Pragmatic markers perform important communicative functions, but they can be difficult to learn in a second language because of their multifunctionality and lack of salience during communicative events. This study has two goals: (1) to describe the communicative functions of the pragmatic marker "I mean" in academic discourse; and (2) to…

Oracy skills are considered as a problematic area for Thai students. Despite years of learning, students could not improve the skills at a satisfactory level due to internal and external hindrance such as cognitive load while communicating and insufficient practice time in class to achieve their communication (Flavell, 1979). In addition, to…

This study investigated the efficacy of explicit lexical collocation instruction via the Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA). To improve competence in lexical collocation and writing performance and to examine whether collocational competence and writing performance have a linear interrelation, 16 international English for Academic…

This qualitative study identified the language assessment practices in terms of purpose, type, and timing in four elementary language classes in the Philippines. It then evaluated the constructive alignment and content validity of the assessment and described how the constructive alignment reflects the quality of teaching and learning in these…

The present paper explored how plays could contribute to pragmatic development when employed as a medium of implicit or explicit instruction. 80 undergraduate English-major students were divided into four experimental groups two of which were literary and two nonliterary. Implicit Literary, as one of the literary groups was exposed to…

Since its inception, form-focused instruction (FFI) has been associated with grammar, with only a handful of studies examining its potential for vocabulary development (e.g., Laufer, 2006). Meanwhile, there has been an unresolved dispute between the two approaches of Focus on Form (FonF) and Focus on Forms (FonFs) in terms of their degree of…

The Foreign Language Learning (FLL) programme aimed to improve the English language attainment of Year 3 and 4 pupils through a detailed curriculum of weekly French classes with linked activity in English lessons. The programme, created by the Education Development Trust (formerly CfBT), lasted for three half-terms. French classes were 45 minutes…

The manual on the teaching of English as a Foreign or Second Language is intended as a practical classroom guide for Peace Corps volunteers. It describes procedures and offers sample exercises and activities for a wide range of listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills (whole-class, small-group, and individual participation), and classroom…

Strategies are suggested that can be used by teachers who are trying to get Black Dialect speaking students to speak and write the General Dialect. The approach takes into account the fact that all speakers are not on the same level. The need for careful pre-testing and determination of class rank is suggested, as are various ways of evaluating…