-
Factors influencing EFL teachers’ provision of oral corrective feedback: the role of teaching experience Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2024-04-08 Adem Soruç, Dogan Yuksel, Jim McKinley, Trevor Grimshaw
This study highlights critical factors influencing English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers’ decisions to provide in-class oral corrective feedback (OCF). It explores the interplay between teac...
-
Taking communication to task once more – a further decade on Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2024-02-16 Martin East
Task-based language teaching (TBLT) emerged in the 1980s as a learner-centred and experiential alternative to more established and teacher-led approaches to acquiring an additional language (L2). T...
-
Embracing bilingualism: L1 retention amidst L2 acquisition Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2024-01-31 Anastasia Sorokina, Raymond Mugno
In L1 attrition research, it's recognized that a previously acquired language can transform under the influence of a newly acquired one. However, the precise L1-L2 relationship is intricate and war...
-
Formal and informal foreign language learning at university: blurring the boundaries Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2024-01-25 Jennifer Bruen, Iker Erdocia
This paper is concerned with the integration of informal language learning into university language modules in a foreign language environment. It begins by exploring the evolving nature of formal a...
-
L2 learners’ challenges in integrated writing tasks: implications for writing teachers and developers of diagnostic assessments Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2024-01-14 Faeze Safari, Alireza Ahmadi
Integrated writing tasks, which require students to incorporate information from multiple sources into their writing, are gaining attention in language assessment and writing instruction due to the...
-
‘Cold spots’ in language degree provision in England Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2024-01-15 Becky Muradás-Taylor, Philip Taylor
People have been raising the alarm about a language education crisis in the UK, particularly in England, for twenty years. Yet the crisis continues: the number of young people studying languages at...
-
Correction Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-12-25
Published in The Language Learning Journal (Ahead of Print, 2023)
-
Teaching sign language remotely in the COVID-19 pandemic Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-12-20 Rachel McKee, Sara Pivac Alexander
Like language teachers everywhere, Deaf teachers of New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) had to suddenly move classes online when COVID-19 restrictions were implemented from March 2020. NZSL is convent...
-
The effect of semantic and physical similarity on vocabulary learning Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-11-27 Nguyen Thien An Bach, Samuel Barclay
Choosing which words to teach is a key consideration for language teachers and materials writers. Some studies have shown that teaching words in semantically related clusters can make learning more...
-
Exploring self-regulated vocabulary learning strategies, proficiency, working memory and vocabulary learning through word-focused exercises Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-10-25 Mark Feng Teng
This study first validates a survey on self-regulated vocabulary learning strategies. It then examines the effects on the acquisition of new second language (L2) words from a reading text of three ...
-
Student perspectives on improvisation as a tool for developing interactional competence: the case of Polish secondary students learning French Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-10-22 Julia Lipińska
Improvisational theatre activities can be used as a tool for developing interactional competence in a language classroom. The unpredictable nature of improvisation resembles authentic communication...
-
Guest editorial: Emotion and creativity in language learning research and teaching Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-09-27 Simon Coffey, Peter De Costa
Published in The Language Learning Journal (Vol. 51, No. 5, 2023)
-
‘Transported into like another space’: second language learners’ perspectives of their experience of flow Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-09-20 Anamaria Bodea, Pavel Trofimovich
This study explored the notion of flow, which refers to a person’s sense of being completely absorbed in a task, as it applies to second language (L2) learning and use. Previously, flow has been ma...
-
Expressing emotions, discussing controversial issues: a pilot study focused on veganism Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-09-12 Fabienne Baider, Cristelle Cavalla
The role of emotions in learning has been the focus of much debate in teaching circles, as has the question of discussing controversial issues in the classroom. The aim of this small-scale inquiry ...
-
EFL novice teachers’ emotions and professional development Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-08-28 Marie-Claire Lemarchand-Chauvin
The first years of teaching are often described as ‘emotionally challenging’ by English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers in secondary schools in France because their professional identity and s...
-
Sparking the imagination: creative language pedagogies as intersemiotic translation Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-08-23 Simon Coffey, Daksha Patel
In this paper, we use the lens of embodied language cognition and intersemiosis to argue for the importance of developing creative approaches to language work in classroom settings and we cite as a...
