This article contributes to the literature on the value of Virtual Exchanges (VEs) in the field of technology-mediated language learning. Specifically, we report on a pilot program for high school English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners in Slovakia and English as a Second Language (ESL) learners in Michigan, USA who engaged in a 10-week,…

The involvement of a native English speaker teacher (NEST, henceforth) in teaching English is a new phenomenon in Sumbawa Besar. SMAN 2 Sumbawa Besar involved a NEST sent by the American Indonesian Exchange Foundation (AMINEF) through the Fulbright English Teaching Assistants (ETA) program. This study aims at describing the roles of a NEST on the…

In this article, recent American high school graduate Shivam Bhatt reflects on his experience with an exchange program in Japan. He was struck by the cultural balance that the Japanese strike between holding on to tradition while keeping on an eye on the future. He also learned about language from his Japanese peers in the program and about…

This study showcases an International Learning Exchange (ILE) program between North Korean (NK) refugee students in South Korea and American university students from the US. ILE programs connect two or more linguistic/ cultural groups for intercultural awareness, which provide authentic communicative environments. However, the prevalent use of…

More and more Japanese students are studying abroad and the Japanese government has set a target of 180,000 students to study abroad each year by 2020 and is providing financial assistance to students to help achieve this goal. However, is financial assistance enough? Surveys conducted with students from a national education-focused university in…

There is increasing interest in how educational technologies can be used to promote and create meaningful learning opportunities and, more specifically, how social media tools can be harnessed to encourage language learning through online interactions. Educational social media tools, however, thrust student learning from a private space into a…

This study examines various features of foreign language program offerings at 220 public high schools in California. Foreign language program features were examined in relation to the school's Academic Performance Index (API), the school's socioeconomic status (percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and percentage of…

The report presents data and discussion on U.S. education across sectors, as well as the work of the Office of Education. Among topics covered are education-equalization programs, including desegregation assistance, civil rights advisory services, education of disadvantaged children, grants to local education agencies, migrant children, neglected…