This book provides both principles and practical guidelines for Less Commonly Taught Language (LCTL) teachers of all levels and languages to transform raw materials into activities for the language classroom. Grounded in research, the author lays out a series of principles that serve to remind teachers of the possibilities that exist when they consider using authentic materials in the classroom. Each principle in the book is accompanied by numerous practical examples in a wide variety of languages created by the author and by teachers who have participated in a summer institute led by Bill Johnston and Louis Janus at CARLA since 1999.

A step-by-step guide to designing materials for learning world languages, from expert instructional designers Many teachers of less commonly taught languages, or LCTLs, find themselves in the position of needing access to quality language teaching and learning materials where none exist, or where those that do are extremely outdated. Designing Effective Language Learning Materials for Less Commonly Taught Languages is a concise guide for language instructors or anyone with an interest in developing language learning materials. While leading instructors through the development process using the ADDIE model of instructional design (Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, Evaluation), Özçelik and Kent present examples from many different languages, provide reflection questions for readers to consider at the end of each chapter, and give concrete strategies and tips throughout the process. Readers will come away from the book with a more comprehensive understanding of how to develop materials for world language learning in general, and LCTL learning in particular, and a clear roadmap for doing so. Simply written and free of overly complicated jargon or rhetoric, Designing Effective Language Learning Materials for Less Commonly Taught Languages will be an invaluable reference for novice and experienced instructors alike, as well as directors of language programs.

This edited volume highlights how institutions, programs, and less commonly taught language (LCTL) instructors can collaborate and think across institutional boundaries, bringing together voices representing different approaches to LCTL sharing to highlight affordances and challenges across institutions in this collection of essays. Sharing Less Commonly Taught Languages in Higher Education showcases how innovation and reform can make LCTL programs and courses more attractive to students whose interests and needs might be overlooked in traditional language programs. The volume focuses on how institutions, programs, and LCTL instructors can work together, collaborating and thinking across institutional boundaries to explore innovative solutions for offering a wider range of languages and levels. With challenges including instructor isolation, difficulty in offering advanced courses or sustaining course sequences, and minimal availability of pedagogical materials compared to commonly taught languages to overcome, this collection is a vital resource for language educators and language program administrators.

Bringing together an international and interdisciplinary team of contributors, this Handbook is a wide-ranging and invaluable reference guide to language teaching. A comprehensive reference work on language teaching, which combines the latest research findings, coverage of core topics, and examples of teaching experience from a variety of languages and settings Provides a unique breadth of coverage, including: the psycholinguistic underpinnings of language learning; social, political, and educational contexts; program design; materials writing and course design; teaching and testing; teacher education; and assessment and evaluation Offers a balanced evaluation of the major positions and approaches, including examining the increasingly important social and political context of language teaching Written by an international and interdisciplinary group of authors from a dozen different countries; English is only one of the many languages used as examples throughout the volume

This project report discusses the design, development, and evaluation of a teacher development program for teachers of less commonly taught languages in the Center for Language Studies (CLS) at Brigham Young University. Teachers hired to teach beginning language classes in the CLS are typically very proficient in the target languages, but are not trained in language teaching. Because proficiency in a language alone does not sufficiently qualify someone to teach it, this teacher development program was created to train CLS teachers in the basics of language pedagogy. The report includes a review of relevant literature on language pedagogy and teacher training, as well as a review of other language teacher development programs. The program described here consists of a pre-service seminar, in-service workshops, and classroom observations with immediate feedback. Feedback on the program was collected from the target audience during and after each of the five semesters of implementation. Many improvements, in such elements as training topics and sample materials, resulted from that feedback and from the formative and summative feedback gathered from subject matter experts.

This supplementary ebook contains the 12 chapters from the first edition of Brain Tomlinson's comprehensive Developing Materials for Language Teaching on various aspects of materials development for language teaching that did not, for reasons of space, appear in the second edition.

The Routledge Handbook of Materials Development for Language Teaching is the definitive resource for all working in this area of language and English language teaching. With 34 chapters authored by leading figures from around the world, the Handbook provides an historical overview of the development of language teaching materials, critical discussion of core issues, and an assessment of future directions. The contributions represent a range of different international contexts, providing insightful, state-of-the-art coverage of the field. Structured in nine sections, the Handbook covers: changes and developments in language teaching materials controversial issues in materials development research and materials development materials for language learning and skills development materials evaluation and adaptation materials for specific contexts materials development and technology developing materials for publication professional development and materials writing Demonstrating throughout the dynamic relationship between theory and practice, this accessible Handbook is essential reading for researchers, scholars, and students on MA programmes in ELT, TESOL, and applied linguistics.

Blended synchronous learning (BSL), where some students are present in a physical classroom while others participate online in real time, has been gaining momentum and shows great potential for teaching less commonly taught languages (LCTLs). In Teaching Languages in Blended Synchronous Learning Classrooms, Alba Girons and Nicholas Swinehart provide a concise overview of BSL as it pertains to language instruction. Topics include a number of key factors in the BSL classroom: • types of BSL environments• pedagogical considerations• group dynamics• creating and adapting activities• common logistical challenges• optimal space design• technology selection, training, and support This practical guide will be of use to teachers, technology staff, and program administrators, all working together to implement successful BSL programs and ensure quality learning opportunities for every student.