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This study investigated Thai EFL learners’ acquisition of English dative constructions, i.e., Prepositional Dative (PD) and Double Object (DO) constructions employing Radford’s (2004) Minimalist accounts as a framework and Acceptability Judgment as a task. Two hypotheses were formulated. Firstly, the English PD would be accepted more readily than the English DO, due to the availability of PDs in both languages and the absence of DOs, by English standards, in Thai. Secondly, if there was L1 transfer, English counterparts of Thai DO and Thai Serial Verb constructions (SVC) would be initially accepted at a greater rate than English DOs. At later stages, given access to UG and adequate L2 input, the English DO would be accepted more significantly than the Thai DO and Thai SVC. Participants consisted of three groups of Thai EFL learners (beginning, intermediate, and upper intermediate). Results largely confirm both hypotheses. Particularly, Thai DOs and SVCs were rejected substantially from the intermediate learners onwards. This shows that the initial transfer of Thai DO and SVCs did not occur. Therefore, this study does not support Full Transfer at the initial stage (contra Schwartz & Sprouse, 1996). This study suggests L2 learners’ indecision on the target L2 structure at the early stage and progress to attainment at later stages, in line with Wakabayashi’s Lexical Learning and Lexical Transfer hypothesis (2009), and accessibility to UG at large. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This case study follows seven learners of English as a Second Language for 17 years and looks into the acquisition of motion lexicalization patterns in English, specifically the path component as explained by Talmy (2000) and Slobin (1987, 2004, 2017). The data suggest that advanced Spanish learners of English benefitting from both instructed and naturalistic acquisition show an unawareness of differences in the conceptualization of motion in the L2 (Jarvis & Pavlenko 2008). And as a consequence, learners may not develop common L2 lexicalization patterns of motion - reflected in their interlanguage - but can also curtail further advancement as fossilization may set in prematurely. This study posits that awareness of conceptual differences between languages can lead to more progress and proficiency in late advanced learners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Migration to a foreign country can be a complex process involving the adjustment to a new culture and the acquisition of a second language (L2). Acculturation, the process by which an individual integrates their native values and behaviours with those of the host culture, is an integral part of this process. It has been suggested that the choice of acculturation strategy can either facilitate or hinder L2 acquisition (Schumann, 1986; Berry, 1997). Pronunciation is a vital aspect of L2 proficiency and is often seen as mediating an individual's identity in the host culture (Piske et al., 2001). This study focuses on the pronunciation patterns of ten adult Polish immigrants living in Welshpool, Wales, and attempts to examine the potential relationship between a chosen acculturation strategy (adaptation or preservation) and the use of rhoticity in English. Rhoticity, a salient feature of British English pronunciation that varies in use and quality depending on the region (Wells, 1982), has been previously studied in relation to the use of rhoticity by Polish speakers (Jaworski, 2010; Jaworski & Gillian, 2011; Stolarski, 2013, 2015; Zając, 2016; Rojczyk & Zając, 2017; Matysiak, 2020), with a notable emphasis on the use of taps in intervocalic and post-vocalic positions. The present study found some inconsistencies in the use of rhoticity in English. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is an exploratory qualitative study of the acquisition of Moroccan Arabic by four illegal transit migrants in Rabat. These migrants come from Senegal, Congo, Cameroon and Ghana. They speak different mother tongues but three of them speak French as a second language while the Ghanaian speaks English. The paper tries to focus on the micro level of individual experiences as well as on the meso level of migrant organizations and the macro level of language ideologies. The informants have been found to draw on various linguistic and nonlinguistic resources to achieve understanding of the multilingual sociolinguistic situation of the host society and to try to establish communication with its members. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silence in the English language classroom is a common problem faced by language instructors, especially for students in the lower proficiency classes and instructors see language anxiety as one of the main reasons this is so. The intervention of educational entertainment or Edutainment in the English Language classroom is important to improve the language learning experience of this generation of millennial students. This paper looks at Films to provide not only language learning enjoyment but useful input to students of the lowest level English course at UUM. In this research, intervention in the form of film viewing and activities related to the films was carried out. A class of twenty students from a first level English class were given six movies of their choice to watch and conduct activities with in addition to the normal course scheme of work. Through film viewing and activities, students were exposed to language use in context which is supported by visual and linguistic support and storyline. Before and after the intervention, The Personal Report of Communication Apprehension (PRCA- 24) instrument which measures levels of Communication Apprehension was administered. The results of the study shows that students indicated lower communication apprehension levels overall and within the subcategories of group discussion, meetings, interpersonal communication and public speaking. Students’ reflections were also positive in nature. The findings of this study concur that language acquisition takes place meaningfully through films by providing comprehensible input and that films are an important medium that facilitate communication and language learning for this generationof students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to see how an Indonesian studying in the U.S. uses English tense and aspects to produce meaning oral narrative discourses. The Indonesian’s verbatim of narrative discourse is compared to that of a Minnesota-born English speaker studying in a university in the midwestern of the United States. The audio-recorded narrative discourses are transcribed, then foregrounding and backgrounding clauses of each participant’s oral narrative discourse are analyzed to count the number of verbs produced by each participant. The verbs are categorized into past verbs (simple, progressive, pluperfect) and non-past verbs (base forms, present tense, present progressive, present perfect). By analyzing the morphology distribution, the researcher recorded that the Minnesotan participant used past tense more frequently in foregrounding and backgrounding clauses in both narrative tasks, while the Indonesian used more temporal adverbs than that of the Minnesotan.

