http://hdl.handle.net/11320/9683 Mon, 01 Jun 2026 14:09:09 GMT 2026-06-01T14:09:09Z http://hdl.handle.net/11320/9688 Tytuł: Teacher identity and agency in language teaching: Adult ESL instructors as explorers Autorzy: Sanczyk, Anna Abstrakt: As the world becomes more globalized, various social, cultural, and historical contexts are shaping teacher identities. Exploring teacher identities is essential in understanding experiences, interactions, and beliefs that influence language teachers’ practices inside and outside the classroom (Farrell 2011). This narrative study, conducted in a large urban community college located in the southeastern region of the United States, engaged seven adult ESL instructors in critical reflection on their assumptions, teaching, personal experiences, and an institutional environment. Data collection included semi-structured interviews, classroom observations, journal entries, and classroom observations, including notes about artifacts used in the lessons. The findings of this study highlight the relationship between teacher identity and agency in teaching culturally and linguistically diverse learners. Participants characterized themselves as explorers, who valued various cultural experiences and acted agentively to create culturally responsive lessons and an enriching learning environment. These findings have significant implications for language teacher training and further research. Wed, 01 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/11320/9688 2020-01-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/11320/9687 Tytuł: Polish pre- and upper-intermediate learners’ opinions on the significance of linguistic and non-linguistic determinants of speech in developing their EFL speaking skill: A quantitative study Autorzy: Gajewska, Klaudia Abstrakt: Since “spontaneous verbal expression is not solely a product of knowledge and skill in using a language code” (Rivers 1968: 192), many scholars have emphasised the interdisciplinarity of the ability to speak. Having stressed the multifaceted character of speaking in the light of the selected linguistic and non-linguistic determinants of speech, we aim to explore Polish learners’ opinions on what components underlying a speech production process influence their ability to speak English. The quantitative study that we conducted among the group of 66 Polish EFL secondary school and university students revealed that out of 12 linguistic and non-linguistic determinants of speech, the knowledge of FL vocabulary and culture were respectively judged to be the most and least relevant. Even though some statistical differences in pre- and upper-intermediate students’ choices were keenly anticipated, between-group comparisons of A2 and B2 level subjects’ answers did not render any statistically significant similarities or differences. Wed, 01 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/11320/9687 2020-01-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/11320/9686 Tytuł: Acquisition of polarity items in Czech children: An experimental study Autorzy: Doleží, Linda; Kurfürstová, Petra; Šafratová, Iveta Abstrakt: The Czech polarity items i and ani are traditionally treated as English even. This paper deals with the acquisition of these polarity items in Czech children. These focus/scalar particles are specific for their sensitivity to probability. We aim to find out whether Czech children at primary school (junior school age) have already acquired i/ani and whether they are able to connect them correctly with alternatives on the scale of probability. The research was conducted with children from the second and the fourth grade at primary school. The paper represents an initial insight into this area since no similar research has been done in the Czech language so far. Wed, 01 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/11320/9686 2020-01-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/11320/9685 Tytuł: Unseized opportunity. Respelling of English words in L1 Polish textbooks Autorzy: Awramiuk, Elżbieta; Citko, Michał Abstrakt: The purpose of this study is to present the results of an analysis of several Polish textbooks, popular in primary schools (grades 4-6, age 10-13), to demonstrate how Polish textbooks give the pronunciation of English words. Authors of textbooks use their native orthographic convention for sound form signalization called respelling. It is a simple and convenient strategy for indicating pronunciation more accurately than normal spelling. However, respelling of English words poses some problems related to the use of L1 alphabet for decoding foreign language sounds, such as domestication or omitting relevant phonetic information. Another problem concerns the indistinct separation of the two forms of language – written and spoken – due to the use of letters for signalling sound form. L1 classes create a perfect opportunity for students to develop their linguistic awareness. This opportunity, however, does not seem to be fully embraced by the authors of the textbooks. Generally, there is a lack of wellthought- out solutions aimed at the orthoepic competence concerning phonetic transcription conventions. Thus, some ways of clarification of how the sounds of spoken language are represented in written form are proposed. Wed, 01 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/11320/9685 2020-01-01T00:00:00Z