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    Secondary school English language teacher agency in the aftermath of COVID-19 crises : a study from a West Sumatran Region, Indonesia : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Applied Linguistics at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2025-11-26) Yuliandri, Yuliandri
    The COVID-19 pandemic saw the prompt shift to Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT), which was challenging for both learners and educators worldwide. This study explores the experiences of secondary school English language teachers working within a resource-limited setting of Lima Puluh Kota Region, West Sumatra, Indonesia. It focuses not only on the ERT period but also on the re-transition to face-to-face teaching post-pandemic. It seeks to answer two research questions: 1) What adjustments did English language teachers make to their practice during and after the pandemic lockdown period, and how did they perceive and articulate these experiences? 2) How did the teachers exercise their agency, negotiate their professional identities, and manage their emotions in response to these experiences? This study adopts a qualitative dominant mixed-methods design. Descriptive statistics and thematic analysis are employed to analyse data which was collected from teachers from July to November 2022 through a survey (n=63), two rounds of interviews (n=10), and classroom observations (n=10). The findings indicated that while the teachers were emotionally affected by the abrupt shift to ERT, which was intensified by Digital Divide issues, they tried to negotiate the availability of resources and use their agency to find ways to continue teaching. Some were able to discover benefits beyond the difficulties as ERT exposed them to digital technologies, a wide range of learning modes, and opportunities to pursue professional development (PD). Throughout and after the pandemic, teachers actively negotiated their professional identities, which contributed to their professional growth and increased reflexivity on their current and future practices. This shifted their perspectives about teaching and learning and the role of technology, which proved useful when they encountered challenges re-transitioning to face-to-face classrooms. This study contributes to the literature by 1) adding evidence of how English language teachers exercised their agency during and after the pandemic and illustrating the temporal and contextual aspects involved in the process, 2) revealing different pathways of professional identity negotiation, and 3) breaking down the interplay between agency, identity, and emotions, and outlining the significant role of emotions in both enactment of agency and professional identity negotiation. In addition to these theoretical contributions, practical implications, which focus on the need for school technology infrastructure in the region, and tailored teacher professional development at both school and MoE levels to foster student teachers’ and experienced teachers’ awareness of the intersection of agency, identity and emotion in the teacher education curriculum and training programmes, are discussed.
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    University students’ and staff’s perceptions of third-party writing assistance and plagiarism : a mixed methods study : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in English at Massey University, Manawatū, Aotearoa New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2023) Möller, Ami
    Considering plagiarism as the by-product of undeveloped and inadequate composition skills, it seems reasonable for a student to seek assistance to improve their writing. But when does writing assistance stop constituting help and start constituting plagiarism? Little research, especially in Aotearoa New Zealand, investigates perceptions about situations where students use assistance during the process of composing their assessments. This thesis uncovers the intricacies of perceived [un]acceptability of third-party writing assistance scenarios through an examination of what undergraduate students and teaching staff in Aotearoa New Zealand believe about instances of collaborating, editing, repurposing, and ghostwriting. The study uses a convergent mixed methods design comprised of a primary qualitative track and a supplementary quantitative track. Both approaches use an original set of fictional, yet realistic, scenarios of writing assistance that vary in amount, scope, and quality. Thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with students and descriptive statistics and quantitative content analysis of an anonymous online survey of staff provide insight into both groups’ beliefs. Themes of labour and learning included situational features participants identified as why writing assistance was acceptable or unacceptable. All students and most staff viewed scenarios where a student subverted the labour of writing, like obtaining an assessment composed by someone else, as unacceptable. Participants in both groups considered scenarios that involved collaborating acceptable when situations included an explanatory discussion, which they perceived as active and engaged learning. Between these scenarios, though, existed a distinct lack of certainty regarding the boundaries of acceptability and plagiarism—especially when it came to instances involving editorial interventions, repurposing of text, and technology-based phrasing tools. Contributions from the findings include confirming earlier reports of students’ limited conceptions of plagiarism; illuminating an added complication in determining acceptability based on how a student operationalises assistance; and enhancing our understanding of when writing assistance constitutes plagiarism. The unique implementation of embedding scenarios into qualitative interviews contributes a fresh approach to academic integrity research. And the bespoke set of scenarios offers potential utility as a learning support tool. Implications include refocusing acceptability onto how assistance is utilised; considering cognitive offloading in response to efficiency motives; integrating direct, sustained dialogue about writing assistance into instruction; and requiring transparent declarations of use in assessments.