The past two decades have seen a growing interest in the role of humor and play in second- language (L2) learning and teaching. Vega (1990) went as far as to propose viewing humor as a fifth element of communicative competence; more recently, Cook (2000) has argued that language play should be regarded as “both a means and an end of language learning” (p. 204). Teachers have, in fact, long been advised to introduce elements of humor and play into the language classroom (e.g., Holmes, 1980; Schmitz, 2002; Trachtenberg 1979). However, as Bell (2009, 2011, 2013) has pointed out, such recommendations have largely been based on assumptions and intuitions rather than empirical research. Studies of specific pedagogical interventions have generally been lacking (Bell, 2013).

Attempting to consider an SLA issues on vocabulary acquisition in middle school level, this article aimed to investigate the difference in score on vocabulary test of experimental and control group; and to find the effect size of the narrow reading integrated to West’s GSL intervention on students’ English language acquisition. Forty-five middle school students in two classes were assigned in two groups, with 22 students in the experimental group and 23 students in the control group. In addition to a traditional curriculum for both groups, a five-meeting narrow reading on narrative text, fable, which was integrated to West’s GSL was conducted for the experimental group by encouraging students to read using L1 gloss which was derived from GSL, consulting different meaning in some multi-definition content words and discussing on vocabulary exercise. In contrast, the control group did not engage in any narrow reading program but a general English course. A pretest and posttest of both groups were employed to collect data. The findings of the study showed that the intervention has a large effect size on student’s SLA. The experimental group exhibited significantly better reading comprehension, acquired new vocabulary and word knowledge than the control group. Therefore, applying narrow reading integrated to West’s GSL into EFL class helps improve students’ word knowledge in terms of recognizing word meaning, identifying part of speech and producing a sentence.

Research on the acquisition of L2 phonology in sequential language learners has stressed the importance of language use and input as a means to accurate production and perception; however, the two constructs are difficult to evaluate and control. This study focuses on the role of language use during the initial stages of development of phonetic categories related to stop voicing and analyzes the relationship between production and perception. Native English-speaking late learners of Spanish provided production/perception data on a weekly basis throughout the course of a seven-week immersion program in which L1 use was prohibited. The production/perception data were analyzed using generalized linear mixed effects models. Generalized additive mixed models were used to analyze and compare the learning trajectories of each modality. The analyses revealed phonetic learning in both production and perception over the course of the program. Perception gains paralleled those of native bilinguals by the conclusion of the program and preceded production gains. This study is novel in that it provides production/perception data in a semi-longitudinal design. Moreover, the beginning adult learners are examined in a learning context in which L1 use was minimal and L2 input was maximized. Taken together, the experiments suggest that L2 phonetic category formation can occur abruptly, at an early stage of development, is perceptually driven, and appears to be particularly fragile during the initial stages of learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the development of Japanese women's identities in the context of the accomplishment of agency in the field of foreign language study. In order to situate the identity within the feminist poststructuralist theory and SLA (second language learning) practice, the paper addresses Chris Weedon's and Bonny Norton's reconceptualizations of subjectivity as nonunitary. By doing so, the subjectivity is further analyzed in relation to the learners' 'investment' in learning a foreign language, to explain the very process of subject formation. Through the analysis of the interviews with young and financially accomplished Japanese women, it can be understood that their subjectivities appear to be regulated by their commitment and desire for the English language and not solely Occidentalist longings. Therefore, this paper tries to pinpoint the trajectory of transnational Japanese women's identity development and answer the question of what SLA situations and implications cause their identities to be interpreted in the context of struggle, or contestation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of ‘Extensive Reading’ has gained recognition for last 20 years. Many researchers have researched the importance and advantages of reading extensively in ESL and EFL Contexts. English enjoys the status of ESL in elite schools of Pakistan; however, the implication of second language acquisition is quite vague and unclear. Though these schools focus on English language since the foundation level, a majority of students are never able to write immaculate scripts or speak well. To hone their all four skills in English language, it is important that they acquire it rather than learning it. For the acquisition of English language the role of input cannot be neglected. Reading is one of the input skills without which the acquisition of language is almost impossible. The current study highlighted the importance a specific way of reading such as ‘extensive reading’ in the process of acquisition of English in Pakistani settings. The target population was all private low fee schools of Lahore. The sample was 120 students. Intact groups were used in the current study. The study was quasi experimental in nature and pretest posttest control group design. The Cambridge KEY for schools (sample test) was the instrument. Reading is a complex skill in second language which enhances vocabulary, knowledge of semantics and understanding. Through a systematic reading learners gain a large amount of vocabulary. Reading was another independent variable in this research. Students were given the exposure towards extensive reading materials in form of short stories with and without illustrations. This was manipulated in form of excessive amount of input. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The way we ask for something, or request, is hardly the same across all contexts. The degree to which we show politeness in these instances is closely related to a number of contextual factors (Brown & Levinson, 1987), manifested in the linguistic features that we employ (Blum-Kulka, House & Kasper, 1989; Searle, 1975). However, the issue becomes particularly thorny when evaluating perceived pragmatic transgressions among English language learners (ELLs). Is the issue their misunderstanding of social expectations (i.e., sociopragmatic) or the language used (i.e., pragmalinguistic)? Past research in second language assessment (SLA) has focused on how learners develop the ability to perform requests (e.g., Kasper & Rose, 2002). However, what has been left under-addressed is the emergent ability among ELLs to request in a manner considered polite and contextually appropriate. With that issue in mind, this article reviews the literature on second language (L2) developmental patterns in the performance of requests with an eye for evidence of emergent awareness of politeness. The article begins with a discussion of the theoretical and empirical foundations for this question then proceeds into a review of studies among ELLs at three different proficiency levels, concluding with a discussion of the implications that this research has for language teaching and testing.

