A great deal of research has recognized the necessity of receiving proper predeparture training for being able to truly benefit from international internship experiences. However, few researchers have taken the next step by exploring how domestic programs could pedagogically and psychologically prepare students for their professional experiences…

This article introduces an empirical study of "Connected Learning" in a Japanese EFL classroom context, instantiated through the Bridging Activities pedagogical framework. Students considered their interests, made groups, and joined Reddit communities. Self-selected texts were then analyzed with rigorous teacher mediation. Students…

Building on recent efforts to bridge transformative learning and world language education (Clifford & Reisinger, 2019; Johnson, 2015; Randolph & Johnson, 2017), this article explores how perspective-shifting can be fostered among L2 learners through critical reflection tasks staged across collegiate language curricula. A range of…

Language teaching has long been associated with teaching in a country or countries where a target language is spoken, but this approach is inadequate. In the contemporary world, language teaching has a responsibility to prepare learners for interaction with people of other cultural backgrounds, teaching them skills and attitudes as well as…

Language textbooks present cultural content in a typically homogeneous fashion, thereby ignoring inherent diversity both within and between cultures and reinforcing monodimensional views. Consequently, instructors must find ways to facilitate students' critical engagement with and reflection on cultural representations in order to provide them…

While study abroad homestays are often credited with providing opportunities for language and cultural learning, at times they can be characterized by communicative, cross-cultural, or interpersonal discord. In documenting these conflicts and their consequences, research to date has relied largely on students' self-reports, often focusing on their…

Following appraisal theory (Martin & White, 2005), which examines the linguistic resources through which texts/speakers express, negotiate, and naturalize particular intersubjective or ideological positions (White, 2015), this study addresses (1) the extent to which second language (L2) learners express their attitudes toward their own and the…

The study involved 16 American undergraduate students who used weekly blogs and conducted ethnographic interviews with native speakers to develop their intercultural competence over the course of one semester abroad. Selected blog entries, post-surveys, and final interviews were collected and analyzed to report the findings. The results show that…

Analyzes interview data with 24 host families of home stay students in study abroad situations to determine salient, recurring topics. Discusses the study design and major themes that emerged. Concludes with hosts' recommendations on how students, programs, and the native families themselves can work together to enhance the homestay experience.…

The stereotype has it that native French Speakers are annoyed by foreign Speakers' errors in pronunciation. The purpose of this pilot study was to assess beliefs about the importance of accurate pronunciation in French held by three afferent groups: (1) 73 second- and third-semester students of French at a large midwestern research university in…

Findings from a study of the experiences of four American students studying in France challenge many common beliefs about the overseas educational experience, and raise questions that hold implications for both study abroad programs and foreign language classrooms. (Author/VWL)

Suggests that oral skills classes provide the ideal forum in which to address discourse issues, and that target-language discourse norms, particularly as they relate to another cultural belief system, must be taught explicitly. (Author/VWL)

Investigates university students' expectations of foreign language teachers cross-culturally. Japanese, American, and Chinese college students chose five important qualities in a teacher from a list. Results indicate that students of all groups placed importance on some qualities, and that Japanese and Chinese students had some similar…

Investigated the process of stereotyping in the representation of the content of narrative texts through visual reformulations. Subjects were Argentine college students enrolled in an English course at a university in Argentina. Reveals students' inability to transcend heir cultural biases and points to an urgent need to address stereotypes in the…

This self-instructional unit concerns eating customs in Germany, aimed at the second-year high school student. The general goals are: to enable one to eat a meal in Germany properly and to develop appreciation for different customs. Self-quizzes are included, and activities and materials for a German meal are suggested. (CHK)