Instituto de Idiomas

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    Developing Creativity in Content and Language Integrated Learning
    (Servicio de Publicaciones de la Universidad de Navarra, 2018-06-30) Gerns, P. (Pilar); Breeze, R. (Ruth)
    This e-book brings together a wide variety of innovative proposals and attractive examples responding to the challenge of teaching CLIL with greater creativity in the Pre- and Primary School classroom.
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    CLIL + Science: New Directions in Content and Language Integrated Learning for Science and Technology
    (Servicio de Publicaciones de la Universidad de Navarra, 2016-06-30) Breeze, R. (Ruth)
    This e-book brings together a wide variety of innovative proposals and attractive exam ples of CLIL + Science in practice. It pro vides a useful and up-to-date resource for teachers, student teachers and school organisers in Primary and Secondary Edu cation, and for professionals involved in the internationalisation of university curricula. With its clear format and helpful illustrations, this e-book should be a source of inspira tion for those involved in CLIL + Science across the world.
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    Creation and validation of a bilingual test to estimate aural and written vocabulary size
    (Editorial Universidad de Granada, 2022) Aoiz-Pinillos, M. (Martín)
    Language learners’ vocabulary size is a reliable predictor of their success in a second language as it clearly correlates with better performances in the target language (Nation, 2001). Precise estimations of language learners’ actual knowledge are paramount to plan language teaching. However, the instruments employed by previous studies for those estimations might present validity and reliability issues that affect their research sensitivity and accuracy. This paper presents a step-by-step account of the creation of an aural and a written version of a bilingual vocabulary test. Answers from 73 adult L1-Spanish students attending English classes were analysed with the Rasch model to determine the best performing items in the test so that the overall reliability of the instrument was enhanced. The final version presents high levels of reliability: .89 for the listening vocabulary test and .82 for the written vocabulary test. Furthermore, descriptive statistics confirm that recognizing the words in their aural form is more challenging than in their written form: participants obtained 10.80% fewer correct answers in the listening vocabulary test. This finding confirms the claim that aural and written vocabulary are two separate dimensions, and impacts on how vocabulary should be taught in L2 classrooms.
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    Diferencias entre el conocimiento fonológico y ortográfico del vocabulario entre estudiantes de inglés como lengua extranjera de L1 español
    (Universidad de Granada, 2024) Aoiz-Pinillos, M. (Martín)
    The vocabulary size of language learners might predict their success in a second language because of its strong correlation with better performances in that target language. Although previous research has claimed that aural and written vocabulary are two aspects of vocabulary knowledge that need to be estimated separately, very few studies have examined this issue, particularly from an empirical perspective. This paper presents the possible differences in size between the phonological and orthographic vocabulary among learners of English as a second language. A bilingual vocabulary test was delivered, first orally and then in writing, to 209 language learners in Spain. The refined version of the instrument, showed reliabilities ranging between .79 and .92. Statistical analyses confirm that language learners know fewer words in their aural form than in their written form, regardless of the frequency of the word or the learner’s language level. This finding supports the claim that aural and written vocabulary are two separate aspects of knowing a word, and impacts on how vocabulary should be taught in L2 classrooms.
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    Relationship between L2 vocabulary size and listening ability
    (Universidad Pública de Navarra, 2021) Aoiz-Pinillos, M. (Martín)
    The relationship between second language vocabulary and listening comprehension has been barely explored, and in most cases with inadequate instruments. This study intends to bridge those gaps by examining the contribution of the language learners’ vocabulary size to their listening ability. The vocabulary size of 284 learners of English was assessed with both an aural and a written vocabulary test. A standardized listening test was used to assess their listening ability. Data were analysed with the Rasch model to determine the participants’ abilities and the item difficulties. Evidence from data analyses showed that L2 vocabulary knowledge and listening comprehension are strongly and positively related, that aural and written vocabulary knowledge are two clearly different dimensions, and that aural vocabulary knowledge predicts listening comprehension better than written vocabulary knowledge, especially among weaker listeners. Based on these results, more emphasis should be placed on learners’ aural vocabulary knowledge to improve their listening.