If one has to use a catchy word to capture the connection between the field of Second Language Acquisition (SLA) and Language Teaching (LT), the word “task” would be most likely to jump to mind. Since its initial proposals in the late 1980s, the concept has now blossomed into a distinct field of research, Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT), which is often deemed to be a researched pedagogy that bridges a gap between SLA research and LT. Much of the development in TBLT is due to scholarly presentations and publications, particularly those by Long (1985, 2015), Skehan (1998), and Robinson (2001, 2011), among many others. The book Domains and Directions in the Development of TBLT is a comprehensive collection of selected plenary speeches delivered at biennial international conferences on TBLT from 2005 to 2013. Martin Bygate, editor of the book, introduces the book by highlighting the pivotal role of tasks and the research and educational relevance of TBLT, echoed throughout the entire book.

Since its inception in the late 1960’s, the field of Second Language Acquisition (SLA) has undergone many transformations. As pre-existing theories have been expanded upon and new theories introduced, researchers and practitioners have come to a deeper understanding of the second language (L2) learning process. The past two decades, in particular, have seen a shift in the way that L2 learning is conceived. Ever since Diane Larsen-Freeman published her seminal article on complex systems and L2 development (Larsen-Freeman, 1997), the theory known as Complex Dynamic Systems Theory (CDST) has brought a new orientation into SLA discourse. Since then, researchers have transferred their attention from acquisition to development, linearity to nonlinearity, and stability to variability. It is this shift that provides the impetus for this special issue of the Teachers College Working Papers in TESOL and Applied Linguistics. In this issue, four studies apply CDST concepts and various methods of data analysis to a single, naturalistic dataset, which consists of an asynchronous, dyadic written e-mail interaction between a native speaker (NS) and non-native speaker (NNS) of English. The findings within the different studies are varied and together provide a complex, yet not entirely complete, view of intercultural interaction and developing interlanguage as dynamic systems. This introduction will provide some historical background for CDST, followed by a discussion of the characteristics of dynamic systems. Prior empirical research within the CDST framework will also be discussed. Finally, the context of the special issue will be described in more detail along with a brief summary of the four studies that comprise this special issue.

El modelo de secuenciación de actividades basado en procesos comunicativos (CPM): Una sólida alternativa al modelo Presentación-Práctica-Producción (P-P-P-) desde una perspectiva pedagógicay cognitiva. Con la llegada del Método Comunicativo, el tradicional patrón de secuenciación de actividades ‘Presentación-Práctica-Producción’ (P-P-P) vigente en los Métodos Estructurales recibió severas críticas. No obstante, el P-P-P no debería ser categóricamente rechazado, pues de hecho se ajusta a uno de los modelos de adquisición de destrezas más influyentes en la psicología cognitiva actual: el ACT-R (Anderson et al. 2004). Ahora bien, es necesario reconocer la necesidad de la existencia de un modelo de secuenciación de actividades que respete los principios cognitivos de adquisición de conocimiento y que esté explícitamente inspirado en procesos comunicativos reales, a fin de que el alumnado pueda relacionar su experiencia de aprendizaje con el mundo exterior al aula. Así pues, mediante la adaptación de una unidad en un conocido manual del siglo XXI para la enseñanza del inglés como lengua extranjera, el ‘modelo de secuenciación de actividades basado en procesos comunicativos’ (CPM) se describirá como una alternativa cognitiva y pedagógicamente sólida al P-P-P. Abstract: With the advent of the Communicative Language Teaching Method, the traditional ‘Presentation-Practice-Production model of activity sequencing’ (P-P-P) from Structural Methods became the target of severe criticisms. The P-P-P should not be categorically rejected, since it actually conforms to one of the most infl uential models of skill acquisition in contemporary cognitive psychology: ACT-R (Anderson et al. 2004). Nevertheless, it is necessary to acknowledge the need for an activity sequencing model which respects cognitive learning principles and is explicitly inspired by real communicative processes. In this way, students’ language learning experience can be linked to the world outside the classroom. The ‘Communicative Processes-based model of activity sequencing’ (CPM) is described as a cognitively and pedagogically sound alternative to the P-P-P through the adaptation of a lesson from a well-known 21st century ELT textbook.

Researchers in the past have explored practices of Project Based Learning (PBL) in various educational contexts. Nevertheless, previous studies that examine project-based learning in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) contexts are still limited in numbers particularly through the eyes of Indonesian university students. This study aims to look into meanings of PBL in learning Second Language Acquisition (SLA) at English Language Education Program, Dunia University Indonesia. The study specifically described how three students in the class felt about PBL as implemented in two main classroom projects, how they experienced doing it, and how they provided meaning to it. The students’ experiences were recalled through an in-depth phenomenological interview. The results of the study were the experiences in the form of narratives and my interpretation of emerging themes in the narratives as the meanings of PBL in learning SLA. The study appeared to continue positive trends of PBL practices in English language teaching and learning specifically in contentbased instructions.

