Sample records for services learning language

  1. Effects of Community Service-Learning on Heritage Language Learners' Attitudes toward Their Language and Culture

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pascual y Cabo, Diego; Prada, Josh; Lowther Pereira, Kelly

    2017-01-01

    This study examined the effects of participation in a community service-learning experience on Spanish heritage language learners' attitudes toward their heritage language and culture. Quantitative and qualitative data from heritage language learners demonstrated that engagement in community service-learning activities as part of the Spanish…

  2. Improving Language Learning Strategies and Performance of Pre-Service Language Teachers through a CALLA-TBLT Model

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Guapacha Chamorro, Maria Eugenia; Benavidez Paz, Luis Humberto

    2017-01-01

    This paper reports an action-research study on language learning strategies in tertiary education at a Colombian university. The study aimed at improving the English language performance and language learning strategies use of 33 first-year pre-service language teachers by combining elements from two models: the cognitive academic language…

  3. Service-Learning as a Means of Vocabulary Learning for Second Language and Heritage Language Learners of Spanish

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tocaimaza-Hatch, C. Cecilia; Walls, Laura C.

    2016-01-01

    Service-Learning (SL) has been defined as an experiential teaching methodology. Through SL, students participate in activities that benefit their community and enhance their learning experience. In the current study, Spanish as a second language (L2) and heritage language learners (HLLs) engaged in a SL project in which they translated English…

  4. Language Learning Strategies and Language Self-Efficacy: Investigating the Relationship in Malaysia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wong, Mary Siew-Lian

    2005-01-01

    This study explored graduate pre-service teachers' language learning strategies and language self-efficacy and the relationship between these two constructs. Seventy-four graduate English-as-a-second-language (ESL) pre-service teachers (13 males, 61 females) from a teachers' college in Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia, participated in this study. These…

  5. The Effects of Service Learning Participation in Foreign Language Classes on Students' Attitudes towards the Spanish Language and Culture and Their Language Proficiency

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Malkin, Fran

    2010-01-01

    This dissertation examines the effects of service learning experiences on participants' attitudes towards the Spanish language and culture and their language proficiency. It was hypothesized that using the Spanish language outside the confines of the academic environment would affect participants' attitudes and have an impact on their language…

  6. The Relationship among Pre-Service EFL Teachers' Beliefs about Language Learning, Pedagogical Beliefs, and Beliefs about ICT Integration

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Inayati, Dian; Emaliana, Ive

    2017-01-01

    This paper elucidates the relationship among pre-service teachers' beliefs about language learning, pedagogical beliefs, and beliefs about ICT Integration through survey methodology. This study employed a quantitative approach, particularly a correlational relationship to investigate the relationships among beliefs about language learning,…

  7. Pre-Service and In-Service Teachers' Experiences of Learning to Program in an Object-Oriented Language

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Govender, I.; Grayson, D. J.

    2008-01-01

    This paper presents the results of an investigation into the various ways in which pre-service and in-service teachers experience learning to program in an object-oriented language. Both groups of teachers were enrolled in university courses. In most cases, the pre-service teachers were learning to program for the first time, while the in-service…

  8. Pre-Service English as a Foreign Language Teachers' Perceptions of the Relationship between Multiple Intelligences and Foreign Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Savas, Perihan

    2012-01-01

    The relationship between intelligence, language, and learning is a challenging field of study. One way to study how this relationship occurs and works is to investigate the perceptions of advanced language learners. Therefore, this paper reports a study that was conducted to explore 160 pre-service English language teachers' perceptions about…

  9. Who Needs Linguistics? Service-Learning and Linguistics for Spanish Heritage Language Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Llombart-Huesca, Amàlia; Pulido, Alejandra

    2017-01-01

    In recent years, the World Languages field has witnessed an increased interest in service-learning (SL) initiatives. Many SL projects focus on the potential that Spanish-speaking communities offer students of Spanish, as a foreign language, to increase their language skills and cultural understanding of these communities. Some authors, however,…

  10. 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…

  11. A Pilot Study of Service-Learning in a Spanish Heritage Speaker Course: Community Engagement, Identity, and Language in the Chicago Area

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Petrov, Lisa Amor

    2013-01-01

    This article presents research findings from a pilot study of the use of service-learning in an intermediate-high class ("Spanish Language and Culture for Heritage Speakers") in the fall semesters of 2010 and 2011. Students reported gains in the areas of communication skills, dispositional learning, language, identity formation, and…

  12. Profiles of Turkish Pre-Service Teachers of English in Terms of Language Learning Background

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Uztosun, Mehmet Sercan

    2017-01-01

    This study aims to describe the language learning backgrounds of Turkish pre-service teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) with reference to their perceived language competence and satisfaction with perceived speaking ability. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected through a questionnaire that was administered to 365 first-year…

  13. Pre-Service EFL Teachers' Beliefs about Foreign Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Altan, Mustafa Zulkuf

    2012-01-01

    Beliefs are central constructs in every discipline which deals with human behaviour and learning. In addition to learner beliefs about language learning, language teachers themselves may hold certain beliefs about language learning that will have an impact on their instructional practices and that are likely to influence their students' beliefs…

  14. Learning about Literacy outside the Classroom: Pre-Service Teachers Reflect on Learning a Second Language through Cultural Immersion

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gutierrez, A. Renee; Hunter, Cheryl A.

    2012-01-01

    This qualitative case study examined the perceived impact of immersion language study for pre-service teachers. The focus of the case was a month-long exploratory language and cultural immersion project in Costa Rica. The guiding questions were: what knowledge of teaching literacy do pre-service teachers reflect upon during a linguistic and…

  15. Language Learning Strategies Employed by Chinese English-Major Pre-Service Teachers in Relation to Gender and Personality Types

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zhou, Chaoying; Intaraprasert, Channarong

    2015-01-01

    This study was intended to investigate the use of language learning strategy employed by English-major pre-service teachers in Midwest China in relation to their gender and personality types. The modified Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) and adopted personality type inventory were used to collect the data. ANOVA and Chi-square tests…

  16. Training Cyber Warriors: What Can Be Learned from Defense Language Training?

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2015-01-01

    other agencies. In addition, the National Cryp- tologic School , Foreign Service Institute, and CIA University, among others, each train students for...They provide a variety of services, including group instruction , distance learning , and one-on-one tutoring. Pipeline-Building Programs The Language...commonly monolingual English speakers,1 (2) the U.S. education system provides limited opportunities for students to learn other languages in

  17. 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…

  18. Building Bridges against Violence: Service-Learning for Second Language Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Orban, Clara E.; Thompson, Martha E.

    2007-01-01

    In this essay, the authors argue that linking second language learners with communities that need their language skills can result in an empowering experience for students and for the communities with which they work. They describe a college-level service-learning project that was designed to help IMPACT Chicago, a women's self-defense…

  19. Career Adventures from Learning Languages

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kaye, Paul

    2016-01-01

    Learning and using languages has been a central feature of most of Paul Kaye's working life. In his current job, he helps to promote multilingualism, language learning, and the language industry in the UK, as well as to raise awareness of careers in the EU civil service for those with language knowledge. He is on temporary secondment from the…

  20. A Multi-Language System for Knowledge Extraction in E-Learning Videos

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sood, Aparesh; Mittal, Ankush; Sarthi, Divya

    2006-01-01

    The existing multimedia software in E-Learning does not provide par excellence multimedia data service to the common user, hence E-Learning services are still short of intelligence and sophisticated end user tools for visualization and retrieval. An efficient approach to achieve the tasks such as, regional language narration, regional language…

  1. When Service-Learning Is Not a "Border-Crossing" Experience: Outcomes of a Graduate Spanish Online Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carracelas-Juncal, Carmen

    2013-01-01

    Research on Spanish service-learning has focused mainly on the outcomes of service-learning for undergraduate students learning Spanish as a second language. This article examines the role of service-learning in a graduate online course for practicing Spanish teachers and the outcomes of the service-learning experience for three participants who…

  2. Parents with Learning Disabilities and Speech and Language Therapy. A Service Evaluation of Referrals and Episodes of Care

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stansfield, Jois

    2012-01-01

    The speech and language therapy (SLT) service in an area of northern England receives referrals of parents who have learning disabilities. The aim of this study was to identify current referral patterns and quantify the level of demand upon the SLT service from this relatively new referral population to enable to service to meet the needs of these…

  3. "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…

  4. Collaborative Research Projects in the Technology-Enhanced Language Classroom: Preservice and In-Service Teachers Exchange Knowledge about Technology

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Schmid, Euline Cutrim; Hegelheimer, Volker

    2014-01-01

    This paper presents research findings of a longitudinal empirical case study that investigated an innovative Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) professional development program for pre-service English as Foreign Language (EFL) teachers. The conceptualization of the program was based on the assumption that pre-service language teachers…

  5. The Preferences of In-Service ELT Teachers' Language Learning Strategies in Their Own Language Learning Process

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Koç, Hatice Kübra

    2017-01-01

    As a still popular research area, Language Learning Strategies (LLS) researches need to be enhanced, since it consists of different phenomenon such as age, gender, individual differences and learning environment. At a glance, previous studies in the literature state that most of LLS researches are conducted in just learner-contexts in schools or…

  6. Katimavik Participant's Manual, Book IV, Second Language Learning = Katimavik manuel du participant, cahier IV, l'apprentissage de la langue seconde. Revised.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Crelinsten, Michael, Ed.

    The second language (French or English) learning activity portion of Katimavik, a nine-month volunteer community service and experiential learning program for 17 to 21-year-old Canadians, provides an opportunity for living in a French language environment with other people who speak French, or, for participants whose native language is French, to…

  7. New graduates’ perceptions of preparedness to provide speech-language therapy services in general and dysphagia services in particular

    PubMed Central

    Booth, Alannah; Choto, Fadziso; Gotlieb, Jessica; Robertson, Rebecca; Morris, Gabriella; Stockley, Nicola; Mauff, Katya

    2015-01-01

    Background Upon graduation, newly qualified speech-language therapists are expected to provide services independently. This study describes new graduates’ perceptions of their preparedness to provide services across the scope of the profession and explores associations between perceptions of dysphagia theory and clinical learning curricula with preparedness for adult and paediatric dysphagia service delivery. Methods New graduates of six South African universities were recruited to participate in a survey by completing an electronic questionnaire exploring their perceptions of the dysphagia curricula and their preparedness to practise across the scope of the profession of speech-language therapy. Results Eighty graduates participated in the study yielding a response rate of 63.49%. Participants perceived themselves to be well prepared in some areas (e.g. child language: 100%; articulation and phonology: 97.26%), but less prepared in other areas (e.g. adult dysphagia: 50.70%; paediatric dysarthria: 46.58%; paediatric dysphagia: 38.36%) and most unprepared to provide services requiring sign language (23.61%) and African languages (20.55%). There was a significant relationship between perceptions of adequate theory and clinical learning opportunities with assessment and management of dysphagia and perceptions of preparedness to provide dysphagia services. Conclusion There is a need for review of existing curricula and consideration of developing a standard speech-language therapy curriculum across universities, particularly in service provision to a multilingual population, and in both the theory and clinical learning of the assessment and management of adult and paediatric dysphagia, to better equip graduates for practice. PMID:26304217

  8. Community Service Learning as Critical Curriculum: Promoting International Students' Second Language Practices

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chao, Xia

    2016-01-01

    Grounded in the whole person perspective of language learners and the concepts of investment and L2 socialization, this qualitative study explores how community service learning (CSL) contributes to international students' L2 practices and identity development. This study finds that CSL creates "a pedagogical contact zone" outside the…

  9. Service Learning and Student Engagement: A Dual Language Book Project

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roessingh, Hetty

    2012-01-01

    A model is proposed followed by a case study of collaborative project work between student teachers, teachers and English language learners in kindergarten and grade 1. As a model, service learning provides a framework for making explicit linkages between course-based, credit bearing academic content, the identified need of the community school,…

  10. Pre-Service Teachers' Uses of and Barriers from Adopting Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) Programs

