Editora invitada

Abstract

Applied linguistics and its fields of study

This volume of EDUCIENCIA presents four articles on different topics of applied linguistics, a field of knowledge that is starting to gain terrain in Mexico. Applied linguistics was founded in Europe in the late 1950s. It is as an interdisciplinary field of research dedicated to all aspects of language use. Besides the acquisition and teaching of first and second languages, it focuses on a diversity of areas, among which are translation and interpretation; language and technology; language policy and planning; communication in the professions; communication disorders; language and law; language and the media; literacies; stylistics and rhetoric; sign language; discourse analysis; and conversational analysis; It draws on knowledge of disciplines such as linguistics, psychology, education and sociology. Because of its position at the confluence of several disciplines and at the intersection of theory and practice, applied linguistics is the site of unique intellectual developments. It speaks with multiple voices depending whether the researcher’s original background.

The first paper uses a phenomenological approach and analyzes the teaching motivation and professional satisfaction of five teachers of the National English Program for basic education. Data came from a series of in-depth interviews which were thematically analyzed. The study provides relevant information not only for English language teachers but also for education policy specialists.

The second paper in this volume reports an exploratory study by Elsa Fernanda González. She first conducted a writing assessment workshop for Mexican university teachers of English as a second language. Then she analyzed the workshop participants’ perceptions on the workshop and the on influence of workshop on their classroom assessment practices. The study is clearly contextualized and well connected to the existing international body of knowledge on second language writing assessment.

The third paper is a qualitative study by Patricia Carranza de M. It focuses on the perceptions of a group of university students on an academic mobility program formulated as part of an internationalization policy. Education policy studies rarely incorporate the views of students and this is the distinctive feature of the study reported.

The fourth paper is an essay that discusses the foundations of Cultural Studies and their implications for teaching. Cultural Studies is as an interdisciplinary field of theoretically, politically, and empirically engaged cultural analysis of the ways in which culture creates and transforms individual experiences, everyday life, social relations and power.

Academic writing is also related to this theme. A text by Diana Guadalupe Garza Puente about the development habilities to learn in university students is included. It is a proposal of contents for a course with those objectives in mind.

A review of the book Globalización, Internacionalización y Educación Comparada is included. Cesar García García has the hability to analyze the contents of every one of the sections of this volume.

In the section of documents, the Declaration of Panama has been included. This document shows the agreements and compromises of Latina America and Caribe in relation to diminishing social inequalities in the framework of the 2030 Agenda.

The EDUCIENCIA Journal and the invited scholars hope that their work inspires further discussion and contributes to the development of Applied Linguistics.

Ruth Roux                                                                                                                                                                                          Guest Editor                                                                                                                                                                                               Universidad Autonoma de Tamaulipas