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    Positive emotions in English language learning in the Vietnamese tertiary contexts : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Applied Linguistics at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2023) Nguyen, Thi Anh Hong
    This thesis explores the emotions students experienced during their English language learning trajectories in the Vietnamese tertiary context. It specifically focuses on the students’ positive emotions and on the role of hope as a mediating factor in triggering shifts in students’ emotions from negative to positive. Drawing on a sociocultural approach, this study explores the contribution of positive emotions in their English language learning. This qualitative study aims to contribute to our understanding of the complexity, diversity, and dynamics of emotions in English language learning as well as the role of Vietnamese culture in the emotions students experienced. The study is based on written narratives and interviews with students taking English language courses within three affiliated universities in Vietnam. The data were obtained from a total of 185 written narrative responses and 10 student interviews. Narrative analysis (Barkhuizen et al., 2013) was used to analyse small stories in the written narratives and thematic analysis (Talmy, 2010) was used for analysing the interview data. The findings indicate that both positive and negative emotions co-existed in the students’ English language learning experiences. The range of activity-related, success-linked, and failure-linked emotions highlighted by the findings illustrate that activity-related emotions such as enjoyment and excitement positively triggered students’ engagement, while negative emotions such as boredom negatively impacted it. Success-linked emotions originated from students’ self-assessed successes in meeting personal study or learning goals, their parents’ or teachers’ expectations, or the standards imposed by the community or society as a whole, with positive achievement emotions strongly associated with positive outcomes. In contrast, failure-linked emotions were associated with the students’ failure in achieving personal targets and in meeting the expectations others had of them, their recognition of their own shortcomings in relation to accepted social standards, or from negative evaluations from other people. Importantly, the findings showed that emotions are socially and culturally constructed, and in particular associated with the features of the local Confucian cultural heritage. Overall, the thesis illustrates the role of people living around students or in interactions with them in the emergence and development of emotions associated with English language learning. Finally, hope, as an emotion, emerged as playing a significant role in the transition between negative and positive emotions. The insights of the study contribute to the theory of emotions in language learning by delineating in detail the close and reciprocal relationship between emotions, self-efficacy and motivation, and by providing evidence of the role of hope in motivating students. It also contributes to our understanding of the role cultural factors play in shaping students’ emotions. The findings have implications for policymakers, educational trainers, school managers, teachers, parents, and language learners.
