The high-level conferences that are currently taking place in Rwanda are, for the most part, mediated by interpreters hired from outside the country. One of the main reasons given is that local interpreters have not yet formed a recognised professional body from which clients can easily find and hire them. This paper examines the current state of…

This study investigated the psycholinguistic and child-related variables that modulate vocabulary development and the so-called receptive-expressive gap in child L2 learners of Gaelic with English as their L1. In total, 50 6- to 8-year-old English-Gaelic bilingual children attending Gaelic-medium immersion education were administered the English…

This study utilizes social network analysis to characterize a typology of study abroad sojourner experience, detailing the relationship of social experience types to second language (L2) proficiency growth and study abroad program design. In contrast with previous research, the study performs a quantitative analysis of structural and compositional…

The paper discusses the findings regarding future possible selves based on research with Russian-speaking migrant pupils in English state-funded primary schools at Key Stage 2 (7-11 years old). Its aim is to explain the nature and characteristics of ideal selves of primary-level migrant children. The methodology comprises a qualitative…

This article explores the roles of local volunteers in developing social connectedness among culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) parents seeking to gain English language and cultural confidence in a regional community in Queensland, Australia. Interview data from a case study of nine non-specialist tutor volunteers identified…

Culturally Relevant Pedagogy (CRP) as a teaching framework uses the strengths of ethnically diverse students' funds of knowledge to enhance their academic learning. This framework can potentially increase students' success, but little is known about its use in a virtual setting. Due to the COVID-19 school closure, the first seven months of the…

It has been observed that Turkish university students suffer in L2 writing when they lack background knowledge about the writing topic. Triggered by this observation, this study intended to explore effectiveness of content-schemata activation for scaffolding Turkish students in their challenging L2 writing practices. Study participants, students…

This article discusses a family's plurilingualism from a southern and decolonial lens, looking at the role of language ideologies in its plurilingual practices. It focuses on the concept of space as "kshetra" and its accompanying plurilingual ethos, originating in the Asian origins of the family. The overarching claim is that by holding…

The current study was carried out to examine the effectiveness of the use of direct instruction together with the digital dialogue cards in teaching English introductory phrases and mutual dialogue to students with intellectual disabilities was studied. The study started with four students with mild intellectual disability, however, one student…

The aim of this Afterword is to foreground and discuss some of the key themes emerging from the four studies in this special issue. I first consider the critical ethnographic approach to language policy and planning adopted in the studies, and the attention to language policy processes unfolding on different scales of social and institutional…

In 1988 and 2006, "Applied Linguistics" published Low's and Littlemore and Low's seminal theoretical accounts of second language (L2) metaphoric competence (MC). Meanwhile, attempts to elicit metaphor-related skills/competences have been mixed. Instrumentation has varied in reliability, been limited in scope, and used arguably flawed…

This article offers a brief overview of historical linguistics and explores the value of historical "sign" linguistics. The specific focus of the article is on the question of the extent to which the concept of "sign language families" is a legitimate and useful one. It is suggested that although lateral transmission and…

The study focuses on the assessment of young refugee students, and the role of language and parents therein. Low achievement at tests can stem from lack of knowledge of the content being tested. However, it can also be due to low proficiency in the language of testing. Additionally, poor communication between refugee parents and schools caused by…

Choosing which additional language to include in national curricula and when to begin teaching it are important educational policy decisions. The current study aims to provide a contextually embedded picture of such policymaking process in the Iranian context. More specifically, the study is intended to explain the agency mechanism of different…

The paper focuses on translanguaging practices of highly skilled refugees in a transition program in Dutch higher education. The pathways for refugees to enter higher education are full of obstacles. Acquiring the new language at a university level is one of the biggest challenges. Many institutions offer 'transition programs' to prepare refugees…