This research is a case study examining numeracy teaching and learning practices in an early childhood multiage setting with Pre-Primary to Year 2 children. Data were collected via running records, researcher reflection notes, and video and audio recordings. Video and audio transcripts were analysed using a mathematical discourse and social…

The discourse on teacher quality has centered on issues of teacher knowledge and teacher skill, yet a third element that is central to all professional standards is teacher dispositions. Although there is no consensus about a definition of teacher dispositions, there are several models in use regarding how dispositions are being addressed. Most…

This article questions why a somewhat singular focus on orphanhood in the context of AIDS persists despite important shifts to more inclusive terminology of "orphans and vulnerable children." Analysis of data from South Africa raises questions about the "spin" placed on "orphanhood" and its perceived consequences for…

This paper describes a method that utilized technology to collect and collate quantitative and qualitative data about pre-service teachers' use of networked technologies during a 12-week undergraduate course, and the impact of this use on their pedagogical beliefs regarding the integration of information and communications technology (ICT). The…

The value and role of concordancers (simple computer programs that can quickly analyze electronic texts to find occurrences of a given word, part of a word, or phrase and display it within its immediate context) in secondary school English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) teaching are examined. First, their use in higher education is discussed,…

This collection of essays focuses on historical, structural, lexical, and sociological aspects of Romani and its regional variations. The focus is primarily but not exclusively on oral language. Essays include: "On Typological Changes and Structural Borrowing in the History of European Romani" (Vit Bubenik); "On the Migration and…

This paper describes a professional development program for teachers. The Certificate of Teaching and Learning (CTL), developed in Australia for Kindergarten through Year 12 teachers across all subject areas. It outlines the process of conceptualization, the dilemmas faced by the development team, and the final implementation across Australia.…

A study examined global- and local-allocational preselection mechanisms for turn-taking in the language classroom, using two corpuses of classroom discourse illustrating both accuracy- and fluency-based modes of language teaching. It was found that teacher-directed accuracy work yielded Initiation-Response-Feedback patterns governed by…

A study investigated how pragmatic competence may develop in learner-learner interaction in a communication Japanese as a foreign language classroom, drawing on language socialization and sociocultural theory. A 100-minute second-year university-level Japanese language class at an urban state university was audio- and video-recorded, with a…

A study investigated Koreans' use and misuse of the English passive, from a pragmatic perspective, with attention to the possible source of errors. Subjects were 200 college students at two universities in Korea who were English majors or minors or taking English as an elective course, divided equally between sophomores and juniors. The subjects…

This paper contends that many of the difficulties students of Chinese have in reading comprehension are directly related to their level of understanding of Chinese language and culture, and that these difficulties could be alleviated by providing students with knowledge about the value system, social customs, formation of Chinese characters and…

A discussion of classroom communication looks at the function of questions, particularly teacher-initiated pedagogical questions but also other classroom questions, either teacher- or student-initiated. Two fourth grade science lessons, conducted in Brazil by different teachers, are analyzed. Analysis focuses on the relative effects of the…

The working papers contained in this volume include the following: "Research on Language Learning; How Can It Respond to Classroom Concerns?" (Teresa Pica); "Building Rapport Through Indirect Complaints: Implications for Language Learning" (Diana Boxer); "(Bi)literacy and Empowerment: Education for Indigenous Groups in…

The purpose of this study was to examine the potential of asynchronous discussion forums (ADFs) as a medium to facilitate reflective thinking among preservice teachers. Of particular interest was the extent and manner in which this potential varies with respect to (a) the structure of the ADF, (b) the focus of the ADF, and (c) group dynamics.…

A study examined the written English proficiency of Windsor, Ontario francophone eighth-graders being educated entirely in French and compared it to norms for English-speaking eighth-grade children educated in English or French. Results suggest that these francophone students compare favorably with anglophone groups in syntactic maturity and…