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Telecollaboration in Language Teacher Education: Cultivating a Community of Inquiry and Intercultural Communication Competence

This study investigated the effects of telecollaboration on fostering a community of inquiry and cultivating intercultural communication competence among 20 prospective foreign language teachers. To meet the rapidly changing demands for globally competent foreign language teachers, this project integrated telecollaboration into existing teacher education programs, and investigated whether and how it helped prospective foreign language teachers step out of their linguistic and cultural comfort zones to engage in an online community of inquiry and develop intercultural communication competence. This telecollaborative project paired 12 prospective English teachers in Taiwan with eight prospective French and Spanish teachers in Canada and Spain, using English as the lingua franca for intercultural communication. At the beginning of the project, the participants posted their short biographies on Padlet before splitting into VoiceThread discussion groups. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected from the VoiceThread discussion forums, the Intercultural Communication Competence Questionnaire (ICCQ), and the open-ended survey. While the prospective foreign language teachers interacted with their international partners via asynchronous communication, their social, cognitive, and teaching presences in the discussion forums were coded and analyzed to capture the unfolding of meaning negotiation processes. The results indicate that social presence was more prominent in negotiating mutual understanding than were the other two presences. The effects of relatively low teaching presence on cognitive presence remain inconclusive. The results of the ICCQ paired-samples t tests indicated that participants' intercultural communication competence was enhanced after the semester-long telecollaboration. Most participants considered telecollaboration to be beneficial for enhancing their intercultural communication skills and increasing their subject knowledge. Future research is necessary to explore the impact of teacher presence and to consolidate the interdependent effects of various presences within a community of inquiry.

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Understanding Vietnamese English Majors' Use and Acceptance of AI-Powered Tools for English Academic Writing at University

An increasing number of AI-powered tools are now widely available to help EFL learners with arduous college-level academic writing assignments. This study employed mixed data collection methods to investigate Vietnamese English majors' use and acceptance of AI technologies for EFL writing. Quantitative data from 53 questionnaire responses revealed the prominent popularity of Generative AI in a range of AI tools in use, mainly for homework and self-study activities. However, compared with overcoming writer's block or arranging ideas, AI assistance was more frequently sought to refine their academic use of English. Furthermore, adapting the revised UTAUT questionnaire by Hoi (2020), the results from 28 5-point-Likert-scale items revealed both male and female EFL learners' high perceptions of the determinants of user acceptance of AI-assisted academic writing practice, except for social influence. Qualitative data from five semi-structured interviews reiterated the advantages of AI tools to the learners' linguistic development, ideation efficiency, and learning attitudes. Besides underscoring the impact of instructors on their students' tendency to adopt AI technologies for such productive skills, students also raised concerns over risks of misinformation, tech-overreliance, and resulting risks to creative and critical thinking. Pedagogical implications were then suggested for more effective use of AI tools for academic writing in EFL tertiary settings.

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A Systematic Review of Experimental Research on the Integration of Technologies into ESP Courses

The research on various English for Specific Purposes (ESP) courses has recently received increasing attention from universities worldwide, and experimental research provides one of the most practical forms of empirical evidence of the effectiveness of technology application in ESP classes. The current study aimed to review experimental research systematically, specifically focused on integrating technologies into ESP courses. To achieve this goal, the Web of Science database was reviewed. In total, 70 articles published from 2019 to 2023 were identified from the database after eight searches with different keywords. A screening process was then conducted, resulting in 23 suitable articles for analysis. The systematic review approach was used to carry out the investigation using a content analysis approach. The results demonstrate that there was growing interest in this issue, particularly in 2021, when the majority of studies were published. The studies reviewed were mainly from Ukraine and focused on fields such as Legal English, English for Academic Purposes, English for Medical Purposes, and English for Engineering. Various technologies were employed, with Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) tools being the most popular, followed by Learning Management Systems (LMSs). It is highlighted that these technologies have been shown to benefit ESP students; however, several roadblocks were also observed. Despite several limitations, this comprehensive analysis contributes to the existing literature on technology integration into ESP courses worldwide by providing the most recent advances and cutting-edge technological applications being researched for ESP education. Implications and recommendations for further research are also discussed.

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Collaborative Argument Map-Based ChatGPT to Enhance EFL Students' Argumentation Complexity and Group Efficacy

Developing argumentation skills can be challenging for EFL students, particularly in constructing complex arguments that are clear, supported by evidence, and which address counterarguments. Improving argumentation complexity enhances critical thinking, language proficiency, and academic success. However, limited exposure to complex texts, lack of collaborative practice, and difficulties in providing timely feedback hinder EFL students' development of argumentation skills. To address these challenges, this study proposed a collaborative argument map integrated with ChatGPT (CA-ChatGPT). A quasi-experimental study was conducted with 67 Indonesian university students, randomly divided into an experimental group (n = 34) using CA-ChatGPT, and a control group (n = 33) using conventional technology (CA-CT). Over 6 weeks, students in the CA-ChatGPT group demonstrated significant improvements in argumentation complexity and group efficacy compared to the CA-CT group. Using Toulmin's model and epistemic network analysis, the study found that CA-ChatGPT students developed more well-rounded arguments across multiple elements (e.g., claim, grounds, warrant, rebuttal), while CA-CT students focused mainly on basic components. The study highlights the potential of ChatGPT to enhance argumentation complexity, and suggests further research on its pedagogical applications.