With a forward-looking and problem-solving mindset, this article aims to combine theoretical knowledge and empirical evidence from different schools of thought in the field of second language (L2) learning and teaching--namely, instructed second language acquisition, generative linguistics, and an ecological perspective that includes multiple…

Competent L2 writing has been described in research in terms of an increasing incidence, variety, and length of clauses; a countervailing compactness and tightness with reduced number of clauses even as clause length expands; and various interrelationships between syntactic realizations of texts and the genres they represent. These partly…

Abstract In this article, we bring together conversation analysis and usage-based linguistics to investigate the second language (L2) developmental trajectory of a linguistic construction within the complex multimodal ecology of naturally occurring social interaction. We document how, over the course of 15 months, an L2 speaker's use of the French…

Guided by Foucault's concept of "discursive formations," the study reported here draws on primary archival and secondary source material to examine how French has been discursively shaped in England and in relation to English. Unpacking sociohistorical constructions of sameness--difference offers a productive frame to explore ideological…

A key insight of a transdisciplinary perspective on second language acquisition (SLA) as articulated by the Douglas Fir Group (2016) is its usage-based understanding of language. Evidence on the fundamental role that usage plays in shaping individual language knowledge is no doubt compelling. However, while the force of social interaction in…

The role of short-term memory and working memory in accomplished multilinguals was investigated. Twenty-eight accomplished multilinguals were compared to 36 mainstream philology students. The following instruments were used in the study: three memory subtests of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale (Digit Span, Digit-Symbol Coding, and Arithmetic,…

This article reports the results of a national survey of LSP offerings in U.S. higher education conducted during 2011. The survey updates one carried out by Christine Uber-Grosse and Geoffrey M. Voght in 1990. The data provide: (a) a profile of institutions that offer LSP; (b) an overview of the number, type, level, and enrollment in LSP courses;…

In line with situated learning perspectives, this article explores the notion of learners' access to participation in social practices. While agreeing with the premise that access to participation in communities of practice is foundational for learning, we problematize simplistic notions of access by investigating how it is sometimes sought after,…

Adopting a functional perspective that views grammar as a rich resource for making contextualized meanings in a culture- and language-specific way, the article reconsiders the role of explicit grammar instruction in developing communicative abilities of second language learners. It draws on two distinct but complementary research frameworks,…

This article reports on a study exploring the respective contributions of first language (L1) listening comprehension ability and second language (L2) proficiency to L2 listening comprehension ability. The participants were 75 Grade 8 English-speaking students learning French. The students completed tests in French and in English that required…

Treats the "Modern Language Journal" as a site for observing how a particular community, foreign language (FL) teachers, over an 85-year period shaped its practices discursively, gradually developing a particular kind of professional identity. Provides an overview of the way two acknowledged lead disciplines for the teaching of foreign languages…

Describes the history of the Department of Modern Languages at Cornell, with particular emphasis on the role of linguistics in language programs at this university. (AM)

This is the seventeenth in a series of catalogues of documents in the ERIC system that are of interest to teachers and researchers in foreign languages and linguistics. The documents cited in the present list appeared in the monthly ERIC abstract journal "Resources in Education" from January through June, 1976. The list is compiled from all of the…

Provides names of individuals who received some type of doctoral degree in foreign languages in 1979-80. List is arranged by area of specialization and, within that, alphabetically by state and personal name. Includes dissertation title. (MN)

This is the sixteenth in a series of catalogues of documents of interest to teachers and researchers in foreign languages and linguistics that have been processed into the ERIC system. The documents cited in the present list appeared in the monthly ERIC abstract journal "Resources in Education" (RIE) from July through December 1975. The list is…