On February 16, 2018, Working Papers in Applied Linguistics and TESOL (represented by Kaylee Fernandez, Michelle Stabler-Havener, and Carol HoiYee Lo) had the great pleasure of interviewing Dr. Roy Lyster, the invited speaker for the 2018 Applied Linguistics & Language Education (APPLE) Lecture Series hosted annually by the Applied Linguistics and TESOL Program at Teachers College, Columbia University. Dr. Lyster shared his research and advice he has for current and future researchers and educators in Applied Linguistics and TESOL. Dr. Roy Lyster is Emeritus Professor of Second Language Education in the Department of Integrated Studies Education at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. His research examines content-based language teaching and the effects of instructional interventions designed to counterbalance form-focused and content-based approaches. His research interests also include professional development and collaboration among teachers for the purpose of integrated language learning and biliteracy development. He was co-recipient with colleague Leila Ranta of the 1998 Paul Pimsleur Award for Research in Foreign Language Education and was presented the Robert Roy Award by the Canadian Association of Second Language Teachers in 2017. He was co-president then president of the Canadian Association of Applied Linguistics from 2004 to 2008. He is author of a module called Content-Based Language Teaching published by Routledge in 2018, and two books: Learning and Teaching Languages Through Content published by Benjamins in 2007 and Vers une approche intégrée en immersion published by Les Éditions CEC in 2016.

Due to the fact that all language learners and teachers are aware of the fact that acquiring a second language involves a learning of the large number of vocabulary items, investigating how vocabulary is learned and what the best ways are to enhance effective acquisition have been important lines of investigation in the field of second language acquisition (SLA). The present study intended to compare the effect of enhancing the quality of vocabulary acquisition by reading, writing, and translation tasks with different degrees of involvement load. To this end, 60 intermediate third grade junior high school students were randomly assigned to four groups. In each group a task with a different level of involvement, including two different reading tasks, a writing task, and a translation task was instructed over a six-month period. The results of the descriptive statistics and one-way ANOVA revealed that the group with the highest involvement load task outperformed the other groups in terms of vocabulary acquisition, but the translation task even led to a greater performance in the post-test. These unique findings shed some light on the importance and the practicality of translation tasks in ESL contexts.

Slobin’s (1996) thinking for speaking hypothesis has been recently adopted by second language researchers as a valuable lens from which to examine the complexities of possible conceptual restructuring during interlanguage development. This paper reviews a sample of studies analyzing the linguistic and conceptual patterns observed in second language learners while using their respective target languages. Discussions focus on issues central to second language acquisition and the understanding of interlanguage from a meaning perspective.

Second language (L2) classroom discourse (CD) refers to the interactional practices employed in teaching language in instructed learning contexts. Since language is both the medium and the content, the teacher plays a central role in the L2 classroom context (Walsh, 2006). Specifically, the teacher uses language to provide comprehensible input, model appropriate pragmatic competence, and effectively facilitate student participation. In his book, Olcay Sert claims it is possible to understand the pedagogical and epistemic phenomena of L2 classroom interaction by applying micro-analytic research methods; therefore, he sets out to familiarize readers with Conversation Analysis (CA) and show its usefulness in studying L2 classroom discourse. This is done by first providing an overview of the framework, followed by utilizing it to analyze his data set of 16 hours of video-recordings from two English language classrooms in Luxembourg.

This paper responds to Exploring the dynamism between propositional complexity and error rate: a case study by Jordan Van Horn (this issue). In her study, Jordan Van Horn analyzes asynchronous email exchanges between a native and nonnative speaker of English utilizing three methods of analysis: error analysis, complexity analysis, and qualitative analysis. In triangulating the data, the author states that this mixed-methods approach can offer a better solution to limitations that arise as a result of employing only one method to analyze performance data. Indeed, interlanguage data often exhibits patterns of variability in complexity and accuracy in L2 learners (Spoelman & Verspoor, 2010). In order to better account for this variability and enhance our understanding of second language acquisition (SLA), the author incorporated Complex Dynamic Systems Theory (CDST) to guide her analysis. CDST facilitates the unification of the three methods of analysis since it posits L2 language as exhibiting the characteristics of complex systems and L2 language development as one that involves natural flux and variation (Verspoor, Lowie & van Dijk, 2008). A major contribution of this study was Van Horn’s finding of connected growers between complexity and accuracy. The CDST construct “connected growers” is defined by the author as linguistic subsystems that develop symbiotically as they interact. In other words, linguistic subsystems such as complexity and accuracy were found to have a positive correlation. This finding has major implications not only for our understanding of complex dynamic systems, but also, of SLA in particular, as during L2 linguistic performance, complexity and accuracy often compete with each other for cognitive resources and positive correlations between these two areas have been less common in the literature (Skehan, 2009).

Acquiring a second language (L2) has been increasingly recognized to be an ongoing developmental process, one that progresses in a fluid and non-linear fashion (Larsen-Freeman, 2015). Instead of operating like a mechanical black box that parses incoming linguistic information and outputs oral/written language indiscriminately, the learner’s developing system has been shown to be selectively adaptive (e.g., Han & Selinker, 1999; Schachter, 1974; Slobin, 1996). Where variability in acquisitional data arises, more than one of the following factors are likely involved: crosslinguistic influence, avoidance, conceptual transfer, among others. For this reason, research adopting a Complex Dynamic Systems approach to data analysis has gained sway in Second Language Acquisition (SLA) in recent years. Unlike most existing empirical L2 acquisition studies that employ only a single method of data analysis, L2 Complex Dynamic Systems research advocates the application of multiple data analysis methods to the same set(s) of empirical data. In doing so, researchers are more likely to gain a multidimensional and finer-grained grasp of what the empirical L2 data might in fact be suggesting about the learner’s developmental trajectory.