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Samani, Ebrahim; Baki, Roselan; Razali, Abu Bakar

    2014-01-01

    Success in implementation of computer-assisted language learning (CALL) programs depends on the teachers' understanding of the roles of CALL programs in education. Consequently, it is also important to understand the barriers teachers face in the use of computer-assisted language learning (CALL) programs. The current study was conducted on 14…

  11. I Help, Therefore, I Learn: Service Learning on Web 2.0 in an EFL Speaking Class

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sun, Yu-Chih; Yang, Fang-Ying

    2015-01-01

    The present study integrates service learning into English as a Foreign Language (EFL) speaking class using Web 2.0 tools--YouTube and Facebook--as platforms. Fourteen undergraduate students participated in the study. The purpose of the service-learning project was to link service learning with oral communication training in an EFL speaking class…

  12. Service-Learning: A Language of "We"

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Taylor, Pamela G.; Ballengee-Morris, Christine

    2004-01-01

    This article focuses on service-learning, a method whereby students learn and develop through active participation in thoughtfully organized service that is conducted in and meets the needs of communities. It is coordinated with an elementary school, secondary school, institution of higher education, or community service program and the…

  13. Web-Based New Literacies and EFL Curriculum Design in Teacher Education: A Design Study for Expanding EFL Student Teachers' Language-Related Literacy Practices in an Egyptian Pre-Service Teacher Education Programme

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Abdallah, Mahmoud Mohammad Sayed

    2011-01-01

    With the dominance of the Web in education and English language learning, new literacies have emerged. This thesis is motivated by the assumption that these literacies need to be integrated into the Egyptian pre-service EFL teacher education programmes so that EFL student teachers can cope with the new reality of language teaching/learning.…

  14. Languages for Specific Purposes Curriculum Creation and Implementation in Service to the U.S. Community

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lear, Darcy

    2012-01-01

    Community service learning (CSL) is a type of experiential learning that blends specific course content with real-world applications and ties them together through structured reflection. It is an ideal pedagogy for 21st-century language for specific purposes (LSP) programs. This article frames that argument around sociocultural theory, moves to a…

  15. Preparing Advocates: Service-Learning in TESOL for Future Mainstream Educators

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Moore, Jessie l.

    2013-01-01

    Service-learning pedagogy can provide future educators a meaningful introduction to the field of TESOL and the English language learners (ELLs) it serves. This article briefly describes one approach to integrating service-learning into an Introduction to TESOL course and presents research findings on TESOL students' learning outcomes, which…

  16. International Students in American Pathway Programs: Learning English and Culture through Service-Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Miller, Julie; Berkey, Becca; Griffin, Francis

    2015-01-01

    As the number of international students studying in the United States continues to grow, the body of literature about service-learning in English Language Learning (ELL) curricula is growing in tandem. The primary goal of this paper is to explore how service-learning impacts the development and transition of pathway program students in the United…

  17. A Roadmap for True Accountability: Reconceptualizing Language-Learning Services, Reclassification Practices and Monitoring Systems for English Language Learners in U.S. Public Schools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Slama, Rachel B.

    2012-01-01

    A major problem facing educators in the United States is how to determine when the nation's five million English language learners (ELL) are ready to exit language-learning programs, i.e. to be "reclassified" as fluent English proficient (R-FEP) and placed in mainstream classrooms without additional language support. No Child Left Behind…

  18. Service-Learning Might Be the Key: Learning from the Challenges and Implementation Strategies in EFL Teacher Education in Oman

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Al Barwani, Thuwayba; Al-Mekhlafi, Abdo; Nagaratnam, Ramani Perur

    2013-01-01

    Service-learning, a major reform in higher education, is considered essential for developing citizenship for the 21st century. This paper reports a study aimed at investigating the problems and challenges faced when implementing service-learning in pre-service education of teachers of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) and carried out in the…

  19. Analysis of the Problems in Language Teachers' Action Research

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Han, Ligang

    2017-01-01

    In-service language teachers' professional development is a crucial factor that influences the teaching and learning effectiveness. Educational action research is considered by many researchers and scholars as an effective way or approach for language teachers' professional development. This article reports a case study of in-service English…

  20. A Language-Based Approach to Content Instruction (LACI) for English Language Learners: Examples from Two Elementary Teachers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    de Oliveira, Luciana C.

    2016-01-01

    The number of English language learners (ELLs) in the United States has increased dramatically. Given this increase it is vital for teacher education programs at the pre-service level and professional learning programs at eh in-service level to address the needs of ELLs. This article presents a teacher preparation model--"a language-based…

  1. Comparing the Internet Usage of Pre-Service Language Teachers with Teachers of Other Subjects: Distance Learning vs. On-Campus Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Firat, Mehmet; Serpil, Harun

    2017-01-01

    Teachers play a crucial role in helping individuals gain adequate Internet competency, which requires teachers themselves to be Internet-literate. The purpose of this study is to investigate the Internet use of the distance and on-campus pre-service teachers of language and other disciplines by multiple parameters. A total of 789 teacher…

  2. Improving Science and Literacy Learning for English Language Learners: Evidence from a Pre-service Teacher Preparation Intervention

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shaw, Jerome M.; Lyon, Edward G.; Stoddart, Trish; Mosqueda, Eduardo; Menon, Preetha

    2014-08-01

    This paper present findings from a pre-service teacher development project that prepared novice teachers to promote English language and literacy development with inquiry-based science through a modified elementary science methods course and professional development for cooperating teachers. To study the project's impact on student learning, we administered a pre and post assessment to students (N = 191) of nine first year elementary teachers (grades 3 through 6) who experienced the intervention and who taught a common science unit. Preliminary results indicate that (1) student learning improved across all categories (science concepts, writing, and vocabulary)—although the effect varied by category, and (2) English Language Learner (ELL) learning gains were on par with non-ELLs, with differences across proficiency levels for vocabulary gain scores. These results warrant further analyses to understand the extent to which the intervention improved teacher practice and student learning. This study confirms the findings of previous research that the integration of science language and literacy practices can improve ELL achievement in science concepts, writing and vocabulary. In addition, the study indicates that it is possible to begin to link the practices taught in pre-service teacher preparation to novice teacher practice and student learning outcomes.

  3. Language Ideologies and the Settlement House Movement: A New History for Service-Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rabin, Lisa M.

    2009-01-01

    A significant number of community service-learning projects in higher education involve the teaching or tutoring of immigrants in English. As in related service-learning scholarship, these projects are commonly informed by perspectives on cultural difference, social justice, and power relations in U.S. society. Yet while faculty pair their…

  4. Quality through Networking--From Reactive Administration to Proactive Cooperation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Karttu, Petri; Kiilunen, Liisa; Laulajainen, Tiina

    2012-01-01

    The Language Centre functions as an independent institute within the University of Helsinki. It provides services to all the faculties and units of the university by offering language services and doing its share in creating an international learning environment. Together, the Language Centre and the faculties have one goal in common, namely, a…

  5. Developing Pre-Service English Teachers' Competencies for Integration of Technology in Language Classrooms in Kazakhstan

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Egorov, Victor V.; Jantassova, Damira D.; Churchill, Natalia

    2007-01-01

    This article discusses the implementation of the "Information and Communication Technologies in Foreign Language Teaching and Learning" course conducted as a component of the pre-service English language teacher training program in the Buketov Karaganda State University, Kazakhstan. The course was introduced in 2003. The central…

  6. Service Learning to Promote Brain-Based Learning in Undergraduate Teaching

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nwokah, Eva E.; Leafblad, Stefanie

    2013-01-01

    In this study 44 undergraduate students in a language development course participated in service learning with preschool homeless and low-income children as a course requirement. Students completed a survey, questionnaires, reflective journaling, and small-group debriefing sessions. Based on current views on brain-based learning from cortical…

  7. Computer-Assisted Language Learning Trends and Issues Revisited: Integrating Innovation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Garrett, Nina

    2009-01-01

    This update to Garrett (1991), "Technology in the Service of Language Learning: Trends and Issues," explores current uses of technology to facilitate the teaching and assessment of second languages. In this article, I discuss the changes that have taken place over the last 18 years regarding selected topics from the 1991 article, including the…

  8. Characteristics, Assessment, and Treatment of Writing Difficulties in College Students with Language Disorders and/or Learning Disabilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Richards, Stephanie A.

    2015-01-01

    Many students currently are enrolled in colleges and universities across the country with language disorders and/or learning disabilities (LLD). The majority of these students struggle with writing, creating a need to identify and provide them with writing intervention services. Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) may provide this intervention;…

  9. Redefining Professional Identity: The Voice of a Language Teacher in a Context of Collaborative Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pinho, Ana Sofia; Andrade, Ana Isabel

    2015-01-01

    Following a narrative and biographic approach, in this study, we present the case of an in-service language teacher and her professional learning trajectory in the context of the project "Languages and education: constructing and sharing training". This project aimed at the construction of a collaborative teacher education context for…

  10. Teacher Identity Development: A Collective Case Study of English as a Foreign Language Pre-Service Teachers Learning to Teach in an Indonesian University Teacher Education Program

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Riyanti, Dwi

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to examine how English as a foreign language pre-service teachers develop their identities through the process of learning to teach in a university microteaching class and a student teaching practicum within a multilingual Indonesian context. A sociocultural theoretical lens incorporating activity theory as well as a…

  11. Voices from the Community: A Case for Reciprocity in Service-Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    d'Arlach, Lucia; Sanchez, Bernadette; Feuer, Rachel

    2009-01-01

    Few studies have directly examined how recipients of service view the service. This qualitative study presents the results of interviews and observations of nine community members who participated in a service-learning, language exchange program, Intercambio, in which Spanish-speaking Latino immigrants were paired with English-speaking university…

  12. Migrants and the language of instruction: Is the EU policy deficit driving new innovations in social inclusion?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cullen, Joe

    2017-08-01

    Language learning has long been seen as an important tool for achieving European Union (EU) targets for social inclusion. However, "mainstream" policy instruments like the Action Plan on Promoting Language Learning and Linguistic Diversity and the European Charter for Minority Languages have been undermined in recent years by the effects of the global financial crisis, which has contributed to the widespread decimation of welfare budgets in many EU member states. This has been accompanied by the increasing influence of a "neo-liberal" discourse in welfare and social service policies and practices, leading to the delegation of responsibility for service provision from central, regional and local government to commercial enterprises, civil society and, ultimately, to citizens themselves. At the same time, the gaps in service provision that have resulted from this "financial crisis" have opened up new opportunities for social innovators. New kinds of organisations are beginning to develop and apply new approaches using language learning to deliver innovative services aimed, for example, at supporting the integration of immigrants in society. Using case study analysis, this paper explores how these new approaches have developed, what kinds of innovation are being delivered and the contribution these social innovations are making to broader EU social inclusion objectives.

