• English Language & Literature Teaching
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.167-186
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• 2006

We live in a global village that requires a language with a genuinely global status as a means of communication. During the twentieth century, English has clearly emerged as the lingua franca owing to both past British political imperialism and the more recent superpower status of the United States. Further contributing to world domination of the English language is the fact that the computer and Internet sprang from the US. Whether you like it or not, you are destined to learn English at least to some extent in order to live in this global village. For the last two decades, one of the most mistaken ideas a number of Korean English teachers have had is that speaking and listening are the primary forms of language, while reading and writing are secondary. In fact, reading is regarded as a skill of much consequence to us since it provides us with access to a huge quantity of information on the Internet, of which at least 80% is written in English. Writing, too, deserves a great deal of attention because we are increasingly called upon to use standard English expressions. As diligent learners of English, we had better not forget the place accorded to language not only as a medium for exchange and constructing information but as a tool for thinking. So we should try to think in English to the point where we have thinking-in-English as a habit, thereby leading to increased familiarity with the language. Such familiarity entails, above all, possessing a command of English.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.357-373
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• 2011

There have been great controversies over making English as an official language in Korea. They have been triggered since some scholars published books and articles claiming that officialization of English is the best option for Korean people who spend significant amount of their life time to learn English. Those who are happy about the idea believe that officialization of English will be a good help for Korean people to gain a high degree of English proficiency, while others worry about possible negative impact on Korean language and culture. There are more diverse views and opinions on this issue. The distance between pros and cons about officialization of English doesn't seem to be negotiated. This study has been conducted not for finding the solution to the controversies. It is for understanding how those whose successful career and high living quality depend on gaining high command of English feel about acknowledging English as an official language of Korea. The results show that overall ideas on the officialization of English of research subjects are similar with those of scholars in academia. Around two third of total number of the research subjects expressed their criticism against the idea. One interesting thing is that all of the subjects, regardless their positions, think that there are serious problems in English education policy and system in Korea.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.199-218
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• 2011

This study is to explore one of efficient procedures in producing English textbooks for secondary school students. According to a series of changes in the National Curriculum, new textbooks have been selected and used in English classes. Textbooks are one of the fundamental factors in teaching and learning languages together with learners and teachers. So this study emphasizes the significance of textbooks and presents the practical model of producing English textbooks including activity books, from major aspects such as planning, writing, editing, selecting, etc. The current government has made continuing efforts to improve English education development by administrating innovative policies [strategies]. However, there still remain lots of difficulties in this gigantic task, which is not an exception in the matter of textbooks. Therefore, to provide students with better textbooks, the government should not only invest great funds but also renovate the present polluted system of selecting textbooks.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.69-89
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• 2012

This paper explored the effects of extensive reading (ER) on Korean university students' L2 reading proficiency and reading rates. This study also illustrated how ER can be integrated into a university English reading class. Seventeen students who took a summer reading course participated in this study. Data were gathered through pre- and post- tests in terms of participants' reading comprehension proficiency and reading rates and post- questionnaire with regard to their attitudes toward L2 storybook reading after they have experienced it. The analysis was carried out using the Paired Samples t-test. It was revealed that ER has a positive effect on the enhancement of the participants' reading comprehension and reading rates. The participants showed their continued intention to read in English and a strong belief that persistent reading in English in the long run will help improve their English. The results of this study confirm the educational values of incorporating ER into university English reading classes. The pedagogical implications for EFL instructors are described.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.23-40
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• 2007

This paper discusses why Korean speakers have problems in pronouncing some medial sonorant clusters in English. We argue that the main reasons lie in the sonority sequence requirement difference between the two languages. English does not have any specific sonority sequence preference between the medial sonorant sequences while Korean has a strict requirement between the two sonorants over a syllable boundary. This sonority sequence requirement difference between the two languages acts as an interference for Korean speakers in learning English pronunciation. This barrier for Korean speakers in acquiring correct pronunciation is implemented in a constraint ranking difference in the Optimality Theory, which is not familiar for Korean speakers. Understanding the details of sonorant production mechanisms along with the different constraint ranking will facilitate the learning process of Korean speakers learning English.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
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• no.4
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• pp.131-178
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• 1998

English teaching in the elementary school of Korea had been put into practice as an extracurricular activity from 1982 till 1996. But a TEFL program as a regular course in the elementary school of Korea has been practiced since 1997, according to the language policy to establish early English education in all the elementary schools of Korea. The purpose of this study is to identify the current state of English teaching in the elementary school of Korea, to investigate its problems and to suggest some remedies for its improvement. For this purpose this study includes the analysis and result of the survey. The survey result points out that English teaching in the elementary school of Korea is not satisfactory and has some problems in many fields. In this connection the present study suggests some remedies for the improvement of English teaching in the elementary school of Korea.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.105-127
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• 2009

This study investigates effective models of team teaching in Korean middle school classrooms based upon a questionnaire survey and two English listening tests. The data from 349 first year middle school students from 3 different middle schools were collected and compared between team teaching (TT) types in terms of participants' background language learning methods and their opinions about TT. The findings of the present study indicate that students appear to have different opinions about TT according to the TT types. Also the results of the English listening tests between students who took TT and those who didn't take TT show significant differences between TT groups. This study gives both native English teachers (NETs) and Korean English teachers (KETs) the perspectives about effective TT type and the opportunities that both types of teachers could reconsider their TT in order to develop students' English communicative competence more successfully.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.139-157
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• 2006

As the Communicative Approach has become the norm in foreign language teaching, the objectives of teaching English in school have changed radically in Korea. The focus in high school English textbooks has shifted from mere mastery of structures to communicative proficiency. This paper will study five polysemous words which appear in twelve high school English textbooks used in Korea. The twelve text books are incorporated into a single corpus and analyzed to classify the usage of the selected words. Then the usage of each word was compared with that of three other corpora based sources: the BNC(British National Corpus) Sampler, ICE Singapore(International Corpus of English for Singapore) and Collins COBUILD learner's dictionary which is based on the corpus, "The Bank of English". The comparisons carried out as part of this study will demonstrate that Korean text books do not always supply the full range of meanings of polysemous words.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.395-411
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• 2011

The purpose of this study was to explore the elementary English conversation instructors' perception on their professionalism and the needs of teacher training program. The survey data were attained from 136 elementary English conversation instructors. Descriptive statistics were employed to discuss the result of the survey response. The results of this study revealed that the elementary English conversation instructors perceived the need of in-service training program for their professionalism improvement, especially in teaching techniques for four language skills. The result also revealed that the instructors need to be more equipped with the knowledge of elementary learners' developmental psychology and L2 learning process. The study concludes with several suggestions for elementary English conversation instructors' improvement of teaching professionalism and in-service training program.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.81-99
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• 2010

The purpose of this paper is to report the process of curriculum renewal of an intensive English program with focus on the perceptions of the people involved. The researcher tries to describe the five years of curriculum change. The data collected through surveys, interviews, and observations were analyzed. The findings show that throughout the years, the students that participated in the program perceived that their English skills have improved. The teachers also thought that the student's overall English skills improved. The satisfaction on the chosen textbooks was higher in the student group than the teacher group. The main goal and objectives of the intensive English program in the study changed in the process of curriculum renewal. The program that launched in order to enhance students' conversational skills in 2004 started to include TOEIC instruction in late 2005 due to students' needs. The students were content with the fact that there were many teachers in the program whereas teachers had neutral opinion. The present study aims to suggest the importance of curriculum renewal through program evaluation which can be applied to similar language programs for the continuity and longevity of the programs.