Editorial

Citation

Al-Melhi, D.A. (2021), "Editorial", Saudi Journal of Language Studies, Vol. 1 No. 1, pp. 1-2. https://doi.org/10.1108/SJLS-06-2021-009

Dear reader,

It is my pleasure to introduce the first issue of the Saudi Journal of Language Studies (SJLS). SJLS is a peer-reviewed biannual journal published in June and November. The journal aspires to be an international open forum for readers, researchers and reviewers interested in the field of language studies. Thus, the journal seeks to publish cutting-edge interdisciplinary research that reflects a diverse range of theoretical and methodological frameworks and areas of interest.

As editor-in-chief, I welcome manuscripts on any subject within the broad field of language studies, especially papers that present new information and make significant contributions to the field. It is also worth mentioning that our journal is interested in publishing articles, written in English, about the Arabic language and literature.

The current issue contains five articles covering various topics. The first article investigates the pragmatic functions of invocations that include the name of Allah (God) in naturally occurring social interactions in Najdi Arabic spoken in Central Saudi Arabia. The findings reveal that these invocations are employed to communicate a wide range of pragmatic functions, such as signaling the end of a conversation, persuading, mitigating and hedging, showing agreement and approval, reinforcing emphasis, expressing emotions, conveying skepticism, expressing humor and showing respect and honor. Furthermore, the results of this study highlight the interplay between religion, culture and language use in Najdi Arabic.

The second article evaluates a number of tasks used for computer-based L2 listening when digital video is the mode of presentation. The findings show that some task designs are perceived as less interactive and can disperse the learner’s attention while they are completing the task. The findings of this study expand our growing understanding of interactivity in relation to video-based learning and task design.

The third article investigates EFL learners’ attitudes toward corrective feedback, the types of learners who prefer online or offline corrective feedback and how feedback should be tailored to meet learners’ needs. The results indicate that both types of feedback (online and offline) are essential to boosting learners’ linguistic accuracy. Additionally, the article posits that learners have positive attitudes toward teachers’ corrective feedback because they consider it a motivational learning tool.

The fourth article describes the intrapersonal, interpersonal and ecological factors that shape the construction of five Malaysian ESL preservice teachers’ professional identities during microteaching classes. The findings show that supportive interpersonal relationships developed within a facilitating context, such as a simulated classroom, encourage the emergence of strong personal identities.

The final article scrutinizes different aspects of critical digital pedagogy (CDP), including its origins, theoretical underpinnings and its implementation in different contexts. It also critically reviews Freire’s (1970) problem-posing education model and Morris and Stommel’s (2017) model of CDP. The study proposes a revised model based on the previous ones and keeping its focus on EFL classrooms.

Last but not least, it is a great honor to get the chance to head this journal. With the help of my colleagues on the editorial board, readers, researchers and reviewers, I will work tirelessly to make SJLS one of the leading journals in the region and the world.

To conclude, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all the reviewers for their rigorous analysis of the manuscripts and for the constructive feedback they have given to the respective authors.

Editor-in-Chief

Dr. Abdullah Al-Melhi