  13. Investigation of Pre-Service English Language Teachers' Cognitive Structures about Some Key Concepts in Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching Course through Word Association Test

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ersanli, Ceylan Yangin

    2016-01-01

    This study aims to map the cognitive structure of pre-service English language (EL) teachers about three key concepts related to approaches and methods in language teaching so as to discover their learning process and misconceptions. The study involves both qualitative and quantitative data. The researcher administrated a Word Association Test…

  14. Differentiating Second Language Acquisition from Specific Learning Disability: An Observational Tool Assessing Dual Language Learners' Pragmatic Competence

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Farnsworth, Megan

    2018-01-01

    Overrepresentation of Dual Language Learners (DLLs) in special education remains a problem even after 40 years of inquiry. One factor is that the U.S. federal government has neither clearly explained the definition of Specific Learning Disability (SLD) nor operationally defined it to identify children for special education services. This lack of…

  15. Examining EFL Teachers' Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge and the Adoption of Mobile-Assisted Language Learning: A Partial Least Square Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hsu, Liwei

    2016-01-01

    This study examines EFL (English as a foreign Language) teachers' technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) and how such knowledge affects the adoption of mobile-assisted language learning (MALL). A total of 158 in-service Taiwanese English teachers were surveyed. Two frameworks were employed to examine latent constructs: TPACK and the…

  16. The Effect of In-Service Training of Computer Science Teachers on Scratch Programming Language Skills Using an Electronic Learning Platform on Programming Skills and the Attitudes towards Teaching Programming

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Alkaria, Ahmed; Alhassan, Riyadh

    2017-01-01

    This study was conducted to examine the effect of in-service training of computer science teachers in Scratch language using an electronic learning platform on acquiring programming skills and attitudes towards teaching programming. The sample of this study consisted of 40 middle school computer science teachers. They were assigned into two…

  17. Online Collaborative Communities of Learning for Pre-Service Teachers of Languages

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Morgan, Anne-Marie

    2015-01-01

    University programs for preparing preservice teachers of languages for teaching in schools generally involve generic pedagogy, methodology, curriculum, programming and issues foci, that provide a bridge between the study of languages (or recognition of existing language proficiency) and the teaching of languages. There is much territory to cover…

  18. Microteaching Writing on YouTube for Pre-Service Teacher Training: Lessons Learned

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sun, Yu-Chih

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of the study is to investigate how pre-service teachers adopt YouTube technology into their microteaching as part of their assignments. The participants were twelve Taiwanese pre-service teachers in a Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages graduate program. They enrolled in a Second Language Writing course and worked in groups…

  19. Teaching Foreign Languages.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Holmes, Madelyn, Ed.

    1997-01-01

    Articles on second language education include: "Foreign Languages in Schools" (Madelyn Holmes), an overview of the benefits of language instruction in elementary and secondary education; "Japanese across the Miles" (Elizabeth Reiken), describing a high school distance learning program in Japanese; "Teaching Spanish as a Community Service" (Rita A.…

  20. Problem-Based Learning: An Experiential Strategy for English Language Teacher Education in Chile

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Muñoz Campos, Diego

    2017-01-01

    The Chilean education system requires English language teachers to be equipped with non-conventional teaching strategies that can foster meaningful learning and assure successful learners' performances in diverse and complex settings. This exploratory, descriptive, research study aimed at discovering the perceptions of 54 pre-service teachers…

  1. Designing, Implementing, and Evaluating a Department-Wide Service-Learning Program for English Language Learners in Morocco

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Seilstad, Brian

    2014-01-01

    This article describes the theoretical and pedagogical background and results from the first semester of a service-learning program for English learners at a public Moroccan university and the local high school. This study fills a gap in the literature related to service-learning practice and outcomes in Morocco and the Arab world in general. The…

  2. Benefits of Service-Learning for Freshmen College Students and Elementary School Children

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Eppler, Marion A.; Ironsmith, Marsha; Dingle, Stephanie H.; Errickson, Marissa A.

    2011-01-01

    Freshman honors students in a service-learning course tutored low-income English Language Learning kindergartners, first-, and second-graders in reading. We conducted two separate data collections, one assessing college students' attitudes and motives (Study 1) and one exploring the benefits for elementary school children (Study 2). We measured…

  3. Overcoming Common Misunderstandings about Students with Disabilities Who Are English Language Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cheatham, Gregory A.; Hart Barnett, Juliet E.

    2017-01-01

    Special education programs are increasingly serving students with disabilities who are English language learners and their families. Facilitating bilingualism is an effective practice and aligns with culturally responsive special education service provision. It is critical for special educators and service providers to learn about bilingualism,…

  4. Supporting In-Service Language Educators in Learning to Telecollaborate

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    O'Dowd, Robert

    2015-01-01

    The importance of teachers' capacity to integrate and exploit computer mediated communication (CMC) in the foreign language classroom has been recognised by many of the leading publications in foreign language teacher education, including the European Profile for Language Teacher Education (2004) and the European portfolio for student teachers of…

  5. Engaged Teaching and Learning with Adult Karen Refugees in a Service-Learning Site

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Smolen, Lynn Atkinson; Zhang, Wei; Detwiler, Stephen

    2013-01-01

    This article describes a case study of a service-learning project connected to a TESOL (teaching English to speakers of other languages) teacher preparation program. The case study explored the teacher candidates' experiences teaching English to Karen refugees from Myanmar (Burma) in a midwestern city in the United States. The teacher candidates'…

  6. The Measurement of Change in English Language Proficiency

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nallaya, Sasikala

    2012-01-01

    This study investigated the measurement of change in English language proficiency levels of pre-service and in-service teachers enrolled in a public university in Malaysia. Path analysis was used to measure change on three occasions by examining the effects of student characteristics, learning needs and multimodal technology on proficiency levels.…

  7. Improving Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) of Pre-Service English Language Teachers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ersanli, Ceylan Yangin

    2016-01-01

    Developing as teachers and optimizing learning experiences for future students is the ultimate goal in technology use in teacher education programs. This study aims to explore the effectiveness of a five-week workshop and training sessions on Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) of pre-service English language teachers. The…

  8. Adult ESOL Students and Service-Learning: Voices, Experiences, and Perspectives

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bippus, Sharon L.; Eslami, Zohreh R.

    2013-01-01

    This multiple-case study examined the unique perspectives of six adult English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) students who participated as the givers of a service in a semester-long service learning community college ESOL course. Their ages ranged from 19 to 45 and they hailed from five different countries (Colombia, Mexico, South Korea,…

  9. Developing a Language Program in One School System.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Charlesworth, Roberta A.

    As an outgrowth of their study of language theory and practice, English and elementary school teachers involved in in-service linguistic workshops are analyzing the verbal usage of a number of Toronto students to identify the language attitudes and characteristics of K-13 students and to become aware of language learning possibilities at grade…

  10. Biasing for the Best in Language Testing and Learning: An Interview with Merrill Swain

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fox, Janna

    2004-01-01

    In response to the American Association of Applied Linguistics' presentation of the Distinguished Scholarship and Service Award for extraordinary contributions to the fields of language learning, teaching, and testing in May 2004, Merrill Swain described her own work as "moving in cycles of research, theory and practice." These "spirals" ("cycles…

  11. Internet Use with Learning Aim: Views of German Language Pre-Service Teachers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yucel, Mukadder Seyhan

    2011-01-01

    The aim of this study is to indicate the views of teacher candidates of German Language Department at Education Faculty, Trakya University about the use of internet with the aim of learning. This study was designed as phenomenology which is one of the qualitative research methods. The study data were obtained via semi-constructed interview…

  12. 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…

  13. Proposing a Web-Based Tutorial System to Teach Malay Language Braille Code to the Sighted

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wah, Lee Lay; Keong, Foo Kok

    2010-01-01

    The "e-KodBrailleBM Tutorial System" is a web-based tutorial system which is specially designed to teach, facilitate and support the learning of Malay Language Braille Code to individuals who are sighted. The targeted group includes special education teachers, pre-service teachers, and parents. Learning Braille code involves memorisation…

  14. Pre-Service Preschool Teachers' Beliefs about Foreign Language Learning and Early Foreign Language Teaching in Slovenia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fojkar, Mateja Dagarin; Skubic, Darija

    2017-01-01

    The implementation of foreign languages in preschool education has prompted the need for qualified teachers. However, most recent studies report a gap between the supply of qualified foreign language teachers of young learners and the demand for such teachers as foreign languages are introduced earlier and earlier. The authors of this paper…

  15. Guided Portfolio Writing as a Scaffold for Reflective Learning in In-Service Contexts: A Case Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pires Pereira, Íris Susana; Cristo Parente, Maria Cristina; Vieira da Silva, Cristina

    2016-01-01

    Language is widely recognized as an inescapable mediating tool for professional learning, and with this text we want to contribute to a better understanding of the particular role that guided writing can play in in-service professional reflective learning. We analysed one pre-school teacher's written portfolio, the construction of which was guided…

  16. Developing Multiple Literacies in Academic English through Service-Learning and Community Engagement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Askildson, Lance R.; Kelly, Annie Cahill; Mick, Connie Snyder

    2013-01-01

    Research on service-learning offers compelling evidence of the advances student learners make in moral development, orientation to prosocial behavior, and curricular content retention. But who are those student learners? Most studies focus on native, dominant-culture, dominant-language students serving marginalized populations. Studies of the…

  17. Racism and Linguicism: Engaging Language Minority Pre-Service Teachers in Counter-Storytelling

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cho, Hyesun

    2017-01-01

    This study examines how language minority pre-service teachers engaged in the discussion of racism and linguicism through counter-storytelling informed by Critical Race Theory (CRT). Counter-stories can act as a medium through which minority students can unpack the power relations embedded in academic learning. This study also explores ways in…

  18. Encouraging Pattern Language Development in a Pre-Service Inclusive Education Course: A Comparative Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lancaster, Julie; Auhl, Greg

    2013-01-01

    This study investigated the ability of students in a pre-service teacher education course to deploy pattern language (or professional lexicon) related to specific inclusive teaching strategies. The study sought to determine whether there were differential effects of two approaches to learning, one based on a field-based placement (Applied…

  19. A Conflict between Experience and Professional Learning: Subject Teachers' Beliefs about Teaching English Language Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gleeson, Margaret; Davison, Chris

    2016-01-01

    Secondary schools in Australia have long benefited from state policies aiming to increase the academic success of English language learners (ELLs). Complementary pre-service and in-service teacher education programmes have been implemented to raise the expertise of subject teachers who teach ELL students. However, subject teachers may not be…

  20. Diaries as a Reflective Tool in Pre-Service Language Teacher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kömür, Sevki; Çepik, Hazal

    2015-01-01

    This study presents and analyzes the positive and negative reflections of ten pre-service English teachers who kept diaries on their own learning and teaching processes and daily lives. The participants were students in an English Language Teacher Education Program who took an on-campus methodology course and voluntarily agreed to keep diaries.…

  1. An Explorative Study of Idiom Teaching for Pre-Service Teachers of English

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tran, Huong Quynh

    2012-01-01

    This study investigated the situation of teaching and learning idioms at a university level in Vietnam, a foreign language context. It also examined the evaluation of the idiom teaching process in three language classes over a 15-week period for pre-service teachers of English. The data were collected though questionnaires, in-depth interviews and…

  2. Competency-Based English Teaching and Learning: Investigating Pre-Service Teachers of Chinese's Learning Experience

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wong, Ruth M. H.