The roles of attention and awareness in second language (L2) learning have been examined extensively in a number of SLA studies. One of the findings and claims made repeatedly is that attention as awareness at the level of noticing is a necessary condition for comprehensible input to be detected, selected, processed, and potentially and partially integrated within a learner’s internalized grammar – that is, to become intake (Gass, 1988, 2003; Leow, 1995, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2003; Robinson, 1995, 2003; Rosa & O’Neill, 1999; Schmidt, 1995, 2001; Swain, 1985, VanPatten, 1996). The purpose of this discussion is to briefly illustrate how findings from these studies and, specifically, concepts such as attention, noticing, and intake can help researchers and practitioners reconceptualize the processes involved in formative assessment at the planning and implementation stages.

There is now growing evidence that output promotes second language acquisition. Recently, interest has been shown in examining (a) the effect of output processing on subsequent input processing, and (b) what factors mediate that effect. An experiment was conducted for two proficiency levels of Japanese learners of English under two conditions (output and non-output). First, participants in the output condition wrote a story in English based on four cartoon pictures (output task processing). Second, participants in both conditions read a model story describing the four cartoon pictures (subsequent input processing). Third, both sets of participants were asked, without any advance notice, to recall what they had read (written free recall test). Performance on the written free recall test suggests that (a) output tasks facilitated subsequent input processing, and (b) complex relationships existed among L2 proficiency levels, experiment conditions, and linguistic domains during subsequent input processing. These findings are discussed with reference to second language acquisition research. Implications for pedagogical practice are also considered.

With the Selective Fossilization Hypothesis (SFH), Han (2009) cites the synergy of first language (L1) markedness and second language (L2) input robustness as a determinant of selective fossilization and, in doing so, returns the construct of markedness to the forefront of second language acquisition (SLA) research and theory. With the SFH, Han offers a principled account of the differential consequences for L2 learning (Han, 2008, p. 6), and its explanatory and predictive qualities hold great promise for the field. Nevertheless, Han’s unique approach to markedness lays open the possibility for misunderstanding, particularly for those who are accustomed to viewing markedness in SLA through the lens of linguistic universals. Moreover, when one considers that markedness has long been a problematic term in linguistics, with “many different approaches defin[ing] markedness in different ways, apply[ing] it to different domains, and integrat[ing] it into different approaches” (Battistella, 1990, p. 5), the possibility for misunderstanding looms even larger. For these reasons, it might be helpful to take a retrospective look at markedness for the purposes of contextualizing the construct and preempting any potential misapprehensions of its role in the SFH.

Language Learner Strategies, an edited volume born from a series of meetings at the International Association of Applied Linguistics Congress in the early 2000s, provides a comprehensive overview into the past, present, and proposed future of the field of language learner strategies (LLS). Principally written for language or education researchers, this book is concerned with the strategies learners employ in the process of second language (L2) acquisition and performance in the second or foreign language classroom. The editors, Andrew D. Cohen and Ernesto Macaro, propose that the volume serve as a coherent auto-critique and theoretical synthesis of LLS research to date, with the goal of improving opportunities for all language learners through further research into LLS.

Since Norris and Ortega’s (2000) seminal work on the effectiveness of second language instruction, there has been a proliferation of meta-analyses in the field of applied linguistics. Subsequent meta-analysts, however, have uncritically followed the methodological choices made by Norris and Ortega. This paper suggests a critical reevaluation of the methodological procedures underlying the Norris and Ortega (2000) meta-analysis. I reexamined their procedures, and reassessed the 49 unique samples they used in their meta-analysis. In doing so, I identified three key methodological limitations with the study, pertaining, respectively, to (a) the data collection procedure, (b) the coding system, and (c) the statistical analysis. I argue that the lack of data quality inherent in the primary studies, the oversimplified coding scheme, and the inappropriate use of effect size statistics combine to compromise the validity of the conclusions Norris and Ortega have drawn from their meta-analysis. I subsequently provide alternative procedures which may yield a more empirically sound research synthesis, recommending, for future meta-analysts, the “best evidence synthesis‟ approach where conclusions are drawn from combining quantitative and qualitative analyses.

Talmy‘s (1985) crosslinguistic typology of lexicalization patterns of motion events have been extensively used in second language acquisition (SLA) research as a means to examine how second language (L2) learners map form, meaning, and function. These studies have yielded some conflicting results regarding the learnability of L2 lexicalization patterns — arguably the oversimplification over and the overreliance on the dichotomous typological categorization of such patterns. The present corpus study seeks to illustrate how Japanese, which is classified as a V-language, may express motion events differently from what the typology typically suggests. The results showed that (1) Japanese elaborates on the Manner of motion via nouns, adjectives and adverbs, and that (2) Japanese verbs conflate Manner and Motion via Chinese loanwords and compound verbs. In order to shed light on what is learnable and why certain lexicalization patterns are (un)learnable for specific population groups in adult L2 acquisition, it is argued that, a deeper understanding of the nature of L2 input and learners‘ native languages (NL), especially in terms of input frequency, the complexity of form-meaning relationships, and the ease of processing of lexicalization patterns, would be indispensable.

