Speech fluency has been extensively researched as a core construct for second language (L2) speaking assessment. Despite the broad consensus on its multifaceted nature, few researchers have empirically explored the dimensionality of this construct. Operationalizations of fluency vary across research and practice, using both holistic and…

This paper deals with the relationship between neoliberalism and communicative language teaching in language-in-education policy. Neoliberalism, or the deregulation of state based on meritocracy, or equal competition, gives rise to paradoxical discourses. On the one hand, sociolinguistic superdiversity shows us the unprecedented mixing and…

Teacher enthusiasm is attracting growing attention in educational and learner psychology research. There is evidence that teacher enthusiasm is contagious in class and positively affects student emotions. Their fundamental role in shaping student engagement has also been well documented. However, the links -- between teacher enthusiasm and student…

This article discusses how art can contribute to the creation of a translanguaging space and how a community program can be a significant site for this collective and creative endeavor. Drawing on translanguaging theories, I founded the "Entretejer/Interweave Community School" program in collaboration with the Immigrant Resource Center,…

A number of studies have suggested that extensive reading can lead to gains in different language skills. Few studies on extensive reading have been conducted outside the East Asia classroom setting. This study investigated the impact of an extensive reading programme conducted over 12 weeks with 90- minutes group sessions 3 times a week involving…

To have more information about the English words known by second language (L2) speakers, we ran a large-scale crowdsourcing vocabulary test, which yielded 17 million useful responses. It provided us with a list of 445 words known to nearly all participants. The list was compared to various existing lists of words advised to include in the first…

The research reported in this article investigated how students learning Japanese or Russian as a third language (L3) perceived and produced word-initial stops in their respective target language and the link between perception and production. The participants in the study were 39 Chinese university students who spoke Mandarin Chinese as their…

Placing non-native speakers of English into appropriate classes involves mapping placement test scores onto proficiency levels based on predetermined cut scores. However, studies on how to set boundaries for different levels of proficiency have been lacking in the language testing literature. A top-down approach to standard setting in which a…

With the awareness of globalization, multilingual abilities have been encouraged, and parents seek bilingual education to provide their children with social prestige and economic advancement. However, in Korea, bilingual education reproduces and reinforces privileges of social status, prestige, and power. This research explores the ideologies of…

This study aimed at finding the correlation between Iranian and Turkish EFL learners' cognitive styles and their preferences for different WCF types. Sixty out of seventy-five EFL students at the intermediate level in two contexts (Iran and Turkey) were selected through the Oxford Placement Test. There were two instruments in this research: The…

The aim of this study is to identify the link between foreign language learning motivation and English preparatory class students' participation in the extracurricular activities programmes. The differences between the motivation levels of the students based on their participation in the extracurricular activities are defined and students'…

This paper describes the process of customization and validation of scale that measures motivation for professionalization of English language teachers. This paper illustrates a systematic process to assist researchers in adapting, customizing and validating scale. This study presents results of a pilot survey of the five motivational factor…

The study investigated the alignment process of the International English Language Competency Assessment (IELCA) suite examinations' four levels, B1, B2, C1 and C2, onto the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) by explaining and discussing the five linking stages (Council of Europe (CoE 2009). Unlike previous studies, this study used the…

The past decade has witnessed a plethora of research to study the relationship between reading strategies and reading comprehension, but few studies have examined the brain functionality; more specifically the relationship between hemispheric dominance and reading strategies. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate whether there would be any…

In the current revival of Gumperz' notion of the "verbal repertoire," which today is rather termed as communicative or semiotic repertoire, some scholars tend to locate repertoires with individual speakers whereas others see them primarily as emerging from particular spatial arrangements. What is often underestimated in both approaches…