The purpose of this article is two-fold: first, to explore the role played by linguistic and cultural factors in the mathematics classroom, particularly in relation to diverse learners; and, second, to provide insight into teaching, learning, and professional development that takes into account current mathematics education reform recommendations.…

Health-care access for immigrants in the United States is often problematic because of language barriers, lack of health insurance, or differing expectations based on divergent medical systems in the U.S. and the immigrants' home countries. Such difficulties are exacerbated when a linguistic-minority population lives in a rural community that has…

This article examines colonial language policies and practices at the government Central School, Hong Kong--the so-called Eton of the East--in the second half of the nineteenth century. The article, which draws on a range of unpublished primary sources, seeks to enhance our knowledge of an important episode in Hong Kong's educational history and,…

This study examines autobiographies of American teachers of French in order to make explicit their beliefs regarding French language and culture. The themes of class and power are prominent in these teachers' belief systems, as is the desire for self-transformation through mastery of French and miming a subset of French behaviors. These notions…

The author offers his observations on how the language learner achieves a full command of a second language in its sociocultural context. (PP)

Detailed sources of information on the various motivations of learners of English help the course planner to develop materials which are directed towards the particular needs of the learners. Studies of language use in Uganda and Jordan are used as examples of source materials for planning language study. (SW)

Discusses second language learning in the context of linguistic and societal needs of the learner. (AM)

Provides historical context for discussions of language planning in postcolonial societies by focusing on policies that have influenced language in three former British colonies. Suggests British colonialism, along with the emergence of America in the 20th century, is the main reason for the global role played by English today and an indispensable…

A young college French professor has won praise for her book about the experience of learning the language. She explores her childhood, education, and socialization as a young adult to tell why and how French became important to her. (MSE)

Looks at Europe-wide experiments on the role of Esperanto in facilitating language learning. (31 references) (Author)

Provides a general overview of two books--"The Second Time Around: Minimalism and Second Language Acquisition" and "Second Language Syntax: A Generative Introduction--and shows how the respond to key issues in second language acquisition, including the process of second language acquisition, access to universal grammar, the role of…

Describes the lack of importance ascribed to English as a language in Elizabethan times and points out that the popularity of any language resides in its perceived cultural and economic capitol. Draws distinctions between instrumental and integrative motivations and discusses the place of favorable attitudes and positive motivations in language…

The theme of this book cuts across disciplines. Contributors to this volume are specialized in education and especially classroom research as well as in linguistics, most being transdisciplinary themselves. Around 65 sub-Saharan languages figure in this volume as research objects: as means of instruction, in connection with teacher training,…

A significant number of community service-learning projects in higher education involve the teaching or tutoring of immigrants in English. As in related service-learning scholarship, these projects are commonly informed by perspectives on cultural difference, social justice, and power relations in U.S. society. Yet while faculty pair their…

In this study of the placement of sentence negation in third language acquisition (L3), we argue that there is a qualitative difference between the acquisition of a true second language (L2) and the subsequent acquisition of an L3. Although there is considerable evidence for L2 influence on vocabulary acquisition in L3, not all researchers believe…