Our consciousness is somewhat shaped by our surroundings. External and internal consciousness can guide, explain, direct, and train us to form our socio-cultural belief systems. These socio-cultural belief systems may partly explain why we do what we do, why we see what we see, why we say what we say, and why we feel what we feel. Our consciousness, to a large extent, shapes and energizes our understanding of human beings� complex relations. As such, 9/11 strife-torn unrests, for example, leaves behind unnecessary complications, chaos, and risks, not only to many Americans, but also to other Islamic nation-states. These sporadic and unpredictable 9/11 complexities are not only discussed, debated, and negated, but has also contributed to our awareness on what it means to live in the post-9/11 era. While many of these explorations are affirmed, regarded, and profound in many Western nation-states, studies on 9/11 consciousness from Asian perspectives, particularly from the viewpoints of Muslim-dominated nations are, to this end, largely insufficient. Taking these contours into consideration, this paper attempts to discuss the extent to which 9/11 consciousness are highlighted in newspapers. Specifically, using spectrum of consciousness theory, this paper explores some of the many ways consciousness of 9/11 tensions is framed in five Malaysian newspapers. We will show the ways in which newspapers describe 9/11 contexts and how diverse layers of consciousness are delineated in the newspaper, forming some levels of questions, contests, and negotiations about 9/11 chaos. The discourse analysis included in this study will demonstrate different fragments of 9/11 reality. By describing these constructions of 9/11 in newspapers framed within spectrum of consciousness, we will be able to reveal the dynamics of these unsettled, unruly 9/11 complications.

Every language curriculum is designed based on a particular theoretical orientation. Thus, when a language curriculum is designed based on specific theory, it is imperative that the contents presented in that curriculum align with its theoretical underpinning. This is to ensure the effectiveness of the curriculum. If the curriculum is not coherent, then the overall goals of the curriculum will not be achieved. The present Malaysian English language curriculum is developed and designed based on the Communicative Language Teaching (CLT). In line with its label, the contents presented are expected to be coherent and in alignment with its communicative label including at its theoretical level. Thus, it is the aim of this current study to investigate if the theoretical grounding of the Malaysian form 4 English language curriculum, in particular, the speaking curriculum, is in alignment with its communicative label. The focus of the study is on the Malaysian form 4 English language speaking curriculum. Hence, data were collected from the form 4 English language curriculum specifications document and the form 4 English language textbook. Speaking-related statements were extracted from the documents and categorized under major Second Language Acquisition (SLA) theories and second language (L2) speaking theories in order to identify their alignment with the communicative approach. The findings show that the socio-cognitive and sociocultural (SCT) theories, the two theories which were merged to represent the SLA theory for communicative instructional approaches, were highly reflected in the Malaysian form 4 English language speaking curriculum. Results also exhibit that both the Interaction Hypothesis (IH) and Output Hypothesis (OH) which made up the Interactive L2 speaking theory were reflected in the data analysed. This confirms that the Malaysian form 4 English language speaking curriculum is primarily in alignment with its communicative label as reflected in the two main documents analysed. Therefore, it is reasonable to conclude that the Malaysian English language speaking curriculum for Form Four is coherent with its communicative label at the Approach level.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the characteristics of an instructional discourse within the realm of the socio-cultural theory. A pre-school teacher and a group of pre-school children participated in the study. Real time non-participant observation, field notes and postobservation of the videotaped of the selected conversation were the methods of data collection for the study. The data were analyzed qualitatively using the coding derived the literature review. The data were categorized in three characteristic themes: the interdependence between social and individual processes, co-construction of knowledge and the use of meaningful and purposeful language. The findings show that the selected instructional conversation reflects the characteristics of discourse within the realm of the socio-cultural theory. The implications of the study are discussed within the context of second language teaching.

A good interview should be more like a guided conversation between an interviewer and an interviewee. It is key that the interviewer skillfully controls the conversation in order to obtain the desired information. The opening of an interview is considered an important part of any interview as it sets the tone for the rest of the interview. This paper reports on the discourse strategies employed by two daees (propagators of Islam) during a particular da’wah/Islamic propagation communicative event i.e. Conversion to Islam Ceremony Interview. The main objectives of the Conversion to Islam Ceremony Interview are to discover the potential converts’ feelings about their conversion to Islam, their knowledge about Islam and conversion to Islam and to rectify misunderstandings about conversion to Islam. The focus of the paper is on the opening of the interview, that is, the analysis of the spoken discourse strategies that the daees employ to open the interviews so as to create non-threatening atmosphere of interaction and tease out the required contextual information. Ethnography discourse analysis i.e. Ethnography of Speaking is used to analyze the interaction between the daees and the potential converts. The analysis reveals that during the opening of the interview the daees subtly bridge the gap by getting the names of the potential converts’ right, warm up the interview by asking general questions, and collect information and confirm a matter tactfully and swiftly by asking close-ended/yes-no questions

At the university level in Arab world in general and in Iraq in particular, many students faced a lot of problems with their studying because of their low English proficiency, students face problems while trying to understand texts written in English. Form six is last form before university and in spite of that the students doing incessant efforts to master the English language through studying the curriculum at the sixth year in Iraq, some students still complain that they have a lot of difficulties in achieving this goal. An analysis of the EFL secondary reading curriculum in Iraqi Kurdistan (Form Six): Approaches to reading are considered as a challenge area of study. Thus, the aim of this study provides a comprehensive field survey on the various stages of the various reading approaches in EFL secondary reading curriculum. Next, the reading theories and reading strategies are given focus followed by some significant pointers to achieve effective reading. A critical review on EFL secondary reading curriculum is done at the end of the study.

