A short description of the article

This article talks about learning English, especially in English as a Foreign Language (EFL)
and English as a Second Language (ESL). The aim is to develop communication skills that
can be used in various situations. In teaching English as EFL, Critical Language Awareness
(CLA) comes up as a possible way to look at language critically. CLA's goals include
learners, teachers, practitioners, and educators, while CLA's context engages with public and
higher education institutions with the goal of empowering learners to create change.

Main points of the article

- The research focus includes CDA in learning English as a Foreign Language (ESL) or
English as a Second Language (EFL).
- The research method used is qualitative to explore the views of English as a foreign
language (EFL) educators
- Interviews were conducted with six English language teaching practitioners, selected
taking into account their diverse racial, cultural and educational backgrounds.
- The main themes of the interviews included the need for CLA in the EFL curriculum,
EFL learners' readiness for CLA, and the role of EFL educators in promoting CLA.
- Participants highlighted challenges in integrating CLA perspectives in EFL curricula,
including inappropriateness of teaching materials and lack of professional training.
- Teaching strategies, activities, and tasks were proposed by participants to integrate
CLA in the EFL classroom.
- The importance of CLA as a tool for understanding how language is filled with social
meaning and power relations is the main highlight of the article.
- A CLA-based pedagogical approach aims to encourage students to question language
assumptions, analyze its relationship to inequality, and support positive social change.
- CLA's target audience includes learners, teachers, practitioners, and educators, with a
focus on public and higher education institutions that seek to empower learners to
create change.
- The main advantage of CDA lies in its critical perspective on the construction of
various discourses, allowing language users to uncover representations of power
abuse and reconstruct them.

An explanation of the key arguments and evidence presented in the article

Key arguments
- The main aim of foreign language learning is to develop good communicative
competence that can be applied in various circumstances
- Expansion of EFL and ESL Learning Outside of Academics
- CLA in EFL teaching.
- The role of language educators is very important in promoting a CLA-oriented
approach.
- There are challenges in integrating CLA such as curriculum, student skill level, and
educator training.
Evidence presented
- Historical Background CLA is a movement for language awareness and critical
discourse analysis in Britain in the 1980s.
- Comprehensive definition of CLA by Leeman
- References from scholars such as Fairclough and Wallace reinforce the importance
and significance of CLA.
 - Qualitative Study of EFL Educators in Saudi Arabia.
- The research results consist of three themes, namely making EFL teaching informed
by social context, applying CDA and critical thinking skills to social issues, and
empowering EFL educators with professional training.

A summary of the author's conclusions

The importance of CLA as an understanding of how language is filled with social meaning
and power relations. CLA-based pedagogical approaches encourage students to deduce
assumptions about language, analyze influences with inequality, and aim to promote positive
social change. The target audience for CLA includes learners, teachers, practitioners, and
educators, while the context of CLA includes public and higher education institutions whose
goal is to empower learners to create change. One of the main advantages of CDA lies in the
application of a critical perspective to the construction of various discourses through which
language users or learners use language to uncover representations of power and work to
reconstruct them.

In English language teaching, there is an approach proposed by researchers to introduce

learners to critical aspects so that they can analyze and interpret language, both written and
spoken, inside and outside the classroom. The research covers critical aspects in learning
English as a Foreign Language (ESL) or English as a Second Language (EFL), with various
practical and theoretical orientations. Some research on critical applied linguistics has been
proposed, and many researchers use Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) in teaching English,
especially in ESL or EFL contexts. This approach includes the use of CDA in teaching
reading skills and developing user, analyst, and teacher competencies. Researchers also
design modules and practical frameworks to teach CDA to EFL students. The role of EFL
educators remains crucial to the success or failure of integrating critical applied linguistics
into the EFL context. Therefore, it would be valuable to further understand the views,
opinions, and perceptions of EFL educators about critical applied linguistics to identify
insights that can inform teaching and learning practices in the EFL context.

The research in this article uses qualitative methods to explore the views and opinions of
English as a foreign language (EFL) educators regarding the development of critical applied
linguistics (CLA) in an EFL context at an English language institute at a public university in
Saudi Arabia. The educators involved in this study taught regular English courses and
received professional training in related fields. Individual interviews were conducted to
discuss three main topics, namely the need for CLA in the EFL curriculum, EFL learners'
readiness for CLA, and the role of EFL educators in promoting CLA. The questions designed
for the interview covered applied aspects of CLA in an EFL context.

The research results, where participants responded to interview questions by stating that
current English language teaching and learning practices as a foreign language (EFL) do not
promote critical applied linguistics (CLA) for several reasons, such as suitable teaching
materials, professional training, and time constraints. However, they believe that these
practices can be improved with good cooperation between decision-makers in educational
institutions or academic authorities and educators.

They proposed various teaching strategies, activities, and tasks to integrate CLA into EFL
classes. Three main themes can be identified from their responses: making EFL teaching and
learning context-based on social issues, applying CDA and critical thinking skills as
analytical tools to address social issues, and empowering EFL educators with relevant
professional training. Furthermore, a key theme that emerged from the interviews is the call
for a more socially contextualized learning experience using CDA and critical thinking skills.

Participants outlined three reasons for the significance of critical language teaching in EFL:
helping students go beyond the material, developing critical attitudes, and improving
language skills. They recognize the importance of critical language, critique areas that need
attention, and highlight challenges such as limited contact hours and availability of teaching
materials. The time factor was also recognized as a barrier as it did not allow enough time for
CLA-based tasks.

Participants' recognition of the role of the EFL curriculum in promoting CLA required a
rethinking of teaching approaches. They propose to incorporate both CDA and critical
thinking skills into current EFL curricula, with an emphasis on practical aspects such as
exercises, activities, and individual and group projects. However, they emphasize that these
exercises and activities must be inspired by the learner's social world to capture their
attention. Furthermore, because the aim of CLA in an EFL context is to empower learners,
participants emphasized the need to provide learners with more space to practice and express
their views on issues relevant to their social world. In addition, the participants explained two
reasons to develop a critical language perspective among EFL learners, related to teaching
and learning context and social context. They believe that EFL learners should be motivated
to reflect on and challenge their learning context by discussing their learning styles,
expressing their views on teaching methods, and evaluating the curriculum.

Education provides an ideal environment to develop a critical perspective because learners

respond to how they are treated and assessed. The social context, including social, cultural,
political, and ideological aspects of language, can be expanded through dialog tasks and
debates that learners in EFL can interpret in various ways, following the five dimensions of
language awareness. The affective dimension is about the impact of attitudes and motivation
on language learning, the social dimension emphasizes positive social relationships in diverse
linguistic contexts. The power dimension discusses the expression of power relationships
through language, while the cognitive dimension highlights awareness of cognitive aspects of
linguistic categories. The performance dimension reflects whether knowledge from language
awareness contributes to better language learning and usage, emphasizing that language is a
powerful tool for developing critical awareness

From the results of research and interviews with participants, it is known that participants are
aware of the urgent need to promote critical perspectives in English as a foreign language
(EFL) classes. Three themes emerged from the interviews: making EFL teaching and learning
based on social context, applying CDA and critical thinking skills as analytical tools to social
issues, and empowering EFL educators with appropriate professional training.