    2008-01-01

    English competency is known as one of the crucial skills in various social contexts in Hong Kong. In tertiary educational setting, English courses do not focus solely on the development of the four language skills. Rather, they put emphasis on the application of English Language for academic use or instrumental use. This paper will investigate the…

  3. Is Learning by Teaching Effective in Gaining 21st Century Skills? The Views of Pre-Service Science Teachers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Aslan, Safiye

    2015-01-01

    Learning by teaching is an educational method developed by Jean-Pol Martin for foreign language lessons and is commonly used in Germany. This study discusses a reconstruction of learning by teaching as developed for use in a science context where in the adapted version of this method is introduced, the views of pre-service science teachers are…

  4. Supporting the Academic Excellence, Engagement, and College Readiness of High School ESOL Students through ESOL Student Service Learning Clubs

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Maina, Nyambura Susan; McGaughey, Trisha; Wade, Julie

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of the English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) Student Service Learning (SSL) Club on academic and non-academic outcomes for students receiving ESOL services during 2012-2013 in six high schools in Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools (MCPS). The ESOL SSL Club convenes regularly…

  5. A Study of an ESP Curriculum for Airline Agents in China

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shen, Qi

    2008-01-01

    English for specific purpose (ESP) has for about 30 years been a separate branch of English language Teaching (ELT). Recent years in China, with the development of international trade and foreign exchange, more and more in-service and pre-service staffs are expected to learn practical al and useful English language in order to adapt to the new…

  6. Beating the Language Barrier in Science Education: In-Service Educators' Coping with Slow Learners in Mauritius

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cyparsade, Mohun; Auckloo, Pritee; Belath, Ismut; Dookhee, Helina; Hurreeram, Navin

    2013-01-01

    This study describes how in-service teachers in the pre-vocational sector in Mauritius adopted specific strategies to overcome the language barrier in the learning of science (Van Driel, Verloop & de Vos, 1998). Students of form III were taught few basic ideas related to "Earth & Space" through the use of role play and ICT. The…

  7. Service Learning and Community Engagement for English Classes

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McLeod, Aïda Koçi

    2017-01-01

    Service learning--sometimes known as community engagement--is a well-documented pedagogical approach with a long history, a strong theoretical basis, a specific ethos, and many passionate advocates. Yet it is conspicuously underused as a teaching method in the worldwide field of English language teaching. In this article, I argue that English…

  8. Introducing Advanced Clinical Reasoning to an Adult Learning Disability Service

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stansfield, Jois; Matthews, Alison

    2014-01-01

    The advanced clinical reasoning approach is widely adopted in speech and language therapy practice. This article reports on the introduction of the approach across a multidisciplinary adult learning disability service and staff reports on the impact of this initiative. Staff and team managers reported that the training had a positive impact on…

  9. A Naturalistic Inquiry of a Distance Learning University TESOL Program for In-Service Teachers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Summers-Rocha, Lonna

    2015-01-01

    In this naturalistic inquiry, I explore a professional development program which provided Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) graduate coursework from a university in Northeast Kansas to in-service teachers in Southwest Kansas through distance learning. Data sources included interviews, participant observation, and document and…

  10. Getting out of Their Comfort Zone: Examining Teacher Candidates' Reactions to Service-Learning Abroad

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Regalla, Michele

    2016-01-01

    This study presents data gathered from a service-learning trip to Costa Rica designed for teacher candidates. Data include participant responses to writing prompts, field notes, and follow-up questionnaires. Results show that participants' experience with the language barrier raised their empathy toward English learners. However, participants…

  11. "That Didn't Work, Did It? I Need to Know How to Do that!" Delivering Classroom Activities to Maximise Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Conway, Clare; Richards, Heather; Harvey, Sharon; Roskvist, Annelies

    2011-01-01

    Many novice language teachers have difficulty putting into practice their developing knowledge of language teaching. This article focuses on one of seven case study teachers as an exemplar of those involved in a New Zealand in-service professional development program for teachers of languages (Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Spanish) in…

  12. Bilingual Pre-Service Teachers Grapple with the Academic and Social Role of Language in Mathematics Discussions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    del Rosario Zavala, Maria

    2017-01-01

    Effectively engaging students in mathematics discourse is challenging, especially in a language other than the one in which you learned mathematics. Teachers must manage the academic as well as social function of language. In Spanish-English bilingual classrooms in the U.S., changing the language of instruction to Spanish may not be enough to…

  13. Training Pre-Service Chinese Language Teachers to Create Instructional Video to Enhance Classroom Instruction

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wang, Lih-Ching Chen; Wang, Ming-Chian Ken

    2014-01-01

    Foreign language instruction is a complex and challenging task made even more so by situations in which the learner's native language is radically different from the foreign language being mastered. Nowhere is this more evident than in the case of native English speakers seeking to learn Mandarin Chinese. The rapid increase in the availability and…

  14. Can Integrated Skills Tasks Change Students' Learning Strategies and Materials?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wei, Wei

    2017-01-01

    The use of integrated skills tasks in language tests has been debated for many years and international English test developers such as Educational Testing Service (ETS) and Pearson Tests of English (PTE) already use such tests to assess English as a foreign language (EFL) learners' language proficiency. Empirical research has rarely investigated…

  15. Mutually Beneficial Service Learning: Language Teacher Candidates in a Local Community Center

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hildebrandt, Susan A.

    2014-01-01

    This article reports on a project designed to provide mutually beneficial solutions to challenges faced by world language teacher candidates, their preparation program, and a local community center. The project provided opportunities for teacher candidates enrolled in a world language (WL) teacher education course to complete clinical experiences…

  16. Pre-Service Teachers' Mathematics Language and Reflection in the Context of an Early Childhood Mathematics Methods Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Boyd, Soleil

    2016-01-01

    Preschool teachers are expected to engage young children in challenging and supportive mathematics learning. Rich and responsive language experiences in mathematics support children's language acquisition and engagement related to mathematics, however, such engaging experiences may be minimally available to many young children. Professional…

  17. Russian Language Competencies for Peace Corps Volunteers in Russia.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Strobykina, Irina; Fomenko, Nataliya

    This Peace Corps volunteer language training manual is based on the experience of two pre-service trainings and was guided by the Peace Corps language training curriculum. The learning approach is competency-based or topic-oriented to provide survival competencies. Three main sections review phonetics, topics for discussion, and practical grammar…

  18. The language faculty that wasn't: a usage-based account of natural language recursion

    PubMed Central

    Christiansen, Morten H.; Chater, Nick

    2015-01-01

    In the generative tradition, the language faculty has been shrinking—perhaps to include only the mechanism of recursion. This paper argues that even this view of the language faculty is too expansive. We first argue that a language faculty is difficult to reconcile with evolutionary considerations. We then focus on recursion as a detailed case study, arguing that our ability to process recursive structure does not rely on recursion as a property of the grammar, but instead emerges gradually by piggybacking on domain-general sequence learning abilities. Evidence from genetics, comparative work on non-human primates, and cognitive neuroscience suggests that humans have evolved complex sequence learning skills, which were subsequently pressed into service to accommodate language. Constraints on sequence learning therefore have played an important role in shaping the cultural evolution of linguistic structure, including our limited abilities for processing recursive structure. Finally, we re-evaluate some of the key considerations that have often been taken to require the postulation of a language faculty. PMID:26379567

  19. The language faculty that wasn't: a usage-based account of natural language recursion.

    PubMed

    Christiansen, Morten H; Chater, Nick

    2015-01-01

    In the generative tradition, the language faculty has been shrinking-perhaps to include only the mechanism of recursion. This paper argues that even this view of the language faculty is too expansive. We first argue that a language faculty is difficult to reconcile with evolutionary considerations. We then focus on recursion as a detailed case study, arguing that our ability to process recursive structure does not rely on recursion as a property of the grammar, but instead emerges gradually by piggybacking on domain-general sequence learning abilities. Evidence from genetics, comparative work on non-human primates, and cognitive neuroscience suggests that humans have evolved complex sequence learning skills, which were subsequently pressed into service to accommodate language. Constraints on sequence learning therefore have played an important role in shaping the cultural evolution of linguistic structure, including our limited abilities for processing recursive structure. Finally, we re-evaluate some of the key considerations that have often been taken to require the postulation of a language faculty.

  20. Training a new generation of speech-language pathologists with competences in the management of literacy disorders and learning disabilities in Hong Kong.

    PubMed

    Yuen, Kevin C P

    2014-01-01

    One of the recent developments in the education of speech-language pathology is to include literacy disorders and learning disabilities as key training components in the training curriculum. Disorders in reading and writing are interwoven with disorders in speaking and listening, which should be managed holistically, particularly in children and adolescents. With extensive training in clinical linguistics, language disorders, and other theoretical knowledge and clinical skills, speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are the best equipped and most competent professionals to screen, identify, diagnose, and manage individuals with literacy disorders. To tackle the challenges of and the huge demand for services in literacy as well as language and learning disorders, the Hong Kong Institute of Education has recently developed the Master of Science Programme in Educational Speech-Language Pathology and Learning Disabilities, which is one of the very first speech-language pathology training programmes in Asia to blend training components of learning disabilities, literacy disorders, and social-emotional-behavioural-developmental disabilities into a developmentally and medically oriented speech-language pathology training programme. This new training programme aims to prepare a new generation of SLPs to be able to offer comprehensive support to individuals with speech, language, literacy, learning, communication, and swallowing disorders of different developmental or neurogenic origins, particularly to infants and adolescents as well as to their family and educational team. © 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  1. Simulated learning environments in speech-language pathology: an Australian response.

    PubMed

    MacBean, Naomi; Theodoros, Deborah; Davidson, Bronwyn; Hill, Anne E

    2013-06-01

    The rising demand for health professionals to service the Australian population is placing pressure on traditional approaches to clinical education in the allied health professions. Existing research suggests that simulated learning environments (SLEs) have the potential to increase student placement capacity while providing quality learning experiences with comparable or superior outcomes to traditional methods. This project investigated the current use of SLEs in Australian speech-language pathology curricula, and the potential future applications of SLEs to the clinical education curricula through an extensive consultative process with stakeholders (all 10 Australian universities offering speech-language pathology programs in 2010, Speech Pathology Australia, members of the speech-language pathology profession, and current student body). Current use of SLEs in speech-language pathology education was found to be limited, with additional resources required to further develop SLEs and maintain their use within the curriculum. Perceived benefits included: students' increased clinical skills prior to workforce placement, additional exposure to specialized areas of speech-language pathology practice, inter-professional learning, and richer observational experiences for novice students. Stakeholders perceived SLEs to have considerable potential for clinical learning. A nationally endorsed recommendation for SLE development and curricula integration was prepared.

  2. One Stone, Two Birds: Maximizing Service Learning Outcomes through TESOL Practicum

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yang, Ping

    2014-01-01

    This paper examines a good practice for service learning that has been implemented for years in TESOL Internship, a professional unit for students doing Master of Arts (MA) in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) at a major university in Australia. The author has investigated and identified three key features of a good practice…

  3. Studying and Supporting Writing in Student Organizations as a High-Impact Practice

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hendrickson, Brian

    2016-01-01

    Institutions of postsecondary education, and the field of writing across the curriculum and in the disciplines (WAC/WID) in particular, need to do more to trouble learning paradigms that employ writing only in service to particular disciplines, only in traditional learning environments, and only in particular languages, or in service to an overly…

  4. Social Networking, Microlending, and Translation in the Spanish Service-Learning Classroom

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Faszer-McMahon, Debra

    2013-01-01

    This small-scale study analyzes the use of service-learning pedagogy via non-profit translation in the intermediate-level language classroom. Forty-three students at the intermediate-high level in three Spanish classes in Greensburg, Pennsylvania served as part of a translation team for the non-profit organization Kiva, which helps to fund…

  5. Ensuring Proper Competency in the Host Language: Contrasting Formula and the Place of Heritage Languages

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McAndrew, Marie

    2009-01-01

    Background Context: In most immigrant-receiving societies, an important question, both for researchers and policy makers, has been the weighing of the relative efficiency of different formulas in the learning of the host language by immigrant students, especially the potential impact of specific services on social integration and the role of…

  6. The Use of 3D Virtual Learning Environments in Training Foreign Language Pre-Service Teachers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Can, Tuncer; Simsek, Irfan

    2015-01-01

    The recent developments in computer and Internet technologies and in three dimensional modelling necessitates the new approaches and methods in the education field and brings new opportunities to the higher education. The Internet and virtual learning environments have changed the learning opportunities by diversifying the learning options not…

  7. Indirect language therapy for children with persistent language impairment in mainstream primary schools: outcomes from a cohort intervention.

    PubMed

    McCartney, Elspeth; Boyle, James; Ellis, Sue; Bannatyne, Susan; Turnbull, Mary

    2011-01-01

    A manualized language therapy developed via a randomized controlled trial had proved efficacious in the short-term in developing expressive language for mainstream primary school children with persistent language impairment. This therapy had been delivered to a predetermined schedule by speech and language therapists or speech and language therapy assistants to children individually or in groups. However, this model of service delivery is no longer the most common model in UK schools, where indirect consultancy approaches with intervention delivered by school staff are often used. A cohort study was undertaken to investigate whether the therapy was equally efficacious when delivered to comparable children by school staff, rather than speech and language therapists or speech and language therapy assistants. Children in the cohort study were selected using the same criteria as in the randomized controlled trial, and the same manualized therapy was used, but delivered by mainstream school staff using a consultancy model common in the UK. Outcomes were compared with those of randomized controlled trial participants. The gains in expressive language measured in the randomized controlled trial were not replicated in the cohort study. Less language-learning activity was recorded than had been planned, and less than was delivered in the randomized controlled trial. Implications for 'consultancy' speech and language therapist service delivery models in mainstream schools are outlined. At present, the more efficacious therapy is that delivered by speech and language therapists or speech and language therapy assistants to children individually or in groups. This may be related to more faithful adherence to the interventions schedule, and to a probably greater amount of language-learning activity undertaken. Intervention delivered via school-based 'consultancy' approaches in schools will require to be carefully monitored by schools and SLT services. © 2010 Royal College of Speech & Language Therapists.

