The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages Companion Volume (CEFR CV) emphasizes macro-functions of language (i.e., reception, production, interaction, and mediation). However, there seems to be little consensus on whether the macro-functions are commensurable with CEFR-based proficiency tests. This paper focuses on the Examination…

Recent second language acquisition research has demonstrated that language learning is in essence the learning of constructions, or form-meaning pairings. Compared to first language acquisition research, however, our understanding of how constructions in a second language (L2) emerge and develop with proficiency and/or experience is limited.…

There are two important dimensions to successful second language learning: what goes on inside the classroom and what goes on outside of the classroom (Richards, 2015). This paper investigates smartphone use for online learning of English among Japanese university students using online surveys and semi-structured interviews. The investigation…

Task-based approach is commonly used in second language teaching and it has been adopted in translation teaching too. However, driven by the lack of studies on task-based approach in translation especially in the very early stages of teaching translation, Saudi universities are no exception, this study focuses on the significance of implementing…

The following research investigates the effect that unprescribed conversation with native speakers of the target language had on learners' L2 listening comprehension skills at the beginning (n=21) and advanced intermediate levels of Spanish (n=27). Treatment groups completed two-thirty-minute conversations with native speakers via…

Purpose: This study aimed to explore whether a match between learning style and teaching style in English as a foreign language (EFL) class affects two student variables: proficiency and motivation to learn English. Design/methodology/approach: Participants consisted of nine EFL teachers and 331 Japanese undergraduate students who were required to…

This study qualitatively and quantitatively investigated synchronous (real-time) computer-mediated communication (SCMC), via Zoom (https://zoom.us) videoconferencing, to explore second language (L2) learning and learner autonomy. Twenty-five L2 Spanish participants (n = 25) from the same university utilized SCMC over a 6-week implementation…

This study proposes an explanatory account for the developmental stages of the acquisition of ser and estar in locative constructions. We propose that this copular distribution is regulated by two aspectual features, "dynamicity" and "temporal boundedness." These features are crucial for the interpretation of nominals such as…

Prosody is crucial for language comprehension because it highlights underlying structures. This study explores whether prosody facilitates "memory recall" to the same extent in L1 and L2, and whether memory recall is poorer in L2 or whether language-specific differences can mitigate L2 processing difficulties. Nineteen Greek learners of…

Metacognitive strategies concerning general skills, through which learners manage, direct, regulate and guide their learning. For several decades, researchers have recognized the importance of Metacognitive strategy use for successful English listening comprehension. Most of the previous studies of metacognitive strategies use in China have been…

Many of the foreign language teachers and professors I have encountered throughout my EFL teaching career say that speaking is the most difficult skill to teach in a foreign language class. Classes usually focus on teaching points (e.g. grammar or listening related lessons) that can satisfy larger classroom situations. Speaking requires adequate…

This article investigated the development of morphological awareness (MA) across three groups of students of Spanish as a second language (SSL) with different levels of proficiency. Four morphological assessment tasks on relational knowledge were designed in a simultaneous cross-sectional study that differed in two dimensions: complexity level…

This study examined the acquisition of preposition placement in English as a second language from a usage-based perspective. German and Chinese learners of English and English native speakers rated the acceptability of English oblique "wh" relative clauses in a magnitude estimation task. Results indicated that acceptability depended on…

The increasing popularity of Facebook has prompted scholars and educators to explore its potentials as a learning environment for various fields of education. Along this line, several reviews of literature have been written about the educational use of Facebook; however, none of them have focused on a specific field of interest such as language…

This study uses a sentence completion task with Swedish and Chinese L2 English speakers to investigate how L1 morphosyntax and L2 proficiency influence L2 English subject-verb agreement production. Chinese has limited nominal and verbal number morphology, while Swedish has robust noun phrase (NP) morphology but does not number-mark verbs. Results…