Tools for Scaffolding the Development of L2 Speaking in English-medium Higher Education: Lessons from Poland and Australia

• Authors: Joanna Pitura , Heejin Chang

Abstracts

EN

Participating in oral L2 communication may be challenging for English-medium higher education students. While literature suggests that scaffolding facilitates the development of L2 speaking, research has not addressed the notion of tools for scaffolding its development. The aim of this study is twofold: (1) to investigate how scaffolding can be embodied in tool design to support L2 speaking and (2) to obtain and analyse student perceptions of the tools. We draw on questionnaire data gathered in two iterations of a larger design-based research study conducted in two contexts: English Studies students in Poland (N = 26) and culturally and linguistically diverse L2 learners in Australia (N = 12). This study illustrates how features of scaffolding were applied to map instructor, peer- and technology-based tools in terms of learning activities, resources, technology and feedback. The results suggest that these tools may cater to the multiple levels of student understanding and skill with regard to the development of L2 speaking found in modern L2 classrooms.

Keywords

EN

scaffolding; L2 speaking; higher education; Poland; Australia

• Publisher: Uniwersytet Śląski
• Journal: Theory and Practice of Second Language Acquisition
• Year: 2023
• Volume: 9
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 1-35

Dates

published

2023

Contributors

author

Joanna Pitura

• Pedagogical University of Cracow

• https://orcid.org/0000000316591995

author

Heejin Chang

• University of Southern Queensland

• https://orcid.org/000000019974367X

References

• Ahmadpour, L., Yousefi, D., & Hossein, M. (2016). Group collaboration, scaffolding instruction, and peer assessment of Iranian EFL learners oral tasks. The Journal of Applied Linguistics and Applied Literature: Dynamics and Advances, 4(1), 31–44.
• Anderson, T., & Shattuck, J. (2012). Design-based research: A decade of progress in education research? Educational Researcher, 41(1), 16–25.
• Azir, I. D. A. (2019). Applying peer scaffolding to enhance the EFL vocational students’ speaking skills. Ethical Lingua: Journal of Language Teaching and Literature, 6(2), 149–157.
• Barrett, N. E., & Liu, G.-Z. (2016). Global trends and research aims for English academic oral presentations: Changes, challenges, and opportunities for learning technology. Review of Educational Research, 86(4), 1227–1271.
• Belland, B. R. (2014). Scaffolding: Definition, current debates, and future directions. In J. M. Spector, M. D. Merrill, J. Elen, & M. J. Bishop (Eds.), Handbook of research on educational communications and technology (pp. 505–518). Springer.
• Belland, B. R. (2017). Instructional scaffolding: Foundations and evolving definition. In B. R. Belland (Ed.), Instructional scaffolding in STEM education: Strategies and efficacy evidence (pp. 17–53). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02565-0_2
• Botero, G. G., Restrepo, M. A. B., Zhu, C., & Questier, F. (2019). Complementing in-class language learning with voluntary out-of-class MALL. Does training in self-regulation and scaffolding make a difference? Computer Assisted Language Learning, 34(9), 1–27. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2019.1650780
• Bui, G., & Huang, Z. (2018). L2 fluency as influenced by content familiarity and planning: Performance, measurement, and pedagogy. Language Teaching Research, 22(1), 94–114.
• Bygate, M. (1987). Speaking. Oxford University Press.
• Bygate, M. (2009). Teaching and testing speaking. In M. H. Long & C. J. Doughty (Eds.), The handbook of language teaching (pp. 412–440). Blackwell Publishing.
• Chang, H., & Windeatt, S. (2021a). Designing and applying a Moodle-based E-textbook for an academic writing course. International Journal of Mobile and Blended Learning, 13(2), 73–95.
• Chang, H., & Windeatt, S. (2021b). Using VoiceThread for extended independent practice in giving short academic presentations. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 1–30. doi: 10.1080/09588221.2021.2003407
• Chang, H., Power, M., & Windeatt, S. (2022). The impact of arts-based pedagogical approaches in English as second or foreign language learning. Australian Art Education, 42(2), 151–185.
• Chang, W.-L., & Sun, Y.-C. (2009). Scaffolding and web concordancers as support for language learning. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 22(4), 283–302. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588220903184518
• Chapelle, C., Grabe, W., & Berns, M. S. (1997). Communicative language proficiency: Definition and implications for TOEFL 2000. Educational Testing Service Princeton.