-
Complexity and dynamicity of EFL learners’ multi-dimensional engagement in digital storytelling tasks: an exploratory case study Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-08-22 Hongying Peng, Sake Jager, Wander Lowie
ABSTRACT Digital storytelling (DS) has increasingly been incorporated as a pedagogical tool to engage EFL learners for active language learning. However, little is known about how EFL learners make self-initiated use of multifarious resources available to them for engaging in the DS practice behaviourally, cognitively, affectively and socially. This 10-month-long study, informed by a dynamic and holistic
-
Emotions as entanglements: unpacking teachers’ emotion management and policy negotiation in English-medium instruction programmes Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-08-08 Pramod K. Sah
There is a dearth of knowledge on the emotional challenges content-area teachers in English-medium instruction (EMI) programmes face, and how they manage their emotions in their efforts to negotiat...
-
Probing pre-service language teachers’ emotional experiences through lesson study: a Macau study Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-08-04 Shuwen Liu, Rui (Eric) Yuan
The present study investigates the emotional experiences of seven student teachers through the process of lesson study in a pre-service language teacher education course at a university in Macau. D...
-
‘I feel unbalanced’: bridging emotions, creativity, and translingual pedagogy with EMI students Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-07-31 Sara Hillman
Recent research on stakeholders’ emotions in English-medium instruction (EMI) higher education settings has demonstrated the importance of engaging students with their emotions about the impact of ...
-
Incorporating teacher emotions and identity in teacher education practices: affordances of critical autoethnographic narrative Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-07-29 Bedrettin Yazan
Recent research has studied teacher emotions vis-à-vis teachers’ learning, practice, and identity development and called for teacher-learning practices to include an intentional focus on emotions. ...
-
Guest editorial: digital language learning and teaching: practices and perspectives Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-07-24 Walaa El-Henawy, Maria-del-Mar Suárez
Published in The Language Learning Journal (Vol. 51, No. 4, 2023)
-
A mixed-method analysis of self-efficacy for speaking with university EFL learners Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-07-17 Jonathan Phipps
ABSTRACT This study explores speaking self-efficacy for university EFL students in Japan. The primary objectives of the study were to analyse the growth of self-efficacy over time, potential differences between male and female students, and the relationship between self-efficacy, casual attribution, and outcome satisfaction. While several studies have shown a correlation between self-efficacy and achievement
-
Complexity, accuracy, and fluency improvements through massively multiplayer online gaming: a longitudinal mixed-methods case study Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-07-11 Nasser Jabbari, Mark Peterson
ABSTRACT Many English as a foreign language (EFL) learners worldwide spend hours playing commercial-off-the-shelf massively multiplayer online games. They engage in a multitude of different interactions with the game environment and possibly with other gamers, using English as the predominant medium of communication. This raises the question of whether playing such games improves these learners’/gamers’
-
Virtual exchanges as authentic scenarios for integrating a plurilingual perspective into EFL teaching and learning Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-06-30 Euline Cutrim Schmid, Anita Cvetkovic Kienle, Hilal Şahin
ABSTRACT The article presents research findings on the professional growth of three in-service EFL teachers from Germany who took part in a teacher education programme centred on technology-mediated plurilingual education. The study investigated how the programme influenced the development of the teachers’ pedagogical and digital skills in creating and executing plurilingual-inspired virtual exchanges
-
‘Ok I think I was totally wrong:) new try!’: language learning in WhatsApp through the provision of delayed corrective feedback provided during and after task performance Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-06-22 Bridget Murphy, Jessica Mackay, Elsa Tragant
ABSTRACT Given the prominence of online teaching over the last few years, mobile instant messaging (MIM) has grown in importance for students studying English outside of class. Applications like WhatsApp have the potential to provide language learners the opportunity to practise communicative strategies while receiving feedback from a teacher. To explore feedback provision in a MIM context, the present
