Course overview
- Study period
- Semester 1, 2025 (24/02/2025 - 21/06/2025)
- Study level
- Postgraduate Coursework
- Location
- St Lucia
- Attendance mode
- In Person
- Units
- 2
- Administrative campus
- St Lucia
- Coordinating unit
- Education School
This course takes a critical perspective on current trends and issues in TESOL education internationally, with a specific focus on the problems and challenges of teaching TESOL in educational contexts. This course may not be offered in person if the enrolment is less than 10 students.
Since its emergence as a field in the post-World War II period, ESL/EFL has been dominated by a search for appropriate methods and theories for classroom pedagogy and teaching. Itﾠ relied on the paradigms of the day, and this ﾠled, until recently, to a strong reliance on psychological, linguistic, psycholinguistic and applied linguistic models and theories of teaching and learning.
By contrast, in the fields of language education and literacy studies more generally, there has been a 'turn' and an increasing focus on culture, politics and social institutions. If there is a lesson from ethnography of communication and sociolinguistics, it is that language and literacy learning and use always occur in relation to a social context. But what does it mean to say that language learning is social? Is it simply that people are social creatures, or that we learn language interactively and socially? As any of us living and working in multilingual countries know, who speaks which languages, with what kinds of force and consequences, is as much a matter of contending cultures, economic power, social and community interests and ideologies, as it is a matter of technical language proficiency. As all of us who have taught children and adults know, how, when and with what consequences people learn language is not purely an individual or idiosyncratic matter; their learning is contingent upon their lived social lives, cultural beliefs and systems. Educational systems and their programs are a prime focus for deciding what is learned in what contexts.
Culture, society and economy are relevant contexts and issues forﾠESL/EFL teachers and researchers particularly because ESL/EFL has historically tended to occur in social contexts involving immigrant and refugee populations, in emergent and long standing multicultural and multilingual societies, in polities where language is a matter of political contest, and for populations and communities for whom the connections between language, cultural identity and economic status and power are critical. These contexts take on an increasing importance since English is the first foreign language for many countries in the Asia-Pacific region and the perceived need for proficiency in a globalising world has increasingly pushed its study further down into the primary school curriculum.ﾠ
Language teaching and learning, then, has become closely tied to matters of economics, politics, identity, power and culture. The kinds of decisions that ESL/EFL teachers (or their educational systems) must make about which curricula, instructional approaches, evaluation methods to use for which students are dependent on our abilities to critically read, analyse and engage with learners' social contexts. Increasingly, our employment, work and lives as ﾠESL/EFL teachers also are dependent on our understandings of and engagements with these same contexts where language is taught and learned. Therefore, the course draws on a range of fields (i.e., cultural anthropology, cultural studies and critical theory, educational studies, literacy studies, political economy and sociology as well as applied linguistics and interactional sociolinguistics), to introduce ﾠESL/EFL teachers to key theories and ideas that might inform their decisions and practices.
Course requirements
Assumed background
The course design is based on an in-service approach, that is, it assumes that participants are 1) qualified teachers withﾠsome background in ESL/EFL or a language other than English and 2) have at least a year's teaching experience. While it is possible for teacher colleagues or other helping professionals without this experience to enrol and complete the assessment for the course, they may find it more challenging because it assumes a reflective practice model, i.e. students will be able to relateﾠaspects of criticalﾠtheory to classroom / school / educational (or some other) contexts and practices.
Restrictions
Entry to the Master of Educational Studies, Graduate Certificate in Applied Linguistics and Master of Applied Linguistics programs.
Jointly taught details
This course is jointly-taught with:
- Another instance of the same course
EDUC7032 (SI-NET ID 6060) External mode. The In Personal and External modes are taught together and are merged in the course blackboard.
Course contact
Course staff
Lecturer
Tutor
Dr Meng Zhang
Timetable
The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.
Additional timetable information
Please check your mySI-net for time of the class which is conducted fully online.
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Aims and outcomes
- To develop a critical understanding of current trends and issues inﾠESL/EFL education internationally, with a specific focus on the problems and challenges of teaching ESL/EFL in educational settings such as schools.
- To understand and critically assess issues around educational change and globalisation, literacy acquisition, cultural identity, language ideologies, language planning and politics, the complexities of language acquisition and use in multilingual societies and communities, and
- To consider how these critical issues relate to practice in particular contexts.
