This study aimed at examining the possible effects of teacher motivational practices and student demotivation on the way Iranian English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners produce request and refusal speech acts. Subsequently, four instruments were selected and administered to the participants under scrutiny. They were: (a) a Quick Placement…

The assessments designed for and analyzed in this study used a task-based language design template rooted in theories of language reflecting heteroglossic language practices and funds of knowledge learning theories, which were understood as transforming classroom teaching, learning, and assessment through continua of biliteracy lenses. Using a…

The purpose of this study was to investigate and compare the impact of task-based instruction (TBI) and traditional instruction (TI) on the motivation and vocabulary development in secondary language education. The focus of the study was to also find out the perceptions of teachers about implementing these two instructional methods in their…

This paper introduces a Dialog-Based Computer Assisted second-Language Learning (DB-CALL) system using task-oriented dialogue processing technology. The system promotes dialogue with a second-language learner for a specific task, such as purchasing tour tickets, ordering food, passing through immigration, etc. The dialog system plays a role of a…

The current research was an attempt to explore the washback impact of task-based instruction (TBI) on EFL Iranian learners' vocabulary development. To this end, conducting an Oxford Placement Test (OPT), 30 out of 72 EFL Iranian learners studying in an English language institute, were randomly selected. Then, they were assigned to experimental (N…

This study investigated the effect of speech and thought presentation on the comprehension and appreciation of English prose fiction by Turkish students. A total of 42 students from the English Language Teaching Department of Çukurova University participated and submitted a questionnaire about their reading habits and self-image in terms of being…

The development of collocational knowledge is important for foreign language learners; unfortunately, learners often have difficulties producing proper collocations in the target language. Among the various ways of collocation learning, the DDL (data-driven learning) approach encourages the independent learning of collocations and allows learners…

In view of ongoing debates about the future of task-based language teaching (TBLT) in contexts of English as a foreign language (EFL), we present a detailed case study of teacher beliefs and practices regarding TBLT conducted in a secondary school in mainland China with a long history of communicative and task-based teaching approaches. We used a…

This paper reports an action-research study on language learning strategies in tertiary education at a Colombian university. The study aimed at improving the English language performance and language learning strategies use of 33 first-year pre-service language teachers by combining elements from two models: the cognitive academic language…

There is an increasing need for quality assurance in higher education, given the changes taking place around the world (Biggs & Tang, 2011). Yet another challenge for educators is to find ways to address this in a systematic way. This study presents a systematic endeavor towards this aim in an English language teaching (ELT) department in a…

This paper reports the results of a group intervention based on strategies derived from the systemic therapy model--brief strategic therapy. These strategies aimed at decreasing the anxiety levels commonly found in oral performance tasks related to L2 learning. Thirteen students from different semesters who belonged to two foreign language…

While learners of a second language (L2) are increasingly interacting in small groups as part of a communicative methodological paradigm, very few studies have investigated the social dynamics that occur in such groups. The aim of this study is to introduce a group work dynamic measuring instrument and to investigate the relationship between group…

A question commonly raised by teachers is the extent to which task-based language teaching (TBLT) is suitable for young beginners, but to date, very little research has examined how TBLT can be implemented with complete beginners. The purpose of this article is to document my attempt to introduce a task-based approach in order to see if such an…

It is a fact that each individual is unique. This uniqueness can be physical, emotional, intellectual and/or spiritual. It follows then that in any given learning environment each learner has unique abilities and needs. Consequently, classrooms everywhere, even if they are streamed, are of a mixed-ability nature. Having recognised this factor in…

Johns reports in his text "Kibbitzing one-to-ones" (1997) that corpus-informed metatalk with a foreign language expert helps apprentice writers to make progress in independent text revision. Expecting this progress to be based on the development of expert-like ways to observe language features, I integrated Johns' so-called kibbitzing…