  8. A Facebook Project for Japanese University Students (2): Does It Really Enhance Student Interaction, Learner Autonomy, and English Abilities?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hamada, Mayumi

    2013-01-01

    Facebook is, in most countries, a very popular Social Network Service (SNS). Since the launch of its service in Japan in 2008, it has been growing rapidly. As a platform for a link to the world, Facebook can also be used effectively for language learning in English as a foreign language (EFL) environments. The purpose of this project was to…

  9. Pre-service mathematics teachers' attitudes towards learning English: A case study in Yogyakarta

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Setyaningrum, Wahyu

    2017-08-01

    This study investigated attitudes of pre-service mathematics teachers towards English as one of the subject at the university. It is a qualitative study in which questionnaire and face-to-face interview were employed to collect the data. The participants of this study were sixty students of mathematics education department at one of the university in Yogyakarta. The main research question was concern with how pre-service mathematics teachers perceive the importance of learning English. This study found that most of the participants perceive English as an important language that should be acquired by mathematics teachers. Their beliefs about the importance of English were mostly due to instrumental orientation rather than integrative orientation, such as getting a good job, getting a scholarship and understanding learning sources that are written in English. The data also revealed some obstacles faced by pre-service mathematics teachers in learning English as an additional language for them. The main obstacles were related to the differences between English for mathematics and English in daily life including its vocabulary and structure. Most of the participants argued that several mathematics vocabularies had precise meaning and different from daily English. In addition, they found difficult to understand some sentences used in the paper journal due to its structure. This study therefore, provided an insight into the pre-service mathematics teachers' perception and obstacles when learning English that could be use in improving pre-service teachers' education.

  10. Elaboration and Simplification in Spanish Discourse

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Granena, Gisela

    2008-01-01

    This article compares spoken discourse models in Spanish as a second language textbooks and online language learning resources with naturally occurring conversations. Telephone service encounters are analyzed from the point of view of three different dimensions of authenticity: linguistic, sociolinguistic, and psycholinguistic. An analysis of 20…

  11. "Now I See How My Students Feel": Expansive Learning in a Language Awareness Workshop

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fajardo, Guadalupe Ruiz; Torres-Guzmán, María E.

    2016-01-01

    This study looks at a case study research on a language awareness workshop in a New York public school with a dual language (Spanish/English) program. A learner-centred lesson, taught in Spanish, focused on basic personal information exchanges for in-service teachers who taught only in English and who had some limited knowledge of Spanish. The…

  12. English as a Second Language in the Mainstream: Teaching, Learning and Identity. Applied Linguistics and Language Study.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mohan, Bernard, Ed.; Leung, Constant, Ed.; Davison, Chris, Ed.

    This book analyzes the system-wide provision of English-as-a-Second Language (ESL) services in Australia, Canada, and England suggests that a truly responsive educational vision is lacking. They find government policies to be inadequate; educational practices for ESL students to be either underdeveloped or poorly coordinated with practices for…

  13. Exploring Taiwanese Preservice Teachers' Identity Construction in the Context of Service-Learning: Conflict and Development

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tseng, Ming-i Lydia

    2017-01-01

    Language teacher identity (LTI) has gained prominence in second language education in the recent two decades, particularly the complexity of identity construction in the changing context shaped by local and global forces. This study adds to recent work on LTI by exploring how Asian teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) constructed their…

  14. Learning through Service: "A Testimonio" on the Pedagogical and Scholarly Benefits of Service Projects Conducted by Teachers of Spanish

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Christoph, Nancy

    2015-01-01

    This article argues the pedagogical and scholarly benefits to Spanish language faculty who themselves conduct community-engaged service projects in Spanish-speaking communities. The author explores the term "service" as it is understood in higher education in relationship to teaching and scholarship, positing that service projects…

  15. Per-service supervised learning for identifying desired WoT apps from user requests in natural language

    PubMed Central

    2017-01-01

    Web of Things (WoT) platforms are growing fast so as the needs for composing WoT apps more easily and efficiently. We have recently commenced the campaign to develop an interface where users can issue requests for WoT apps entirely in natural language. This requires an effort to build a system that can learn to identify relevant WoT functions that fulfill user’s requests. In our preceding work, we trained a supervised learning system with thousands of publicly-available IFTTT app recipes based on conditional random fields (CRF). However, the sub-par accuracy and excessive training time motivated us to devise a better approach. In this paper, we present a novel solution that creates a separate learning engine for each trigger service. With this approach, parallel and incremental learning becomes possible. For inference, our system first identifies the most relevant trigger service for a given user request by using an information retrieval technique. Then, the learning engine associated with the trigger service predicts the most likely pair of trigger and action functions. We expect that such two-phase inference method given parallel learning engines would improve the accuracy of identifying related WoT functions. We verify our new solution through the empirical evaluation with training and test sets sampled from a pool of refined IFTTT app recipes. We also meticulously analyze the characteristics of the recipes to find future research directions. PMID:29149217

  16. Per-service supervised learning for identifying desired WoT apps from user requests in natural language.

    PubMed

    Yoon, Young

    2017-01-01

    Web of Things (WoT) platforms are growing fast so as the needs for composing WoT apps more easily and efficiently. We have recently commenced the campaign to develop an interface where users can issue requests for WoT apps entirely in natural language. This requires an effort to build a system that can learn to identify relevant WoT functions that fulfill user's requests. In our preceding work, we trained a supervised learning system with thousands of publicly-available IFTTT app recipes based on conditional random fields (CRF). However, the sub-par accuracy and excessive training time motivated us to devise a better approach. In this paper, we present a novel solution that creates a separate learning engine for each trigger service. With this approach, parallel and incremental learning becomes possible. For inference, our system first identifies the most relevant trigger service for a given user request by using an information retrieval technique. Then, the learning engine associated with the trigger service predicts the most likely pair of trigger and action functions. We expect that such two-phase inference method given parallel learning engines would improve the accuracy of identifying related WoT functions. We verify our new solution through the empirical evaluation with training and test sets sampled from a pool of refined IFTTT app recipes. We also meticulously analyze the characteristics of the recipes to find future research directions.

  17. Enhancing Collaborative and Meaningful Language Learning Through Concept Mapping

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Marriott, Rita De Cássia Veiga; Torres, Patrícia Lupion

    This chapter aims to investigate new ways of foreign-language teaching/learning via a study of how concept mapping can help develop a student's reading, writing and oral skills as part of a blended methodology for language teaching known as LAPLI (Laboratorio de Aprendizagem de LInguas: The Language Learning Lab). LAPLI is a student-centred and collaborative methodology which encourages students to challenge their limitations and expand their current knowledge whilst developing their linguistic and interpersonal skills. We explore the theories that underpin LAPLI and detail the 12 activities comprising its programme with specify reference to the use of "concept mapping". An innovative table enabling a formative and summative assessment of the concept maps is formulated. Also presented are some of the qualitative and quantitative results achieved when this methodology was first implemented with a group of pre-service students studying for a degree in English and Portuguese languages at the Catholic University of Parana (PUCPR) in Brazil. The contribution of concept mapping and LAPLI to an under standing of language learning along with a consideration of the difficulties encountered in its implementation with student groups is discussed and suggestions made for future research.

  18. Enhancing Collaborative and Meaningful Language Learning through Concept Mapping

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    de Cássia Veiga Marriott, Rita; Torres, Patrícia Lupion

    This chapter aims to investigate new ways of foreign-language teaching/learning via a study of how concept mapping can help develop a student's reading, writing and oral skills as part of a blended methodology for language teaching known as LAPLI (Laboratorio de Aprendizagem de LInguas: The Language Learning Lab). LAPLI is a student-centred and collaborative methodology which encourages students to challenge their limitations and expand their current knowledge whilst developing their linguistic and interpersonal skills. We explore the theories that underpin LAPLI and detail the 12 activities comprising its programme with specify reference to the use of “concept mapping”. An innovative table enabling a formative and summative assessment of the concept maps is formulated. Also presented are some of the qualitative and quantitative results achieved when this methodology was first implemented with a group of pre-service students studying for a degree in English and Portuguese languages at the Catholic University of Parana (PUCPR) in Brazil. The contribution of concept mapping and LAPLI to an understanding of language learning along with a consideration of the difficulties encountered in its implementation with student groups is discussed and suggestions made for future research.

  19. Culturally and linguistically diverse students in speech-language pathology courses: A platform for culturally responsive services.

    PubMed

    Attrill, Stacie; Lincoln, Michelle; McAllister, Sue

    2017-06-01

    Increasing the proportion of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) students and providing intercultural learning opportunities for all students are two strategies identified to facilitate greater access to culturally responsive speech-language pathology services. To enact these strategies, more information is needed about student diversity. This study collected descriptive information about CALD speech-language pathology students in Australia. Cultural and linguistic background information was collected through surveying 854 domestic and international speech-language pathology students from three Australian universities. Students were categorised according to defined or perceived CALD status, international student status, speaking English as an Additional Language (EAL), or speaking a Language Other than English at Home (LOTEH). Overall, 32.1% of students were either defined or perceived CALD. A total of 14.9% spoke EAL and 25.7% identified speaking a LOTEH. CALD students were more likely to speak EAL or a LOTEH than non-CALD students, were prominently from Southern and South-Eastern Asian backgrounds and spoke related languages. Many students reported direct or indirect connections with their cultural heritage and/or contributed linguistic diversity. These students may represent broader acculturative experiences in communities. The sociocultural knowledge and experience of these students may provide intercultural learning opportunities for all students and promote culturally responsive practices.

  20. Managing Digital Learning Environments: Student Teachers' Perception on the Social Networking Services Use in Writing Courses in Teacher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Prasojo, Lantip Diat; Habibi, Akhmad; Mukminin, Amirul; Muhaimin; Taridi, Muhammad; Ikhsan; Saudagar, Ferdiaz

    2017-01-01

    Limited studies have been conducted to examine how effective and what impacts dealing with students' learning experiences as well as the problems faced by the students. This study focused on English student teachers' experiences on the advantages and problems faced in using Social Networking Services (SNS) in English as Foreign Language (EFL)…

  1. Teacher Learning during Transition from Pre-Service to Novice EFL Teacher: A Longitudinal Case Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bulut Albaba, Melike

    2017-01-01

    In language teacher education literature, attention is predominantly centered on the content of teacher learning and cognition. The process of teacher learning and cognitive change over time remains relatively underexplored. For instance, despite its importance in career trajectory, there is limited empirical evidence on the transition process…

  2. Evidencing the Passion of Language Teachers' Research Engagement: The Case of a University Pedagogy ALMS Course Module

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vaattovaara, Johanna

    2017-01-01

    This paper presents a case example of a University Pedagogy course module carried out in ALMS (Autonomous Learning Modules) format. The participants of the course were mainly in-service language teachers of the University of Helsinki Language Centre, and the author of this report is a module instructor and counsellor. The motivation for the ALMS…

  3. School Leavers with Learning Disabilities Moving from Child to Adult Speech and Language Therapy (SLT) Teams: SLTs' Views of Successful and Less Successful Transition Co-Working Practices

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McCartney, Elspeth; Muir, Margaret

    2017-01-01

    School-leaving for pupils with long-term speech, language, swallowing or communication difficulties requires careful management. Speech and language therapists (SLTs) support communication, secure assistive technology and manage swallowing difficulties post-school. UK SLTs are employed by health services, with child SLT teams based in schools.…

  4. French as a Second Language. Annotated Bibliography of Learning Resources: Beginning Level. Early Childhood Services - Grade 12.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Alberta Dept. of Education, Edmonton. Language Services Branch.

