According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, a parody is "a literary or musical work in which the style of an author or work is closely imitated for comic effect or in ridicule." A parody is a respectful yet critical satire, takeoff, or spoof of an original. In literature, a parody is when a person imitates an author's style or work to ridicule or…

In this review, we investigated game design features that promote engagement and learning in game-based learning (GBL) settings. The aim was to address the lack of empirical evidence on the impact of game design on learning outcomes, identify how the design of game-based activities may affect learning and engagement, and develop a set of general…

This paper describes two innovative experiences with ICT in teacher training by means of the development of two blogs about children's and young adults' literature. The study of both activities shows the usefulness of blogs in higher education and their contribution to the linguistic and literary training of future teachers. The results show that…

How are English texts selected to teach students from culturally diverse backgrounds in Australia and England? The English curricula in both countries aim for students to read and interpret meanings through texts, while learning about their culture, and that of cultural others. However, the current list of prescribed texts in both curricula are…

This study explored whether a month-long instructional intervention in affective evaluation can help struggling high school readers to engage in literary interpretation in ways similar to expert readers' practices. We compared pre- and post-intervention think-aloud protocols from five high school students as they read a literary short story with…

The purpose of this study was to examine the intersection between and among creativity, cognition, composition, and community. Researchers studied hundreds of adult students from several California community colleges and private universities by means of surveys, observations, and interviews to augment an extensive historical literature review.…

Study abroad is an under-researched domain of language learning. Moreover, most investigations of this phenomenon adopt traditional structuralist approaches, wherein outcomes of study abroad are assessed solely in terms of proficiency gains as measured through conventional exams. The present study builds upon an emerging body of poststructuralist…

The genre of educational adventure games is a common and successful choice in game-based learning. The games combine captivating narratives that motivate players to continue playing with game mechanics that are conductive to learning: the gameplay is slow-paced, allowing players to learn at their own pace, and focused on puzzles that can be…

Ability to write focused expository essays in English is the key to academic success for students in an English-medium education system, but such writing can be a challenge for students for whom English is a Second Language. Focusing writing lessons on improving topic content and grammatical accuracy does not always achieve the expected results.…

Accelerated Reader (AR) is a powerful tool that motivates students of all ages and abilities to read for pleasure. A wealth of data is routinely collected about children's reading skills to monitor and help manage their independent reading. However, no information is collected on the "softer" reading outcomes, such as reading enjoyment…

In the Winter 2013 edition of the "Texas Journal of Literacy Education," we announced that a special task force from the TALE board would be sharing the common ground among the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS), Common Core State Standards (CCSS), and the College and Career Readiness Standards (CCRS). In that first edition, we…

Most principles and propositions in the science of reading are derived from research on Latin orthographies, usually, in English while much less is known about Semitic orthographies, namely, Arabic. This study investigated the effect of vowels and type of genre on oral accuracy, oral rate, and oral comprehension in reading Arabic orthography. A…

Throughout the history, translation has played an important role in conveying thoughts and knowledge from one nation to other nations. Apart from this importance, the act of translating is not simply changing a message from the source language into the target one; translation is an act of problem-solving. Sometimes it is difficult to solve…

This exploratory study results from interviews with five high school English teachers regarding their writing instruction. The researcher sought to answer these questions: (1) How had the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program's (TCAP) Writing Assessment affected their teaching as gauged by the teachers' statements regarding the assessment,…

This study examines how changes in a key scientific genre supported anthropology's early twentieth-century bid for scientific status. Combining spatial theories of genre with inflections from the register of economics, I develop the concept of "rhetorical scarcity" to characterize this genre change not as evolution but as manipulation that…