Investigations of the validity of a number of high-stakes language assessments are conducted using an argument-based approach, which requires evidence for inferences that are critical to score interpretation (Chapelle, Enright, & Jamieson, 2008b; Kane, 2013). The current study investigates the extrapolation inference for a high-stakes test of…

Two main opposing approaches exist regarding the impact of first-language (L1) use in the teaching and learning of English as a foreign language: the monolingual and bilingual approaches. Some linguists assume that students' L1 should be banished from their English classes, whereas others assert that it facilitates the process of learning a target…

Complex Dynamic Systems Theory (CDST) has been applied to the study of second language acquisition to possibly account for the nonlinear development and variability found within second language development. Characteristics of a dynamic system that make it compatible with examining the developmental trajectory of second language acquisition include…

For students learning English as a foreign language (EFL), using English outside the classroom is as important as participating in the classroom activities. By developing the Extramural English Use Scale, this study aims to explore the frequency of high school students' Extramural English (EE) in relation to the listening, speaking, reading and…

This study investigates the use of the Spanish subjunctive in bilingual children with and without specific language impairments (SLI). Using an elicitation task, we examine: (i) the potential of the subjunctive as a grammatical marker of SLI in Spanish-English bilingual children, (ii) the extent to which degree of bilingualism affects performance,…

In this article, the authors (re)think writing as an ethical endeavor to explore and to cultivate more inclusive orientations for writing research and teaching. Situated in posthumanist scholarship on intra-activity, trans-corporeality, and translingual assemblages, they provide data-theory encounters that resist the privileging of alphabetic…

Background: This article investigated the potential of Grade 3 English Second Language (ESL) teachers' vocabulary development practices to equip learners in English-deprived environments with English vocabulary requisite for transition to Grade 4 where English is the Language of Learning and Teaching and where learning to read gives way to reading…

This paper describes how students use language as a currency with which to navigate institutional structures and negotiate "fitting in" to social structures of higher education, paying particular attention to South Korea (hereafter Korea) and the English-speaking West. This paper emerged from a qualitative research study examining…

This study investigated the various linguistic, psychological, and sociocultural variables that explain the sociolinguistic variation in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) among Arab siblings. The variables are not predetermined but extracted from the participants' contributions and data in a grounded theory research. The siblings participated in…

Purpose: This sociolinguistic paper discusses the relationship between language and belonging from the perspective of Arabic-English speaking bilinguals. It explores what knowledge of language(s) means for the minority language speaker and investigates the challenges, consequences and opportunities multilingualism poses for its speakers in a…

Literacy scholar Alfred Tatum has argued for a model for literacy with African-American male adolescents that includes the particular needs and contexts of this population. He describes this as an "anatomically complete" model and bases his model on a set of four "vital signs" that, combined, help increase student achievement.…

This study focuses on the linguistic foundation of sound pedagogic practices related to non-language content areas referring especially to language objectives; it employ Tharp and Gallimore's theory on learning: making teaching visible in order to develop the students' thinking. In the contexts of training both before and after service, a study…

Research Findings: This study builds on prior work related to the assessment of young dual language learners (DLLs). The purposes of the study were to (a) determine whether latent subgroups of preschool DLLs would replicate those found previously and (b) examine the validity of GOLD® by Teaching Strategies with empirically derived subgroups.…

Schools label themselves to be English medium considering that by implementing textbooks in English language and adopting English as a medium of instruction is sufficient to be English. In this regard, there is a need for a checklist or self-assessment tool to enable the schools to evaluate themselves to see their positioning as an English medium…

The University of KwaZulu-Natal has a bilingual language policy (2006) where students may receive instruction in isiZulu as well as in English. An online survey was carried out for all academic and support staff to gauge their linguistic capacity in isiZulu. Staff profiles were created in relation to their respective Colleges, Schools and…