Bilingualism is often considered an inappropriate developmental choice for children with specific language impairment (SLI) because, according to a widespread belief, these children's limited capacity for language would be overtaxed by learning two linguistic systems. However, there has not been adequate empirical investigation of SLI in bilingual…

Conscious of the importance of enhancing semantics at higher levels, this paper proposes the use of componential analysis to increase students' awareness of different shades of meaning (Gairns & Redman 1986). First, it briefly reviews componential analysis theory, as well as its criticisms and possible applications. Then, with the help of the…

The greatest challenge inhibiting the ability of English-language learners (ELLs) to read at the appropriate grade level is perhaps a lack of sufficient vocabulary development. While extensive reading is beneficial, these students must acquire the necessary vocabulary in order to read extensively. Both vocabulary breadth and vocabulary depth are…

This study investigated the washback of the General English Proficiency Test on English learning in Taiwan. The research sites were the applied foreign language departments of a university of technology and an institute of technology. The latter required day-division students to pass the first stage of the test's intermediate level or the…

This article is about the benefits of self-assessment and its use in language education. The main focus is on "auto-evaluation" as a means of beginning class in an organized and motivating way. In contrast to "bell work" or other start-of-period activities on random topics, "auto-evaluation" involves asking questions that are closely tied to what…

This paper provides an overview of the challenges in learning a signed language as a second language, in particular for hearing parents with deaf children, and details an action research process that led to the design of a new curriculum for teaching Australian Sign Language (Auslan) to the families of deaf children. The curriculum was developed…

In a paired-associate learning (PAL) task, Dutch university students (n = 129) learned 20 English second language (L2) idioms either receptively or productively (i.e., L2-first language [L1] or L1-L2) and were tested in two directions (i.e., recognition or production) immediately after learning and 3 weeks later. Receptive and productive…

Recognizing the specific speech act ( Searle, 1969) that a speaker performs with an utterance is a fundamental feature of pragmatic competence. Past research has demonstrated that native speakers of English automatically recognize speech acts when they comprehend utterances (Holtgraves & Ashley, 2001). The present research examined whether this…

Ute Bohnacker's (2006) article on the acquisition of the verb second (V2) property in German by native speakers of Swedish (also a V2 language) is an attempted rebuttal of Hakansson et al.'s (2002) work on first language (L1) transfer and aspects of the underlying theory on which the work is based: Processability Theory (Pienemann, 1998). The…

Foreign language learners purportedly demonstrate intercultural communicative competence in native speaker (NS) chat rooms through self-initiated negotiation sequences, including those triggered by pragmatic issues and cultural content. This study identified and classified one-to-one NS-learner negotiations between intermediate learners and NS of…

Correction and repair as components of an instructional practice that facilitates learning have figured prominently in research on classroom-based second and foreign language learning. Recent studies incorporating a conversation analytic (CA) perspective on second language acquisition (SLA) have also focused on repair and correction. From a CA…

There is much evidence that, in general, learners' motivation to study declines as they move through school and that the causes are both developmental and environmental. By contrast, the attitudinal basis of language learning motivation has been regarded as relatively stable, though recent empirical studies in various countries have also pointed…

In this interview, Eve Wallwork, a junior at David W. Butler High School in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg (NC) School District, talks about her research project on the field of early language learning. Wallwork shares the most important findings of her research, the benefits of early language learning, and her plans in the future.

A key consideration in course planning and teaching is motivation, which is sometimes considered the single most important factor in the practical realisation of language teaching in the classroom. The motivation students have for attending recreational courses can be somewhat different from that of students in school and university programs.…

In 2005 the AFTMLA (Australian Federation of Modern Language Teachers Associations) developed its Professional Standards for Accomplished Teaching of Languages and Cultures. These were published in a special edition of "Babel" in February 2006. Among the recommendations contained in the document, there is a section headed Program…