One of the observations in the English spoken particularly in Nigeria is phonotactic constraints. The constraints pin down the generalization which guide the articulation of sequences of phonemes. The paper examines the patterns of English consonant clusters articulation of Nigerian broadcasters in the onset and coda positions against Received Pronunciation English. The study is conducted within the framework of Optimality Theory (henceforth OT). 20 radio and television broadcasters from 4 electronic media were selected as participants. Data were obtained by means of production test and OT was employed for the analysis. The findings revealed that the participants used epenthetic vowels to break-up consonants clusters in the onset and consonant deletion to simplify clusters in the coda. The subjects’ productions can be captured by ranking Markedness constraints higher than Faithfulness constraints.

This study aimed to look into the impact of continuous self-assessment on the self-efficacy beliefs of undergraduates studying English as a foreign language (EFL). To find out if there is a change in students’ beliefs about their language proficiency perception, the research was undertaken with 102 participants at the school of foreign languages of a private university. It was designed as quasi-experimental research utilizing qualitative and quantitative research methods to collect data through a self-efficacy scale, self-assessment questionnaire, and self-reflection checklists. The control and experimental groups were administered a self-efficacy scale at the beginning and the end of the term. Throughout the term, the participants in the experimental group assessed themselves weekly through self-reflection checklists and a self-assessment questionnaire. Based on the overall results, it was found that when the students had an opportunity to identify their strengths and weaknesses during a skill-based task through self-assessment questionnaires, they had a better sense of mastery related to that task. This inevitably led to an increase in their self-efficacy beliefs in terms of four skills, namely reading, writing, listening, and speaking as well as grammar.

The pronunciation patterns of most speakers of English as a second language are characterized by regional and ethnic phonological features of their native language. This study sought to examine the consonant articulation of Hausa speakers of English in broadcasting industry in Nigeria. The research was guided by Optimality Theory framework (OT). Participants were drawn from four electronic media in Bauchi State, Nigeria and data were elicited through production test and recording of news broadcasts live from the stations. The findings revealed that the participants ranked IDENTCONT as a high ranked constraints which allowed the importation of voiceless bilabial fricative /ɸ/ from the phonemic inventory of Hausa language into English spoken by the subjects. The results further discovered that /p/ is substituted with/ɸ/ and /θ/ is substituted with /t/, /d/ or /s/. Similarly, /ð/ is realized as /d/ or /z/. /ʒ/ is produced as /dʒ/ or /ʃ. These deviations from RP were caused by phonological processes of spirantinzation/Frication, stopping and affrication.

Textbooks are of utmost importance in an academic setting. They cannot achieve their goals and objectives until they address the particular needs of students. The current study aims to assess the grammar textbook used at Najran University's Preparatory Year Program. The study's objectives are to examine the textbook's material in light of the course objectives and to pinpoint the factors that contribute to discrepancies between course objectives and learning outcomes. Additionally, it offers solutions to close the gaps between the course objectives and learning objectives. Twenty PYP teachers were chosen to participate in the study. To collect information from the participants, a quantitative questionnaire with 10 statements based on the course objectives was used. The teachers were also the subject of a qualitative interview to get their advice and insights. The analysis backs the current textbook because of its advantages, which the teachers who participated in the questionnaire said they liked. However, there is always room to update the textbook and improve particular sections or courses to better suit the needs of students. This specific section replacement can address those precise goals that the questionnaire's respondents did not rate very high.

Implementing an English curriculum, especially one from outside Indonesia, is risky. Some schools produce positive outcomes, while others produce the opposite. This study aims to evaluate the difficulties of learning English from writing abilities using the Cambridge Curriculum in Indonesia. This study employed a qualitative approach that included interviews with students, school administrators, English instructors, and curriculum coordinators (n = 7) and documentation and observation, which served as data validation instruments. The results of the study indicate that, of the four language skills: reading, writing, speaking, and listening, the scores for reading and writing skills were not as predicted. The maximum score for Cambridge English was 6, and of the two skills measured, notably writing, the score was 3. This conclusion highlights the need to prepare English teacher credentials per Cambridge standards. This research has consequences for the design of learning English, which can help students improve their writing skills to meet Cambridge's maximum grade criteria.

Despite the continued widespread use of the academic word list, there is a paucity of comprehensive and easily replicable tests which measure learners’ depth of knowledge of academic word list items. This paper outlines the development and initial validation of a test which measures multiple aspects of learners’ knowledge of academic vocabulary. The test comprises four sections – one productive knowledge section (sentence writing), and three receptive knowledge sections (collocations, synonyms, and L1 meaning). Each section includes 30 items selected from the academic word list, 10 of which are derived forms containing one or more affixes. The test was administered to 193 Japanese students studying at a public medical university in Japan. All four sections of the test showed a high level of internal consistency. In addition, the inter-rater reliability between the two different markers for the productive use (sentence writing) section was also moderately high. Furthermore, Rasch item analysis showed that the test items were well fitted to comprehensively measure learners’ knowledge of academic vocabulary. These encouraging initial results suggest that there may be merit in the test being used, evaluated, and possibly adapted in other EAP teaching and learning contexts.