In the last few decades a substantial amount of evidence has emerged showing that self-selected pleasure reading, consisting largely of fiction, is a major source of our literacy development. Recent evidence also shows that those who read more, know more: those who are more familiar with popular literature outperform those who earn higher grades on tests of science, social studies, and “daily living technology.” Fiction readers also have a better knowledge of others (more empathy).

In contrast, more writing does not result in better writing. Mastery of form in writing comes from reading. But writing is a powerful means of clarifying our thinking and coming up with new ideas.

English for Specific Purposes distinguishes itself from more general language study through a focus on particular, purposeful uses of language. A commitment to teaching that attends to students’ specific purposes for learning English has given ESP a unique place in the development of both theory and innovative practice in language instruction since the term first emerged in the 1960s. Focusing on EAP, I discuss the importance of this focus, drawing on my research over the last decade to highlight the disciplinary-specific nature of writing and argue for a specific view of teaching EAP.

This is a conceptual paper that aims to extend the concept of Linguistic Multi-Competence and advance Translanguaging as a research perspective. It focuses on the theoretical foundations of Translanguaging and explores the implications for language teaching and learning in particular and for bilingualism and multilingualism research generally. Empirical examples from self-directed mobile language learning will be used to demonstrate the added value of the Translanguaging approach.

In many EFL writing classrooms, teachers spend a massive amount of time responding to student writing. A large number of them adopt conventional feedback practices, marking student writing laboriously with much attention paid to errors, and dominating the feedback process without involving students actively in the feedback process. Despite the time and energy spent on written feedback, teachers themselves often feel that their efforts do not pay off as students continue to make the same errors and exhibit the same problems in writing. To tackle this taxing issue, we have to get back to basics by examining the “what”, “who”, and “why” questions of feedback in the writing classrooms so as to gain a better understanding of what feedback is, what it is for, and what it entails. We also explore the strategies that teachers can use to motivate students and empower them to take greater responsibility for learning in the writing classroom.

Once a neglected topic in English language teaching, writing has become one of the most prominent topics for language teaching research and instruction. This presentation will provide an overview of some of the key principles of writing instruction in a second or foreign language, followed by some practical tips in designing writing courses, assignments, and assessment. It will conclude with the discussion of some of the current trends and possible future directions.