This article provides a microscopic view of learners' first encounters with multimodal texts in their primary EFL classrooms. It is argued that multimodal texts create opportunities for language development in the primary EFL classroom: they offer different access points for comprehension, invite participation, and motivate repeated practice so…

This year marks the fortieth anniversary of the publication of two landmark articles concerning the "good language learner". In the years since, vigorous debate has revolved around both theoretical issues (including definition, classification, theoretical foundation, and the relationship of strategies to successful learning) and…

A major issue in the field of L2 acquisition is the role that language learners' L1 plays in the acquisition of an L2. This article shows some of the salient linguistic features of Chinese that may present communication challenges for Chinese-speaking learners of English as an additional language. Instructors' awareness of such features will…

While it is common for teachers to focus on learners' errors in the EFL classroom, little attention is given to the "errors" that native English speakers make in their mother tongue. This paper reports on a study to assess the reaction of Japanese university students to an activity that primarily required identifying…

Discusses language as skill and the idea that there are common elements between language and general skill acquisition. (Author/VWL)

In making decisions regarding the focus for grammar teaching, ESL instructors may take into consideration errors that appear to result from the influence of their students' first language(s) (L1). There is also evidence from language acquisition research suggesting that for some grammatical features, learners of different L1 backgrounds may face…

Extensive reading has for many years been seen as an important and motivating means of improving general language proficiency in a second language. This article argues that while extensive reading per se is an important medium for long-term second language acquisition, extensive reading schemes may not be the most effective means of promoting…

This article is derived from a lecture given in 1992 and addresses issues in English language education that concern "linguistic property" and "linguistic propriety." (JL)

Summarizes Hillock's findings regarding first-language composition instruction and compares them to research into second-language composition instruction. The article discusses implications for teaching writing to English-as-a-Second-Language students and recommends a process/product, task-based approach to writing instruction. (20 references)…