The aims of the present study were to explore the effects of two different types of task conditions (topic choice vs. no choice) on the quality of written production in a second language (lexical complexity, syntactic complexity, and cohesion) and to investigate the effects of these two different task conditions on task motivation. This research…

Anatomy is a foundational component of biological sciences and medical education and is important for a variety of clinical tasks. To augment current curriculum and improve students' spatial knowledge of anatomy, many educators, anatomists, and researchers use three-dimensional (3D) visualization technologies. This article reviews 3D display…

Eight inquiry-based activities, described here in sufficient detail for faculty to adopt in their own courses, were designed to teach students fundamental concepts in heat transfer. The concept areas chosen were (1) factors affecting the rate vs. amount of heat transfer, (2) temperature vs. perceptions of hot and cold, (3) temperature vs. energy…

This article explores Robert Kegan's adult constructive-developmental (ACD) theory. We compare these ideas to the way educators at each of Kegan's meaning-making levels might plan, implement, and assess digitally enhanced teaching activities. Using Drago-Severson's interpretation of Kegan's concepts, the authors propose that behaviors of…

This study explored the usefulness of dual-task methodology, self-ratings, and expert judgments in assessing task-generated cognitive demands as a way to provide validity evidence for manipulations of task complexity. The participants were 96 students and 61 English as a second language (ESL) teachers. The students, 48 English native speakers and…

Studies showed that two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) educational content contributes to learning. Although there were many studies with 3D stereoscopic learning environments, only a few studies reported on the differences between real, 2D, and 3D scenes, as far as cognitive load and attentional demands were concerned. We used…

We examined multimodality (the representation of information in multiple semiotic modes) in the context of international test comparisons. Using Program of International Student Assessment (PISA)-2009 data, we examined the correlation of the difficulty of science items and the complexity of their illustrations. We observed statistically…

This study aims to identify which communication strategies (CSs) are most frequently used by Thai engineering students at Thai-Nichi Institute of Technology (TNI), Thailand and to investigate the relationship between CS use and exposure to oral communication in English. An adapted Metcalfe and Noom-Ura's Oral Communication Strategy Inventory…

The study aims to explore how 18 M.A. TESOL students, who are prospective or experienced ESL/EFL teachers, perceive poetry writing in a second language. A qualitative interview-based design was utilized. Following Iida's (2012a) analytical framework in examining EFL students' perceptions toward writing haiku in English, this current study…

English writing is regarded as the most difficult task by Chinese EFL learners. Due to the existing problems in present college English writing instruction, teachers fail to provide effective guidance in students' writing process and students report a low level of motivation and confidence in writing tasks. Through purposeful reading discussions…

Currently, the educational system in the Solomon Islands faces tremendous challenges, including how to develop student skills and interest in subjects such as mathematics. The attitudes and beliefs of Pacific and non-Pacific students can impact on their mathematics learning and performance. This paper focuses on the educational implications of…

Working with Korean university-level learners of English, this study provides a detailed analytical comparison of 2 task work groups that were video-recorded, with 1 group scoring very high and the other relatively low based on the results of a Group Work Dynamic (GWD) measuring instrument. Adopting a complexity theory (CT) perspective and…

Some metacognitive mental activities were explored on chemical reading activities as specific judgments called metacognitive judgments. A think-aloud protocol was carried out to fifteen chemistry teacher candidates to express their judgments on chemical reading activities for question posing. Two chemical articles were designed to stimulate these…

Translation of medical texts poses several challenges to undergraduate student-translators due to multiple Arabic equivalents to English medical terms. For medical terms such as "clinical," "intensive care," "polyp," and "osteoporosis" several Arabic equivalents exist. A sample of English medical terms with…

The Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy (CCSS-ELA) were adopted by approximately forty states (though in some cases, with significant revisions). However, researchers are still trying to understand how teachers are implementing the CCSS-ELA at the ground level--that is, in actual ELA classrooms. The CCSS-ELA call for…