CURRICULUM AND COURSE DESIGN

This research investigates the influence and usefulness of integrating Web 2.0 tools in teaching writing to B1 level students in
English and the extent to which the use of Web 2.0 tools motivate students in their writing process. The paper focuses on the
hypothesis that students of a B1 level are able to develop their writing skills successfully with the aid of Web 2.0 tools during the
English language learning process. For the needs of this research two students who attended private tuition and were preparing for
the KPG B1 / B2 May 2020 exams, participated in the research. They were both thirteen years old and belonged to the same
language level. Qualitative and quantitative findings were analyzed providing valuable information and suggestions for Web 2.0
tool implementation in English learning classes. The outcome of this research shed light on the influence of technology, and more
particularly on the application of Web 2.0 tools and differentiated instruction in the development of the writing skill of these two
students.

Η λειτουργία της εργαζόμενης μνήμης διαδραματίζει σημαντικό ρόλο στις σύνθετες γνωστικές δεξιότητες, όπως η κατανόηση της γλώσσας και η ευκολία εκμάθησης ξένης γλώσσας. Επιπλέον, όσο μεγαλύτερο είναι το εύρος της λεκτικής μνήμης, τόσο πιο εύκολη είναι η απόκτηση μιας ξένης γλώσσας. Πρώτος στόχος της μελέτης ήταν η διερεύνηση της σχέσης της χωρητικότητας της εργαζόμενης μνήμης και των γλωσσικών ικανοτήτων μαθητών/μαθητριών A΄ Γυμνασίου, ελληνικής καταγωγής και τυπικής ανάπτυξης, οι οποίοι/οποίες γνώριζαν την αγγλική γλώσσα σε επίπεδο Α1. Δεύτερος στόχος της έρευνας ήταν η αξιολόγηση της επίδρασης των γνωστικών επιδόσεών τους στην αυτοαποτελεσματικότητά τους κατά την εφαρμογή της στρατηγικής της αντίστροφης/ανεστραμμένης τάξης (flipped class). Για τις ανάγκες της έρευνας δημιουργήθηκαν δύο ομάδες, όπου η Πειραματική Ομάδα αποτελούνταν από 40 μαθητές/μαθήτριες (Μ.Ο. = 156.54 μήνες και Τ.Α. = 3.13) με επίπεδο επάρκειας γνώσης της αγγλικής ως ξένης γλώσσας Α1, ενώ η Ομάδα Ελέγχου αποτελούνταν από 40 μαθητές/μαθήτριες Α΄ Γυμνασίου (Μ.Ο. = 156.44, Τ.Α. 3.12), χωρίς πιστοποίηση επάρκειας γνώσης της αγγλικής ως ξένης γλώσσας Α1. Οι δυο ομάδες εξετάστηκαν σε δοκιμασίες μέτρησης της λεκτικής εργαζόμενης μνήμης. Η αναγνωστική ικανότητα των δύο ομάδων αξιολογήθηκε με το Τεστ-Α (Παντελιάδου & Αντωνίου, 2007). Τα ευρήματα έδειξαν ότι η ομάδα των συμμετεχόντων/συμμετεχουσών με τη γνώση μιας ξένης γλώσσας (αγγλικής) φάνηκε να έχει υψηλότερες επιδόσεις στις μετρήσεις αξιολόγησης της λεκτικής εργαζόμενης μνήμης σε σύγκριση με την ομάδα των μαθητών/μαθητριών χωρίς πιστοποίηση επάρκειας. Τέλος, τα προκαταρκτικά ευρήματα της μελέτης αποκαλύπτουν σημαντική επίδραση της γνώσης της ξένης γλώσσας στην αυτοαποτελεσματικότητα των συμμετέχοντων/συμμετεχουσών της Πειραματικής Ομάδας στην εφαρμογή της διδακτικής προσέγγισης της αντίστροφης/ανεστραμμένης τάξης.

This article focuses on the assessment of students’ learning in a Content and Language
Integrated Learning (CLIL) context and presents the findings of a case-study conducted in a
Primary School in Greece, where subjects from the general curriculum are taught in English,
by EFL teachers. Based on the results of a qualitative exploratory study, the article provides
evidence of the teachers’ practices for the assessment of students’ knowledge, abilities and
understanding. In the context of the article, the basic theoretical assumptions which
underpin CLIL are presented and assessment is discussed as an integral part of language
teaching and learning and as an act of safeguarding that the aims of teaching are monitored
and achieved. Assessment in CLIL for young learners is presented and discussed as a process
which should account for the goals and objectives of two different areas (content and
language) and at the same time retain the principles of validity, reliability and appropriacy
for the young learners’ context. The article concludes with suggestions towards the
development of an assessment framework which encompasses CLIL assessment and methods
that exploit existing resources in Greece and in Europe.