-
The effects of text-based and audio-based dynamic glosses on L2 vocabulary learning: a dynamic assessment approach Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-06-13 Ehsan Rassaei
ABSTRACT The present study investigated the effects of text-based and audio-based dynamic glosses on L2 vocabulary learning within a sociocultural approach. Dynamic glosses were operationalised as a set of incrementally ordered prompts, provided during text-based and audio-based interactions that guided the participants to identify the meaning of unknown vocabulary. Fifty-seven EFL learners were assigned
-
Learning English vocabulary through playing games: the gamification design of vocabulary learning applications and learner evaluations Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-06-08 Ya Gao, Lin Pan
ABSTRACT Mobile-assisted language learning is a growing feature of contemporary language learning, and their distinct gamification design produces new and increasingly popular contexts for language learning. This paper explores the gamification features of the two most popular EFL vocabulary learning applications widely used by Asian learners – BaiCiZhan and Perfect Lingo. Their gamified designs are
-
Do young EFL learners benefit from task repetition? Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-06-05 Ali Aaj, Parviz Maftoon, Masood Siyyari
ABSTRACT Previous research has shown that task repetition can positively affect L2 oral performance. However, few studies have explored the effects of task repetition on young EFL learners’ production. Also, task repetition research has paid little attention to effects of spacing examined through longer time intervals between the two occasions of task performance. Therefore, this study investigated
-
Using eye-tracking to measure cognitive engagement with feedback in a digital literacy game Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-06-05 Matthew Pattemore, Roger Gilabert
ABSTRACT This study investigates the provision of two types of auditory elaborative automated digital feedback (metalinguistic and informational) in the context of a digital game for reading skills development in English as a foreign language. Nineteen 11-year-old Spanish-Catalan school children played through two digital minigames while their eye-movements were tracked. When they made an error, they
-
The role of automatised and non-automatised explicit knowledge in general L2 proficiency Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-06-05 Miki Satori
ABSTRACT This study examines the knowledge representation of Japanese university students assessed using grammaticality judgement tests (GJTs) and a metalinguistic knowledge test (MKT). The study also investigates the role of automatised and non-automatised explicit knowledge in general L2 language proficiency. Participants were 87 late learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) who completed
-
Coming out of the shadows: investing in English private tutoring at a transition point in Kazakhstan’s education system during the global pandemic Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-05-29 Anas Hajar, Mehmet Karakus
ABSTRACT Unequal access to language learning resources has been exacerbated by the global expansion of English private tutoring (EPT). Despite its popularity, no study has examined the implications of EPT during the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, this mixed-methods study explored the nature and effectiveness of EPT that first-year Kazakhstani undergraduate students had experienced over the previous
-
Unpacking the effects of different lengths of pre-task planning time: L2 writing outcomes and learners’ perceptions Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-05-29 Mahmoud Abdi Tabari
ABSTRACT Despite extensive research on task planning in L2 writing contexts, the optimal length of pre-task planning time remains uncertain due to varying lengths used in TBLT studies. This study aimed to address this gap by investigating the effects of different pre-task planning times (nil, 5, 10, and 15 minutes) on the argumentative writing task performance of 80 L2 learners. Additionally, the study
-
Text classification and gradation in Arabic textbooks Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-05-26 Salwa Mohamed
ABSTRACT Text classification and text gradation are important for language teachers. Profiling and readability studies examine textual and linguistic features that determine text difficulty. Arabic, as an under-resourced language, suffers from a lack of such studies which results in material developers and textbook writers relying on their intuitions and experiences in selecting appropriate texts.
