Fostering Computer-Mediated L2 Interaction beyond the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barrs, Keith

2012-01-01

In language learning contexts a primary concern is how to maximise target language interaction both inside and outside of the classroom. With the development of digital technologies, the proliferation of language learning applications, and an increased awareness of how technology can assist in language education, educators are being presented with…

Let's Tweet in Chinese! Exploring How Learners of Chinese as a Foreign Language Self-Direct Their Use of Microblogging to Learn Chinese

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hsiao, Ya Ping; Broeder, Peter

2014-01-01

Twitter is becoming increasingly popular as a medium for language learning. This study explores self-directed learning via social interactions that use Twitter as an interactive learning environment. The participants in this study were thirty university students of Chinese as a foreign language at levels 1 and 2 of the "Hanyu Shuiping…

Exploring Peer Interaction among Multilingual Youth: New Possibilities and Challenges for Language and Literacy Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martin-Beltrán, Melinda

2017-01-01

Peer interactions are central to student experiences and present tremendous opportunities for language learning and consequences for educational equity, yet these opportunities have often been unrecognized and under-examined. This special issue offers new perspectives examining the potential of peer interaction to foster language, literacy and…

Computer Assisted Language Learning. Routledge Studies in Computer Assisted Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pennington, Martha

2011-01-01

Computer-assisted language learning (CALL) is an approach to language teaching and learning in which computer technology is used as an aid to the presentation, reinforcement and assessment of material to be learned, usually including a substantial interactive element. This books provides an up-to date and comprehensive overview of…

Learning English through Social Interaction: The Case of "Big Brother 2006," Finland

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kaanta, Leila; Jauni, Heidi; Leppanen, Sirpa; Peuronen, Saija; Paakkinen, Terhi

2013-01-01

In line with recent Conversation Analytic work on language learning as situated practice, this article investigates how interactants can create language learning opportunities for themselves and others in and through social interaction. The study shows how the participants of "Big Brother Finland," a reality TV show, whose main…

Form-Focused Interaction in Online Tandem Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Rourke, Breffni

2005-01-01

Tandem language learning--a configuration involving pairs of learners with complementary target/native languages--is an underexploited but potentially very powerful use of computer-mediated communication (CMC) in second-language pedagogy. Tandem offers the benefits of authentic, culturally grounded interaction, while also promoting a pedagogical…

Using a Humanoid Robot to Develop a Dialogue-Based Interactive Learning Environment for Elementary Foreign Language Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chang, Chih-Wei; Chen, Gwo-Dong

2010-01-01

Elementary school is the critical stage during which the development of listening comprehension and oral abilities in language acquisition occur, especially with a foreign language. However, the current foreign language instructors often adopt one-way teaching, and the learning environment lacks any interactive instructional media with which to…

Interactivity in the Teaching and Learning of Foreign Languages: What It Means for Resourcing and Delivery of Online and Blended Programmes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tudini, Vincenza

2018-01-01

University students who enrol in foreign language (FL) programmes are motivated by various needs, but in particular the need to achieve communicative fluency, which generally requires interaction with others. This study therefore explores the notion of 'interactivity,' as conceptualised in second language learning theories and how it might be…

A Study of Multimodal Discourse in the Design of Interactive Digital Material for Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burset, Silvia; Bosch, Emma; Pujolà, Joan-Tomàs

2016-01-01

This study analyses some published interactive materials for the learning of Spanish as a f?irst language and English as a Foreign Language (EFL) commonly used in primary and secondary education in Spain. The present investigation looks into the relationships between text and image on the interface of Interactive Digital Material (IDM) to develop…

The Use of Computer-Based Simulation to Aid Comprehension and Incidental Vocabulary Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mohsen, Mohammed Ali

2016-01-01

One of the main issues in language learning is to find ways to enable learners to interact with the language input in an involved task. Given that computer-based simulation allows learners to interact with visual modes, this article examines how the interaction of students with an online video simulation affects their second language video…

Variability in Second Language Learning: The Roles of Individual Differences, Learning Conditions, and Linguistic Complexity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tagarelli, Kaitlyn M.; Ruiz, Simón; Vega, José Luis Moreno; Rebuschat, Patrick

2016-01-01

Second language learning outcomes are highly variable, due to a variety of factors, including individual differences, exposure conditions, and linguistic complexity. However, exactly how these factors interact to influence language learning is unknown. This article examines the relationship between these three variables in language learners.…

Player-Game Interaction: An Ecological Analysis of Foreign Language Gameplay Activities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ibrahim, Karim

2018-01-01

This article describes how the literature on game-based foreign language (FL) learning has demonstrated that player-game interactions have a strong potential for FL learning. However, little is known about the fine-grained dynamics of these interactions, or how they could facilitate FL learning. To address this gap, the researcher conducted a…

The Relationship Between Consciousness, Interaction, and Language Learning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

van Lier, Leo

1998-01-01

Examines the relationship between consciousness, language learning, and social interaction from an ecological perspective. Argues that consciousness and language are integral parts of the human ecology, that is, they can be defined in terms of social activity and relationships among people, as well as in terms of mental operations or cerebral…

Help me if I can't: Social interaction effects in adult contextual word learning.

PubMed

Verga, Laura; Kotz, Sonja A

2017-11-01

A major challenge in second language acquisition is to build up new vocabulary. How is it possible to identify the meaning of a new word among several possible referents? Adult learners typically use contextual information, which reduces the number of possible referents a new word can have. Alternatively, a social partner may facilitate word learning by directing the learner's attention toward the correct new word meaning. While much is known about the role of this form of 'joint attention' in first language acquisition, little is known about its efficacy in second language acquisition. Consequently, we introduce and validate a novel visual word learning game to evaluate how joint attention affects the contextual learning of new words in a second language. Adult learners either acquired new words in a constant or variable sentence context by playing the game with a knowledgeable partner, or by playing the game alone on a computer. Results clearly show that participants who learned new words in social interaction (i) are faster in identifying a correct new word referent in variable sentence contexts, and (ii) temporally coordinate their behavior with a social partner. Testing the learned words in a post-learning recall or recognition task showed that participants, who learned interactively, better recognized words originally learned in a variable context. While this result may suggest that interactive learning facilitates the allocation of attention to a target referent, the differences in the performance during recognition and recall call for further studies investigating the effect of social interaction on learning performance. In summary, we provide first evidence on the role joint attention in second language learning. Furthermore, the new interactive learning game offers itself to further testing in complex neuroimaging research, where the lack of appropriate experimental set-ups has so far limited the investigation of the neural basis of adult word learning in social interaction. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Interaction in a Blended Environment for English Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Romero Archila, Yuranny Marcela

2014-01-01

The purpose of this research was to identify the types of interaction that emerged not only in a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) but also in face-to-face settings. The study also assessed the impact of the different kinds of interactions in terms of language learning. This is a qualitative case study that took place in a private Colombian…

ESL students learning biology: The role of language and social interactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jaipal, Kamini

This study explored three aspects related to ESL students in a mainstream grade 11 biology classroom: (1) the nature of students' participation in classroom activities, (2) the factors that enhanced or constrained ESL students' engagement in social interactions, and (3) the role of language in the learning of science. Ten ESL students were observed over an eight-month period in this biology classroom. Data were collected using qualitative research methods such as participant observation, audio-recordings of lessons, field notes, semi-structured interviews, short lesson recall interviews and students' written work. The study was framed within sociocultural perspectives, particularly the social constructivist perspectives of Vygotsky (1962, 1978) and Wertsch (1991). Data were analysed with respect to the three research aspects. Firstly, the findings showed that ESL students' preferred and exhibited a variety of participation practices that ranged from personal-individual to socio-interactive in nature. Both personal-individual and socio-interactive practices appeared to support science and language learning. Secondly, the findings indicated that ESL students' engagement in classroom social interactions was most likely influenced by the complex interactions between a number of competing factors at the individual, interpersonal and community/cultural levels (Rogoff, Radziszewska, & Masiello, 1995). In this study, six factors that appeared to enhance or constrain ESL students' engagement in classroom social interactions were identified. These factors were socio-cultural factors, prior classroom practice, teaching practices, affective factors, English language proficiency, and participation in the research project. Thirdly, the findings indicated that language played a significant mediational role in ESL students' learning of science. The data revealed that the learning of science terms and concepts can be explained by a functional model of language that includes: (1) the use of discourse to construct meanings, (2) multiple semiotic representations of the thing/process, and (3) constructing taxonomies and ways of reasoning. Other important findings were: talking about language is integral to biology teaching and learning, ESL students' prior knowledge of everyday words does not necessarily help them interpret written questions on worksheets, and ESL students' prior knowledge of concepts in their first language does not necessarily support concept learning in the second language.

Word Learning and Story Comprehension from Digital Storybooks: Does Interaction Make a Difference?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kelley, Elizabeth S.; Kinney, Kara

2017-01-01

An emerging body of research examines language learning of young children from experiences with digital storybooks, but little is known about the ways in which specific components of digital storybooks, including interactive elements, may influence language learning. The purpose of the study was to examine the incidental word learning and story…

The Complexity of Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nelson, Charles

2011-01-01

This paper takes a complexity theory approach to looking at language learning, an approach that investigates how language learners adapt to and interact with people and their environment. Based on interviews with four graduate students, it shows how complexity theory can help us understand both the situatedness of language learning and also…

Playing with the Language: Investigating the Role of Communicative Games in an Arab Language Teaching System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Al-Bulushi, Ali H.; Al-Issa, Ali S.

2017-01-01

Language learning games combine a number of linguistic, psychological and social elements that have been found to have considerable advantages and powerfully impact language learning and teaching. They are incorporated into language curricula to promote interactive engaging learning. This study investigates the role of games in the Omani ELT…

Meaning-Making in Online Language Learner Interactions via Desktop Videoconferencing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Satar, H. Müge

2016-01-01

Online language learning and teaching in multimodal contexts has been identified as one of the key research areas in computer-aided learning (CALL) (Lamy, 2013; White, 2014). This paper aims to explore meaning-making in online language learner interactions via desktop videoconferencing (DVC) and in doing so illustrate multimodal transcription and…

Perceptions of the IWB for Second Language Teaching and Learning: The iTILT Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Whyte, Shona; Beauchamp, Gary; Hillier, Emily

2012-01-01

Recent emphasis on target language interaction in task-based, technologymediated language classrooms makes the interactive whiteboard (IWB) an attractive tool: it constitutes a "digital hub" particularly suited to younger learners who require greater visual support and active learning. However, recent research in UK and French primary…

A Resource-Oriented Functional Approach to English Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Li, Jia

2018-01-01

This article reports on a case study that investigates the learning preferences and strategies of Chinese students learning English as a second language (ESL) in Canadian school settings. It focuses on the interaction between second language (L2) learning methods that the students have adopted from their previous learning experience in China and…

Enculturating Seamless Language Learning through Artifact Creation and Social Interaction Process

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wong, Lung-Hsiang; Chai, Ching Sing; Aw, Guat Poh; King, Ronnel B.

2015-01-01

This paper reports a design-based research (DBR) cycle of MyCLOUD (My Chinese ubiquitOUs learning Days). MyCLOUD is a seamless language learning model that addresses identified limitations of conventional Chinese language teaching, such as the decontextualized and unauthentic learning processes that usually hinder reflection and deep learning.…

Looking Back--A Lesson Learned: From Videotape to Digital Media

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lys, Franziska

2010-01-01

This paper chronicles the development of Drehort Neubrandenburg Online, an interactive, content-rich audiovisual language learning environment based on documentary film material shot on location in Neubrandenburg, Germany, in 1991 and 2002 and aimed at making language learning more interactive and more real. The paper starts with the description…

Talk-in-Interaction: Multilingual Perspectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nguyen, Hanh thi, Ed.; Kasper, Gabriele, Ed.

2009-01-01

"Talk-in-interaction: Multilingual perspectives" offers original studies of interaction in a range of languages and language varieties, including Chinese, English, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, Swahili, Thai, and Vietnamese; monolingual and bilingual interactions; and activities designed for second or foreign language learning. Conducted from the…

Frequency and Pattern of Learner-Instructor Interaction in an Online English Language Learning Environment in Vietnam

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pham, Thach; Thalathoti, Vijay; Dakich, Eva

2014-01-01

This study examines the frequency and pattern of interpersonal interactions between the learners and instructors of an online English language learning course offered at a Vietnamese university. The paper begins with a review of literature on interaction type, pattern and model of interaction followed by a brief description of the online…

A Virtual Space for Children to Meet and Practice Chinese

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Si, Mei

2015-01-01

Second language acquisition after the students have learned their first language is a unique process. One major difference between learning a foreign language and one's mother tongue is that second language learning is often facilitated with digital media, and in particular, through interacting with computers. This project is aimed at leveraging…

Co-Creation Learning Procedures: Comparing Interactive Language Lessons for Deaf and Hearing Students.

PubMed

Hosono, Naotsune; Inoue, Hiromitsu; Tomita, Yutaka

2017-01-01

This paper discusses co-creation learning procedures of second language lessons for deaf students, and sign language lessons by a deaf lecturer. The analyses focus on the learning procedure and resulting assessment, considering the disability. Through questionnaires ICT-based co-creative learning technologies are effective and efficient and promote spontaneous learning motivation goals.

Web 2.0 and Authentic Foreign Language Learning at Higher Education Level

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martins, Maria de Lurdes Correia; Moreira, Gillian; Moreira, António

2012-01-01

Web 2.0 has afforded a number of opportunities for foreign language learning due to its open, participatory and social nature. A crucial aspect is authenticity--both situational and interactional--since students become involved in meaningful tasks, interacting in the target language with an authentic audience. In this paper we will reflect upon…

Real-Time Interactive Social Environments: A Review of BT's Generic Learning Platform.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gardner, Michael; Ward, Holly

1999-01-01

Describes the development of a generic learning platform for online distance learning and explains RISE (Real-time Interactive Social Environments), a Web-based system. Reports results of trials at the University of Hull Language Institute in an English as a Foreign Language course that investigated system usability, teacher roles, and student…

The Digichaint Interactive Game as a Virtual Learning Environment for Irish

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ní Chiaráin, Neasa; Ní Chasaide, Ailbhe

2016-01-01

Although Text-To-Speech (TTS) synthesis has been little used in Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL), it is ripe for deployment, particularly for minority and endangered languages, where learners have little access to native speaker models and where few genuinely interactive and engaging teaching/learning materials are available. These…

Collaborative Learning: Group Interaction in an Intelligent Mobile-Assisted Multiple Language Learning System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Troussas, Christos; Virvou, Maria; Alepis, Efthimios

2014-01-01

This paper proposes a student-oriented approach tailored to effective collaboration between students using mobile phones for language learning within the life cycle of an intelligent tutoring system. For this reason, in this research, a prototype mobile application has been developed for multiple language learning that incorporates intelligence in…

Computer-Assisted Language Learning: Diversity in Research and Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stockwell, Glenn, Ed.

2012-01-01

Computer-assisted language learning (CALL) is an approach to teaching and learning languages that uses computers and other technologies to present, reinforce, and assess material to be learned, or to create environments where teachers and learners can interact with one another and the outside world. This book provides a much-needed overview of the…

Content and Language Integrated Learning by Interaction. Fremdsprachendidaktik inhalts-und lernerorientiert. Volume 26

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kupetz, Rita, Ed.; Becker, Carmen, Ed.

2014-01-01

Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) is an established approach to support multilingualism in Europe by teaching various school subjects in an additional language. The practices used, however, vary considerably. Our book considers this diversity by looking at CLIL scenarios, defined as learning environments supporting content learning,…

Exploring the acquisition and production of grammatical constructions through human-robot interaction with echo state networks.

PubMed

Hinaut, Xavier; Petit, Maxime; Pointeau, Gregoire; Dominey, Peter Ford

2014-01-01

One of the principal functions of human language is to allow people to coordinate joint action. This includes the description of events, requests for action, and their organization in time. A crucial component of language acquisition is learning the grammatical structures that allow the expression of such complex meaning related to physical events. The current research investigates the learning of grammatical constructions and their temporal organization in the context of human-robot physical interaction with the embodied sensorimotor humanoid platform, the iCub. We demonstrate three noteworthy phenomena. First, a recurrent network model is used in conjunction with this robotic platform to learn the mappings between grammatical forms and predicate-argument representations of meanings related to events, and the robot's execution of these events in time. Second, this learning mechanism functions in the inverse sense, i.e., in a language production mode, where rather than executing commanded actions, the robot will describe the results of human generated actions. Finally, we collect data from naïve subjects who interact with the robot via spoken language, and demonstrate significant learning and generalization results. This allows us to conclude that such a neural language learning system not only helps to characterize and understand some aspects of human language acquisition, but also that it can be useful in adaptive human-robot interaction.

Exploring the acquisition and production of grammatical constructions through human-robot interaction with echo state networks

PubMed Central

Hinaut, Xavier; Petit, Maxime; Pointeau, Gregoire; Dominey, Peter Ford

2014-01-01

One of the principal functions of human language is to allow people to coordinate joint action. This includes the description of events, requests for action, and their organization in time. A crucial component of language acquisition is learning the grammatical structures that allow the expression of such complex meaning related to physical events. The current research investigates the learning of grammatical constructions and their temporal organization in the context of human-robot physical interaction with the embodied sensorimotor humanoid platform, the iCub. We demonstrate three noteworthy phenomena. First, a recurrent network model is used in conjunction with this robotic platform to learn the mappings between grammatical forms and predicate-argument representations of meanings related to events, and the robot's execution of these events in time. Second, this learning mechanism functions in the inverse sense, i.e., in a language production mode, where rather than executing commanded actions, the robot will describe the results of human generated actions. Finally, we collect data from naïve subjects who interact with the robot via spoken language, and demonstrate significant learning and generalization results. This allows us to conclude that such a neural language learning system not only helps to characterize and understand some aspects of human language acquisition, but also that it can be useful in adaptive human-robot interaction. PMID:24834050

Oral Interaction in Task-Based EFL Learning: The Use of the L1 as a Cognitive Tool

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

de la Colina, Ana Alegria; Mayo, Maria del Pilar Garcia

2009-01-01

The role of the first language (L1) in the learning of a second language (L2) has been widely studied as a source of cross-linguistic influence from the native system (Gass and Selinker, "Language Transfer in Language Learning," John Benjamins, 1992). Yet, this perspective provides no room for an understanding of language as a cognitive tool…

Interactive Book Reading to Accelerate Word Learning by Kindergarten Children with Specific Language Impairment: Identifying Adequate Progress and Successful Learning Patterns

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Storkel, Holly L.; Komesidou, Rouzana; Fleming, Kandace K.; Romine, Rebecca Swinburne

2017-01-01

Purpose: The goal of this study was to provide guidance to clinicians on early benchmarks of successful word learning in an interactive book reading treatment and to examine how encoding and memory evolution during treatment contribute to word learning outcomes by kindergarten children with specific language impairment (SLI). Method: Twenty-seven…

"Deja Vu"? A Decade of Research on Language Laboratories, Television and Video in Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vanderplank, Robert

2010-01-01

The developments in the last ten years in the form of DVD, streaming video, video on demand, interactive television and digital language laboratories call for an assessment of the research into language teaching and learning making use of these technologies and the learning paradigms underpinning them. This paper surveys research on language…

Can Non-Interactive Language Input Benefit Young Second-Language Learners?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Au, Terry Kit-fong; Chan, Winnie Wailan; Cheng, Liao; Siegel, Linda S.; Tso, Ricky Van Yip

2015-01-01

To fully acquire a language, especially its phonology, children need linguistic input from native speakers early on. When interaction with native speakers is not always possible--e.g. for children learning a second language that is not the societal language--audios are commonly used as an affordable substitute. But does such non-interactive input…

Talking, Writing, Learning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Palmerton, Patricia R.

The theoretical literature which has had an impact upon the teaching of composition and which has evolved into the language across the curriculum approach to education, focuses upon the interaction of language and learning. By teaching about speaking and writing, educators are potentially teaching students how to learn. Language functions to…

"To Market, to Market": Exploring the Teaching-Learning Interface in Developing Intercultural Interactions from Textbook Activities--Crossing Languages and Cultures

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morgan, Anne-Marie; Mercurio, Nives

2011-01-01

In this paper we consider what happens at the "teaching-learning interface" in some Indonesian and Italian examples of classroom interactions within an intercultural orientation to languages teaching and learning. Using activities from textbooks as a starting point, we identify the underlying linguistic, cultural, and intercultural…

Use of Interactive Web-Based Exercises for English as a Foreign Language Learning: Learners' Perceptions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Yen-Hui

2014-01-01

The study investigated the learner perceptions of a CALL component in a blended language learning context. 52 Taiwanese college students attended instructional classroom sessions and did weekly online assignments in the form of interactive web-based exercises over one semester. Their learning performance was measured by means of two computer-based…

The Word for Teaching Is Learning: Essays for James Britton.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lightfoot, Martin, Ed.; Martin, Nancy, Ed.

Reflecting the influence of James Britton in the field of language and learning, this book--a collection of essays by researchers and practitioners in the area of language and learning--focuses on recent issues of language development in learning. The book contains the following 27 essays: (1) "Social Interaction as Scaffold: The Power and…

Discovery Learning Strategies in English

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Singaravelu, G.

2012-01-01

The study substantiates that the effectiveness of Discovery Learning method in learning English Grammar for the learners at standard V. Discovery Learning is particularly beneficial for any student learning a second language. It promotes peer interaction and development of the language and the learning of concepts with content. Reichert and…

Successful L3 Learning in a Study Abroad Context: A Personal Narrative

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Róg, Tomasz

2017-01-01

Studying abroad may seem like an unparalleled opportunity to learn a foreign language. Massive exposure to the language, chances for interaction with native speakers, and cultural immersion appear to create excellent conditions for language learning. Yet, most available research indicates that study abroad (SA) participants rarely achieve…

A Software Development Approach for Computer Assisted Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cushion, Steve

2005-01-01

Over the last 5 years we have developed, produced, tested, and evaluated an authoring software package to produce web-based, interactive, audio-enhanced language-learning material. That authoring package has been used to produce language-learning material in French, Spanish, German, Arabic, and Tamil. We are currently working on increasing…

On the Effectiveness of Robot-Assisted Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Sungjin; Noh, Hyungjong; Lee, Jonghoon; Lee, Kyusong; Lee, Gary Geunbae; Sagong, Seongdae; Kim, Munsang

2011-01-01

This study introduces the educational assistant robots that we developed for foreign language learning and explores the effectiveness of robot-assisted language learning (RALL) which is in its early stages. To achieve this purpose, a course was designed in which students have meaningful interactions with intelligent robots in an immersive…

Languaging as Competencing: Considering Language Learning as Enactment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hellermann, John

2018-01-01

The terms "interactional competence" and "learning" are discussed in the context of recent research in the areas of cognitive science and ethnomethodological conversation analysis studies of language learning. Two data excerpts from a longitudinal case study of a beginning learner of English are presented to illustrate (1) the…

Empowering L2 Tutoring: A Case Study of a Second Language Writer's Vocabulary Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Severino, Carol; Deifell, Elizabeth

2011-01-01

Writing center tutors play a key role in advancing L2 writers' language learning because the tutorial interaction involves the introduction of new language and vocabulary at the point of need or interest. This tutor-research case study presents a detailed, complex portrait of how a second language writer in a US writing center learned and used…

"To Improve Language, You Have to Mix": Teachers' Perceptions of Language Learning in an Overseas Immersion Environment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roskvist, Annelies; Harvey, Sharon; Corder, Deborah; Stacey, Karen

2014-01-01

The overseas immersion environment has long been considered a superior context for language learning, supposedly providing unlimited exposure to target language (TL) input and countless opportunities for authentic interaction with expert users. This article focuses on immersion programmes (IPs) for in-service language teachers--a relatively…

Learner Agency and the Use of Affordances in Language-Exchange Interactions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ahn, Tae youn

2016-01-01

Language exchange refers to a learning partnership between two learners with different native languages who collaborate to help each other improve their proficiency in the other's language. The purpose of this study is to examine the ways in which language-exchange participants activate learner agency to construct opportunities for learning in…

Impact of Co-Operative Learning Strategies in English

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Singaravelu, G.

2010-01-01

The study illuminates the effectiveness of Co-operative Learning Strategies in learning English Grammar for the learners at secondary level. Cooperative Learning is particularly beneficial for any student learning as a second language. It promotes peer interaction, which helps the development of language and the learning of concepts with content.…

Automatic Dialogue Scoring for a Second Language Learning System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huang, Jin-Xia; Lee, Kyung-Soon; Kwon, Oh-Woog; Kim, Young-Kil

2016-01-01

This paper presents an automatic dialogue scoring approach for a Dialogue-Based Computer-Assisted Language Learning (DB-CALL) system, which helps users learn language via interactive conversations. The system produces overall feedback according to dialogue scoring to help the learner know which parts should be more focused on. The scoring measures…

Socio-Cultural Factors in Second Language Learning: A Case Study of Adventurous Adult Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ozfidan, Burhan; Machtmes, Krisanna L.; Demir, Husamettin

2014-01-01

Sociocultural theories consider language learning as a social practice examines students as active participants in the construction of learning processes. This study investigates sociocultural theories' central concepts, which includes peer interaction and feedback, private speech, and self-efficacy. The present study is a case study of twenty…

"Language Learning" Roundtable: Memory and Second Language Acquisition 2012, Hong Kong

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wen, Zhisheng; McNeill, Arthur; Mota, Mailce Borges

2014-01-01

Organized under the auspices of the "Language Learning" Roundtable Conference Grant (2012), this seminar aimed to provide an interactive forum for a group of second language acquisition (SLA) researchers with particular interests in cognitive linguistics and psycholinguistics to discuss key theoretical and methodological issues in the…

Is Speech Learning "Gated" by the Social Brain?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kuhl, Patricia K.

2007-01-01

I advance the hypothesis that the earliest phases of language acquisition--the developmental transition from an initial universal state of language processing to one that is language-specific--requires social interaction. Relating human language learning to a broader set of neurobiological cases of communicative development, I argue that the…

The Role of Oral Language Interactions in English Literacy Learning: A Case Study of a First Grade Korean Child

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, Kwangok

2011-01-01

This paper is a qualitative case study of a Korean first grade child. The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the nature of a first grade Korean child's oral language interactions with teachers, parents, peers, and community members and to examine how a child's oral language impacts his literacy learning in English. The data were…

Learning by Communicating in Natural Language with Conversational Agents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Graesser, Arthur; Li, Haiying; Forsyth, Carol

2014-01-01

Learning is facilitated by conversational interactions both with human tutors and with computer agents that simulate human tutoring and ideal pedagogical strategies. In this article, we describe some intelligent tutoring systems (e.g., AutoTutor) in which agents interact with students in natural language while being sensitive to their cognitive…

Intercultural Learning via Instant Messenger Interaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jin, Li; Erben, Tony

2007-01-01

This paper reports on a qualitative study investigating the viability of instant messenger (IM) interaction to facilitate intercultural learning in a foreign language class. Eight students in a Chinese as a foreign language (CFL) class participated in the study. Each student was paired with a native speaker (NS) of Chinese, and each pair…

Using Collaborative Tasks to Elicit Auditory and Structural Priming

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Trofimovich, Pavel; McDonough, Kim; Neumann, Heike

2013-01-01

Interaction between second language (L2) learners in which the primary goal is the communication of meaning rather than the manipulation of language forms is widely regarded as beneficial for L2 learning from a variety of theoretical and pedagogical perspectives. Besides learning opportunities created through interactional feedback, modified…

Teaching Language in Context. Second Edition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Derewianka, Beverly; Jones, Pauline

2016-01-01

Language is at the heart of the learning process. We learn through language. Our knowledge about the world is constructed in language-the worlds of home and the community, the worlds of school subjects, the worlds of literature, the worlds of the workplace, and so on. It is through language that we interact with others and build our identities.…

Improving Second Language Speaking Proficiency via Interactional Feedback

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Swanson, Peter B.; Schlig, Carmen

2010-01-01

Researchers have suggested that interactional feedback is associated with foreign/second language learning because it prompts learners to notice foreign/second language forms. Using Vygotsky's zone of proximal development and Long's interaction hypothesis as conceptual frameworks, this study explores the use of systematic explicit feedback to…

Becoming "Spanish Learners": Identity and Interaction among Multilingual Children in a Spanish-English Dual Language Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martínez, Ramón Antonio; Durán, Leah; Hikida, Michiko

2017-01-01

This article explores the interactional co-construction of identities among two first-grade students learning Spanish as a third language in a Spanish-English dual language classroom. Drawing on ethnographic and interactional data, the article focuses on a single interaction between these two "Spanish learners" and two of their…

Summer Camp: Language Learning beyond the Walls--A Grassroots Model for Summer Immersion Camp

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Seewald, Amanda

2012-01-01

In efforts to improve, expand and inspire language learning to become a basic and essential component of the landscape of the educational system, one must reach out beyond the walls of the classroom to engage learners early. Real-world learning and energized, playful, interactive language experiences that inspire can drastically change the…

"The Craft so Long to Lerne": Aspects of Time in Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oxford, Rebecca L.

2017-01-01

Time factors complexly, dynamically interact with each other and with other contextualized variables in language learning. The time-tied nature of language learning is captured in what I call the "time-prism," which is the central symbol of temporality in this paper. The facets of the prism discussed in this article are (1) language…

Teachers' Education in Socratic Dialogue: Some Effects on Teacher-Learner Interaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Knezic, Dubravka; Elbers, Ed; Wubbels, Theo; Hajer, Maaike

2013-01-01

This article presents a quasi-experimental study into the effects of a course offered to subject matter student teachers that focused on Socratic Dialogue as a way to enhance their interactional scaffolding of advanced second language learning. Within the framework of the sociocultural theory of learning and second language acquisition, the study…

The Design and Development of a Collaborative mLearning Prototype for Malaysian Secondary School Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeWitt, Dorothy; Alias, Norlidah; Siraj, Saedah

2014-01-01

Collaborative problem-solving in science instruction allows learners to build their knowledge and understanding through interaction, using the language of science. Computer-mediated communication (CMC) tools facilitate collaboration and may provide the opportunity for interaction when using the language of science in learning. There seems to be…

Enhancing Children's Language Learning and Cognition Experience through Interactive Kinetic Typography

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lau, Newman M. L.; Chu, Veni H. T.

2015-01-01

This research aimed at investigating the method of using kinetic typography and interactive approach to conduct a design experiment for children to learn vocabularies. Typography is the unique art and technique of arranging type in order to make language visible. By adding animated movement to characters, kinetic typography expresses language…

Action or Reaction, Learning or Display: Interactional Development and Usage-Based Data

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huth, Thorsten

2013-01-01

This paper investigates how instances of language use can serve as analytic anchors for insight into interactional development over time. I present a usage-based, longitudinal study of multi-turn sequences underlying telephone openings in order to specify if and to whom "language learning" may be relevantly ascribed. Two successive…

Collaborative Production of Learning Objects on French Literary Works Using the LOC Software

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Penman, Christine

2015-01-01

This case study situates the collaborative design of learning objects (interactive online learning material) using the LOC (Learning Object Creator) software in the context of language activities external to the core learning activities of language students at a UK university. It describes the creative and pedagogical processes leading to the…

Tales of Tutors: The Role of Narrative in Language Learning and Service-Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Polansky, Susan G.; Andrianoff, Timothy; Bernard, Jaclyn B.; Flores, Ana; Gardocki, Isabel A.; Handerhan, Ryan J.; Park, Jihea; Young, Lisa

2010-01-01

This article examines the role of narrative in the learning process of language tutors in a university service-learning course involving collaboration between an institution of higher learning and public high schools in an urban setting. The tutors' personal narrative reflections offer multiple perspectives on interactions of tutors with high…

The Interaction of Motivation, Self-Regulatory Strategies, and Autonomous Learning Behavior in Different Learner Groups

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kormos, Judit; Csizér, Kata

2014-01-01

Autonomous learning and effective self-regulatory strategies are increasingly important in foreign language learning; without these, students might not be able to exploit learning opportunities outside language classrooms. This study investigated the influence of motivational factors and self-regulatory strategies on autonomous learning behavior.…

Bilinguals’ Existing Languages Benefit Vocabulary Learning in a Third Language

PubMed Central

Bartolotti, James; Marian, Viorica

2017-01-01

Learning a new language involves substantial vocabulary acquisition. Learners can accelerate this process by relying on words with native-language overlap, such as cognates. For bilingual third language learners, it is necessary to determine how their two existing languages interact during novel language learning. A scaffolding account predicts transfer from either language for individual words, whereas an accumulation account predicts cumulative transfer from both languages. To compare these accounts, twenty English-German bilingual adults were taught an artificial language containing 48 novel written words that varied orthogonally in English and German wordlikeness (neighborhood size and orthotactic probability). Wordlikeness in each language improved word production accuracy, and similarity to one language provided the same benefit as dual-language overlap. In addition, participants’ memory for novel words was affected by the statistical distributions of letters in the novel language. Results indicate that bilinguals utilize both languages during third language acquisition, supporting a scaffolding learning model. PMID:28781384

Bilinguals' Existing Languages Benefit Vocabulary Learning in a Third Language.

