Innovative Practices in Early English Language Education

“As plurilingual education continues to expand around the globe, early English language education has gained considerable traction across contexts, yet, it has been scantily researched. This volume is a solid response to this niche as it brings together educators at the potent nexus between research and practice and it interrogates important issues from innovative perspectives. The editors have skilfully organised the contributions in such a way that children and (future) teachers occupy a central position.” — Dr Darío Luis Banegas, Lecturer in Language Education, University of Edinburgh, UK “This collection makes a unique contribution by fusing theory with practical implications, by covering topics which are unconventional, and thus advancing the field. It is an exciting collection of chapters and highly relevant for graduate students, teacher educators and researchers across the globe.” — Dr Sandie Mourão, Research Fellow, CETAPS, Nova University, Lisbon, Portugal This book shines a light on novel and less familiar domains of early English language education for children aged 3 to 12, in mainstream and out-of-school settings. Enveloping the volume is the making of creative connections to wider educational philosophies which extend beyond the confines of a narrow linguistic lens. In reconciling the theory-practice divide in English language education, each chapter presents a synthesis of research issues leading to a practical showcase of ideas. Organised in two main parts, the first focuses on innovations within classroom practice, curriculum development, and child-centred assessment, exploring areas which have either received insufficient attention and/or have been reimagined through fresh perspectives. The second part explores innovations in pre- and in-service teacher education contexts and focuses on lesser-known and/or underexplored topics, including bridging general and language education, multilingualism, in-depth learning, metacognition, and pragmatics. This is a timely publication for teacher educators and practitioners alike. David Valente is a PhD research fellow in English teacher education at Nord University, Norway. His research explores intercultural citizenship through children’s literature. Daniel Xerri is Senior Lecturer in TESOL at the University of Malta. His research and publications focus mainly on teacher education and global skills.