This dissertation delves into second language acquisition, sociophonetic variation, and speech perception, investigating how prior linguistic experiences and exposure to regional variations in a second language influence the decoding of dialectal linguistic cues. It aims to enhance the understanding of words pronounced with different phones and…

Perception of second language (L2) speakers and their speech is known to be influenced both by phonetic and by sociolinguistic factors. The existing body of scholarly research on L2 speech perception, however, is overwhelmingly focused on Indo-European languages, raising doubts about the generalizability of existing sociolinguistic, phonetic,…

This sequential explanatory mixed-methods study provides a radical transformative framing of the power language dynamic in K-6 classrooms in the U.S. The quantitative phase of the study determined the relationship between teachers' self-efficacy and the use of linguistically responsive techniques in the classroom. The study's qualitative phase…

As there is a growing population of non-native speakers worldwide, facilitating communication involving native and non-native speakers has become increasingly important. While one way to help communication involving native and non-native speakers is to help non-native speakers improve proficiency in their target language, another way is to help…

In the current globalized world, English is an international language that makes it possible for people from different language backgrounds to communicate with each other. In this situation, English users in EIL (English as an international language) should be able to comprehend various accents spoken by English speakers from all over the world.…

International schools, which are often rich with linguistic diversity, typically promote that proficiency in an accepted standard variety of English is the desired and favored outcome for students (Hayden & Thompson, 2016; Spiers, 2016). These schools, in part due to the teachers they employ, could be characterized as systems that promote…

Until recently, second language writers were typically separated from their peers in mainstream composition courses. However, as the field considers the possibility of integrating second language writers into mainstream composition classrooms, important questions arise. For instance, how are teachers of First Year Composition (FYC) prepared for…

Although a number of studies have been conducted to explore how various individual difference (ID) factors such as aptitude, motivation, and anxiety contributing to L2 learners' speech performance over a period of time of L2 learning, only a few examined the effect of the three ID factors on learners' L2 speech performances based on classroom…

This dissertation examines how L2 Japanese speaker international students experience their subjectivity (Harre & Gillett, 1994), that is, how their language use and actions convey their thoughts and feelings, their sense of self, and how they relate to the world around them, in casual conversations with L1 Japanese speaker peers. In order to…

Given the increasing number of multilingual learners enrolled in U.S. secondary schools and persistent disparities in access to quality STEM education for these students, teacher education programs must prepare secondary science teachers capable of teaching multilingual learners in equitable ways. There is a consensus in science education…

This dissertation investigates a typologically rare linguistic phenomenon found in Irish from three different perspectives: how it challenges phonological theory, how it is used by contemporary speakers, and how its written representation affects its acquisition. Initial consonant mutation (ICM), as it appears in the Celtic languages, is known to…

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore the phonological development of Spanish-speaking preschoolers who are acquiring African American English (AAE) in North Carolina (NC). Understanding the phonological structure of the Spanish-AAE language combination will improve diagnostic accuracy for this group of children. Method: Four Black…

The shift from teacher-centered to student-centered instruction requires language teachers' role to change from being lecturers and controllers to facilitators and advisors. This shift requires students to have a high degree of learner autonomy. However, some teachers hesitate to promote learner autonomy. If they remain uncertain about the…

The study abroad (SA) experience is often viewed as an opportunity to gain proficiency in a foreign language due to immersion in the target language and culture. Nevertheless, the increased amount of research conducted on SA over the last two decades indicates that it does not necessarily lead to gains in all areas (Collentine & Freed, 2004;…

Second language (L2) phonological acquisition involves learning novel target-language sounds, variable forms of sounds that arise in different phonological contexts, and any phonotactic constraints that govern their appearance. Interlanguage (IL) grammars must adapt to represent sounds and constraints that are novel to the native language (L1)…