The study examines performance on an evaluation instrument for classroom use for the purpose of improving instruction that focuses on awareness of language in reading and writing. Findings are reported on the piloting of the first in a series of literacy assessments with students from a rural elementary school in Ecuador. All students who…

Since the colonization of the Americans, Filipinos have been using English as their second language and have been accustomed to using the language alongside local languages. The centuries of the extensive contact between American English and Filipino language raises questions pertaining language change and language identity. This paper reports the…

The present paper attempts to study the realization of refusal responses to invitations and requests among Yemen EFL learners in equal, higher and lower social status. It also aims to find out the pragmatic failure resulted from negative pragmatic transfer. In order to do so, refusals of 40 Yemeni EFL (20 high and 20 low proficient) learners were…

This paper presents an automatic dialogue scoring approach for a Dialogue-Based Computer-Assisted Language Learning (DB-CALL) system, which helps users learn language via interactive conversations. The system produces overall feedback according to dialogue scoring to help the learner know which parts should be more focused on. The scoring measures…

The paper describes initial efforts on creating a system for the automatic assessment of Swedish second language (L2) learner essays from two points of view: holistic evaluation of the reached level according to the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR), and the lexical analysis of texts for receptive and productive vocabulary per CEFR…

Since student participation is essential for successful classroom teaching, a growing number of studies are investigating how classroom teachers can encourage active participation by students. In line with the prior findings on participation management practices, this study reports on three English language teachers' student participation…

The present study aimed to investigate second language (L2) word-level and sentence-level automatic processing among English as a foreign language students through a comparative analysis of students with different proficiency levels. As a multidimensional and dynamic construct, automaticity is conceptualized as processing speed, stability, and…

English orthographic learning, among Chinese-L1 children who were beginning to learn English as a foreign language, was documented when: (1) "only" visual memory was at their disposal, (2) visual memory and either "some" letter-sound knowledge or "some" semantic information was available, and (3) visual memory,…

Several research articles published in the realm of Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) have reported evidence of the benefits of multimodal annotations, i.e. the provision of pictorial as well as verbal clarifications, for vocabulary uptake from reading. Almost invariably, these publications account for the observed benefits with reference…

Exploring the ways to develop a comprehensive learner-friendly telecollaborative model of learning led to the introduction of nonlinear dynamic motivation-oriented model. To foster self-regulated learner autonomy, the model aims at recruiting the potential behind formulaic sequences for L2 comprehension-production in response to immediate…

This study aims to examine refusal strategies of Turkish learners of English and explore their perceptions of social factors that are influential in their strategy use. The study was conducted at a private university in the west of Turkey, and eighty Turkish L2 learners enrolled at an English language preparatory program participated in the study.…

This paper introduces a new captioning tool, Partial and Synchronized Caption with Hints (PSCH), as a means to facilitate second language (L2) listening by providing cues for ambiguous and difficult words/phrases in the caption while filtering out the easy words. Each word in the caption is synchronized to the corresponding audio to enable…

I examined the effectiveness of self-directed learning and English learning with computer applications on college students in Bangkok, Thailand, in a control-group experimental-group pretest-posttest design. The hypothesis was tested using a t test: two-sample assuming unequal variances to establish the significance of mean scores between the two…

Willingness to communicate (WTC) in a second language class has been shown to be transient and situation-dependent. Previous studies mostly elicited data from learners' self-reports through interviews or diaries, and the data analyses were largely confined to the medium of language, marginalizing other semiotic resources such as gesture or…

One avenue for developing second language (L2) vocabulary knowledge is through Extensive Reading (ER). ER can provide opportunities for incidental learning to occur. Class time is often too restricted for sufficient attention to deliberate learning (Hunt & Beglar, 2005) meaning ER is important for L2 vocabulary development. This article builds…