Research on Spanish heritage language (SHL) education has grown exponentially in the last two decades. The most recent nationwide study on SHL programs in US postsecondary institutions was conducted a decade ago. To continue this line of research, the primary aim of this study is to provide an update about the current state of SHL course offerings…

French immersion (FI) programs in Canada have historically served predominantly Canadian-born, English-speaking students and families in their endeavour to learn both of the country's official languages, French and English. However, FI programs are becoming increasingly culturally and linguistically diverse as a result of increased global…

This paper examines evidence for relationships among individual differences (IDs) in L1 achievement, L2 aptitude, and L2 achievement. It begins by providing an overview of my academic journey from L1 educator to L2 researcher and explains the development of the Linguistic Coding Differences Hypothesis (LCDH). Next, I review Peter Skehan's…

With the population of English learners (EL) entering Texas public schools increasing, it is essential to understand how the current school system supports these students. This study investigated the language used in school handbooks as a predictor of English Language Learners' (ELL) academic outcomes in Texas independent school districts. Student…

Researchers have linked vivid mental imagery, particularly of the self in future states, to many desirable motivational outcomes for language learning. We report a preregistered conceptual replication and extension of You, Dörnyei, and Csizér (2016), who found a central motivational role for vision. We review essential considerations in structural…

The present article compares and contrasts linguistic findings from longitudinal studies of low-income Americans derived from evidence of recorded family speech interactions. Hart and Risley (1995) employed research assistants who spent 1 hour per month observing language usage among families from different socioeconomic backgrounds in their homes…

This paper examines the key linguistic arguments underpinning Basil Bernstein's theory of "elaborated" and "restricted" "codes". Building on a review of selected highlights from the collective critical response to Bernstein, the paper attempts to clarify the relationship of the theory to "deficit" views…

This article examines the relationship between spoken language research and ELT practice over the last 20 years. The first part is retrospective. It seeks first to capture the general tenor of recent spoken research findings through illustrative examples. The article then considers the sociocultural issues that arose when the relevance of these…

Using the frameworks of critical discourse analysis, representation theory, and legitimization theory, this study examines the political discourse of the campaign for Proposition 227 in California--particularly, the key social representations of languages, their speakers, and the main political actors in the campaign. The analysis examines the…

The possibility that anxiety interferes with language learning has long interested scholars, language teachers, and language learners themselves. It is intuitive that anxiety would inhibit the learning and/or production of a second language (L2). The important term in the last sentence is "anxiety". The concept of anxiety is itself multi-faceted,…

This paper reports on part of an evaluation of a 2-year program providing preparatory support for 430 Cantonese Chinese-native-speaking students switching from Chinese to English-medium instruction late in their secondary schooling, mainly because of aspiration to English-medium tertiary study. Focusing quantitatively and qualitatively on…

In Canada, education in French as a second language (FSL) offers students the opportunity to learn a second official language. Is such an opportunity appropriate for allophone students who are still in the process of learning English? This literature review provides a fourfold consideration of the issue. Section 1 examines the political response…

Reviews recent research into the qualitative and quantitative aspects of fluency to more clearly define the word as a performance descriptor for oral assessment of foreign language learners and as an indicator of progress in language learning. The concept of fluency is confused and multilayered when used in the assessment of oral performance. (22…

This paper describes an experimental testing program in England which parallels a broader, 1967 study concerning second language acquisition in the United States. The earlier study, conducted by John Carroll, concentrated on determining proficiency of language majors in five foreign languages. This experiment limits the field of study to German…

Examines the effects of aptitude, field independence, attitude, and strategy use upon four areas of language achievement: formal/oral, formal/written, functional/oral, and functional/written. Test results indicated that aptitude and field independence are related, as are strategy use and attitude; only aptitude and strategy use, however, affect…