The following workshop offers both a theoretical (Part One) and didactic (Part Two) approach to Kate Chopin’s much-revered and anthologized The Story of an Hour in the ESL classroom. Introducing university students in advanced-level courses to short stories has numerous benefits, particularly when coupled with discussion around important themes such as gender equality, stereotyping, marriage, and women’s emancipation. Moreover, students will appreciate exposure to an authentic text replete with various literary devices.

Standard English seems to reign supreme in ESL classes. A vernacular is occasionally present in translation classes, albeit to a limited extent. However, the introduction of colloquial language into English courses might enrich both standard and specialised courses, particularly those that focus on dialect translation. The article examines excerpts from two novels (Irvine Welsh’s Glue and London Fields by Martin Amis) in which protagonists speak in vernacular and use slang. The passages have been compared with their Polish translations. The aim of the article is to show that colloquial language used in transgressive fiction can be effectively analysed in class. The article also presents transgressive fiction as a valuable source of language teaching materials.

As didactics is a field closely related to rhetoric, many rules of the art of speaking are applicable in both didactics and glottodidactics. This paper explores the possibility of applying rhetorical rules relating to captatio benevolentiae, as well as ethos and pathos in didactic practice. Such techniques as self-advertising, arousing interest, making students aware of the benefits of the lesson, using anecdotes and humour can be applied with success in both rhetorical and didactic practice. It is likewise possible to influence the audience, as well as the students by means of methods included in the rules of ethos and pathos, which leads to gaining kindness by positive self-presentation and arousing emotions.

The purpose of this article is to present the possibilities that Pseudo-Philo of Byzantium’s Περὶ τῶν ἑπτὰ θεαμάτων, a treatise on the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, offers to a didactician of Ancient Greek. The article discusses the aspects of grammar, lexis and culture that can be introduced and developed using pseudo-Philo of Byzantium’s work. The following analysis is a result of the author’s work with the students in the Faculty of History of the Jagiellonian University who examined the aforementioned text during a course in the Ancient Greek language.

In this article the author focusses on two problems: these are a reception of Roman historical texts in the former Polish educational system and methods that can be used while working with students on translation and analysis of Roman historical texts in Latin classes at a modern university. In the first part of the paper, in a short outline the author presents which texts of Roman historians were read and how they were worked on in Polish schools from the Middle Ages to the twentieth century. In the second part of the article the author deals with selected didactic issues, which are often focused on during Latin classes nowadays. The author discusses here her own didactic experiences and presents some methods of working on reading, translation and analysis of Latin historical texts that can be used to make teaching and learning interesting and inspiring for both a lecturer and student.

The use of information and communication technologies (ICT) has become ubiquitous in modern education. PowerPoint (PP) is a popular presentation software which can be successfully exploited in foreign language teaching settings, however, its effectiveness depends on the teacher’s resourcefulness. This paper highlights the benefits and limitations of applying PP to design an ESL/EAP lesson and presents practical examples of implementing the slideware to facilitate the teaching/learning process.

This article focuses on the use of self-reflective journaling as a meta-cognitive tool for enhancing the learner’s autonomy in pre-sessional English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses. It begins by reviewing the literature on language learning strategies, with a particular focus on meta-cognitive strategies. Self-reflection is presented as one of those strategies, which should be implemented in the learning process. Later in the article, several fragments from authentic journal entries written by pre-sessional EAP students to illustrate how the practice of self-reflection can be used to improve learning outcomes. The author advocates incorporating self-reflective journaling into the curriculum, as it provides students with opportunities to think critically, provides extra writing practice and enhances their learning experience. It also provides teachers with a valuable tool for tracking their students’ progress and understanding of course material.