• Chen, S. Y., & Tseng, Y.-F. (2021). The impacts of scaffolding e-assessment English learning: A cognitive style perspective. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 34(8), 1105–1127. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2019.1661853
• Cheng, R. (2010). Computer-mediated scaffolding in L2 students’ academic literacy development. Calico Journal, 28(1), 74–98. https://doi.org/10.11139/cj.28.1.74-98
• Cheng, Y., Horwitz, E. K., & Schallert, D. L. (2008). Language anxiety: Differentiating writing and speaking components. Language Learning, 49(3), 417–446. https://doi.org/10.1111/0023-8333.00095
• Council of Europe. (2001). Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, teaching, assessment. Cambridge University Press. Strasbourg: Council of Europe Publishing. Authors: B. North, E. Piccardo, T. Goodier.
• Council of Europe. (2018). Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, teaching, assessment companion volume with new descriptors.
• De Bot, K. (2000). A bilingual production model: Levelt’s “speaking” model adapted. In L. Wei (Ed.), The bilingualism reader (vol. 420, pp. 420–442). Routledge.
• De Jong, N., & Perfetti, C. A. (2011). Fluency training in the ESL classroom: An experimental study of fluency development and proceduralization. Language Learning, 61(2), 533–568.
• DeKeyser, R. (2015). Skill acquisition theory. In B. VanPatten & J. Williams (Eds.), Theories in second language acquisition: An introduction (pp. 94–112). Routledge.
• DeKeyser, R. (2017). Knowledge and skill in ISLA. In S. Loewen & M. Sato (Eds.), The Routledge handbook of instructed second language acquisition (pp. 15–32). Routledge.
• Dörnyei, Z. (2011). Research methods in applied linguistics quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methodologies. Oxford University Press.
• Effiong, O. (2016). Getting them speaking: Classroom social factors and foreign language anxiety. TESOL Journal, 7(1), 132–161. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesj.194
• Engeström, Y. (2001). Expansive learning at work: Toward an activity theoretical reconceptualization. Journal of Education and Work, 14(1), 133–156.
• Evans, S., & Morrison, B. (2011). Meeting the challenges of English-medium higher education: The first-year experience in Hong Kong. English for Specific Purposes, 30(3), 198–208. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2011.01.001
• Fan, C.-Y., & Chen, G.-D. (2019). A scaffolding tool to assist learners in argumentative writing. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 34(1–2), 159–183. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2019.1660685
• Gagné, N., & Parks, S. (2013). Cooperative learning tasks in a Grade 6 intensive ESL class: Role of scaffolding. Language Teaching Research, 17(2), 188–209. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168812460818
• Gerakopoulou, O. (2016). Scaffolding oral interaction in a CLIL context: A qualitative study. Selected Papers on Theoretical and Applied Linguistics, 21, 602–613.
• Ghasedi, P., Okati, F., Mashhady, H., & Fallah, N. (2018). The effects of symmetrical and asymmetrical scaffolding on speaking complexity, accuracy, and fluency. Indonesian EFL Journal, 4(1), 1–10.
• Gilead, Y. (2018). 10. Developing communicative competence: The role of handover in scaffolding oral communication. In I. Walker, D. K. G. Chan, M. Nagami, & C. Bourguignon (Eds.), New perspectives on the development of communicative and related competence in foreign language education (pp. 205–226). De Gruyter. https://doi.org/10.1515/9781501505034-010
• Goh, C. C. M. (2017). Research into practice: Scaffolding learning processes to improve speaking performance. Language Teaching, 50(2), 247–260. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444816000483
• Haidara, Y. (2016). Psychological factor affecting English speaking performance for the English learners in Indonesia. Universal Journal of Educational Research, 4(7), 1501–1505.
• Hammond, J., & Gibbons, P. (2001). What is scaffolding? In J. Hammond (Ed.), Scaffolding: Teaching and learning in language and literacy education. English Teaching Association.
• Hampel, R. (2019). Disruptive technologies and the language classroom: A complex systems theory approach. Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-31368-5
• Hsieh, Y. C. (2017). A case study of the dynamics of scaffolding among ESL learners and online resources in collaborative learning. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 30(1–2), 115–132. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2016.1273245
• Hsieh, Y. C. (2020). Learner interactions in face-to-face collaborative writing with the support of online resources. ReCALL, 32(1), 85–105. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0958344019000120
• Hu, J., & Wu, P. (2020). Understanding English language learning in tertiary English-medium instruction contexts in China. System, 102305. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2020.102305
