Listening is a major challenge for many English-as-a-foreign language (EFL) learners. Decoding training, which helps learners develop the ability to recognize words from speech, is frequently used to assist EFL learners. Although recent empirical studies on decoding training have provided positive evidence on its effectiveness in improving EFL…

This is the first study to investigate the effects of test methods (while-listening performance and post-listening performance) and gender on measured listening ability and brain activation under test conditions. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) was used to examine three brain regions associated with listening comprehension: the…

In the present study, three groups of interpreter trainees were formed, two experimental groups, i.e., blended prosody instruction (BPI) and computer-assisted prosody training (CAPT), and one control group (CON). In this experiment the participants took part in a four-week teaching program for 16 sessions (60 minutes per session), i.e., 16 hours…

Few studies on higher education focus on how English as a Foreign Language (EFL) college students may enhance their global literacy through cross-cultural communication. This mixed methods research reports on a blended learning program with cross-cultural communication to foster EFL college students' global literacy. A sample of 97 EFL college…

This study investigates the potential of "VoiceThread" (VT) as a learning tool in order to enhance learners' performance and confidence, and to provide the basis for continuing independent practice. The participants were students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds on a 10-week English for Academic Purposes (EAP)…

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Extended Reality (XR) have been employed in several foreign language education applications to increase the availability of experiential learning methods akin to international immersion programs. However, research in multi-modal spoken dialogue in L2 combined with immersive technologies and collaborative learning…

This study investigated how video caption type affected vocabulary learning and listening comprehension of low-intermediate Chinese-speaking learners of English. Each video was presented twice with one of the five caption types: (1) no caption (NC), (2) full caption with no audio (FCNA), (3) full caption (FC), (4) full caption with highlighted…

The purpose of this study is to examine the perceptions of EFL learners and teachers toward vlogs as a source of aural input for L2 listening practice inside and outside of classroom. A total of 389 EFL university students drawn from 29 listening/speaking classes and their teachers participated in this study. After four weeks of exploiting vlogs…

Lower-level processes have long been overlooked in EFL listening pedagogy. To address this pervasive problem, in this study, a program was designed that integrated WeChat, the most popular mobile instant messaging app in China, into dictation practice. Students in two classes studying a compulsory university EFL course were selected as…

This paper reports the results of three independent qualitative case studies that examined interactions with feedback as L2 listeners worked in self-regulated environments. Data on high-intermediate learners of English were collected from case studies conducted in Australia, Colombia and Chile. Results show that L2 listeners across case studies…

Second/foreign language (L2) classrooms do not always provide opportunities for input and output practice [Lightbown, P. M. (2000). Classroom SLA research and second language teaching. Applied Linguistics, 21(4), 431-462]. The use of smart speakers such as Amazon Echo and its associated voice-controlled intelligent personal assistant (IPA) Alexa…

The ability to recognise words from the aural modality is a critical aspect of successful second language (L2) listening comprehension. However, little research has been reported on computer-mediated development of L2 word recognition from speech in L2 learning contexts. This report describes the development of an innovative computer application…

A strong relationship between L2 vocabulary knowledge and L2 reading and listening comprehension is well established. However, less research has been conducted to explore correlations between pedagogic interventions to increase vocabulary knowledge and score gains on standardized L2 proficiency tests. This study addresses this gap in the research…

This study explores the differential effects of medium of delivery of aural input during listening tasks on learners noticing and type of comprehension (top-down and bottom-up) of Spanish object pronouns during focus on form listening tasks. Twenty-two college students enrolled in second year Spanish in a technology-enhanced classroom participated…