This study examines the motivational pattern in relation to the anxiety of Chinese learners of English. Based on a survey consisting of an anxiety questionnaire and a motivation questionnaire, the findings revealed an unbalanced pattern of two types of motivation clusters that resembled the integrative-instrumental duality, with the level of…

This study investigates the relationship between first language (Arabic) proficiency and second language (English) performance in the writing skills of Jordanian bilingual second secondary school students. Despite the linguistic distance between English and Arabic, it is postulated that Arabic writing skills can be transferred positively to the…

This study investigated the transfer of reading attitudes from L1 to L2, drawing on the linguistic threshold hypothesis. Participants were Japanese university-level EFL students. Their L1 and L2 reading attitudes were estimated using a Likert scale, and their L2 proficiency was measured using a test. The study found that the students' L1 and L2…

In the past decade, Harrisonburg, Virginia, has become a magnet for immigrant families drawn to jobs in the poultry and construction industries. More than 1,600 of the school district's 4,400 students are English-learners. The largest group of newcomers are Latinos, followed by Kurdish and Russian refugees. In this article, the author discusses a…

Three influences on second language learning, one individual (intelligence) and two sociocultural (social class and social context) are discussed. All three factors are seen as difficult to measure and resistant to change through deliberate educational policy action. Each is defined, particularly in relation to the language learning situation.…

Although it takes only 2 years to attain conversational competence in a second language, it takes up to 7 years to realize sufficient language competence to achieve academically at the level of native speakers. Specific adaptations in instructional methods in mathematics for language minority students should include techniques from English as a…

Telecommunicated learning has been available since the 1930s, with the use of radio for instruction. Research has been conducted on its effectiveness, but little that focuses on the specifics of language learning. In the past two decades, language telecourses have proliferated and are used widely for adult education. This article reports on the…

In parts of rural New Brunswick (Canada) a milder form of French immersion instruction was developed in the late 1970s. It is called "Extended Core French" or "Single Subject Immersion, grades 7-12." Twenty to 30 percent of students in these programs can reach the oral proficiency level achieved by Early Immersion Students.…

The Arabic language examination was designed for Jewish immigrants from Syria wishing to satisfy New York State language requirements for high school graduation by indicating their proficiency in Arabic. The test is essentially a translation of a state test of Hebrew, and is intended to test Arabic at the third-year high school level. The…

In 1989, the Southern Conference on Language Teaching (SCOLT) celebrated its silver anniversary at a conference designed to provide participants with an opportunity both to reflect on the past and to look at the future of foreign language teaching and of SCOLT in the light of a quarter century of experience. Seven of the papers in this volume were…

This report presents results of a fall 1993 survey of 164 adult education agencies in California concerning their placement procedures for English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students. The survey had two purposes. First, the information gathered by a questionnaire (appended) was to provide the California department of education with a profile of…

This digest focuses on the use of children's literature in adult English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) instruction. Because high quality children's literature is characterized by an economy of words, stunning illustrations, captivating and quickly moving plots, and universal themes, carefully chosen books can offer educational benefits for adult ESL…

This paper synthesizes ideas from the fields of graphical modeling and education testing, particularly item response theory (IRT) applied to computerized adaptive testing (CAT). Graphical modeling can offer IRT a language for describing multifaceted skills and knowledge, and disentangling evidence from complex performances. IRT-CAT can offer…

The guide provides information on 28 public foreign language examinations offered by 14 organizations in the United Kingdom. The information is intended for use in selecting examinations for certifying language skills for employment purposes. Each listing notes the language exams offered, the aims of the test, levels of difficulty, intended age…

A study used causal modeling to examine how second-grade students' language ability interacted with two characteristics of a teacher's language during naturalistic expository instruction to explain students' attention to and learning from a science lesson. Subjects, 120 students from 13 suburban classrooms, working with an instructor in groups of…