The objective of the study is to explore the possibilities of pedagogical translanguaging as a strategy to develop critical language awareness among a group of primary school students from the Basque Autonomous Community (Spain). The study is part of a broader ethnographically based research project, which was developed over two school years in…

This study considers, both transversally and longitudinally, advanced second language (L2) learners' profile portraits, how these correlate with their sociolinguistic and linguistic performance, and how changes in these portraits over time connect to changes in sociolinguistic performance. The results show a strong correlation between high degrees…

In examining how English as a second language (ESL) learners process English formulaic expressions in a nonnative English context, this study aims to investigate the strategies that learners use and how first language (L1) culture and conceptual knowledge could influence the use of the strategies. This study is guided by the research question of…

This article explores the beliefs about second language (L2) sociolinguistic competence of four university-level advanced L2 learners. It places particular emphasis on 1) how these university learners conceptualized L2 sociolinguistic competence; 2) how they thought about two different language learning contexts (viz., the L2 classroom versus…

This paper presents a case study of a group of Chinese ESL learners in China, who study English by immersing themselves regularly and rigorously in English television drama. A self-directed learning pedagogy has been developed and discussed, which seems to have signposted an effective and economic way for ESL learners to improve linguistic,…

This article explores the compensatory strategies used by two Indonesian children who experienced first language attrition when acquiring English in the English-speaking environment. They use compensatory strategies to compensate for their lack of competence in first language. They employ both interlingual strategies and discourse strategies when…

The problem: Many previous studies have pointed out that EFL learners tend to face communication breakdowns with native speakers because their traditional classroom and textbooks are not able to provide learners with sufficient pragmatically appropriate input (Bardovi-Harlig, 1996; Rose, 1994, 1997). On the contrary, they are exposed to rich input…

This publication is a legal document that specifies the minimum performance outcomes for student learning within a three-course sequence. These outcomes are defined in terms of the contexts for language learning, the communicative acts that students will engage in and the repertoire needed to carry out these acts. The overarching goal of this…

Reports on three investigations concerning the acquisition of a third language in bilingual immigrant students in Germany and Sweden. The results suggest that immigrant students who always use Swedish at home but have passive knowledge of their first language clearly perform better in English than do Swedish monolingual students. (SL)

Presents research on second language learning strategies, including both those with a general application and those relating to computer assisted language learning (CALL). Findings reveal that the issue of learning strategies looms as an important topic and that a detailed consideration of them in CALL is feasible. (37 references) (Author/CK)

This book defines and reviews five central problems in the study of second language acquisition (SLA): (subconscious) transfer, staged development, cross-learner systematicity, incompleteness, and variability. The central thesis of the text is that linguistic knowledge is an autonomous component of SLA, distinct from the socially determined use of…

Presents a descriptive analysis of speech acts in Arabic: forms of address, apologies, requests, expressions of gratitude, disagreement, greetings, refusals, partings, and telephone etiquette. Results reveal that linguistic formulas of each speech act were determined by social distance, formality of the situation, age, level of education, and…

Presents modules and learning activities taken from other learning areas useful in the Australian second-language classroom. Argues that general and specific subject areas can stimulate dialogue and interest as well as cultural and social awareness, provide new language structures, enrich vocabulary and extend the use of idiomatic expressions, and…

Describes distinctions among three strands of communication in the second-language classroom: cooperative learning, i.e., a particular set of classroom techniques fostering learner interdependence as a route to cognitive and social development; collaborative learning, which views learning as a construction of knowledge within a social context; and…

This book illustrates how children learn foreign languages and when they can do so with the best results. The most recent studies in linguistics, neurology, education, and psychology are evaluated, and the findings are presented in a recipe format. Parents are encouraged to evaluate the multilingual children in their lives with the use of tools…