Previous studies report that exposure to the Maori language on a regular basis allows New Zealand adults who cannot speak Maori to build a proto-lexicon of Maori -- an implicit memory of word forms without detailed knowledge of meaning. How might this knowledge feed into explicit language learning? Is it possible to "awaken" the…

Studying Latin in secondary education is still widespread in Europe and believed to result in cognitive benefits, even beyond the linguistic domain. In this study we explored the relation between such study and later academic achievement in higher education (N = 1,898). First, we demonstrated that Latin students exhibit increased levels of study…

The linguistic features of academic spoken English are different from those of academic written English. Therefore, for this study, an Academic Spoken Word List (ASWL) was developed and validated to help second language (L2) learners enhance their comprehension of academic speech in English-medium universities. The ASWL contains 1,741 word…

Tasks and interactional feedback have received much attention in instructed second language acquisition research in recent years. However, little research exists that has investigated feedback and task factors together during naturally occurring teacher-student interaction in classroom settings. To bridge this gap, the current study explored the…

This study explored learning and retention of concrete nouns in second language Spanish by first language English undergraduates (N = 128). Each completed a learning style (visual, auditory, tactile/kinesthetic, mixed) assessment, took a vocabulary pretest, and then studied 12 words each through three conditions (matching, mismatching, mixed…

This study investigated the differential effects of prompts and recasts, in the context of dyadic interaction, on the acquisition of grammatical gender by adult second language learners of French. Participants were 25 undergraduate students enrolled in an intermediate-level French course at an English-speaking university. All students were exposed…

Examined self-determination theory (SDT) in the language learning context. Involved the development of a valid and reliable instrument to assess different subtypes of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and explored the link between these motivational sub-types and various orientations to language learning. Showed instrumental orientation and the…

Investigated whether beginning adult learners, given auditory stimuli, were equally likely to represent French gender subclasses using phonological, morphosyntactic, and/or semantic representations. Data from adult English speakers learning patterned French and translation equivalent lists indicated that the construct of input for gender learning…

Although a number of studies have associated recasts with second language development, the actual mechanisms by which recasts work to impact learning are still little understood. In particular, researchers have sought to gain a deeper understanding of the connections among recasts, learners' responses to recasts, and subsequent development. To…

A study of certain aspects of second language learning among three university students, all in an advanced ESL class at UCLA. An error analysis of written verb forms was undertaken. An examination of correction revealed that it was neither systematic nor enlightened enough to actually influence error production. (Author/RM)

Investigated whether topic-prominence transfer is a universal developmental stage or a transferable typology by analyzing the behavior of 46 native speakers of English learning Chinese, a subject-prominence (SP) language, as a second language. Results found that the learners displayed a process of systematically transferring English SP features to…

This study investigated a causal model of second language learning, in particular, three situation-specific constructs: language class discomfort, language class risktaking, and language class sociability. Findings indicate that discomfort negatively predicted risktaking and sociability, risktaking positively predicted participation, and…

Describes research done to determine whether there is a statistical relationship between an English as a second language learner's ability to determine a word's morphemes or structural units and his/her ability to comprehend written English text. (SED)

This study compares quantitative and qualitative results for task-based second language (L2) grammar instruction conducted as whole-class, teacher-led discourse (TLD) versus small-group, learner-led discourse (LLD). Participants included 78 English-speaking adults from six university classes of beginning L2 Spanish, with two assigned to each…

Assesses the influence of religious-specific background knowledge on adult ESL listening comprehension. Sixteen Moslems, 20 Christians, and 28 religion-neutral students listened to two passages, one on prayer rituals of Islam and one on those of Christianity. Students better recalled and understood the passage related to their respective religious…