PubMed

Bartolotti, James; Marian, Viorica

2017-03-01

Learning a new language involves substantial vocabulary acquisition. Learners can accelerate this process by relying on words with native-language overlap, such as cognates. For bilingual third language learners, it is necessary to determine how their two existing languages interact during novel language learning. A scaffolding account predicts transfer from either language for individual words, whereas an accumulation account predicts cumulative transfer from both languages. To compare these accounts, twenty English-German bilingual adults were taught an artificial language containing 48 novel written words that varied orthogonally in English and German wordlikeness (neighborhood size and orthotactic probability). Wordlikeness in each language improved word production accuracy, and similarity to one language provided the same benefit as dual-language overlap. In addition, participants' memory for novel words was affected by the statistical distributions of letters in the novel language. Results indicate that bilinguals utilize both languages during third language acquisition, supporting a scaffolding learning model.

Why Virtual, Why Environments? Implementing Virtual Reality Concepts in Computer-Assisted Language Learning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schwienhorst, Klaus

2002-01-01

Discussion of computer-assisted language learning focuses on the benefits of virtual reality environments, particularly for foreign language contexts. Topics include three approaches to learner autonomy; supporting reflection, including self-awareness; supporting interaction, including collaboration; and supporting experimentation, including…

Narrative Learning, EAL and Metacognitive Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cortazzi, Martin; Jin, Lixian

2007-01-01

This paper elaborates some aspects of narrative learning--defined here as learning to tell stories and learning from, about and through narratives--in the context of primary-age pupils who use English as an Additional Language (EAL). The paper introduces some principles to support their language development in classroom interaction. We argue that…

The "7 Keys of the Dragon": An E-Learning Gamelike Environment for Albanian and Russian

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Revithiadou, Anthi; Kourtis-Kazoullis, Vasilia; Soukalopoulou, Maria; Konstantoudakis, Konstantinos; Zarras, Christos; Pelesoglou, Nestoras

2014-01-01

In this article we report on the development of an interactive open source extensible software, dubbed "The 7 Keys of the Dragon," for the teaching/learning of Albanian and Russian to students (9-12 years old) with the respective languages as their heritage languages. Based on the assumption that games in language learning are associated…

Multilingualism in Action: A Conversation Analytic View on How Children Are Re-Voicing a Story in a French Second Language Learning Lesson

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arend, Béatrice; Sunnen, Patrick

2017-01-01

Our paper provides an empirically based perspective on the contribution of Conversation Analysis (CA) to our understanding of children's second language learning practices in a multilingual classroom setting. While exploring the interactional configuration of a French second language learning activity, we focus our analytic lens on how five…

Early and Late Language Start at Private Schools in Turkey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cepik, Saban; Sarandi, Hedayat

2012-01-01

This study examines the interaction effect of age in L2 attainment. It explores whether success in foreign language learning at early childhood grades varies depending on age. It also addresses the beliefs of foreign language teachers regarding the variables under review. Eighty-three 11 year-old language learners who started learning English at…

English Language Instructors' Perceptions about Technology-Based Language Learning at Northern Border University in Saudi Arabia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saqlain, Nadeem; Mahmood, Zahir

2013-01-01

This study used qualitative research methods to explore English language teachers' perceptions about the use of technology for language learning at Northern Border University (NBU) in Saudi Arabia. Data collection relied on interviews. Stream of behaviour chronicles was also used as a strategy of non interactive data collection.14 non native…

Criteria for Evaluating a Game-Based CALL Platform

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ní Chiaráin, Neasa; Ní Chasaide, Ailbhe

2017-01-01

Game-based Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) is an area that currently warrants attention, as task-based, interactive, multimodal games increasingly show promise for language learning. This area is inherently multidisciplinary--theories from second language acquisition, games, and psychology must be explored and relevant concepts from…

Serious Use of a Serious Game for Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, W. Lewis

2010-01-01

The Tactical Language and Culture Training System (TLCTS) helps learners acquire basic communicative skills in foreign languages and cultures. Learners acquire communication skills through a combination of interactive lessons and serious games. Artificial intelligence plays multiple roles in this learning environment: to process the learner's…

Language Mediation in an L3 Classroom: The Role of Task Modalities and Task Types

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Payant, Caroline; Kim, YouJin

2015-01-01

Pedagogical tasks in language learning settings promote learner-learner interaction and provide second language (L2) learners with opportunities to process authentic input and produce output (Philp, Adams, & Iwashita, 2014). During these interactions, learners use their language repertoire to mediate their output (Swain & Lapkin, 2000).…

Learning Opportunities in Synchronous Computer-Mediated Communication and Face-to-Face Interaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, Hye Yeong

2014-01-01

This study investigated how synchronous computer-mediated communication (SCMC) and face-to-face (F2F) oral interaction influence the way in which learners collaborate in language learning and how they solve their communicative problems. The findings suggest that output modality may affect how learners produce language, attend to linguistic forms,…

Simon Fraser University's New Interactive Learning System to Teach French as a Second Language.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kirchner, Glenn

1988-01-01

Provides an overview of the design, production, and preliminary testing of a microcomputer-controlled interactive learning workstation developed at Simon Fraser University to teach French as a Second Language. Criteria and guidelines are discussed; the authoring system is explained; and field testing with grades four through seven is described.…

Helping Second Language Literature Learners Overcome E-Learning Difficulties: LET-NET Team Teaching with Online Peer Interaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wu, Pin-Hsiang Natalie; Marek, Michael W.

2013-01-01

This study presents and discusses results from an EFL second language literature program in which the instructional design included a team teaching scheme, blended learning practice, and computer-mediated peer-interaction. The team teaching plan used a Mandarin speaking English teacher and a Native English-speaking teacher collaborating and…

Student Agency and Language-Learning Processes and Outcomes in International Online Environments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Basharina, Olga

2009-01-01

This research focuses on the kinds of learning afforded by asynchronous international computer-mediated communication (I-CMC) among Japanese, Mexican, and Russian English language learners and the role of student agency in learning. To find learning evidence, the discourse analysis and content analysis of interaction protocols were conducted in…

Embracing Technology: Learning a Foreign Language in Multimedia Environments.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shen, Hui Zhong

2003-01-01

Examines the experience of two young children learning Modern Standard Chinese (MSC) through playing in an unstructured home situation. Reports findings of their interaction with the software "The Language market." he research is the first phase of a longitudinal study of two young children learning MSC in a multimedia learning environment.…

A FAQ-Based e-Learning Environment to Support Japanese Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liu, Yuqin; Yin, Chengjiu; Ogata, Hiroaki; Qiao, Guojun; Yano, Yoneo

2011-01-01

In traditional classes, having many questions from learners is important because these questions indicate difficult points for learners and for teachers. This paper proposes a FAQ-based e-Learning environment to support Japanese language learning that focuses on learner questions. This knowledge sharing system enables learners to interact and…

Conversation Analysis in Computer-Assisted Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

González-Lloret, Marta

2015-01-01

The use of Conversation Analysis (CA) in the study of technology-mediated interactions is a recent methodological addition to qualitative research in the field of Computer-assisted Language Learning (CALL). The expansion of CA in Second Language Acquisition research, coupled with the need for qualitative techniques to explore how people interact…

Information Gaps: The Missing Links to Learning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adams, Carl R.

Communication takes place when a speaker conveys new information to the listener. In second language teaching, information gaps motivate students to use and learn the target language in order to obtain information. The resulting interactive language use may develop affective bonds among the students. A variety of classroom techniques are available…

Notional-Functional Syllabus: From Theory to Classroom Applications.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Knop, Constance K.

A notional-functional syllabus is a set of materials to be learned by students of a second language. While learning to perform communicative activities, students practice language structures that refer to certain situations and ideas (notions). The language structures are organized to express different interactions (functions) that are possible…

Developing Interactional Awareness in the Second Language Classroom through Teacher Self-Evaluation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walsh, Steve

2003-01-01

This paper proposes a process model of reflective practice for second language teachers, designed to facilitate a closer understanding of language use and interactive decision-making. The L2 classroom is portrayed as a dynamic and complex series of inter-related contexts, in which interaction is central to teaching and learning. An understanding…

From Language Proficiency to Interactional Competence.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kramsch, Claire

1986-01-01

The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages' guidelines for foreign language teaching and learning focus on the linear acquisition of grammatical structures, but this proficiency will not automatically lead to interactional competence. Enthusiasm generated by the proficiency movement should be redirected toward a push for…

Second Life for Distance Language Learning: A Framework for Native/Non-Native Speaker Interactions in a Virtual World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tusing, Jennifer; Berge, Zane L.

2010-01-01

This paper examines a number of theoretical principles governing second language teaching and learning and the ways in which these principles are being applied in 3D virtual worlds such as Second Life. Also examined are the benefits to language learning afforded by the Second Life interface, including access, the availability of native speakers of…

The ITALK project: a developmental robotics approach to the study of individual, social, and linguistic learning.

PubMed

Broz, Frank; Nehaniv, Chrystopher L; Belpaeme, Tony; Bisio, Ambra; Dautenhahn, Kerstin; Fadiga, Luciano; Ferrauto, Tomassino; Fischer, Kerstin; Förster, Frank; Gigliotta, Onofrio; Griffiths, Sascha; Lehmann, Hagen; Lohan, Katrin S; Lyon, Caroline; Marocco, Davide; Massera, Gianluca; Metta, Giorgio; Mohan, Vishwanathan; Morse, Anthony; Nolfi, Stefano; Nori, Francesco; Peniak, Martin; Pitsch, Karola; Rohlfing, Katharina J; Sagerer, Gerhard; Sato, Yo; Saunders, Joe; Schillingmann, Lars; Sciutti, Alessandra; Tikhanoff, Vadim; Wrede, Britta; Zeschel, Arne; Cangelosi, Angelo

2014-07-01

This article presents results from a multidisciplinary research project on the integration and transfer of language knowledge into robots as an empirical paradigm for the study of language development in both humans and humanoid robots. Within the framework of human linguistic and cognitive development, we focus on how three central types of learning interact and co-develop: individual learning about one's own embodiment and the environment, social learning (learning from others), and learning of linguistic capability. Our primary concern is how these capabilities can scaffold each other's development in a continuous feedback cycle as their interactions yield increasingly sophisticated competencies in the agent's capacity to interact with others and manipulate its world. Experimental results are summarized in relation to milestones in human linguistic and cognitive development and show that the mutual scaffolding of social learning, individual learning, and linguistic capabilities creates the context, conditions, and requisites for learning in each domain. Challenges and insights identified as a result of this research program are discussed with regard to possible and actual contributions to cognitive science and language ontogeny. In conclusion, directions for future work are suggested that continue to develop this approach toward an integrated framework for understanding these mutually scaffolding processes as a basis for language development in humans and robots. Copyright © 2014 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

The Impacts of Distance Interactivity on Learners' Achievements in Online Mobile Language Learning: Social Software and Participatory Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mellati, Morteza; Khademi, Marzieh

2015-01-01

The expansion of technological applications such as computers and mobile phones in the past three decades has impacted our life from different perspectives. Language teaching is no exception and like other fields of study, language teaching has also influenced by new language teaching sources and software. More recently, there has been a…

Neurally and mathematically motivated architecture for language and thought.

PubMed

Perlovsky, L I; Ilin, R

2010-01-01

Neural structures of interaction between thinking and language are unknown. This paper suggests a possible architecture motivated by neural and mathematical considerations. A mathematical requirement of computability imposes significant constraints on possible architectures consistent with brain neural structure and with a wealth of psychological knowledge. How language interacts with cognition. Do we think with words, or is thinking independent from language with words being just labels for decisions? Why is language learned by the age of 5 or 7, but acquisition of knowledge represented by learning to use this language knowledge takes a lifetime? This paper discusses hierarchical aspects of language and thought and argues that high level abstract thinking is impossible without language. We discuss a mathematical technique that can model the joint language-thought architecture, while overcoming previously encountered difficulties of computability. This architecture explains a contradiction between human ability for rational thoughtful decisions and irrationality of human thinking revealed by Tversky and Kahneman; a crucial role in this contradiction might be played by language. The proposed model resolves long-standing issues: how the brain learns correct words-object associations; why animals do not talk and think like people. We propose the role played by language emotionality in its interaction with thought. We relate the mathematical model to Humboldt's "firmness" of languages; and discuss possible influence of language grammar on its emotionality. Psychological and brain imaging experiments related to the proposed model are discussed. Future theoretical and experimental research is outlined.

Neurally and Mathematically Motivated Architecture for Language and Thought

PubMed Central

Perlovsky, L.I; Ilin, R

2010-01-01

Neural structures of interaction between thinking and language are unknown. This paper suggests a possible architecture motivated by neural and mathematical considerations. A mathematical requirement of computability imposes significant constraints on possible architectures consistent with brain neural structure and with a wealth of psychological knowledge. How language interacts with cognition. Do we think with words, or is thinking independent from language with words being just labels for decisions? Why is language learned by the age of 5 or 7, but acquisition of knowledge represented by learning to use this language knowledge takes a lifetime? This paper discusses hierarchical aspects of language and thought and argues that high level abstract thinking is impossible without language. We discuss a mathematical technique that can model the joint language-thought architecture, while overcoming previously encountered difficulties of computability. This architecture explains a contradiction between human ability for rational thoughtful decisions and irrationality of human thinking revealed by Tversky and Kahneman; a crucial role in this contradiction might be played by language. The proposed model resolves long-standing issues: how the brain learns correct words-object associations; why animals do not talk and think like people. We propose the role played by language emotionality in its interaction with thought. We relate the mathematical model to Humboldt’s “firmness” of languages; and discuss possible influence of language grammar on its emotionality. Psychological and brain imaging experiments related to the proposed model are discussed. Future theoretical and experimental research is outlined. PMID:21673788

The Effectiveness of Pictured Letters Mnemonics Strategy in Learning Similar English Language Letters among Students with Learning Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dakhiel, Maysoon A.; Al Rub, Mohammed O. Abu

2017-01-01

The present study aims to investigate the effectiveness of pictured letters mnemonics strategy in learning similar English language letters among students with learning disabilities in Saudi Arabia according to experimental group (1) and (2), control group, gender, and interaction between them. The study sample comprised (90) students with…

Self-Regulated Learning in Learning Environments with Pedagogical Agents that Interact in Natural Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Graesser, Arthur; McNamara, Danielle

2010-01-01

This article discusses the occurrence and measurement of self-regulated learning (SRL) both in human tutoring and in computer tutors with agents that hold conversations with students in natural language and help them learn at deeper levels. One challenge in building these computer tutors is to accommodate, encourage, and scaffold SRL because these…

Shifting Roles: From Language Teachers to Learning Advisors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morrison, Brian R.; Navarro, Diego

2012-01-01

Although learning advisors are often qualified teachers, the skills they apply, such as those discussed by Kelly (1996), require a significant shift in approach regarding interaction with students. As teachers reorient themselves to advising, their role changes quite markedly from teaching language to advising on learning (Mozzon-McPherson, 2001).…

Interactive Alignment: A Teaching-Friendly View of Second Language Pronunciation Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Trofimovich, Pavel

2016-01-01

Interactive alignment is a phenomenon whereby interlocutors adopt and re-use each other's language patterns in the course of authentic interaction. According to the interactive alignment model, originally proposed by Pickering & Garrod (2004), this linguistic coordination is one way in which interlocutors achieve understanding in dialogue,…

Multimodal Research: Addressing the Complexity of Multimodal Environments and the Challenges for CALL

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tan, Sabine; O'Halloran, Kay L.; Wignell, Peter

2016-01-01

Multimodality, the study of the interaction of language with other semiotic resources such as images and sound resources, has significant implications for computer assisted language learning (CALL) with regards to understanding the impact of digital environments on language teaching and learning. In this paper, we explore recent manifestations of…

Language Educational Policy and Language Learning Quality Management: The "Common European Framework of Reference"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barenfanger, Olaf; Tschirner, Erwin

2008-01-01

The major goal of the Council of Europe to promote and facilitate communication and interaction among Europeans of different mother tongues has led to the development of the "Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment" (CEFR). Among other things, the CEFR is intended to help language…

Kinesthetic Language Learning: How an Accident Led to a Revelation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

West, Travis; Nam, Roger S.; Benckhuysen, Amanda W.

2016-01-01

This essay analyzes a critical incident that took place in a hybrid distance-learning Hebrew language class that was adapting interactive, immersion-style, kinesthetic pedagogy during the week-long face-to-face intensive portion of the class--including Total Physical Response techniques in which students respond to the language with whole-body…

Learning to Match Auditory and Visual Speech Cues: Social Influences on Acquisition of Phonological Categories

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Altvater-Mackensen, Nicole; Grossmann, Tobias

2015-01-01

Infants' language exposure largely involves face-to-face interactions providing acoustic and visual speech cues but also social cues that might foster language learning. Yet, both audiovisual speech information and social information have so far received little attention in research on infants' early language development. Using a preferential…

Language Experience Interviews: What Can They Tell Us about Individual Differences?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Polat, Brittany

2013-01-01

While language learners and teachers have long known that individual differences (IDs) among students result in differential learning, we still do not know how traditional ID variables interact or the specific impact each one has on language learning. The present study proposes that instead of looking at isolated variables, researchers should…

Understanding Online Interaction in Language MOOCs through Learning Analytics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martín-Monje, Elena; Castrillo, María Dolores; Mañana-Rodríguez, Jorge

2018-01-01

Data mining is increasing its popularity in the research of Technology-Enhanced Language Learning and Applied Linguistics in general. It enables a better understanding of progress, performance and possible pitfalls, which would be useful for language learners, teachers and researchers. Until recently it was an unexplored field, but it is expected…

Students' Preferences for Syntax Usage in Turkish Language Using Distributional Linguistic Theory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Erdem, Cem

2017-01-01

Communication is one of the most important aspects of social life. Social interactions have increased the necessity for communication and learning of language. Social needs which constitute the main goal of teaching activities fill the gap of learning language. Linguistic surveys have revealed an important finding on educational activities and…

TANGO, an International Collaborative Bilingual E-Learning Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Álvarez-Mayo, Carmen

2016-01-01

TANGO (Álvarez-Mayo, 2013) uses the cultural aspects of foreign languages to promote oral interaction, enabling students to become self-regulated learners. Through TANGO, foreign language students learn about the cultural intricacies of the Target Language (TL) and use the TL to practise and further develop their oral skills with a partner who is…

The Effect of iPad Assisted Language Learning on Developing EFL Students' Autonomous Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Albadry, Haifa

2015-01-01

This paper will present the experience of using iPads with a group of 21 students in a Saudi university over a period of one semester. The purpose of this ongoing study is to explore how students learn to collaborate and interact in English by participating in a teacher-designed English as a Foreign Language (EFL) course. The course aimed at…

Different mechanisms in learning different second languages: Evidence from English speakers learning Chinese and Spanish.

PubMed

Cao, Fan; Sussman, Bethany L; Rios, Valeria; Yan, Xin; Wang, Zhao; Spray, Gregory J; Mack, Ryan M

2017-03-01

Word reading has been found to be associated with different neural networks in different languages, with greater involvement of the lexical pathway for opaque languages and greater invovlement of the sub-lexical pathway for transparent langauges. However, we do not know whether this language divergence can be demonstrated in second langauge learners, how learner's metalinguistic ability would modulate the langauge divergence, or whether learning method would interact with the language divergence. In this study, we attempted to answer these questions by comparing brain activations of Chinese and Spanish word reading in native English-speaking adults who learned Chinese and Spanish over a 2 week period under three learning conditions: phonological, handwriting, and passive viewing. We found that mapping orthography to phonology in Chinese had greater activation in the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and left inferior temporal gyrus (ITG) than in Spanish, suggesting greater invovlement of the lexical pathway in opaque langauges. In contrast, Spanish words evoked greater activation in the left superior temporal gyrus (STG) than English, suggesting greater invovlement of the sublexical pathway for transparant languages. Furthermore, brain-behavior correlation analyses found that higher phonological awareness and rapid naming were associated with greater activation in the bilateral IFG for Chinese and in the bilateral STG for Spanish, suggesting greater language divergence in participants with higher meta-linguistic awareness. Finally, a significant interaction between the language and learning condition was found in the left STG and middle frontal gyrus (MFG), with greater activation in handwriting learning than viewing learning in the left STG only for Spanish, and greater activation in handwriting learning than phonological learning in the left MFG only for Chinese. These findings suggest that handwriting facilitates assembled phonology in Spanish and addressed phonology in Chinese. In summary, our study suggests different mechanisms in learning different L2s, providing important insights into neural plasticity and important implications in second language education. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Language Choice among Peers in Project-Based Learning: A Hong Kong Case Study of English Language Learners' Plurilingual Practices in Out-of-Class Computer-Mediated Communication

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hafner, Christoph A.; Li, David C. S.; Miller, Lindsay

2015-01-01

Recently there has been considerable interest in the role of first language use in second/foreign language learning, especially where students share a common first language. However, most research has focused on in-class interaction between teachers and learners. Much less attention has been given to students' out-of-class practices, for example,…

Constructing Clinical Judgments about Preschool Pragmatic Language Skills: An Action Research Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boje, Noreen Susan

2009-01-01

The literature suggests that children who struggle with communication during social interactions, called "pragmatic language" in the field of speech language pathology, have fewer opportunities to engage in social practices that promote learning because of inadequate skills in interacting with others. Children with even subtle difficulties in…

Children creating language: how Nicaraguan sign language acquired a spatial grammar.

PubMed

Senghas, A; Coppola, M

2001-07-01

It has long been postulated that language is not purely learned, but arises from an interaction between environmental exposure and innate abilities. The innate component becomes more evident in rare situations in which the environment is markedly impoverished. The present study investigated the language production of a generation of deaf Nicaraguans who had not been exposed to a developed language. We examined the changing use of early linguistic structures (specifically, spatial modulations) in a sign language that has emerged since the Nicaraguan group first came together: In tinder two decades, sequential cohorts of learners systematized the grammar of this new sign language. We examined whether the systematicity being added to the language stems from children or adults: our results indicate that such changes originate in children aged 10 and younger Thus, sequential cohorts of interacting young children collectively: possess the capacity not only to learn, but also to create, language.

Isn't That Just Good Teaching? Disaggregate Instruction and the Language Identity Dilemma

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brown, Bryan A.

2011-12-01

The manuscript examines the relationship between language, identity, and classroom learning. Through an exploration of a series of research studies conducted over the course of 6 years, this manuscript examines how the idea of "Good Teaching" fails to account for the language-identity learning dilemma. In stage one of the research, a series of studies demonstrated how students encountered cultural conflicts as they attempted to use the language of science. The results of that research lead to the development of the construct of Discursive Identity as a lens to understand language interactions. Stage two of the research involved a series of examinations of alternative approaches to teaching that would assist minority students in their science learning. The implications of this research highlight the relationship between students' cognition and the sociocultural interaction that effect students' willingness to engage in academic discourse.

Language-Building Activities and Interaction Variations with Mixed-Ability ESL University Learners in a Content-Based Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Serna Dimas, Héctor Manuel; Ruíz Castellanos, Erika

2014-01-01

The preparation of both language-building activities and a variety of teacher/student interaction patterns increase both oral language participation and content learning in a course of manual therapy with mixed-language ability students. In this article, the researchers describe their collaboration in a content-based course in English with English…

Interactive Book Reading to Accelerate Word Learning by Kindergarten Children with Specific Language Impairment: Identifying an Adequate Intensity and Variation in Treatment Response

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Storkel, Holly L.; Voelmle, Krista; Fierro, Veronica; Flake, Kelsey; Fleming, Kandace K.; Romine, Rebecca Swinburne

2017-01-01

Purpose: This study sought to identify an adequate intensity of interactive book reading for new word learning by children with specific language impairment (SLI) and to examine variability in treatment response. Method: An escalation design adapted from nontoxic drug trials (Hunsberger, Rubinstein, Dancey, & Korn, 2005) was used in this Phase…

Instructional Design Using an In-House Built Teaching Assistant Robot to Enhance Elementary School English-as-a-Foreign-Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wu, Wen-Chi Vivian; Wang, Rong-Jyue; Chen, Nian-Shing

2015-01-01

This paper presents a design for a cutting-edge English program in which elementary school learners of English as a foreign language in Taiwan had lively interactions with a teaching assistant robot. Three dimensions involved in the design included (1) a pleasant and interactive classroom environment as the learning context, (2) a teaching…

How Much L1 Is Too Much? Teachers' Language Use in Response to Students' Abilities and Classroom Interaction in Content and Language Integrated Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lo, Yuen Yi

2015-01-01

In Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) classrooms where students' L2 proficiency has not reached the threshold level, teachers have been observed to use L1 to assist students in grasping specific technical terms and abstract concepts. It is argued to be a 'realistic' approach to the learning problems caused by students' limited L2…

Contact, Attitude and Motivation in the Learning of Catalan at Advanced Levels

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hamilton, Colleen; Serrano, Raquel

2015-01-01

The theoretical complexity of current understandings of second language (L2) identity has brought the study of language learning motivations from basic concepts of intrinsic, integrative and instrumental motives to a more dynamic construct that interacts with background factors, learning contexts and proficiency levels. This cross-sectional study…

Learning Trajectories and the Role of Online Courses in a Language Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schulze, Mathias; Scholz, Kyle

2018-01-01

Currently there is a push toward offering more language courses online because they can provide students with new forms of social and learning interaction, widen their access to education, and offer an individualized learning experience in large classes. Little research exists examining how students transition between online and on-campus language…

Does Project-Based Learning Enhance Iranian EFL Learners' Vocabulary Recall and Retention?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shafaei, Azadeh; Rahim, Hajar Abdul

2015-01-01

Vocabulary knowledge is an integral part of second/foreign language learning. Thus, using teaching methods that can help learners retain and expand their vocabulary knowledge is necessary to facilitate the language learning process. The current research investigated the effectiveness of an interactive classroom method, known as Project-Based…

Interactive Syllable-Based English Vocabulary Learning in a Context-Aware Environment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Wen-Yen; Huang, Yueh-Min

2017-01-01

English is one of the most important second languages in nonnative English-speaking countries, where learning English usually begins in primary school. To this end, vocabulary learning is regarded as the most fundamental and crucial stage in developing the student's English language capability. While some studies have explored strategies of…

Effects of Locus of Control and Learner-Control on Web-Based Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chang, Mei-Mei; Ho, Chiung-Mei

2009-01-01

The study explored the effects of students' locus of control and types of control over instruction on their self-efficacy and performance in a web-based language learning environment. A web-based interactive instructional program focusing on the comprehension of news articles for English language learners was developed in two versions: learner-…

Language Policies in Play: Learning Ecologies in Multilingual Preschool Interactions among Peers and Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cekaite, Asta; Evaldsson, Ann-Carita

2017-01-01

In this study we argue that a focus on language learning ecologies, that is, situations for participation in various communicative practices, can shed light on the intricate processes through which minority children develop or are constrained from acquiring cultural and linguistic competencies (here, of a majority language). The analysis draws on…

Interrogative Types in Parental Speech to Language Learning Children: A Linguistic Universal? Research Report No. 56.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buium, Nissan

The verbal interactions of eight mother-child pairs (four Hebrew-speaking mothers and four English-speaking mothers with their 24-month-old language learning children) were recorded and analyzed to determine the frequency of occurrence of various interrogative forms in the mothers' language. Results indicated that English-speaking mothers produced…

The Influence of Group Formation on Learner Participation, Language Complexity, and Corrective Behaviour in Synchronous Written Chat as Part of Academic German Studies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fredriksson, Christine

2015-01-01

Synchronous written chat and instant messaging are tools which have been used and explored in online language learning settings for at least two decades. Research literature has shown that such tools give second language (L2) learners opportunities for language learning, e.g. , the interaction in real time with peers and native speakers, the…

It takes two to talk: a second-person neuroscience approach to language learning.

PubMed

Syal, Supriya; Anderson, Adam K

2013-08-01

Language is a social act. We have previously argued that language remains embedded in sociality because the motivation to communicate exists only within a social context. Schilbach et al. underscore the importance of studying linguistic behavior from within the motivated, socially interactive frame in which it is learnt and used, as well as provide testable hypotheses for a participatory, second-person neuroscience approach to language learning.

Sciencepoetry and Language/Culture Teaching.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Romano, James V.

1988-01-01

Examines Rafael Catala's notion of sciencepoetry and an application of modern scientific principles to the teaching of language and culture, the "Lange Process." This interactive language/culture learning process relates target and native languages, culture, and perceptions. (Author/LMO)

Talk or Chat? Chatroom and Spoken Interaction in a Language Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hamano-Bunce, Douglas

2011-01-01

This paper describes a study comparing chatroom and face-to-face oral interaction for the purposes of language learning in a tertiary classroom in the United Arab Emirates. It uses transcripts analysed for Language Related Episodes, collaborative dialogues, thought to be externally observable examples of noticing in action. The analysis is…

Video-Based Interaction, Negotiation for Comprehensibility, and Second Language Speech Learning: A Longitudinal Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saito, Kazuya; Akiyama, Yuka

2017-01-01

This study examined the impact of video-based conversational interaction on the longitudinal development (one academic semester) of second language production by college-level Japanese English-as-a-foreign-language learners. Students in the experimental group engaged in weekly dyadic conversation exchanges with native speakers in the United States…

Effects of Communication Tasks on the Grammatical Relations Marked by Second Language Learners.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Newton, Jonathan; Kennedy, Graeme

1996-01-01

Examines the morpho-syntax of task-based interaction and reports some possible grammatical consequences of interaction in split and shared information tasks undertaken by adult second language learners of English. Results indicate that communication tasks for language learning can be designed to influence the use of particular linguistic…

Working with Pre-School Practitioners to Improve Interactions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ahsam, Suki; Shepherd, Julie; Warren-Adamson, Chris

2006-01-01

Eight pre-schools took part in offsite and onsite speech and language training to improve their interaction skills with children and learn some group language activities. An evaluation was undertaken where practitioners at one pre-school were videoed running a language activity before and after training. The video was analysed to assess change in…

The Interaction between Sytactic and Semantic Modules in Chinese Learners' English Spotaneous Speech

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gang, Xu

2014-01-01

According to modular theory, there are interactive effects between the central modules and language modules. The central cognition may deploy and redeploy resources from language modules. Moreover, the language modules can activate the cognitive ability. So this paper studies the spontaneous speech of students who learn English as a foreign…

Language Learning--An Intellectual Challenge?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ager, Dennis E.

1985-01-01

Looks at the debate over whether foreign language study is intellectually challenging. Examines four points in the debate: the contrast between content and skill; the nature of the learning and teaching material; the nature of classroom interaction; and the idea of osmosis. (SED)

Dynamical Integration of Language and Behavior in a Recurrent Neural Network for Human-Robot Interaction.

PubMed

Yamada, Tatsuro; Murata, Shingo; Arie, Hiroaki; Ogata, Tetsuya

2016-01-01

To work cooperatively with humans by using language, robots must not only acquire a mapping between language and their behavior but also autonomously utilize the mapping in appropriate contexts of interactive tasks online. To this end, we propose a novel learning method linking language to robot behavior by means of a recurrent neural network. In this method, the network learns from correct examples of the imposed task that are given not as explicitly separated sets of language and behavior but as sequential data constructed from the actual temporal flow of the task. By doing this, the internal dynamics of the network models both language-behavior relationships and the temporal patterns of interaction. Here, "internal dynamics" refers to the time development of the system defined on the fixed-dimensional space of the internal states of the context layer. Thus, in the execution phase, by constantly representing where in the interaction context it is as its current state, the network autonomously switches between recognition and generation phases without any explicit signs and utilizes the acquired mapping in appropriate contexts. To evaluate our method, we conducted an experiment in which a robot generates appropriate behavior responding to a human's linguistic instruction. After learning, the network actually formed the attractor structure representing both language-behavior relationships and the task's temporal pattern in its internal dynamics. In the dynamics, language-behavior mapping was achieved by the branching structure. Repetition of human's instruction and robot's behavioral response was represented as the cyclic structure, and besides, waiting to a subsequent instruction was represented as the fixed-point attractor. Thanks to this structure, the robot was able to interact online with a human concerning the given task by autonomously switching phases.

