The foreign and second language (L2) learning process is shaped by a constellation of individual difference (ID) factors, some of which (e.g., age, anxiety, motivation, aptitude, learning styles, language learning strategies) have long been investigated by specialists, whereas others have only recently attracted their attention. One of such…

Due to the pivotal role that interaction plays in SLA, the issue of willingness to communicate has drawn considerable attention among researchers in the field. Nonetheless, literature on WTC has been primarily theoretical; little has been done to find practical solutions to the problem that could actually help ESL practitioners in their daily…

In second or foreign language learning, attitudinal factors were one of the key factors that determine language success and achievement. In Indonesia, foreign language (English) has been taught since elementary school, however research showed most Indonesian language learners in English showed unsatisfactorily result. This research aimed at…

This study proposed an innovative automated approach to differentiation of the vocabulary proficiency of Chinese speakers. A robust K-means algorithm was designed to compare the oral proficiency between L1 and L2 Chinese speakers regarding lexical richness and how relatively effective the various lexical measures were in performing the…

Using data from the Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education (WNS), this study examined the college experiences and cognitive outcomes of non-native English speaking (NNES) students. After an extensive control of precollege and college level influences, results indicate that NNES students had a lower level of participation in collaborative…

The purpose of the article is to put forward English monologue production assessment criteria to verify the efficiency of the devised methodology of teaching English for future mechanical engineers. In the course of the research, theoretical, empirical, and statistical methods have been used. Various approaches to identifying the assessment…

The aim of the study is to determine the opinions of English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers about the objective, content, teaching and learning process, and assessment and evaluation elements of the secondary school English language curriculum implemented in Turkey. The study adopted the case study design, one of the qualitative research…

Sleep right after studying new material is more conducive to memory than a period of wakefulness. Another way to counteract forgetting is to practice retrieval: taking a test strengthens memory more effectively than restudying the material. The current work aims at investigating the interaction between sleep and testing by asking if testing adds…

In this Methods Showcase Article, we highlight a qualitative research methodology called "netnography," an adaptation of ethnography and ethnographic methods applied to researching digital/online communities. We briefly discuss how netnography has evolved from its origins in the fields of consumer research and marketing to its more…

This paper aims to discuss old and contemporary perspectives in understanding language acquisition taking into account the neural theory of language. Discussing a recent theory by Kuhl (2010), neural substrates of first language learning will be put forward (Berwick et al., 2013). Neural substrates of phonetic learning, word learning, sentence…

This study investigated the nature of learners' positive emotional engagement during a task-based interaction and its relationship with their interactional behaviours. Vietnamese learners of English as a foreign language (EFL; n = 74) performed a communicative task in dyads in 15 minutes. Their positive emotional engagement was gauged using an…

The physical environments where we work, play, live are not neutral. Importantly, place and space are infused with power: while geopolitical boundaries and state borders may delineate geographies into countries and cultures, they also impose linguistic, cultural, and political divides on peoples and communities and create power asymmetries that…

The Australian higher education sector has promoted internationalisation opportunities for students, including through international studies (IS) courses that entail language and culture study and international exchange. Educators promote internationalisation for many reasons, including enhanced employability, and international studies degrees are…

This paper reviews the literature on the role of corrective feedback and instruction in L2 pragmatics. Pragmatics "focuses on how people perform, interpret, and respond to language functions in a social context" (Taguchi, 2011, p.289), and therefore its development is key to the development of language competence. Pragmatics entails both…

One of the most important skills to acquire in learning a foreign language is speaking. It is however, viewed as one of the most difficult. This study involved the observation of non-English major students in the foreign language department of Nanjing Tech University. Its aim was to assess critically the factors that affect the speaking…