Goal achieving curricular are often coherent at their fundamental level. In order for a curriculum to achieve its goals, it is imperative that the curriculum is coherent at all levels. What is presented in a curriculum must align with its theoretical underpinning. The present Malaysian English language curriculum is developed and designed based on the Communicative Language Teaching (CLT). Thus, the purpose of the current study was to examine if the theoretical grounding of the Malaysian form five English language curriculum, in particular the speaking curriculum, is in alignment with its communicative label. In line with its label, the speaking curriculum embedded in the Malaysian form five English language curriculum should be developed and designed based on the CLT. It should reflect the CLT approach. The data for this study were collected from the Form Five English Language Curriculum Specifications document and the Form Five English Language textbook. In analyzing the alignment of the Malaysian form five English language speaking curriculum with the communicative approach, the data were categorized under major second language acquisition (SLA) theories and second language (L2) speaking theories. The findings show that the socio-cognitive and socio-cultural theories are highly reflected in the Malaysian form five English Language speaking curriculum, the two theories which are closely related to the communicative approach. This shows that the Malaysian form five English language speaking curriculum is primarily in alignment with its communicative label. The findings are discussed in relation to their implications on English as a foreign language (EFL) speaking instruction.

This paper discusses readings on Malay cultural identities in the Malaysian context. While previous research on Malay cultural identity has presented a broad understanding, this paper attempts to frame this discussion based on three perspectives- elite constructions, socio-cultural worldviews, and resistance to the Malay world. By placing Malay cultural identities in relation to the Malaysian context, it explores the dynamics concerning what is distinctive and worthwhile about Malay cultural identities. In addition, this study forms some of the bases for a renewed understanding and interests on Malay cultural identities in light of the burgeoning industries of popular TV fiction.

In Malaysia, a number of issues have transpired concerning the proliferation of TV fiction. Many of these complications include, but are not limited to concerns regarding feminism, patriarchy, economic imbalance, equity, power, social inequity, and religion. In this paper, we aim to locate TV fiction and Malay cultural identities across mediascape. Two primary objectives are central; firstly, this review embodies contextualization of TV fiction through examining some trajectories in which many popular TV fiction have been established. Secondly, this paper places Malay cultural identities in relation to the development and progress of mediascape. By examining these two central questions, we explore some of the many possibilities in which Malay cultural identities are explored, preserved, contested, and blurred in times of changing and challenging realities of Malaysian mediascape.

For learning to occur, interaction among learners is vital. Interaction is crucial as a channel for exchanging knowledge that would promote both development and learning. In second language learning, interaction has always been regarded as important in the language classroom as it is believed that language is best learned and taught through interaction. Interaction is important due to its contribution to gains in second language (L2) acquisition. One possibility of providing interaction opportunities to learners is through the use of tasks. The aim of this study was to investigate how learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) interacted during task completion. The investigation focused on the dynamics of learner interaction and the kind of oral interactions generated by the participants. Two different communication task types were used in this study i.e. jigsaw and decision-making. The data for the study comprised transcribed recordings of learner interaction working on both given task types. They were analyzed focusing on the social processing. Findings revealed that the participants attempted task completion collaboratively for both task types. The collaborative interaction was characterized by argumentative episodes. However, close examination showed that the participants engaged in more intensive argumentative negotiations which were highly collaborative during decision-making task completion than during task completion of the jigsaw task type. The results suggest that communication task types can be used to elicit collaborative interaction episodes with argumentative negotiations and these kinds of interactions are believed to be important particularly for learners at the tertiary level. The findings are discussed in relation to their pedagogical implications in the EFL classrooms.

Reading comprehension in Arabic as u foreign language (AFL) could be a challenging task to Arabic language learners especially among limited proficient learner. One of the ways to assist AFL learners in reading comprehension is by using an instructional approach that nurtures efficiency in information processing via guided and meaningful interaction. Students' reading comprehension ability when reading in a foreign language has been an area of interest in the field of' second language trading. In lieu of this concern, this paper attempts to discuss the more comprehensive theoretical and conceptual framework of a text-based reading comprehension instruction as a reading instructional model that might have potential to l assist AFL readers enhance their reading ability. The instructional model presented in this paper,for AFL reading instruction is adapted from English as a first language reading instructional model. The specific procedures in implementing the adapted model are also provided.