Learning outcomes
After successfully completing this course you should be able to:
LO1.
Critically reflect on ESL/EFL and/or ESL/EFL related situations.
LO2.
Examine your own teaching situation and context from a critical perspective.
LO3.
Develop a critical understanding of critical approaches to different areas of language education.
LO4.
Demonstrate how society and culture contextualise language and language teaching in particular settings.
LO5.
Use critical analysis to explore alternate perspectives and ethical positions relevant to language learning and teaching.
Assessment
Assessment summary
| Category | Assessment task | Weight | Due date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay/ Critique | Critical Essay | 40% 2700 words |
24/03/2025 - 9/05/2025
Due date for submission 2pm 09/05/2025 |
| Paper/ Report/ Annotation | Analysis of textbook or news or web materials | 35% 2300 words |
12/05/2025 - 11/06/2025
Due date for submission 11/06/2025 |
| Paper/ Report/ Annotation, Presentation |
Teaching activity showcase
|
25% |
Week 6 - Week 13
Due date notified by Week 4. |
Assessment details
Critical Essay
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Essay/ Critique
- Weight
- 40% 2700 words
- Due date
24/03/2025 - 9/05/2025
Due date for submission 2pm 09/05/2025
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L03
Task description
You will write a critical essay on a negotiated topic drawn directly from the course topics, discussions and readings. Students must have negotiated a detailed topic for the paper with the lecturer/tutor by Week 6. This should be seen as an intensive piece of writing that uses a critical perspective discussed in the course and carefully follows good editorial practice. This essay is an academic exercise which will allow you to examine a particular debate in the field in depth and present your perspective on it. You must put forward your clear argument about the issue(s) based on the review of relevant works in the field. You will also need to explain and utilize relevant concepts as discussed in the course in framing your essay and the argument.
Submission guidelines
The essay will be submitted through Turnitin on the course blackboard.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Late submission
A penalty of 1 grade for each 24 hour period from time submission is due will apply for up to 7 days. After 7 days you will receive a mark of 0.
All assessment tasks are due by 2:00 pm on the due date. Late submission of assessment tasks without official approval will result in
penalties being applied. (See Penalties for Late Submission below)
Analysis of textbook or news or web materials
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Paper/ Report/ Annotation
- Weight
- 35% 2300 words
- Due date
12/05/2025 - 11/06/2025
Due date for submission 11/06/2025
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L03
Task description
Critical applied linguistics argues that we learn language socially and interactively in real contexts. Computer and information technology has enabled the use of websites and other online materials for language learning in the virtual space. Like printed reading textbooks, language learning websites often act as a central agent for disseminating knowledge from a particular perspective. Critical Discourse Analysis suggests that all texts and materials carry particular messages about how society as well as people is perceived and constructed, and when they are developed by governments or other agencies, these messages may be quite purposefully and carefully selected. Through the ideologies embedded in the discourse, texts often tell us something about the attitudes, values, power relationships and orientations of both the target (English language) and home society or the online community in the case of
virtual space.
In this assessment item, you will examine text materials related to textbooks, websites or media including social media to uncover some of these issues. Written as well as spoken texts can be selected for this analysis. Your selected text(s) for analysis does not have to be about language teaching and learning. However, for practical reasons, the text(s) has to be in English. The work by Norman Fairclough is a starting point for CDA. The course will provide many examples of CDA work selected from various contexts.
Submission guidelines
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Late submission
A penalty of 1 grade for each 24 hour period from time submission is due will apply for up to 7 days. After 7 days you will receive a mark of 0.
All assessment tasks are due by 2:00 pm on the due date. Late submission of assessment tasks without official approval will result in
penalties being applied. (See Penalties for Late Submission below)
Teaching activity showcase
- Identity Verified
- In-person
- Online
- Mode
- Activity/ Performance, Oral, Product/ Artefact/ Multimedia
- Category
- Paper/ Report/ Annotation, Presentation
- Weight
- 25%
- Due date
Week 6 - Week 13
Due date notified by Week 4.
- Learning outcomes
- L02, L04, L05
Task description
The aim of this assessment task is to give students an opportunity to plan and create a teaching activity and present it in person or video-record it. This is not exactly a presentation of teaching; it’s about presenting a teaching activity that you have designed. Students are welcome to use AI or any other resources for the design of the activity. Creativity, innovativeness, theoretical guidance and pedagogical merit will be the defining characteristics of the activity. The following guiding questions may be helpful in designing your teaching activity.
