With the popularity of Spanish for Specific Purposes courses growing at U.S. universities, research that can underpin effective teaching practices and material development is greatly needed. This project focuses on task-based language teaching in the context of Medical Spanish courses, drawing from studies carried out for Business Spanish and…

Studying modern languages has been part of Australian tertiary education from close to its beginning. This study, which uses an online content analysis approach, analyses current units of study in each Australian public university teaching modern languages. Set in the context of the origin and development of this field, together with contemporary…

Developing proficiency and intercultural competence are goals promoted by the Modern Language Association and widely shared by postsecondary second language programs across the United States. Although the development of proficiency has been studied extensively in this context, comparatively little is known about how intercultural competence…

Using a mixed-methods research design, this study explored the dominant causes, levels, and coping strategies of second language writing anxiety among 55 second-year Thai EFL undergraduate students majoring in English for International Communication. Data were collected from the Causes of Writing Anxiety Inventory (CWAI) questionnaire developed by…

The use of AI-powered chatbots has recently been extensively examined for second language (L2) learning. While their positive effects have been widely reported regarding L2 English learning, studies involving less commonly taught languages (LCTLs) are scant. The current study incorporated an AI chatbot called Iruda in L2 Korean teaching, to…

This paper discusses disadvantaging situations that deaf students encounter in higher education in Sweden. We report two recent cases of deaf students' academic welfare being put at risk. We foreground in these cases the 'odd situations' that arise when provisions that fail to access the particular nature of deaf experience also fail to secure…

This study first validates a survey on self-regulated vocabulary learning strategies. It then examines the effects on the acquisition of new second language (L2) words from a reading text of three word-focused exercise conditions: reading + marginal glosses, reading + gap-fill and reading + sentence writing. It also evaluates the extent to which…

This article examines enrollments in languages other than English in United States higher education from the perspective of geographical distribution. While the overall decline in language enrollments is well known, enrollments are also very unequal across states when accounting for population. By cross-referencing MLA language enrollment data…

This study analyzes the inclusion of binary and non-binary gender-just language in US first-year college German textbooks. The analysis covers eight textbooks, evaluating their use of gender-just forms such as the gender star and neopronouns, which explicitly represent non-binary positionalities, as well as "neutral" or binary…

This paper explores the implementation and enduring significance of the German language program in Milwaukee Public Schools between 1867 and 1918. Despite the German language program facing challenges, notably the Bennett Law of 1889--which sought to restrict foreign language instruction statewide--the program persisted, highlighting the tension…

Self-directed learning and blended learning are instructional methods to enhance students' current learning behaviour and promote their lifelong learning. This research aims to develop the self-directed learning instructional model by implementing a blended learning method with English subject group teachers in opportunity expansion schools in…

In 2024, WestEd partnered with Sobrato Philanthropies to conduct a strategic and economic analysis of English Learner programs in the state of California. The study sought to define the scale of economic challenges and explore underlying conditions impacting the costs of implementing English Learner programs in California in alignment with best…

Learner autonomy has received growing interest from researchers and educators since the 1980s. Autonomous learners are supposed to monitor their progress and assess their performance. The present study investigated the effects of learner factors on the scorer reliability of self- and peer-assessment of EFL (English as foreign language) writing…

As language programs are endangered in K-16 contexts due to low enrollments, and for budgetary reasons, it is more important than ever to find enduring ways to help promote the study of languages and to make studying languages enjoyable for everyone. For sustainable language education, we need to focus on and promote the true purpose of…

Due to rising linguistic diversity and educational disparities in Austria, a German-language-support model was installed in 2018-2019 across Austrian schools. This study examines teachers' professional identity in this program. The study uses qualitative data from interviews with 21 female teachers across 13 Viennese primary schools to explore…