ASEAN Journal of Applied Languages

Mapping Interactional Progression in Synchronous Online Discussions

Obaida Chaqmaqchee — 2025-12-29

Synchronous online group discussions are commonly recognized as a rich site for collaborative learning, where learners construct their understanding by actively participating to create a collective understanding. However, the interactional mechanics that support real-time collective understanding are under-explored. Understanding the complex range of learners’ contributions has important implications for understanding the relationship between interaction and cognitive engagement. This study examines the internal mechanisms of knowledge construction in online discussions using the patterns of interaction and degree of linguistic complexity. A total of six video-recorded group sessions were transcribed. The complex analysis employed both an interactional framework and quantitative measures of lexical density. The results indicate that the early stages of group discussion segments tended to focus on background and shared information, often contributing most frequently to the knowledge construction process, but demonstrated relatively low lexical density as learners were largely negotiating shifting pieces of information. In contrast, segments that involved negotiation and critical evaluation occurred less frequently and suggested the proportion of richer content words, representing a higher cognitive engagement; while the stages of discussion mirrored a cyclical approach, with contributions constantly reviewed and reiterated to clarify ideas. The study contributes more broadly to understanding the relationship between the structure of discourse and richness of linguistic contribution in supporting collaborative learning. The study provides a practical metric for assessing cognitive depth, which can inform the development of automated feedback systems for facilitators. The integration of interactional and linguistic analysis offers practical underlining dynamics of online group discussions.

Research Capacity Building and Overcoming Communication Challenges: Insights from a Multi-Country Erasmus+ CBHE Project

Hariharan N Krishnasamy — 2025-12-29

This study examines how the Building Social Research Capacity in Higher Education Institutions in Lao PDR and Malaysia (BRECIL) Erasmus+ CBHE Project strengthened research capacity while navigating multilingual communication challenges. The consortium comprised seven partners: two from Malaysia, two from Laos, and three from Europe (the Netherlands, Germany, and Sweden). Within this multilingual context, the study addressed three questions: (i) How did the project build institutional and individual research capacity? (ii) What language and communication barriers constrained collaboration? (iii) Which strategies supported effective knowledge exchange? Using a qualitative approach, data were drawn from project reports, interviews with academic staff, and participant reflections. Thematic analysis highlighted processes of capacity building, academic communication, and cross-cultural collaboration. Findings indicate that the project enhanced institutional structures, improved staff skills in academic writing and digital methods, and created opportunities for international collaboration. Challenges included limited English proficiency, low confidence in publishing, and intercultural communication gaps. Yet the consortium’s linguistic diversity enriched discussions and promoted intercultural learning. Writing workshops, mentoring in publication, and structured language support were particularly effective in reducing barriers to academic writing, publishing, and cross-cultural communication. The study concludes that research capacity building in multilingual partnerships should integrate linguistic and intercultural support. It demonstrates how Erasmus+ collaborations can strengthen research culture while transforming linguistic diversity into a resource for innovation and sustainable academic development.

Metaphors in Public Health Communication: A Critical Analysis of Chinese-Language Media in Taiwan during COVID-19

Yi-chen Chen — 2025-12-29

The unfamiliarity of new realities during the COVID-19 pandemic made metaphors especially influential, as some enhanced understanding and aided emotional expression while others obscured meaning or reinforced stereotypes. However, while often studied in political and cultural contexts, COVID-19 metaphors have received little attention in mental health communication. This study addresses this gap by examining the use of metaphors in Chinese mental health publications in Taiwan between January 2020 and June 2022. Using Critical Metaphor Analysis, the research identifies and analyzes 485 metaphorical expressions across 99 news articles purposively collected from a range of health-related media and institutional platforms in Taiwan. The study reveals a shift in metaphor usage over time, from dominant war imagery to broader narratives of journey and resilience. War-related metaphors, which depicted the pandemic as an immediate threat, decreased over three years, reflecting a shift in public perception from an acute crisis to a long-term challenge. Meanwhile, journey-related metaphors emphasizing personal growth remained consistent, and metaphors portraying emotions as objects or energy sources grew, reflecting an increased focus on emotional management. This evolution in metaphor use demonstrates how public understanding and responses to the pandemic dynamically adapted. The study underscores the role of metaphors in health communication and highlights the importance of careful metaphor selection by media professionals and policymakers to manage public perception and support mental well-being during ongoing health crises.