The socio-cultural changes taking place in Greek classrooms over the last years have rendered the modification and revising of the existing teaching material critical. It is argued that in classes with cultural minorities, students" needs should be put at the forefront, and teaching objectives should be adapted accordingly. The aim of the present study is to investigate the effectiveness of differentiated instruction and alternative assessment in the teaching of English to diverse population classes within a three-month period. The research focuses on the effect these approaches primarily have on triggering students" motivation and, secondarily, on their overall linguistic development. In particular, the study examines the outcomes of two groups of diverse population students attending the third grade of primary school. The experimental group was taught through differentiated instruction, while the control group attended the traditional class. The tools employed were a needs analysis questionnaire, a pre-and post-test, portfolio evaluation checklists and semi-structured interviews. The results of the questionnaires showed students" preference for non-traditional teaching strategies. The findings of the pre-and post-tests revealed that there is a greater progress regarding the skills of the experimental group. However, the statistical analysis (SPSS 26) showed that there are no significant differences. The answers of the portfolio assessment checklists, although scarce, featured the motivating role of portfolios in students" engagement. The results of the semi-structured interviews showed the student"s positive overall attitude towards the employed strategies. Nevertheless, the wide attendance outflow, the short research period, the limited sample, as well as the lack of equipment provision suggest more extended future research.

This paper explores the reasons for the existence of a needs analysis questionnaire and attempts to define the needs of the learners in a specific teaching context. The aim is to clearly state the theory lying behind the particular field, explain the design of the questionnaire and demonstrate the findings. Needs analysis is a matter of great importance as it can greatly assist both teachers and learners, as well. The former could better apprehend their students needs and requirements and therefore provide them with the best standards of education. The latter could significantly benefit from the adjusted lessons targeted to their particular needs and consequently, acquire knowledge through a pleasant and less stressful procedure.

Action research (AR) – as a participatory problem-oriented methodology - has been recently employed in Egypt by both researchers and practitioners to resolve complicated classroom and learning problems, and provide context-based solutions. Simultaneously, new 'special education' courses have been recently included in the university bylaws and internal regulations of Egyptian colleges of education in 2010, and this imposes many challenges, especially as far as course design and content selection are concerned. Therefore, the present study aimed at negotiating and improving the structure and delivery of a new special-education language-learning course entitled, 'TESOL/TEFL for Special Needs Students' taught to English majors (EFL student teachers) at Assiut University College of Education (AUCOE), and reaching a final framework of how the new course content should be like, and the best methods to be used in delivering it. Therefore, an action research methodology of two cycles was employed with two different groups of English majors throughout two successive semesters during the academic year 2012/13: the first group included 106 junior general-section EFL student teachers (1st semester, 2012); and the second group consisted of 51 senior primary-stage EFL student teachers (2nd semester, 2013). Data collection tools were used for both formative and summative evaluation purposes, and thus varied both at the initial stage and during the two iterations. They included: (1) questionnaires; (2) online diaries; (3) semi-structured interviews; (4) final feedback reports; (5) following-up logs online (on a Facebook page). The two AR cycles resulted in a final framework of the course structure and content along with some suggestions and guidelines into how to deliver it to the target learners. Moreover, results presented some educational implications of teaching English as a foreign language to students with special educational needs as well as some conclusions related to using AR methodology in Egypt to resolve many real teaching/learning problems.
Keywords: Action Research; TESOL/TEFL for Special Needs; Special Language Course Design; Special Education; Content Delivery; Course Structure and Content

This small-scale research study probed into primary school teachers' attitudes on using games to teach Greek as a foreign/second language to bilingual students. The research issues under consideration, are teachers' perceptions of games and how they should be implemented, and teacher training in bilingual education. For the needs of this research, semi-structured interviews were conducted with teachers of public primary schools in Greece, who had bilingual students attending their classes and whose second language was Greek. The aforementioned teachers who participated in the research applied games in their teaching. The findings of the study revealed that all teachers have a positive attitude towards using games in their classrooms, such as, board games, cognitive games, theatrical games, and role-playing and that, most of the time, their role (meaning the teacher's role) is that of a facilitator. Regarding their training in bilingual education, most evaluate it as incomplete in the sense that they emphasize upon the need for practical and experiential training. In conclusion, teachers believe that students prefer the application of games and play when learning a language compared to been taught the language through a traditional teaching method. Regarding the language lesson itself, teachers believe that games improve the learning skills of students who are learning Greek as a second/foreign language. However, given that this research was a small-scale research, it is important that we extend it to a larger and wider sample of teachers in order to draw safer conclusions.

The socio-cultural changes taking place in Greek classrooms over the last years have rendered the modification and revising of the existing teaching material critical. It is argued that in classes with cultural minorities, students’ needs should be put at the forefront, and teaching objectives should be adapted accordingly. The aim of the present study is to investigate the effectiveness of differentiated instruction and alternative assessment in the teaching of English to diverse population classes within a three-month period. The research focuses on the effect these approaches primarily have on triggering students’ motivation and, secondarily, on their overall linguistic development. In particular, the study examines the outcomes of two groups of diverse population students attending the third grade of primary school. The experimental group was taught through differentiated instruction, while the control group attended the traditional class. The tools employed were a needs analysi...