-
The effects of binge-watching and spacing on learning L2 multi-word units from captioned TV series Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-05-17 Anastasia Pattemore, Carmen Muñoz
ABSTRACT The present study explores the effects of distributed practice by extending this area of research to L2 learning from audiovisual input. A total of 96 L1 Russian elementary to advanced learners of English watched five episodes of captioned TV series under three viewing distribution conditions: longer spacing of viewing once per week; shorter spacing of viewing once per day; and massed binge-watching
-
High dropout rates in secondary Chinese courses: are characters to be blamed? Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-05-16 Tereza Švarcová
ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to explore the reasons for low retention rates among students in the Chinese classes in upper secondary education in the Czech Republic. The principal research question was whether Chinese characters were the main reason why many students decided to stop attending their Chinese classes. Semi-structured interviews with former and present secondary students of Chinese
-
Language teacher preparation, induction and retention: unpacking two decades of research Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-04-08 Tziona Levi, Julia Schlam Salman, Lily Orland Barak
ABSTRACT Lnd multilingual backgrounds. This also generally characterises preparation programmes that have been developed to prepare elementary and secondary school language teachers for increasingly globalised, pluralistic, interconnected classrooms. Despite variations, there is value in attempting to identify common denominators in research related to the preparation of such teachers. This paper surveys
-
Task-related collaborative behaviours in task-based oral peer interactions Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-04-08 Kadriye Aksoy-Pekacar
ABSTRACT Collaboration in peer interaction has been investigated extensively by analysing language-related episodes (LREs). These have been classified variously depending on the nature of the discourse. Most studies of collaboration in peer interaction have thus tended to adopt a predetermined framework for analysis. Meanwhile, task type as a mediating factor has been widely examined by identifying
-
‘Solve the crossword’: an analysis of task design in EFL materials from a vocabulary perspective Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-04-05 Denise Bergström
ABSTRACT Learning vocabulary is a central and time-consuming endeavour for a language learner and it has thus been suggested that the foreign language classroom has to supply explicit support for students’ vocabulary development. A major source of explicit word focus is vocabulary exercises in teaching materials and students’ learning can be facilitated if they are designed in a way that is conducive
-
Comparing L2 learning outcomes in traditional and English as a lingua franca study abroad contexts Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-03-30 Judith Borràs
ABSTRACT The number of students embarking on a study abroad experience continues to grow steadily. A new setting for study abroad in English has developed recently where students may be studying in an environment where English is used as a lingua franca but is not an official language of the country. This setting is referred to as English as a lingua franca study abroad or ELFSA (Köylü 2016 Köylü,
-
Requesting clarifications for the meanings of L2 vocabulary items and the emergence of situated cognition and learning Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-03-26 Tuncay Koç
ABSTRACT Researchers and practitioners have long been interested in the role of learner agency in the emergence of learning opportunities. However, despite the growing number of studies, few of them have empirically been able to demonstrate how such moments can create learning opportunities. Based on 12 hours of videotaped data, this study describes the nature of learner initiatives in L2 oral communication
-
Digital plurilingual pedagogies in foreign language classes: empowering language learners to speak in the target language Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-02-24 Angelica Galante, L. F. Zeaiter, J.W.N. dela Cruz, N. Massoud, L. Lee, J. Aronson, D. S. A. de Oliveira, J. A. Teodoro-Torres
ABSTRACT While studies have shown benefits of plurilingual pedagogies on students’ experiences learning languages, more research is needed to examine how these pedagogies can be enacted in foreign language programmes in digital environments. Moreover, prioritising oral engagement has been an urgent need among teachers who use synchronous platforms such as Zoom to teach languages. This article reports
-
Special issue: new horizons in emotional literacy in traditional and virtual language learning classes Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2023-01-24 Parisa Abdolrezapour, Mariusz Kruk, Nasim Ghanbari
Published in The Language Learning Journal (Vol. 51, No. 1, 2023)
-
New landscapes in higher education: audio description as a multilayered task in FL teaching Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-12-28 Lucía Pintado Gutiérrez, Gloria Torralba
ABSTRACT Today, higher education (HE) faces new challenges, such as incorporating consideration of diversity and inclusion into its operations. Such challenges, many of which are part of strategic institutional plans, offer teachers an opportunity to introduce new practices in the classroom. In this paper, we look at introducing language students to the task of audio description (AD) – that is, making
-
Collaborative writing among young EFL learners in a school context: product and process Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-12-16 Amparo Lázaro-Ibarrola, María Ángeles Hidalgo
The recent surge in studies on collaborative writing (CW) has provided valuable insights into the product and process of writing. When writing together, adults tend to produce better texts and gene...
-
Correction Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-12-07
Published in The Language Learning Journal (Vol. 52, No. 1, 2024)
-
Reimagining the concept of differentiation in languages classrooms Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-10-14 Tanya Riordan, Anne Convery
The aim of the research project was to consider whether theoretical underpinnings of the concept of differentiation would help a group of modern languages student teachers develop their understandi...
-
Friends as mediators in study abroad contexts in Japan: negotiating stereotypical discourses about Japanese culture Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-09-18 Barbara Pizziconi, Noriko Iwasaki
ABSTRACT Upon encountering unfamiliar words or observing local practices in study abroad contexts, second language learners may discuss aspects of the target language and culture with their peers – 'non-native' friends from the same cultural background or 'natives' of the target culture. Such mediations are instrumental in elaborating understandings, but are naturally conditioned by the participants’
-
Friends as mediators in study abroad contexts in Japan: negotiating stereotypical discourses about Japanese culture Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-09-18 Barbara Pizziconi, Noriko Iwasaki
Upon encountering unfamiliar words or observing local practices in study abroad contexts, second language learners may discuss aspects of the target language and culture with their peers – 'non-nat...