Open Educational Resources for Call Teacher Education: The iTILT Interactive Whiteboard Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Whyte, Shona; Schmid, Euline Cutrim; van Hazebrouck Thompson, Sanderin; Oberhofer, Margret

2014-01-01

This paper discusses challenges and opportunities arising during the development of open educational resources (OERs) to support communicative language teaching (CLT) with interactive whiteboards (IWBs). iTILT (interactive Technologies in Language Teaching), a European Lifelong Learning Project, has two main aims: (a) to promote "best…

Individual Differences in Early Language Learning: A Study of English Learners of French

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Courtney, Louise; Graham, Suzanne; Tonkyn, Alan; Marinis, Theodoros

2017-01-01

The present longitudinal study examines the interaction of learner variables (gender, motivation, self-efficacy, and first language literacy) and their influence on second language learning outcomes. The study follows English learners of French from Year 5 in primary school (aged 9-10) to the first year in secondary school (Year 7; aged 11-12).…

The Relationship between Socioeconomic Status and Beliefs about Language Learning: A Study of Iranian Postgraduate EAP Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ariani, Mohsen Ghasemi; Ghafournia, Narjes

2015-01-01

This study explored the probable interaction between Iranian language students' beliefs about language learning and their socio-economic status. To this end, 350 postgraduate students, doing English courses at Islamic Azad University of Neyshabur participated in this study. They were grouped in terms of their socio-economic status. They answered a…

Why Is It "Una Persona" and Not "Un Persona": Influence of Linguistic and Cultural Variables on Conceptual Learning in Second Language Situations.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gonzalez, Virginia; And Others

A study investigated the interaction of cognitive, cultural, and linguistic factors in second-language concept formation in adults. Specifically, it examined how seven college students in a lower-division intensive Spanish class developed new gender concepts when learning a second language. Course instruction focused on concept construction at…

Learning without Boundaries: Developing Mobile Learning Scenarios for Elementary and Middle School Language Arts & Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Evans, Michael A.; Gracanin, Denis

2009-01-01

This article provides an overview to a collaborative knowledge building project using iPod Touches in elementary and secondary language arts and mathematics classrooms, working with 4 teachers and over 80 students. The interactive technologies for embodied Learning in Reading and Mathematics (iteL*RM) project intends to facilitate student…

Affect and Willingness to Communicate in Digital Game-Based Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reinders, Hayo; Wattana, Sorada

2015-01-01

The possible benefits of digital games for language learning and teaching have received increasing interest in recent years. Games are said, amongst others, to be motivating, to lower affective barriers in learning, and to encourage foreign or second language (L2) interaction. But how do learners actually experience the use of games? What impact…

Teacher Training in a Synchronous Cyber Face-to-Face Classroom: Characterizing and Supporting the Online Teachers' Learning Process

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Yuping; Chen, Nian-Shing; Levy, Mike

2010-01-01

This article discusses the learning process undertaken by language teachers in a cyber face-to-face teacher training program. Eight tertiary Chinese language teachers attended a 12-week training program conducted in an online synchronous learning environment characterized by multimedia-based, oral and visual interaction. The term "cyber…

Four Characteristics of Facebook Activities for English Language Learning: A Study of Malaysian University Students' Needs and Preferences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kasuma, Shaidatul Akma Adi

2017-01-01

This paper identifies Malaysian university students' needs and preferences for online English language activities on a Facebook group that supports their formal learning. Two methods of data collection were employed; content analysis of the Facebook interactions, and semi structured interviews. Four main learning preferences or characteristics of…

Andragogical Model in Language Training of Mining Specialists

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bondareva, Evgeniya; Chistyakova, Galina; Kleshevskyi, Yury; Sergeev, Sergey; Stepanov, Aleksey

2017-11-01

Nowadays foreign language competence is one of the main professional skills of mining engineers. Modern competitive conditions require the ability for meeting production challenges in a foreign language from specialists and managers of mining enterprises. This is the reason of high demand on foreign language training/retraining courses. Language training of adult learners fundamentally differs from children and adolescent education. The article describes the features of andragogical learning model. The authors conclude that distance learning is the most productive education form having a number of obvious advantages over traditional (in-class) one. Interactive learning method that involves active engagement of adult trainees appears to be of the greatest interest due to introduction of modern information and communication technologies for distance learning.

Before They Read: Teaching Language and Literacy Development through Conversations, Interactive Read-Alouds, and Listening Games

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miller, Cathy Puett

2010-01-01

Preschool and kindergarten educators know that strong oral language skills must be in place before children can learn to read. In "Before They Read: Teaching Language and Literacy Development through Conversations, Interactive Read-Alouds, and Listening Games," Cathy Puett Miller helps educators teach those early literacy skills with engaging…

Investigating Negotiation of Meaning in EFL Children with Very Low Levels of Proficiency

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lázaro, Amparo; Azpilicueta-Martinez, Raúl

2015-01-01

Numerous studies hold that interaction has beneficial effects on second language acquisition among adults and children in second language contexts. However, data from children learning English as a foreign language are still unavailable. In order to fill this research niche, this study examines the conversational interactions of 8 pairs of young…

Negotiation of Meaning Strategies in Child EFL Mainstream and CLIL Settings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Azkarai, Agurtzane; Imaz Agirre, Ainara

2016-01-01

Research on child English as a second language (ESL) learners has shown the benefits of task-based interaction for the use of different negotiation of meaning (NoM) strategies, which have been claimed to lead to second language learning. However, research on child interaction in foreign language settings is scarce, specifically research on a new…

Can non-interactive language input benefit young second-language learners?

PubMed

Au, Terry Kit-Fong; Chan, Winnie Wailan; Cheng, Liao; Siegel, Linda S; Tso, Ricky Van Yip

2015-03-01

To fully acquire a language, especially its phonology, children need linguistic input from native speakers early on. When interaction with native speakers is not always possible - e.g. for children learning a second language that is not the societal language - audios are commonly used as an affordable substitute. But does such non-interactive input work? Two experiments evaluated the usefulness of audio storybooks in acquiring a more native-like second-language accent. Young children, first- and second-graders in Hong Kong whose native language was Cantonese Chinese, were given take-home listening assignments in a second language, either English or Putonghua Chinese. Accent ratings of the children's story reading revealed measurable benefits of non-interactive input from native speakers. The benefits were far more robust for Putonghua than English. Implications for second-language accent acquisition are discussed.

Examining the Relationship between Interaction and Linguistic Outcomes: Is the Online Learning Environment a Viable Alternative to Traditional Classroom Instruction for Beginning Language Learners?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Flesvig Bruland, Nicole

2013-01-01

Many in the field of Second Language Acquisition (SLA) agree that interaction is a critical component in the process of second language acquisition (Hatch 1978; Long, 1996; Pica 1994). According to Long (1996), second language (L2) learners have the best chance of successful L2 acquisition when placed in an environment in which conversational…

Self-Efficacy, Task Complexity and Task Performance: Exploring Interactions in Two Versions of Vocabulary Learning Tasks

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wu, Xiaoli; Lowyck, Joost; Sercu, Lies; Elen, Jan

2012-01-01

The present study aimed for better understanding of the interactions between task complexity and students' self-efficacy beliefs and students' use of learning strategies, and finally their interacting effects on task performance. This investigation was carried out in the context of Chinese students learning English as a foreign language in a…

Task-Induced Development of Hinting Behaviors in Online Task-Oriented L2 Interaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Balaman, Ufuk

2018-01-01

Technology-mediated task settings are rich interactional domains in which second language (L2) learners manage a multitude of interactional resources for task accomplishment. The affordances of these settings have been repeatedly addressed in computer-assisted language learning (CALL) literature mainly based on theory-informed task design…

Developing Phonological Awareness in Blended-Learning Language Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dell'Aria, Carmela; McLoughlin, Laura Incalcaterra

2013-01-01

This study is based on Second Language Acquisition through blended learning and explores the application of new educational technologies in the development of distance education. In particular, the paper focuses on ways to enhance oral, aural, and intercultural skills through learners' engagement, develop authentic social interaction and…

Effectiveness of Vocabulary Intervention for Older Children with (Developmental) Language Disorder

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wright, Lisa; Pring, Tim; Ebbels, Susan

2018-01-01

Background: Children with developmental language disorder (DLD) frequently have difficulties with word learning and understanding vocabulary. For these children, this can significantly impact on social interactions, daily activities and academic progress. Although there is literature providing a rationale for targeting word learning in such…

Talk in Interaction in the Speech-Language Pathology Clinic: Bringing Theory to Practice through Discourse

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leaby, Margaret M.; Walsh, Irene P.

2008-01-01

The importance of learning about and applying clinical discourse analysis to enhance the talk in interaction in the speech-language pathology clinic is discussed. The benefits of analyzing clinical discourse to explicate therapy dynamics are described.

Determining an Effective Interactive Multimedia Arabic Language Courseware for Malaysian Primary School Children: An Alternative Paradigm for Learning in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Faryadi, Qais; Bakar, Zainab Abu; Maidinsah, Hamidah

2007-01-01

The prime purpose of this experimental research was to determine whether learning Arabic as a foreign language can be effectively enhanced through traditional methodology. As such, this research carefully investigated and critically analyzed the effectiveness of the traditional paradigm in teaching Arabic as a foreign language to 3rd grade primary…

HR4EU--A Web-Portal for E-Learning of Croatian

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Filko, Matea; Farkaš, Daša; Hriberski, Diana

2016-01-01

In this paper, we present the HR4EU--a web portal for e-learning of Croatian. HR4EU is the first portal that offers Croatian language courses which are free-of-charge and developed by language professionals. Moreover, HR4EU also integrates bidirectional interaction with some of the previously developed language resources for Croatian. The HR4EU…

Dynamic Lesson Planning in EFL Reading Classes through a New e-Learning System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Okada, Takeshi; Sakamoto, Yasunobu

2015-01-01

This paper illustrates how lesson plans, teaching styles and assessment can be dynamically adapted on a real-time basis during an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) reading classroom session by using a new e-learning system named iBELLEs (interactive Blended English Language Learning Enhancement system). iBELLEs plays a crucial role in filling…

The Multicultural Café: Enhancing Authentic Interaction for Adult English Language Learners through Service Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Riley, Tracy; Douglas, Scott Roy

2016-01-01

While service learning platforms hold great potential for adult learners of English as an additional language (EAL), there has been little research to date related to the impact of these programs on adult newcomers' linguistic and social development. The Multicultural Café was a food service learning platform for adult EAL learners operated over a…

The Use of Weblog in Language Learning: Motivation of Second Language Learners in Reading Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sulaiman, Ahmad Nasaruddin; Kassim, Asiah

2010-01-01

The age of technology has enabled learners to interact with other users outside the four walls of the classroom. Weblogs, in particular, provide a channel for asynchronous computer-mediated communication to take place in the learning process. Motivation is one of the learning aspects that is greatly enhanced by the use of technology.…

"Visual Learning Is the Best Learning--It Lets You Be Creative while Learning": Exploring Ways to Begin Guided Writing in Second Language Learning through the Use of Comics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rossetto, Marietta; Chiera-Macchia, Antonella

2011-01-01

This study investigated the use of comics (Cary, 2004) in a guided writing experience in secondary school Italian language learning. The main focus of the peer group interaction task included the exploration of visual sequencing and visual integration (Bailey, O'Grady-Jones, & McGown, 1995) using image and text to create a comic strip narrative in…

Multimodal Language Learner Interactions via Desktop Videoconferencing within a Framework of Social Presence: Gaze

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Satar, H. Muge

2013-01-01

Desktop videoconferencing (DVC) offers many opportunities for language learning through its multimodal features. However, it also brings some challenges such as gaze and mutual gaze, that is, eye-contact. This paper reports some of the findings of a PhD study investigating social presence in DVC interactions of English as a Foreign Language (EFL)…

Let Social Interaction Flourish

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Case, Anny Fritzen

2016-01-01

The author describes lessons learned--through a high school project that grouped English language learners with native speakers to create a video--about ways to foster respectful, productive interaction among English learners and peers who are native speakers. The potential benefits of students who are just learning English interacting socially…

Language and Communication.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ransom, Grayce A.

An analysis of the relationship of language to learning, particularly as it affects "avoidance behaviors" of remedial readers in the classroom, strongly emphasized the importance of greater stress on oral language development. New concern for cognitive and personality development in children stresses the role of language as an interaction medium…

Moving in(to) Imaginary Worlds: Drama Pedagogy for Foreign Language Teaching and Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Even, Susanne

2008-01-01

This article introduces drama pedagogy as an approach with great potential for foreign language acquisition, addressing students' multiple skills and facilitating their communicative and interactional competence. A strong emphasis is placed on social, emotional, and kinesthetic learning that is traditionally neglected in instructional settings.…

Researching Vocabulary Development: A Conversation Analytic Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reichert, Tetyana

2016-01-01

This paper contributes to the much debated yet still largely unanswered question of how second language (L2) learning is anchored and configured in and through social interaction. Using a sociointeractional approach to second language (L2) learning (e.g., Hellermann, 2008; Mondada & Pekarek Doehler, 2004; Pekarek Doehler, 2010), I examine…

Rationalities of Collaboration for Language Learning in a Wiki

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bradley, Linda; Lindstrom, Berner; Rystedt, Hans

2010-01-01

For language learning, online environments allowing for user generated content are becoming increasingly important since they offer possibilities for learners to elaborate on assignments and projects. This study investigates what wikis can do as a means to enhance group interaction, when students are encouraged to participate in constructing text…

Incidental Focus on Form and Second Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Loewen, Shawn

2005-01-01

Incidental focus on form overtly draws learners' attention to linguistic items as they arise spontaneously--without prior planning--in meaning-focused interaction. This study examined the effectiveness of incidental focus on form in promoting second language (L2) learning. Seventeen hours of naturally occurring, meaning-focused L2 lessons were…

Language Learning Technology and Alternative for Public Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jarvis, Stan

1984-01-01

While supporting the use of interactive video technologies in public education, universities, and government, the need for standardization of the materials is stressed, which would allow for program exchange and a wider use of expertise and creativity. Concerning technology-based language learning, an emphasis on quality, yet affordable…

The Tapestry of Language Learning: The Individual in the Communicative Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scarcella, Robin C.; Oxford, Rebecca L.

The analogy of a tapestry is used to provide instructional techniques and practices to help teachers of English as a Second Language (ESL) "weave" together environmental factors (classroom interaction, input) and learner cognitive, affective, and social characteristics (learning styles, strategies, motivation) according to the needs of the…

Creating a Storytelling Classroom for a Storytelling World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Robert E.

2012-01-01

This article explores the value of storytelling in English language learning. Strong emphasis is placed on the role that stories of personal experience play in human interaction and how these natural conversations foster a better language learning experience. The author outlines a four-step approach to help students develop conversational skills…

The Effect of Interactivity with a Music Video Game on Second Language Vocabulary Recall

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

deHaan, Jonathan; Reed, W. Michael; Kuwada, Katsuko

2010-01-01

Video games are potential sources of second language input; however, the medium's fundamental characteristic, interactivity, has not been thoroughly examined in terms of its effect on learning outcomes. This experimental study investigated to what degree, if at all, video game interactivity would help or hinder the noticing and recall of second…

Atypical birdsong and artificial languages provide insights into how communication systems are shaped by learning, use, and transmission.

PubMed

Fehér, Olga

2017-02-01

In this article, I argue that a comparative approach focusing on the cognitive capacities and behavioral mechanisms that underlie vocal learning in songbirds and humans can provide valuable insights into the evolutionary origins of language. The experimental approaches I discuss use abnormal song and atypical linguistic input to study the processes of individual learning, social interaction, and cultural transmission. Atypical input places increased learning and communicative pressure on learners, so exploring how they respond to this type of input provides a particularly clear picture of the biases and constraints at work during learning and use. Furthermore, simulating the cultural transmission of these unnatural communication systems in the laboratory informs us about how learning and social biases influence the structure of communication systems in the long run. Findings based on these methods suggest fundamental similarities in the basic social-cognitive mechanisms underlying vocal learning in birds and humans, and continuing research promises insights into the uniquely human mechanisms and into how human cognition and social behavior interact, and ultimately impact on the evolution of language.

On Interactive Teaching Model of Translation Course Based on Wechat

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lin, Wang

2017-01-01

Constructivism is a theory related to knowledge and learning, focusing on learners' subjective initiative, based on which the interactive approach has been proved to play a crucial role in language learning. Accordingly, the interactive approach can also be applied to translation teaching since translation itself is a bilingual transformational…

Transformations: Mobile Interaction & Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carroll, Fiona; Kop, Rita; Thomas, Nathan; Dunning, Rebecca

2015-01-01

Mobile devices and the interactions that these technologies afford have the potential to change the face and nature of education in our schools. Indeed, mobile technological advances are seen to offer better access to educational material and new interactive ways to learn. However, the question arises, as to whether these new technologies are…

Accommodating Taboo Language in English Language Teaching: Issues of Appropriacy and Authenticity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liyanage, Indika; Walker, Tony; Bartlett, Brendan; Guo, Xuhong

2015-01-01

Culturally specific language practices related to vernacular uses of taboo language such as swearing represent a socially communicative minefield for learners of English. The role of classroom learning experiences to prepare learners for negotiation of taboo language use in social interactions is correspondingly complicated and ignored in much of…

Linguistic Diversity in First Language Acquisition Research: Moving beyond the Challenges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kelly, Barbara F.; Forshaw, William; Nordlinger, Rachel; Wigglesworth, Gillian

2015-01-01

The field of first language acquisition (FLA) needs to take into account data from the broadest typological array of languages and language-learning environments if it is to identify potential universals in child language development, and how these interact with socio-cultural mechanisms of acquisition. Yet undertaking FLA research in remote…

Individual versus Interactive Task-Based Performance through Voice-Based Computer-Mediated Communication

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Granena, Gisela

2016-01-01

Interaction is a necessary condition for second language (L2) learning (Long, 1980, 1996). Research in computer-mediated communication has shown that interaction opportunities make learners pay attention to form in a variety of ways that promote L2 learning. This research has mostly investigated text-based rather than voice-based interaction. The…

Speech-Enabled Tools for Augmented Interaction in E-Learning Applications

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Selouani, Sid-Ahmed A.; Lê, Tang-Hô; Benahmed, Yacine; O'Shaughnessy, Douglas

2008-01-01

This article presents systems that use speech technology, to emulate the one-on-one interaction a student can get from a virtual instructor. A web-based learning tool, the Learn IN Context (LINC+) system, designed and used in a real mixed-mode learning context for a computer (C++ language) programming course taught at the Université de Moncton…

Learning Effectiveness and Cognitive Loads in Instructional Materials of Programming Language on Single and Dual Screens

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hsu, Jenq-Muh; Chang, Ting-Wen; Yu, Pao-Ta

2012-01-01

The teaching and learning environment in a traditional classroom typically includes a projection screen, a projector, and a computer within a digital interactive table. Instructors may apply multimedia learning materials using various information communication technologies to increase interaction effects. However, a single screen only displays a…

Increasing the Odds: Applying Emergentist Theory in Language Intervention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Poll, Gerard H.

2011-01-01

Purpose: This review introduces emergentism, which is a leading theory of language development that states that language ability is the product of interactions between the child's language environment and his or her learning capabilities. The review suggests ways in which emergentism provides a theoretical rationale for interventions that are…

Learning Icelandic Language and Culture in Virtual Reykjavik: Starting to Talk

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bédi, Branislav; Arnbjörnsdóttir, Birna; Vilhjálmsson, Hannes Högni; Helgadóttir, Hafdís Erla; Ólafsson, Stefán; Björgvinsson, Elías

2016-01-01

This paper describes how beginners of Icelandic as a foreign and second language responded to playing the first scene in Virtual Reykjavik, a video game-like environment where learners interact with virtual characters--Embodied Conversational Agents (ECAs). This game enables learners to practice speaking and listening skills, to learn about the…

Accessing English and Networks at an English-Medium Multicultural Church in East Canada: An Ethnography

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Han, Huamei

2014-01-01

Drawing from a larger ethnography of skilled Chinese immigrants' language learning during settlement in Toronto, this article explores the role of informal interactions in facilitating immigrants learning English as a second language and settlement. Examining various activities and networks available at an English-medium multicultural church, this…

Recasts Used with Preschoolers Learning English as Their Second Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tsybina, Irina; Girolametto, Luigi E.; Weitzman, Elaine; Greenberg, Janice

2006-01-01

This study examined linguistic recasts provided by 16 early childhood educators to preschool children learning English as a second language (EL2). Recasts are semantic and syntactic revisions of children's utterances. The educator-child interactions were filmed during book reading and play dough activities with small groups of four children, one…

Balancing Direction and Independence in Second Language Vocabulary Learning: A Gesture Pilot Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mathison, Lake

2017-01-01

This pilot study looks at the effect of learning second language vocabulary with gesture. Specifically, this current study asks whether researcher-instructed or student-constructed gestures are more effective. Depth of processing theories (Craik and Lockhart 1972) as well as more recent educational frameworks like ICAP ("Interactive,"…

Does It Really Matter whether Students' Contributions Are Spoken versus Typed in an Intelligent Tutoring System with Natural Language?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

D'Mello, Sidney K.; Dowell, Nia; Graesser, Arthur

2011-01-01

There is the question of whether learning differs when students speak versus type their responses when interacting with intelligent tutoring systems with natural language dialogues. Theoretical bases exist for three contrasting hypotheses. The "speech facilitation" hypothesis predicts that spoken input will "increase" learning,…

Infusing Alcohol and Drug Prevention with Existing Classroom Study Units: Language Arts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Valencia Community Coll., Orlando, FL.

This curriculum module, one of seven in Infusion Project, offers information and lessons on drug use prevention for integration into an existing seventh-grade middle school language arts curriculum. The module, based on a type of interactive learning called infusion learning, contains 18 lessons each providing objectives, a list of resource…

Evaluating a Web-Based Video Corpus through an Analysis of User Interactions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Caws, Catherine G.

2013-01-01

As shown by several studies, successful integration of technology in language learning requires a holistic approach in order to scientifically understand what learners do when working with web-based technology (cf. Raby, 2007). Additionally, a growing body of research in computer assisted language learning (CALL) evaluation, design and…

Speaking English in Finnish Content-Based Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nikula, Tarja

2007-01-01

CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) is a term widely used in Europe to refer to different forms of content based education, often conducted in English. Earlier research on CLIL has tended to focus on matters of language learning or content mastery rather than on details of classroom interaction. This paper investigates how English is…

The Negotiation Model in Asynchronous Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC): Negotiation in Task-Based Email Exchanges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kitade, Keiko

2006-01-01

Based on recent studies, computer-mediated communication (CMC) has been considered a tool to aid in language learning on account of its distinctive interactional features. However, most studies have referred to "synchronous" CMC and neglected to investigate how "asynchronous" CMC contributes to language learning. Asynchronous CMC possesses…

Learning to Look for Language: Development of Joint Attention in Young Deaf Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lieberman, Amy M.; Hatrak, Marla; Mayberry, Rachel I.

2014-01-01

Joint attention between hearing children and their caregivers is typically achieved when the adult provides spoken, auditory linguistic input that relates to the child's current visual focus of attention. Deaf children interacting through sign language must learn to continually switch visual attention between people and objects in order to achieve…

The CAMILLE Project: Espana Interactiva (The CAMILLE Project: Interactive Spanish).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gimeno, Ana; Ingraham, Bruce

CAMILLE's primary objective is to exploit recent developments in multimedia computing to create a flexible, student-centered, electronic language learning environment to support the acquisition of a second language. The consortium's first target was to produce a learning resource for beginners of Spanish and another for beginners of Dutch, as well…

A Sociocultural View of Language Learning: The Importance of Meaning-Based Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eun, Barohny; Lim, Hye-Soon

2009-01-01

The process of second-language teaching is grounded in the sociocultural theory of Vygotsky, which emphasizes meaningful interaction among individuals as the greatest motivating force in human development and learning. In this theoretical framework, the concepts of meaning and mediation are considered as the two essential elements affecting an…

Gesture as a Resource for Intersubjectivity in Second-Language Learning Situations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Belhiah, Hassan

2013-01-01

This study documents the role of hand gestures in achieving mutual understanding in second-language learning situations. The study tracks the way gesture is coordinated with talk in tutorials between two Korean students and their American teachers. The study adopts an interactional approach to the study of participants' talk and gestural…

Intercultural Education and Communication in Second Language Interactions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baraldi, Claudio

2012-01-01

This article analyses intercultural education outcomes produced in the setting of teaching Italian as a second language (ISL) in an Italian school. Intercultural education is produced in interactions which are based on specific cultural presuppositions, i.e. expectations regarding learning, role hierarchy and evaluation of student performances.…

Task-Modality and L1 Use in EFL Oral Interaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Azkarai, Agurtzane; del Pilar García Mayo, María

2015-01-01

This study examines whether task-modality (speaking vs. speaking+writing) influences first language (L1) use in task-based English as a foreign language (EFL) learner-learner interaction. Research on the topic has shown that different task-modality triggers different learning opportunities with collaborative speaking tasks drawing learners'…

Multimodal Application for Foreign Language Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Magal-Royo, Teresa; Gimenez-Lopez, Jose Luis; Pairy, Blas; Garcia-Laborda, Jesus; Gonzalez-Del Rio, Jimena

2011-01-01

The current development of educational applications for language learning has experienced a qualitative change in the criteria of interaction between users and devices due to the technological advances of input and output data through keyboard, mouse, stylus, tactile screen, etc. The multiple interactions generated in a natural way by humans…

How deaf American Sign Language/English bilingual children become proficient readers: an emic perspective.

PubMed

Mounty, Judith L; Pucci, Concetta T; Harmon, Kristen C

2014-07-01

A primary tenet underlying American Sign Language/English bilingual education for deaf students is that early access to a visual language, developed in conjunction with language planning principles, provides a foundation for literacy in English. The goal of this study is to obtain an emic perspective on bilingual deaf readers transitioning from learning to read to reading to learn. Analysis of 12 interactive, semi-structured interviews identified informal and formal teaching and learning practices in ASL/English bilingual homes and classrooms. These practices value, reinforce, and support the bidirectional acquisition of both languages and provide a strong foundation for literacy. © The Author 2013. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Innateness and culture in the evolution of language

PubMed Central

Kirby, Simon; Dowman, Mike; Griffiths, Thomas L.

2007-01-01

Human language arises from biological evolution, individual learning, and cultural transmission, but the interaction of these three processes has not been widely studied. We set out a formal framework for analyzing cultural transmission, which allows us to investigate how innate learning biases are related to universal properties of language. We show that cultural transmission can magnify weak biases into strong linguistic universals, undermining one of the arguments for strong innate constraints on language learning. As a consequence, the strength of innate biases can be shielded from natural selection, allowing these genes to drift. Furthermore, even when there is no natural selection, cultural transmission can produce apparent adaptations. Cultural transmission thus provides an alternative to traditional nativist and adaptationist explanations for the properties of human languages. PMID:17360393

Language, the Learner and the School. Penguin Papers in Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barnes, Douglas

This book is concerned with language as it is used by the teacher, as it affects the learner, and as it can function to integrate the curriculum. Douglas Barnes, in "Language in the Secondary Classroom," discusses the student-teacher language interaction in 12 sample lessons, and analyzes the importance upon student learning of the languages used…

The potential of transnational language policy to promote social inclusion of immigrants: An analysis and evaluation of the European Union's INCLUDE project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bian, Cui

2017-08-01

Language issues and social inclusion consistently remain two major concerns for member countries of the European Union (EU). Despite an increasing awareness of the importance of language learning in migrants' social inclusion, and the promotion of language policies at European and national levels, there is still a lack of common actions at the European level. Challenged by questions as to whether language learning should be prioritised as a human right or as human capital building, how host/mainstream language learning can be reinforced while respecting language diversity, and other problems, member countries still need to find solutions. Confronting these dilemmas, this study analyses the relationship and interactions between language learning and immigrants' social inclusion in different contexts. It explores the potential of enhancing the effectiveness of language policies via a dialogue between policies and practices in different national contexts and research studies in the field of language and social inclusion. The research data are derived from two databases created by a European policy for active social inclusion project called INCLUDE. This project ran from 2013 to 2016 under the EU's lifelong learning programme, with funding support from the European Commission. Through an analysis of these two project databases, the paper reviews recent national language policies and their effect on the social inclusion of migrants. In the second part of her article, the author interprets the process of language learning and social inclusion using poststructuralist theories of language and identity.

A Conceptual Framework of Virtual Interactive Teacher Training through Open and Distance Learning for the Remote Areas English Teachers of Bangladesh

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parvin, Irene

2017-01-01

Since we are living in the information age and the importance of the need for communication among people of different cultures is increasing day by day in the globalizing world, people need to learn the languages of different cultures, particularly English, which is the common language of this global communication. This need for learning English…

Vowel bias in Danish word-learning: processing biases are language-specific.

PubMed

Højen, Anders; Nazzi, Thierry

2016-01-01

The present study explored whether the phonological bias favoring consonants found in French-learning infants and children when learning new words (Havy & Nazzi, 2009; Nazzi, 2005) is language-general, as proposed by Nespor, Peña and Mehler (2003), or varies across languages, perhaps as a function of the phonological or lexical properties of the language in acquisition. To do so, we used the interactive word-learning task set up by Havy and Nazzi (2009), teaching Danish-learning 20-month-olds pairs of phonetically similar words that contrasted either on one of their consonants or one of their vowels, by either one or two phonological features. Danish was chosen because it has more vowels than consonants, and is characterized by extensive consonant lenition. Both phenomena could disfavor a consonant bias. Evidence of word-learning was found only for vocalic information, irrespective of whether one or two phonological features were changed. The implication of these findings is that the phonological biases found in early lexical processing are not language-general but develop during language acquisition, depending on the phonological or lexical properties of the native language. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Learning Companion Systems, Social Learning Systems, and the Global Social Learning Club.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chan, Tak-Wai

1996-01-01

Describes the development of learning companion systems and their contributions to the class of social learning systems that integrate artificial intelligence agents and use machine learning to tutor and interact with students. Outlines initial social learning projects, their programming languages, and weakness. Future improvements will include…

Tuning University Undergraduates for High Mobility and Employability under the Content and Language Integrated Learning Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yang, Wenhsien

2017-01-01

Globalisation affects both language use and the economics of higher education. Considering how to design new instructional approaches to prepare graduates with competence in using language and professional knowledge interactively and interculturally has thus become a major concern of higher education institutes. Content and language integrated…

Mapping Monolingualism within a Language/Race Cartography: Reflections and Lessons Learned from "World Languages and Cultures Day"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schwartz, Adam; Boovy, Bradley

2017-01-01

An interactive exhibit at a university's "World Language Day" challenges systems of privilege that organize the study of "foreign" and "world" languages. Through discursive framing, participants' written responses reveal an alignment with hegemonic ideologies of race and nation that elevate English monolingualism as a…

Evaluation of Theoretical and Empirical Characteristics of the Communication, Language, and Statistics Survey (CLASS)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wagler, Amy E.; Lesser, Lawrence M.

2018-01-01

The interaction between language and the learning of statistical concepts has been receiving increased attention. The Communication, Language, And Statistics Survey (CLASS) was developed in response to the need to focus on dynamics of language in light of the culturally and linguistically diverse environments of introductory statistics classrooms.…

Surrounded by Water: Talking to Learn in Today's Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ernst-Slavit, Gisela; Wenger, Kerri J.

2016-01-01

The authors explore the importance of talk and interaction for learning, particularly in relation to new K-12 standards and the prominent role of academic language in today's educational contexts. The article concludes with a detailed example of a Grade 6 teacher's use of content and language objectives to address the needs and strengths of all…

The TeCoLa Project: Pedagogical Differentiation through Telecollaboration and Gaming for Intercultural and Content Integrated Language Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jauregi, Kristi; Melchor-Couto, Sabela

2017-01-01

The Erasmus+ TeCoLa project (2016-2019) aims to develop and test innovative gamified telecollaboration approaches for secondary schools that address issues of learning diversity in intercultural and Content Integrated Language Learning (CLIL) and teaching. Authentic task-based transnational interactions among peers from different socio-cultural,…

The Use of the Webcam for Teaching a Foreign Language in a Desktop Videoconferencing Environment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Develotte, Christine; Guichon, Nicolas; Vincent, Caroline

2010-01-01

This paper explores how language teachers learn to teach with a synchronous multimodal setup ("Skype"), and it focuses on their use of the webcam during the pedagogical interaction. First, we analyze the ways that French graduate students learning to teach online use the multimodal resources available in a desktop videoconferencing (DVC)…

Dialogue-Based Call: A Case Study on Teaching Pronouns

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vlugter, P.; Knott, A.; McDonald, J.; Hall, C.

