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This paper aims to present the importance of speaking and listening and to improve the art of communication in Italian language. Listening is an immediate and spontaneous activity, exercised by the man from the first moments of life. Furthermore, in the modern world, oral communication is the most widespread form of information transmission, so it is very important to refine our ability in listening and to be able understand the various types of information that we receive. Speaking is a daily activity. Listening and speaking skills allow us to communicate effectively with others. Communication involves more than the ability to simply talk and hear other people. It is essential to have good listening and speaking skills, as this will allow us to adapt our language to suit certain situations and improve our ability to successfully share our thoughts while also considering the views of others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teaching Romanian as second language involves developing students' abilities to communicate an oral or a writing message, beside their capacity to listen or to read and to efficiently decode the transmitted information. In the process of a new language acquisition an important role goes not only to the teacher who has to make a clever selection of the texts or of the listening material, all of them, preferable, based on authentic situations, but also to the students who should receive the information in a creative way in order to better understand it and to consolidate it for a long period of time. The article's aim is to present a study case from the Petroleum and Gas University where students from the preparatory year show their creativity in solving communicational tasks. Even if the teacher provides them templates on different topics as: At the market, On holiday, At the restaurant, At the bank, At the doctor, etc. they are able to improve and to develop their knowledge and even to make a show from these interplays by adapting them to their intercultural and multicultural experience, fact that demonstrates they are able to understand, to internalize and to apply the new vocabulary and grammar information, and even to have fun during their lessons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Along with the rapid advances in technology and innovation today because of globalization of the 21st century and the industrial revolution 4.0, educational learning outcomes need to be maintained so as not to deviate to the point of failure. Mandarin is a compulsory subject in Three Language schools (Indonesian, English, Mandarin). Thus, learning Mandarin at the Three-Language School also involves all forms of innovation and transformation that are currently taking place in the delivery of learning materials and learning assessments. Learning outcomes from learning are students' ability to communicate. This paper intends to analyze the latest technological advances and innovations in the Chinese language teaching process along with student test scores, data collection methods based on student activity in collecting assignments in Google Classroom (GCR) and students' final grades. The respondents of this study were 26 junior high school students at the Pahoa Three Language School, Tangerang. The exam questions include completing the dialogue (60%), answering questions after hearing the contents of the text (30%) and answering questions from reading (10%). The learning process that lasted for 4 months was evaluated 5 times with assignment at GCR. The conclusion of this study is that the intensity of task collection has a close relationship with test results. This research is expected to be a reference for further research by utilizing technology and innovation in learning and assignments, especially in foreign language learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motivation is one of the factors affecting the success or failure of students in foreign language learning. While the students may participate in the class in other skills such as reading, writing and listening, they behave more unwillingly when it comes to speaking in the second language. It is necessary to investigate what motivates and demotivates in learning English in general and in learning the skills of speaking in particular. Learners need to know the factors that lead them to be motivated to speak during classes and the ones that hinder them from improving themselves. For the above reasons, the aim of this paper is to investigate the motivation in improving speaking skills among students. The paper also focuses on methods used by the teachers to motivate their learners during speaking lessons, suggesting motivational strategies and techniques. Specifically, the paper examined the following research questions: (1) What are their reasons for learning English? (2) What are students' difficulties in speaking English in the classroom? (3) What are the factors demotivating them in achieving the English-speaking skills? Students' responses were analysed and some suggestions for teachers have been highlighted. Since there is no doubt that student motivation for speaking English in the classroom can be increased by using creative techniques, there are effective strategies that teachers may use to generate student's interest for enhancing their speaking skills and make their students more involved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The emotions students experience when speaking a foreign language are a crucial factor in the EFL (English Foreign Language) classroom. On one hand, negative emotions, for example, frustration and fear, are considered detrimental and may cause EFL students to shut down in terms of speaking in the classroom. In contrast, positive emotions, such as empowerment, enjoyment, and excitement, may motivate students to succeed and foster the desire to speak. The present article discusses the results and practical implications of a qualitative study based on data collected through students' fortnightly guided reflections and a focus group interview conducted at the University of Guanajuato's Language Center. It is hoped that a positive environment that encourages speaking may be created