Abstract: Informed by family language policy (FLP) as the theoretical framework, I illustrate in this paper how language ideologies can be incongruous and language policies can be conflicting through three multilingual families in Singapore representing three major ethnic groups – Chinese, Malay and Indian. By studying their family language audits, observing their language practices, and engaging in conversations about their language ideologies, I look at what these families do and do not do and what they claim to do and not to do. Data were collected over a period of 6 months with more than 700 minutes of recording of actual interactions. Analysis of the data reveals that language ideologies are ‘power-inflected’ and tend to become the source of educational and social tensions which in turn shape family language practices. In Singapore these tensions are illustrated by the bilingual policy recognising mother tongues (MTs) and English as official languages, and its educational policy establishing English as...

Abstract: Over the last few decades, teaching English become a phenomenon in Saudi Arabia, especially to young learners. English is taught as a main subject in kindergarten and elementary schools. Like any other children, Saudis accept new foreign languages easily, but they get bored very fast if the teacher is teaching them using the old conventional methods and techniques. The aim of this paper is to prove that games are effective tools when devised to explain vocabularies and they make it easier to remember their meanings. This paper deals with a literature review of teaching English vocabulary to young learners using games. Then it discusses the importance of using games in teaching vocabulary and in what way using them is helpful. After that it investigates the practical implications of using games to teach vocabulary that includes the implementation of vocabulary games and some examples of games that could be used to teach vocabulary to children. And finally it examines challenges teachers face when teaching vocabulary using games to young learners.

Abstract: This volume provides a state-of-the-art overview of Online Intercultural Exchange(OIE) in university education and demonstrates how educators can use OIE to address current challenges in university contexts such as internationalisation, virtual mobility and intercultural foreign language education.Since the 1990s, educators have been using virtual interaction to bring their classes into contact with geographically distant partner classes to create opportunities for authentic communication, meaningful collaboration and first-hand experience of working and learning with partners from other cultural backgrounds. Online exchange projects of this nature can contribute to the development of learner autonomy, linguistic accuracy, intercultural awareness, intercultural skills and electronic literacies. OIE now has reached a stage where it is moving beyond individual classroom initiatives and is assuming a role as a major tool for internationalization, intercultural development and virtual mobility in universities around the globe. This volume reports qualitative and quantitative findings on the impact of OIE on universities in Europe and elsewhere and offers comprehensive guidance on using OIE at both pedagogical and technological levels. It provides theoretically informed accounts of OIEs relevant to researchers in computer-assisted language learning (CALL), computer-mediated communication or virtual education. Finally, contributors offer a collection of practitioner-authored and practically oriented case studies for the benefit of teachers of foreign languages or in other subject areas who wish to engage in developing the digital literacy and intercultural competences of their learners.

Abstract: Tasks are frequently used to elicit learner language in second language (L2) research. The purposes for doing so, however, vary widely, covering a range of theoretical models, designs, and analyses. For example, task-based researchers have examined a range of linguistic and interactional features (e.g., accuracy, language-related episodes) that are found in learner production and that vary as a function of task conditions (e.g., +/− complex), modes (oral, written, computer-mediated), and settings (second vs. foreign language). This article presents a synthesis of substantive interests and methodological practices in this area. We first collected a sample of 85 primary studies of task-based language production published from 2006 to 2015. Each study was then coded for the target features it analyzed as well as other contextual and demographic variables. We also coded for methodological features related to study designs, sampling, analyses, and reporting practices. The results indicate a strong preference toward analyses of grammar, vocabulary, accuracy, and different features of L2 interaction, and very little interest in task-induced pronunciation, pragmatics, and the quality of task performance. More fundamentally, this domain may be hindered by a lack of theoretical and operational consistency. The data also point to a number of concerns related to research and reporting practices (e.g., low statistical power; missing data). Based on our findings, we outline a number of pointed recommendations for future research in this domain.

Abstract: This paper reports the development and validation process of a self-assessment survey that examines technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) among preservice teachers learning to teach English as a foreign language (EFL). The survey, called TPACK-EFL, aims to provide an assessment tool for preservice foreign language teachers that addresses subject-specific pedagogies and technologies. Using mixed methods approach, survey items were generated first using qualitative methods (e.g. expert interviews and document analysis). The content validity of the items was established through expert and preservice teacher reviews. The survey was then validated through two rounds of exploratory factor analysis (EFA), the first with 174 preservice EFL teachers and the second with 204 preservice EFL teachers. The results of the first round indicated a five-factor structure: technological knowledge (TK), content knowledge (CK), pedagogical knowledge (PK), pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) and a fifth factor tha...