    This annotated bibliography of instructional resources for Alberta (Canada) introductory French second language teaching in early childhood, elementary, and secondary education consists of citations in 10 categories: audio/video recordings; communicative activity resources (primarily texts and workbooks); dictionaries and vocabulary handbooks;…

  5. Supporting Postsecondary English Language Learners' Writing Proficiency Using Technological Tools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Moore, Kathleen A.; Rutherford, Camille; Crawford, Keith A.

    2016-01-01

    Postsecondary international students who are also English language learners face a number of challenges when studying abroad and often are provided with services to support their learning. Though some research examines how institutions can support this population of students, few studies explore how technology is used to support language…

  6. 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…

  7. Pre-Service Teachers' Beliefs about Language Teaching and Learning: A Longitudinal Study (Creencias de profesores principiantes acerca de la enseñanza y aprendizaje de lengua: un estudio longitudinal)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cota Grijalva, Sofía D.; Ruiz-Esparza Barajas, Elizabeth

    2013-01-01

    This paper contains the description of a research project that was carried out in the Bachelor of Arts in English Language Teaching program at a Mexican university. The study was longitudinal and it tracked fourteen students for four semesters of the eight semester program. The aim was to identify pre-service teachers' beliefs about English…

  8. Benefits of Sign Language Interpreting and Text Alternatives for Deaf Students' Classroom Learning

    PubMed Central

    Marschark, Marc; Leigh, Greg; Sapere, Patricia; Burnham, Denis; Convertino, Carol; Stinson, Michael; Knoors, Harry; Vervloed, Mathijs P. J.; Noble, William

    2006-01-01

    Four experiments examined the utility of real-time text in supporting deaf students' learning from lectures in postsecondary (Experiments 1 and 2) and secondary classrooms (Experiments 3 and 4). Experiment 1 compared the effects on learning of sign language interpreting, real-time text (C-Print), and both. Real-time text alone led to significantly higher performance by deaf students than the other two conditions, but performance by deaf students in all conditions was significantly below that of hearing peers who saw lectures without any support services. Experiment 2 compared interpreting and two forms of real-time text, C-Print and Communication Access Real-Time Translation, at immediate testing and after a 1-week delay (with study notes). No significant differences among support services were obtained at either testing. Experiment 3 also failed to reveal significant effects at immediate or delayed testing in a comparison of real-time text, direct (signed) instruction, and both. Experiment 4 found no significant differences between interpreting and interpreting plus real-time text on the learning of either new words or the content of television programs. Alternative accounts of the observed pattern of results are considered, but it is concluded that neither sign language interpreting nor real-time text have any inherent, generalized advantage over the other in supporting deaf students in secondary or postsecondary settings. Providing deaf students with both services simultaneously does not appear to provide any generalized benefit, at least for the kinds of materials utilized here. PMID:16928778

  9. Benefits of sign language interpreting and text alternatives for deaf students' classroom learning.

    PubMed

    Marschark, Marc; Leigh, Greg; Sapere, Patricia; Burnham, Denis; Convertino, Carol; Stinson, Michael; Knoors, Harry; Vervloed, Mathijs P J; Noble, William

    2006-01-01

    Four experiments examined the utility of real-time text in supporting deaf students' learning from lectures in postsecondary (Experiments 1 and 2) and secondary classrooms (Experiments 3 and 4). Experiment 1 compared the effects on learning of sign language interpreting, real-time text (C-Print), and both. Real-time text alone led to significantly higher performance by deaf students than the other two conditions, but performance by deaf students in all conditions was significantly below that of hearing peers who saw lectures without any support services. Experiment 2 compared interpreting and two forms of real-time text, C-Print and Communication Access Real-Time Translation, at immediate testing and after a 1-week delay (with study notes). No significant differences among support services were obtained at either testing. Experiment 3 also failed to reveal significant effects at immediate or delayed testing in a comparison of real-time text, direct (signed) instruction, and both. Experiment 4 found no significant differences between interpreting and interpreting plus real-time text on the learning of either new words or the content of television programs. Alternative accounts of the observed pattern of results are considered, but it is concluded that neither sign language interpreting nor real-time text have any inherent, generalized advantage over the other in supporting deaf students in secondary or postsecondary settings. Providing deaf students with both services simultaneously does not appear to provide any generalized benefit, at least for the kinds of materials utilized here.

  10. Turkish Pre-Service Teachers' Reflective Practices in Teaching English to Young Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Güngör, Muzeyyen Nazli

    2016-01-01

    The course "Teaching English to Young Learners" is the first stage where pre-service teachers are introduced to a child's world, developmental characteristics, needs, interests as well as teaching and learning techniques for these learners in English language teaching pre-service teacher education programmes in Turkey. This action…

  11. Language, Inquiry, and the Heart of Learning: Reflection in an English Methods Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kaufman, Janet E.

    2004-01-01

    In this article, the author features the Family Literacy Center, a service-learning project at the University of Utah's English education program. For the author and her students, Family Literacy Center has become a place to investigate the role of teacher-student or mentor-student relationships in learning and literacy development. The goals of…

  12. Learning English as Thai Adult Learners: An Insight into Experience in Using Learning Strategies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Suwanarak, Kasma

    2015-01-01

    This research aims to understand language learning strategies of Thai adult learners and factors affecting their strategy use. The participants are forty officers of General Service Division of the Council of State of Thailand, attending an English training course for developing their work potential. The data were collected through the…

  13. Meeting the Early Learning Challenge: Supporting English Language Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Matthews, Hannah

    2011-01-01

    The Race to The Top-Early Learning Challenge (RTT-ELC) is designed to improve the quality of early learning and development and close the achievement gap for children with high needs. The Departments of Education and Health and Human Services define high needs to include children who are English learners, often referred to as English Language…

  14. Training English Language Pre-Service Teachers Using a Team Based Learning Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Samad, Arshad Abd; Husein, Hawanum; Rashid, Juridah Md; Rahman, Sharifah Zainab Syd Abd

    2015-01-01

    Team Based Learning which focuses on enhancing positive group dynamics is a relatively popular instructional approach in several disciplines such as Health Sciences and Business but has yet to gain popularity in Education. This paper examines the use of Team Based Learning in teacher training as well as the receptiveness towards the approach as…

  15. Negotiating Displacement Spaces: Exploring Teachers' Stories about Learning and Diversity

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brock, Cynthia; Wallace, Jill; Herschbach, Michelle; Johnson, Christine; Raikes, Bill; Warren, Kim; Nikoli, Melissa; Poulsen, Holland

    2006-01-01

    The purpose of this qualitative investigation was to explore the learning of six in-service U.S. teachers who engaged in a cross-cultural learning experience during the summer of 2001. The teachers were enrolled in a graduate seminar conducted in English and entitled "Literacy Across Languages and Cultures." Cindy (the first author of…

  16. Language, learning, and memory in children with and without single-suture craniosynostosis.

    PubMed

    Kapp-Simon, Kathleen A; Wallace, Erin; Collett, Brent R; Cradock, Mary Michaeleen; Crerand, Canice E; Speltz, Matthew L

    2016-05-01

    OBJECTIVE The language and memory functions of children with and without single-suture craniosynostosis (SSC) were compared at school age (mean 7.45 years, standard deviation [SD] 0.54 years). The children in this cohort were originally recruited in infancy and prior to cranial surgery for those with SSC. METHODS Individual evaluations of 179 school-aged children with SSC and 183 controls were conducted (70% of the original cohort) using standardized measures of language, learning, and memory. Parents participated in an interview about specialized education interventions and school progress. Parents and teachers completed questionnaires about language development. RESULTS Children with SSC (cases) obtained lower scores than controls on all measures. The adjusted differences in language, learning, and memory scores were modest, with SD ranging from 0.0 to -0.4 (p values ranged from 0.001 to 0.99). Censored normal regression was used to account for intervention services received prior to the school-age evaluation; this increased case-control differences (SD range 0.1 to -0.5, p value range 0.001 to 0.50). Mean scores for cases in each SSC diagnostic group were lower than those for controls, with the greatest differences observed among children with unilateral coronal craniosynostosis. CONCLUSIONS Children with SSC continue to show poorer performance than controls on language, learning, and memory tasks at early elementary school age, even when controlling for known confounders, although mean differences are small. Multidisciplinary care, including direct psychological assessment, for children with SSC should extend through school age with a specific focus on language and conceptual learning, as these are areas of potential risk. Future research is needed to investigate language, memory, and learning for this population during the middle to high school years.

  17. Creating and Sustaining Inclusive Instructional Settings for English Language Learners: Why, What, and How

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    López, Francesca; Iribarren, Jacqueline

    2014-01-01

    In this article, we provide an empirically based framework for school leaders to support the replacement of separate means of providing services for English learners (ELs) with more inclusive learning supports. The framework encompasses evidence on cultivating language proficiency, ensuring access to a high-quality curriculum, and promoting…

  18. Effects of a Language Arts Service-Learning Project on Sixth-Grade Academic Achievement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pepin, Gina M.

    2013-01-01

    Although the implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act in 2001 created new instructional intervention practices, reading and writing scores across K-12 and postsecondary levels continue to reflect stagnant achievement outcomes. The research questions in this study concerned the effect of a northern Michigan middle school language arts…

  19. Myths about English Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Medina-Jerez, William; Campbell, Todd

    2015-01-01

    As the ethnic and racial diversity in U.S. classrooms continues to grow, myths about the education of English Language Learners (ELLs) persist, while many teachers feel ill-prepared to meet these students' academic needs. This article focuses on myths shared by in-service science teachers enrolled in a master's program at the University of Texas…

  20. Making the Case for Exploratory World Language Instruction in Catholic Elementary Schools through University Partnerships

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Burke, Brigid M.; Howard, Eric D.

    2017-01-01

    As a result of a university partnership, elementary students at two midwest Catholic elementary schools have been provided with exploratory world language instruction (FLEX) from pre-service teachers. To investigate students' attitudes and learning of Spanish, researchers interviewed second and fourth graders. The students' parents and pre-service…

  1. 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…

  2. Multisensory Teaching of Basic Language Skills Activity Book. Revised Edition

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carreker, Suzanne; Birsh, Judith R.

    2011-01-01

    With the new edition of this activity book--the companion to Judith Birsh's bestselling text, "Multisensory Teaching of Basic Language Skills"--students and practitioners will get the practice they need to use multisensory teaching effectively with students who have dyslexia and other learning disabilities. Ideal for both pre-service teacher…

  3. Curriculum Considerations for Enhancing Baccalaureate Learning for International Students.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pardue, Karen T.; Haas, Barbara

    2003-01-01

    A nursing education program for Israeli students included a final semester in the United States. Program adjustments were made to address English-language fluency, cultural orientation to collectivism, support services for academic writing, and other issues related to the specific learning needs of this population. (SK)

  4. Promoting Library Services with User-Centered Language

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Benedetti, Allison R.

    2017-01-01

    As libraries respond to new teaching and research practices in the twenty-first century, it is important to consider how to advertise library services. Users are often surprised to learn about the varied expertise of library staff and the many services the staff provides. To investigate this issue, the author designed a study to identify a more…

  5. Discourses of prejudice in the professions: the case of sign languages.

    PubMed

    Humphries, Tom; Kushalnagar, Poorna; Mathur, Gaurav; Napoli, Donna Jo; Padden, Carol; Rathmann, Christian; Smith, Scott

    2017-09-01

    There is no evidence that learning a natural human language is cognitively harmful to children. To the contrary, multilingualism has been argued to be beneficial to all. Nevertheless, many professionals advise the parents of deaf children that their children should not learn a sign language during their early years, despite strong evidence across many research disciplines that sign languages are natural human languages. Their recommendations are based on a combination of misperceptions about (1) the difficulty of learning a sign language, (2) the effects of bilingualism, and particularly bimodalism, (3) the bona fide status of languages that lack a written form, (4) the effects of a sign language on acquiring literacy, (5) the ability of technologies to address the needs of deaf children and (6) the effects that use of a sign language will have on family cohesion. We expose these misperceptions as based in prejudice and urge institutions involved in educating professionals concerned with the healthcare, raising and educating of deaf children to include appropriate information about first language acquisition and the importance of a sign language for deaf children. We further urge such professionals to advise the parents of deaf children properly, which means to strongly advise the introduction of a sign language as soon as hearing loss is detected. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

  6. Effectiveness of Vocabulary Learning via Mobile Phone

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lu, M.

