTCALL). Using deductive and inductive methods, the researchers developed the items, followed by a validation process that used the Rasch-Andrich rating scale model (RSM) to assess the scale’s item difficulty and validity using Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). LTCCTCALL was validated with five factor structures that included 15 items in the Iranian EFL context, involving 273 Iranian in-service language teachers. Based on this result, the study introduced a new theoretical framework and its scale to the fields of CALL, applied linguistics, and the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) to lead the community’s continued growth and to prevent the community from falling behind other fields that incorporate computational thinking skills into our classrooms to have problem-solving approaches with CALL, AI, and chatbots in language class.

Early writing skills are among the strongest predictors of later reading and writing achievement; however, these crucial skills are often neglected in early childhood classrooms. In this article, we present a systematic, quantitative content analysis of early learning standards (for ages 3–5) in states that were using the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts at the time of analysis. We identified 458 discrete early learning writing standards across 42 states, the District of Columbia, and Head Start (publication dates ranged from 2004 to 2018). We coded standards for the domains of writing skills addressed (transcription, composition, and/or writing concepts) in two stages, human coding and computer-assisted coding, and we coded some standards as addressing multiple domains. Results indicated that more than half (53.7%) of early writing standards addressed transcription. Composition was addressed in 38.4% of the standards and writing concepts in 26.6%. Within the transcription category, 95.4% of the standards addressed handwriting, and only 12.3% addressed spelling. More standards addressed handwriting specifically than all composition skills combined. The early learning standards across states varied considerably in how well they aligned with the Common Core for the early elementary grades (K-2). Early childhood standards rarely asked young children to create their own texts, whereas the Common Core includes expectations for composing in multiple genres. Early learning standards provided little guidance for comprehensive writing instruction that integrates writing skills across domains, and indicated potential misalignment in how writing is conceptualized and taught in preschool and elementary contexts.

Purpose Many preschoolers, especially those from low-income households, would benefit from instruction to enrich their vocabulary and language repertoires. Yet, explicit instruction of vocabulary and language skills generally occurs infrequently in early childhood education settings. This study investigated the additive effects of teacher-led, classwide review strategies to a previously studied small-group intervention on children's learning of academic vocabulary. Method Participants included 23 children with limited oral language skills at risk for reading difficulties enrolled in single-case experimental designs. Effects of the classroom strategies alone also were examined in 10 children with above-average language abilities from 2 classrooms. Results Visual analyses of the adapted alternating treatments designs showed consistent learning improvements when vocabulary instruction was extended into the classroom for 12 children, ceiling effects were evident for 3 participants regardless of condition, and inconsistent or minimal effects were demonstrated by 8 participants. Multilevel modeling used to evaluate the effects statistically revealed strong treatment effects. In addition, the 10 children with above-average language showed impressive learning of vocabulary words from books subject to teacher review strategies in comparison to words from books to which they were not exposed. Teachers varied in the extent to which they implemented review strategies in their classrooms. Nevertheless, their responses to social validity assessments were positive, supporting the feasibility of this intervention. Conclusions The addition of classwide review and practice opportunities is an effective means of enhancing the effects of an easy-to-implement small-group intervention that teaches challenging vocabulary words within prerecorded stories. This approach holds promise as a way to shrink the pervasive word gap that typically exists when children in high-poverty communities enter school.

Background The growing Hispanic population in the United States highlights the urgent need for Spanish-speaking healthcare professionals to address clinical language barriers. In response, the California University of Science and Medicine introduced the Vida Medical Spanish curriculum to equip medical students with linguistic and cultural skills for effective communication with Spanish-speaking patients. A key component of this program is the use of Spanish-speaking Standardized Patients in role-playing scenarios that simulate real clinical encounters. Methods This prospective cohort study, conducted between 2022 and 2023, assessed the relationship between student attendance at Standardized Patient sessions within the Vida Medical Spanish curriculum and their performance in the Medical Spanish Objective Structured Clinical Examination. Over an 18-month period, data were collected for 56 medical students in the pre-clerkship curriculum. A multiple regression analysis was conducted to evaluate the impact of class participation on clinical Spanish competency. Results The findings indicate a statistically significant positive correlation between consistent interactions with Standardized Patients and higher scores in the Medical Spanish Objective Structured Clinical Examination ( r  = 0.74, p  < 0.001). These results underscore the critical role of regular participation in interactive educational settings in enhancing clinical assessment skills. Discussion The inclusion of Standardized Patients in the medical Spanish curriculum plays an important role in improving students’ clinical communication skills. This study highlights the significance of integrating interactive patient encounters into language-specific medical training to enhance physicians’ preparedness for culturally and linguistically concordant care.

The aim of the present study was to examine the effects of physically active lessons, implemented through the Mathematics and English Language curriculum, on cognitive function and gross motor skill development. Following ethical approval, 192 children aged 8–9 years were randomly allocated to an intervention group (n = 98) or a control group (n = 94). The intervention consisted of 8 h.wk−1 of physically active lessons, equally split between Mathematics and English Language, for 16 weeks. Cognitive function (digit span, coding and arithmetic reasoning) and gross motor skill development (TGMD-3) were assessed at baseline and follow-up. The improvement in every domain of cognitive function was greater in the intervention group compared to the control group (group * time, p = 0.008–0.023, d = 0.34–0.42). Furthermore, total TGMD-3 score (group * time, p < 0.001, d = 1.16) and both sub-scales (locomotor, p < 0.001, d = 0.63; object control, p < 0.001, d = 1.29) also improved by a greater extent in the intervention group than in the control group. These findings suggest that 16 weeks of physically active lessons, taught in both Mathematics and English Language curriculum, synergistically improved cognitive function and gross motor skill development in primary school children aged 8–9 years.

The present study measured the Arabic teachers’ evaluation degree of their language teaching approaches to reveal any statistically significant differences in the degree of their practices resulting from the variables of gender, educational qualification, and years of experience. In order to achieve the objectives of the study, the researchers developed a questionnaire of 30 items equally distributed to three approach groups: Integrative Approach Practice, Functional Approach Practice, and Communicative Approach Practice. The study sample consisted of 204 female and male Arabic teachers who were selected following the simple random method. The results of the study revealed that the Arabic teachers’ evaluation degree of their language teaching approach practices was high; with the Integrative Approach Practice at the top, followed by the Functional Approach Practice, and finally by the Communicative Approach Practice. However, no statistically significant differences were found in terms of teachers’ educational qualification, gender, or years of experience. The results are pedagogically analyzed, and a number of recommendations were set forth for teaching language and future directions of research.