Abstract: 1. Introduction 2. Understanding peer interaction: Research synthesis and directions (by Sato, Masatoshi) 3. Section I: Interactional patterns and learner characteristics 4. 1. Peer interaction and learning: A focus on the silent learner (by Dobao, Ana Fernandez) 5. 2. Peer interaction and metacognitive instruction in the EFL classroom (by Fujii, Akiko) 6. 3. Interaction or collaboration? Group dynamics in the foreign language classroom (by Sato, Masatoshi) 7. 4. Interactional behaviours of low-proficiency learners in small group work (by Choi, Hyunsik) 8. 5. Collaborative dialogue in a two-way Spanish/English immersion classroom: Does heterogeneous grouping promote peer linguistic scaffolding? (by Young, Amy I.) 9. Section II: Tasks and interactional modalities 10. 6. Peer interaction in F2F and CMC contexts (by Loewen, Shawn) 11. 7. Thai EFL learners' interaction during collaborative writing tasks and its relationship to text quality (by McDonough, Kim) 12. 8. Engagement with the language: How examining learners' affective and social engagement explains successful learner-generated attention to form (by Baralt, Melissa) 13. 9. EFL task-based interaction: Does task modality impact on language-related episodes? (by Garcia Mayo, Maria del Pilar) 14. 10. A focus on mode: Patterns of interaction in face-to-face and computer-mediated contexts (by Rouhshad, Amir) 15. 11. Small-group meta-analytic talk and Spanish L2 development (by Moranski, Kara) 16. Section III: Learning settings 17. 12. How adolescents use social discourse to open space for language learning during peer interactions (by Martin-Beltran, Melinda) 18. 13. Peer interaction while learning to read in a new language (by Bigelow, Martha) 19. Epilogue 20. New pathways in researching interaction (by Philp, Jenefer) 21. Index

Abstract: The Handbook of Second and Foreign Language Writing is an authoritative reference compendium of the theory and research on second and foreign language writing that can be of value to researchers, professionals, and graduate students. It is intended both as a retrospective critical reflection that can situate research on L2 writing in its historical context and provide a state of the art view of past achievements, and as a prospective critical analysis of what lies ahead in terms of theory, research, and applications. Accordingly, the Handbook aims to provide (i) foundational information on the emergence and subsequent evolution of the field, (ii) state-of-the-art surveys of available theoretical and research (basic and applied) insights, (iii) overviews of research methods in L2 writing research, (iv) critical reflections on future developments, and (iv) explorations of existing and emerging disciplinary interfaces with other fields of inquiry.

Abstract: The Modern Language Journal has long been an important venue for the publication of research and reflection on the teaching and learning of foreign languages (FL) in classroom contexts. In this article, we offer a perspective on the contemporary FL classroom, informed by a descriptive survey of all studies that took place in FL classes that were published in The Modern Language Journal ( MLJ) between 2001 and 2014 inclusive ( N = 97). This yielded a profile of FL classrooms in terms of geographical locations, languages being taught, the amount and distribution of instructional time, and the age and language backgrounds of the students. The findings revealed that FL environments benefiting from research investigations in the MLJ typically involve older learners in on-site (rather than virtual) classes that afford limited exposure to the FL, which was typically English (in non-English-speaking countries) and French, German, or Spanish (in English-speaking countries). We consider the implications of these findings for the study of FLs in the future and identify aspects of FL classrooms that merit greater research attention as the MLJ moves into its second century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This article elucidates the implementation of English as a second language (ESL) learning and teaching programmes at the primary school level, spanning three decades of English language education (ELE) in Malaysia, its reform initiatives as well as the arising realities. The realities highlighted underscore the paradoxical challenges experienced with each ELE reform that are introduced, arising from the multilingual and plural socio-political circumstances of the country. In particular, among recent reforms that are examined, is the consequence that the new Primary School Standards-Based Curriculum for English language education (SBELC), which was introduced in 2011, has on the literacy performance of year three pupils when they sit for the LINUS LBI (literacy and Numeracy Screening for English Literacy) test, and the extent to which the English teachers and these young learners are ready to embrace the new curriculum. Concurrently, a review of the Malaysia Education Blueprint (2013-2025) as well as the Malaysia English Language Roadmap (2015-2025), is undertaken and their implications for yet another major language in education reform juxtaposed against existing problems related to teacher’s language proficiency, inadequate trained and skilled teachers, mismatch between curriculum and practices, limited language exposure, and most significantly, the foreboding view of the English language as a threat towards maintaining multilingual plurality, are duly extrapolated. By way of conclusion, this article draws upon selected innovative practices to illustrate the creative pathways that have emerged from these multifarious circumstances and have ironically shown potential in strengthening the young learners’ English language proficiency, notwithstanding identified impeding factors. Keywords: ESL Literacy; English Language Education Reform; English Language Proficiency; Language in Education Policy; Primary Education DOI: http://doi.org/10.17576/3L-2016-2203-05

Abstract: Studies show that incorporating self-regulated learning (SRL) strategies into foreign language teaching encourages the development of autonomous learners. However, interviews with teachers (n = 51)...