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    "They come because they know the teachers are gringos" : a post-colonial exploration of the perceived value of volunteer English teaching in Lima, Peru : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of International Development at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2019) Thomas, Johanna
    Over the past three decades, there has been a growing trend among young people from developed countries to spend time undertaking short-term voluntary activities in developing countries before, during or after university. This phenomenon is known as ‘volunteer-tourism’. Although typically unqualified, volunteer-tourists participate in a wide range of activities, including English language teaching. There is, however, limited exploration on the dynamics of English language education through volunteer-tourism. Furthermore, literature on the role of English in development indicates an uncritical and positive bias towards English as an international language and a tool of ‘development’. This research thus contributes to current literature in two key ways, considering both the dynamics of volunteer-tourism and English language, in a post-colonial context. The research explores the perceived value of volunteer English (EFL) teaching in both elite and disadvantaged communities of post-colonial Peru. Focusing on a volunteer English teaching agency that operates in both public and private schools in Lima, interviews were conducted with both private and public school staff and former students, agency representatives and volunteers, as part of a qualitative study. A post-colonial lens was adopted to frame the research, addressing the following research questions: • What motivates different actors’ involvement in volunteer English teaching programmes and how do they perceive the value of volunteer English teaching and the English language itself? • How is volunteer English teaching and the English language experienced and perceived in elite and disadvantaged environments by different actors? Drawing on a post-colonial analytical strategy, the research discussion highlights three key themes. Firstly, the perceived value of volunteer English teachers is dependent on their having a positive and willing attitude rather than any form of qualification. Furthermore, their role ambiguity means they are absolved of much responsibility both in and outside of the classroom. Secondly, the value of volunteer English teaching lies in its characterisation as a ‘cultural exchange’, whereby volunteer teaching assistants provide ‘authentic’, linguistic and cultural exchange with Peruvian school students, host families and staff. Finally, stepping into the wider context in which the research is situated, English language is seen by Peruvian participants as a way of ‘opening doors to the world’, with direct associations made by all participants between English and the discourse of ‘development’. Overall, the research reveals power relations and subjectivities that are embedded in post-colonial power structures. Elite members of the host community benefit more from the programme and from the English language than those who are less advantaged, and generalisations are made about different groups of actors based on stereotypes that embody post-colonial ways of thinking. Uncritical promotion of the English language as a tool for personal and national ‘development’ is symbolised by notions of superiority regarding the volunteers and the ‘world’ from which they originate. This suggests that neo-colonial processes may also be involved in spreading the English language and its associated ‘culture’. Nevertheless, while local initiatives such as this one may reproduce systemic inequalities, the positive impacts that participants feel they have experienced should not be overlooked. As such, further research into the overlap between English language and volunteering is required to continue unpacking how these areas interact and operate within underlying power relations, expanding the focus from perceived value, to tangible impacts.
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    Changes in beliefs of pre-service teachers in an ESP teacher education programme in Vietnam : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Education at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2019) Đặng, Thị Vân Anh
    Pre-service English for Specific Purposes (ESP) teachers’ belief change has been under-researched, so little is known about how and why their beliefs change over their teacher education programs. This study aimed to identify beliefs about ESP teaching of pre-service teachers in an ESP teacher education programme in Vietnam; explore how their beliefs changed after the ESP teaching methodology course and after the practicum; and identify factors that influenced their belief changes. A qualitative case study approach and a multiple-case study design were employed to investigate the belief changes of twelve pre-service ESP teachers. Over a six month period, data were gathered through the employment of semi-structured interviews, reflective journals, observations, and stimulated recall interviews. These qualitative data went through two main analysis processes (within-case and cross-case analyses) and were analysed inductively, deductively, comparatively, and chronologically with the support of the NVivo software program. These comprehensive processes of data collection and analyses resulted in significant research findings. The findings revealed that the pre-service ESP teachers held a wide range of initial beliefs about ESP teaching before they were provided with theory and practice about ESP teaching. These initial beliefs, which originated from their ESP learning experiences in the teacher education programme, were found to have a number of distinctive features and were susceptible to change. The pre-service ESP teachers’ beliefs tended to change in six ways and follow two key processes of belief change. The findings also revealed a wide variety of contextual and internal factors that, despite playing different roles, exerted integrated influences on their beliefs. Therefore, this study highlights the importance of not only the ESP teacher education program but also the pre-service ESP teachers themselves in the development of their beliefs about ESP teaching. The findings from this study shed fresh light on the development of beliefs about ESP teaching of pre-service teachers in an ESP teacher education program. Insights into the complexity of their belief change processes will not only facilitate the development and improvement of ESP teacher education programmes in the future but also provide a basis for further research into this unexplored area.