1. What is the name of the activity?
2. Which students is this designed for?
3. Which weekly topic is the activity related to?
4. What teaching aims (linguistic, communicative, pedagogical) will be achieved by the activity?
5. What materials and resources (including digital) are needed for the activity?
6. What are the stages of the activity, if any?
7. Why do you think the activity is fit the teaching aim(s)?
8. What is new/innovative/interesting about the activity?
9. What are the theoretical ideas/views/concepts that support the activity?
10. How would you describe the contribution of the activity?
11. What potential limitations of the activity can you think of?
This is an individual assessment task, and you will present it in 20 minutes maximum. You will present it either in the class (in person), or in real time online, or video-record it, depending on your tutorial group.
Submission guidelines
Many students will do this activity showcase in person (in the class) or online (for External students). However, some students will have the opportunity to video-record their presentation and submit it to the blackboard for assessment.
Deferral or extension
You cannot defer or apply for an extension for this assessment.
If an extension for this task is needed, students will contact their tutor or course coordinator directly.
Late submission
A penalty of 1 grade for each 24 hour period from time submission is due will apply for up to 7 days. After 7 days you will receive a mark of 0.
All assessment tasks are due by 2:00 pm on the due date. Late submission of assessment tasks without official approval will result in
penalties being applied. (See Penalties for Late Submission below)
Course grading
Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.
| Grade | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 (Low Fail) |
Absence of evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Fails to fullfil most or all of the course requirements. |
| 2 (Fail) |
Minimal evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Fails to provide evidence of the understanding of or ability to apply critical teaching and learning principles and strategies from the course. No evaluative comment and/or poor communication skills, or some assessment not submitted. |
| 3 (Marginal Fail) |
Demonstrated evidence of developing achievement of course learning outcomes Course grade description: <p>Superficial understanding of critical language teaching and learning principles; limited ability to apply these principles; little or no critical evaluation; resources and materials are unconvincing or in appropriate; or quality of written or oral communication is poor. |
| 4 (Pass) |
Demonstrated evidence of functional achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Adequate understanding of critical language teaching and learning principles; limited critical evaluation; sequencing is sometimes inappropriate or inconsistent; written communication is largely free of errors that effect readability. |
| 5 (Credit) |
Demonstrated evidence of proficient achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Some understanding of critical language teaching and learning principles and awareness of their relevance; aspects of critical evaluation; some attempt to vary resources and strategies, and to sequence materials, infrequent errors. |
| 6 (Distinction) |
Demonstrated evidence of advanced achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Frequent evidence of original thought, some critical thought and evaluation; some diversity of resources, strategies and use of critical perspectives, logical sequencing of materials, useable formats for learning and teaching. |
| 7 (High Distinction) |
Demonstrated evidence of exceptional achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Consistent evidence of substantial thought, an ability to critique and evaluate; use of a diversity of resources, strategies, and critical perspectives; logical sequencing of materials, engaging formats for teaching and learning, error free. |
Additional course grading information
Determining final grades: The final grades are determined by consideration of the weighting of individual assessment items, through the use of weighting formula and the profile of individual grades across accumulated assessment tasks.
An exemplar to show calculation of the final grade:
All three assignments in this course will be provided a grade out of 7. The final grade will be calculated using the weighting and the individual assignment grades as follows.
Example:
A student receives the following three grades:
Assignmentﾠ 1 (A1) : grade of 6 at 35% weighting
Assignment 2 (A2): grade of 5 at 40% weighting
Assignment 3 (A3): grade of 6 at 25% weighting
The final grade for this student taking into account the weighting of each assignment would be:
ﾠﾠﾠ (A1)ﾠﾠﾠﾠ +ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠ (A2)ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠ +ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠ (A3)ﾠﾠﾠﾠ
(0.35 x 6) + (0.40 x 5) + (0.25 x 6) = 2.1 + 2.00 + 1.5 = 5.6
The final grade would be rounded up to the nearest whole number; in this case the grade would be 6.
In the case where the final grade is 0.5 or above, the grade will be rounded up to the nearest whole number (e.g. 5.5 would become 6). In the case where the final grade is 0.49 or below, the grade will be rounded down to the nearest whole number (e.g. 6.49 would become 6).
Supplementary assessment
Supplementary assessment is available for this course.
