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Storytelling has long been a powerful tool for teaching and learning. Across cultures and disciplines, it allows educators and students to connect personal experience with academic content. In language classrooms, storytelling can take many forms, like written narratives, digital stories, reflective journals, or oral accounts. Yet many teachers hesitate to incorporate storytelling into writing instruction. Time constraints, curriculum demands, assessment…

In the context of second language (SL) acquisition, studies on the benefits of teaching vocabulary through reading have yielded significant outcomes, sparking debates over the most effective methods for vocabulary acquisition. Some studies argue that incidental learning helps SL learners acquire the form-meaning connection, as they are exposed to substantial input through reading and listening (Nation & Webb, 2017). Still,…

Introduction: Why inclusive language education matters

Language education increasingly takes place in classrooms characterized by linguistic, cultural, and cognitive diversity. Learners bring varied educational backgrounds, lived experiences, and ways of processing information. Neurodiverse and plurilingual learners are not exceptions within contemporary language programs. They are central participants whose needs challenge instructional models that rely heavily on fixed textbooks,…

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Introduction

Ahmed was a highly motivated upper literacy student with fewer than six years’ education in his first language. He had good attendance and a positive attitude about school and learning.  His speaking and listening skills were strong, and he communicated effectively. At the time, Ahmed was employed at a local pizza…

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Literacy instruction in the context of Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada has traditionally been conducted exclusively in physical classrooms, with paper and pencil, worksheets, binders, notebooks, and perhaps the weekly Computer-Assisted Language Learning lesson in an on-site computer lab. The thought of teaching English to students who may have little to no schooling, reading, or…

Abstract

This report summarizes key findings of TESL Ontario’s 2025 member survey. As in past surveys, a representative sample of TESL Ontario members shared data about their personal and professional situations as well as perspectives on services for members. Respondents reported employment in a broad spectrum of roles both in Canada and abroad, and they used TESL Ontario’s…