2009-01-01

We describe a computer assisted language learning (CALL) system that uses human-machine dialogue as its medium of interaction. The system was developed to help students learn the basics of the Maori language and was designed to accompany the introductory course in Maori running at the University of Otago. The student engages in a task-based…

Language Learning Effects through the Integration of Synchronous Online Communication: The Case of Video Communication and Second Life

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Canto, Silvia; Jauregi Ondarra, Kristi

2017-01-01

This article attempts to shed some light on the possible learning benefits for language acquisition and intercultural development of authentic social interaction with expert peers through computer mediated communication (CMC) tools. The environments used in this study are video communication and the 3D virtual world "Second Life." For…

Learning to Teach English Language Arts in Urban Middle Schools: A Cultural and Interactional Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buescher, Eileen M.

2017-01-01

This dissertation explores the experiences of middle childhood pre-service teachers (PST) across two academic years as they learn to teach English language arts to diverse students from conflicting sociocultural contexts. To help PSTs navigate the tensions across contexts, this study introduced culturally relevant (Ladson-Billings, 1995; 2014) and…

Effects of Tasks on Spoken Interaction and Motivation in English Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carrero Pérez, Nubia Patricia

2016-01-01

Task based learning (TBL) or Task based learning and teaching (TBLT) is a communicative approach widely applied in settings where English has been taught as a foreign language (EFL). It has been documented as greatly useful to improve learners' communication skills. This research intended to find the effect of tasks on students' spoken interaction…

L2 Motivation, Anxiety and Self-Efficacy: The Interrelationship of Individual Variables in the Secondary School Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Piniel, Katalin; Csizér, Kata

2013-01-01

Our study describes the relationship of second language learning motivation, self-efficacy, and anxiety; that is, how motivation, cognition, and affect might interact during the process of second language learning. Questionnaire data were collected from 236 Hungarian students studying at various secondary schools. Structural equation modeling was…

Vocabulary Learning in Collaborative Tasks: A Comparison of Pair and Small Group Work

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dobao, Ana Fernández

2014-01-01

This study examined the opportunities that pair and small group interaction offer for collaborative dialogue and second language (L2) vocabulary learning. It compared the performance of the same collaborative writing task by learners working in groups of four (n = 60) and in pairs (n = 50), focusing on the occurrence of lexical language-related…

Does Variability across Events Affect Verb Learning in English, Mandarin, and Korean?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Childers, Jane B.; Paik, Jae H.; Flores, Melissa; Lai, Gabrielle; Dolan, Megan

2017-01-01

Extending new verbs is important in becoming a productive speaker of a language. Prior results show children have difficulty extending verbs when they have seen events with varied agents. This study further examines the impact of variability on verb learning and asks whether variability interacts with event complexity or differs by language.…

Making Learning Active with Interactive Whiteboards, Podcasts, and Digital Storytelling in ELL Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hur, Jung Won; Suh, Suhyun

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine effective ways to integrate an interactive whiteboard, podcast, and digital storytelling for language proficiency development in English language learners. Researchers integrated these three technologies into a 60-hour intensive summer English program and investigated their impacts on student vocabulary…

Mutually Beneficial Foreign Language Learning: Creating Meaningful Interactions through Video-Synchronous Computer-Mediated Communication

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kato, Fumie; Spring, Ryan; Mori, Chikako

2016-01-01

Providing learners of a foreign language with meaningful opportunities for interactions, specifically with native speakers, is especially challenging for instructors. One way to overcome this obstacle is through video-synchronous computer-mediated communication tools such as Skype software. This study reports quantitative and qualitative data from…

Interactions between European Citizenship and Language Learning among Adolescent Europeans

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hennebry, Mairin

2011-01-01

Recent enlargement of the European Union (EU) has created debate as to the suitability of current structures and policies for effectively engaging citizens and developing social cohesion. Education and specifically modern foreign language (MFL) teaching are argued by the literature to play a key role in equipping young people to interact and…

Second Language Socialization through Team Interaction among Electrical and Computer Engineering Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vickers, Caroline H.

2007-01-01

This article, based on a longitudinal, ethnographic study among engineering students, examines the interactional processes surrounding second language (L2) socialization. L2 socialization perspectives argue that the cognitive and the social are interconnected, and that learning an L2 is a process of coming to understand socially constructed…

Interplay of Languaging and Gameplay: Player-Game Interactions as Ecologies for Languaging and Situated L2 Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ibrahim, Karim Hesham Shaker

2016-01-01

The field of game-mediated L2 learning has grown exponentially, and much has been discovered about the potentials of game-mediated interactions for L2 development, yet the fine-grained dynamics of player-game interactions and how they come to facilitate and afford L2 development are still largely underexplored. To address this gap in the…

Attention to Language: Lessons Learned at the Dinner Table.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ely, Richard; Gleason, Jean Berko; MacGibbon, Ann; Zaretsky, Elena

2001-01-01

Studied the dinner table conversations of 22 families with young children. Analyzed utterances for language-focused terms. Reported that metalinguistic uses exceeded pragmatic uses. Found that during routine social interactions, parents provide children with potentially important information about the communicative functions of language.…

Simulation/Gaming and the Acquisition of Communicative Competence in Another Language.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garcia-Carbonell, Amparo; Rising, Beverly; Montero, Begona; Watts, Frances

2001-01-01

Discussion of communicative competence in second language acquisition focuses on a theoretical and practical meshing of simulation and gaming methodology with theories of foreign language acquisition, including task-based learning, interaction, and comprehensible input. Describes experiments conducted with computer-assisted simulations in…

Practices for Social Interaction in the Language-Learning Classroom: Disengagements from Dyadic Task Interaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hellermann, John; Cole, Elizabeth

2009-01-01

Using conversation analysis and situated learning theory, in this paper we analyze the peer dyadic interactions of one adult learner of English in class periods 16 months apart. The analyses in the paper present microgenetic and longitudinal perspectives on the learner's increasing participation in his classroom communities of practice. The focus…

Who Says What's Correct and How Do You Say It? Multimodal Management of Oral Peer-Assessment in a Grammar Boardgame in a Foreign Language Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Konzett, Carmen

2015-01-01

This paper describes how a small group of students in a foreign language classroom manage the interactional task of orally assessing the correctness of verb forms while playing a board game aimed at revising verb conjugation. In their interaction, the students orient to the institutional context of this activity as a language learning exercise by…

Learning to Read Words in a New Language Shapes the Neural Organization of the Prior Languages

PubMed Central

Mei, Leilei; Xue, Gui; Lu, Zhong-Lin; Chen, Chuansheng; Zhang, Mingxia; He, Qinghua; Wei, Miao; Dong, Qi

2014-01-01

Learning a new language entails interactions with one's prior language(s). Much research has shown how native language affects the cognitive and neural mechanisms of a new language, but little is known about whether and how learning a new language shapes the neural mechanisms of prior language(s). In two experiments in the current study, we used an artificial language training paradigm in combination with fMRI to examine (1) the effects of different linguistic components (phonology and semantics) of a new language on the neural process of prior languages (i.e., native and second languages), and (2) whether such effects were modulated by the proficiency level in the new language. Results of Experiment 1 showed that when the training in a new language involved semantics (as opposed to only visual forms and phonology), neural activity during word reading in the native language (Chinese) was reduced in several reading-related regions, including the left pars opercularis, pars triangularis, bilateral inferior temporal gyrus, fusiform gyrus, and inferior occipital gyrus. Results of Experiment 2 replicated the results of Experiment 1 and further found that semantic training also affected neural activity during word reading in the subjects’ second language (English). Furthermore, we found that the effects of the new language were modulated by the subjects’ proficiency level in the new language. These results provide critical imaging evidence for the influence of learning to read words in a new language on word reading in native and second languages. PMID:25447375

The Iterated Classification Game: A New Model of the Cultural Transmission of Language

PubMed Central

Swarup, Samarth; Gasser, Les

2010-01-01

The Iterated Classification Game (ICG) combines the Classification Game with the Iterated Learning Model (ILM) to create a more realistic model of the cultural transmission of language through generations. It includes both learning from parents and learning from peers. Further, it eliminates some of the chief criticisms of the ILM: that it does not study grounded languages, that it does not include peer learning, and that it builds in a bias for compositional languages. We show that, over the span of a few generations, a stable linguistic system emerges that can be acquired very quickly by each generation, is compositional, and helps the agents to solve the classification problem with which they are faced. The ICG also leads to a different interpretation of the language acquisition process. It suggests that the role of parents is to initialize the linguistic system of the child in such a way that subsequent interaction with peers results in rapid convergence to the correct language. PMID:20190877

Understanding Student Language: An Unsupervised Dialogue Act Classification Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ezen-Can, Aysu; Boyer, Kristy Elizabeth

2015-01-01

Within the landscape of educational data, textual natural language is an increasingly vast source of learning-centered interactions. In natural language dialogue, student contributions hold important information about knowledge and goals. Automatically modeling the dialogue act of these student utterances is crucial for scaling natural language…

Syllabic Patterns in the Early Vocalizations of Quichua Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gildersleeve-Neumann, Christina E.; Davis, Barbara L.; Macneilage, Peter F.

2013-01-01

To understand the interactions between production patterns common to children regardless of language environment and the early appearance of production effects based on perceptual learning from the ambient language requires the study of languages with diverse phonological properties. Few studies have evaluated early phonological acquisition…

Baby and Toddler Learning Fun: 50 Interactive and Developmental Activities To Enjoy with Your Child.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goldberg, Sally

Based on the view that almost every interaction a parent has with an infant is an opportunity to help the baby learn more about the world, this book provides parents with simple and effective ways to enrich their infant's environment and to boost their childs language, motor, and social skills. Introductory remarks describe the learning areas…

Learning Through Survival: An Approach to Foreign Language Teaching. A Program Description and Evaluation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Travers, Claudia S.; Reilly, Joseph T. M.

A foreign travel program for eighth grade French language students from Shoreham, New York was developed to provide language speaking practice in Quebec, Canada. The program was designed to allow students to spend as much time as possible speaking the language and interacting with the people. The following "survival through speaking"…

Neurogenic Language Disorders in Children. International Association of Logopedics and Phoniatrics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fabbro, Franco, Ed.

2004-01-01

Language disorders in children are one of the most frequent causes of difficulties in communication, social interaction, learning and academic achievement. It has been estimated that over 5% of children present with some kind of language disorder. This volume illustrates the state of the art in neurogenic language disorders in children. The most…

Language used in interaction during developmental science instruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Avenia-Tapper, Brianna

The coordination of theory and evidence is an important part of scientific practice. Developmental approaches to instruction, which make the relationship between the abstract and the concrete a central focus of students' learning activity, provide educators with a unique opportunity to strengthen students' coordination of theory and evidence. Therefore, developmental approaches may be a useful instructional response to documented science achievement gaps for linguistically diverse students. However, if we are to leverage the potential of developmental instruction to improve the science achievement of linguistically diverse students, we need more information on the intersection of developmental science instruction and linguistically diverse learning contexts. This manuscript style dissertation uses discourse analysis to investigate the language used in interaction during developmental teaching-learning in three linguistically diverse third grade classrooms. The first manuscript asks how language was used to construct ascension from the abstract to the concrete. The second manuscript asks how students' non-English home languages were useful (or not) for meeting the learning goals of the developmental instructional program. The third manuscript asks how students' interlocutors may influence student choice to use an important discourse practice--justification--during the developmental teaching-learning activity. All three manuscripts report findings relevant to the instructional decisions that teachers need to make when implementing developmental instruction in linguistically diverse contexts.

Task Repetition Effects on L1 Use in EFL Child Task-Based Interaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Azkarai, Agurtzane; García Mayo, María del Pilar

2017-01-01

Research has shown that tasks provide second language (L2) learners with many opportunities to learn the L2. Task repetition has been claimed to benefit L2 learning since familiarity with procedure and/or content gives learners the chance to focus on more specific aspects of language. Most research on task repetition has focused on adult…

Defining and Operationalizing the Construct of Pragmatic Competence: Review and Recommendations. Research Report. ETS RR-15-06

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Timpe Laughlin, Veronika; Wain, Jennifer; Schmidgall, Jonathan

2015-01-01

This review paper constitutes the first step within a larger research effort to develop an interactive pragmatics learning tool for second and foreign language (L2) learners and users of English. The tool will primarily endeavor to support pragmatics learning within the language use domain "workplace." Given this superordinate objective,…

Categorization of Digital Games in English Language Learning Studies: Introducing the SSI Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sundqvist, Pia

2013-01-01

The main aim of the present paper is to introduce a model for digital game categorization suitable for use in English language learning studies: the Scale of Social Interaction (SSI) Model (original idea published as Sundqvist, 2013). The SSI Model proposes a classification of commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) digital games into three categories:…

The Relationship between Cultural Identity, Intrinsic Motivation and Pronunciation Knowledge of Iranian EFL Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shabani, Somayyeh; Alipoor, Iman

2017-01-01

Gardener's (1985) socio-cultural model shows that culture is among the variables that can affect learning languages. In addition, a series of studies were prompted by Dörnyie (2005) to gauge the effect of motivation on language learning. This correlational study endeavored to find out any possible interaction between these variables, i.e.,…

Interlanguage Pragmatics, Curricular Innovation, and Digital Technologies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sykes, Julie M.

2018-01-01

Human interaction is fundamentally about shared understanding, created when interlocutors engage with one another around their own intended meaning and the intended meaning of others. Pragmatics is at the core of this interaction. The fields of computer-assisted language learning (CALL) and the teaching and learning of interlanguage pragmatics…

Learning on Hold: Cell Phones Sidetrack Parent-Child Interactions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reed, Jessa; Hirsh-Pasek, Kathy; Golinkoff, Roberta Michnick

2017-01-01

Although research suggests that responsive interactions are imperative for language development, the advent of mobile technology means that parent-child exchanges are often fraught with unpredictable interruptions. Less clear is how these momentary breaks in responsiveness affect word learning. In this within-subjects design, 38 mothers taught…

Task and Tool Interface Design for L2 Speaking Interaction Online

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Appel, Christine; Robbins, Jackie; Moré, Joaquim; Mullen, Tony

2012-01-01

Learners and teachers of a foreign language in online and blended learning environments are being offered more opportunities for speaking practice from technological developments. However, in order to maximise these learning opportunities, appropriate task-based materials are required which promote and direct student to student interaction in…

Bears. Interactive Animal Kit. Grades 1-3.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bernard, Robin

This kit was created to make learning about bears a fun and meaningful experience for teachers and students. It offers students opportunities to learn about favorite animals through an assortment of fun activities filled with information. The activities interact with science, language arts, critical thinking, music, social studies, math, art, and…

Properties of Vocalization- and Gesture-Combinations in the Transition to First Words

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Murillo, Eva; Capilla, Almudena

2016-01-01

Gestures and vocal elements interact from the early stages of language development, but the role of this interaction in the language learning process is not yet completely understood. The aim of this study is to explore gestural accompaniment's influence on the acoustic properties of vocalizations in the transition to first words. Eleven Spanish…

Teaching and Learning Foreign Languages via System of "Voice over Internet Protocol" and Language Interactions Case Study: Skype

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wahid, Wazira Ali Abdul; Ahmed, Eqbal Sulaiman; Wahid, Muntaha Ali Abdul

2015-01-01

This issue expresses a research study based on the online interactions of English teaching specially conversation through utilizing VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) and cosmopolitan online theme. Data has been achieved by interviews. Simplifiers indicate how oral tasks require to be planned upon to facilitate engagement models propitious to…

Negotiating Sequential Boundaries and Learning Opportunities: A Case from a Japanese Language Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mori, Junko

2004-01-01

Using the methodological framework of conversation analysis (CA) as a central tool for analysis, this study examines a peer interactive task that occurred in a Japanese as a foreign language classroom. During the short segment of interaction, the students shifted back and forth between the development of an assigned task and the management of…

Reta'maxik Qatzij--Conociendo Nuestro Idioma (Knowing Our Language). [CD-ROM].

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Academy for Educational Development, Washington, DC.

This CD-ROM is part of an interactive and dynamic multimedia package of information and games for learning K'iche' and Ixil. This CD-ROM includes six books in electronic format with interactive exercises that support improved bilingual and intercultural education and teacher training, specifically in the languages of K'iche' and Ixil. Books…

L2 (IM)Politeness in the Synchronous Chat of Elementary School Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howard, Craig D.; Do, Jaewoo

2017-01-01

Participation in interactive games, especially those in immersive environments, is often employed in learning contexts to stochastically develop L2 learners' language ability. However, typical measures of language ability often do not reflect pragmatic competencies. This study juxtaposes two elementary school ESL learners' language ability, and…

An Analysis of Published Preschool Language Programs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bartlett, Elsa Jaffe

For purposes of analysis, preschool language programs can be sorted into four general categories according to the dominant type of learning activity (1) Pattern practice, (2) Cognitive verbalization, (3) Discussion, (4) Role play. Along with definitions of language, the program types differ in the kinds of interactions which occur between teacher…

A Comparative Study of Vygotsky's Perspectives on Child Language Development with Nativism and Behaviorism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dastpak, Mehdi; Behjat, Fatemeh; Taghinezhad, Ali

2017-01-01

This study aimed at investigating the similarities and differences between Vygotsky's perspectives on child language development with nativism and behaviorism. Proposing the idea of the Zone of Proximal Development, Vygotsky emphasized the role of collaborative interaction, scaffolding, and guided participation in language learning. Nativists, on…

Teacher Educators' Conceptualization of Ongoing Language Development in Professional Learning and Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Swart, Fenna; de Graaff, Rick; Onstenk, Jeroen; Knèzic, Dubravka

2018-01-01

Sociocultural and dialogic theories of education have identified the need to integrate both pedagogical content and language knowledge into teachers' professional development to promote effective interaction with students about subject content. In this intervention study, a meta-perspective on language was developed to understand how experienced…

From Needs to Wants: Motivation and the Language Learner.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ladousse, Gillian Porter

1982-01-01

Discusses theories of motivation in foreign language learning especially as an interactional, dynamic process focusing on how diffuse needs become channeled into wants through behavior itself. Sociological issues involved include the personality model of the learner and the institutional setting where language is being taught. (Author/BK)

Teaching Popular Culture with a Computer-Assisted Instruction (CAI) Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

del Pozo, Ivania

The foreign language student must experience popular culture to fully comprehend the framework in which the foreign language functions. Traditional language learning, preoccupied with words, syntax, and pronunciation, has ignored this element, leaving students unprepared to interact with individuals in the target culture. Classroom activities to…

Second Language Socialization and Learner Agency: Adoptive Family Talk

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fogle, Lyn Wright

2012-01-01

This book examines how Russian-speaking adoptees in three US families actively shape opportunities for language learning and identity construction in everyday interactions. By focusing on a different practice in each family (i.e. narrative talk about the day, metalinguistic discourse or languaging, and code-switching), the analyses uncover…

Emotional Experiences beyond the Classroom: Interactions with the Social World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ross, Andrew S.; Rivers, Damian J.

2018-01-01

Research into the emotional experiences of language learners and their impact upon the language-learning process remains relatively undernourished within second language education. The research available focuses primarily on emotions experienced within the classroom, rather than in the daily lives of learners within various social contexts. This…

Examining the literacy component of science literacy: 25 years of language arts and science research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yore, Larry D.; Bisanz, Gay L.; Hand, Brian M.

2003-06-01

This review, written to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the International Journal of Science Education, revealed a period of changes in the theoretical views of the language arts, the perceived roles of language in science education, and the research approaches used to investigate oral and written language in science, science teaching, and learning. The early years were dominated by behavioralist and logico-mathematical interpretations of human learning and by reductionist research approaches, while the later years reflected an applied cognitive science and constructivist interpretations of learning and a wider array of research approaches that recognizes the holistic nature of teaching and learning. The early years focus on coding oral language into categories reflecting source of speech, functional purpose, level of question and response, reading research focused on the readability of textbooks using formulae and the reader's decoding skills, and writing research was not well documented since the advocates for writing in service of learning were grass roots practitioners and many science teachers were using writing as an evaluation technique. The advent of applied cognitive science and the constructivist perspectives ushered in interactive-constructive models of discourse, reading and writing that more clearly revealed the role of language in science and in science teaching and learning. A review of recent research revealed that the quantity and quality of oral interactions were low and unfocused in science classrooms; reading has expanded to consider comprehension strategies, metacognition, sources other than textbooks, and the design of inquiry environments for classrooms; and writing-to-learn science has focused on sequential writing tasks requiring transformation of ideas to enhance science learning. Several promising trends and future research directions flow from the synthesis of this 25-year period of examining the literacy component of science literacy - among them are critical listening and reading of various sources, multi-media presentations and representations, effective debate and argument, quality explanation and the role of information and communication technologies/environments.

Pedagogical Gestures as Interactional Resources for Teaching and Learning Tense and Aspect in the ESL Grammar Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Matsumoto, Yumi; Dobs, Abby Mueller

2017-01-01

This study investigated the functions of gesture in teaching and learning grammar in the context of second language (L2) classroom interactions. The data consisted of video-recorded interactions from a beginner- and an advanced-level grammar classroom in an intensive English program at a U.S. university. The sequences of talk-in-interaction…

Locating Cognition in Second Language Interaction and Learning: Inside the Skull or in Public View?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kasper, Gabriele

2009-01-01

A key question in the debate on conversation analysis as an approach to SLA concerns the role of cognition in interaction and learning. Where is cognition located, and how is understanding in interaction achieved? For an empirically grounded answer, I will explore the procedural apparatus that sustains socially shared cognition. Following a brief…

Modeling social learning of language and skills.

PubMed

Vogt, Paul; Haasdijk, Evert

2010-01-01

We present a model of social learning of both language and skills, while assuming—insofar as possible—strict autonomy, virtual embodiment, and situatedness. This model is built by integrating various previous models of language development and social learning, and it is this integration that, under the mentioned assumptions, provides novel challenges. The aim of the article is to investigate what sociocognitive mechanisms agents should have in order to be able to transmit language from one generation to the next so that it can be used as a medium to transmit internalized rules that represent skill knowledge. We have performed experiments where this knowledge solves the familiar poisonous-food problem. Simulations reveal under what conditions, regarding population structure, agents can successfully solve this problem. In addition to issues relating to perspective taking and mutual exclusivity, we show that agents need to coordinate interactions so that they can establish joint attention in order to form a scaffold for language learning, which in turn forms a scaffold for the learning of rule-based skills. Based on these findings, we conclude by hypothesizing that social learning at one level forms a scaffold for the social learning at another, higher level, thus contributing to the accumulation of cultural knowledge.

Learning to read words in a new language shapes the neural organization of the prior languages.

PubMed

Mei, Leilei; Xue, Gui; Lu, Zhong-Lin; Chen, Chuansheng; Zhang, Mingxia; He, Qinghua; Wei, Miao; Dong, Qi

2014-12-01

Learning a new language entails interactions with one׳s prior language(s). Much research has shown how native language affects the cognitive and neural mechanisms of a new language, but little is known about whether and how learning a new language shapes the neural mechanisms of prior language(s). In two experiments in the current study, we used an artificial language training paradigm in combination with an fMRI to examine (1) the effects of different linguistic components (phonology and semantics) of a new language on the neural process of prior languages (i.e., native and second languages), and (2) whether such effects were modulated by the proficiency level in the new language. Results of Experiment 1 showed that when the training in a new language involved semantics (as opposed to only visual forms and phonology), neural activity during word reading in the native language (Chinese) was reduced in several reading-related regions, including the left pars opercularis, pars triangularis, bilateral inferior temporal gyrus, fusiform gyrus, and inferior occipital gyrus. Results of Experiment 2 replicated the results of Experiment 1 and further found that semantic training also affected neural activity during word reading in the subjects׳ second language (English). Furthermore, we found that the effects of the new language were modulated by the subjects׳ proficiency level in the new language. These results provide critical imaging evidence for the influence of learning to read words in a new language on word reading in native and second languages. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Focus-on-Form and EFL Learners' Language Development in Synchronous Computer-Mediated Communication: Task-Based Interactions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eslami, Zohreh R.; Kung, Wan-Tsai

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to explore the occurrence of incidental focus-on-form and its effect on subsequent second language (L2) production of learners of different dyads in an online task-based language learning context. The participants included Taiwanese learners of English as a foreign language at different proficiency levels, and native…

The Interaction of Language-Specific and Universal Factors During the Acquisition of Morphophonemic Alternations With Exceptions.

PubMed

Baer-Henney, Dinah; Kügler, Frank; van de Vijver, Ruben

2015-09-01

Using the artificial language paradigm, we studied the acquisition of morphophonemic alternations with exceptions by 160 German adult learners. We tested the acquisition of two types of alternations in two regularity conditions while additionally varying length of training. In the first alternation, a vowel harmony, backness of the stem vowel determines backness of the suffix. This process is grounded in substance (phonetic motivation), and this universal phonetic factor bolsters learning a generalization. In the second alternation, tenseness of the stem vowel determines backness of the suffix vowel. This process is not based in substance, but it reflects a phonotactic property of German and our participants benefit from this language-specific factor. We found that learners use both cues, while substantive bias surfaces mainly in the most unstable situation. We show that language-specific and universal factors interact in learning. Copyright © 2014 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Learning to match auditory and visual speech cues: social influences on acquisition of phonological categories.

PubMed

Altvater-Mackensen, Nicole; Grossmann, Tobias

2015-01-01

Infants' language exposure largely involves face-to-face interactions providing acoustic and visual speech cues but also social cues that might foster language learning. Yet, both audiovisual speech information and social information have so far received little attention in research on infants' early language development. Using a preferential looking paradigm, 44 German 6-month olds' ability to detect mismatches between concurrently presented auditory and visual native vowels was tested. Outcomes were related to mothers' speech style and interactive behavior assessed during free play with their infant, and to infant-specific factors assessed through a questionnaire. Results show that mothers' and infants' social behavior modulated infants' preference for matching audiovisual speech. Moreover, infants' audiovisual speech perception correlated with later vocabulary size, suggesting a lasting effect on language development. © 2014 The Authors. Child Development © 2014 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

Authentic Oral Language Production and Interaction in CALL: An Evolving Conceptual Framework for the Use of Learning Analytics within the SpeakApps Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nic Giolla Mhichíl, Mairéad; van Engen, Jeroen; Ó Ciardúbháin, Colm; Ó Cléircín, Gearóid; Appel, Christine

2014-01-01

This paper sets out to construct and present the evolving conceptual framework of the SpeakApps projects to consider the application of learning analytics to facilitate synchronous and asynchronous oral language skills within this CALL context. Drawing from both the CALL and wider theoretical and empirical literature of learner analytics, the…

Learner's Use of First Language in EFL Collaborative Learning: A Sociocultural View

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yaghobian, Farideh; Samuel, Moses; Mahmoudi, Marzieh

2017-01-01

This study investigates the functions served by learners' first language (L1) in classroom interaction among Iranian learners of English (L2). The study aims to determine how learners' L1 serves them in their L2 learning. It adopts a qualitative approach. The study involved the participation of eleven Grade 9 learners in one Iranian high school in…

A Cognitive Neural Architecture Able to Learn and Communicate through Natural Language.

PubMed

Golosio, Bruno; Cangelosi, Angelo; Gamotina, Olesya; Masala, Giovanni Luca

2015-01-01

Communicative interactions involve a kind of procedural knowledge that is used by the human brain for processing verbal and nonverbal inputs and for language production. Although considerable work has been done on modeling human language abilities, it has been difficult to bring them together to a comprehensive tabula rasa system compatible with current knowledge of how verbal information is processed in the brain. This work presents a cognitive system, entirely based on a large-scale neural architecture, which was developed to shed light on the procedural knowledge involved in language elaboration. The main component of this system is the central executive, which is a supervising system that coordinates the other components of the working memory. In our model, the central executive is a neural network that takes as input the neural activation states of the short-term memory and yields as output mental actions, which control the flow of information among the working memory components through neural gating mechanisms. The proposed system is capable of learning to communicate through natural language starting from tabula rasa, without any a priori knowledge of the structure of phrases, meaning of words, role of the different classes of words, only by interacting with a human through a text-based interface, using an open-ended incremental learning process. It is able to learn nouns, verbs, adjectives, pronouns and other word classes, and to use them in expressive language. The model was validated on a corpus of 1587 input sentences, based on literature on early language assessment, at the level of about 4-years old child, and produced 521 output sentences, expressing a broad range of language processing functionalities.

Emergent Communities of Practice: Secondary Schools' Interaction with Primary School Foreign Language Teaching and Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Evans, Michael; Fisher, Linda

2012-01-01

The aim of this paper is to give an account of the response of secondary schools to the primary school foreign language teaching initiative recently introduced by the UK government. The paper also explores defining features of the process of cross-phase interaction and the role that knowledge and collaborative practice plays in generating change…

Adopting Social Networking Sites (SNSs) as Interactive Communities among English Foreign Language (EFL) Learners in Writing: Opportunities and Challenges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Razak, Norizan Abdul; Saeed, Murad; Ahmad, Zulkifli

2013-01-01

As most traditional classroom environments in English as Foreign Language (EFL) still restrict learners' collaboration and interaction in college writing classes, today, the majority of EFL learners are accessing Social Networking Sites (SNSs) as online communities of practice (CoPs) for adopting informal collaborative learning as a way of…

Anniversary Article--Interactional Feedback in Second Language Teaching and Learning: A Synthesis and Analysis of Current Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nassaji, Hossein

2016-01-01

The role of interactional feedback has long been of interest to both second language acquisition researchers and teachers and has continued to be the object of intensive empirical and theoretical inquiry. In this article, I provide a synthesis and analysis of recent research and developments in this area and their contributions to second language…

Focusing on Culture-Related Episodes in a Teletandem Interaction between a Brazilian and an American Student

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zakir, Maisa A.; Funo, Ludmila B. A.; Telles, João A.

2016-01-01

Teletandem is a telecollaborative learning context that involves pairs of native (or competent) speakers of different languages interacting through voice, text and webcam image. Using Skype, each participant plays the role of learner for half an hour, speaking and practising the language of his/her partner. This paper focuses on a teletandem…

Community-based early intervention for language delay: a preliminary investigation.

PubMed

Ciccone, Natalie; Hennessey, Neville; Stokes, Stephanie F

2012-01-01

A trial parent-focused early intervention (PFEI) programme for children with delayed language development is reported in which current research evidence was translated and applied within the constraints of available of clinical resources. The programme, based at a primary school, was run by a speech-language pathologist with speech-language pathology students. To investigate the changes in child language development and parent and child interactions following attendance at the PFEI. Eighteen parents and their children attended six, weekly group sessions in which parents were provided with strategies to maximize language learning in everyday contexts. Pre- and post-programme assessments of vocabulary size and measures of parent-child interaction were collected. Parents and children significantly increased their communicative interactions from pre- to post-treatment. Children's expressive vocabulary size and language skills increased significantly. Large-effect sizes were observed. The positive outcomes of the intervention programme contribute to the evidence base of intervention strategies and forms of service delivery for children at risk of language delay. © 2012 Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists.

Strategy Instruction Shifts Teacher and Student Interactions during Text-Based Discussions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boardman, Alison G.; Boelé, Amy L.; Klingner, Janette K.