• Hyland, K. (2003). Genre-based pedagogies: A social response to process. Journal of Second Language Writing, 12(1), 17–29.
• Hyland, K. (2007). Genre pedagogy: Language, literacy and L2 writing instruction. Journal of Second Language Writing, 16(3), 148–164. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jslw.2007.07.005
• Hyland, K. (2008). Genre and academic writing in the disciplines. Language Teaching, 41(4), 543–562. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444808005235
• Hyland, K. (2009). Academic discourse: English in a global context. A&C Black.
• Hyland, K. (2018). Genre and second language writing. In John I. Liontas (Ed.), The TESOL encyclopedia of English language teaching. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
• Jin, L. (2013). Language development and scaffolding in a Sino-American telecollaborative project. Language Learning & Technology, 17(2), 193–219.
• Kormos, J. (2006). Speech production and second language acquisition. Routledge.
• Kormos, J., & Préfontaine, Y. (2017). Affective factors influencing fluent performance: French learners’ appraisals of second language speech tasks. Language Teaching Research, 21(6), 699–716.
• Kozar, O. (2016). Text chat during video/audio conferencing lessons: Scaffolding or getting in the way? CALICO Journal, 33(2), 231–259. https://doi.org/10.1558/cj.v33i2.26026
• Lantolf, J. P., Thorne, S. L., & Poehner, M. E. (2015). Sociocultural theory and second language development. In B. VanPatten & J. Williams (Eds.), Theories in second language acquisition: An introduction (2nd ed., pp. 207–226). Routledge.
• Lee, L. (2008). Focus-on-form through collaborative scaffolding in expert-to-novice online interaction. Language Learning & Technology, 12(3), 53–72.
• Levelt, W. J. (1989). Speaking: From intention to articulation. MIT Press.
• Levy, M. (2009). Technologies in use for second language learning. The Modern Language Journal, 93, 769–782.
• Li, D., & Zhang, L. (2020). Exploring teacher scaffolding in a CLIL-framed EFL intensive reading class: A classroom discourse analysis approach. Language Teaching Research, 1362168820903340. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168820903340
• Li, J. (2010). Learning vocabulary via computer-assisted scaffolding for text processing. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 23(3), 253–275. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2010.483678
• Liou, H.-C., Chang, J. S., Chen, H.-J., Lin, C.-C., Liaw, M.-L., Gao, Z., Jang, J.-S. R., Yeh, Y., Chuang, T. C., & You, G.-N. (2006). Corpora processing and computational scaffolding for a web-based English learning environment: The CANDLE project. CALICO Journal, 24(1), 77–95.
• Liu, G. Z. (2011). The blended language learning course in Taiwan: Issues & challenges of instructional design. In J. Macalister and I. S. P. Nation (Eds.), Case studies in language curriculum design: Concepts and approaches in action around the world (pp. 82–100). New York, NY: Routledge.
• Ma, Q. (2017). A multi-case study of university students’ language-learning experience mediated by mobile technologies: A socio-cultural perspective. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 30(3–4), 183–203. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2017.1301957
• Mak, B. (2011). An exploration of speaking-in-class anxiety with Chinese ESL learners. System, 39(2), 202–214. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2011.04.002
• McCarthy, M., & O’Dell, F. (2008). Academic vocabulary in use: 50 units of academic vocabulary reference and practice; self-study and classroom use. Cambridge University Press.
• McRae, K. (2018). The value of developing debating skills in Academic English units. English Australia Journal, 33(2), 20–35.
• Mercer, N. (1994). Neo-Vygotskian theory and classroom education. In B. Stierer & J. Maybin (Eds.), Language, literacy and learning in educational practice (pp. 92–110). Multilingual Matters Ltd.
• Mills, D., & Kennedy, O. (2013). Frozen by fear: Can digital scaffolding help students start writing? The JALT CALL Journal, 9(3), 317–328. https://doi.org/10.29140/jaltcall.v9n3.163
• Mirahmadi, S. H., & Alavi, S. M. (2016). The role of traditional and virtual scaffolding in developing speaking ability of Iranian EFL learners. International Journal of English Linguistics, 6(2), 43–56.
• Moneypenny, D. B., & Simon, J. (2017). Best practices for teaching languages online. In Ross C. Alexander (Ed), Best practices in online teaching across disciplines, 107–120. Fairfax, VA: George Mason University Press.
• Narayanan, A., & Kumar, R. (2019). Computer-aided scaffolding in communicative language teaching environments. CALL-EJ, 20(1), 19–32.
• Nguyen, M. H. (2013). EFL students’ reflections on peer scaffolding in making a collaborative oral presentation. English Language Teaching, 6(4), 64–73.