in the English classroom by understanding the emotional experiences of EFL students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article is about written exercises which are necessary to use at the Russian lessons for foreign students. Students should watch and write written exercises at the same level as oral exercises during developing Russian pronunciation skills. Urgency of the research of this theme is in its importance. Intonation and phonetics lessons take a special place in teaching Russian language for foreigners because correct pronunciation of the words is the most important for communication in Russian language and the developing pronunciation skills are one of the most difficult tasks for Russian language teachers especially when they teach foreigners. Listening, reading, writing and speaking skills depend on from the successful results of developing pronunciation skills of foreign students. The article describes the research and the experience of achievement of this success at Russian lessons for foreigners. In the article there are some analytical reviews of didactics methods, scientific and pedagogical literature route and also description of shadow working at the lessons for foreign students at Kazan Federal University, review students work and personal experience of Russian language teachers who work with foreigners. The authors of this article also research theoretical and methodical foundation of other teachers. And they describe some principals which should be used during teaching and learning process. Good results are possible to achieve only with combination of different language activities such as listening and speaking, listening and oral reading, listening and writing. As an example of such kind of work there are some phonetics exercises in the article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper is focused on the investigation of Dynamic Assessment approach as an alternative to standardized testing methods. Dating back to the Theory of Proximal Development developed by Vigotskiy, the methodology has been actively employed by the helping educationalists, mostly for students with special needs. Its potential is, however, undeservingly undervalued by subject teachers and methodologists, both those involved in schooling and higher education. The given article describes the results of the experiment aimed at using dynamic assessment principles in the scope of teaching English as a foreign language and its role in academic motivation. The control and experimental groups defined by the way of English language competence evaluation were involved in the experiment which lasted during an academic term, including interim and final academic performance reviews (intervention sessions). Speaking was selected as the targeted aspect, while the descriptors band and task format were in compliance with the IELTS examination to ensure a higher degree of reliability. Both groups were assessed twice during the term, each time their performance indicators were measured in two ways using the conventional (based on the learners' current ability at a specific period of time) and dynamic (measuring both the level of actual development and progress made) models respectively. The article reports on and analyzes the total assessment rates of students of both groups. To summarize, a preliminary conclusion is drawn on the positive influence of Dynamic assessment employment in teaching English as a foreign language at a University. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper is an investigation of the underlying factors that eventually lead to achieving autonomy and automaticity in the process of language learning. It starts from an experimental procedure of assessing speaking among students in Tourism, at Babes-Bolyai University. Initially designed as a task for developing fluency outside the classroom context (the test of real linguistic autonomy), the recorded spoken productions of students in Tourism were integrated in the final assessment. The paper discusses the importance of a task-based approach, a task-based syllabus and of collaborative tasks. It also questions the way technology assists the teaching and assessment practices by looking into the advantages of using wikis in and outside the classroom context. As ICT skills are included in the spectrum of academic prerequisites, the role of media and technology-assisted learning, teaching and assessing has become evident. As assessing speaking is time and resource-consuming, solutions to making it more efficient and less class-dependent must be identified. Another key-issue that the paper addresses is that of authenticity: the authenticity of tasks, of context, of participants. Students' recorded productions were organized in an authentic context (hotel industry) and this helps develop communicative competence and an awareness of the needs of the job market. From a pedagogical perspective, a selection of the video recordings presented in class offered students the possibility to selfassess and inter-assess their linguistic competence (use of checklists). The role of feedback and washback is further analyzed in relation to the question of the assessment impact on the overall teaching practice. This, in turn, should closely respect the basic principles of assessment (feasibility, validity, authenticity), as they are formulated in the Common European Framework of Languages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research is intended to prove the relevance of a writing for social media supplement to the ESL university-level course. Currently, the context in which language training is performed, features the stage of information society development where one has to generate, distribute and handle information efficiently in order to succeed in their professional activity. Progress in information technology as well as communication services and tools impacts the way people think, study, interact and collaborate. A variety of social websites, services and applications such as Facebook, LinkedIn, eBay etc. has become pervasive and ubiquitous. In addition, English is lingua franca of modern e-communication. Writing for social media in English is an expertise students should master to be successful