This study investigates how working memory (WM) capacity and L2 linguistic knowledge affect L2 literal and inferential reading comprehension, considering the presence or absence of background knowledge. Eighty upper-intermediate to advanced adult English learners participated, completing tasks to assess WM capacity, background knowledge, L2…

Bilingual environments present an important context for word learning. One feature of bilingual environments is the existence of translation equivalents (TEs)--words in different languages that share similar meanings. Documenting TE learning over development may give us insight into the mechanisms underlying word learning in young bilingual…

This study seeks to empirically explore the relation between multilingual learning experiences and language aptitude. Through employing LLAMA aptitude test battery (Meara, 2005) and a probabilistic version of the serial reaction time (SRT) task (Kaufman et al., 2010), scores from 24 Chinese-English bilinguals and 24 Tibetan-Chinese-English…

Previous studies report that exposure to the Maori language on a regular basis allows New Zealand adults who cannot speak Maori to build a proto-lexicon of Maori -- an implicit memory of word forms without detailed knowledge of meaning. How might this knowledge feed into explicit language learning? Is it possible to "awaken" the…

This study addresses the effects of the timing of explicit instruction within the three phases of a task cycle (pretask, task, posttask) while considering learner's previous knowledge. Eight intact groups (N = 165) of French L2 university-level students (4 B1- and 4 B2-level groups) completed two tasks. Groups were formed according to previous…

The strand of feedback research within the field of Instructed Second Language Acquisition (ISLA) examines the effects of feedback on the development of second language (L2) knowledge and learning behaviors. While findings often make claims about the relationship between feedback and language processing, much of this research has not measured…

This study examines the teaching of a student group that is often overlooked in research and policy: newly arrived adolescent students with limited previousexperience of formal schooling (NALS). Drawing on ethnographic data produced at two junior high schools with different reception models for newly arrived students, we asked how NALS were…

Objective: Our objective was to examine the perceptions regarding the teaching and learning of English of students in 16 undergraduate programs at a state public university in Mexico. Method: In our qualitative case study, participating students responded to queries about their experiences learning English at the university, as well as their…

Computer-assisted textual enhancement (CATE) technology has been widely used to improve English as foreign language (EFL) learners' syntactical and grammatical learning. Visual attention, repetition, and prior knowledge are known as the vital factors in CATE-assisted knowledge-acquisition; however, there still lacks a model which can describe…

The United States government is perennially in need of employees with proficiency in critical foreign languages to communicate with foreign counterparts and maintain relationships worldwide. In order to fulfill this need, the government devotes significant resources training federal employees to advanced levels of language proficiency through…

Purpose: This article explores the interrelationship between second-language students' literacy development and civics learning in studies focusing on L2 students' civics learning. Design/methodology/approach: The conceptual framework and the analytical tool in this thematic literature review consists of a four-field model in which the four key…

Investigations of crosslinguistic effects in second language acquisition (SLA) have contributed rich understandings about the ways in which prior language knowledge and experience can influence additional language learning. Building on this work, one recent line of research has examined the extent to which SLA findings about crosslinguistic…

There is no doubt that formulaic expressions such as collocations, idioms and compounds play an important role in the second language acquisition and their teaching should be an integral part of foreign language learning since they show insights into foreign language culture and promote fluency, proficiency and communicative competence. That is…

This study explores the possibilities of using digitally produced multimodal language learning histories (MLLHs) to understand the experiences of learning a second language (L2) of a group of university students in Japan (N = 21). The study observes that learners' MLLHs are texts in which the visual elements of language, place, person, learning…

Bilingual subject instruction, designed to facilitate the acquisition of the Norwegian language, is a support class aimed at immigrant students in primary and lower secondary Norwegian schools. This study delves into the beliefs of two Polish-Norwegian bilingual teachers regarding multilingualism in this instructional context and the factors…