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    Guiding the way : how ESOL teachers can support refugee-background students transitioning to mainstream tertiary studies : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Educational Psychology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2019) Fraser-Smith, Amber
    Many refugee-background students from a variety of pathways enter mainstream tertiary studies in their countries of resettlement. Yet, despite having an English level sufficient to enter these courses, a growing body of research suggests these students face a number of challenges that make succeeding in tertiary studies difficult. Through the transformative paradigm and a critical perspective, this thesis explores my experiences as an English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) teacher and those of five Middle Eastern refugee-background students about to start the next stage of their learning journey. By using two focus groups and an action research project, we work together to investigate ways that ESOL teachers can best support this cohort of students in their transition into mainstream studies. This thesis concludes with The COMPASS Model, designed as a result of this study to assist in guiding ESOL teachers to support refugee-background students through the use of Collaboration, Orientation, Multiple literacies, Personalised learning, Advocacy, Strategising and Self-care. Suggestions are also given on how to adapt the curriculum to better suit these learners and on how institutes and governments can live up to their ethical responsibilities and provide equal opportunities for refugee-background students.
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    Expressions of voice and trajectories of writers’ selves in academic writing : transitioning from an academic bridging course to postgraduate programmes : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics and Second Language Teaching at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2020) Butler, Eugenia
    Abstract This longitudinal study explores the use of language involved in the construction of voice in academic scripts, as well as personal perspectives relating to the concept of voice, its perceived role and its usage in an academic script. The main aim is to demystify the perceived elusiveness of voice, and present a number of textual features which are analysed longitudinally in order to identify changes in a writer’s identity. The study draws upon previous research by Halliday (1985), Ivaniç (1998) and Thompson (2014) which has provided a framework for investigating how language contributes to the process of interpersonal communication. The qualitative data resulted from an analysis of novice postgraduate ESOL student scripts, as well as from interviews with the main stakeholders involved in academic writing: the students, ESOL teachers on the bridging programme in which they studied, and lecturers in the postgraduate courses in which they subsequently enrolled. Three longitudinal interviews involving 21 students and email interviews with nine ESOL teachers and four postgraduate lecturers provided opportunities for my participants to share their perceptions of voice in academic writing, particularly on Master’s programmes, in order to show how voice reflects beliefs, past and present circumstances, and social constructions of the self. Analysed through the theoretical framework of the Communities of Practice developed by Lave and Wenger (1991) and Wenger (1998), the findings indicate that students were interested in the textual technicalities surrounding the expression of voice. They had personal views about voice which they openly expressed in interviews and applied in their scripts. Longitudinally, the voice markers used in their texts were in assonance with their willingness to contribute new knowledge to their second language (L2) disciplinary community, an aspect also highlighted in three case studies’ findings. Overall, the expressions of voice through the textual features proposed by this study diminished in scripts in the transition from the academic bridging programme to the postgraduate studies. The teachers’ approaches to voice instruction were primarily informed by their voice acquisition experience resulting from their mainstream studies, both general and academic. The postgraduate lecturers seemed to expect simplicity in the grammatical structures used in a script but held different views relating to students’ authorial contribution to knowledge in a Master’s script.
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    'Weeaboo Japanese' : exploring English-Japanese language-mixing in online Japanese popular culture fandom : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master in Philosophy in Linguistics at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2019) Gardiner, Rowan Elizabeth Arbuthnott
    The complexities of a globalised modern society pose methodological and theoretical issues for linguistic research in areas such as Language Contact, Language-Mixing, and Sociolinguistics, due to the commodification and transmission of language and language features resulting in new language interactions. The boundary between definitions of language borrowing and code- switching is currently a matter of increased interest, particularly in terms of research identifying cases of language use involving unskilled participants. This study investigates and linguistically analyses the presence of Japanese language features within English language contexts that are produced by members of online discussion forums who are fans of Japanese popular culture, and for whom fluency in Japanese language is not assumed nor required for participation. Corpus linguistics techniques were employed on data gathered from two online sources in order to identify what linguistic features were present and establish their extent according to frequency. These same corpora were qualitatively analysed to establish community attitudes towards English-Japanese language mixing and what these results indicated in terms of policing and community norms, and overall what both the quantitative and qualitative results meant for how the language phenomena could be defined according to current theoretical paradigms. The results showed that the most frequent word class was nouns, and the semantic domains found were mostly related to Japanese fandom concepts that were topical to the forum, such as specific interests, clothing and fashion, food, media related terms, and religion and cultural terms. Most instances were single-word insertions, and where the few multi-word segments occurred they were specifically in reference to a negative stereotype within the community (weeaboo). This stereotype also indicated language policing was a factor affecting language use, and the results showed that while the Japanese language had high status, language use was socially restricted to specific situations and extents of use. The language phenomenon is described as mostly language borrowing behaviours, but as the words retain a high level of knowledge of related assignations and also occur concurrently with a few code-switching type behaviours, the usage-based approach where both elements are considered different aspects of the same continuum is seen as a preferable theoretical paradigm.
