This qualitative study investigated older Russian immigrants' reasons for studying English, their learning strategies, and barriers to their progress. Ten men and women in their 60s and 70s were interviewed. Data were analyzed using the constant comparative method. Findings indicated that the participants' motivation for learning English was to…

In the quest for engaging, effective literacy instruction, the author argues that elementary reading instruction should balance systematic skills instruction with rich children's literacy experiences and opportunities to learn how to read and write. He posits that engaging and effective primary grades classrooms are very positive places where…

This paper reports the effect of continuous summative assessment on the behaviour and learning environment of students. Assessing the performance of students is considered to be the most important thing a teacher can do for their students and it can have a profound effect on their learning. Continuous summative assessment was introduced as a form…

This study investigated students' conceptions of constructivist learning activities in a problem-based learning (PBL) and a traditional curriculum. We examined whether students who have chosen for a problem-based curriculum have different conceptions of constructivist assumptions compared to students who have chosen to be enrolled in a…

Reducing absences and motivating learning--these are the two aims of the Motivational Strategies development programme at Ramiro Solans School in Zaragoza. Music and other art forms are the motive forces. Three years after its start, its achievements are impressive. (Contains 1 note.)

The use of music in facilitating second language (as well as first language) learning is supported by evidence that points to the musical nature of even preverbal infants. Music and language have been found to develop similarly, and researchers have noted advantages to using song in learning. The author observed her Korean 21-month-old for …

One need not visit many classes to discover some students not sufficiently energized to do the work necessary to learn. Many of these same students, however, immerse themselves in complex computerized mystery/adventure games, becoming so engaged by the experience they lose track of time. Designers invest much of their energy in trying to figure…

Adolescents often pursue learning opportunities both in and outside school once they become interested in a topic. In this paper, a learning ecology framework and an associated empirical research agenda are described. This framework highlights the need to better understand how learning outside school relates to learning within schools or other…

This qualitative study analyzed the English language learning difficulties of 13 purposively chosen Korean students relative to their sociolinguistic competence, motivation in using the English language, and cultural factors. Interview responses were transcribed, categorized and thematised according to saliency, meaning and homogeneity. The…

This article reports the results of a preliminary study that applied a randomized posttest-only design to evaluate the effectiveness of a literacy curriculum that incorporated explicit opportunities for Spanish-speaking Head Start preschool children (N = 76) to develop writing abilities in English. The study also addressed English language…

A qualitative, ethnographic investigation of a Canadian, undergraduate, advanced Hebrew course composed of heritage language learners of diverse backgrounds examined the fluctuating notion of the target language (TL) community in second language teaching. Data collection techniques of participant observation, in-depth, semi-structured focus group…

The aim of the paper is to integrate notions of the improvement of student learning through a focus on the concept of engagement, and adds to that broader discussion through a recent empirical study of the perceptions of students gathered through a case study in a UK university. It is proposed that student engagement lies on a continuum from…

This study investigated the relationship between attitudinal/motivational factors and English second language proficiency among student teachers. Subjects were 198 full-time, first-year teacher trainees in a Hong Kong college of education, of traditional college age and enrolled in both 2- and 3-year English-medium and Chinese-medium instructional…

The possibility of gender-related differences in student motivation throughout their schooling was investigated in this study. Subjects were 538 elementary-school students, 1,519 high-school students, and 2,434 junior-college students from the Montreal (Quebec, Canada) area. The Adolescents Academic Motivation Scale was administered to assess…

This paper examines mastery motivation in infants from birth to 3 years of age and outlines critical areas for parent and teacher involvement in the development of motivation, including recommended activities at each level. It asserts that from birth, children have an innate desire to learn about their world, quickly learning that they can control…