Over the past few decades, Second Language Acquisition (SLA) research has shown a growing interest in linguistic relativity, specifically in Slobin’s (1987, 1996) thinking-for-speaking hypothesis. The thinking-for-speaking hypothesis posits that language-specific structures direct the speaker’s attention to specific aspects of objects and events; such perceived information is then organized according to what can be grammatically coded in the speaker’s first language (L1s). This volume probes a possible interference of L1-based cognition with second language (L2) development. As pointed out by ZhaoHong Han, the first editor, this volume regards Slobin’s thinking-for-speaking hypothesis as one of the several promising accounts for such SLA phenomena as inter- and intra- learner variability, as well as fossilization.

The Editorial Board of the Web Journal recently had the pleasure of submitting interview questions to Dr. Eli Hinkel, the invited guest speaker at the 2009 APPLE Lecture sponsored by the Programs in TESOL and Applied Linguistics at Teachers College, Columbia University. Dr. Hinkel has taught ESL and applied linguistics, as well as trained teachers, for over twenty five years. She has published numerous books and articles on learning second culture, and second language grammar, writing, and pragmatics in such journals as TESOL Quarterly, Applied Linguistics, Journal of Pragmatics, and Applied Language Learning. She is also the Editor of the Routledge ESL & Applied Linguistics Professional Series of books and textbooks for teachers and graduate students. Dr. Hinkel is currently the Program Director of the Culture and Language Bridge Program at Seattle University.

Recent literature in second language acquisition (SLA) suggests that opportunities for output production contribute to target like acquisition. In the course of second language (L2) production, learners are prompted to notice the gaps and/or holes in their knowledge, and thus give extra attention to such discrepancies in subsequent input (Swain, 1995). Given that whether these gaps and/or holes are indeed noticed by the learners is crucial for successful intake, researchers have resorted to approaches such as note-taking and think-aloud as measures of noticing. This study investigates the role of written output in helping learners notice linguistic forms provided in subsequent input. In particular, it examines note-taking as a way to facilitate noticing. Twenty-three advanced English as a Second Language (ESL) learners were randomly assigned to two groups ─ a note-taking group and a non-note-taking group ─ and were asked to complete a three-stage writing task: (i) to give a written description to a picture, (ii) to compare the description to a model text, and (iii) to rewrite the description. This was immediately followed by a retrospective questionnaire designed to shed light on the “noticing process.” The results suggest that written output has a positive effect on learners‟ ability to notice linguistic forms that they have previously found problematic in subsequent input, and that note-taking apparently helps learners better use the linguistic forms included in subsequent input in their own rewriting.

With this monograph, Diane Larsen-Freeman and Lynne Cameron unveil a complex systems approach to applied linguistics in the first book-length introduction to the topic. Stirrings of a shift in this direction have begun to appear in Larsen-Freeman’s publications this past decade (e.g., 1997, 2002). Expanding on those early papers, this work is intended “to open the conversation” (Larsen-Freeman & Cameron, 2008, p. 255) about complex systems among applied linguists; however, it is not intended to be the last word. As such, it is a rich introduction for teachers, researchers, and students who want to foreground a dynamic worldview in their theory and method for understanding complex systems. This book begins a new chapter in the intellectual history of applied linguistics by repositioning our understandings and making change central. At the very least, the development of a complex systems approach to applied linguistics at the hands of two well-respected applied linguists, each with distinguished publications records, is cause enough to engage with its ideas.

For many language teachers, a significant amount of classroom time is dedicated to helping students speak. Generally silent or reticent students are often encouraged to participate and speak more; their silence is deemed counterproductive and/or non-participatory. Because of this, much second-language acquisition (SLA) research has been dedicated to talk in the classroom and ways that it can be improved and encouraged by both students and teachers alike. However, while talk is an important element of a second-language (L2) classroom, silence can be equally important. In Understanding Silence and Reticence: Ways of Participating in Second Language Acquisition, Dat Bao takes a close look at this often neglected element of the L2 classroom and offers insights into the role of silence in SLA.

Conversation Analysis and Second Language Pedagogy locates itself at the nexus of research and practice, connecting the findings of conversation analysis (CA) to language teaching. In one sense, the text contributes to an existing, growing body of research that links CA to second language (L2) classroom interaction (e.g. Markee, 2000; Mori, 2002; Seedhouse, 2004; Waring, 2008). However, unlike most work in this vein, the authors are not attempting to describe verbal exchanges that occur in the L2 classroom. That is, rather than use CA to better understand how teachers and students talk, Wong and Waring aim to proffer CA as a way to teach talk. Indeed, his book specifically reaches out to ESL/EFL teachers tackling the task of improving their students’ oral proficiency. In addition to explicating basic tenets of CA findings, each chapter teems with classroom activities designed to get students speaking and analyzing talk. Thus, as the organization of the book demonstrates, the thrust of the text is twofold: (1) to introduce CA to ESL/EFL teachers, and (2) to provide them with CA-informed speaking activities for use in their classrooms.

“Why am I learning this language? How is my language learning affected by my attitudes and my context?” For the average second language (L2) learner, these questions are probably not often considered in such an explicit fashion. For L2 educators and L2 motivation researchers, however, these student-centered questions are urgent and ever-present. From my own experience, teaching English to speakers of other languages across different contexts has presented vastly differing pictures of L2 learner motivation. What is it that makes teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) to first-generation Hispanic immigrant students so different from teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) to sub-Saharan African students? From an anecdotal standpoint, the answer appears to lie in the understanding of motivation within context: which students have it, why they have it, and how to inspire the same, if possible, in other learners. Thus, as “numerous studies have provided statistical evidence that indicates motivation is a predictor of language-learning success,” L2 motivation research seems well worth examining in greater detail for both language researchers and language teachers alike (Gass & Selinker, 2009, p. 426).

