This article draws on an approach that conceptualizes L2 learning difficulty in terms of implicit and explicit knowledge. In a study with first language Mexican Spanish university-level learners (n = 30), their teachers (n = 11), and applied linguistics experts (n = 3), we investigated the relationship between (a) these groups' difficulty…

The aim of this paper is to determine whether all languages in the linguistic repertoire of a multilingual speaker manifest cross-linguistic influence (CLI) and establish the directions of CLI on the basis of chosen vowels from the linguistic repertoire of two groups: the Bilingual group (L1 Polish/L2 Danish) and the Multilingual group (L1…

This study examines the interactions between three vocalic subsystems of multilingual speakers and explores the role language status might play in explaining variability across them. Eight 14-year-olds raised in Germany, who had learnt English at school for 6 years and Polish for 1 year, participated in the study. They were divided into three…

This study aims to investigate (i) the Patani Malay (PM) and Southern Thai (ST) learners' knowledge of English collocations, (ii) the learning strategies employed by the two groups with different levels of English proficiency and (iii) the impact of their learning strategies on their test performance. Thirty-nine student participants from each…

The study investigated the effects of recasts and prompts on learning language forms that arose incidentally in dyadic interaction, focusing on the degree of explicitness of each type of feedback and learner proficiency levels. The data were collected from 64 beginning and upper-intermediate English learners of Korean. Thirty-one beginning…

The role of prosodic information in sentence processing is not usually addressed in second language (L2) instruction, and neurocognitive studies on prosody-syntax interactions are rare. Here we compare event-related potentials (ERP) of Chinese and German learners of English L2 to those of native English speakers and show how first language (L1)…

Experts in the field have advocated for critical approaches to Spanish heritage language (HL) curricula in which learners' proficiency in the language varieties that they bring from their homes and communities is considered an asset and culturally valuable knowledge. The proposal described here focuses on the adoption of a programmatic…

This article examines the role of translanguaging practices and pedagogies in two-way dual language classrooms. Much of the recent expansion of dual language programs across the US has occurred in mid-sized cities and rural communities where English monolingualism is the norm; however, the extant literature on flexible language practices in…

Many successful piloted programs fail when scaled up to a national level. In Kenya, which has a long history of particularly ineffective implementation after successful pilot programs, the Tusome national literacy program--which receives funding from the United States Agency for International Development--is a national-level scale-up of previous…

Phonological decoding, defined here as converting the written forms of words (or letter strings) into the phonological forms they represent, has been argued to play an important role in various aspects of L2 learning. Previous studies have emphasised the importance of transfer in L2 decoding, interpretable as the automatic triggering of L1-based…

Teaching technical vocabulary in ESP context is a vital part of English language teaching at a university level. EFL teachers almost use traditional techniques for teaching new medical vocabulary. This study aimed at examining the impact of teaching medical vocabulary through collocations on vocabulary learning of medical students. This…

French has played a central role in Congolese education since its independence in 1960. Its dominant position at the postcolonial school is subject to controversy on the national and international level. However, the way that pupils themselves have experienced the role of French at school has not been researched so far. This paper investigates the…

This study investigates the relative impact of verbal expression and tone of voice when native speakers of English form an impression of non-native speech. Four expressions of inquiry uttered in two tones by non-native speakers were judged by native listeners and analyzed using an ordinal Probit model. Plain expressions received lower scores than…

This study examines heritage speakers' knowledge of Standard Arabic (SA) and compares their patterns of SA acquisition to those of learners of SA as second/foreign language (L2). In addition, the study examines the influence of previously acquired language varieties, including Colloquial Arabic (QA), on SA acquisition. To this end, the study…

The current study builds on previous scholarship that examines the everyday language and literacy practices of linguistically diverse communities as resources for teaching and learning. It argues that only by valuing non-dominant linguistic practices in academic contexts will educators achieve equitable pedagogies that incorporate students' range…