• Nielsen, H. L. (2014). Curating and nudging in virtual CLIL environments. The EuroCALL Review, 22(1), 40–46.
• Ozaki, S., & Ueda, I. (2021). The effects of digital scaffolding on adolescent English reading in Japan: An experimental study on visual-syntactic text formatting. The JALT CALL Journal, 16(3), 147–166. https://doi.org/10.29140/jaltcall.v16n3.287
• Pitura, J. (2022). Developing L2 speaking skills in English-medium EFL higher education. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 16(2), 118–143.
• Puntambekar, S., & Hubscher, R. (2005). Tools for scaffolding students in a complex learning environment: What have we gained and what have we missed? Educational Psychologist, 40(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15326985ep4001_1
• Qiu, X. (2019). Functions of oral monologic tasks: Effects of topic familiarity on L2 speaking performance. Language Teaching Research. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168819829021
• Reimann, P. (2011). Design-based research. In L. Markauskaite, P. Freebody, & J. Irwin (Eds.), Methodological choice and design: Scholarship, policy and practice in social and educational research (pp. 37–50). Springer.
• Rezaee, A. A., Marefat, H., & Saeedakhtar, A. (2015). Symmetrical and asymmetrical scaffolding of L2 collocations in the context of concordancing. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 28(6), 532–549. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2014.889712
• Richards, J. C., & Rodgers, T. S. (2014). Approaches and methods in language teaching (3rd ed.). Cambridge University Press.
• Rodríguez, J. C. (2017). Design-based research. In C. A. Chapelle & S. Shannon (Eds.), The handbook of technology and second language teaching and learning (pp. 364–377). Wiley Blackwell.
• Shooshtari, Z. G., Jalilifar, A., & Ostadian, M. (2018). A mixed methods study of scaffolded corrective feedback and motivational scaffolding in EFL oral production accuracy and fluency. Applied Linguistics Research Journal, 2(3), 34–47.
• Storch, N. (2017). Sociocultural theory in the L2 classroom. In S. Loewen & M. Sato (Eds.), The Routledge handbook of instructed second language acquisition (pp. 69–83). Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.
• Tecedor, M., & Campos-Dintrans, G. (2019). Developing oral communication in Spanish lower-level courses: The case of voice recording and videoconferencing activities. ReCALL, 31(2), 116–134.
• Todd, R. W. (2014). Support adaptive testing: The effects of scaffolds in computer-based tests. CALL-EJ, 15(1), 1–20.
• Tudini, V. (2003). Conversational elements of online chatting: Speaking practice for distance language learners? ALSIC. Apprentissage des Langues et Systèmes d’Information et de Communication, 6(2), 83–99. https://doi.org/10.4000/alsic.2238
• Van Lier, L. (2004). The ecology and semiotics of language learning. A Sociocultural Perspective. Kluwer Academic Press.
• Vygotsky, L. (1978). Mind in society – The development of higher psychological processes (M. Cole, V. John-Steiner, S. Scribner, & E. Souberman, Eds.). Harvard University Press.
• Walqui, A. (2006). Scaffolding instruction for English language learners: A conceptual framework. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 9(2), 159–180.
• Walqui, A., & Van Lier, L. (2010). Scaffolding the academic success of adolescent English language learners: A pedagogy of promise. WestEd.
• Watson, D., Clark, L. A., & Tellegen, A. (1988). Development and validation of brief measures of positive and negative affect: The PANAS scales. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 54(6), 1063–1070.
• Wingate, U. (2015). Academic literacy and student diversity: The case for inclusive practice. Multilingual Matters.
• Wood, D., Bruner, J. S., & Ross, G. (1976). The role of tutoring in problem solving. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 17(2), 89–100.
• Wu, W.-C. V., Marek, M., & Yen, L. L. (2012). Promotion of EFL student motivation, confidence, and satisfaction via a learning spiral, peer-scaffolding, and CMC. International Journal of Computer-Assisted Language Learning and Teaching (IJCALLT), 2(3), 54–75. https://doi.org/10.4018/ijcallt.2012070104
• Xu, C., & Xia, J. (2021). Scaffolding process knowledge in L2 writing development: Insights from computer keystroke log and process graph. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 34(4), 583–608. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2019.1632901
• Yates, L., & Wahid, R. (2013). Challenges to brand Australia: International students and the problem with speaking. Higher Education Research & Development, 32(6), 1037–1050.
• Zarandi, S. Z. A., & Rahbar, B. (2016). Enhancing speaking ability through intervening scaffolding strategies. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 6(11), 2191–2195.

Identifiers

DOI

10.31261/TAPSLA.12816

Biblioteka Nauki

22446738