    2008-01-01

    Whereas the penetration of mobile phones in Asian countries keeps climbing, little research has explored the application of the short message service (SMS) in second language learning. This study aims to examine the effectiveness of SMS vocabulary lessons of limited lexical information on the small screens of mobile phones. Thirty high school…

  7. An overview of learning disabilities: psychoeducational perspectives.

    PubMed

    Johnson, D J

    1995-01-01

    In general, people with learning disabilities are a heterogeneous population that require a multidisciplinary evaluation and careful, well-planned intervention. Despite this heterogeneity, patterns of problems often co-occur. Therefore, diagnosticians and educators should look beyond single areas of achievement such as reading or arithmetic. In addition, problems in one area of learning typically have secondary impacts on higher levels of learning. That is, comprehension problems typically interfere with expression. Every effort should be made to examine patterns of problems and to avoid fragmentation of services so that each area of underachievement is not treated separately. Although learning disabilities usually interfere with school performance, they are not simply academic handicaps. They interfere with certain social activities as well as occupational pursuits. In many instances, they impact on mental health and self-esteem. Therefore, students need multiple services. And, as emphasized throughout this journal issue, learning disabled individuals may have comorbid conditions such as attention deficit disorder, depression, and neurologic problems. Furthermore, the problems may change over time. Children may first be identified because of language comprehension problems but later have reading or mathematics difficulty. With intervention, oral expressive problems may be alleviated but may be manifested later in written language.

  8. "If I speak English, what am I? I am full man, me": Emotional impact and barriers for refugees and asylum seekers learning English.

    PubMed

    Salvo, Tania; de C Williams, Amanda C

    2017-01-01

    Lack of proficiency in the language of the host country predicts distress among refugees, but many refugees and asylum seekers in the United Kingdom have less than functional English. This study examined how learning English affected refugees' and asylum seekers' lives, particularly their emotional wellbeing, to explore what factors, particularly psychological ones, facilitated or impeded their learning English. We recruited 16 refugees and asylum seekers from an inner-city National Health Service trauma service and from a charity providing one-to-one English classes. All participants were interviewed in English. Interview data were analysed using thematic analysis from a critical realist perspective. Interviewees provided consistent accounts of their efforts to learn English, integrated into often unsettled and difficult lives. The analysis generated six themes in two domains. The impact of learning English was mainly positive, associated with autonomy, sense of achievement, and aspirations. Barriers to learning English consisted of other problems affecting refugees' capacity to learn, limited opportunities to speak English, and a sense of shame associated with perceived lack of English language competence. Findings highlight the need to provide adequate psychological support for refugees and asylum seekers learning English, recognising its importance in promoting both their integration in the UK and their individual psychological well-being.

  9. Educating for interprofessional practice: moving from knowing to being, is it the final piece of the puzzle?

    PubMed

    Ward, Helena; Gum, Lyn; Attrill, Stacie; Bramwell, Donald; Lindemann, Iris; Lawn, Sharon; Sweet, Linda

    2017-01-06

    Professional socialisation and identity arise from interactions occurring within university-based interprofessional education, and workplace-based interprofessional practice experience. However, it is unclear how closely language and concepts of academic learning situations align with workplace contexts for interprofessional learning. This paper reports on a study that brought together university-based educators responsible for teaching health professional students and health service-based practitioners who supervise students in the field. Interviews and focus groups with university-based educators and health service-base practitioners were used to explore perceptions of capabilities required for interprofessional practice. The qualitative data were then examined to explore similarities and differences in the language used by these groups. This analysis identified that there were language differences between the university-based educators and health service based practitioners involved in the project. The former demonstrated a curriculum lens, focusing on educational activities, student support and supervision. Conversely, health service-based practitioners presented a client-centred lens, with a focus on communication, professional disposition, attitude towards clients and co-workers, and authenticity of practice. Building on these insights, we theorise about the need for students to develop the self in order to be an interprofessional practitioner. The implications for health professional education in both university and workplace settings are explored.

  10. Helping Children to Learn at Home: A Family Project to Support Young English-Language Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jasinski, Mary-Anne

    2012-01-01

    The Coalition for Equal Access to Education (CEAE) is a Calgary-based nonprofit organization committed to working with community, education, and government stakeholders to promote access to quality, equitable education and services for K-12 English-as-a-second-language (ESL) learners. CEAE is active in developing innovative projects, research…

  11. Projections: From a Graduate TELL Class to the Practical World of L2 Teachers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ebsworth, Miriam Eisenstein; Kim, Alexis Jeong; Klein, Tristin J.

    2010-01-01

    Our action research study used a mixed design to explore the experiences of 90 pre- and in-service ESL, foreign language (FL), and bilingual teachers in studying and incorporating technology-enhanced language learning (TELL) in their classrooms. Through focus on a TELL graduate course, we considered participants' expectations, experiences, and…

  12. 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…

  13. Formalist (Linguistic) Criticism in an English Language Teacher Education Program: The Reward Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Arikan, Arda

    2008-01-01

    The place of literary criticism in the education of pre-service English language teachers in EFL contexts is rarely discussed in the related literature. Traditional view of teaching criticism involves learning of the tenets of the critical school and applying them to literary texts. In this paper, an application of teaching criticism is discussed…

  14. Talking to Learn: A Mixed-Methods Study of a Professional Development Program for Teachers of English Language Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shea, Lauren M.

    2012-01-01

    Most teachers of English language learners (ELLs) have had virtually no specialized, in-service training in adapting instruction for their students. Prior research fails to investigate the impact of professional development (PD) specifically designed for teachers of ELLs. This dissertation examines a PD program that attempted to prepare teachers…

  15. Addressing the Issue of Cultural and Linguistic Diversity and Assessment: Informal Evaluation Measures for English Language Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Spinelli, Cathleen G.

    2008-01-01

    Existing research indicates that there is a disproportionate number of students with cultural and linguistic differences, English Language Learners (ELL), who are misidentified as learning disabled when their problems are due to cultural and/or linguistic differences. As a consequence, these students do not receive appropriate services. With the…

  16. Crossing borders: High school science teachers learning to teach the specialized language of science

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Patrick, Jennifer Drake

    The highly specialized language of science is both challenging and alienating to adolescent readers. This study investigated how secondary science teachers learn to teach the specialized language of science in their classrooms. Three research questions guided this study: (a) what do science teachers know about teaching reading in science? (b) what understanding about the unique language demands of science reading do they construct through professional development? and (c) how do they integrate what they have learned about these specialized features of science language into their teaching practices? This study investigated the experience of seven secondary science teachers as they participated in a professional development program designed to teach them about the specialized language of science. Data sources included participant interviews, audio-taped professional development sessions, field notes from classroom observations, and a prior knowledge survey. Results from this study suggest that science teachers (a) were excited to learn about disciplinary reading practices, (b) developed an emergent awareness of the specialized features of science language and the various genres of science writing, and (c) recognized that the challenges of science reading goes beyond vocabulary. These teachers' efforts to understand and address the language of science in their teaching practices were undermined by their lack of basic knowledge of grammar, availability of time and resources, their prior knowledge and experiences, existing curriculum, and school structure. This study contributes to our understanding of how secondary science teachers learn about disciplinary literacy and apply that knowledge in their classroom instruction. It has important implications for literacy educators and science educators who are interested in using language and literacy practices in the service of science teaching and learning. (Full text of this dissertation may be available via the University of Florida Libraries web site. Please check http://www.uflib.ufl.edu/etd.html)

  17. Empowering Pre-Service Teachers to Produce Ubiquitous Flipped Classes

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    García-Sánchez, Soraya; Santos-Espino, Jose Miguel

    2017-01-01

    This work focuses on technological and educational outcomes that resulted from the production of foreign language educational videos by 90 pre-service instructors enrolled in an official Master's Degree in Secondary Education programme. This teaching practice, conducted during two consecutive years, was set in a ubiquitous learning environment…

  18. Learning to Mediate: Teacher Appropriation of Dynamic Assessment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Davin, Kristin J.; Herazo, José D.; Sagre, Anamaría

    2017-01-01

    This article examines how four second language (L2) teachers' discursive practices changed as they attempted to implement dynamic assessment (DA) in their classrooms. Classroom artifacts, lesson recordings, and reflections from two pre-service teachers and two in-service teachers, both before and after a professional development series on DA, were…

  19. What Is the Optimal Length of an ELL Program?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hong, Guanglei; Gagne, Joshua; West, Andrew

    2014-01-01

    This study focuses on assessing the contribution of ELL services to Spanish-speaking students' mathematics learning in elementary schools. ELL students tend to have lower average math achievement at school entry and throughout elementary school. The term "ELL services" encompasses English-as-a-second-language (ESL) programs, bilingual…

  20. Pre-Service Teachers' Belief Change and Practical Knowledge Development during the Course of Practicum

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Debreli, Emre

    2016-01-01

    This study deals with the nature of change processes that pre-service teachers undergo throughout their training in an English Language Teaching programme. It also explores the types of beliefs about learning and teaching that pre-service teachers held before starting the practical phase of the programme and whether and how the practical phase…

  1. State of the Art Student Support Services in an IEP Learning Center

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hanson, Jessica; Maxwell, Jeffrey; Mulder, Monika

    2015-01-01

    Intensive English language programs (IEPs) at American universities have the task of recruiting, retaining, and preparing international students for mainstream classes. In order to achieve these tasks, many programs have explored using supplemental instruction (SI) in the form of learning centers (LCs) to support their students. In this study, we…

  2. Facilitation and Assessment of Student Learning in Business Communication

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mahin, Linda; Kruggel, Thomas G.

    2006-01-01

    Business and professional writing courses offer ideal contexts for incorporating service learning into the academic classroom. The focus of such courses on rhetorical analysis and language as social action provide a sound theoretical and practical ground for the application of writing and speaking skills to solve problems and effect change. In…

  3. Talking with John Trim (Part I): A Career in Phonetics, Applied Linguistics and the Public Service

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Little, David; King, Lid

    2013-01-01

    As this issue was in preparation, the journal learned with great regret of the passing of John Trim. John was a long-serving member of the "Language Teaching" Board and his insight and advice proved invaluable for this and previous editors. An expert in the field of phonetics, linguistics, language didactics and policy, John worked…

  4. Advances in natural language processing.

    PubMed

    Hirschberg, Julia; Manning, Christopher D

    2015-07-17

    Natural language processing employs computational techniques for the purpose of learning, understanding, and producing human language content. Early computational approaches to language research focused on automating the analysis of the linguistic structure of language and developing basic technologies such as machine translation, speech recognition, and speech synthesis. Today's researchers refine and make use of such tools in real-world applications, creating spoken dialogue systems and speech-to-speech translation engines, mining social media for information about health or finance, and identifying sentiment and emotion toward products and services. We describe successes and challenges in this rapidly advancing area. Copyright © 2015, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

  5. Genetics of Hearing Loss

    MedlinePlus

    ... Hearing Loss Homepage Basics Noise-Induced Hearing Loss Genetics of Hearing Loss Screening & Diagnosis Types of Hearing Loss About Sound Treatment & Intervention Services Learning Language Bacterial Meningitis Studies Data & Statistics EHDI Annual Data 2016 2015 2014 2013 ...