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    Teacher perspectives on the development of business English programmes in the Thai tertiary context : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Applied Linguistics at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2019) Amatayakul, Panithi
    Business English has emerged as an important aspect of English for Specific Purposes in Thailand and is currently provided as an undergraduate programme in about one third of all universities. However, to date we know relatively little about how the Business English programme has been developed in the Thai tertiary context. The current study aimed to explore the development of Business English programmes in the past, present, and future, through the perspectives of Thai tertiary teachers. Firstly, the development of Business English programmes in two university contexts was explored, based on retrospective interviews with five experienced teachers. In addition, a survey which included open-ended scenarios was completed by Business English teachers (N=84) from throughout Thailand (North, Northeast, Central, and South), regarding their contemporary perspectives on Business English in the Thai tertiary context and future prospects for the field. Finally, in-depth interviews were conducted with 13 Business English teachers, focusing particularly on their contemporary perspectives on Business English and the trajectory of Business English as a tertiary subject. Overall, the findings revealed that the contemporary tertiary Business English programmes emerged from both bottom-up and top-down initiatives, and were shaped by local factors such as ongoing changes to curriculum and teaching practices. The development of the programmes was also influenced by a combination of external factors, including the government policy, English as a Lingua Franca in the Asia region and global pressures. The teachers who participated in this study thought that the future changes would be in line with these contemporary changes. It was also evident that future programmes might continue to face both internal and external challenges. The thesis concluded by reflecting on future challenges which needed to be addressed and the resulting implications for research, professional development, and practice.
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    First language usage in multilingual international school classrooms : a study of teacher beliefs and student attitudes : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master in Applied Linguistics at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2019) Axam, Karen
    International schools offer a unique style of education and are comprised of a diverse student body and teaching faculty in terms of both language and culture. Many of these schools have both students and teachers who are bilingual or multilingual. This means that English is the Lingua Franca as the classrooms have students and teachers who do not have English as their first language (L1). In language teaching education there has been a lot of discussion in regards to students using their L1. L1 usage is often viewed as an impediment to gaining English language fluency, although many now view L1 usage more positively than in previous years. In many schools, the place and role of students’ L1 is defined within the school language policy; this may be in keeping with government laws and policies as to how schools need to support language learners. This thesis explores the beliefs and practices of a small group of teachers towards students using their L1 in the classroom and how these beliefs influence their classroom practice. The data was gathered using a qualitative approach. Additionally, an intervention period provided an opportunity for students to trial L1 strategies to see if they perceived them as effective, while also examining if the strategies had an impact on teachers’ beliefs and practices. The setting for this research was within a range of multilingual classrooms in an International school in Doha, Qatar. Results indicate that while most teachers are aware that L1 use is beneficial and that there should be some encouragement to allow students to use it, many teachers have a number of concerns regarding students using their L1. The teachers were also unaware of the school’s position on L1 use as they did not know anything about the school’s language policy. The student responses revealed that students not only enjoyed using the L1 strategies during the intervention period, but found them to be beneficial both in terms of their learning and improving their sense of well-being within the classroom. To conclude, this thesis makes a number of recommendations on how to improve students’ class engagement through L1 usage, as well as stressing the importance of all teachers knowing and understanding the language policy of the school in which they are working. Furthermore, the school has a responsibility to ensure that its language policy is reflective of current language teaching pedagogy and that all teachers are adequately trained to work with EAL (English as an Additional Language) students.