The purpose of this action research study was to explore possibilities for scaffolding academic language and historical thinking for non-native English speaking students in two middle school classrooms. The teaching approach focused on six dimensions of historical thinking: background knowledge, cause, effect, bias, empathy, and application. The…

In this study, attempts were made to design pre-reading materials for EAP reading using resources available from the subject matter texts. These materials were considered more facilitative in motivating learners to read and helping them to understand rather than to decode the texts. EFL college participants read three articles with three types of…

A quasi-experimental design using student cases and non-random survey methods was used to investigate the influences of student educational labels, behaviors and learning characteristics as perceived by secondary career and technical education (CTE) instructors on occupational program expectations, modifications and accommodations, and…

The paper describes a qualitative study concerning the experiences of nine Thai transnational distance learners enrolled in doctoral programs in Australian universities while working in higher educational contexts in their own country. Data were collected from participant journals, an open questionnaire and dialogic email communications. The study…

Stanford's preservice Secondary Teacher Education Program (STEP) undertook a self-study to investigate how its credential candidates who had previous teaching experience perceived the value of returning for formal preparation. Using a semi-structured protocol, 23 STEP graduates were interviewed from 1999 and 2000, asking them about their teaching…

This paper reports on a telecollaborative exchange between university language learners in Spain and the USA and analyses the effects of the different institutional and sociocultural contexts on its development. While the socioinstitutional dimension of German-American exchanges has already benefited from extensive study in the literature, this…

In the practice of teacher education, most would agree that critical reflection in and on the process of learning to teach and the activities of teaching play a central role in teachers' professional development. Using Vygotskian sociocultural theory, we examine how narrative inquiry functions as a culturally developed tool that mediates teachers'…

A software development collaboration project designed to maximize the skill sets and interests of school children and teachers, educational software technologists and researchers, and college undergraduates is presented. The work brings elementary school children with college seniors and technology consultants to implement a problem-solving…

This study aimed to comprehensively investigate the impact of a word-processor on an ESL writing assessment, covering comparison of inter-rater reliability, the quality of written products, the writing process across different testing occasions using different writing media, and students' perception of a computer-delivered test. Writing samples of…

This paper focuses on the development of EAP methodology within an African EAP context. I describe the setting up and implementation of an EAP study skills programme at the University of Asmara, Eritrea, over the period 1994-1998 and its subsequent development up to 2002. The unique social and political context of the EAP programme served as a…

With diversity constituting a hallmark of American higher education, college classrooms are becoming increasingly characterized by students with differing educational histories, experiences, and cultural backgrounds. The importance of using inclusive instructional strategies becomes even more significant when teaching heterogeneous groups of…

Practical guidelines are offered for the use of synchronous online conferencing software by session administrators and moderators. The configuration of the software prior to conferencing sessions is discussed, and the planning and implementation of useful collaborative activities such as "synchronised browsing." The combination of these…

Presently, the importance of culture and context is becoming a significant feature of research in the field of learning strategies. To date, there has been little research into learning strategies utilized for reading and writing in Asian EAP (English for Academic Purposes) contexts, and in particular in the Thai context. With this in mind, this…

The purpose of this study was to conduct a systematic replication of a previous study (Boon, Burke, Fore, & Spencer, 2006) on the effects of computer-generated cognitive organizers using Inspiration 6 software versus a traditional textbook instruction format on students' ability to comprehend social studies content information in high school…

The University of Virginia's (UVA) Department of Spanish, Italian and Portuguese created two new hybrid courses for elementary Spanish which supplement 3 hours a week of class time with 2 hours of mandatory, web-based practice activities to respond to a need to make better use of personnel resources at the university. This article reports on the…