Illustrates Exploratory practice (EP), a form of practitioner research, in action in two classrooms in Brazil. Examines a key mechanism of EP--puzzlement--and presents two different puzzling processes. (VWL)

Examines the puzzlement processes of Exploratory practice (EP) to shed light on the interactive workings of an EP group, and in particular the threats to sustainability that emerged. Reports a discourse analytic inquiry into the nature of the decisions taken and the decision-making process employed at the EP group meetings at a professional…

Presents a discourse analysis of contributions to an online interactive discussion forum of a graduate-level education course on discourse in classrooms. Examines content of postings over the course to describe participants' emerging perspectives on the role of classroom and school discourse in shaping student identity, the role of discourse in…

Discusses task sheets--written texts generated specifically for assessment purposes in high schools in Queensland, Australia. Task sheets attempt to make assessment transparent by explaining the criteria used to assess performance. Task sheets from two English classes are analyzed to investigate what they reveal about practices and relationships…

Two university professors discuss the benefits of shared expertise and e-feedback in the design of an English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) writing course. (Author/VWL)

This corpus-based study compares the use of metaphor in the reporting of the Euro in the English and German financial press during a period of turbulent financial trading. While the approach to metaphor is broadly cognitive linguistic, metaphors are identified using two criteria; a broad semantic one that includes cases of reification and…

Offers an annotated bibliography of articles, books, reports, and guides on the subject of English as a Second Language (ESL) programs in the community college. Notes that ESL programs have grown as more immigrants have settled in the United States. Includes 10 citations that detail changing programs and policies, curriculum and instruction, and…

Describes a quantitative study that compared the performance of two groups of advanced English-as-a-Second-Language students in a second semester composition course at the City University of New York (CUNY). Results suggest that students were twice as likely to pass into the second semester course when they were evaluated by portfolio rather than…

Eighty-five high school students of French were tested orally by an outside evaluator over a 2-month period. Includes several sample tests in a variety of formats as well as the questionnaire administered to students before and after the treatment to measure their attitudes toward French and oral evaluation. (Author/VWL)

This article provides a personal reflection of the development of the British Association of Lecturers in English for Academic Purposes (BALEAP), which celebrates its thirtieth anniversary this year. Describes and exemplifies the tremendous growth in scope and sophistication in English for academic purposes teaching and research in these 30 years.…

Examined the effects of readers' gender and passage content on second language (L2) reading comprehension. Participants--who were intermediate Spanish learners--read two different authentic passages. Two measures were used to assess comprehension: A written recall and multiple-choice questions. Findings reveal significant interactions between…

Reports results of research investigating the reading strategies of four nonnative speakers of English who were considered underprepared for academic study at a U.S. university. Through analysis of think-aloud protocols, questionnaire data, and indicators of comprehension, identifies strategies learners use in their native language (Spanish) and…

Examines peer collaboration in a group of Japanese undergraduate students who were engaged in an academic presentation task during their yearlong studies in a content-based English-as-a-Second-Language program in a Canadian university. Students' preparatory activities outside of the classroom included negotiating task definition and teacher…

Examines language use and language preference of children aged 6 to 15 and their parents at the University of Botswana. Results indicate that the majority of the children speak Setswana and English, despite the fact that they come from different language groups. Language preferences of children differ from that of parents. Shows the growth of…

Reports on aspects of an ethnographic study carried out in six newly integrated schools in post-aparthied South Africa. Presents evidence that these schools are sites of struggle between competing discourses that construct, maintain, and change social identities in these communities and the wider society. (Author/VWL)