This article introduces the concept of "natural pedagogy" (NP) as a tool for envisioning and enacting second language learning and teaching. Currently popular in the social and cognitive sciences, NP theory holds that much adaptive human behavior is too complex and nontransparent to learn via observation, imitation, and trial-and-error…

Second language (SL) teacher educators tirelessly teach others how to teach. But how often do we actually define teaching? Without explicit definitional activity on this fundamental concept in second language teaching (SLT), it remains implicit and intuitive--the opposite of clear, productive understanding. I therefore explore the question,…

Sociocognitive theory views learning, including second language acquisition, as the progressive "alignment" of individuals vis-à-vis their ecosocial environments. In this article we first update sociocognitive theory in light of recent evolutionary/ecological research on learning/teaching: (a) Humans are evolutionarily "adapted to…

The culture concept has been severely criticized for its top-down nature in TESOL, leading arguably to its falling out of favor in the field. But what of the fact that people do "live culturally" (Ingold, 1994)? This article describes a case study of culture from the bottom up--culture as understood and enacted by its individual users.…

Introduces this special issue of the journal and discusses the notion of "post-process." Investigates four components of Trimbur's (1994) definition of post-process, reviews studies in first and second language writing/literacy research that have attempted to move beyond process pedagogy and theory, and concludes with a summative definition of…

Discusses three possible uses of the culture concept in the field of second language (L2) writing for the 21st century. Concludes by arguing for a view of second language writing that takes into account the full range of social and cultural contexts impacting L2 writing, rather than focusing narrowly on skills and processes of writing. (Author/VWL)