Additional assessment information
The following applies to all assessments in this course:
Marking criteria and/or marking rubrics are available in the 'Assessment' folder in Blackboard for this course.
Release of assessment item marks and feedback
In addition to the grade awarded, feedback will be provided in a timely manner to enable students to apply the feedback to further tasks within the course or program and/or plan for supplementary assessment, requests for re-mark, or re-enrolment. However, as per UQ Policy and Procedures Library under the Assessment Policy, results for the final assessment item are to be released only after the final grade for the course has been released. Time frames for applications for assessment re-mark are indicated under the Assessment Procedure.
Re-mark policy
After each assessable item, students will be given the opportunity to view their assessment and so satisfy themselves that a marking or administrative error has not occurred. The formal process of querying a course result (requesting a remark on academic grounds) is set out in the UQ Policy and Procedures Library under the Assessment Procedure.
Use of AI/MT to support or inform assessment
This task has been designed to be challenging, authentic and complex. Whilst students may use AI and/or MT technologies, successful completion of assessment in this course will require students to critically engage in specific contexts and tasks for which artificial intelligence will provide only limited support and guidance.
A failure to reference generative AI or MT use may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
To pass this assessment, students will be required to demonstrate detailed comprehension of their written submission independent of AI and MT tools.
Learning resources
You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.
Library resources
Find the required and recommended resources for this course on the UQ Library website.
Additional learning resources information
The use of Blackboard is a requirement for this course. All students are automatically enrolled in Blackboard. Many of the required and additional materials are available only through Blackboard.ﾠ
Learning activities
The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.
Filter activity type by
Please select
| Learning period | Activity type | Topic |
|---|---|---|
Week 1 (24 Feb - 02 Mar) |
Lecture |
Week 1: Introduction to critical perspectives on TESOL Introduction and course overview Learning outcomes: L01, L04 |
Week 2 (03 Mar - 09 Mar) |
Seminar |
Week 2: Critical TESOL educators: To be or not...? Why critical TESOL teacher education; roles and challenges for critical TESOL teacher educators. Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L04 |
Week 3 (10 Mar - 16 Mar) |
Seminar |
Week 3: The politics of the spread of English Spread of English, its agents and beneficiaries; theorising spread of English and pedagogical implications Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Week 4 (17 Mar - 23 Mar) |
Seminar |
Week 4: The politics of ELT development aid Issues relating to ELT projects as development aid for educational innovation and change Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L04 |
Week 5 (24 Mar - 30 Mar) |
Seminar |
Week 5: The politics of Standard English Varieties of Englishes in the world and their speakers and pedagogical implications Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L04 |
Week 6 (31 Mar - 06 Apr) |
Lecture |
Week 6: The politics of discourse Introduction to discourse and critical discourse analysis; understanding how language relates to society Learning outcomes: L01, L03 |
Week 7 (07 Apr - 13 Apr) |
Seminar |
Week 7: The politics of text Doing Critical Discourse analysis; methods, strategies and illustrations Learning outcomes: L01, L03 |
Week 8 (14 Apr - 20 Apr) |
Seminar |
Week 8: The politics of post-truth An introduction to post-truth and its implications for language education Learning outcomes: L03, L05 |
Mid-sem break (21 Apr - 27 Apr) |
No student involvement (Breaks, information) |
Mid-semester break |
Week 9 (28 Apr - 04 May) |
Seminar |
Week 9: The politics of identity and difference How issues of identity and difference relate to language use and their implications Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04, L05 |
Week 10 (05 May - 11 May) |
Seminar |
Week 10: The politics of TESOL Overview of ideological positions on TESOL and their ethical and professional implications Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04 |
Week 11 (12 May - 18 May) |
Seminar |
Week 11: The politics of pedagogy Models of critical pedagogy; what might a critical pedagogy look like; teacher/ student power relations; Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04, L05 |
Week 12 (19 May - 25 May) |
Seminar |
Week 12: The politics of language testing What is the impact of language testing on teaching? TESOL programs? Teachers? Other domains? Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L05 |
Week 13 (26 May - 01 Jun) |
Seminar |
Week 13: The politics of being critical Is critical thinking Western? Eastern? Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Policies and procedures
University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:
- Student Code of Conduct Policy
- Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
- Assessment Procedure
- Examinations Procedure
- Reasonable Adjustments - Students Policy and Procedure
Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.