In university-level composition courses, assignment prompts are fundamental in shaping students' understanding of major writing projects. Aiming to be instructive and descriptive while also clear and concise, instructors use a series of moves (Swales, 1990) and modals in writing assignment prompts to express requirements, suggestions, and…

The increasing use of digital educational technologies in higher education (HE) means that the nature of communication may be shifting. Assessments of English for academic purposes (EAP) need to be reconceptualized accordingly to reflect the new and complex ways in which language is used in HE. With a view to inform EAP assessments, our study set…

International students with low academic English proficiency face challenges with reading their course materials and writing assignments. Their challenges are exacerbated during remote learning, as they remain in their home countries, immersed in their home languages, which may be quite distant from academic English. To investigate the effects of…

This article considers the challenges heralded by digital technology in relation to the management of academic integrity on high-stakes Direct Entry English Programs in Australia. Firstly, a number of the ways in which students are using digital tools to complete assignment writing are examined. Secondly, findings from a review of academic…

The social, economic, and educational upheaval that has been occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic, the concurrent and stressful conversation about race and racism in the United States, and domestic political turmoil has turned the world on its head. In these so-called "unprecedented times," traditional higher education appears to be on…

In today's world, individuals should be able to maintain their expertise amidst constant changes. Thus, this type of agency should be supported in higher education. One approach for a teacher-researcher to examine supporting agency and how it manifests itself in higher education courses is through the learning design. In this article, learning…

The transformation of higher education has been a pressing concern for policy makers and practitioners. This article provides examples of the transformative potential of assessments designed within the framework of a multi-literacies and heteroglossic pedagogy in an Applied English Language course at a South African university. These assessments,…

This study investigated the effect of cooperative learning on writing anxiety alleviation through a pre-test/post-test assessment. 120 EFL learners from a Chinese polytechnic institute were assigned into two groups: one experimental (cooperative writing) and the other comparison (solitary writing). Results revealed that cooperative learning…

A learner-centred approach puts students amidst the learning process and helps them become involved in that process. It provides an opportunity for students to choose and direct the course of the lesson. This approach is especially appropriate when dealing with ethical concerns that might be sensitive issues. When it comes to the sources for the…

Much research work on teacher feedback has concentrated on the perceptions of students and teachers on feedback, but few studies have addressed the extent to which students respond to their teachers' written feedback, particularly at the tertiary level. This study analysed the extent to which students made appropriate revisions based on the…

This mixed methods classroom research examined if accountability groups in the lower proficiency levels of a university intensive English program would improve students' language acquisition. Students were assigned partners for the study period with whom they completed assignments inside and outside of class, as well as set goals for use of…

Most educators are aware that some students utilize web-based machine translators for foreign language assignments, however, little research has been done to determine how and why students utilize these programs, or what the implications are for language learning and teaching. In this mixed-methods study we utilized surveys, a translation task,…

In recent decades, increasing numbers of EMI (English as Medium of Instructions) courses have been added to university course offerings in countries where English is not the first language, as a way of supporting university internalization and addressing the global status of English. However, some studies argue that EMI courses might affect the…

This paper describes a quasi-experimental study into the impact of a blended e-learning environment on academic writing assignments in English (L2) at a Thai international college. An experimental group of 15 students used an on-line bulletin board, as well as face-to-face (F2F) communication in class, to share information for essay topics they…

A university-wide secondary credential program (middle and high school) has engaged in systemic reform through professional development for content faculty to better equip prospective secondary teacher candidates for supporting the academic and social needs of English language learners (ELLs), particularly in urban schools. Data from five years of…