2018-01-01

This study examined how teacher and student interactions were influenced by a multistrategy reading model, Collaborative Strategic Reading (CSR), where students learn to apply before-, during-, and after-reading strategies in small cooperative learning groups. Five middle school English language arts teachers and their students (N = 184)…

Investigating Research Approaches: Classroom-Based Interaction Studies in Physical and Virtual Contexts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hartwick, Peggy

2018-01-01

This article investigates research approaches used in traditional classroom-based interaction studies for identifying a suitable research method for studies in three-dimensional virtual learning environments (3DVLEs). As opportunities for language learning and teaching in virtual worlds emerge, so too do new research questions. An understanding of…

Social Media, Collaboration and Social Learning--A Case-Study of Foreign Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mondahl, Margrethe; Razmerita, Liana

2014-01-01

Social media has created new possibilities for digitally native students to engage, interact and collaborate in learning tasks that foster learning processes and the overall learning experience. Using both qualitative and quantitative data, this article discusses experiences and challenges of using a social media-enhanced collaborative learning…

Expanding Learning Opportunities for High School Students with Distance Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beese, Jane

2014-01-01

The purpose of the Synchronous Interactive Video Conference Distance Learning pilot program was to use emerging technologies to expand learning opportunities for students at an urban public high school. Through grant funding, students were able to enroll in Advanced Placement and foreign language courses through an online learning provider. Using…

Early childhood numeracy in a multiage setting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wood, Karen; Frid, Sandra

2005-10-01

This research is a case study examining numeracy teaching and learning practices in an early childhood multiage setting with Pre-Primary to Year 2 children. Data were collected via running records, researcher reflection notes, and video and audio recordings. Video and audio transcripts were analysed using a mathematical discourse and social interactions coding system designed by MacMillan (1998), while the running records and reflection notes contributed to descriptions of the children's interactions with each other and with the teachers. Teachers used an `assisted performance' approach to instruction that supported problem solving and inquiry processes in mathematics activities, and this, combined with a child-centred pedagogy and specific values about community learning, created a learning environment designed to stimulate and foster learning. The mathematics discourse analysis showed a use of explanatory language in mathematics discourse, and this language supported scaffolding among children for new mathematics concepts. These and other interactions related to peer sharing, tutoring and regulation also emerged as key aspects of students' learning practices. However, the findings indicated that multiage grouping alone did not support learning. Rather, effective learning was dependent upon the teacher's capacities to develop productive discussion among children, as well as implement developmentally appropriate curricula that addressed the needs of the different children.

Common Problems of Mobile Applications for Foreign Language Testing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garcia Laborda, Jesus; Magal-Royo, Teresa; Lopez, Jose Luis Gimenez

2011-01-01

As the use of mobile learning educational applications has become more common anywhere in the world, new concerns have appeared in the classroom, human interaction in software engineering and ergonomics. new tests of foreign languages for a number of purposes have become more and more common recently. However, studies interrelating language tests…

Conversation Analysis of Computer-Mediated Communication

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gonzalez-Lloret, Marta

2011-01-01

The potential of computer-mediated communication (CMC) for language learning resides mainly in the possibility that learners have to engage with other speakers of the language, including L1 speakers. The inclusion of CMC in the L2 classroom provides an opportunity for students to utilize authentic language in real interaction, rather than the more…

Types of Mathematics-Language Reading Interactions that Unnecessarily Hinder Algebra Learning and Assessment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lager, Carl A.

2006-01-01

English language learners (ELLs)--one of the lowest-achieving and fastest growing middle-school subpopulations--are challenged in the classroom by language components which could potentially jumpstart real mathematical growth for these and, eventually, all other students as well. Going beyond traditional word problems, this study documented and…

Sing a Song Please: Musical Contexts and Language Learning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howarth, Lisa M.; Conti-Ramsden, Gina

1987-01-01

Six language-impaired children, aged 4-7, were studied in two routinized contexts (a lesson without music and a singing session) and child-teacher talk was analyzed. Results showed that the addition of music to a routinized context has the potential to increase the language-impaired child's ability to interact non-verbally. (Author/JDD)

Language Learning in Mindbodyworld: A Sociocognitive Approach to Second Language Acquisition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Atkinson, Dwight

2014-01-01

Based on recent research in cognitive science, interaction, and second language acquisition (SLA), I describe a sociocognitive approach to SLA. This approach adopts a "non-cognitivist" view of cognition: Instead of an isolated computational process in which input is extracted from the environment and used to build elaborate internal…

Developing CALL for Heritage Languages: "The 7 Keys of the Dragon"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Revithiadou, Anthi; Kourtis-Kazoullis, Vasilia; Soukalopoulou, Maria; Konstantoudakis, Konstantinos; Zarras, Christos

2015-01-01

In this article we present an interactive extensible software, "The 7 Keys of the Dragon," for the teaching/learning of Albanian and Russian to students that attend primary and secondary education in Greece with the respective languages as their heritage languages. We address the key challenges we encountered during the conceptualization…

An Open-Sourced and Interactive Ebook Development Program for Minority Languages

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sheepy, Emily; Sundberg, Ross; Laurie, Anne

2017-01-01

According to Long (2014), genuine task-based pedagogy is centered around the real-world activities that learners need to complete using the target language. We are developing the OurStories mobile application to support learners and instructors of minority languages in the development of personally relevant, task-based learning resources. The…

Beginning Literacy with Language: Young Children Learning at Home and School.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dickinson, David K., Ed.; Tabors, Patton O., Ed.

Based on findings of the Home-School Study of Language and Literacy Development, this book examines the relationship between early parent-child and teacher-child interactions and children's kindergarten language and literacy skills. Participating in the study were more than 70 young children from diverse backgrounds whose home and school…

Using Funds of Knowledge to Build Trust between a Teacher and Parents of Language-Delayed Preschoolers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gonzalez, Alissa Zoraida

2014-01-01

Preschool children with language delays often struggle to learn new concepts. Proven strategies such as modeling, prompting, reinforcing responses, direct teaching, and hands-on experience matter to young children with language delays. Also important are social interactions and shared experiences with more knowledgeable persons. Within a cultural…

Interactions between statistical and semantic information in infant language development

PubMed Central

Lany, Jill; Saffran, Jenny R.

2013-01-01

Infants can use statistical regularities to form rudimentary word categories (e.g. noun, verb), and to learn the meanings common to words from those categories. Using an artificial language methodology, we probed the mechanisms by which two types of statistical cues (distributional and phonological regularities) affect word learning. Because linking distributional cues vs. phonological information to semantics make different computational demands on learners, we also tested whether their use is related to language proficiency. We found that 22-month-old infants with smaller vocabularies generalized using phonological cues; however, infants with larger vocabularies showed the opposite pattern of results, generalizing based on distributional cues. These findings suggest that both phonological and distributional cues marking word categories promote early word learning. Moreover, while correlations between these cues are important to forming word categories, we found infants’ weighting of these cues in subsequent word-learning tasks changes over the course of early language development. PMID:21884336

Social interaction facilitates word learning in preverbal infants: Word-object mapping and word segmentation.

PubMed

Hakuno, Yoko; Omori, Takahide; Yamamoto, Jun-Ichi; Minagawa, Yasuyo

2017-08-01

In natural settings, infants learn spoken language with the aid of a caregiver who explicitly provides social signals. Although previous studies have demonstrated that young infants are sensitive to these signals that facilitate language development, the impact of real-life interactions on early word segmentation and word-object mapping remains elusive. We tested whether infants aged 5-6 months and 9-10 months could segment a word from continuous speech and acquire a word-object relation in an ecologically valid setting. In Experiment 1, infants were exposed to a live tutor, while in Experiment 2, another group of infants were exposed to a televised tutor. Results indicate that both younger and older infants were capable of segmenting a word and learning a word-object association only when the stimuli were derived from a live tutor in a natural manner, suggesting that real-life interaction enhances the learning of spoken words in preverbal infants. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Broca's area and the language instinct.

PubMed

Musso, Mariacristina; Moro, Andrea; Glauche, Volkmar; Rijntjes, Michel; Reichenbach, Jürgen; Büchel, Christian; Weiller, Cornelius

2003-07-01

Language acquisition in humans relies on abilities like abstraction and use of syntactic rules, which are absent in other animals. The neural correlate of acquiring new linguistic competence was investigated with two functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies. German native speakers learned a sample of 'real' grammatical rules of different languages (Italian or Japanese), which, although parametrically different, follow the universal principles of grammar (UG). Activity during this task was compared with that during a task that involved learning 'unreal' rules of language. 'Unreal' rules were obtained manipulating the original two languages; they used the same lexicon as Italian or Japanese, but were linguistically illegal, as they violated the principles of UG. Increase of activation over time in Broca's area was specific for 'real' language acquisition only, independent of the kind of language. Thus, in Broca's area, biological constraints and language experience interact to enable linguistic competence for a new language.

Toddler learning from video: Effect of matched pedagogical cues.

PubMed

Lauricella, Alexis R; Barr, Rachel; Calvert, Sandra L

2016-11-01

Toddlers learn about their social world by following visual and verbal cues from adults, but they have difficulty transferring what they see in one context to another (e.g., from a screen to real life). Therefore, it is important to understand how the use of matched pedagogical cues, specifically adult eye gaze and language, influence toddlers' imitation from live and digital presentations. Fifteen- and 18-month-old toddlers (N=123) were randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions or a baseline control condition. The four experimental conditions differed as a function of the interactive cues (audience gaze with interactive language or object gaze with non-interactive language) and presentation type (live or video). Results indicate that toddlers' successfully imitate a task when eye gaze was directed at the object or at the audience and equally well when the task was demonstrated live or via video. All four experimental conditions performed significantly better than the baseline control, indicating learned behavior. Additionally, results demonstrate that girls attended more to the demonstrations and outperformed the boys on the imitation task. In sum, this study demonstrates that young toddlers can learn from video when the models use matched eye gaze and verbal cues, providing additional evidence for ways in which the transfer deficit effect can be ameliorated. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Does Variability Across Events Affect Verb Learning in English, Mandarin and Korean?

PubMed Central

Childers, Jane B.; Paik, Jae H.; Flores, Melissa; Lai, Gabrielle; Dolan, Megan

2016-01-01

Extending new verbs is important to becoming a productive speaker of a language. Prior results show children have difficulty extending verbs when they have seen events with varied agents. This paper further examines the impact of variability on verb learning, and asks whether this interacts with event complexity or differs by language. Children (aged 2 ½- to 3-years) in the U.S., China, Korea and Singapore learned verbs linked to simple and complex events. Sets of events included one or three agents, and children were asked to extend the verb at test. Children learning verbs linked to simple movements performed similarly across conditions. However, children learning verbs linked to events with multiple objects were less successful if those events were enacted by multiple agents. A follow-up study rules out an influence of event order. Overall, similar patterns of results emerged across languages, suggesting common cognitive processes support children’s verb learning. PMID:27457679

The Development of English Grammar and Reading Comprehension by Majority and Minority Language Children in a Bilingual Primary School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Steinlen, Anja K.

2017-01-01

Both for the first language (L1) and for all additional languages (L2 or L3), grammatical knowledge plays a vital role in understanding texts (e.g., Grabe, 2005). However, little is known about the development and interaction of grammar and reading comprehension in beginning foreign language learning, especially with respect to children with a…

Bilingual performance on nonword repetition in Spanish and English.

PubMed

Summers, Connie; Bohman, Thomas M; Gillam, Ronald B; Peña, Elizabeth D; Bedore, Lisa M

2010-01-01

Nonword repetition (NWR) involves the ability to perceive, store, recall and reproduce phonological sequences. These same abilities play a role in word and morpheme learning. Cross-linguistic studies of performance on NWR tasks, word learning, and morpheme learning yield patterns of increased performance on all three tasks as a function of age and language experience. These results are consistent with the idea that there may be universal information-processing mechanisms supporting language learning. Because bilingual children's language experience is divided across two languages, studying performance in two languages on NWR could inform one's understanding of the relationship between information processing and language learning. The primary aims of this study were to compare bilingual language learners' recall of Spanish-like and English-like items on NWR tasks and to assess the relationships between performance on NWR, semantics, and morphology tasks. Sixty-two Hispanic children exposed to English and Spanish were recruited from schools in central Texas, USA. Their parents reported on the children's input and output in both languages. The children completed NWR tasks and short tests of semantics and morphosyntax in both languages. Mixed-model analysis of variance was used to explore direct effects and interactions between the variables of nonword length, language experience, language outcome measures, and cumulative exposure on NWR performance. Children produced the Spanish-like nonwords more accurately than the English-like nonwords. NWR performance was significantly correlated to cumulative language experience in both English and Spanish. There were also significant correlations between NWR and morphosyntax but not semantics. Language knowledge appears to play a role in the task of NWR. The relationship between performance on morphosyntax and NWR tasks indicates children rely on similar language-learning mechanisms to mediate these tasks. More exposure to Spanish may increase abilities to repeat longer nonwords. This knowledge may shift across levels of bilingualism. Further research is needed to understand this relationship, as it is likely to have implications for language teaching or intervention for children with language impairments.

Language Learning Enhanced by Massive Multiple Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs) and the Underlying Behavioral and Neural Mechanisms.

PubMed

Zhang, Yongjun; Song, Hongwen; Liu, Xiaoming; Tang, Dinghong; Chen, Yue-E; Zhang, Xiaochu

2017-01-01

Massive Multiple Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs) have increased in popularity among children, juveniles, and adults since MMORPGs' appearance in this digital age. MMORPGs can be applied to enhancing language learning, which is drawing researchers' attention from different fields and many studies have validated MMORPGs' positive effect on language learning. However, there are few studies on the underlying behavioral or neural mechanism of such effect. This paper reviews the educational application of the MMORPGs based on relevant macroscopic and microscopic studies, showing that gamers' overall language proficiency or some specific language skills can be enhanced by real-time online interaction with peers and game narratives or instructions embedded in the MMORPGs. Mechanisms underlying the educational assistant role of MMORPGs in second language learning are discussed from both behavioral and neural perspectives. We suggest that attentional bias makes gamers/learners allocate more cognitive resources toward task-related stimuli in a controlled or an automatic way. Moreover, with a moderating role played by activation of reward circuit, playing the MMORPGs may strengthen or increase functional connectivity from seed regions such as left anterior insular/frontal operculum (AI/FO) and visual word form area to other language-related brain areas.

Learning with a Missing Sense: What Can We Learn from the Interaction of a Deaf Child with a Turtle?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miller, Paul

2009-01-01

This case study reports on the progress of Navon, a 13-year-old boy with prelingual deafness, over a 3-month period following exposure to Logo, a computer programming language that visualizes specific programming commands by means of a virtual drawing tool called the Turtle. Despite an almost complete lack of skills in spoken and sign language,…

The Impact of the Interactive Whiteboard on the Teacher and Children's Language Use in an ESL Immersion Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coyle, Yvette; Yanez, Lorena; Verdu, Mercedes

2010-01-01

As a teaching resource, interactive whiteboards (IWB) are becoming increasingly popular in schools outside the UK, including Spain. Research carried out so far has tended to examine the effects of IWB use on teaching and learning in monolingual contexts where English is the first language for learners. The present study adds a new dimension to…

Reading Fluency through Alternative Text: Rereading with an Interact Sing-to-Read Program Embedded within a Middle School Music Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Biggs, Marie C.; Watkins, Nancy A.

2008-01-01

Singing exaggerates the language of reading. The students find their voices in the rhythm and bounce of language by using music as an alternative technological approach to reading. A concurrent mixed methods study was conducted to investigate the use of an interactive sing-to-read program Tune Into Reading (Electronic Learning Products, 2006)…

Exploring social structure effect on language evolution based on a computational model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gong, Tao; Minett, James; Wang, William

2008-06-01

A compositionality-regularity coevolution model is adopted to explore the effect of social structure on language emergence and maintenance. Based on this model, we explore language evolution in three experiments, and discuss the role of a popular agent in language evolution, the relationship between mutual understanding and social hierarchy, and the effect of inter-community communications and that of simple linguistic features on convergence of communal languages in two communities. This work embodies several important interactions during social learning, and introduces a new approach that manipulates individuals' probabilities to participate in social interactions to study the effect of social structure. We hope it will stimulate further theoretical and empirical explorations on language evolution in a social environment.

Culture Learning from a Constructivist Perspective: An Investigation of Spanish Foreign Language Teachers' Views

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sercu, Lies; Garcia, Maria del Carmen Mendez; Prieto, Paloma Castro

2005-01-01

Today, teaching and learning tend to be viewed from a constructivist perspective. Learning is regarded as a self-directed process of constructing meaning, which takes place in interaction. The teacher supports the learning process by selecting input and approaches that can scaffold the learning process and guide learners towards independent…

Learning English Using Children's Stories in Mobile Devices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cavus, Nadire; Ibrahim, Dogan

2017-01-01

The topic of this paper is to describe the development of an interactive application that can be used in teaching English as a second language using children's stories in mobile devices. The aim of this experimental study has been to find out the potential of using the developed interactive mobile application in improving the learning skills such…

Talk with Me: Student Behaviours and Pronoun Use as Indicators of Discourse Health across Facilitation Methods

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Epp, Carrie Demmans; Phirangee, Krystle; Hewitt, Jim

2017-01-01

Identifying which online behaviours and interactions are associated with student perceptions of being supported will enable a deeper understanding of how those activities contribute to learning experiences. Student language is one aspect of their interaction in need of greater exploration within discourse-based online learning environments. As a…

Computer-Assisted Culture Learning in an Online Augmented Reality Environment Based on Free-Hand Gesture Interaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yang, Mau-Tsuen; Liao, Wan-Che

2014-01-01

The physical-virtual immersion and real-time interaction play an essential role in cultural and language learning. Augmented reality (AR) technology can be used to seamlessly merge virtual objects with real-world images to realize immersions. Additionally, computer vision (CV) technology can recognize free-hand gestures from live images to enable…

Crossing Boundaries in Facebook: Students' Framing of Language Learning Activities as Extended Spaces

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lantz-Andersson, Annika; Vigmo, Sylvi; Bowen, Rhonwen

2013-01-01

Young people's interaction online is rapidly increasing, which enables new spaces for communication; the impact on learning, however, is not yet acknowledged in education. The aim of this exploratory case study is to scrutinize how students frame their interaction in social networking sites (SNS) in school practices and what that implies for…

Interactive Book Reading to Accelerate Word Learning by Kindergarten Children With Specific Language Impairment: Identifying Adequate Progress and Successful Learning Patterns.

PubMed

Storkel, Holly L; Komesidou, Rouzana; Fleming, Kandace K; Romine, Rebecca Swinburne

2017-04-20

The goal of this study was to provide guidance to clinicians on early benchmarks of successful word learning in an interactive book reading treatment and to examine how encoding and memory evolution during treatment contribute to word learning outcomes by kindergarten children with specific language impairment (SLI). Twenty-seven kindergarten children with SLI participated in a preliminary clinical trial using interactive book reading to teach 30 new words. Word learning was assessed at 4 points during treatment through a picture naming test. The results indicate that the following performance during treatment was cause for concern, indicating a need to modify the treatment: naming 0-1 treated words correctly at Naming Test 1; naming 0-2 treated words correctly at Naming Test 2; naming 0-3 treated words correctly at Naming Test 3. In addition, the results showed that encoding was the primary limiting factor in word learning, but rmemory evolution also contributed (albeit to a lesser degree) to word learning success. Case illustrations demonstrate how a clinician's understanding of a child's word learning strengths and weaknesses develop over the course of treatment, substantiating the importance of regular data collection and clinical decision-making to ensure the best possible outcomes for each individual child.

Communication Patterns between Internationally Adopted Children and Their Mothers: Implications for Language Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gauthier, K.; Genesee, F.; Dubois, M. E.; Kasparian K.

2013-01-01

This study presents findings on patterns of communication between internationally adopted children and their mothers in order to better understand the nature of these interactions and their influence on language learning. We examined maternal language use and joint attention behaviors of mothers and their children in 21 mother-child pairs: 10…

"Languagizing" Their World: Why Talking, Reading, and Singing Are So Important

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hirsh-Pasek, Kathryn; Golinkoff, Roberta Michnick

2018-01-01

Language is the single best predictor of later success in school and beyond. Using new findings in the science of learning, this article outlines 6 basic principles that will help parents and caregivers interact with children in ways that grow important language skills. Creating environments that nurture these principles gives every child a chance…

Lexical Language-Related Episodes in Pair and Small Group Work

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mayo, Maria Del Pilar Garcia; Zeitler, Nora

2017-01-01

The present study investigates whether learner set up in interaction, namely in pairs or small groups, influences the frequency and outcome of lexical language-related episodes (LREs) and L2 vocabulary learning. Thirty Spanish English as a foreign language (EFL) university learners took part in the study. They worked in four groups and seven pairs…

The relation between receptive grammar and procedural, declarative, and working memory in specific language impairment.

PubMed

Conti-Ramsden, Gina; Ullman, Michael T; Lum, Jarrad A G

2015-01-01

What memory systems underlie grammar in children, and do these differ between typically developing (TD) children and children with specific language impairment (SLI)? Whilst there is substantial evidence linking certain memory deficits to the language problems in children with SLI, few studies have investigated multiple memory systems simultaneously, examining not only possible memory deficits but also memory abilities that may play a compensatory role. This study examined the extent to which procedural, declarative, and working memory abilities predict receptive grammar in 45 primary school aged children with SLI (30 males, 15 females) and 46 TD children (30 males, 16 females), both on average 9;10 years of age. Regression analyses probed measures of all three memory systems simultaneously as potential predictors of receptive grammar. The model was significant, explaining 51.6% of the variance. There was a significant main effect of learning in procedural memory and a significant group × procedural learning interaction. Further investigation of the interaction revealed that procedural learning predicted grammar in TD but not in children with SLI. Indeed, procedural learning was the only predictor of grammar in TD. In contrast, only learning in declarative memory significantly predicted grammar in SLI. Thus, different memory systems are associated with receptive grammar abilities in children with SLI and their TD peers. This study is, to our knowledge, the first to demonstrate a significant group by memory system interaction in predicting grammar in children with SLI and their TD peers. In line with Ullman's Declarative/Procedural model of language and procedural deficit hypothesis of SLI, variability in understanding sentences of varying grammatical complexity appears to be associated with variability in procedural memory abilities in TD children, but with declarative memory, as an apparent compensatory mechanism, in children with SLI.

Intelligent Fuzzy Spelling Evaluator for e-Learning Systems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chakraborty, Udit Kr.; Konar, Debanjan; Roy, Samir; Choudhury, Sankhayan

2016-01-01

Evaluating Learners' Response in an e-Learning environment has been the topic of current research in areas of Human Computer Interaction, e-Learning, Education Technology and even Natural Language Processing. The current paper presents a twofold strategy to evaluate single word response of a learner in an e-Learning environment. The response of…

Investigating Affordance of Opportunity for Young Children's Language Interactions in a Nursery Setting: How Can Small Group Talk Act as a Forum for Language Learning?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

King, Sarah Elizabeth; Dockrell, Julie E.

2016-01-01

The importance of research on the unique nature of the communication supporting environment in nurseries has been heightened by growing evidence of the significance of early language skills for later academic and social development. This study focussed on children's language use during small group times. Opportunities to hear and practise language…

Intersections between immigration, language, identity, and emotions: a science teacher candidate's journey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rivera Maulucci, Maria S.

2008-04-01

This study reports a subset of findings from a larger, ongoing study aimed at exploring interactions between teacher identity, learning, and classroom practices in a social justice teacher education program at a selective liberal arts college in New York. This case-study explores the journey of Elena, as an immigrant, a student, and a pre-service teacher candidate towards becoming a social justice educator. Elena reflects upon her school language experiences as an immigrant youth, her learning in a social justice teacher education program, and her field experiences in an international high school. The analysis spans macro-, meso-, and microlevels to explore the ways globalization, particularly immigration, as well as schooling policies for English language learners interact with aspects of Elena's core identity, particularly in school settings. The findings show some of the ways language and literacy verified and/or denied aspects of Elena's core identity; specific instances where second language proficiency was cast as power and privilege versus disadvantage according to ethnic, language, and class categorizations; and the struggles Elena, and other immigrant youth may face given the focus on English language acquisition and high stakes accountability in schools, at the expense of students' primary language proficiency and affirmation of core identity markers.

Integrating Computer-Mediated Communication Strategy Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McNeil, Levi

2016-01-01

Communication strategies (CSs) play important roles in resolving problematic second language interaction and facilitating language learning. While studies in face-to-face contexts demonstrate the benefits of communication strategy instruction (CSI), there have been few attempts to integrate computer-mediated communication and CSI. The study…

Eye Movements of Online Chinese Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stickler, Ursula; Shi, Lijing

2015-01-01

Although online tutorials are becoming commonplace for language teaching, very few studies to date have provided insights into learners' behaviours in synchronous online interactions from their own perspective. This study employs eyetracking technology to investigate ten learners' attention during synchronous online language learning in a…

Live Action: Can Young Children Learn Verbs From Video?

PubMed Central

Roseberry, Sarah; Hirsh-Pasek, Kathy; Parish-Morris, Julia; Golinkoff, Roberta Michnick

2009-01-01

The availability of educational programming aimed at infants and toddlers is increasing, yet the effect of video on language acquisition remains unclear. Three studies of 96 children aged 30–42 months investigated their ability to learn verbs from video. Study 1 asked whether children could learn verbs from video when supported by live social interaction. Study 2 tested whether children could learn verbs from video alone. Study 3 clarified whether the benefits of social interaction remained when the experimenter was shown on a video screen rather than in person. Results suggest that younger children only learn verbs from video with live social interaction while older children can learn verbs from video alone. Implications for verb learning and educational media are discussed. PMID:19765005

Live action: can young children learn verbs from video?

PubMed

Roseberry, Sarah; Hirsh-Pasek, Kathy; Parish-Morris, Julia; Golinkoff, Roberta M

2009-01-01

The availability of educational programming aimed at infants and toddlers is increasing, yet the effect of video on language acquisition remains unclear. Three studies of 96 children aged 30-42 months investigated their ability to learn verbs from video. Study 1 asked whether children could learn verbs from video when supported by live social interaction. Study 2 tested whether children could learn verbs from video alone. Study 3 clarified whether the benefits of social interaction remained when the experimenter was shown on a video screen rather than in person. Results suggest that younger children only learn verbs from video with live social interaction whereas older children can learn verbs from video alone. Implications for verb learning and educational media are discussed.

Perceptions of Taiwanese nursing students' English-language progression following interactive scenario development and role play.

PubMed

Robinson, Carolyn I; Harvey, Theresa M; Tseng 曾翊瑄, Monica

2016-10-01

The English language has been recognised as an international language, enabling the globalisation of education and work opportunities. An institute in Taiwan has committed to strengthening English teaching by implementing a student-centred teaching and learning activity using role play. In addition, the involvement of a visiting teacher from Australia has been established. Data collection consisted of a questionnaire that collected qualitative and quantitative data that revealed student perceptions and attitudes towards learning English including nursing terminology, teamwork and communication. Fifty five of sixty students participating in the activity completed the questionnaire. Students regarded this as a positive experience for learning English, collegiality and teamwork. This project revealed that students who are not generally exposed to English-speaking people enjoyed this experience. They gained confidence in their ability to learn English in a collegial atmosphere where teamwork and supportive relationships were developed, despite the perception that learning English was difficult.

Can contingency learning alone account for item-specific control? Evidence from within- and between-language ISPC effects.

PubMed

Atalay, Nart Bedin; Misirlisoy, Mine

2012-11-01

The item-specific proportion congruence (ISPC) manipulation (Jacoby, Lindsay, & Hessels, 2003) produces larger Stroop interference for mostly congruent items than mostly incongruent items. This effect has been attributed to dynamic control over word-reading processes. However, proportion congruence of an item in the ISPC manipulation is completely confounded with response contingency, suggesting the alternative hypothesis, that the ISPC effect is a result of learning response contingencies (Schmidt & Besner, 2008). The current study asks whether the ISPC effect can be explained by a pure stimulus-response contingency-learning account, or whether other control processes play a role as well, by comparing within- and between-language conditions in a bilingual task. Experiment 1 showed that contingency learning for noncolor words was larger for the within-language than the between-language condition. Experiment 2 revealed significant ISPC effects for both within- and between-language conditions; importantly, the effect was larger in the former. The results of the contingency analyses for Experiment 2 were parallel to that of Experiment 1 and did not show an interaction between contingency and congruency. Put together, these sets of results support the view that contingency-learning processes dominate color-word ISPC effects.

Language learning, socioeconomic status, and child-directed speech.

PubMed

Schwab, Jessica F; Lew-Williams, Casey

2016-07-01

Young children's language experiences and language outcomes are highly variable. Research in recent decades has focused on understanding the extent to which family socioeconomic status (SES) relates to parents' language input to their children and, subsequently, children's language learning. Here, we first review research demonstrating differences in the quantity and quality of language that children hear across low-, mid-, and high-SES groups, but also-and perhaps more importantly-research showing that differences in input and learning also exist within SES groups. Second, in order to better understand the defining features of 'high-quality' input, we highlight findings from laboratory studies examining specific characteristics of the sounds, words, sentences, and social contexts of child-directed speech (CDS) that influence children's learning. Finally, after narrowing in on these particular features of CDS, we broaden our discussion by considering family and community factors that may constrain parents' ability to participate in high-quality interactions with their young children. A unification of research on SES and CDS will facilitate a more complete understanding of the specific means by which input shapes learning, as well as generate ideas for crafting policies and programs designed to promote children's language outcomes. WIREs Cogn Sci 2016, 7:264-275. doi: 10.1002/wcs.1393 For further resources related to this article, please visit the WIREs website. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Sustaining Motivation for Japanese "Kanji" Learning: Can Digital Games Help?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nesbitt, Dallas; Müller, Amanda

2016-01-01

Educational digital games are often presented at Technology in Language Education conferences. The games are entertaining and are backed by research detailing how games can improve the learning experience through active critical learning, learner interaction, competition, challenge, and high learner motivation. The authors, inspired by such…

Making Learning Happen: Strategies for an Interactive Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Golub, Jeffrey N.

This is a book about "conscious learning," the kind of learning that enables students to assess the current level and quality of their language performance and then work to improve that performance deliberately, enthusiastically, and with commitment. The book takes complex, sophisticated understandings and reworks them into ready-to-use…

Evaluating the Effects of a "Student Buddy" Initiative on Student Engagement and Motivation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Motzo, Anna

2016-01-01

Motivation is one of the most important factors which influences second language learning (Dörnyei, 1998; Gardner & Lambert, 1972). A support mechanism which reinforces student motivation through encouragement, social interaction, feedback, sound learning environments and good teaching is crucial for ensuring successful learning. This is…

Supporting Student Differences in Listening Comprehension and Vocabulary Learning with Multimedia Annotations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Linda C.

2009-01-01

This article describes how effectively multimedia learning environments can assist second language (L2) students of different spatial and verbal abilities with listening comprehension and vocabulary learning. In particular, it explores how written and pictorial annotations interacted with high/low spatial and verbal ability learners and thus…

Recent Developments in Interactive and Communicative CALL: Hypermedia and "Intelligent" Systems.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coughlin, Josette M.

Two recent developments in computer-assisted language learning (CALL), interactive video systems and "intelligent" games, are discussed. Under the first heading, systems combining the use of a computer and video disc player are described, and Compact Discs Interactive (CDI) and Digital Video Interactive (DVI) are reviewed. The…

Observe, Explain, Connect

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vardell, Sylvia M.; Wong, Janet S.

2014-01-01

Like science, poetry often involves a high level of abstraction in language and ideas, requiring specific critical-thinking skills and promoting interaction. Casteel and Isom (1994) acknowledge, "The literacy processes are the means by which science content is learned because content information is rooted in written and oral language"…

An Evaluation of Independent Learning of the Japanese Hiragana System Using an Interactive CD

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Geraghty, Barbara; Quinn, Ann Marcus

2009-01-01

As Japanese uses three writing systems (hiragana, katakana, and the ideograms known as kanji), and as materials in the target language include all three, it is a major challenge to learn to read and write quickly. This paper focuses on interactive multi-media methods of teaching Japanese reading which foster learner autonomy. As little has been…

Disjunction between Language Policy and Children's Sociocultural Ecology--An Analysis of English-Medium Education Policy in Pakistan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Manan, Syed Abdul; David, Maya Khemlani; Dumanig, Francisco Perlas

2015-01-01

Sociocultural theory and constructionists propose that language learning is a socially and culturally mediated process, and they emphasize on social interaction. This study examines the amount of students' exposure to the school language to account for the link between English-medium policies in low-fee English-medium schools and children's…

Cross-Cultural Differences in Beliefs and Practices that Affect the Language Spoken to Children: Mothers with Indian and Western Heritage

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Simmons, Noreen; Johnston, Judith

2007-01-01

Background: Speech-language pathologists often advise families about interaction patterns that will facilitate language learning. This advice is typically based on research with North American families of European heritage and may not be culturally suited for non-Western families. Aims: The goal of the project was to identify differences in the…

SpeakApps 2: Speaking Practice in a Foreign Language through ICT Tools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Appel, Christine; Nic Giolla Mhichíl, Mairéad; Jager, Sake; Prizel-Kania, Adriana

2014-01-01

SpeakApps 2 is a project with support of the Lifelong Learning Programme, Accompanying Measures. It follows up on the work and results reached during the KA2 project "SpeakApps: Oral production and interaction in a foreign language through ICT tools". The overarching aim of SpeakApps 2 is to further enhance Europeans' language learning…

Evaluating the Language Resources of Chatbots for Their Potential in English as a Second Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coniam, David

2008-01-01

This paper investigates the linguistic worth of current "chatbot" programs--software programs which attempt to hold a conversation, or interact, in English--as a precursor to their potential as an ESL (English as a second language) learning resource. After some initial background to the development of chatbots, and a discussion of the Loebner…

Integrated Intelligence: Robot Instruction via Interactive Grounded Learning

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-02-14

ADDRESS (ES) U.S. Army Research Office P.O. Box 12211 Research Triangle Park, NC 27709-2211 Robotics; Natural Language Processing ; Grounded Language ...Logical Forms for Referring Expression Generation, Emperical Methods in Natural Language Processing (EMNLP). 18-OCT-13, . : , Tom Kwiatkowska, Eunsol...Choi, Yoav Artzi, Luke Zettlemoyer. Scaling Semantic Parsers with On-the-fly Ontology Matching, Emperical Methods in Natural Langauge Processing

Activating the Worker in Elderly Care: A Technique and Tactics of Invitation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fejes, A.; Nicoll, K.

