TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) MA

The dissertation is your opportunity to choose an area related to your current ELT context or one in which you would like to work, or it can focus on a specific area of language, pedagogy or teaching-related topic, such as the impact of technology on ELT. You will be guided on your choice of research topic during LD7302 Research Methods and in this module you will produce a piece of original research, gathering your own data and analysing it to answer the research questions you devise. Your dissertation is the culmination of your studies and is managed by you, with research on a topic of your choice under the guidance of our team of expert staff. One or two of them will then work with you as a supervisor to guide you through the process of writing your dissertation and you can have meetings with them as you require them. 

This module provides an introduction to qualitative and quantitative approaches and different paradigms of research in the field of TESOL and most commonly used means of data collection (eg: questionnaires, interviews, classroom observations, language testing, course book analysis, error analysis) as well as methods of data analysis, interpretation and research ethics. It also includes research design and will prepare students to undertake research for the MA dissertation (LD7300). The module is geared towards guiding students to draft the proposal for their dissertation. 

This module explores areas of phonology which are relevant in a language teaching context. These will include individual phonemes and allophonic variations, sound-spelling correspondence, syllables and word stress, connected speech and intonation. The impact of all of these pronunciation features on a speaker’s intelligibility will be considered. There will be some contrastive analysis of how these features work in English compared with other languages. There will also be a focus on how pronunciation varies across different varieties of English.

The module will explore the pedagogic implications of the distinction between productive and receptive pronunciation, highlighting the relevance of pronunciation for listening. There will also be a focus on factors affecting the choice of goals and models in pronunciation teaching, particularly in light of the fact that English is a global Lingua Franca.

While grounded in theory, the module will have a strong practical orientation. Students will examine available options for presenting and practising pronunciation in class as well as techniques for evaluating learners and providing feedback on their performance.

The course is taught by Mark Hancock, author of English Pronunciation in Use (CUP) and Pronunciation Games (CUP), among others. 

This module is for students who are not on the CELTA specialist pathway.  It aims to provide professional development for experienced English language teachers through critical reflection on the interface between research and current teaching methods. The module will explore the methods and methodologies of English Language Teaching. Students, as reflective practitioners, will be encouraged to examine current teaching practices and the impact they have on students’ language development in the four skills, pronunciation, grammar and vocabulary acquisition. The course encourages a reflective approach through a focus on critical incidents in the language teaching classroom and encourages teachers to draw on their own experiences. It also examines teaching resources and their effective use with learners. Opportunities for observation of experienced teachers in live or pre-recorded sessions will also be provided. Students will engage in teaching practice with peers and/or authentic groups of English language learners, utilising the skills and techniques they have learned in the module.

This module traces the key developments in English Language Teaching (ELT) approaches, methods and methodology. It explores the underlying pedagogical principles of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) and the relationship between Second Language Acquisition (SLA) theory, approach, method and teaching practice. It involves a critical evaluation of different teaching approaches and methods including a definition of the terms ‘approach’, ‘method’, ‘methodology’ and ‘technique’. The module critically evaluates CLT, notions of ethnocentrism, informed eclecticism and the idea that one approach or method fits all teaching contexts as well as whether or not we are living in a ‘post-method’ era.

This module provides an introduction to areas of ELT special interest such as teaching EAP/ESP, materials design and the teaching of the systems of English. It explores the main features of, and issues surrounding these topics. It also explores the important of understanding student needs, the exploitation of materials and the application of these within the classroom. There is also a focus on grammar and/or lexical knowledge and the utilisation of texts for effective language development.

The Long Essay is intended only to be used in the case where a student wishes from the outset to complete a PG Dip. or where they decide mid-course that they cannot undertake a dissertation. The Long Essay will allow those students an option which means they do not need to take Research Methods LD7302 which focuses on a research topic for the dissertation. 

This module instead provides students with the opportunity to engage with a research topic of their own choosing, in the field of TESOL. Students will draft a research question in an area of interest, which will be approved by the module tutor and will respond to this with a structured essay of 4,000 words. Students will be encouraged to select a topic relevant to a context with which they have some experience or intend to work in after the programme. The intention is to assess critically an aspect of that context and address an issue which will allow the student to show skills of research, analysis, critical thinking and subject knowledge.