This two-phased study explored a corpus-driven, curriculum-based approach to assessing proficiency development of Mandarin Chinese in US universities. In Phase I, we developed an elicited imitation (EI) test based on the Chinese curriculum at a large US university. This test demonstrated higher psychometric qualities to (1) place L2 learners into…

Macaro has stated that the choice between a monolingual, immersive, target language-only pedagogy versus a non-immersive, multilingual pedagogy is 'probably the most fundamental question facing second language acquisition (SLA) researchers, language teachers, and policymakers'. Recognizing that prior empirical work on monolingual versus…

This article is the first large-scale study to document the speaking proficiency outcomes of intensive programs in less commonly taught languages in US higher education. Speaking proficiency was measured by pre- and postprogram ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interviews (N = 484) in 14 languages: Arabic, Bengali, Brazilian Portuguese, Hindi, Indonesian,…

Students at the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) are required to study a foreign language. In order to place students into appropriate language courses, especially less commonly taught languages defined by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL), effective language placement policies are essential. The author…

In this article we present an interactive extensible software, "The 7 Keys of the Dragon," for the teaching/learning of Albanian and Russian to students that attend primary and secondary education in Greece with the respective languages as their heritage languages. We address the key challenges we encountered during the conceptualization…

Speech pathology assessment within cross-cultural contexts, where the assessor and client differ in their cultural backgrounds, can create many challenges for assessment usage and implementation. With Australia being home to people from many cultures, this is a particular challenge for speech pathologists working in this country. This paper…

In an attempt to test the generalizability of the role and contributions of interactional feedback in second language acquisition, this study examines the issue in the context of learning Korean as a less-commonly-taught foreign language at the post-secondary level. Further, it looks into the explicitness of feedback as a factor in foreign…

Despite the importance of having a reliable and valid measure of Second Language (L2) proficiency, L2 researchers of less commonly taught languages rarely have such a tool. Existing proficiency measures (e.g., DLPT, OPI) are often costly, labor-intensive, time-consuming, or unavailable to the public. With the intent to provide a practical and…

This paper analyses how two multicompetent speakers engage with protocolling, i.e. verbalising their thoughts, while writing in two languages different from their first. The study explores how procedure- and language-related episodes of awareness affect both the writing process itself and the written product. The research draws on current issues…

Although the foreign-language profession routinely stresses the importance of technology for the curriculum, many teachers still harbor deep-seated doubts as to whether or not a hybrid course, much less a completely distance-learning class, could provide L2 learners with a way to reach linguistic proficiency, especially with respect to oral…

This article presents the goals, design, and pilot-testing results of a new oral interview procedure for eliciting a representative sample of spontaneous Japanese language abilities from children aged 5 through 10. Pilot results show that the procedure elicits a language sample that is superior in quality and quantity to other existing Japanese…

A model of testing is described in which tests become sources of meaningful information about the improvement of foreign language learning. The model has been implemented by 10 schools teaching Hebrew as a foreign language in the United States and Canada. The model's background and rationale are described, along with its components, processes,…

Persian language instructors at U.S. universities were surveyed regarding (1) their methods for measuring Persian language proficiency among American undergraduate students, (2) research verifying the validity and reliability of these methods, and (3) their definitions of Persian language proficiency. A 12-item questionnaire was completed by 17…

Study looks at whether Spanish-speaking learners of Brazilian Portuguese as a foreign language demonstrates advantage or disadvantage in acquisition of semi-open vowels e and o. To research the question, eight students enrolled in first-year Portuguese were given a listening discrimination test composed of 18 minimal pairs to determine the extent…