2011-01-01

Relatively little attention has been paid to questions of how language acts in and through the interactions of language in situations where people are encouraged to learn to be active in contexts of work. This paper argues that detailed analysis is needed to understand how activation through language acts in the shaping and governing of workers.…

Skilled interaction among professional carers in special accommodations for adult people with learning disabilities.

PubMed

Antonsson, H; Aström, S; Lundström, M; Graneheim, U H

2013-09-01

Communicative difficulties affect interactions between people with learning disabilities and their carers. Despite such difficulties, however, some carers seem to interact successfully with people who have limited ability to communicate verbally and exhibit challenging behaviour. This study aims to illuminate skilled interaction among carers working in special accommodations for people with learning disabilities. Interactions between 16 caregivers and 11 residents with learning disabilities were recorded on video. Verbal and non-verbal interaction skills among the carers were identified. Four caring situations with people with learning disabilities were chosen to illuminate skilled interaction. The transcribed text was subjected to qualitative content analysis and core stories were created. The results show that skilled interaction between the carers and the people with learning disabilities is based upon being confirming, sharing daily life experience, giving time and space, and using congruent and distinct language. In this paper we present examples that offer concrete suggestions of how to promote successful interaction and create meaning in the shared day-to-day life in special accommodations for people with learning disabilities. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Cross-cultural differences in beliefs and practices that affect the language spoken to children: mothers with Indian and Western heritage.

PubMed

Simmons, Noreen; Johnston, Judith

2007-01-01

Speech-language pathologists often advise families about interaction patterns that will facilitate language learning. This advice is typically based on research with North American families of European heritage and may not be culturally suited for non-Western families. The goal of the project was to identify differences in the beliefs and practices of Indian and Euro-Canadian mothers that would affect patterns of talk to children. A total of 47 Indian mothers and 51 Euro-Canadian mothers of preschool age children completed a written survey concerning child-rearing practices and beliefs, especially those about talk to children. Discriminant analyses indicated clear cross-cultural differences and produced functions that could predict group membership with a 96% accuracy rate. Items contributing most to these functions concerned the importance of family, perceptions of language learning, children's use of language in family and society, and interactions surrounding text. Speech-language pathologists who wish to adapt their services for families of Indian heritage should remember the centrality of the family, the likelihood that there will be less emphasis on early independence and achievement, and the preference for direct instruction.

Why Are There Developmental Stages in Language Learning? A Developmental Robotics Model of Language Development.

PubMed

Morse, Anthony F; Cangelosi, Angelo

2017-02-01

Most theories of learning would predict a gradual acquisition and refinement of skills as learning progresses, and while some highlight exponential growth, this fails to explain why natural cognitive development typically progresses in stages. Models that do span multiple developmental stages typically have parameters to "switch" between stages. We argue that by taking an embodied view, the interaction between learning mechanisms, the resulting behavior of the agent, and the opportunities for learning that the environment provides can account for the stage-wise development of cognitive abilities. We summarize work relevant to this hypothesis and suggest two simple mechanisms that account for some developmental transitions: neural readiness focuses on changes in the neural substrate resulting from ongoing learning, and perceptual readiness focuses on the perceptual requirements for learning new tasks. Previous work has demonstrated these mechanisms in replications of a wide variety of infant language experiments, spanning multiple developmental stages. Here we piece this work together as a single model of ongoing learning with no parameter changes at all. The model, an instance of the Epigenetic Robotics Architecture (Morse et al 2010) embodied on the iCub humanoid robot, exhibits ongoing multi-stage development while learning pre-linguistic and then basic language skills. Copyright © 2016 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Speech perception and reading: two parallel modes of understanding language and implications for acquiring literacy naturally.

PubMed

Massaro, Dominic W

2012-01-01

I review 2 seminal research reports published in this journal during its second decade more than a century ago. Given psychology's subdisciplines, they would not normally be reviewed together because one involves reading and the other speech perception. The small amount of interaction between these domains might have limited research and theoretical progress. In fact, the 2 early research reports revealed common processes involved in these 2 forms of language processing. Their illustration of the role of Wundt's apperceptive process in reading and speech perception anticipated descriptions of contemporary theories of pattern recognition, such as the fuzzy logical model of perception. Based on the commonalities between reading and listening, one can question why they have been viewed so differently. It is commonly believed that learning to read requires formal instruction and schooling, whereas spoken language is acquired from birth onward through natural interactions with people who talk. Most researchers and educators believe that spoken language is acquired naturally from birth onward and even prenatally. Learning to read, on the other hand, is not possible until the child has acquired spoken language, reaches school age, and receives formal instruction. If an appropriate form of written text is made available early in a child's life, however, the current hypothesis is that reading will also be learned inductively and emerge naturally, with no significant negative consequences. If this proposal is true, it should soon be possible to create an interactive system, Technology Assisted Reading Acquisition, to allow children to acquire literacy naturally.

Combining Collaborative Learning with Learning Management Systems in Teaching Programming Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cavus, Nadire; Uzunboylu, Huseyin; Ibrahim, Dogan

2006-01-01

The development of collaborative studies in learning has led to a renewed interest in the field of web-based education. In this experimental study, a highly interactive and collaborative teaching environment was created using Moodle, a learning management system with two types of Collaborative Tools (CTs): Standard CT and Advanced CT to create a…

Effects of Pedagogical Agent Gestures on Social Acceptance and Learning: Virtual Real Relationships in an Elementary Foreign Language Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davis, Robert; Antonenko, Pavlo

2017-01-01

Pedagogical agents (PAs) are lifelike characters in virtual environments that help facilitate learning through social interactions and the virtual real relationships with the learners. This study explored whether and how PA gesture design impacts learning and agent social acceptance when used with elementary students learning foreign language…

SKOPE-IT (Shareable Knowledge Objects as Portable Intelligent Tutors): Overlaying Natural Language Tutoring on an Adaptive Learning System for Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nye, Benjamin D.; Pavlik, Philip I., Jr.; Windsor, Alistair; Olney, Andrew M.; Hajeer, Mustafa; Hu, Xiangen

2018-01-01

Background: This study investigated learning outcomes and user perceptions from interactions with a hybrid intelligent tutoring system created by combining the AutoTutor conversational tutoring system with the Assessment and Learning in Knowledge Spaces (ALEKS) adaptive learning system for mathematics. This hybrid intelligent tutoring system (ITS)…

The World as Functional Learning Environment: An Intercultural Learning Network. Interactive Technology Laboratory Report #7.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cohen, Moshe; And Others

Electronic networks provide new opportunities to create functional learning environments which allow students in many different locations to carry out joint educational activities. A set of participant observation studies was conducted in the context of a cross-cultural, cross-language network called the Intercultural Learning Network in order to…

Investigating the Affective Learning in a 3D Virtual Learning Environment: The Case Study of the Chatterdale Mystery

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Molka-Danielsen, Judith; Hadjistassou, Stella; Messl-Egghart, Gerhilde

2016-01-01

This research is motivated by the emergence of virtual technologies and their potential as engaging pedagogical tools for facilitating comprehension, interactions and collaborations for learning; and in particular as applied to learning second languages (L2). This paper provides a descriptive analysis of a case study that examines affective…

Prediction of enhancer-promoter interactions via natural language processing.

PubMed

Zeng, Wanwen; Wu, Mengmeng; Jiang, Rui

2018-05-09

Precise identification of three-dimensional genome organization, especially enhancer-promoter interactions (EPIs), is important to deciphering gene regulation, cell differentiation and disease mechanisms. Currently, it is a challenging task to distinguish true interactions from other nearby non-interacting ones since the power of traditional experimental methods is limited due to low resolution or low throughput. We propose a novel computational framework EP2vec to assay three-dimensional genomic interactions. We first extract sequence embedding features, defined as fixed-length vector representations learned from variable-length sequences using an unsupervised deep learning method in natural language processing. Then, we train a classifier to predict EPIs using the learned representations in supervised way. Experimental results demonstrate that EP2vec obtains F1 scores ranging from 0.841~ 0.933 on different datasets, which outperforms existing methods. We prove the robustness of sequence embedding features by carrying out sensitivity analysis. Besides, we identify motifs that represent cell line-specific information through analysis of the learned sequence embedding features by adopting attention mechanism. Last, we show that even superior performance with F1 scores 0.889~ 0.940 can be achieved by combining sequence embedding features and experimental features. EP2vec sheds light on feature extraction for DNA sequences of arbitrary lengths and provides a powerful approach for EPIs identification.

A National Study Assessing the Teaching and Learning of Introductory Astronomy Part II: Analysis of Student Demographics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rudolph, Alexander; Prather, E. E.; Brissenden, G.; Consiglio, D.; Gonzaga, V.

2010-01-01

This is the second in a series of reports on a national study of the teaching and learning of astronomy in general education, non-science major, introductory college astronomy courses (Astro 101). The results show dramatic improvement in student learning with increased use of interactive learning strategies even after controlling for individual student characteristics. In addition, we find that the positive effects of interactive learning strategies apply equally to men and women, across ethnicities, for students with all levels of prior mathematical preparation and physical science course experience, independent of GPA, and regardless of primary language. These results powerfully illustrate that all categories of students can benefit from the effective implementation of interactive learning strategies.

Language Learning Enhanced by Massive Multiple Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs) and the Underlying Behavioral and Neural Mechanisms

PubMed Central

Zhang, Yongjun; Song, Hongwen; Liu, Xiaoming; Tang, Dinghong; Chen, Yue-e; Zhang, Xiaochu

2017-01-01

Massive Multiple Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs) have increased in popularity among children, juveniles, and adults since MMORPGs’ appearance in this digital age. MMORPGs can be applied to enhancing language learning, which is drawing researchers’ attention from different fields and many studies have validated MMORPGs’ positive effect on language learning. However, there are few studies on the underlying behavioral or neural mechanism of such effect. This paper reviews the educational application of the MMORPGs based on relevant macroscopic and microscopic studies, showing that gamers’ overall language proficiency or some specific language skills can be enhanced by real-time online interaction with peers and game narratives or instructions embedded in the MMORPGs. Mechanisms underlying the educational assistant role of MMORPGs in second language learning are discussed from both behavioral and neural perspectives. We suggest that attentional bias makes gamers/learners allocate more cognitive resources toward task-related stimuli in a controlled or an automatic way. Moreover, with a moderating role played by activation of reward circuit, playing the MMORPGs may strengthen or increase functional connectivity from seed regions such as left anterior insular/frontal operculum (AI/FO) and visual word form area to other language-related brain areas. PMID:28303097

Designing Templates for Interactive Tasks in CALL Tutorials.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ruhlmann, Felicitas

The development of templates for computer-assisted language learning (CALL) is discussed, based on experiences with primarily linear multimedia tutorial programs. Design of templates for multiple-choice questions and interactive tasks in a prototype module is described. Possibilities of enhancing interactivity by introducing problem-oriented…

Responsiveness of Child Care Providers in Interactions With Toddlers and Preschoolers.

PubMed

Girolametto, Luigi; Weitzman, Elaine

2002-10-01

This exploratory study investigated the responsive language input of 26 child care providers to young children enrolled in community child care centers. Three subtypes of responsive interaction strategies were rated and compared across two age groups (toddlers, preschoolers) and two naturalistic contexts (book reading, play dough activity). The toddlers were between 17 and 33 months of age and the preschoolers were between 30 and 53 months of age. Caregiver-child interactions were rated using the Teacher Interaction and Language Rating Scale (Girolametto, Weitzman, & Greenberg, 2000) to provide information about the frequency of responsive language strategies. Caregivers used similar levels of child-centered and interaction-promoting strategies with both age groups, but used more labelling with toddlers and more topic extensions with preschoolers. The context of the interaction exerted a systematic influence on the caregivers' use of responsive strategies, with the play dough activity providing the most responsive input overall. There was a strong positive relationship between all three subtypes of caregivers' responsiveness and variation in the preschoolers' language productivity. In contrast, only interaction-promoting strategies were positively related to measures of the toddlers' language productivity. The results of this study suggest that caregivers' responsiveness in group interactions is highly dependent on the context of the interaction and, to a lesser extent, on the language abilities of the children. Future research is required to determine if inservice training can enhance levels of responsiveness and accelerate language learning in young children in group care.

Using spoken words to guide open-ended category formation.

PubMed

Chauhan, Aneesh; Seabra Lopes, Luís

2011-11-01

Naming is a powerful cognitive tool that facilitates categorization by forming an association between words and their referents. There is evidence in child development literature that strong links exist between early word-learning and conceptual development. A growing view is also emerging that language is a cultural product created and acquired through social interactions. Inspired by these studies, this paper presents a novel learning architecture for category formation and vocabulary acquisition in robots through active interaction with humans. This architecture is open-ended and is capable of acquiring new categories and category names incrementally. The process can be compared to language grounding in children at single-word stage. The robot is embodied with visual and auditory sensors for world perception. A human instructor uses speech to teach the robot the names of the objects present in a visually shared environment. The robot uses its perceptual input to ground these spoken words and dynamically form/organize category descriptions in order to achieve better categorization. To evaluate the learning system at word-learning and category formation tasks, two experiments were conducted using a simple language game involving naming and corrective feedback actions from the human user. The obtained results are presented and discussed in detail.

Working Papers in Educational Linguistics, Volume 11, Number 1.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nabors, Leslie K., Ed.; And Others

1995-01-01

Five papers on applied linguistics in educational contexts are presented. "What Can Second Language Learners Learn from Each Other? Only Their Researcher Knows for Sure" (Teresa Pica, Felicia Lincoln-Porter, Diana Paninos, Julian Linnell) presents further research on interaction and negotiation among language learners.…

Student Mobility and Identity-Related Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kinginger, C.

2015-01-01

This paper reviews some recent studies problematizing various aspects of identity in relation to mobile students' encounters with the social interactive and pragmatic dimensions of language. The paper will examine several salient demographic categories represented in the literature: nationality, 'foreigner' status, gender, age, and…

Therapy Talk: Analyzing Therapeutic Discourse

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leahy, Margaret M.

2004-01-01

Therapeutic discourse is the talk-in-interaction that represents the social practice between clinician and client. This article invites speech-language pathologists to apply their knowledge of language to analyzing therapy talk and to learn how talking practices shape clinical roles and identities. A range of qualitative research approaches,…

Language Labs for 1990: User-Friendly, Expandable and Affordable.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wiley, Patricia Davis

1990-01-01

Describes hardware available for school laboratories used for second-language learning. Vendors and prices for equipment ranging from simple audio to computer interactive capabilities are included, portable and fixed installations are reviewed, specifications for instructor consoles and student stations are suggested, and maintenance and repair…

Gender in the EFL Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sunderland, Jane

1992-01-01

Provides an overview of issues and research in three areas where gender manifests itself in the English-as-a-foreign-language classroom: the English language, materials (grammars, textbooks and teacher-guides), and processes (learning styles and strategies). Also examined are implications of gender in materials and classroom interaction for…

Building a responsive teacher: how temporal contingency of gaze interaction influences word learning with virtual tutors

PubMed Central

Lee, Hanju; Kanakogi, Yasuhiro; Hiraki, Kazuo

2015-01-01

Animated pedagogical agents are lifelike virtual characters designed to augment learning. A review of developmental psychology literature led to the hypothesis that the temporal contingency of such agents would promote human learning. We developed a Pedagogical Agent with Gaze Interaction (PAGI), an experimental animated pedagogical agent that engages in gaze interaction with students. In this study, university students learned words of a foreign language, with temporally contingent PAGI (live group) or recorded version of PAGI (recorded group), which played pre-recorded sequences from live sessions. The result revealed that students in the live group scored considerably better than those in the recorded group. The finding indicates that incorporating temporal contingency of gaze interaction from a pedagogical agent has positive effect on learning. PMID:26064584

Culture and biology in the origins of linguistic structure.

PubMed

Kirby, Simon

2017-02-01

Language is systematically structured at all levels of description, arguably setting it apart from all other instances of communication in nature. In this article, I survey work over the last 20 years that emphasises the contributions of individual learning, cultural transmission, and biological evolution to explaining the structural design features of language. These 3 complex adaptive systems exist in a network of interactions: individual learning biases shape the dynamics of cultural evolution; universal features of linguistic structure arise from this cultural process and form the ultimate linguistic phenotype; the nature of this phenotype affects the fitness landscape for the biological evolution of the language faculty; and in turn this determines individuals' learning bias. Using a combination of computational simulation, laboratory experiments, and comparison with real-world cases of language emergence, I show that linguistic structure emerges as a natural outcome of cultural evolution once certain minimal biological requirements are in place.

Learning with a missing sense: what can we learn from the interaction of a deaf child with a turtle?

PubMed

Miller, Paul

2009-01-01

This case study reports on the progress of Navon, a 13-year-old boy with prelingual deafness, over a 3-month period following exposure to Logo, a computer programming language that visualizes specific programming commands by means of a virtual drawing tool called the Turtle. Despite an almost complete lack of skills in spoken and sign language, Navon made impressive progress in his programming skills, including acquisition of a notable active written vocabulary, which he learned to apply in a purposeful, rule-based manner. His achievements are discussed with reference to commonly held assumptions about the relationship between language and thought, in general, and the prerequisite of proper spoken language skills for the acquisition of reading and writing, in particular. Highlighted are the central principles responsible for Navon's unexpected cognitive and linguistic development, including the way it affected his social relations with peers and teachers.

Interactive Book Reading to Accelerate Word Learning by Kindergarten Children With Specific Language Impairment: Identifying Adequate Progress and Successful Learning Patterns

PubMed Central

Komesidou, Rouzana; Fleming, Kandace K.; Romine, Rebecca Swinburne

2017-01-01

Purpose The goal of this study was to provide guidance to clinicians on early benchmarks of successful word learning in an interactive book reading treatment and to examine how encoding and memory evolution during treatment contribute to word learning outcomes by kindergarten children with specific language impairment (SLI). Method Twenty-seven kindergarten children with SLI participated in a preliminary clinical trial using interactive book reading to teach 30 new words. Word learning was assessed at 4 points during treatment through a picture naming test. Results The results indicate that the following performance during treatment was cause for concern, indicating a need to modify the treatment: naming 0–1 treated words correctly at Naming Test 1; naming 0–2 treated words correctly at Naming Test 2; naming 0–3 treated words correctly at Naming Test 3. In addition, the results showed that encoding was the primary limiting factor in word learning, but rmemory evolution also contributed (albeit to a lesser degree) to word learning success. Conclusion Case illustrations demonstrate how a clinician's understanding of a child's word learning strengths and weaknesses develop over the course of treatment, substantiating the importance of regular data collection and clinical decision-making to ensure the best possible outcomes for each individual child. PMID:28419188

M3D (Media 3D): a new programming language for web-based virtual reality in E-Learning and Edutainment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chakaveh, Sepideh; Skaley, Detlef; Laine, Patricia; Haeger, Ralf; Maad, Soha

2003-01-01

Today, interactive multimedia educational systems are well established, as they prove useful instruments to enhance one's learning capabilities. Hitherto, the main difficulty with almost all E-Learning systems was latent in the rich media implementation techniques. This meant that each and every system should be created individually as reapplying the media, be it only a part, or the whole content was not directly possible, as everything must be applied mechanically i.e. by hand. Consequently making E-learning systems exceedingly expensive to generate, both in time and money terms. Media-3D or M3D is a new platform independent programming language, developed at the Fraunhofer Institute Media Communication to enable visualisation and simulation of E-Learning multimedia content. M3D is an XML-based language, which is capable of distinguishing between the3D models from that of the 3D scenes, as well as handling provisions for animations, within the programme. Here we give a technical account of M3D programming language and briefly describe two specific application scenarios where M3D is applied to create virtual reality E-Learning content for training of technical personnel.

The Relative Roles Played by Structural and Pragmatic Language Skills in Relation to Behaviour in a Population of Primary School Children from Socially Disadvantaged Backgrounds

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Law, J.; Rush, R.; McBean, K.

2014-01-01

Considerable evidence supports the association between language learning difficulties and behaviour in young children and this is likely to be particularly true of children raised in social disadvantage. Less is known about the way that different aspects of language, specifically pragmatics, interact with behaviour. This study examines the extent…

The Significance of Learning Nicknames of Public Figures in Modern English and American Language Models of the World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garayeva, Almira K.; Akhmetzyanov, Ildar G.; Khismatullina, Lutsia G.

2016-01-01

The importance of the topic of this study is determined by several factors: increased interest of linguists to the problem of interaction between language and culture; the need to study the onomastic units as body language. The purpose of this article is to identify the types of motivational nick names of famous American and English public…

Investigation of Technological University Students' Use of Metacognitive Reading Strategies in First and Second Languages

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jou, Yi-Jiun

2015-01-01

Reading, whether the reader's First language, L1 or Second language, L2, is a cognitive enterprise, and it can be treated as a result of the interaction among the reader, the text, and the context. Metacognitive strategies refer to the behaviours applied by learners to plan, arrange, and evaluate their learning. This study aimed to investigate…

Developing Students' Intelligent Character through Linguistic Politeness: The Case of English as a Foreign Language for Indonesian Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mariani, Nanik

2016-01-01

English is a foreign language that must be taught at school, particularly in secondary school. Based on a preliminary observation of several secondary schools in Banjarmasin, it appears that the English taught focuses most on concepts or language formulas. Most of the students who interact in English during the learning process do not use…

Children with Down Syndrome: Discovering the Joy of Movement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jobling, Anne; Virji-Babul, Nazin; Nichols, Doug

2006-01-01

Learning to move and moving to learn are vital aspects of every child's growth and development. Physical therapists and educators have consistently advocated the importance of being involved in a range of movement activities and games. Movement can provide an avenue for learning and interaction with others and can be linked to language and…

Explicit Instruction, Bilingualism, and the Older Adult Learner

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cox, Jessica G.

2017-01-01

Little is known about older adult language learners and effects of aging on L2 learning. This study investigated learning in older age through interactions of learner-internal and -external variables; specifically, late-learned L2 (bilingualism) and provision of grammar explanation (explicit instruction, EI). Forty-three older adults (age 60+) who…

Learning English with "The Sims": Exploiting Authentic Computer Simulation Games for L2 Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ranalli, Jim

2008-01-01

With their realistic animation, complex scenarios and impressive interactivity, computer simulation games might be able to provide context-rich, cognitively engaging virtual environments for language learning. However, simulation games designed for L2 learners are in short supply. As an alternative, could games designed for the mass-market be…

Enhancing Integrative Motivation: The Japanese-American Collaborative Learning Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kato, Fumie

2016-01-01

The Collaborative Learning Project is a language exchange program in which American and Japanese university students have the opportunity to interact with native speakers over the course of a three-week period. This paper reports the outcomes of the Collaborative Learning Project in terms of its effectiveness in fulfilling student expectations and…

Mediating Language Learning: Teacher Interactions with ESL Students in a Content-Based Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gibbons, Pauline

2003-01-01

Draws on constructs of "mediation" from sociocultural theory and "mode continuum" from systemic functional linguistics to investigate how student-teacher talk in a content-based classroom contributes to learners' language development. Shows how teachers mediate between students' linguistic levels in English and their…

University ESL Learners' Cross-Cultural Transitions through Web-Based Project Work

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kang, Migyu; Bruna, Katherine Richardson

2013-01-01

This study sought to account for East Asian learners' cross-cultural transitions to US university Intensive English classroom culture within a technology-mediated language teaching approach, PrOCALL (Project-Oriented Computer Assisted Language Learning). It explored the influence of this approach on classroom interaction patterns acquired in the…

At the Interface: Dynamic Interactions of Explicit and Implicit Language Knowledge

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ellis, Nick C.

2005-01-01

This paper considers how implicit and explicit knowledge are dissociable but cooperative. It reviews various psychological and neurobiological processes by which explicit knowledge of form-meaning associations impacts upon implicit language learning. The interface is dynamic: It happens transiently during conscious processing, but the influence…

Epistemics and Expertise in Peer Tutoring Interactions: Co-Constructing Knowledge of Spanish

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Back, Michele

2016-01-01

Peer tutoring is viewed as a valuable component of additional language learning due to the presence of a more knowledgeable interlocutor. Yet researchers and language program directors alike often ignore the linguistic and cultural differences that peer tutors possess, instead categorizing them homogeneously as "experts" or "native…

Cooperative Learning and Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jacobs, G. M.; Kimura, H.

2013-01-01

In and out of the classroom, life would be unthinkable without interacting with fellow humans. This book urges more cooperative and group activities in the English language classroom for all the advantages: students use the target language more, help each other with comprehension, receive attention from peers as well as the teacher, are motivated…

Cultural Diversity and Information and Communication Impacts on Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Wen-Cheng; Lin, Chien-Hung; Chu, Ying-Chien

2011-01-01

Cultural diversity doesn't just entail differences in dress and language. It also encompasses different ways of thinking, managing, and communicating. The relationship between communication and culture is a very complex and intimate one. Cultures are created through communication; that is, communication is the means of human interaction through…

Reviewing the Evidence on How Adult Students Learn: An Examination of Knowles' Model of Andragogy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McGrath, Valerie

2009-01-01

While there may be similarities between adults and children in how they learn (such as language, interaction and communication), many writers argue that adult learners are different from child learners in a number of ways. This article aims to review how adults learn through examining one particular theory of adult learning. Two conflicting…

Investigation of learning environment for arithmetic word problems by problem posing as sentence integration in Indonesian language

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hasanah, N.; Hayashi, Y.; Hirashima, T.

2017-02-01

Arithmetic word problems remain one of the most difficult area of teaching mathematics. Learning by problem posing has been suggested as an effective way to improve students’ understanding. However, the practice in usual classroom is difficult due to extra time needed for assessment and giving feedback to students’ posed problems. To address this issue, we have developed a tablet PC software named Monsakun for learning by posing arithmetic word problems based on Triplet Structure Model. It uses the mechanism of sentence-integration, an efficient implementation of problem-posing that enables agent-assessment of posed problems. The learning environment has been used in actual Japanese elementary school classrooms and the effectiveness has been confirmed in previous researches. In this study, ten Indonesian elementary school students living in Japan participated in a learning session of problem posing using Monsakun in Indonesian language. We analyzed their learning activities and show that students were able to interact with the structure of simple word problem using this learning environment. The results of data analysis and questionnaire suggested that the use of Monsakun provides a way of creating an interactive and fun environment for learning by problem posing for Indonesian elementary school students.

Caregiver communication to the child as moderator and mediator of genes for language.

PubMed

Onnis, Luca

2017-05-15

Human language appears to be unique among natural communication systems, and such uniqueness impinges on both nature and nurture. Human babies are endowed with cognitive abilities that predispose them to learn language, and this process cannot operate in an impoverished environment. To be effectively complete the acquisition of human language in human children requires highly socialised forms of learning, scaffolded over years of prolonged and intense caretaker-child interactions. How genes and environment operate in shaping language is unknown. These two components have traditionally been considered as independent, and often pitted against each other in terms of the nature versus nurture debate. This perspective article considers how innate abilities and experience might instead work together. In particular, it envisages potential scenarios for research, in which early caregiver verbal and non-verbal attachment practices may mediate or moderate the expression of human genetic systems for language. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Motivation, students' needs and learning outcomes: a hybrid game-based app for enhanced language learning.

PubMed

Berns, Anke; Isla-Montes, José-Luis; Palomo-Duarte, Manuel; Dodero, Juan-Manuel

2016-01-01

In the context of European Higher Education students face an increasing focus on independent, individual learning-at the expense of face-to-face interaction. Hence learners are, all too often, not provided with enough opportunities to negotiate in the target language. The current case study aims to address this reality by going beyond conventional approaches to provide students with a hybrid game-based app, combining individual and collaborative learning opportunities. The 4-week study was carried out with 104 German language students (A1.2 CEFR) who had previously been enrolled in a first-semester A1.1 level course at a Spanish university. The VocabTrainerA1 app-designed specifically for this study-harnesses the synergy of combining individual learning tasks and a collaborative murder mystery game in a hybrid level-based architecture. By doing so, the app provides learners with opportunities to apply their language skills to real-life-like communication. The purpose of the study was twofold: on one hand we aimed to measure learner motivation, perceived usefulness and added value of hybrid game-based apps; on the other, we sought to determine their impact on language learning. To this end, we conducted focus group interviews and an anonymous Technology Acceptance Model survey (TAM). In addition, students took a pre-test and a post-test. Scores from both tests were compared with the results obtained in first-semester conventional writing tasks, with a view to measure learning outcomes. The study provides qualitative and quantitative data supporting our initial hypotheses. Our findings suggest that hybrid game-based apps like VocabTrainerA1-which seamlessly combine individual and collaborative learning tasks-motivate learners, stimulate perceived usefulness and added value, and better meet the language learning needs of today's digital natives. In terms of acceptance, outcomes and sustainability, the data indicate that hybrid game-based apps significantly improve proficiency, hence are indeed, effective tools for enhanced language learning.

English Teaching & Learning, 2002.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

English Teaching & Learning, 2002

2002-01-01

This journal, written in primarily in Chinese, contains the following papers: "Introducing Web-Based Technology Enhanced Language Learning (TELL) Courses and Resources for In-Service EFL Teachers" (Hao-Jan Chen); "A Survey of Primary School English Education in Miao-li County" (Yu-Fang Chang); "Interactions between…

The Formation of Students' Foreign Language Communicative Competence during the Learning Process of the English Language through Interactive Learning Technologies (The Study on the Basis of Kazan Federal University)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fahrutdinova, Rezida A.; Yarmakeev, Iskander E.; Fakhrutdinov, Rifat R.

2014-01-01

The relevance of this study is determined by the needs of modern society for qualified specialists, which leads to the necessity of improving the system of higher education. This dictates the need for a high-quality preparation of the teacher of English who is able to act as an active subject of the professional activity and who has high levels of…

Learning and Language: Educarer-Child Interactions in Singapore Infant-Care Settings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lim, Cynthia; Lim, Sirene May-Yin

2013-01-01

While there has been extensive research exploring the quality of caregiver-child interactions in programmes for preschool children, comparatively less international research has explored the nature of caregiver-child interactions in centre-based infant-care programmes. Nine caregivers in six Singapore infant-care settings were observed and…

The Element of Drama in Strategic Interaction.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Di Pietro, Robert J.

The strategic interaction method is based on the principle that dramatic tension is the essential ingredient in second language learning, but unlike the drama built on audience spectatorship, classroom drama builds within each student involved in the interaction. Students take scenarios, thematically cohesive events, and create their own dialog as…

Acquiring and processing verb argument structure: distributional learning in a miniature language.

PubMed

Wonnacott, Elizabeth; Newport, Elissa L; Tanenhaus, Michael K

2008-05-01

Adult knowledge of a language involves correctly balancing lexically-based and more language-general patterns. For example, verb argument structures may sometimes readily generalize to new verbs, yet with particular verbs may resist generalization. From the perspective of acquisition, this creates significant learnability problems, with some researchers claiming a crucial role for verb semantics in the determination of when generalization may and may not occur. Similarly, there has been debate regarding how verb-specific and more generalized constraints interact in sentence processing and on the role of semantics in this process. The current work explores these issues using artificial language learning. In three experiments using languages without semantic cues to verb distribution, we demonstrate that learners can acquire both verb-specific and verb-general patterns, based on distributional information in the linguistic input regarding each of the verbs as well as across the language as a whole. As with natural languages, these factors are shown to affect production, judgments and real-time processing. We demonstrate that learners apply a rational procedure in determining their usage of these different input statistics and conclude by suggesting that a Bayesian perspective on statistical learning may be an appropriate framework for capturing our findings.