-
The effects of recasts on L2 grammar: a meta-analysis Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-08-18 Ehsan Rassaei
ABSTRACT The present meta-analysis investigated the effects of recasts along with a number of moderating variables on L2 development by meta-analysing the results of 24 primary studies. The findings revealed an overall medium effect size for the effectiveness of recasts (g = 0.70, 95% CI = 0.48-0.93). Furthermore, the findings indicated that recasts are equally effective for the development of L2 explicit
-
Teaching young adult literature in secondary L2 classrooms: a case study of The Outsiders reading programme Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-08-19 Xiaomei Sun
Despite the difficulty of defining young adult literature (YAL), the benefits of it have been well recognised for adolescent learners. With the aim of exploring pedagogical approaches to L2 literat...
-
Levels of foreign language enjoyment, anxiety and boredom in emergency remote teaching and in in-person classes Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-08-16 Jean-Marc Dewaele, Alfaf Albakistani, Iman Kamal Ahmed
The present mixed-method study focuses on levels of foreign language enjoyment (FLE), foreign language classroom anxiety (FLCA) and foreign language boredom (FLB) among 168 Arab and Kurdish English...
-
Investigating cohort effects of early foreign language learning Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-08-11 Nils Jaekel, Michael Schurig, Markus Ritter
With the rapid implementation of early foreign language programmes in the state of North-Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, first for Grade 3 (ages 8–9 years) in 2003 and then from Grade 1 (ages 6–7 years)...
-
Narratives of race and identity in English language teaching Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-08-11 Christopher Gras
The continued spread of Western ideology, English as a lingua franca, and the myth of the native speaker all play a role in the racialisation of language teaching (Phillipson, R. 1992. Linguistic I...
-
Guest editorial: learning and teaching second language pragmatics: setting the scene Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-08-05 Nicola Halenko, Jiayi Wang
Published in The Language Learning Journal (Vol. 50, No. 4, 2022)
-
‘Why did you do that?’ The effects of instruction on recognition and production of informal second party complaints Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-07-19 Ziad Almalki, Christian Jones
ABSTRACT There have been a number of studies on the use of complaints as a speech act. The majority of these studies have included analysis of how different first language speakers make complaints while only a limited number of studies have examined the effects of instruction on the development of complaints as a speech act. Those that have examined this area have tended to focus on oral complaints
-
Exploring the potential of graphic novels for L2 pragmatic teaching and learning – focus on young learners Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-07-05 Gila A. Schauer
ABSTRACT To date very little research is available that focuses on L2 pragmatics and young learners [cf. Schauer, G.A. 2022a. Teaching pragmatics to young learners: a review study. Applied Pragmatics. DOI:10.1075/ap.00006.sch]. Recent studies have shown that textbooks for young learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) vary considerably regarding their pragmatic content and frequently do not
-
Corpus-informed instruction of the pragmatic marker I mean Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-07-04 Marcella Caprario, Naoko Taguchi, Randi Reppen
ABSTRACT Pragmatic markers perform important communicative functions, but they can be difficult to learn in a second language because of their multifunctionality and lack of salience during communicative events. This study has two goals: (1) to describe the communicative functions of the pragmatic marker I mean in academic discourse; and (2) to provide instructional activities for teaching the multiple
-
‘Thank you for the music’: examining how songs can promote vocabulary learning in an EFL class Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-06-29 Paola Mannarelli, Raquel Serrano
ABSTRACT Pop songs have been claimed to provide a noteworthy source of second language (L2) input. While listening to songs in English is one of the most commonly reported out-of-class activities among EFL learners, little research exists as to how different teaching approaches to the use of songs in the EFL class can enhance students’ vocabulary learning. The present study aims to investigate two
-
‘Thank you for the music’: examining how songs can promote vocabulary learning in an EFL class Language Learning Journal Pub Date : 2022-06-29 Paola Mannarelli, Raquel Serrano
Pop songs have been claimed to provide a noteworthy source of second language (L2) input. While listening to songs in English is one of the most commonly reported out-of-class activities among EFL ...