Abstract: The book examines how task-based language teaching (TBLT) can be carried out with young beginner learners in a foreign language context. It addresses how TBLT can be introduced and implemented in a difficult instructional context where traditional teaching approaches are entrenched. The book reports a study that examined how TBLT can be made to work in such a context. The study compares the effectiveness of TBLT and the traditional “present-practice-produce” (PPP) approach for teaching English to young beginner learners in Japan. The TBLT researched in this study is unique as it employed input-based tasks rather than oral production tasks. The study shows that such tasks constitute an ideal means of inducting beginner learners into listening and processing English. It also shows that such tasks lead naturally to the learners trying to use the L2 in communication. It provides evidence to support the claim that TBLT promotes the kind of naturalistic interaction which is beneficial for the development of both interactional and linguistic competence. The book concludes with suggestions for how to implement TBLT in Japanese school contexts.

Abstract: Ellis (2003) identifies four key criteria that distinguish a ‘task’ from the types of situational grammar exercises that are typically found in the more traditional language classroom. This study investigates how well teachers were able to design tasks that fulfilled these four criteria (Ellis, 2003) at the end of a year-long professional development programme in which TBLT figured prominently. Forty-three tasks designed by the teachers for use in their own foreign language classrooms are analysed against Ellis’s four criteria in order to evaluate the effectiveness of the professional development programme, on the premise that adequate understanding of the construct of task underpins successful implementation of TBLT. The findings show that some aspects of task-design were difficult for teachers. Implications for professional development programmes that focus on TBLT, such as the one whose effectiveness is evaluated here, are discussed.

Abstract: Despite an increasing research interest in subject-specific teacher knowledge, the scientific understanding regarding teachers’ professional knowledge for teaching English as a foreign language (TE...

Abstract: Textbooks are curriculum artefacts that embody particular ideologies and legitimise specific types of knowledge [Apple, M. W. (1982). Education and power. Boston: Routledge & Kegan Paul; Apple, M. W., & Christian-Smith, L. K. (1991). The politics of the textbook. In M. W. Apple & L. K. Christian-Smith (Eds.), The politics of the textbook (pp. 1–21). London, NY: Routledge]. As the general public tends to associate them with truth rather than opinion [Meyer, C. J., & Rosenblatt, P. C. (1987). Feminist analysis of family textbooks. Journal of Family Issues, 8(2), 247–252. Retrieved from: http://jfi.sagepub.com/], textbooks can contribute to the circulation of particular representations and stereotypes. In the past decades, there has been an increasing interest in analysing the ways in which textbooks (re)produce representations of history, ethnic groups, minorities and gender differences, to name a few. Foreign language research has focused on the representation of foreign and native culture(s), give...

Abstract: Ever since Karen Price's ground-breaking work in 1983, we have known that same-language subtitles (captions) primarily intended for the deaf and hearing-impaired can provide access to foreign language films and TV programmes which would otherwise be virtually incomprehensible to non-native-speaker viewers. Since then, researchers have steadily built up our knowledge of how learners may make use of these when watching. The question remains, however, whether, and to what extent, watching subtitled programmes over time helps develop learners’ language skills in various ways. Perhaps surprisingly, this question of long-term language development has still not been fully addressed in the research literature and we appear to be in a largely ‘confirmatory’ cycle. At an informal level, on the other hand, there are countless stories of learners who have been assisted in learning a foreign language by watching subtitled or captioned films and television. I shall review the contributions of key research studies to build up a picture of the current state of our knowledge and go on to outline, first, the current gaps in research and, second, some encouraging new approaches to learning by autonomous ‘users’ of foreign-language Internet media and same-language subtitles across languages, now more widely available.