Foreign language learning in immersive virtual environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chang, Benjamin; Sheldon, Lee; Si, Mei; Hand, Anton

2012-03-01

Virtual reality has long been used for training simulations in fields from medicine to welding to vehicular operation, but simulations involving more complex cognitive skills present new design challenges. Foreign language learning, for example, is increasingly vital in the global economy, but computer-assisted education is still in its early stages. Immersive virtual reality is a promising avenue for language learning as a way of dynamically creating believable scenes for conversational training and role-play simulation. Visual immersion alone, however, only provides a starting point. We suggest that the addition of social interactions and motivated engagement through narrative gameplay can lead to truly effective language learning in virtual environments. In this paper, we describe the development of a novel application for teaching Mandarin using CAVE-like VR, physical props, human actors and intelligent virtual agents, all within a semester-long multiplayer mystery game. Students travel (virtually) to China on a class field trip, which soon becomes complicated with intrigue and mystery surrounding the lost manuscript of an early Chinese literary classic. Virtual reality environments such as the Forbidden City and a Beijing teahouse provide the setting for learning language, cultural traditions, and social customs, as well as the discovery of clues through conversation in Mandarin with characters in the game.

Learning to Pronounce First Words in Three Languages: An Investigation of Caregiver and Infant Behavior Using a Computational Model of an Infant

PubMed Central

Howard, Ian S.; Messum, Piers

2014-01-01

Words are made up of speech sounds. Almost all accounts of child speech development assume that children learn the pronunciation of first language (L1) speech sounds by imitation, most claiming that the child performs some kind of auditory matching to the elements of ambient speech. However, there is evidence to support an alternative account and we investigate the non-imitative child behavior and well-attested caregiver behavior that this account posits using Elija, a computational model of an infant. Through unsupervised active learning, Elija began by discovering motor patterns, which produced sounds. In separate interaction experiments, native speakers of English, French and German then played the role of his caregiver. In their first interactions with Elija, they were allowed to respond to his sounds if they felt this was natural. We analyzed the interactions through phonemic transcriptions of the caregivers' utterances and found that they interpreted his output within the framework of their native languages. Their form of response was almost always a reformulation of Elija's utterance into well-formed sounds of L1. Elija retained those motor patterns to which a caregiver responded and formed associations between his motor pattern and the response it provoked. Thus in a second phase of interaction, he was able to parse input utterances in terms of the caregiver responses he had heard previously, and respond using his associated motor patterns. This capacity enabled the caregivers to teach Elija to pronounce some simple words in their native languages, by his serial imitation of the words' component speech sounds. Overall, our results demonstrate that the natural responses and behaviors of human subjects to infant-like vocalizations can take a computational model from a biologically plausible initial state through to word pronunciation. This provides support for an alternative to current auditory matching hypotheses for how children learn to pronounce. PMID:25333740

Difficulty in learning similar-sounding words: a developmental stage or a general property of learning?

PubMed Central

Pajak, Bozena; Creel, Sarah C.; Levy, Roger

2016-01-01

How are languages learned, and to what extent are learning mechanisms similar in infant native-language (L1) and adult second-language (L2) acquisition? In terms of vocabulary acquisition, we know from the infant literature that the ability to discriminate similar-sounding words at a particular age does not guarantee successful word-meaning mapping at that age (Stager & Werker, 1997). However, it is unclear whether this difficulty arises from developmental limitations of young infants (e.g., poorer working memory) or whether it is an intrinsic part of the initial word learning, L1 and L2 alike. Here we show that adults of particular L1 backgrounds—just like young infants—have difficulty learning similar-sounding L2 words that they can nevertheless discriminate perceptually. This suggests that the early stages of word learning, whether L1 or L2, intrinsically involve difficulty in mapping similar-sounding words onto referents. We argue that this is due to an interaction between two main factors: (1) memory limitations that pose particular challenges for highly similar-sounding words, and (2) uncertainty regarding the language's phonetic categories, as these are being learned concurrently with words. Overall, our results show that vocabulary acquisition in infancy and in adulthood share more similarities than previously thought, thus supporting the existence of common learning mechanisms that operate throughout the lifespan. PMID:26962959

A Large-Scale Analysis of Variance in Written Language.

PubMed

Johns, Brendan T; Jamieson, Randall K

2018-01-22

The collection of very large text sources has revolutionized the study of natural language, leading to the development of several models of language learning and distributional semantics that extract sophisticated semantic representations of words based on the statistical redundancies contained within natural language (e.g., Griffiths, Steyvers, & Tenenbaum, ; Jones & Mewhort, ; Landauer & Dumais, ; Mikolov, Sutskever, Chen, Corrado, & Dean, ). The models treat knowledge as an interaction of processing mechanisms and the structure of language experience. But language experience is often treated agnostically. We report a distributional semantic analysis that shows written language in fiction books varies appreciably between books from the different genres, books from the same genre, and even books written by the same author. Given that current theories assume that word knowledge reflects an interaction between processing mechanisms and the language environment, the analysis shows the need for the field to engage in a more deliberate consideration and curation of the corpora used in computational studies of natural language processing. Copyright © 2018 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Can rational models be good accounts of developmental change? The case of language development at two time scales.

PubMed

Dawson, Colin R; Gerken, LouAnn

2012-01-01

Rational models of human perception and cognition have allowed researchers new ways to look at learning and the ability to make inferences from data. But how good are such models at accounting for developmental change? In this chapter, we address this question in the domain of language development, focusing on the speed with which developmental change takes place, and classifying different types of language development as either fast or slow. From the pattern of fast and slow development observed, we hypothesize that rational learning processes are generally well suited for handling fast processes over small amounts of input data. In contrast, we suggest that associative learning processes are generally better suited to slow development, in which learners accumulate information about what is typical of their language over time. Finally, although one system may be dominant for a particular component of language learning, we speculate that both systems frequently interact, with the associative system providing a source of emergent hypotheses to be evaluated by the rational system and the rational system serving to highlight which aspects of the learner's input need to be processed in greater depth by the associative system.

Input and Age-Dependent Variation in Second Language Learning: A Connectionist Account.

PubMed

Janciauskas, Marius; Chang, Franklin

2017-07-26

Language learning requires linguistic input, but several studies have found that knowledge of second language (L2) rules does not seem to improve with more language exposure (e.g., Johnson & Newport, 1989). One reason for this is that previous studies did not factor out variation due to the different rules tested. To examine this issue, we reanalyzed grammaticality judgment scores in Flege, Yeni-Komshian, and Liu's (1999) study of L2 learners using rule-related predictors and found that, in addition to the overall drop in performance due to a sensitive period, L2 knowledge increased with years of input. Knowledge of different grammar rules was negatively associated with input frequency of those rules. To better understand these effects, we modeled the results using a connectionist model that was trained using Korean as a first language (L1) and then English as an L2. To explain the sensitive period in L2 learning, the model's learning rate was reduced in an age-related manner. By assigning different learning rates for syntax and lexical learning, we were able to model the difference between early and late L2 learners in input sensitivity. The model's learning mechanism allowed transfer between the L1 and L2, and this helped to explain the differences between different rules in the grammaticality judgment task. This work demonstrates that an L1 model of learning and processing can be adapted to provide an explicit account of how the input and the sensitive period interact in L2 learning. © 2017 The Authors. Cognitive Science - A Multidisciplinary Journal published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The Use of E-Mail as a Tool To Enhance Second Language Education Programs: An Example from a Core French Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lawrence, Geoff

2002-01-01

Outlines reasons why electronic mail, and specifically e-mail exchanges, are valuable tools for promoting authentic target language interaction in the second language (L2) classroom. Research examining the use of e-mail exchanges on the L2 learning process is outlined, followed by one specific example of an e-mail exchange in a secondary core…

Digital Literacy and Netiquette: Awareness and Perception in EFL Learning Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nia, Sara Farshad; Marandi, Susan

2014-01-01

With the growing popularity of digital technologies and computer-mediated communication (CMC), various types of interactive communication technology are being increasingly integrated into foreign/second language learning environments. Nevertheless, due to its nature, online communication is susceptible to misunderstandings and miscommunications,…

On Mediation in Virtual Learning Environments.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davies, Larry; Hassan, W. Shukry

2001-01-01

Discusses concepts of mediation and focuses on the importance of implementing comprehensive virtual learning environments. Topics include education and technology as they relate to cultural change, social institutions, the Internet and computer-mediated communication, software design and human-computer interaction, the use of MOOs, and language.…

Spider World: A Robot Language for Learning to Program. Assessing the Cognitive Consequences of Computer Environments for Learning (ACCCEL).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dalbey, John; Linn, Marcia

Spider World is an interactive program designed to help individuals with no previous computer experience to learn the fundamentals of programming. The program emphasizes cognitive tasks which are central to programming and provides significant problem-solving opportunities. In Spider World, the user commands a hypothetical robot (called the…

Language Learning 2.0--International Collaboration Made Easy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kotikoski, Tuula-Harriet; Doshi, Natasha

2014-01-01

The Internet has become part of our daily life and serves as a source of knowledge as well as a space for interaction. E-learning is thus a vital element in teaching, and digital media offer not only the possibility to support the individual learning processes of students, but also to foster multilingualism and to immerse into authentic learning…

Creating an Optimal Language Learning Environment: A Focus on Family and Culture

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cheng, Li-Rong Lilly

2009-01-01

Understanding the family systems and structures of our diverse populations is one of the most important tasks of professionals in education. Children learn from their family, school, and community. They learn from their experiences by observing, talking, and interacting with their environment. Parents play a pivotal role in the education of their…

Designing Interactive and Collaborative Learning Tasks in a 3-D Virtual Environment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berns, Anke; Palomo-Duarte, Manuel; Fernández, David Camacho

2012-01-01

The aim of our study is to explore several possibilities to use virtual worlds (VWs) and game-applications with learners of the A1 level (CEFR) of German as a foreign language. Our interest focuses especially on designing those learning tools which increase firstly, learner motivation towards online-learning and secondly, enhance autonomous…

Mobile Apps to Support and Assess Foreign Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berns, Anke; Palomo-Duarte, Manuel; Dodero, Juan Manuel; Ruiz-Ladrón, Juan Miguel; Márquez, Andrea Calderón

2015-01-01

In the last two decades there have been many attempts to integrate all kinds of mobile devices and apps to support formal as well as informal learning processes. However, most of the available apps still support mainly individual learning, using mobile devices to deliver content rather than providing learners with the opportunity to interact with…

The Tree of Knowledge Project: Organic Designs as Virtual Learning Spaces

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gui, Dean A. F.; AuYeung, Gigi

2013-01-01

The virtual Department of English at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, also known as the Tree of Knowledge, is a project premised upon using ecology and organic forms to promote language learning in Second Life (SL). Inspired by Salmon's (2010) Tree of Learning concept this study examines how an interactive ecological environment--in this…

Bilingual Mothers' Language Choice in Child-directed Speech: Continuity and Change.

PubMed

De Houwer, Annick; Bornstein, Marc H

2016-01-01

An important aspect of Family Language Policy in bilingual families is parental language choice. Little is known about the continuity in parental language choice and the factors affecting it. This longitudinal study explores maternal language choice over time. Thirty-one bilingual mothers provided reports of what language(s) they spoke with their children. Mother-child interactions were videotaped when children were pre-verbal (5M), producing words in two languages (20M), and fluent speakers (53M). All children had heard two languages from birth in the home. Most mothers reported addressing children in the same single language. Observational data confirmed mothers' use of mainly a single language in interactions with their children, but also showed the occasional use of the other language in over half the sample when children were 20 months. Once children were 53 months mothers again used only the same language they reported speaking to children. These findings reveal a possible effect of children's overall level of language development and demonstrate the difficulty of adhering to a strict "one person, one language" policy. The fact that there was longitudinal continuity in the language most mothers mainly spoke with children provided children with cumulative language input learning opportunities.

Resting-state low-frequency fluctuations reflect individual differences in spoken language learning.

PubMed

Deng, Zhizhou; Chandrasekaran, Bharath; Wang, Suiping; Wong, Patrick C M

2016-03-01

A major challenge in language learning studies is to identify objective, pre-training predictors of success. Variation in the low-frequency fluctuations (LFFs) of spontaneous brain activity measured by resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (RS-fMRI) has been found to reflect individual differences in cognitive measures. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the extent to which initial spontaneous brain activity is related to individual differences in spoken language learning. We acquired RS-fMRI data and subsequently trained participants on a sound-to-word learning paradigm in which they learned to use foreign pitch patterns (from Mandarin Chinese) to signal word meaning. We performed amplitude of spontaneous low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF) analysis, graph theory-based analysis, and independent component analysis (ICA) to identify functional components of the LFFs in the resting-state. First, we examined the ALFF as a regional measure and showed that regional ALFFs in the left superior temporal gyrus were positively correlated with learning performance, whereas ALFFs in the default mode network (DMN) regions were negatively correlated with learning performance. Furthermore, the graph theory-based analysis indicated that the degree and local efficiency of the left superior temporal gyrus were positively correlated with learning performance. Finally, the default mode network and several task-positive resting-state networks (RSNs) were identified via the ICA. The "competition" (i.e., negative correlation) between the DMN and the dorsal attention network was negatively correlated with learning performance. Our results demonstrate that a) spontaneous brain activity can predict future language learning outcome without prior hypotheses (e.g., selection of regions of interest--ROIs) and b) both regional dynamics and network-level interactions in the resting brain can account for individual differences in future spoken language learning success. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Resting-state low-frequency fluctuations reflect individual differences in spoken language learning

PubMed Central

Deng, Zhizhou; Chandrasekaran, Bharath; Wang, Suiping; Wong, Patrick C.M.

2016-01-01

A major challenge in language learning studies is to identify objective, pre-training predictors of success. Variation in the low-frequency fluctuations (LFFs) of spontaneous brain activity measured by resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (RS-fMRI) has been found to reflect individual differences in cognitive measures. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the extent to which initial spontaneous brain activity is related to individual differences in spoken language learning. We acquired RS-fMRI data and subsequently trained participants on a sound-to-word learning paradigm in which they learned to use foreign pitch patterns (from Mandarin Chinese) to signal word meaning. We performed amplitude of spontaneous low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF) analysis, graph theory-based analysis, and independent component analysis (ICA) to identify functional components of the LFFs in the resting-state. First, we examined the ALFF as a regional measure and showed that regional ALFFs in the left superior temporal gyrus were positively correlated with learning performance, whereas ALFFs in the default mode network (DMN) regions were negatively correlated with learning performance. Furthermore, the graph theory-based analysis indicated that the degree and local efficiency of the left superior temporal gyrus were positively correlated with learning performance. Finally, the default mode network and several task-positive resting-state networks (RSNs) were identified via the ICA. The “competition” (i.e., negative correlation) between the DMN and the dorsal attention network was negatively correlated with learning performance. Our results demonstrate that a) spontaneous brain activity can predict future language learning outcome without prior hypotheses (e.g., selection of regions of interest – ROIs) and b) both regional dynamics and network-level interactions in the resting brain can account for individual differences in future spoken language learning success. PMID:26866283

Value of Web-based learning activities for nursing students who speak English as a second language.

PubMed

Koch, Jane; Salamonson, Yenna; Du, Hui Yun; Andrew, Sharon; Frost, Steven A; Dunncliff, Kirstin; Davidson, Patricia M

2011-07-01

There is an increasing need to address the educational needs of students with English as a second language. The authors assessed the value of a Web-based activity to meet the needs of students with English as a second language in a bioscience subject. Using telephone contact, we interviewed 21 Chinese students, 24 non-Chinese students with English as a second language, and 7 native English-speaking students to identify the perception of the value of the intervention. Four themes emerged from the qualitative data: (1) Language is a barrier to achievement and affects self-confidence; (2) Enhancement intervention promoted autonomous learning; (3) Focusing on the spoken word increases interaction capacity and self-confidence; (4) Assessment and examination drive receptivity and sense of importance. Targeted strategies to promote language acculturation and acquisition are valued by students. Linking language acquisition skills to assessment tasks is likely to leverage improvements in competence. Copyright 2011, SLACK Incorporated.

L2 Willingness to Communicate (WTC) and International Posture in the Polish Educational Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mystkowska-Wiertelak, Anna; Pietrzykowska, Agnieszka

2011-01-01

Speaking, the language skill whose mastering appears to be the ultimate aim of every attempt at learning a foreign language, constitutes a formidable challenge. Apart from involving the online interaction of complex processes of conceptualization, formulation, articulation and monitoring (Levelt, 1989), it appears prone to numerous psychological…

Negotiation for Action: English Language Learning in Game-Based Virtual Worlds

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zheng, Dongping; Young, Michael F.; Wagner, Manuela Maria; Brewer, Robert A.

2009-01-01

This study analyzes the user chat logs and other artifacts of a virtual world, "Quest Atlantis" (QA), and proposes the concept of Negotiation for Action (NfA) to explain how interaction, specifically, avatar-embodied collaboration between native English speakers and nonnative English speakers, provided resources for English language acquisition.…

Deconstructing Social Class Identity and Teacher Privilege in the Second Language Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Glodjo, Tyler

2017-01-01

Through a pedagogical lens, this literature review highlights how social class, as a primary analytical construct for understanding identity in English language learner instruction, interacts with teacher class identity while creating implications for teaching and learning. In the past two decades, race, class, and gender have been the foci in…

Learning from a Computer Tutor with Natural Language Capabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Michael, Joel; Rovick, Allen; Glass, Michael; Zhou, Yujian; Evens, Martha

2003-01-01

CIRCSIM-Tutor is a computer tutor designed to carry out a natural language dialogue with a medical student. Its domain is the baroreceptor reflex, the part of the cardiovascular system that is responsible for maintaining a constant blood pressure. CIRCSIM-Tutor's interaction with students is modeled after the tutoring behavior of two experienced…

Current Ethnic and Migration Issues in the Former USSR.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shamshur, Oleg V.

1994-01-01

Discusses the interactions between different ethnic groups in the former Soviet Union and the factors that may affect their migration decisions. The reluctance of Russian speakers to learn the languages of the peoples amongst whom they have lived has left them vulnerable in nation states where knowledge of the national language is required. (VWL)

Cross-Linguistic Transfer among Iranian Learners of English as a Foreign Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Talebi, Seyed Hassan

2014-01-01

Cross-linguistic transfer studies began from linguistic aspects of language learning and moved to non-linguistic aspects. The intriguing question is whether students are aware of the nature of these cross-linguistic interactions in their minds. For this purpose, a semi-structured interview was conducted with four Iranian university students. It…

The Effectiveness of Using Technology in English Language Classrooms in Government Primary Schools in Bangladesh

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parvin, Ruxana Hossain; Salam, Shaikh Flint

2015-01-01

Across the globe, governments of different countries have recognized the importance and value of digital technologies in language learning. This article is based on the pilot project of Save the Children using information and communication technology (ICT) in education. Through this initiative, interactive multimedia software based on national…

Designing ICT-Enhanced Language Programmes: Academic Writing for Postgraduate Studies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stepanek, Libor; Hradilova, Alena

2013-01-01

This paper presents a case study of a course on academic writing for postgraduate studies within a collaborative and interactive information and communication technologies (ICT) based language-learning setting. It describes the structure of an academic writing course for PhD students, focusing on three ICT-enhanced course activities: collaborative…

The Role of Abstract Syntactic Knowledge in Language Acquisition: A Reply to Tomasello (2000).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fisher, Cynthia

2002-01-01

Argues that Tomasello's (2000) interpretation of young children's conservatism in language production depends on questionable premises. Reviews evidence against the assumptions, showing that children learn item-specific facts about verbs and other lexical items. Asserts that researchers must explore the interactions of lexical and more abstract…

"I Want a Beautiful Life": Divergent Chronotopes in English Language Teacher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aydarova, Elena

2017-01-01

Research on second language teacher education (SLTE) has focused on the processes, practices, and contexts of teachers' learning to teach. The interaction between SLTE and the broader sociopolitical processes has received less attention. To address this gap, the author explores how SLTE programs in Russia have become positioned at the…

Comparing Interaction and Use of Space in Traditional and Innovative Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gurzynski-Weiss, Laura; Long, Avizia Y.; Solon, Megan

2015-01-01

Despite myriad changes to language teaching methods over time, university-level classroom spaces have largely remained the same--until now. Recent innovations in classroom space design center on technological advances, include movable furniture and coffee-shop style rooms, and are believed to facilitate language learning in several ways.…

Before We Get Down to Business: Acquiring Conversational Skills in a Foreign Language.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kaplan, Marsha A.; Stefanopoulos, Lydie

Because conventional foreign language classroom interaction is not amenable to, and can even undermine, learning of social conversational skills, the Department of State's Foreign Service Institute has created an activity to develop these skills. It involves preparation for and realization of a single event, a party hosted by State Department…

Bilingual Mothers' Language Choice in Child-directed Speech: Continuity and Change

PubMed Central

De Houwer, Annick; Bornstein, Marc H.

2016-01-01

An important aspect of Family Language Policy in bilingual families is parental language choice. Little is known about the continuity in parental language choice and the factors affecting it. This longitudinal study explores maternal language choice over time. Thirty-one bilingual mothers provided reports of what language(s) they spoke with their children. Mother-child interactions were videotaped when children were pre-verbal (5M), producing words in two languages (20M), and fluent speakers (53M). All children had heard two languages from birth in the home. Most mothers reported addressing children in the same single language. Observational data confirmed mothers' use of mainly a single language in interactions with their children, but also showed the occasional use of the other language in over half the sample when children were 20 months. Once children were 53 months mothers again used only the same language they reported speaking to children. These findings reveal a possible effect of children's overall level of language development and demonstrate the difficulty of adhering to a strict “one person, one language” policy. The fact that there was longitudinal continuity in the language most mothers mainly spoke with children provided children with cumulative language input learning opportunities. PMID:28210008

Implementation of Markerless Augmented Reality Technology Based on Android to Introduction Lontara in Marine Society

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jumarlis, Mila; Mirfan, Mirfan

2018-05-01

Local language learning had been leaving by people especially young people had affected technology advances so that involved lack of interest to learn culture especially local language. So required interactive and interest learning media for introduction Lontara. This research aims to design and implement augmented reality on introduction Lontara on mobile device especially android. Application of introduction Lontara based on Android was designed by Vuforia and Unity. Data collection method were observation, interview, and literature review. That data was analysed for being information. The system was designed by Unified Modeling Language (UML). The method used is a marker. The test result found that application of Augmented Reality on introduction Lontara based on Android could improve public interest for introducing local language particularly young people in learning about Lontara because of using technology. Application of introduction of Lontara based on Android used augmented reality occurred sound and how to write Lontara with animation. This application could be running without an internet connection, so that its used more efficient and could maximize from user.

The neurobiology of syntax: beyond string sets.

PubMed

Petersson, Karl Magnus; Hagoort, Peter

2012-07-19

The human capacity to acquire language is an outstanding scientific challenge to understand. Somehow our language capacities arise from the way the human brain processes, develops and learns in interaction with its environment. To set the stage, we begin with a summary of what is known about the neural organization of language and what our artificial grammar learning (AGL) studies have revealed. We then review the Chomsky hierarchy in the context of the theory of computation and formal learning theory. Finally, we outline a neurobiological model of language acquisition and processing based on an adaptive, recurrent, spiking network architecture. This architecture implements an asynchronous, event-driven, parallel system for recursive processing. We conclude that the brain represents grammars (or more precisely, the parser/generator) in its connectivity, and its ability for syntax is based on neurobiological infrastructure for structured sequence processing. The acquisition of this ability is accounted for in an adaptive dynamical systems framework. Artificial language learning (ALL) paradigms might be used to study the acquisition process within such a framework, as well as the processing properties of the underlying neurobiological infrastructure. However, it is necessary to combine and constrain the interpretation of ALL results by theoretical models and empirical studies on natural language processing. Given that the faculty of language is captured by classical computational models to a significant extent, and that these can be embedded in dynamic network architectures, there is hope that significant progress can be made in understanding the neurobiology of the language faculty.

The neurobiology of syntax: beyond string sets

PubMed Central

Petersson, Karl Magnus; Hagoort, Peter

2012-01-01

The human capacity to acquire language is an outstanding scientific challenge to understand. Somehow our language capacities arise from the way the human brain processes, develops and learns in interaction with its environment. To set the stage, we begin with a summary of what is known about the neural organization of language and what our artificial grammar learning (AGL) studies have revealed. We then review the Chomsky hierarchy in the context of the theory of computation and formal learning theory. Finally, we outline a neurobiological model of language acquisition and processing based on an adaptive, recurrent, spiking network architecture. This architecture implements an asynchronous, event-driven, parallel system for recursive processing. We conclude that the brain represents grammars (or more precisely, the parser/generator) in its connectivity, and its ability for syntax is based on neurobiological infrastructure for structured sequence processing. The acquisition of this ability is accounted for in an adaptive dynamical systems framework. Artificial language learning (ALL) paradigms might be used to study the acquisition process within such a framework, as well as the processing properties of the underlying neurobiological infrastructure. However, it is necessary to combine and constrain the interpretation of ALL results by theoretical models and empirical studies on natural language processing. Given that the faculty of language is captured by classical computational models to a significant extent, and that these can be embedded in dynamic network architectures, there is hope that significant progress can be made in understanding the neurobiology of the language faculty. PMID:22688633

Recently learned foreign abstract and concrete nouns are represented in distinct cortical networks similar to the native language.

PubMed

Mayer, Katja M; Macedonia, Manuela; von Kriegstein, Katharina

2017-09-01

In the native language, abstract and concrete nouns are represented in distinct areas of the cerebral cortex. Currently, it is unknown whether this is also the case for abstract and concrete nouns of a foreign language. Here, we taught adult native speakers of German 45 abstract and 45 concrete nouns of a foreign language. After learning the nouns for 5 days, participants performed a vocabulary translation task during functional magnetic resonance imaging. Translating abstract nouns in contrast to concrete nouns elicited responses in regions that are also responsive to abstract nouns in the native language: the left inferior frontal gyrus and the left middle and superior temporal gyri. Concrete nouns elicited larger responses in the angular gyri bilaterally and the left parahippocampal gyrus than abstract nouns. The cluster in the left angular gyrus showed psychophysiological interaction (PPI) with the left lingual gyrus. The left parahippocampal gyrus showed PPI with the posterior cingulate cortex. Similar regions have been previously found for concrete nouns in the native language. The results reveal similarities in the cortical representation of foreign language nouns with the representation of native language nouns that already occur after 5 days of vocabulary learning. Furthermore, we showed that verbal and enriched learning methods were equally suitable to teach foreign abstract and concrete nouns. Hum Brain Mapp 38:4398-4412, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Tele-EnREDando.com: A Multimedia WEB-CALL Software for Mobile Phones.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garcia, Jose Carlos

2002-01-01

Presents one of the world's first prototypes of language learning software for smart-phones. Tele-EnREDando.com is an Internet based multimedia application designed for 3G mobile phones with audio, video, and interactive exercises for learning Spanish for business. (Author/VWL)

Developing Collaborative Learning Practices in an Online Language Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chang, Heejin; Windeatt, Scott

2016-01-01

There is much evidence to support the occurrence of learning in connection with collaboration, both in face-to-face and online teaching situations, but much less research on how such collaboration develops over the duration of a course. Using Dillenbourg's concepts of "situation," "interactions," "mechanisms," and…

Effects of Interactive Chat versus Independent Writing on L2 Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tare, Medha; Golonka, Ewa M.; Vatz, Karen; Bonilla, Carrie L.; Crooks, Carolyn; Strong, Rachel

2014-01-01

This study examines the importance of interaction for second language (L2) acquisition by analyzing outcomes from two types of out-of-class activities. The study compared: (a) interactive homework, completed via text chat, and (b) individual homework, completed via independent writing. In a between-subjects design, participants in two…

Sign Language for K-8 Mathematics by 3D Interactive Animation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adamo-Villani, Nicoletta; Doublestein, John; Martin, Zachary

2005-01-01

We present a new highly interactive computer animation tool to increase the mathematical skills of deaf children. We aim at increasing the effectiveness of (hearing) parents in teaching arithmetic to their deaf children, and the opportunity of deaf children to learn arithmetic via interactive media. Using state-of-the-art computer animation…

Understanding the Symbolic Capital of Intercultural Interactions: A Case Study of International Students in Australia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pham, Lien; Tran, Ly

2015-01-01

Intercultural interaction plays an important role in contributing to international students' learning and wellbeing in the host country. While research on international students' intercultural interactions reveals multifaceted aspects of personal and social factors, there is a tendency to consider language barrier and cultural differences as…

Emotional and Interactional Prosody across Animal Communication Systems: A Comparative Approach to the Emergence of Language

PubMed Central

Filippi, Piera

2016-01-01

Across a wide range of animal taxa, prosodic modulation of the voice can express emotional information and is used to coordinate vocal interactions between multiple individuals. Within a comparative approach to animal communication systems, I hypothesize that the ability for emotional and interactional prosody (EIP) paved the way for the evolution of linguistic prosody – and perhaps also of music, continuing to play a vital role in the acquisition of language. In support of this hypothesis, I review three research fields: (i) empirical studies on the adaptive value of EIP in non-human primates, mammals, songbirds, anurans, and insects; (ii) the beneficial effects of EIP in scaffolding language learning and social development in human infants; (iii) the cognitive relationship between linguistic prosody and the ability for music, which has often been identified as the evolutionary precursor of language. PMID:27733835

Facility with the English language and problem-based learning group interaction: findings from an Arabic setting.

PubMed

Mpofu, D J; Lanphear, J; Stewart, T; Das, M; Ridding, P; Dunn, E

1998-09-01

The Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS), United Arab Emirates (UAE) University is in a unique position to explore issues related to English language proficiency and medical student performance. All students entering the FMHS have English as a second language. This study focused on the issues of students' proficiency in English as measured by the TOEFL test, student background factors and interaction in problem-based learning (PBL) groups. Using a modification of Bales Interaction Process Analysis, four problem-based learning groups were observed over four thematic units, to measure the degree of student interaction within PBL groups and to compare this to individual TOEFL scores and key background variables. The students' contributions correlated highly with TOEFL test results in the giving of information (range r = 0.67-0.74). The female students adhered to interacting in English during group sessions, whereas the male students were more likely to revert to using Arabic in elaborating unclear phenomena (p < 0.01). The educational level of the student's mother was highly predictive of TOEFL scores for the male students, but not for female students. Multivariate analysis was undertaken to analyse the relative contribution of the TOEFL, parental education and years of studying in English. The best predictor of students' contributions in PBL groups was identified as TOEFL scores. The study demonstrates the importance of facilitating a locally acceptable level of English proficiency prior to admission to the FMHS. However, it also highlights the importance of not focusing only on English proficiency but paying attention to additional factors in facilitating medical students in maximizing benefits from interactions in PBL settings.

Child-Robot Interactions for Second Language Tutoring to Preschool Children

PubMed Central

Vogt, Paul; de Haas, Mirjam; de Jong, Chiara; Baxter, Peta; Krahmer, Emiel

2017-01-01

In this digital age social robots will increasingly be used for educational purposes, such as second language tutoring. In this perspective article, we propose a number of design features to develop a child-friendly social robot that can effectively support children in second language learning, and we discuss some technical challenges for developing these. The features we propose include choices to develop the robot such that it can act as a peer to motivate the child during second language learning and build trust at the same time, while still being more knowledgeable than the child and scaffolding that knowledge in adult-like manner. We also believe that the first impressions children have about robots are crucial for them to build trust and common ground, which would support child-robot interactions in the long term. We therefore propose a strategy to introduce the robot in a safe way to toddlers. Other features relate to the ability to adapt to individual children’s language proficiency, respond contingently, both temporally and semantically, establish joint attention, use meaningful gestures, provide effective feedback and monitor children’s learning progress. Technical challenges we observe include automatic speech recognition (ASR) for children, reliable object recognition to facilitate semantic contingency and establishing joint attention, and developing human-like gestures with a robot that does not have the same morphology humans have. We briefly discuss an experiment in which we investigate how children respond to different forms of feedback the robot can give. PMID:28303094

Child-Robot Interactions for Second Language Tutoring to Preschool Children.