Second language (L2) reading serves dual roles in L2 learning – both as a literacy skill for comprehension and as a source of L2 input (Eskey, 2005; Grabe, 1991). However, L2 reading researchers have traditionally focused on either one of the two dimensions at a time, with the other largely unattended, as is reflected in the discrepancies between literacy-oriented research and language-oriented research. With its primary goal being comprehension, literacy-oriented research has fueled most notably a whole language approach, and a skills approach, to L2 reading instruction. The whole language approach highlights the importance of higher-level processes based on background knowledge, whereas the skills approach emphasizes lower-level processes such as orthographic processing, morphological analysis, and word recognition, among others. By contrast, with language-oriented research, the acquisition approach conceptualizes reading as a vehicle for delivering L2 input that is conducive to the development of L2 competence. As can be expected, the theoretical and pedagogical chasms among these approaches have thus yielded unbalanced views on the nature of L2 reading and, more importantly, on its relationship with L2 acquisition.

Given the general failure experienced by adults when attempting to learn a second or foreign language, many have hypothesized that a critical period exists for the domain of language learning. Supporters of the Critical Period Hypothesis (CPH) contend that language learning, which takes place outside of this critical period (roughly defined as ending sometime around puberty), will inevitably be marked by non-native like features. In opposition to this position, several researches have postulated that, although rare, nativelike proficiency in a second language is in fact possible for adult learners. Still others, in light of the robust debate and research both supporting and challenging the CPH, have reconceptualized their views regarding a possible critical period for language learning, claiming that in combination with age of exposure, sociological, psychological, and physiological factors must also be considered when determining the factors that facilitate and debilitate language acquisition. In this paper, a review of literature describing the support, challenges, and reconceptualizations of the CPH is provided.

Practice in a Second Language: Perspectives from Applied Linguistics and Cognitive Psychology, edited by Robert DeKeyser, discusses the role of second language (L2) practice across two related research fields: applied linguistics and cognitive psychology. The notion of practice is controversial and raises debate, as DeKeyser acknowledges in the very first page of the introduction to this volume. The controversy stems from the fact that practice is wrongly equated with mechanical drills, these having been rejected by mainstream language teaching methodologies over the past 30 years. In order to minimize potential controversies, DeKeyser presents a focused definition of practice as “specific activities in the second language, engaged in systematically, deliberately, with the goal of developing knowledge of and skills in the second language” (p. 1). The book is intended to be a helpful resource for L2 practitioners and researchers interested in understanding the role of practice in L2 acquisition.

Over the past 15 years, SLA practitioners have devoted a sizable amount of research to investigating the effectiveness of various pedagogical interventions on L2 learners’ processing of input and their subsequent performance. Textual input enhancement (Sharwood Smith, 1993) and topic familiarity (Lesser, 2004) are two such approaches that researchers have investigated in this domain. The current quasi-experimental study, which involves 36 adult ESL learners, attempts to measure the impact of these two approaches upon the participants’ acquisition of form. In the study, the researcher incorporates grammatical structures—vis-à-vis textual input enhancement— in a meaning-oriented ESL reading class to observe the impact on the learners. The researcher also examines the role topic familiarity plays in acquisition of form.

The emergence of lexico-grammatical productivity has been a central issue in the field of Second Language Acquisition (SLA). Ellis (2002) proposed that formulaic chunks of language are one resource for the learner to develop such productivity. This exploratory study sought to determine whether formulaic language chunks were observed in the oral production of three adult beginner learners of English as a Second Language (ESL) over a nine-week period in a community language program. It also attempted to determine whether there was a developmental relationship between formulae and productive forms called constructions. Tasks used to elicit the data included picture description tasks and semi-structured interviews. Results showed that formulae were minimally present in the learner output and that constructions and formulae of similar structure coexisted, but that a developmental relationship between formulae and constructions was not clearly evident. The discussion proposes the existence of a pre-formulaic stage account for the data, and submits that the relationship between formulae and productive constructions requires more intensive study.

David Nunan and Jack C. Richards have compiled an engaging collection of case studies focusing on out-of-class activities that facilitate autonomous learning for second language (L2) learners. Inspired by years of observing how successful language learners throughout the world are often highly motivated, reflect on their progress, set their own goals, and seek out opportunities for language learning outside the classroom, the editors present a wide range of resources and opportunities currently available for bringing learning beyond the classroom and promoting autonomous learning. Citing learning contexts in Asia, Europe, North and South America, and Australia/Oceania, this book provides information on how out-of-class learning activities can be designed, planned for, and implemented for L2 learners.

Language learning can occur anytime and anywhere (context). In term of context, language learning can take place whether at home context or at a study abroad context. This article presents the necessary background to existing literature and previous research about language development in various contexts, more specifically in a study abroad (SA) context. Language learners who are studying abroad can lead to language development from a number of perspectives. Research findings revealed that language development can take a variety of forms including grammar, vocabulary, fluency, communicative skill, etc. These research findings will be reviewed in order to have a clear understanding about this issue. Then, this article continues to give a brief explanation on the role of input and interaction in SLA with some views on it.