Abstract: An area of research that may shed light on the pressing problem of FL teacher attrition is emotion labor. Emotion labor (or emotional labour), a construct stemming from research in the fields of communication and psychology and focusing mainly on service professionals, has recently been taken up in education literature. Although student emotions in language acquisition have been examined, the field of applied linguistics has not yet tapped the explanatory potential of teacher emotions. The current project explores the emotion work of 5 teachers in rural U.S. high school FL classrooms. Thematic analysis of interviews with teachers of Spanish, French, and Latin yielded 5 key insights: perceived lack of community and institutional support for FL teachers, an excessive burden for motivation felt by these teachers, the use of teacher emotion labor to motivate their students, emotional burnout of the teachers, and perceived lack of teacher efficacy. The last two, while not inevitable, seem to be mutually influencing, forming a downward spiral that can eventually impact the willingness or ability of some teachers to continue in their careers. Implications of this study include recognition of the significance of teacher emotion labor in FL pedagogy and its potential role in teacher attrition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) has become a very popular approach in the belief that it may help to improve students' foreign language proficiency. Although some research has been conducted, there is a dearth of longitudinal studies on students' awareness of their language learning process in CLIL programmes. In this paper, 221 CLIL students from the Basque Autonomous Community (BAC; Spain) filled out a questionnaire which analysed students' perceptions regarding the importance of grammar and language skills, their preferences for instructional activities, and their self-perceived language improvement. The results revealed that the participants attached importance to all language aspects and that they preferred group work and active participation in class in the early grades, although their enthusiasm for both aspects waned with time. Finally, the longitudinal data showed that their perceived English improvement was greater in their CLIL classes than in their regular English as a ...

Abstract: Cultural factors and common languages are well-known determinants of trade. By contrast, the knowledge of foreign languages was not explored in the literature so far. We combine traditional gravity models with data on fluency in the main languages used in EU and candidate countries. We show that widespread knowledge of languages is an important determinant for foreign trade, with English playing an especially important role. The robustness of our results is confirmed by quantile regressions.

Abstract: Introduction Social influence is considered to have a significant impact on academic success (Schunk, 1999; Riese, Samara, & Lillejord, 2012). It postulates that if students are more able to maintain their social relationships with others in school, they are likely to perform better academically than those who are not. In second or foreign language (L2/FL) learning, there has been great interest among L2/FL researchers and educators in how learners interact with one another for knowledge co-construction or the negotiation of meaning in traditional face-to-face settings in order to enhance linguistic knowledge in the target language, e.g., Foster and Ohta (2005), and Dobao (2012; 2014). Thanks to emerging technology or computer use for daily communication, e.g., emails and chats, socialization has inevitably become part of our everyday lives. In particular, the Internet has been one of the most important resources for strengthening students' learning experiences at the tertiary level (Lee & Tsai, 2011; Liu, Lan, & Ho, 2014); it potentially provides genuine communication to foster autonomous learning (McLoughlin & Lee, 2010). Such meaningful communication via the Internet for educational purposes has been widely researched in recent years, as it is believed that it engenders students' meaningful learning experiences and improves their motivation and engagement (Chu & Kennedy, 2011; Hwang, Wang, & Sharples, 2007; Cheng & Chau, 2013; Winke & Goertler, 2008; Cho & Kim, 2013; Razon, Turner, Johnson, Arsal, & Tenenbaum, 2012; Lan, 2014; Lee & Tsai, 2011; Cho & Jonassen, 2009). However, the relationship between motivation and collaborative learning in a specific context has remained under-explored in the conventional classroom setting (Jarvela, Volet, & Jarvenoja, 2010) or in the web- based environment. Taken together, in this study, the main focus is on the impact of online text-based collaboration outside the classroom on the constructs (e.g., motivation and vocabulary gain) by examining the quantitative data of the questionnaire survey and the Google Docs log files. Socially web-based learning in FL Socially web-based tools have been increasingly adopted for L2 or FL learning. As such, online text chats are being utilized for examining modified interaction between less and more capable interlocutors in order for L2/FL development to occur. During a problem-solving task, a learner's non-target linguistic items that often cause misunderstanding or communication difficulty need to be corrected through employing a clarification request or comprehension check. Such corrected items provide the learner with linguistic input that learner may then use it to generate his/her output; it potentially pushes the learners' production (Yilmaz, 2011). In Collentine and Collentine's (2013) study by adopting a corpus approach to examining learners' complex syntactic structures in Spanish in a SCMC setting, their results show that learners are likely to produce the target sentences (nominal clauses) to reply to their expert interlocutors. Their findings suggest that interaction taking place in SCMC can promote leaners' syntactic knowledge in the target language. Supportive of negotiated interaction that leads to L2/FL development, Smith and Renaud (2013) have put it forward that due to network delay time that affords learners to have more time to process input and monitor their output. In their study, they employed eye-tracking technology to explore L2 learners' attention paid to lexical and grammatical features of the corrective feedback provided by their instructors during text chats. The way in which learners fixated on the target items had a great impact on their linguistic knowledge; learners who were likely to notice the linguistic items tended to acquire them. The results of their study suggest that the amount of eye fixation time significantly associated with the posttest scores (e. …