In this issue

After many weeks of tumultuous preparation – organizing themes, soliciting contributions, holding meetings, and vetting, rigorously editing, and meticulously proofreading manuscripts – here we are again, bursting with content. As usual, we’re fortunate to publish exceptional writings by emerging and established names in ELT, writings whose thematic range and depth of insights are as diverse as their geographical provenance, reminding us how the whole world is close at hand, you only have to turn a page! We invite our readers to enjoy another exciting issue, with articles about pronunciation in English as a lingua franca, how to teach reading if you are a new teacher, how to recycle newspapers into classroom materials, how to make use of songs in the language classroom, how to use improvisational theater activities in Business English training, and deciding whether to ban or embrace smartphones in the class – these and more breathe life into this issue. At the same time, we are pleased to welcome another cross-border initiative – across disciplines, culture, and geographic boundaries – to connect with fellow ELT professionals and provide a mutually-nurturing space where expertise, best classroom practices, professional experiences, and challenges may be shared, with the goal of enhancing the teaching of English. For this ETAS Crossing Border Special Feature, I am delighted to welcome ELT colleagues from France sharing with us some of their best classroom practices, while giving us a sense of the rich cultural context that provides a backdrop to these practices.