The dictionary is one of the common learning tools for second and foreign language learners. Various types of dictionaries are used to help learners work on their language development. A bilingual dictionary is often the first dictionary that a foreign language learner encounters. A study conducted on dictionary usage in seven European countries, including over 1,100 learners of English (Atkins & Knowles, 1990), showed that the majority of the language learners (75%) who identified themselves as dictionary users utilized bilingual dictionaries. Another choice for second/foreign language learners is a monolingual dictionary. Several studies (e.g., Atkins & Varantola, 1997; Baxter, 1980) reported that a monolingual dictionary was found to be effective in helping learners find relevant information. Recently gaining popularity among language learners and teachers is the bilingualized dictionary which has features of the learners’ monolingual dictionary and a translation of each entry. A study which investigated the effectiveness of bilingualized dictionaries showed that they were the most effective of the three types (Laufer & Hadar, 1997).

With the appearance and improvement of Web 2.0 technology and other digital tools such as Google Docs and wikis, teachers and researchers are increasingly able to implement collaborative activities in face-to-face and online language courses. Whether technologically assisted or done in person, collaboration is a burgeoning area of investigation in L2 writing research and practice. Although many researchers and teachers alike still consider writing an independent activity, Collaborative Writing in L2 Classrooms has taken the charge to illuminate the potential advantages of employing collaborative writing in language research and by extension pedagogical practice. To do so, Storch offers a comprehensive review of the current research on L2 collaborative writing, while identifying that there remains theoretical uncertainty concerning how writing tasks affect the product and process of collaborative writing across and within learner contexts, and how the formation of collaborative pairs and groups may change the nature of the collaborative writing project. By discussing these issues and advocating for the guided use of collaboration in L2 writing research, Storch eloquently builds a bridge to span the gulf between collaborative activities L2 research (which has predominantly been used for aural and oral task) and the domain of L2 writing. Storch presents compelling theoretical, empirical, and pedagogical rationales in this well-written analysis of the research on writing in L2 classrooms, and she provides useful recommendations and caveats to researchers and teachers.

Assessing second language speaking has long been an important part of language testing in both large-scale assessment settings and in smaller scale classroom-based assessments. Accordingly, researchers in the second language (L2) assessment field have made efforts to establish a better understanding of the nature of speaking ability and its underlying competences. With speaking tests increasingly involving test takers’ performances on certain tasks, test takers are required to utilize their language knowledge by means of their strategic competence (i.e., skills necessary to put language knowledge into use), which has been considered an integral component of communicative language ability (e.g., Bachman & Palmer, 1996) and L2 speaking ability (e.g., Bygate, 1987; Fulcher, 2003). However, what strategic competence in speaking entails remains unclear, as its definition has varied greatly across different theoretical models and empirical studies. This paper provides a brief overview of the varying approaches to defining strategic competence, and reports on major empirical findings related to the conceptualization of this important facet of speaking ability, surveying the extensive literature in the broader fields of applied linguistics and L2 assessment in particular. The paper starts with (1) a review of the applied linguistics literature on the major influential approaches to understanding oral strategic competence, followed by (2) an in-depth review of how the L2 assessment literature has conceptualized strategic competence in relation to different theoretical models, and lastly, (3) a discussion of empirical studies examining strategic competence in the context of speaking test performance. The paper concludes with directions for future research.

Diagnostic testing has long been valued by language testing researchers and practitioners for its ability to inform both teaching and learning. However, the number of well-developed diagnostic language tests is relatively low, most likely due to the difficulty in constructing a diagnostic test that incorporates a wide enough range of language skills. In recent years, the advancement of technologies has allowed for the development of several large-scale, computer-based diagnostic language tests, as well as more sophisticated measurement methods to conduct diagnosis. This article first provides the theoretical ground for how diagnosis has been conceptualized in language testing over the past 60 years. Then, several current approaches to operationalizing diagnosis in second and foreign language assessment, including both tests and methods, are reviewed. The article concludes with reflections on diagnostic testing in second and foreign language assessment at its current state, as well as recommendations for its future directions.

In the field of Second Language Acquisition (SLA), the role of transfer has been theorized and studied to account for the influence of the native language on an interlanguage. However, stemming from behaviorist mentality, the concept of transfer has become widely associated with the direct transfer of habits and fails to take into consideration other cross-linguistic influences (CLI) that shape or are shaped by the interlanguage, such as avoidance, ‘reverse transfer’ from a learner’s second language (L2) to native language (L1), perception of linguistic distance, and interlanguage transfer. Thus, the reductionist analysis of direct L1 to L2 transfer is no longer sufficient to account for the parallel activation of languages in multilinguals.

Throughout the 1990s and the first decade of the new millennium, some second language acquisition (SLA) researchers have begun to conduct research from a perspective on learner development that foregrounds the effects of situational or environmental variables on the learning process. These researchers, according to Swain and Deters (2007), privilege a “participation” metaphor over the more traditional focus on “acquisition.” Important researchers in this tradition (e.g., Lantolf, 1994; Pierce, 1995; Duff & Uchida, 1997; Norton & Toohey, 2001) have drawn upon poststructuralist social theory, as well as Vygotsky’s (1978) earlier notions of learning situated in a zone of proximal development, to emphasize the influence of the learner’s environment in shaping learning behaviors, and consequently language learning outcomes.

Despite the growing number of research studies in recent years, what is known about child second language acquisition (SLA) remains by and large a fraction of what is still to be known. In the present review, child SLA is defined as pertinent to both second language (L2) and sequential bilingual learners between the ages of two and twelve. Studies undertaken over the past 15 years are subdivided by paradigm (i.e., the generativists, the emergentists, the psycholinguists, and the neurocognitivists) and then thoroughly discussed. These studies are presented and critiqued in such a way that the significant holes persisting in our general understanding of child SLA will become apparent.