The interconnectivity of peoples worldwide is sufficient rationale for foreign language learners to develop the relevant competences for intercultural interactions in both local and global--"glocal" contexts. This study presents a conceptualisation of "glocal" competence for Jamaican foreign language teaching professionals from…

The United States and Canada, two countries known to have large immigrant populations, have long since reflected a dichotomy, where Canada is generally perceived to be a country with language policies that demonstrate its receptiveness to embrace multiculturalism in schools and classrooms. In contrast, the United States has consistently espoused…

Social psychologists have suggested that language-based ideologies related to "stereotype threat" (i.e. variations in performance-based on ability perceptions of language groups) may affect students' academic achievement regardless of school language support. However, it is unclear whether efforts to support students' first language…

We investigate the extent to which language versions (English, French and Arabic) of the same science test are comparable in terms of item difficulty and demands. We argue that language is an inextricable part of the scientific literacy construct, be it intended or not by the examiner. This argument has considerable implications on methodologies…

The aim of the present study was to examine the measurement invariance (MI) of the reading, mathematics, and science tests in terms of the commonly used languages. It also aimed to examine the differential item functioning (DIF) of the PISA test, the original items of which are in the languages of English and French, in terms of the language…

Minority Francophone students in predominantly English-speaking Canadian provinces tend to perform lower on large-scale assessments of achievement than their Anglophone peers and majority Francophone students in Quebec. This study is the first to apply multilevel modeling methods to examine the extent to which school-level factors may be…