Non-word repetition tasks are widely used to assess phonological short-term memory (PSTM). Results of previous research on the performance of monolingual and bilingual children in PSTM tasks are inconclusive. Although in some studies bilinguals did outperform monolinguals in the repetition of non-words, most studies reported comparatively weak…

Public speaking often imposes a nerve-wracking atmosphere in the L2 classrooms. Consequently, an alternative to the anxiety-arousing activity by using advanced technology for pedagogy is urgent. Prior publications reported the use of virtual reality (VR) for training public speaking and alleviating students' public speaking anxiety (PSA). However,…

Initiating conversations and responding to initiations of others via gestural and verbal means are prerequisites for participating in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) interactions. However, research to date has not addressed the multimodal initiations and responses of young second language learners (SLLs) in natural ECEC settings. This…

When teaching Mandarin Chinese classifiers, teachers usually ask students to memorize 'classifier + noun', phrases as collocations. Given that Mandarin Chinese has a vast and complicated system of classifiers, the rote memorization of 'classifier + noun' collocations is challenging and monotonous. Therefore, the present study aims to improve that…

Countries world-wide face the task of integrating students with various linguistic resources and ways of living into their educational systems. The specifically German institution of vocational schools in Germany is complex and, especially in the subject of German, presents teachers with the challenge of ensuring language and subject learning with…

The present paper evaluates the processes of reading acquisition in Latin from the component-skills approach and discusses how advances in reading in modern foreign languages could be adapted to the specific needs of Latin as a historical language. Compared to the holistic and socially embedded approaches to modern foreign language acquisition,…

Successful reading comprehension--especially in a second language (L2)--relies on the ability to monitor one's comprehension, that is, to notice comprehension breaks and make repairs. Comprehension monitoring may be limited given effortful word processing but may also be supported through active reading. The current study addresses to what extent…

While internationally there is long-standing research activity on the effectiveness of language contacts (especially in the form of mobility stays) at tertiary level and a number of literature syntheses on this field have been published, research projects at the primary and secondary level are still comparatively rare and the results are often not…

Accelerating globalization has created an interest in studying the use of different languages in intercultural communication. This paper is based upon a small-scale study of expatriates' use of English as a lingua franca in Denmark and Germany. It discusses expatriates' use of English as a lingua franca and its influence on their willingness to…

Language skills are central to refugee integration and the availability of language courses could thus be a limiting factor. We explore how the most important provider of language courses in Germany, adult education centers (VHS), adapted their course supply to the refugee wave of 2015/2016. Our results highlight two channels through which the…

This article reports on the development and validation of the Informal Second Language Engagement questionnaire (ISLE) for capturing various aspects of learner engagement with informal second language practices. Whereas other questionnaires have primarily focused on learner behavior (the frequency, quantity, and diversity of informal activities in…

This study investigates the use of overt and null subjects in Bulgarian in child heritage speakers with L2 German. The alternation of overt and null pronominal subjects in null-subject languages like Bulgarian depends on grammatical and discourse conditions and contrasts with German. Oral narratives were elicited in Bulgarian, comparing the…

Teachers of all subjects and grades must remain aware of the linguistic and cultural diversity among their students, as second language learners often experience educational disadvantages. Therefore, (pre-service) teachers must acquire pedagogical language knowledge and skills in linguistically responsive teaching (LRT), and develop positive…

This article explores how ideology is embedded in the cultural content of textbooks used in Germany's integration courses for migrants. Using critical multimodal discourse analysis, I analyze two dimensions of meaning in linguistic and visual (multimodal) texts: meaning as representation and meaning as inter/action. I analyze how social actors are…

This study aims to investigate the nature of phonological awareness in young L3 learners, and the extent to which it changes over time as L2 and L3 learning progresses. Two groups of 12 closely matched multilinguals (total= 24, aged 12-13), who shared their L2 (English) but their L1/L3 (German/Polish) were mirrored, mimicked L2 and L3 accents in…