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Using cognitive behaviour therapy-based techniques for decreasing foreign language speaking anxiety and increasing confidence among EFL students: An intervention study
Full text linkCognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) is a common and proven way to treat anxiety. In language learning settings, CBT has been shown to remedy students’ anxiety and help them actively engage with a new language. However, research is inconclusive on how to best approach CBT-based interventions for language learning, and how to cater to students’ specific needs. To determine how to best develop CBT-based activities for the foreign language classroom, this study adapted a number of validated tools and activities to a Japanese university context to determine how students experience foreign language anxiety (FLA), and how a CBT-based intervention can remedy it. This qualitative intervention study describes the use of a questionnaire which includes scenarios that gauge how students experience FLA, and how they describe and manage their emotions. CBT-inspired activities were then implemented as an intervention with 87 students in 4 classes to help them reduce FLA, feel more positive about their skills, and become more confident about speaking English in class. At the beginning of the courses, a majority of respondents (N=69) reported having negative emotions regarding the questionnaire scenarios. After the CBT-based intervention, reflection journal questions and a final questionnaire showed that the intervention helped students develop a more positive view of their speaking abilities, especially with regard to making mistakes. This study shows how CBT activities can be developed and adapted to specific language learning contexts and provides recommendations for future practice
An integrative literature review of the implementation of micro-credentials in higher education: Implications for practice in Australasia
Full text linkMicro-credentials research, which includes digital badges, is a relatively new field of study that seeks to inform the implementation, portability and sustainability of the ecology of meaningful delivery. This paper reviews literature relevant to understanding connections between universities’ intent to offer micro-credentials and the environment that is needed to do so. From this integrated study, the paper distils a number of core concerns and identifies some gaps in the literature. One of its primary goals is to clear the ground for the construction of a technical model of micro-credentialing implementation that can be used by the various stakeholders involved in the design and evaluation of new micro-awards. A closely related goal is to help those participating in micro-credentialing research to locate and understand each other’s contributions, as fragmentation in research related to micro-credentials makes progress in the field slow. Hence, this review draws together research in the field to identify research foci and gaps, and then also capture some work by micro-credentialing researchers that directly attempts to model the main relationships in the field. The paper ends with a summary of implications for practice, especially for the Australasian higher education contex
Digital badges: Pinning down employer challenges
Full text linkDigital badges hold considerable potential for employers and recruiters, as they evidence accomplishments of skills and competencies at a more granular level than a traditional degree certificate. Badges are a validated, online graphical representation of an achievement, which is accomplished by undertaking criteria-based learning activities. Despite the established educational benefits of badges in higher education, limited research has been conducted into employer awareness, acceptance, and use of digital badges in recruitment practices. To address this research gap, a mixed method study combining quantitative and qualitative data collection was conducted before and during the COVID-19 health pandemic. Approximately 700 employers were emailed and invited to complete the initial survey and 73 responded. One of the major survey findings is that 97% of respondents were unfamiliar with the concept of digital badges. Significantly, however, despite the lack of employer awareness there was no widespread resistance to the concept of badges, but a strong appeal for further clarification of their value, credibility, and security. Analysis of the data reveals stronger partnership working, between the higher education sector and employers, is pivotal to establish effective digital credentialing systems. Recommendations for higher education institutions have emerged from this study, which aim to balance pedagogical digital badge practice with employer needs. Such synergies are crucial to address the changing skills agenda, to prepare students to thrive in physical and virtual work environments. Given the paucity of research in this field, further studies are warranted, to investigate the impact of digital badges on the employer community
Back to basics: Re-centring refugees in humanitarian and development action
Full text linkDespite decades of rhetoric around localisation and inclusion, mainstream humanitarian and development systems continue to marginalise refugees, relegating them to passive recipients of aid rather than recognising them as capable leaders and innovators. This article critiques the entrenched architecture of exclusion that defines much of global aid practice, arguing that meaningful reform must begin with re-centring refugees as agents of change. Drawing on recent evidence from refugee-led organisations (RLOs) such as the Vijana Twaweza Community (VTC) in Kenya's Kakuma refugee camp, the article showcases the productivity, contextual intelligence, and transformative potential of refugee-led development, particularly in sustainable agriculture. It highlights how RLOs are already filling critical gaps left by international actors, despite facing legal, financial, and structural barriers. The article explores how scalable, tech-enabled knowledge sharing could support the growth of such initiatives and calls for a fundamental shift in how resources are distributed and how refugees are included. Ultimately, it argues that empowering RLOs is not only a moral imperative but a pragmatic strategy for a more effective and just humanitarian future. The real question is no longer whether refugees can lead, but whether the sector is willing to follow
Here We Go Again: Cyclical Fandom, Persona and Identity