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    Interkulturelle Begegnungen anhand von literarischen Reiseerfahrungen
    (2023) Leibrandt, I. (Isabella Monika)
    Der Beitrag zeigt, wie die Beschäftigung mit Reiseliteratur einen Zugang zu interkulturellen Erfahrungen und Erkenntnissen vermittelt und plädiert für den Einsatz interkultureller literarischer Texten als Medium zum Fremdverstehen als auch zu einer Infragestellung eigener Positionen und somit einer selbstkritischen Haltung. Der Umgang mit fremdsprachiger und interkultureller Literatur soll Fremdheitserfahrungen erlauben, die es zu reflektieren gilt. Mit dem Kurzroman Im Juli von Selim Özdogan als Beispiel für diese Art von Literatur wollen wir den Lernenden eine sekundäre Lebenserfahrung vermitteln, die zum Perspektivenwechsel anregt und sich somit als ein überaus geeigneter Zugang zur interkulturellen Vermittlung erweist. Die Protagonisten selbst erleben und vollziehen einen kulturellen Perspektivenwechsel, den ein fremdsprachiger Leser ebenfalls nachvollziehen muss. Aufgrund dessen erachten wir als ein wesentliches Ziel der Didaktik des Fremdverstehens beim Lehren und Lernen von Fremdsprachen, den Lernern Gelegenheiten für die Übernahme anderer Perspektiven zu schaffen. Der an der Lehre orientierte Beitrag möchte auch ein praxisnahes Vorgehen zum Kultur- und Wissenstransfer und der interkulturellen Kommunikation mittels Literatur leisten. Ein angestrebtes Lernziel wäre dabei, eine offene und an der Welt interessierte Haltung bei den Lernern zu erreichen, die einen empathischen Umgang mit allgemein Unbekanntem anderer kultureller Prägung ermöglicht, aber auch zur Selbstreflexivität führt.
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    Literary learning: A proposal for using literature for the acquisition of emotional competencies
    (2022) Leibrandt, I. (Isabella)
    The concept of literary learning is based upon the conception that there are learning processes, which through the use of literary texts have a productive result. The linking element between both terms is the development of some competencies, in particular, emotional as well as discursive. By presenting these considerations, new answers to old questions, are provided: Why is literary reading necessary in Foreign Language Teaching (FLT), what goals are being pursued, how should literary reading be directed, and which learning processes they are intended for? The article deals with the aesthetic experience of literature on the basis of a lesson example. It is aimed at the aesthetic perception, whereby not only is a pleasurable reading understood, but it is also a critical examination of the represented reality in the text. The result is a productive and dialectic literary dialogue, in which the topics of narration are a starting point to an aesthetic judgment that also requires the ability to empathize with the characters and situations, so that learners ultimately improve their discursive skills.
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    Comparing corporate social responsibility discourses in the letter to shareholders: the case of british and spanish banks
    (University of Belgrade, 2020) Fernández-Vallejo, A.M. (Ana M.); Breeze, R. (Ruth)
    Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has now been incorporated into mainstream corporate reporting in most sectors. However, there are still differences between countries in the amount and type of CSR reported, and the way in which CSR is understood. This article presents a methodology for comparing CSR reporting which could be used in business communication or business English courses, particularly in the context of project work. The methodology is demonstrated through a comparison of the chairman’s letter or statement from all the FTSElisted UK and IBEX-listed Spanish banks in 2018. Quantitative analysis reveals a more homogeneous and balanced picture across UK banks, suggesting that a broader concept of CSR has been incorporated into reporting conventions, while the Spanish banks show an uneven picture. In particular, UK banks gave greater prominence to issues of accountability and employee welfare than the Spanish banks. Discourse analysis of representative examples brings to light various strategies used in both groups to target different stakeholders with potentially contradictory attitudes to CSR, and to offset potential criticism.
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    The way ahead in languages for specific purposes
    (Universidad Jaume I, 2020) Breeze, R. (Ruth)
    The processes of globalisation, the increasing dominance of English in academic and professional spheres, and the ongoing changes in higher education worldwide have destabilised the role of specialised language teaching at university level. Like many situations of instability, the current panorama presents those involved with both opportunities and threats. On the positive side, the increase in international contact in most areas of social, academic and economic life means that the need for specialised language education is probably greater than ever before. No one leaves school with excellent professional communication skills in a second language – and so precisely those skills should be the focus of new generation Languages for Specific Purposes (LSP) courses. But unfortunately many institutions have been slow to understand the vital role that language training for specific purposes has in equipping students for their future professions. The teachers and departments responsible for LSP teaching also urgently need to update their own knowledge and competences, redesign their courses, and seize this opportunity to become experts in professional communication. As linguists, LSP practitioners are uniquely positioned to conduct principled inquiry into specialised language domains, to map the specific features of professional genres, and to build a robust understanding of how different discourse communities use them. Such research will allow LSP teachers to adopt a critical attitude to material that is available (Jiang and Hyland 2020), and to devise courses and resources that match more closely with what their students need.
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    Reading comprehension of literary texts using a multimodal language-image approach
    (2022) Leibrandt, I. (Isabella)
    The importance of multimodal reading comprehension from multiple perspectives is particularly reflected in the theoretical work that has been published in recent times. Expanding the perspectives students use to make sense of these multimodal texts is an important part of comprehension instruction. The study focuses on the textual linking of language and image with the aim of promoting the textual productive and receptive use of images, assigning a relevant meaning to the image in the literary context of use, complementing the literary text with the visual message, integrating language and contextualised images and including them in the process of overall comprehension. The project presented here in the form of an experience report shows the results of and provides suggestions for the procedural application of a multimodal text¿image approach to reading comprehension of a literary text. It is based on the reading of F. C. Delius' novel The Walk from Rostock to Syracuse. This text lends itself to being explored in a multimodal way, as it pre-supposes implicit knowledge that includes certain historical and cultural contextual references.