PubMed

Vogt, Paul; de Haas, Mirjam; de Jong, Chiara; Baxter, Peta; Krahmer, Emiel

2017-01-01

In this digital age social robots will increasingly be used for educational purposes, such as second language tutoring. In this perspective article, we propose a number of design features to develop a child-friendly social robot that can effectively support children in second language learning, and we discuss some technical challenges for developing these. The features we propose include choices to develop the robot such that it can act as a peer to motivate the child during second language learning and build trust at the same time, while still being more knowledgeable than the child and scaffolding that knowledge in adult-like manner. We also believe that the first impressions children have about robots are crucial for them to build trust and common ground, which would support child-robot interactions in the long term. We therefore propose a strategy to introduce the robot in a safe way to toddlers. Other features relate to the ability to adapt to individual children's language proficiency, respond contingently, both temporally and semantically, establish joint attention, use meaningful gestures, provide effective feedback and monitor children's learning progress. Technical challenges we observe include automatic speech recognition (ASR) for children, reliable object recognition to facilitate semantic contingency and establishing joint attention, and developing human-like gestures with a robot that does not have the same morphology humans have. We briefly discuss an experiment in which we investigate how children respond to different forms of feedback the robot can give.

English language learners with learning disabilities interacting in a science class within an inclusion setting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ayala, Vivian Luz

In today's schools there are by far more students identified with learning disabilities (LD) than with any other disability. The U.S. Department of Education in the year 1997--98 reported that there are 38.13% students with LD in our nations' schools (Smith, Polloway, Patton, & Dowdy, 2001; U.S. Department of Education, 1999). Of those, 1,198,200 are considered ELLs with LD (Baca & Cervantes. 1998). These figures which represent an increase evidence the need to provide these students with educational experiences geared to address both their academic and language needs (Ortiz, 1997; Ortiz, & Garcia, 1995). English language learners with LD must be provided with experiences in the least restrictive environment (LRE) and must be able to share the same kind of social and academic experiences as those students from the general population (Etscheidt & Bartlett, 1999; Lloyd, Kameenui, & Chard, 1997) The purpose of this research was to conduct a detailed qualitative study on classroom interactions to enhance the understanding of the science curriculum in order to foster the understanding of content and facilitate the acquisition of English as a second language (Cummins, 2000; Echevarria, Vogt, & Short, 2000). This study was grounded on the theories of socioconstructivism, second language acquisition, comprehensible input, and classroom interactions. The participants of the study were fourth and fifth grade ELLS with LD in a science elementary school bilingual inclusive setting. Data was collected through observations, semi-structured interviews (students and teacher), video and audio taping, field notes, document analysis, and the Classroom Observation Schedule (COS). The transcriptions of the video and audio tapes were coded to highlight emergent patterns on the type of interactions and language used by the participants. The findings of the study intend to provide information for teachers of ELLs with LD about the implications of using classroom interactions point to: students more actively engaged, an increase in the acquisition of L2, development of science content vocabulary, and a willingness of students to take risks.

Simpler grammar, larger vocabulary: How population size affects language

PubMed Central

2018-01-01

Languages with many speakers tend to be structurally simple while small communities sometimes develop languages with great structural complexity. Paradoxically, the opposite pattern appears to be observed for non-structural properties of language such as vocabulary size. These apparently opposite patterns pose a challenge for theories of language change and evolution. We use computational simulations to show that this inverse pattern can depend on a single factor: ease of diffusion through the population. A population of interacting agents was arranged on a network, passing linguistic conventions to one another along network links. Agents can invent new conventions, or replicate conventions that they have previously generated themselves or learned from other agents. Linguistic conventions are either Easy or Hard to diffuse, depending on how many times an agent needs to encounter a convention to learn it. In large groups, only linguistic conventions that are easy to learn, such as words, tend to proliferate, whereas small groups where everyone talks to everyone else allow for more complex conventions, like grammatical regularities, to be maintained. Our simulations thus suggest that language, and possibly other aspects of culture, may become simpler at the structural level as our world becomes increasingly interconnected. PMID:29367397

Research Report

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dawes, Lyn

2004-06-01

This paper examines what is important about talk between learners during school science and, having identified this, suggests how we can ensure that what we consider important happens. By looking at the interaction between teachers and learners talking about science, it is possible to indicate ways in which learners can be helped to continue this learning conversation with one another when teacher support is withdrawn. Strategies for teaching and learning are examined. The paper reports on the findings of a research project designed to teach children how to negotiate their ideas about science concepts through rational dialogue. Children's development of scientific concepts in classrooms is undertaken through structured activity and mediated through oral language. Children must move forward simultaneously in their use of specialized vocabulary and in their understanding of current scientific explanations, models and ideas. New language and new ways of using language are learned by doing, which means for children, primarily speaking and listening. Children's understanding of science can benefit from teaching them to understand that spoken language is a powerful tool for thinking together.

Interactive Pedagogy in a Literature Based Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mayer, Virginia

1993-01-01

Preserving a literary-based curriculum, creating a sensitivity to the literature, and encouraging communicative skills relative to the literature are significant goals in foreign language study. Therefore, a program involving strategic interaction and cooperative learning techniques applied to the study of literature fosters communication and…

Refining Pragmatically-Appropriate Oral Communication via Computer-Simulated Conversations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sydorenko, Tetyana; Daurio, Phoebe; Thorne, Steven L.

2018-01-01

To address the problem of limited opportunities for practicing second language speaking in interaction, especially delicate interactions requiring pragmatic competence, we describe computer simulations designed for the oral practice of extended pragmatic routines and report on the affordances of such simulations for learning pragmatically…

Vocabulary Explanations in CLIL Classrooms: A Conversation Analysis Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morton, Tom

2015-01-01

This article uses a conversation analysis methodology to examine how lexical Focus on Form is interactionally accomplished in teachers' vocabulary explanations in secondary Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) classrooms. Recent conversation-analytic work has focused on the interactional organisation of vocabulary explanations in…

Agent Technologies Designed to Facilitate Interactive Knowledge Construction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Graesser, Arthur C.; Jeon, Moongee; Dufty, David

2008-01-01

During the last decade, interdisciplinary researchers have developed technologies with animated pedagogical agents that interact with the student in language and other communication channels (such as facial expressions and gestures). These pedagogical agents model good learning strategies and coach the students in actively constructing knowledge…

Language at Three Timescales: The Role of Real-Time Processes in Language Development and Evolution.

PubMed

McMurray, Bob

2016-04-01

Evolutionary developmental systems (evo-devo) theory stresses that selection pressures operate on entire developmental systems rather than just genes. This study extends this approach to language evolution, arguing that selection pressure may operate on two quasi-independent timescales. First, children clearly must acquire language successfully (as acknowledged in traditional evo-devo accounts) and evolution must equip them with the tools to do so. Second, while this is developing, they must also communicate with others in the moment using partially developed knowledge. These pressures may require different solutions, and their combination may underlie the evolution of complex mechanisms for language development and processing. I present two case studies to illustrate how the demands of both real-time communication and language acquisition may be subtly different (and interact). The first case study examines infant-directed speech (IDS). A recent view is that IDS underwent cultural to statistical learning mechanisms that infants use to acquire the speech categories of their language. However, recent data suggest is it may not have evolved to enhance development, but rather to serve a more real-time communicative function. The second case study examines the argument for seemingly specialized mechanisms for learning word meanings (e.g., fast-mapping). Both behavioral and computational work suggest that learning may be much slower and served by general-purpose mechanisms like associative learning. Fast-mapping, then, may be a real-time process meant to serve immediate communication, not learning, by augmenting incomplete vocabulary knowledge with constraints from the current context. Together, these studies suggest that evolutionary accounts consider selection pressure arising from both real-time communicative demands and from the need for accurate language development. Copyright © 2016 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Media-Assisted Language Learning for Young Children: Effects of a Word-Learning App on the Vocabulary Acquisition of Two-Year-Olds

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walter-Laager, Catherine; Brandenberg, Kathrin; Tinguely, Luzia; Schwarz, Jürg; Pfiffner, Manfred R.; Moschner, Barbara

2017-01-01

The intervention study investigated the effects of an interactive word-learning app Learning apps are developed to achieve certain aims. In our case, the intention was to enrich the vocabulary acquisition of young children. Many other apps, such as games, are developed mainly for entertainment. The intention of games apps is to hold the attention…

The Impact of English Interactive Online on the Students' Achievement in English Language in Jordan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mubaslat, Mania Moayad

2012-01-01

Over the last decade there has been an augmenting shift away from the conventional teaching and learning to modes where the Internet now plays a key role. E-learning is increasingly forming an integral part of course delivery and instruction, and is reshaping traditional learning worldwide. This paper outlines the shift from traditional learning…

Seeing through a Different Lens: What Do Interns Learn when They Make Video Cases of Their Own Teaching?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rosaen, Cheryl L.; Lundeberg, Mary; Terpstra, Marjorie; Cooper, Marjorie; Fu, Jing; Niu, Rui

2010-01-01

This study included four preservice interns at a Midwestern university in the United States who were learning to facilitate interactive discussions in English language arts. The authors investigated how the interns' perceptions of their self-selected audience influenced what they noticed, talked about, and learned as they constructed a video case…

Facilitating Autonomy and Creativity in Second Language Learning through Cyber-Tasks, Hyperlinks and Net-Surfing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akinwamide, T. K.; Adedara, O. G.

2012-01-01

The digitalization of academic interactions and collaborations in this present technologically conscious world is making collaborations between technology and pedagogy in the teaching and learning processes to display logical and systematic reasoning rather than the usual stereotyped informed decisions. This simply means, pedagogically, learning…

English Language Learner Status in a Predominantly European-American School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Han, Keonghee Tao

2010-01-01

Using status characteristics theory, this study examined a sixth-grade Korean student's experiences associated with English literacy learning while attending a predominantly European-American school in the United States. Of particular interest was the interaction between race, culture, and learning in a classroom where the mainstream teachers,…

LMOOCs, Classifying Design: Survey Findings from LMOOC Providers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beirne, Elaine; Mhichíl, Mairéad Nic Giolla; Cleircín, Gearóid Ó

2017-01-01

Many of the major Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) platforms support learning approaches which can be roughly categorised as transmission-based and asynchronous (Morris & Lambe, 2014), with limited forms of interactive elements. Language learning is viewed within this study as an active process which includes knowledge, skills, and cultural…

Students' Silence and Identity in Small Group Interactions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jin, Jun

2017-01-01

Problem-based learning (PBL) has been increasingly employed as a teaching and learning approach in many disciplines in higher education. In English medium of instruction (EMI) universities in Asia, PBL can further enhance knowledge construction as well as development of disciplinary language and communicative skills. It is necessary to explore how…

Eyetracking Methodology in SCMC: A Tool for Empowering Learning and Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stickler, Ursula; Shi, Lijing

2017-01-01

Computer-assisted language learning, or CALL, is an interdisciplinary area of research, positioned between science and social science, computing and education, linguistics and applied linguistics. This paper argues that by appropriating methods originating in some areas of CALL-related research, for example human-computer interaction (HCI) or…

The Student Voice in Quality Assurance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McKinney, Margaret; Comadina Granson, Ruben

2012-01-01

As lecturers of English and Spanish for international students in higher education, we frequently read reflections supporting the notion that the interaction between teacher and student has a direct influence on their learning and possibly even on their future studies and lives. Using examples taken from language learning histories, student course…

Learner Perspectives Regarding Device Type in Technology-Assisted Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ko, Myong-Hee

2017-01-01

This study compared learner perspectives regarding using PCs and smartphones as learning devices. A total of 167 Korean university students completed online assignments designed to maximize interaction with these devices. The assignments required students to submit their responses regarding assigned reading passages for a semester. Then they…

EFL Learners' Perceptions of Blog Assignments and Instructors' E-Feedbacks

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aliakbari, Mohammad; Mohammadi, Saeedeh

2016-01-01

The use of blogs in EFL settings considerably supports learner-centered interactive learning and constructivist environments. Moreover, using blogs to provide instructor's feedback has a crucial role in the language learning process. The present study aimed to explore Iranian EFL learners' perceptions of blog assignments and instructor's…

The effects of two EFL (English as a foreign language) teaching approaches studied by the cotwin control method: a comparative study of the communicative and the grammatical approaches.

PubMed

Ando, J

1992-01-01

The present study compared two different types of English-language teaching approaches, the grammatical approach (GA) and the communicative approach (CA), by the cotwin control method. This study has two purposes: to study the effects of teaching approaches and to estimate genetic influences upon learning aptitudes. Seven pairs of identical twins (MZ) and 4 pairs of fraternal twins (DZ) participated in the experiment along with 68 other nontwin fifth graders. Each cotwin was assigned to the GA and CA respectively and received 20 hours of lessons over a 10-day period. The behavioral similarities between MZ cotwins were statistically and descriptively depicted. No major effect of either teaching approach was noted, but the genetic influence upon individual differences of learning achievement was obvious. Furthermore, an interesting interaction between the teaching approaches and intelligence was found, that is, that the GA capitalises on and CA compensates for intelligence. This interactional pattern could be interpreted as an example of genotype-environment interaction. The relationship between genetic factors and learning aptitudes is discussed.

Power in methods: language to infants in structured and naturalistic contexts.

PubMed

Tamis-LeMonda, Catherine S; Kuchirko, Yana; Luo, Rufan; Escobar, Kelly; Bornstein, Marc H

2017-11-01

Methods can powerfully affect conclusions about infant experiences and learning. Data from naturalistic observations may paint a very different picture of learning and development from those based on structured tasks, as illustrated in studies of infant walking, object permanence, intention understanding, and so forth. Using language as a model system, we compared the speech of 40 mothers to their 13-month-old infants during structured play and naturalistic home routines. The contrasting methods yielded unique portrayals of infant language experiences, while simultaneously underscoring cross-situational correspondence at an individual level. Infants experienced substantially more total words and different words per minute during structured play than they did during naturalistic routines. Language input during structured play was consistently dense from minute to minute, whereas language during naturalistic routines showed striking fluctuations interspersed with silence. Despite these differences, infants' language experiences during structured play mirrored the peak language interactions infants experienced during naturalistic routines, and correlations between language inputs in the two conditions were strong. The implications of developmental methods for documenting the nature of experiences and individual differences are discussed. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Letters from Home: An Exhibit-Building Project for the ESL Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Postal Museum, Washington, DC. Education Dept.

This curriculum is designed to be a flexible enrichment project for adult English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) education by harnessing the dynamic power of letters for language learning purposes. The goals of the project are to help teachers assisting students in developing communication skills, encourage social interaction as a means of building…

Stability and Change in One Adult's Second Language English Negation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hauser, Eric

2013-01-01

This article reports on how, against a background of relatively stable patterns of second language negation, a Japanese-speaking adult learning English made use of a negative formula, "I don't know," and how, in and through interaction, analyzed it into its component parts and began using "don't" more productively.…

Using Audioblogs to Assist English-Language Learning: An Investigation into Student Perception

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hsu, Hui-Yin; Wang, Shiang-Kwei; Comac, Linda

2008-01-01

This pilot study investigates how the use of audioblogs can help to meet an instructor's need to improve instruction in English as a second language (ESL). In this study, the instructor uses audioblogs to manage oral assignments, to interact with learners, and to evaluate performance outcomes. Learners record oral assignments through cellular…

Teaching, Learning, and Writing in the Third Space: A Study of Language and Culture Intersecting with Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Toma-Berge, Susan

2011-01-01

The purpose of this dissertation was to compare the characteristics and attributes of an effective first grade teacher of writing to English learners through the lens of the "third space." The "third space" represents a place where sociocultural theory interacts with language and culture, and authentic, integrated literacy instruction. Because…

Opportunities and Outcomes: The Role of Peers in Developing the Oral Academic English Proficiency of Adolescent English Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carhill-Poza, Avary

2015-01-01

Although researchers often acknowledge the importance of linguistically rich interactions in the academic language development of emergent bilingual students, few studies have explicitly examined the role of linguistic peer support and the underlying structure of social relationships in the second language learning experiences and outcomes of…

Indicators of the Practice of Power in Language Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Milal, A. Dzo'ul

2011-01-01

This paper attempts to reveal some strategies performed by a teacher which indicate that s/he is exercising power in managing and conducting language teaching and learning process. Such power may be manifested in terms of the frequency of directives or of the holding of control over the interaction process. Despite the fact that exercising power…

Extending Talk on a Prescribed Discussion Topic in a Learner-Native Speaker eTandem Learning Task

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Black, Emily

2017-01-01

Opportunities for language learners to access authentic input and engage in consequential interactions with native speakers of their target language abound in this era of computer mediated communication. Synchronous audio/video calling software represents one opportunity to access such input and address the challenges of developing pragmatic and…

Teaching More Than English: Connecting ESL Students to Their Community through Service Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Russell, Natalie M.

2007-01-01

Language and cultural differences often cause English as a second language (ESL) students to feel alienated from their school and their community. As a result, they tend to make friends primarily within their own ESL classes and avoid interacting with mainstream students and getting involved in school activities. This article describes how…

Mobile-Based Chatting for Meaning Negotiation in Foreign Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Castrillo, María Dolores; Martín-Monje, Elena; Bárcena, Elena

2014-01-01

This paper analyzes the adequacy of mobile chatting via Whatsapp for the enhancement of a type of spontaneous and colloquial written interaction which has a strong connection with oral discourse. This is part of a research project undertaken with Spanish students of German as a foreign language with a beginner's or quasi-beginner's level. The…

Online Role-Plays: Combining Situational and Interactional Authenticity in Foreign Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Correia Martins, Maria de Lurdes; Moreira, Gillian; Moreira, António

2013-01-01

Role-plays have been almost ubiquitous in foreign language classes and their potential has been widely recognised. In the last decade, the dissemination of Web 2.0 has created a wide range of possibilities for this type of activity, including conducting online role-plays between institutions, the opportunity to combine synchronous and asynchronous…

Nonverbal Behavior and Corrective Feedback in Nine ESL University-Level Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Weiqing; Loewen, Shawn

2016-01-01

Nonverbal behavior is an area of recent interest in second language acquisition (SLA). Some researchers have found that teachers' nonverbal behavior plays a role in second language (L2) learners' learning. Furthermore, corrective feedback during L2 interaction can also be facilitative of L2 development; however, little is known about how nonverbal…

EduSpeak[R]: A Speech Recognition and Pronunciation Scoring Toolkit for Computer-Aided Language Learning Applications

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Franco, Horacio; Bratt, Harry; Rossier, Romain; Rao Gadde, Venkata; Shriberg, Elizabeth; Abrash, Victor; Precoda, Kristin

2010-01-01

SRI International's EduSpeak[R] system is a software development toolkit that enables developers of interactive language education software to use state-of-the-art speech recognition and pronunciation scoring technology. Automatic pronunciation scoring allows the computer to provide feedback on the overall quality of pronunciation and to point to…

Semantic Structure in Vocabulary Knowledge Interacts with Lexical and Sentence Processing in Infancy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Borovsky, Arielle; Ellis, Erica M.; Evans, Julia L.; Elman, Jeffrey L.

2016-01-01

Although the size of a child's vocabulary associates with language-processing skills, little is understood regarding how this relation emerges. This investigation asks whether and how the structure of vocabulary knowledge affects language processing in English-learning 24-month-old children (N = 32; 18 F, 14 M). Parental vocabulary report was used…

Symbolic Competence in Interaction: Mutuality, Memory, and Resistance in a Peer Tutoring Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Back, Michele

2016-01-01

Symbolic competence (Kramsch, 2009, 2011) has been proposed as a crucial addition to world language learning, as it enables a language learner to negotiate the complex symbolism of words, expressions, and discursive events from the target culture in order to reference them effectively and in the appropriate contexts. However, fostering symbolic…

Paying Attention to Attention Allocation in Second-Language Learning: Some Insights into the Nature of Linguistic Thresholds.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hawson, Anne

1997-01-01

Three threshold hypotheses proposed by Cummins (1976) and Diaz (1985) as explanations of data on the cognitive consequences of bilingualism are examined in depth and compared to one another. A neuroscientifically updated information-processing perspective on the interaction of second-language comprehension and visual-processing ability is…

A Comparison of Incidental Focus on Form in the Second Language Classroom and Chatroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Loewen, Shawn; Reissner, Sophie

2009-01-01

Although many second language learners still study in a traditional, face-to-face classroom, an increasing number of students now participate in virtual classrooms and communicate online. Regardless of the mode of communication, interaction and focus on form can be considered important components of the learning environment. This paper reports on…

Bilingual Children in the Nursery: A Case Study of Samia at Home and at School.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Drury, Rose

2000-01-01

Presents case study of 4.5-year-old to highlight aspects of socialization for young bilingual children learning English as a second language. Identifies social rules/routines, child-adult interaction, and the stage of English language development as areas providing important educational insights. Highlights how children in early stages of second…

Native-likeness in second language lexical categorization reflects individual language history and linguistic community norms.

PubMed

Zinszer, Benjamin D; Malt, Barbara C; Ameel, Eef; Li, Ping

2014-01-01

SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNERS FACE A DUAL CHALLENGE IN VOCABULARY LEARNING: First, they must learn new names for the 100s of common objects that they encounter every day. Second, after some time, they discover that these names do not generalize according to the same rules used in their first language. Lexical categories frequently differ between languages (Malt et al., 1999), and successful language learning requires that bilinguals learn not just new words but new patterns for labeling objects. In the present study, Chinese learners of English with varying language histories and resident in two different language settings (Beijing, China and State College, PA, USA) named 67 photographs of common serving dishes (e.g., cups, plates, and bowls) in both Chinese and English. Participants' response patterns were quantified in terms of similarity to the responses of functionally monolingual native speakers of Chinese and English and showed the cross-language convergence previously observed in simultaneous bilinguals (Ameel et al., 2005). For English, bilinguals' names for each individual stimulus were also compared to the dominant name generated by the native speakers for the object. Using two statistical models, we disentangle the effects of several highly interactive variables from bilinguals' language histories and the naming norms of the native speaker community to predict inter-personal and inter-item variation in L2 (English) native-likeness. We find only a modest age of earliest exposure effect on L2 category native-likeness, but importantly, we find that classroom instruction in L2 negatively impacts L2 category native-likeness, even after significant immersion experience. We also identify a significant role of both L1 and L2 norms in bilinguals' L2 picture naming responses.

Native-likeness in second language lexical categorization reflects individual language history and linguistic community norms

PubMed Central

Zinszer, Benjamin D.; Malt, Barbara C.; Ameel, Eef; Li, Ping

2014-01-01

Second language learners face a dual challenge in vocabulary learning: First, they must learn new names for the 100s of common objects that they encounter every day. Second, after some time, they discover that these names do not generalize according to the same rules used in their first language. Lexical categories frequently differ between languages (Malt et al., 1999), and successful language learning requires that bilinguals learn not just new words but new patterns for labeling objects. In the present study, Chinese learners of English with varying language histories and resident in two different language settings (Beijing, China and State College, PA, USA) named 67 photographs of common serving dishes (e.g., cups, plates, and bowls) in both Chinese and English. Participants’ response patterns were quantified in terms of similarity to the responses of functionally monolingual native speakers of Chinese and English and showed the cross-language convergence previously observed in simultaneous bilinguals (Ameel et al., 2005). For English, bilinguals’ names for each individual stimulus were also compared to the dominant name generated by the native speakers for the object. Using two statistical models, we disentangle the effects of several highly interactive variables from bilinguals’ language histories and the naming norms of the native speaker community to predict inter-personal and inter-item variation in L2 (English) native-likeness. We find only a modest age of earliest exposure effect on L2 category native-likeness, but importantly, we find that classroom instruction in L2 negatively impacts L2 category native-likeness, even after significant immersion experience. We also identify a significant role of both L1 and L2 norms in bilinguals’ L2 picture naming responses. PMID:25386149

Computer-Assisted Learning for the Hearing Impaired: An Interactive Written Language Enviroment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ward, R. D.; Rostron, A. B.

1983-01-01

To help hearing-impaired children develop their linguistic competence, a computer system that can process sentences and give feedback about their acceptability was developed. Suggestions are made of ways to use the system as an environment for interactive written communication. (Author/CL)

An Activity Theoretical Approach to Social Interaction during Study Abroad

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shively, Rachel L.

2016-01-01

This case study examines how one study abroad student oriented to social interaction during a semester in Spain. Using an activity theoretical approach, the findings indicate that the student not only viewed social interaction with his Spanish host family and an expert-Spanish-speaking age peer as an opportunity for second language (L2) learning,…

Influences of Teacher-Child Social Interactions on English Language Development in a Head Start Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Piker, Ruth Alfaro; Rex, Lesley A.

2008-01-01

Increasing numbers of Spanish-speaking preschool children require attention to improve the likelihood of success in school. This study, part of a larger 2-year ethnographic study of a Head Start classroom, elaborates the role of teachers' interactions with students who were learning English. Using an interactional ethnography approach, the authors…

Second Language Acquisition of Gender Agreement in Explicit and Implicit Training Conditions: An Event-Related Potential Study

PubMed Central

Morgan-Short, Kara; Sanz, Cristina; Steinhauer, Karsten; Ullman, Michael T.

2011-01-01

This study employed an artificial language learning paradigm together with a combined behavioral/event-related potential (ERP) approach to examine the neurocognition of the processing of gender agreement, an aspect of inflectional morphology that is problematic in adult second language (L2) learning. Subjects learned to speak and comprehend an artificial language under either explicit (classroomlike) or implicit (immersionlike) training conditions. In each group, both noun-article and noun-adjective gender agreement processing were examined behaviorally and with ERPs at both low and higher levels of proficiency. Results showed that the two groups learned the language to similar levels of proficiency but showed somewhat different ERP patterns. At low proficiency, both types of agreement violations (adjective, article) yielded N400s, but only for the group with implicit training. Additionally, noun-adjective agreement elicited a late N400 in the explicit group at low proficiency. At higher levels of proficiency, noun-adjective agreement violations elicited N400s for both the explicit and implicit groups, whereas noun-article agreement violations elicited P600s for both groups. The results suggest that interactions among linguistic structure, proficiency level, and type of training need to be considered when examining the development of aspects of inflectional morphology in L2 acquisition. PMID:21359123

Maternal communicative behaviours and interaction quality as predictors of language development: findings from a community-based study of slow-to-talk toddlers.

PubMed

Conway, Laura J; Levickis, Penny A; Smith, Jodie; Mensah, Fiona; Wake, Melissa; Reilly, Sheena

2018-03-01

Identifying risk and protective factors for language development informs interventions for children with developmental language disorder (DLD). Maternal responsive and intrusive communicative behaviours are associated with language development. Mother-child interaction quality may influence how children use these behaviours in language learning. To identify (1) communicative behaviours and interaction quality associated with language outcomes; (2) whether the association between a maternal intrusive behaviour (directive) and child language scores changed alongside a maternal responsive behaviour (expansion); and (3) whether interaction quality modified these associations. Language skills were assessed at 24, 36 and 48 months in 197 community-recruited children who were slow to talk at 18 months. Mothers and 24-month-olds were video-recorded playing at home. Maternal praise, missed opportunities, and successful and unsuccessful directives (i.e., whether followed by the child) were coded during a 10-min segment. Interaction quality was rated using a seven-point fluency and connectedness (FC) scale, during a 5-min segment. Linear regressions examined associations between these behaviours/rating and language scores. Interaction analysis and simple slopes explored effect modification by FC. There was no evidence that missed opportunities or praise were associated with language scores. Higher rates of successful directives in the unadjusted model and unsuccessful directives in the adjusted model were associated with lower 24-month-old receptive language scores (e.g., unsuccessful directives effect size (ES) = -0.41). The association between unsuccessful directives and receptive language was weaker when adjusting for co-occurring expansions (ES = -0.34). Both types of directives were associated with poorer receptive and expressive language scores in adjusted models at 36 and 48 months (e.g., unsuccessful directive and 48-month receptive language, ES = -0.66). FC was positively associated with 24-, 36- and 48-month language scores in adjusted models (e.g., receptive language at 24 months, ES = 0.21, at 48 months, ES = 0.18). Interaction analysis showed the negative association between successful directives and 24-month receptive language existed primarily in poorly connected dyads with low FC levels. These findings illustrate the effects of the combined interaction between different maternal communicative behaviours and features of the interaction itself on child language development, and the need to consider both in research and practice. Whilst more intrusive directives were associated with poorer language scores, this association attenuated when adjusting for co-occurring responsive expansions, and the association was strongest for children in lower quality interactions. This work may inform clinical practice by helping clinicians target the most appropriate communicative behaviours for specific mother-child dyads. © 2017 Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists.

A National Study Assessing the Teaching and Learning of Introductory Astronomy Part II: Analysis of Student Demographics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prather, Edward; Rudolph, A. L.; Brissenden, G.; Consiglio, D.; Gonzaga, V.; CATS

2010-01-01

This is the second in a series of reports on a national study of the teaching and learning of astronomy in general education, non-science major, introductory college astronomy courses (Astro 101). The results show dramatic improvement in student learning with increased use of interactive learning strategies even after controlling for individual student characteristics. In addition, we find that the positive effects of interactive learning strategies apply equally to men and women, across ethnicities, for students with all levels of prior mathematical preparation and physical science course experience, independent of GPA, and regardless of primary language. These results powerfully illustrate that all categories of students can benefit from the effective implementation of interactive learning strategies. We acknowledge the NSF for funding under Award No. 0715517, a CCLI Phase III Grant for the Collaboration of Astronomy Teaching Scholars (CATS) Program and Award No. AST-0847170, a PAARE Grant.

Interactive Simulated Patient: Experiences with Collaborative E-Learning in Medicine

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bergin, Rolf; Youngblood, Patricia; Ayers, Mary K.; Boberg, Jonas; Bolander, Klara; Courteille, Olivier; Dev, Parvati; Hindbeck, Hans; Edward, Leonard E., II; Stringer, Jennifer R.; Thalme, Anders; Fors, Uno G. H.

2003-01-01

Interactive Simulated Patient (ISP) is a computer-based simulation tool designed to provide medical students with the opportunity to practice their clinical problem solving skills. The ISP system allows students to perform most clinical decision-making procedures in a simulated environment, including history taking in natural language, many…

Emerging Affordances in Videoconferencing for Language Learning and Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dey-Plissonneau, Aparajita

2017-01-01

The theory of affordances (Gibson, 1977) came into focus in humancomputer interactions and ecological interactive design to explore design strategies to support the actor in direct perception of action possibilities in the operation of things. However, few studies have analysed the basis of affordances in the cultural-historical development of…

Negotiated Interaction in the L2 Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eckerth, Johannes

2009-01-01

The present paper reports on an approximate replication of Foster's (1998) study on the negotiation of meaning. Foster investigated the interactional adjustments produced by L2 English learners working on different types of language learning tasks in a classroom setting. The replication study duplicates the methods of data collection and data…

Intercultural Learning Perspectives of World Language Educators in Kentucky

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McClees, Ernest Luke, Jr.

2016-01-01

A line has become blurred between intercultural interactions and daily personal interactions. The once long distance for trade, travel and communication is at its' smallest gap. However, "American graduates have been cited as being culturally deprived and linguistically illiterate, compared to students from other countries" (2013…

Interactive Videodisc: the "Why" and the "How." CALICO Monograph Volume 2, Spring 1991.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bush, Michael D.; And Others

This monograph presents articles on interactive videodisc technology in language learning, ranging from the importance of a theoretical framework, the transition from theory to practice, getting started, design considerations, hypermedia, discovery environments, authoring software, workstation environments, and a look at the future of optical disc…

Promoting Discourse with Task-Based Scenario Interaction.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dinapoli, Russell

Tasks have become an essential feature of second language (L2) learning in recent years. Tasks range from getting learners to repeat linguistic elements satisfactorily to having them perform in "free" production. Along this task-based continuum, task-based scenario interaction lies at the point midway between controlled and…

Task Complexity, Learning Opportunities, and Korean EFL Learners' Question Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, YouJin

2012-01-01

Building on the cognitive and interactive perspectives of task research, the cognition hypothesis states that increasing task complexity promotes greater interaction and feedback and thus facilitates second language (L2) development (Robinson, 2001b, 2007a). To date, very little research has explored this claim during learner-learner interactions…

DOTI: Databank of Oral Teletandem Interactions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aranha, Solange; Leone, Paola

2016-01-01

This contribution aims at (1) discussing the characteristics of collecting, filing and storing data to have a databank of oral interactions between university students whose main objective is the learning of a second language through teletandem; and (2) defining the steps for further collections and storage. Our data are Skype sessions of foreign…

Hypothesis Testing in Task-Based Interaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Choi, Yujeong; Kilpatrick, Cynthia

2014-01-01

Whereas studies show that comprehensible output facilitates L2 learning, hypothesis testing has received little attention in Second Language Acquisition (SLA). Following Shehadeh (2003), we focus on hypothesis testing episodes (HTEs) in which learners initiate repair of their own speech in interaction. In the context of a one-way information gap…