This study reports an investigative study with 55 English-major participants in a Chinese university about using simulation in business English correspondence teaching. The study found that participants had strong needs in practical skills development and learning business English correspondence writing. The simulation approach was perceived to be…

Identity serves as a valuable lens through which to investigate, understand and facilitate teacher learning during curriculum reform. Identity learning is the core process of educational change, with teacher emotion at the heart of professional learning processes. In this study, we traced the 1-year journeys of four Chinese EFL teachers during a…

As part of a mixed-methods reconnaissance action research study, I assessed the impressions teachers had of using an innovation configuration for vocabulary instruction at an English education center in China. The quantitative data strand consisted of lesson artifacts and documents. The qualitative data strand consisted of semi-structured…

Drawing upon a collection of curriculum proposals and reflections and informed by a textual analysis approach, this study investigated how 234 university teachers planned to enact and reform their English-medium instruction courses (n = 66) in an English as a foreign language (EFL) university context. Results reveal that the teachers tend to adopt…

Many educators are required to further their knowledge and skills through professional development initiatives. These programs are affected by numerous elements. A crucial but often overlooked factor is the well-being of teachers. This qualitative case study explores how acknowledging the well-being of two participants and addressing their needs…

Curriculum material use is an agentive, reciprocal and innovative practice, involving multiple stakeholders such as teacher, students and assessments that mutually shape one another. While it is generally acknowledged that teachers' knowledge and skills deeply shape the way they use materials, little is known about how material use can possibly…

The existing literature in TESOL has revealed the multilayered, dynamic, and situated nature of teacher identity, but how language teachers construct their identities during curriculum reforms receives relatively limited attention, particularly in the context of teaching English for specific purposes (ESP). Theoretically anchored by the notion of…

This case study examines an under-explored domain of teaching, namely, teachers' use of curriculum materials to enact instructions. It focuses on English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) teachers' enactment of instructions through utilising prescribed textbooks in Higher Education (HE) in China. Drawing on interviews and lesson observations from two…

The bulk of recent research on generative AI (GenAI) in education mainly focused on its potential pedagogical uses as well as how students actually exploit such tools during learning, while little has been done to systematically investigate how teachers integrate those tools in different parts of their teaching process. To bridge this gap, the…

Professional development of teacher educators has received growing attention in recent years owing to their important role in preparing teachers for schools and universities, however, female-dominated mid-career EFL teacher educators in regional teacher education universities remain underexplored. This study examined 18 female experienced teacher…

In 2022, China's Educational Ministry, for the first time, released an industry standard for teachers' digital literacy. This standard provides a holistic framework for teachers' digital literacy (TDL) in five dimensions. Since few studies have investigated EFL teachers' digital literacy, the relationships among the five dimensions proposed for…

International students' mobility is increasing day by day around the world. As a result, many international postgraduate students enroll in Chinese universities for higher studies and exchange programs every year. The more international postgraduate students enrolled, the more challenges and problems encountered by local universities. This paper…

This study explores how teachers construct and enact agency in professional learning from an activity theory perspective. Through a qualitative case study of three language teachers' experiences within a professional development (PD) program focusing on China's Standards of English Language Ability (CSE), this research identifies agency…

Digital games are increasingly used in education to boost engagement and reduce stress. Digital game-based learning (DGBL) has improved the learning experience. However, further investigation is needed to determine the specific impact of commercially available, off-the-shelf (COTS) video games on English language skills. This study provides a…

Involving the global issues as listed in Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in education is necessarily done in the education process, especially in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learning. Exposure to global issues is known to improve students' understanding, awareness, and ability to solve urgent issues faced by global society. This paper…