in their social and professional communication in the 21st century. The paper provides the analysis of statistics of the use of English in social media discourse and results of Southern Federal University students interview about their attitude to the respective course supplement to be developed and implemented as part of the ESL curriculum. Consideration is given to the concept of social media, the phenomenon of virtual language identity along with linguistic characteristics of social media discourse being a hybrid verbal behaviour, viewed as a mixture of speaking and writing activities. The authors also focus on the main peculiarities of social media discourse to be taken into account while developing a writing for social media supplement as a plug-in to the ESL university-level course. The supplement is intended to help students develop and improve their communicative competence in the given area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Distance training of translation skills provides a great variety of possibilities for future technical specialists and postgraduates. The aim of the study is to analyze the ways of mastering the speaking skills of technical specialists in a distant form with overcoming difficulties existing in modern teaching practice. The research is conducted based on educational program "Translator in the sphere of professional communication" which is successfully realized in Kazan Federal University in a distant form as well as intramural one. The following peculiarities are analyzed: student's initial searching of information which leads to better understanding of the subject: sufficient level of the language of the applicants; increasing of independent work in combination with lack of initial teacher's introduction of the material; possibility of choosing the modules in accordance with the intentions of the student; construction of educational process on the basis of coordination of materials studied during practical and theoretical classes, subjects of specialization as well; final projects devoted to peculiarities of translation of a certain field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our contribution’s goal is to revisit the notion of social exclusion, attempting to shed light on its theoretical underpinnings and to describe the better known approaches to the subject in the sociological literature. Our analysis has been limited to the sociology of the French-speaking world, highlighting the centrality of the concept in French sociology, its spread to the rest of French-speaking Europe (Belgium and Switzerland in particular), its recurrence in Quebec and, finally, its tentative use in Sub-Saharan French-speaking Africa. The multiple understandings of social exclusion, the variability of conceptualizations suggested for it as well as the widespread use to which it has been put reveal a paradox in the research material. This paradox derives from the contrast between the increasing use of the term in sociology, its appropriation by the politico-administrative discourse and its success in the media on the one hand and its rejection by sociologists who have considered the new challenges of the social question (Castel, Paugam, Taboada-Leonetti, Autès, among others) on the other. Furthermore, use of the term continues to generate much criticism. Despite the severity of the criticism, the notion of social exclusion maintains an "evocative force and a mobilizing capacity" which transferred to politics and the media as well the field of social intervention. All this leads, ultimately, to the question of how useful or fruitful the notion of social exclusion is. In light of the renewed and/or enriched theorization about the notion, it is essential to highlight its processual dimension. Hence, it should be considered as the final phase of a process of social isolation, which has a variety of degrees and facets. Thus conceived, the notion will be better able to reveal, point to and analyze the problems, contradictions, "pathologies" and individual and collective "traumas" to which the "new social question" give rise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Responding to a referral from a fellow applied sociologist, J. Barry Gurdin, Ph.D., signed a contract with a group of primarily Russian-speaking Kabbalists in the Bay Area of California as a grant and course writer. To clarify the content of his work, the sociologist began to participate and observe regularly groups of Kabbalists, the largest number of whom are Russian-speaking immigrants to the USA from the Commonwealth of Independent States; their separate English-speaking groups, composed of people interested in the Kabbalah who are representative of many different ethnic, racial, religious, and linguistic groups; and their internet broadcasts to many countries. The sociologist compares and contrasts the published books and public lectures of Rabbi Michael Laitman?student and personal assistant of the late Rabbi Baruch Ashlag, son of Rabbi Yehudah Ashlag, the author of the Sulam, the commentaries on The Zohar with those of Daniel C. Matt, who served as Professor of Jewish Spirituality at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California, author of six books, most recently The Zohar: Pritzker Edition (Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2004). J. Barry Gurdin also makes less extensive comparisons and contrasts with other Kabbalah groups, such as Chochmat HaLev, and others with internet sites. While working on his writing contract, Gurdin realized that he had been doing informal participant observations and upon this realization, inquired if his clients would agree to his formalizing them by requesting permission for the people he had observed and participated with to report on his findings at a sociological conference and in newspaper articles. When his clients agreed to his request, he began to conduct formal interviews and write field notes on the different groups. In this presentation, J. Barry Gurdin will play and comment on videotapes and DVDs of Bay Area Kabbalists done in 2003 and 2004, and will compare and contrast the differing traditions of this great work of developing spirituality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]