Full text linkIn 2005, Matt Hills posed the question 'What does it mean to be a fan?' introducing the concept of the 'cyclical fan' – and individual who masters something new, then moves to another fan object. As technological advancements, such as streaming services, continue to reshape television, research on television viewing culture must adapt accordingly. This article examines how individuals engage with scripted television programmes, focusing on fan behaviours associated with their fan objects. It explores the habits of long-term, cyclical, and moderate fans, analysing their identity formation and behaviour intensity. The study proposes a shift from the concept of 'cyclical fan' to the more encompassing 'cyclical fan behaviours'. Through surveys and focus groups, this research bridges fan studies and persona studies by examining television viewing habits and fan behaviours within the framework of persona studies. Key findings include the impact evolving technology has on cyclical fan behaviours and the dichotomy of fan identification. This interdisciplinary approach offers new insights into both cyclical and persona studies contributing to our understanding of contemporary fan practices in the evolving media landscape
V's Virtual Afterlife: Persona Analysis as a Method for Investigating Nonhuman Online Personas
Full text linkNonhuman Online Personas (NHOPs) are coherent digital assemblages not directly associated with the identities of individual humans. NHOPs encompass entities like brands, places, artificial intelligences, and, as we explore in this study, video game characters. This article examines the NHOP of V, the customisable protagonist from the video game Cyberpunk 2077, to consider how such characters attain a virtual afterlife beyond the original text through collective fan engagement. We propose ‘persona analysis’ as a novel qualitative case study methodology for researching NHOPs. Our approach integrates netnography, analytic autoethnography and textual analysis, enabling a comprehensive examination of the emergent, unpredictable, and collective natures of online personas. Building on existing persona studies frameworks, we focus on the collective dimension of persona as the sets of negotiations between human and nonhuman actors through which the NHOP is constructed. Using V as a case study, we apply the five dimensions of persona—mediatisation, publicness, performance, collective, and value—to analyse the NHOP. Data was collected from online platforms where fan productions occur, including fan fiction, game mods, virtual photography, conversation, and discussion. This multi-platform approach allowed us to observe the extensive participatory practices of fans' co-construction of V’s NHOP with its developers. Our analysis reveals that V’s NHOP is a complex, rhizomatic assemblage resulting from the participatory interplay between in-game characters, fans, games designers, developers, the storyworld’s creators, and intellectual property owners. By extending persona studies to encompass NHOPs, this research contributes to a deeper understanding of how online personas are collectively constructed. This, in turn, challenges established notions of online identity grounded in selfhood and opens new possibilities for examining the co-creation of online personas across all media types
Employer perspectives on the importance of help-seeking as a key skill of higher education graduates
Full text linkThis study investigates the importance of help-seeking skills among higher education graduates as perceived by employers. Through semi-structured interviews with 16 employers across various industries in Australia, the research identifies help-seeking as a critical skill that enhances employability. An employee demonstrates effective help-seeking abilities when they appropriately request assistance to accomplish a task at work. Our research explores the nuance of what employers have in mind when they conceptualise help-seeking in their context. Help-seeking is underpinned by communication, self-efficacy, and problem-solving skills. The study suggests practical strategies for higher education institutions to incorporate help-seeking training into their curricula, as part of preparing students for complex work environments
Acknowledgement of Country
Full text linkThis includes the front cover of the edition, Acknowledgement of Country, ACTA Statement, and TESOL in Context editorial team details for the current issue 2025 Volume 34 Number 02 General Issue
Theory of Mind in Dual Language Picturebooks: Exploring Secondary Students' Perceptions
Full text linkMost research with dual language picturebooks has focussed on early childhood and primary aged children. This article describes the response of secondary students to three of the dual language picturebooks used over six sessions in a secondary school in Aotearoa New Zealand. Participants viewed and read a variety of types of dual language picturebooks, completed activities, and discussed their responses to the picturebooks. Data was collected from the students via audio recordings, field notes, artefacts, and written responses. The findings show participants employed theory of mind, and utilised Cummins’ (1981) interdependence hypothesis to respond to the picturebooks and discuss issues which affirmed their cultural and linguistic identities. Participants engaged enthusiastically with unfamiliar languages and cultures by drawing on their personal experiences. This study is the first to contribute to understandings of how dual language picturebooks may be used with secondary students to support their academic achievement and engagement through celebrating linguistic and cultural knowledge
The effects of trainers’ competence on employability of government polytechnic college graduates in Dire Dawa City, east-central Ethiopia
Full text linkThe need for competent and qualified trainers is of paramount importance for an effective technical training system that, in turn, helps to produce competent and employable graduates for the country’s economy. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of trainers' competence on the employability of polytechnic college graduates in Dire Dawa. The study employed a descriptive-correlational-explanatory research design with a quantitative research method. The sample for quantitative data consisted of 351 randomly selected graduates, trainees, trainers, and administrators. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse the data. The findings revealed that trainers’ competence was positively correlated with graduates' employability. Specifically, predictors such as knowledge-related competence, assessment-related competence, skill-related competence, and managerial competence were found to have significant and positive effects on the employability of polytechnic college graduates in Dire Dawa. Therefore, the study recommends that the Dire Dawa city Labour Skill and Technology Development Bureau and Polytechnic colleges should give greater emphasis on improving trainers’ competence, which in turn enhances the employability of graduates