Few people who did not grow up speaking Zulu have learned the language later. There are limited resources for second language Zulu learning, whether textbooks, readers, or computerised resources. We set out to develop software for this purpose, to support learners' independent learning. Drawing on research on language learning, we used a number of…

Over the past two decades, the Involvement Load Hypothesis (ILH) has become a popular buzzword in the field of Second Language Acquisition (SLA). Although applications of the ILH can improve students' learning of productive vocabulary, this effect appears to be transitory. Students' learning of productive vocabulary often fades over time, as shown…

The objective of this study was twofold: (a) to determine the extent to which three types of instruction could improve writing performance of railway engineering students and (b) to explore students' perceptions of flipped classroom, Edmodo, and Google Docs for improving their academic writing performance. The participants were 61 undergraduate…

This study investigates the effectiveness of using Google Translate as a translingual CALL tool in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) writing, keyed to the perceptions of both more highly proficient Chinese English major university students and less-proficient non-English majors. After watching a 5-minute passage from a movie, each cohort of…

With the ever-increasing number of available language technology products, there is also a need to evaluate them objectively. Unsubstantiated beliefs about what language technology can and cannot do inside or outside the language classroom often influence decisions about the choice of language technology to be used. The declarative/procedural…

This study investigates the impact on extemporaneous English-language first drafts by using Google Translate (GT) in three different tasks assigned to Chinese sophomore, junior, and senior students of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) majoring in English. Students wrote first in Chinese (Step 1), then drafted corresponding texts in English (Step…

Drawing on Vygotskian sociocultural theory of mind and social constructivism, and adopting a sequential exploratory mixed-methods approach, this study explored the impact of online dynamic assessment (DA) on EFL learners' academic writing skills through one-on-one individual and online synchronous DA sessions over Google Docs. It also investigated…

A quasi-experimental, pretest-posttest, non-equivalent control group design was used to examine the effect of a mobile gamification application on third and fourth grade students' Spanish language achievement and student academic self-efficacy. In this study, the treatment group's Spanish language instruction was through the use of…

Expressing causal relations plays a central role in academic writing. While it is important that writing instructors assess and provide feedback on learners' causal discourse, it could be a very time-consuming task. In this respect, automated writing evaluation (AWE) tools may be helpful. However, to date, there have been no AWE tools capable of…

Reports on two projects dedicated to the compilation of a basic French vocabulary list, the translation of this list into five European languages, and the publication of the results as an electronic reference book for teachers and learners of French as a second language. (Author/VWL)

Discusses selected theories of second-language acquisition and their implications for developing a computer-assisted language-learning tool for learners of German,"Textana." Textana was planned as a generic text production tool to provide help to learners in outlining, editing, and postediting texts in German as a foreign language. (Author/VWL)

Concerns the relative effectiveness of computer-assisted production (output) practice and comprehension (input) practice in second-language acquisition. In particular, the study focuses on whether the advantage of production practice over comprehension practice still remains when the target structures are relatively simple. (Author/VWL)

Discusses the integration of Fluent 2, a two-medium immersive conversational language learning environment, into the pedagogical environment. The article presents a strategy to provide teachers and other designers of language lessons with tools that will enable them to produce lessons they consider appropriate. (seven references) (Author/CK)

Reports on the exploratory phase of a computer assisted language learning project designed to provide a package enabling students of German as a second language to develop their reading and writing skills, learn new vocabulary and syntactical structure, and enhance their competence in the production of text commentary. (Six references) (Author/CK)

Introduces a computer-assisted language-learning system called L2tutor that is designed to provide an immersion experience to travelers before they leave on a trip to a country where a different language is spoken. The learner takes part in a fully mixed-initiative dialog with the system to gain fluency and hone vocabulary and grammatical skills.…