The authors describe the professional development of L1 and L2 teachers from a comprehensive theoretical perspective that focuses on literacy as a critical social practice, the construction of student/teacher knowledge, and institutional forces that support and/or constrain the academic literacy development of L2 students in the United States. The…

This article surveys some of the conflicts endemic to foreigners teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) in China. Though learning English is very popular in China now and China is one of the most popular destinations for Western EFL teachers, neither the teaching nor learning of English comes without certain clashes in the classroom. These…

In North American university contexts, the language diversity found in English mainstream composition ("L1") classrooms resembles more and more that found in ESL ("L2") writing classrooms. As these two groups become less differentiated, those specifically trained in L2 writing might well wonder whether the needs of the…

Many classroom teachers across the United States feel unprepared to work with students and families who speak limited or no English. Knowing that schools are accountable for the achievement results of these students, teachers increasingly seek help. This article describes a professional development project designed to introduce K-12 teachers to…

Most research on language awareness in a second language (L2) has been carried out with adult learners. This research presents data showing that pedagogical techniques can be devised enabling children as young as 8 to develop metalinguistic awareness of their emerging L2 system. Building on existing work by Canadian researchers, this…

The authors reported findings from 3 studies examining the efficacy of Five Standards pedagogy in raising student achievement. Studies 1 and 2 were randomized designs; Study 3 was a quasi-experimental design. Samples included 53 teachers and 622 predominantly low-income Latino students in Grades 1-4. Studies assessed model fidelity with the…

People have enough trouble defining themselves and determining what they want in life when they operate within a single language and culture, but the job gets trickier when they live in a world of multiple lexicons, grammars, histories, cultures, audiences and social systems, where identity and perceptions vary by language context. This paper…

Beginning teachers, who graduated from a credential program focused on preparing advocates for equity and with attention to teaching English language learners (ELLs), had reported in surveys being well prepared to teach ELLs and promote equity. Focus groups illuminated teachers' reports of ways they advocated for ELLs. Reported classroom acts…

In this study, I used a feminist poststructural perspective to explain how language is a gatekeeper in learning science, in achieving professional honors in teaching science, and in teaching science to English language learners. The various uses of language revealed interesting dynamics related to the culture of power of language and the culture…

Having been adapted by instructors in various disciplines over many years, Aristotle's "topics" have retained their original, heuristic value, inviting students to more deeply consider issues using a communicative pedagogy. In the author's teaching of Advanced Speaking for Academic Purposes, Aristotle's "topics" have been a useful mediating tool…

Knowledge of the strategies used by English as a foreign language (EFL) or second language (ESL) readers can help instructors teach these techniques and thereby enhance their students' reading comprehension. The present study compared three categories of reading comprehension strategies (metacognitive, cognitive, and socio-affective) to determine…

This article seeks to explore how a sociocultural approach to learning can change pedagogy in the teaching of second language literacy. As a first step, the changing notions of first language literacy are acknowledged. Vygotsky's notion of everyday and schooled concepts is then used to understand research data gathered in a Year 9 Japanese…

This article addresses language learner strategy research in the context of second language learning and teaching in the UK. It arises from two sources: firstly, a personal background in research and writing about language learner strategy research in the context of modern foreign language learning and teaching in England and Wales; secondly, a…

We present two case studies of two different pedagogical tasks in a Computer Assisted Language Learning environment called Grim. The main design principle in Grim is to support "Focus on Form" in second language pedagogy. Grim contains several language technology-based features for exploring linguistic forms (static, rule-based and statistical),…

This study introduces a new computer-based methodology, "concgramming", that has as its primary aim the automatic identification of the phraseological profile and hence the "aboutness", of a text or corpus. It is argued that this methodology can be employed by language learners and teachers to raise awareness of the importance of the…