Using qualitative and quantitative methodologies across 3 samples, the authors investigated the cross-cultural adjustment of Taiwanese students attending graduate school in the United States. First, interviews with 25 Taiwanese students regarding their experiences in the United States revealed themes of language barriers, confidence about speaking…

Since their initial publication in 1982, the ACTFL Guidelines and oral proficiency interview (OPI) have enjoyed widespread use by foreign language educators. They have also been the target of much criticism by researchers of second language acquisition and testing. Much of this criticism has focused on validity claims for the OPI. Other research…

The language in recent education policy equates academic achievement with reading proficiency for English language learners (ELLs). In response to federal and state accountability efforts focused on reading, California high schools began to substitute reading intervention programs for English language development (ELD) curricula and instruction.…

Listening comprehension is a difficult skill for foreign language learners to develop and for their teachers to assess. In designing suitable listening tests, teachers can provide various forms of support to reduce the demands of the task for the test takers. This study investigated the effects of four types of listening support: previewing the…

To tailor instruction to levels of learner proficiency in a domain in adaptive learning environments, rapid on-line methods of assessing learner knowledge and skills are required. Cognitive studies indicate that major factors in expert performance are organised structures in the person's knowledge base. Measuring different levels of acquisition of…

Receding languages in contact with an expanding language are susceptible to various forms of transfer, including covert transfer or negative borrowing, the elimination of features not shared by the expanding language. Retention of two Scottish Gaelic grammatical features with English parallels and of two grammatical features without English…

Any description of what it means to know a word in a foreign language is likely to include recognition of form, both how a word sounds when heard and what it looks like when written. However, tests of vocabulary knowledge focus almost exclusively on the written form of the word. We have little idea of learners' phonological vocabulary knowledge or…

Reports on current English language learning strategies used by Arabic-speaking English-majors enrolled at a University in Palestine. Results showed that gender and proficiency had no significant differences on the use of strategies. Recommends that more training should be given in using cognitive, memory and compensation strategies by embedding…

K-12 students with limited L2 proficiency who do not progress satisfactorily are often referred to special education and/or speech pathology services. Like the teachers who refer such students, the representatives of each service have a specific expertise (e.g., cognition) with little knowledge of the other types of proficiencies (e.g., L1…

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLBA) focused attention on the academic achievement of more than 5 million students with limited English proficiency. Obtaining valid test results for these students is challenging, given their language barriers. This testimony describes: (1) the extent to which these students are meeting annual academic…

The themes of adult learning, cross-cultural learning, and transformative learning are common to many continuing educators working at universities across Canada. In this essay, I narrate my experiences as a mature, adult learner returning to university. Following a literature review and discussion of methodology, I begin this autobiographical…

This study investigated the relation of teacher characteristics, including ratings of teacher quality, to classroom instructional variables and to bilingual students' literacy and oral language outcomes at the end of the kindergarten year. Teacher characteristics included observational measures of oral language proficiency, quality, and classroom…

This paper reports the results of 3 years of Chinese language instruction experience at the Rochester Chinese Institute. The author designed, implemented, and evaluated a comprehensive instructional curriculum in Chinese language for students aged 11-17 years. Students were first generation American Chinese children of Chinese interracial…

A review of ethnographic research investigated issues associated with regional or dialectal language use, particularly the use of African American Vernacular English (AAVE) in the special education classroom, and noted the implications for research and classroom practice. Research with speech/language pathologists is under way to develop a…

This volume of articles is a report from the national teacher in-service development program in teaching content through a foreign language at the Continuing Education Centre of the University of Jyvaskyla, Finland. This publication is mainly in English, because of the basic rationale of the Teaching Content through English (TCE) programme, and…