RSS2015 Thesis

Ideologies and power relations in a global commercial English language textbook used in South Korean universities: A critical image analysis and a critical discourse analysislysis and a critical discourse analysis

Ideologies and power relations in a global commercial English language textbook used in South Korean universities: A critical image analysis and a critical discourse analysislysis and a critical discourse analysis

| September 7, 2015

This study discusses the roles of Native English Speaking Teachers (NESTs) in contemporary Japanese society through existing literature, and the results from questionnaires. Ever since the largest wave of NESTs started to work in Japanese public secondary schools in 1987 their roles have never been satisfactorily specified. NESTs are officially employed to offer students opportunity to improve their communicative ability. However, their roles are shaped by complex professional and societal factors.

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Contemporary roles of foreign English teachers in Japanese public secondary schools: An exploratory study

Contemporary roles of foreign English teachers in Japanese public secondary schools: An exploratory study

| June 10, 2015

This study discusses the roles of Native English Speaking Teachers (NESTs) in contemporary Japanese society through existing literature, and the results from questionnaires. Ever since the largest wave of NESTs started to work in Japanese public secondary schools in 1987 their roles have never been satisfactorily specified. NESTs are officially employed to offer students opportunity to improve their communicative ability. However, their roles are shaped by complex professional and societal factors.

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Caught in the crossfire: Working in South Korea as an English Teacher

Caught in the crossfire: Working in South Korea as an English Teacher

| April 30, 2015

Despite having the highest rates of suicide in the OECD and huge disparities in income, the recent recognition of South Korea as an advanced industrial country has been widely heralded as cementing proof of the success of globalization policies in the wake of Korea’s division and destruction during the Korean War. Rising with South Korea’s economic success has been a strong push to make English a major part of South Korea’s educational curriculum. Exams testing for English proficiency are now required in order to apply for work or study at South Korean governmental agencies, companies, universities, and selective secondary schools.

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Perceptions of School Leadership in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)

Perceptions of School Leadership in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)

| January 20, 2015

There are increasing pressures in schools in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to enact change, and the academic literature has shown that transformational leadership is positively associated with school leaders’ effectiveness at implementing reforms. The purpose of this study was to determine the degree to which school principals in the UAE practice transformational leadership to bring about change and innovation within this Middle Eastern educational context, as well as to investigate teachers’ and principals’ overall acceptance of this type of leadership in this country.

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