Due to the importance of metaphorical capacity for L2 learners, metaphor instruction is increasingly considered a crucial part of language education. To contribute to the still growing literature, the current study reports a project of teaching Chinese animal metaphors to learners of Mandarin as a foreign language, following the framework of…

In this study, the effects of the conceptual metaphor theory (CMT) on the teaching of orientation idioms was investigated. The study was designed as an action research project and was conducted with 45 B2 level students from 21 countries who were native speakers of 10 different languages. The students were learning Turkish to pursue the…

As L2 (foreign and second language) instructors and materials designers are faced with online and distance learning mandates, new perspectives on how to use familiar, everyday technologies that learners can access from home like social media are welcome. Imagining these new uses, however, may require going beyond the traditional computer-assisted…

Research on incidental focus on form (FonF) has established associations among the nature of learner error, corrective feedback (CF), and effectiveness of CF measured through uptake. In this line of research, the analysis of learner error has been limited to errors with grammar, pronunciation, vocabulary, and spelling (nonformulaic). Consequently,…

This study investigated comprehension of indirect meaning among learners of L2 Spanish via an original computer-delivered multimedia listening test. The comprehension of implied speaker intention is a type of indirect communication that involves the ability to understand implied intention by using linguistic knowledge, contextual cues, and the…

Contemporary best practices in the profession encourage teaching as much as possible in the target language, but when university faculty were observed teaching Spanish, the majority spoke English during instruction and many engaged in frequent code switching (alternations) between English and Spanish. Findings indicate that instructors used…

Foreign language teachers need a reservoir of techniques designed to dispel misconceptions students may have about poetry and to lead them step-by-step into its study. This article presents learning experiences of such a nature and illustrations for teachers to help them devise activities. (Author/SW)

A discussion of six techniques whereby the abstract nature of foreign language poetry may be communicated to students. These are introduction to the genre, understanding and appreciating poetry, the poet and his/her milieu, reading for expression and vocabulary and in context, and analysis for theme, content, and structure. (Author/AMH)