Chapter 3: This study investigated the effects of a new, Spanish two-way immersion program on first through third grade students' English and Spanish proficiency. All students were from an urban, high-poverty community in the Midwest that is English dominant, in a predominantly Anglo state. English-speakers in the two-way immersion program score…

This qualitative study sought to uncover the contextual factors of the schooling process that affect the enrollment of gifted Spanish speaking English Learners (ELs) in Advanced Placement (AP) courses. In addition, this study investigated the perceptions of gifted Spanish speaking ELs toward AP courses and how these perceptions might affect their…

Webquests have been used for some time to research a variety of topics. According to Lacina (2007), a webquest is an inquiry-based technology activity designed by Bernie Dodge and Tom March in which information is usually drawn from the Internet, and is a powerful instructional exercise both for teachers and students.Webquests enhance personal and…

Considerations for college-based programming for transition-age students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are addressed in this article, with particular attention to social communication supports necessary to facilitate student success. An overview of current literature related to college-based programming and support for students with ASD in…

We piloted a 2-week "Autism-1-2-3" early intervention for children with autism and their parents immediately after diagnosis that targeted at (1) eye contact, (2) gesture and (3) vocalization/words. Seventeen children were randomized into the Intervention (n = 9) and Control (n = 8) groups. Outcome measures included the Autism Diagnostic…

In this article, we draw from cultural historical theory to examine the assimilationist forces embodied by English as a Second Language (ESOL) identification and programming practices in and outside of Georgia. We argue that the categorization of Spanish-speaking schoolchildren as Limited English Proficient is an extension of historical…

Decontextualized conversational talk has been recognized as an important foundation for young children's early literacy and academic success. In this study, the authors explore the tape-recorded conversations of 15 typically developing preschool-age children. The children's talk was recorded as they traveled home from preschool on a school bus…

The purpose of this study was to examine career conversations between teachers and students in competence-based vocational education in the Netherlands. A total of 32 career conversations were observed and analysed with respect to four elements: content, teacher activities, student activities and relationship. Results showed that career…

This study examines the language experiences of two distinct Chinese immigrant groups in the U.S.: a Mandarin-speaking group and a Fujianese-speaking group across two generations. The different language trajectories of the parents' generation, along with their social class and different settlement patterns in the U.S., shaped the second-generation…

Why are students silent? Using written reflections and interviews, Mary M. Reda examines students' perceptions of speaking and being silent in a first-year composition classroom, and explores how their teachers, classroom relationships, and their own sense of identity shape their decisions to speak or be silent. By challenging many firmly held…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine whether the underlying temperamental structure of the Dutch Children's Behavior Questionnaire (CBQ; B. Van den Bergh & M. Ackx, 2003) was identical for children who stutter (CWS), typically developing children (TDC), and children with vocal nodules (CWVN). Method: A principal axis factor…

In China many non-English majors, who often score high on English exams that emphasize reading comprehension and grammar, have difficulty finding the English words they need to express their ideas in speaking and writing. This problem is not unusual, and it is often difficult for students to use their receptive reading and listening vocabulary for…

This article reports on an experimental investigation of knowledge of distributivity in nonnative (L2) Japanese learners whose first language (L1) is English or Korean. The availability of distributive scope in Japanese is modulated by word order and the semantic features of quantifiers. For English-speaking learners, these subtle interpretive…

This paper investigates ESL learners' awareness of pragmatic skills utilizing an activity-theory driven approach to perform an inquiry task into problem-solving service call conversations (PSSCs) between native speakers (NS) and non-native speakers of English (NNSs). Eight high-intermediate ESL learners, from five different language backgrounds,…

Using computers to recognize and analyze human speech goes back at least to the 1970's. Developed initially to help the hearing or speech impaired, speech recognition was also used early on experimentally in language learning. Since the 1990's, advances in the scientific understanding of speech as well as significant enhancements in software and…