In response to a growing demand for highly proficient speakers of foreign languages, both from private and government sectors, an added emphasis has been placed on immersion-type programs that offer extensive contact time in a target language. Although time in a target language certainly plays a valuable and needed role, this research demonstrates…

Although many second language learners still study in a traditional, face-to-face classroom, an increasing number of students now participate in virtual classrooms and communicate online. Regardless of the mode of communication, interaction and focus on form can be considered important components of the learning environment. This paper reports on…

In light of a recent revelation that Gersten (1985) included erroneous information on one of two programs for English Language Learners (ELLs), the authors re-calculate results of their earlier meta-analysis of program effectiveness studies for ELLs in which Gersten's studies had behaved as outliers (Rolstad, Mahoney & Glass, 2005). The correction…

This paper describes the first prototype of an automated tool for detecting collocation errors in texts written by non-native speakers of English. Candidate strings are extracted by pattern matching over POS-tagged text. Since learner texts often contain spelling and morphological errors, the tool attempts to automatically correct them in order to…

The paper evaluates and synthesizes research on the question of how error correction affects learners' ability to write accurately, combining qualitative analysis of the relevant studies with quantitative meta-analysis of their findings. The conclusions are that, based on existing research: (a) the best estimate is that correction has a small…

This quasi-experimental study attempts to incorporate grammatical elements into meaning-focused reading classes by attracting learner attention to form with minimal interruption to meaning comprehension. Two hundred fifty-nine Korean English as a foreign language students underwent four different treatments--involving textual enhancement and topic…

A fair amount of descriptive research in the field of second language acquisition has looked at the presence of what have been labeled corrective recasts. This research has relied on the methodological practice of coding to identify particular turns as "corrective recasts." Often, the coding criteria make use of the notion of the maintenance of…

This article provides an overview of research that has investigated the effectiveness of written corrective feedback (WCF) on ESL student writing. In doing so, it highlights a number of shortcomings in the design of some studies and explains what needs to be done in future research so that answers to the issues that have been raised can be…

The research reported in the study was undertaken to measure English language teachers' ability to interpret second language learners' intended meanings in idiosyncratic utterances in written English. In doing so, it also aimed at verifying Corder's (1981) speculation that language teachers can correctly guess the intended meanings of learners in…

Incidental focus on form is one of several ways to direct language learners' attention to formal aspects of language within meaningful communicative contexts. Learners can benefit from focus on form, but the extent to which incidental focus on form, or any other type, is available to learners in advanced foreign language literature classes has not…

Building on Sheen's (2007) study of the effects of written corrective feedback (CF) on the acquisition of English articles, this article investigated whether direct focused CF, direct unfocused CF and writing practice alone produced differential effects on the accurate use of grammatical forms by adult ESL learners. Using six intact adult ESL…

This response to Azar (this volume) intends to discuss from an academic's perspective the main points raised in her paper (i.e., grammar-based instruction and its relation to focus on form and error correction) and, to encourage a more concept-based approach to grammar instruction (CBT). A CBT approach to language development argues that the…

Correction and repair as components of an instructional practice that facilitates learning have figured prominently in research on classroom-based second and foreign language learning. Recent studies incorporating a conversation analytic (CA) perspective on second language acquisition (SLA) have also focused on repair and correction. From a CA…

The present study examines Japanese language learners' perception of corrective feedback (CF) in pair work in relation to their noticing and understanding of their partners' CF and the factors that influence it. This study focuses on three learners, who worked together in pair work. The data collection methods consist of classroom observation,…

Introduces this special issue of the journal, which focuses on an important aspect of learner language--linguistic errors. Each of the nine articles are highlighted. (Author/VWL)