Virtual reality (VR) has been found to be effective for increasing student motivation and engagement (Parong & Mayer, 2018), experiential learning (Hu-Au & Lee, 2018), and even improving spatial memory (Pollard et al., 2020). However, few studies have moved beyond the novelty of single-lesson VR experiences, nor have they used VR as the…

Aural vocabulary knowledge (AVK) of high-frequency words is critical for second language listening comprehension. However, learners of English as a foreign language (EFL), despite considerable periods of language study, often do not have the AVK needed for basic communicative competence. A mixed methods approach is applied to determine whether…

This study explores college EFL learners' construction of identity through the analysis of their pragmatic choices in digital stories, in which they narrated their relationship with another person they had helped in the past. More specifically, such choices were examined following Relational Dialectics Theory in learners' enactments of…

Employing a CA-inspired methodological approach, this study investigates L2 learners' interactional competence for dyadic interaction via text chat. Fifty-three dyads of Japanese learners of English at three proficiency levels (high, mid, and low) participated in this study, where they worked on three discussion tasks in L2 English. The data were…

In response to calls for improving the quality of DCTs as data-gathering instruments, this study investigates the effectiveness of technology-enhanced discourse completion tasks (TE-DCTs) as a method for eliciting nonverbal speaker data. We used a mobile application to administer four TE-DCTs to native speakers (L1) and intermediate and advanced…

This study investigated the effects of different types of captions on English as a Foreign Language Learners' (EFL) vocabulary learning and comprehension. Eighty students in a Chinese university participated. Students were divided into four groups with two classes of freshmen, one class of juniors, and one class of graduate students. Each group…

Massively multiplayer online role-playing games like World of Warcraft are ideally suited to encourage and facilitate second language development (SLD) in the extramural setting, but to what extent do the language learners' actual trajectories of gameplay contribute to SLD? With the current propensity to focus research in digital game-based…

The effective use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) can have positive effects on the development of learners' English abilities. To what degree it is effective is partly determined by learners' characteristics in ICT use. However, these characteristics have not yet been sufficiently discussed in Japan. This study, then, explored…

In this paper, we attempt to investigate the pedagogical value of visual social media platforms, specifically Instagram, for the development of the online social presence of language classes. Students in intermediate university-level French and Italian classes used Instagram for a six-week period to reply to a series of questions prompted by the…

The purpose of the present study was to determine whether integrating online audiovisual materials into the listening instruction of L2 French learners would have a measurable impact on their listening comprehension development. Students from two intact sections of second-semester French were tested on their listening comprehension before and…

The use of video games as a learning tool, in particular massively multiplayer online games (MMOGs), continues to grow, as does the research in this field of study; research to date has revealed benefits to the language learner as well as hindrances and research gaps (Godwin-Jones, 2014). This study examines participant perspectives on group…

There are a number of methodological practices commonly employed by CALL researchers that limit progress in the field. Some of these practices are particular to replication research, but most are more general and are found throughout the field. I describe in this paper two studies that are fabricated but that resemble much of what is found in…

This study explores the potential contribution of Eggins and Slade's (2004) Speech Functions as tools for describing learners' participation patterns in Synchronous Computer-Mediated Communication (SCMC). Our analysis focuses on the relationship between learners' self-efficacy (i.e. personal judgments of second language performance capabilities)…

This study reports on the rehybridization of three beginning-level Spanish courses and the effect of the new redesigned courses on student learning and on self-reported levels of anxiety. The data collected included pretests and posttests of listening comprehension, linguistic knowledge, and foreign language anxiety, as well as qualitative data on…

Initiated in response to informal reports of vocabulary gains from gamers at universities in New Zealand and the Netherlands, this qualitative study explored how English language learners autonomously learn vocabulary while playing massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs). Using research processes inherent in Grounded Theory, data…