This study explored the effects of listening-based lexical focus-on-form (lexical FonF) on the acquisition and retention of morphologically complex words. One hundred eighty-two adult English learners with two levels of English proficiency (higher and lower proficiency) from a public university in mainland China were assigned to three different…

This study employed a mixed-methods approach to explore the attitudes of second language (L2) learners and L2 teachers toward the use of learners' first language (L1) in L2 classrooms. Interview data were collected from Japanese college students (n = 91) and their English teachers (n = 9) to identify salient themes related to the reasons for…

With universities and other academic institutions now creating policies regarding the use of pronouns and the rights of individuals to use the pronouns they prefer, use of the singular they pronoun in academic discourse is a relatively new phenomenon and not one that is typically studied by English as a second language (ESL) students before their…

This study is concerned with finding out how L3 (third language) learners recognize and make conscious use of cross-linguistic similarities and differences and whether their metalinguistic reflections are in correlation with their proficiency. Written text productions of thirteen L3 learners of English, aged 20-25, at different L3 levels (A2, B1,…

In this paper, we explore the extent to which a stay abroad in a Danish university in which English is a frequent medium of instruction can be a very suitable context for students to increase their language proficiency and to develop both awareness of their communicative skills and their confidence in them. The data analysed come from (i) a pre-…

Most second language (L2) learners are aware of the importance of vocabulary, and this awareness usually directs their attention to learning new words. By contrast, learners do not often recognise unfamiliar idioms if all the compositional parts look familiar to them such as "turn the corner" or "carry the day." College-level…

Working memory (WM) as a key component of language aptitude has become a topical issue, with some going so far as to argue that WM can replace language aptitude. Research that specifically investigates the relationship between WM and language aptitude is rather limited. This study explores the determinants of language aptitude, with a focus on WM…

This study investigates the role of morphological awareness in the incidental learning of Mandarin Chinese characters among Chinese as second language (CSL) learners. Participants of the study were 20 college-level international students, uniformly Thai in language background, enrolled to study CSL at Southwest University, Chongqing, China. The…

This study describes how oral language was assessed in an advanced-level college foreign language (FL) conversation course. Learners used the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages Proficiency Guidelines to guide self-analyses of their oral production at intervals throughout the course. The intent was to provide opportunities for…

The role of metalinguistic knowledge of language and knowledge of technical terms (i.e. metalingual knowledge) in second language (L2) learning and use is a matter of controversy in the field of Second Language Acquisition. This paper examines the development of these two types of knowledge in adult university-level learners of L2 Spanish, and…

As email requests from students to professors have become increasingly common in academic settings, research has also shown second-language (L2) students' unfamiliarity with email etiquette in L2 has adversely affected their communication with their professors. The present study examines whether giving corrective feedback on students' performance…

This study examines whether the process of interacting in a second language, versus observing others interact, may differentially affect learner's awareness of language. This study involved 26 university students of intermediate-level French. Two experimental groups, Interactors and Observers, engaged in three sessions of dyadic task-based…

Reformulation is mostly considered as an important verbal mechanism for coping with non-native speakers' speech production problem in second language acquisition. Drawing on interlanguage pragmatics and conversation analysis, the present study examines the specific ways in which reformulation is used to achieve mutual understanding in the…

Investigates the relationship between metalinguistic awareness and second language (L2) proficiency of university-level learners of French. Learners' performances on two grammaticality judgment tests and on a test of L2 proficiency were examined in the context of demands made upon these two components according to whether the learners had been…

A number of studies have examined the process and product of writing instruction under different conditions. Fewer studies have investigated the development of knowledge and its relationship to writing performance. While some writers may be able to draw upon knowledge of text in their writing, others do not possess this knowledge and yet others…