Exploring language teachers’ emotions in the Production-Oriented Approach (POA)

Junyan Guo — 2025-12-29

The Production-Oriented Approach (POA) prioritises language production and emphasises integrating input and production to promote language learners’ communicative competence. While the cognitive and pedagogical aspects of POA have been extensively studied, the emotional experience of teachers remains underexplored. This study investigated tertiary-level foreign language teachers’ emotional perceptions in implementing POA and the interactions between emotional, ideological, and institutional factors in this process. Participants of this study were members of a two-year online language teacher training program. The findings of this study revealed that participants in this study experienced, seemingly paradoxically, a combination of positive emotions of motivation, hope, happiness and enthusiasm, and negative emotions of anxiety and frustration. They enjoyed the change brought up by POA: transforming teaching more scientifically and systematically, stimulating and improving students’ motivation, and promoting their academic development. At the same time, they were also plagued by the clash between the high demand from POA and the lack of team and institutional support. In this conflict, teachers demonstrated their struggle to manage their emotion labour while striving for professional teaching and academic development through innovating their teaching. By focusing on foreign language teachers’ emotions in a newly developed teaching approach in a local context, this study constitutes an important part of the emotion studies and offers valuable insights into the role of emotions in shaping teaching practice and teacher development.

Enhancing Students’ Awareness on Metadiscourse in the Writing of Current Issues

Hooi Chee Mei — 2025-12-29

Metadiscourse is an important linguistic resource to capture the audience’s attention because it guides readers throughout the text (Dafouz-Milne, 2008; Hyland, 2005). During the pandemic, Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) news had become a source of information to the public. However, guidelines in reference books, manuals or websites on how to write COVID-19 news were inadequate (Hyland, 2018). Due to the inconsistencies in the word choice, phrases and sentences, misinterpretations occur among the readers. The study aims to investigate the awareness of the metadiscourse features. In the training, pre-test and post-test of Metadiscourse Awareness Test, as well as news with and without metadiscourse together with the writing prompts in the form of Module 1 were given to 30 students to investigate their metadiscourse awareness. The Metadiscourse Awareness Test could be used as the base line results of the metadiscourse awareness. The writing prompts could gather specific information regarding the texts that they had read. Additionally, the constructed texts with and without metadiscourse could be used as a teaching resource. The expected outcomes will create awareness of using metadiscourse correctly to prevent the reporting of inaccurate information, as well as increase readers’ engagement to combat misinterpretation of the texts.

The Rhetoric of Letters to the Editor: A Systematic Functional Approach

Daniel Fartousi — 2025-12-29

Letters to the editor (LTEs) are considered as a platform of media discourse, serving as an important avenue for public engagement and perspective exchange on important societal issues. However, this form of communication remains under-researched, as reflected in the study’s literature review. Accordingly, the present study analyzes the rhetorical pattern and elements in several LTEs published in the Toronto Sun newspaper, using the Generic Structure Potential (GSP) model drawn from the Systematic Functional Linguistics (SFL) framework proposed by Halliday and Hasan (1998). The qualitative analysis explored seven key rhetorical elements—Run-on Headline (RH), Background Information (BI), Addressing an Issue (AI), Initiating Argumentation (IA), Argumentation (A), Concluding Remarks (CR), and Articulating a Solution (AS). These elements together form the rhetorical structure RH^[(BI).AI]^[(IA)^A]^[(AS).(CR)], which enhances the overall coherence and persuasive impact of texts. Utilizing the GSP model, the study tends to examine how rhetorical elements are arranged within LTEs to involve readers and create public opinion. The findings can significantly provide insights into the construction of persuasive communication within LTE sub-genre. This study also contributes to the understanding of the planned organization of rhetorical elements, underscoring significant implications for pedagogy, journalism, media studies, and among other fields.