  6. Hearing Loss in Children

    MedlinePlus

    ... Hearing Loss Homepage Basics Noise-Induced Hearing Loss Genetics of Hearing Loss Screening & Diagnosis Types of Hearing Loss About Sound Treatment & Intervention Services Learning Language Bacterial Meningitis Studies Data & Statistics EHDI Annual Data 2016 2015 2014 2013 ...

  7. Learning to Argue in a Connected World: The Arc of Productive Disciplinary Engagement in a High School Academic Social Network

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Teske, Paul Robert-John

    2014-01-01

    Calls to virtually break down school walls through connected and blended learning environments are ubiquitous as of late as technologies in service of learning evolve and as schools are under pressure to change. Within the subject area of English Language Arts, there is a dearth of research or information on how to facilitate these new, digitally…

  8. Pursuing Precision Speech-Language Therapy Services for Children with Down Syndrome.

    PubMed

    McDaniel, Jena; Yoder, Paul J

    2016-11-01

    The behavioral phenotype of individuals with Down syndrome (DS) offers one avenue for developing speech-language therapy services that are tailored to the individual's characteristics that affect treatment response. Behavioral phenotypes are patterns of behavioral strengths and weaknesses for specific genetic disorders that can help guide the development and implementation of effective interventions. Nonetheless, individual differences within children with DS must be acknowledged and addressed because behavioral phenotypes are probabilistic, not deterministic. Developing precision speech-language therapy services to maximize learning opportunities and outcomes for children with DS calls for increased collaboration among clinicians and researchers to address the needs, challenges, and opportunities on three interconnected themes: (1) moving effective interventions from research to practice, (2) making evidence-based, child-specific treatment intensity decisions, and (3) considering child motivation and temperament characteristics. Increased availability of intervention materials and resources as well as more specific recommendations that acknowledge individual differences could help narrow the research-practice gap. Clear descriptions of disciplined manipulations of treatment intensity components could lead to more effective intervention services. Last, addressing motivation and temperament characteristics, such as the personality-motivation orientation, in children with DS may help maximize learning opportunities. Focused attention and collaboration on these key themes could produce substantial, positive changes for children with DS and their families in the coming decade. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

  9. 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.

  10. Learning E.S.L. with Los Cumbancheros 1988-89. OREA Evaluation Section Report.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Berney, Tomi D.; Adelman, Deborah

    The Learning English as a Second Language (ESL) with Los Cumbancheros project was developed through the collaborative efforts of several New York State Government offices, community school districts in the Bronx, and the private corporate sector. Its objective was to provide supplemental services to at-risk students of limited English proficiency…

  11. Learning to Become a CLIL Teacher: Teaching, Reflection and Professional Development

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Urmeneta, Cristina Escobar

    2013-01-01

    This case study is part of a larger project which aims to determine the usefulness and validity of a model of a pre-service content and language integrated learning (CLIL) teacher education programme inserted in a Master's degree, whose main pedagogical option is to achieve teacher empowerment through cycles of collaborative teaching and shared…

  12. Nursing Professionals' Evaluation in Integrating the Computers in English for Nursing Purposes (ENP) Instruction and Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yu, Wei-Chieh Wayne

    2013-01-01

    This study was designed to examine the pre- and in-service nursing professionals' perceptions of using computers to facilitate foreign language learning as consideration for future English for nursing purposes instruction. One hundred and ninety seven Taiwanese nursing students participated in the study. Findings revealed that (1) the participants…

  13. Problem-Based Learning: A Promising Pathway for Empowering Pre-Service Teachers for ICT-Mediated Language Teaching

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kharade, Kalpana; Peese, Hema

    2014-01-01

    Information and communication technology (ICT) has become a prominent part of education and offers numerous means of improving teaching and learning in the classroom. However, the tendency to take the teacher education curriculum for granted and the assumption that it adequately prepares teachers for the integration of ICT into their teaching…

  14. Perspectives on English Education in the Japanese Public School System: The Views of Foreign Assistant Language Teachers (ALTs)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Amaki, Yuki

    2008-01-01

    Public school students in Japan must take English as a required subject for three years in junior high school and for three more years in senior high school. In spite of the amount of classroom time invested, and in spite of the available learning support services, the foreign Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) system included, the English…

  15. Achieving Developmental Synchrony in Young Children With Hearing Loss

    PubMed Central

    Mellon, Nancy K.; Ouellette, Meredith; Greer, Tracy; Gates-Ulanet, Patricia

    2009-01-01

    Children with hearing loss, with early and appropriate amplification and intervention, demonstrate gains in speech, language, and literacy skills. Despite these improvements many children continue to exhibit disturbances in cognitive, behavioral, and emotional control, self-regulation, and aspects of executive function. Given the complexity of developmental learning, educational settings should provide services that foster the growth of skills across multiple dimensions. Transdisciplinary intervention services that target the domains of language, communication, psychosocial functioning, motor, and cognitive development can promote academic and social success. Educational programs must provide children with access to the full range of basic skills necessary for academic and social achievement. In addition to an integrated curriculum that nurtures speech, language, and literacy development, innovations in the areas of auditory perception, social emotional learning, motor development, and vestibular function can enhance student outcomes. Through ongoing evaluation and modification, clearly articulated curricular approaches can serve as a model for early intervention and special education programs. The purpose of this article is to propose an intervention model that combines best practices from a variety of disciplines that affect developmental outcomes for young children with hearing loss, along with specific strategies and approaches that may help to promote optimal development across domains. Access to typically developing peers who model age-appropriate skills in language and behavior, small class sizes, a co-teaching model, and a social constructivist perspective of teaching and learning, are among the key elements of the model. PMID:20150187

  16. Sustaining and improving an international service-learning partnership: Evaluation of an evidence-based service delivery model.

    PubMed

    Hayward, Lorna M; Li, Li

    2017-06-01

    International service learning (ISL) is an instructional method used by physical therapist educators in the United States (US) to prepare students for rendering culturally competent care. ISL is a faculty led student learning opportunity that includes academic instruction and community service in an international context. Research exists that explores student experiences with ISL, but studies that evaluate ISL partnerships and include global stakeholder feedback are lacking. The purposes of this study were to: 1) integrate a partnership evaluation component into an existing curriculum-based ISL model and 2) through evaluation identify benefits, drawbacks, and suggestions for improving and sustaining the academic-community partnership. Community-based participatory research design using a mixed methods approach was used to evaluate a ISL partnership between a US-based physical therapy program and a service site in Ecuador. Participants were 31 staff working at the global service site. Over three years, 11 interviews were conducted and 26 surveys were administered to global partner staff. Data were analyzed using qualitative thematic content analysis and descriptive statistics. Partnership benefits included the following: continuity of ISL team leadership, targeted rehabilitative efforts, sensitivity to cultural norms, respectful communication, and interaction with local community. Drawbacks were as follows: deficits in cultural awareness, language barriers, and poor treatment carryover. Suggestions for sustaining the relationship incorporated: additional pre-trip communication, education of staff, and improved language skills. As more US teams deliver clinical services abroad, intentional evaluation approaches must include the global stakeholder in the planning, implementation, and evaluation phases to maximize partnerships benefits.

  17. Block Play: Spatial Language with Preschool and School-Aged Children

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cohen, Lynn E.; Emmons, Janet

    2017-01-01

    Implementing a play-based curriculum presents challenges for pre-service and in-service teachers given the current climate of standards and didactic pedagogies. This study highlights the value of playful learning and its rightful place in early childhood classrooms for children of all ages. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the…

  18. Creating a Counter-Space through Listening to and Learning from a Korean Pre-Service Teacher's Experiences

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kang, Jihea

    2017-01-01

    The author uses a life-historical counter-storytelling approach to examine a Korean female pre-service teacher's experiences in a U.S. teacher preparation program. The participant encountered challenges due to her perceived language proficiency and communication and participation style in a U.S. higher educational context. Further, the author…

  19. Clinical educators' experiences of facilitating learning when speaking a different language from both the student and client.

    PubMed

    Keeton, Nicola; Kathard, Harsha; Singh, Shajila

    2017-11-02

    Worldwide there is an increasing responsibility for clinical educators to help students from different language backgrounds to develop the necessary skills to provide health care services to a linguistically diverse client base. This study describes the experiences of clinical educators who facilitate learning in contexts where they are not familiar with the language spoken between students and their clients. A part of the qualitative component of a larger mixed methods study is the focus of this paper. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight participants recruited from all audiology university programmes in South Africa. Thematic analysis allowed for an in depth exploration of the research question. Member checking was used to enhance credibility. It is hoped that the findings will inform training programmes and in so doing, optimize the learning of diverse students who may better be able to provide appropriate services to the linguistically diverse population they serve. Participants experienced challenges with fair assessment of students and with ensuring appropriate client care when they were unable to speak the language shared between the client and the student. In the absence of formal guidelines, clinical educators developed unique coping strategies that they used on a case-by-case basis to assess students and ensure adequate client management when they experienced such language barriers while supervising. Coping strategies included engaging other students as interpreters, having students role-play parts of a session in English in advance and requesting real-time translations from the student during the session. They expressed concern about the fairness and efficacy of the coping strategies used. While clinical educators use unique strategies to assess students and to ensure suitable client care, dilemmas remain regarding the fairness of assessment and the ability to ensure the quality of client care.

  20. Speech-language pathology teletherapy in rural and remote educational settings: Decreasing service inequities.

    PubMed

    Fairweather, Glenn Craig; Lincoln, Michelle Ann; Ramsden, Robyn

    2016-12-01

    The objectives of this study were to investigate the efficacy of a speech-language pathology teletherapy program for children attending schools and early childcare settings in rural New South Wales, Australia, and their parents' views on the program's feasibility and acceptability. Nineteen children received speech-language pathology sessions delivered via Adobe Connect®, Facetime © or Skype © web-conferencing software. During semi-structured interviews, parents (n = 5) described factors that promoted or threatened the program's feasibility and acceptability. Participation in a speech-language pathology teletherapy program using low-bandwidth videoconferencing improved the speech and language skills of children in both early childhood settings and primary school. Emergent themes related to (a) practicality and convenience, (b) learning, (c) difficulties and (d) communication. Treatment outcome data and parental reports verified that the teletherapy service delivery was feasible and acceptable. However, it was also evident that regular discussion and communication between the various stakeholders involved in teletherapy programs may promote increased parental engagement and acceptability.

  1. Learning to Teach English Language Learners: A Study of Elementary School Teachers' Sense-Making in an ELL Endorsement Program

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Daniel, Shannon M.; Pray, Lisa

    2017-01-01

    Using Jarvis's (2009) framework of adult learning, this study examines how in-service elementary school teachers make sense of instruction that is responsive to multilingual learners. Case studies of two teachers reveal their nuanced attempts to improve practice during a 1-year, graduate-level, add-on certification program for teaching English…

  2. Exploring the Relationships among Teacher Confidence, Learning, and Test Performance within the English-for-Teaching Course. Research Report. ETS RR-16-24

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gu, Lin; Papageorgiou, Spiros

    2016-01-01

    In responding to the increasingly expanded emphasis on English language teaching (ELT) around the globe, Educational Testing Service (ETS) collaborated with National Geographic Learning to develop the "ELTeach"™ program (http://www.elteach.com), an online professional development program consisting of two courses, English-for-Teaching…

  3. The Influence of the Israel-Arab Conflict on Israeli-Jewish Students Learning Arabic as a Third Language.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Abu-Rabia, Salim

    1998-01-01

    The attitudes of 100 Israeli-Jewish students toward learning Arabic and coexistence with Arabs within Israel were investigated, as was their evaluation of characters they read about in familiar and unfamiliar texts. The students were found to possess low instrumental and low indoors integrative motivation, but their army service motivation and…

  4. What pediatricians should know about normal language development: ensuring cultural differences are not diagnosed as disorders.

    PubMed

    Weiss, Amy L; Van Haren, Melissa S

    2003-07-01

    The roles and responsibilities of speech-language pathologists and pediatricians have become greater with the changing population demographics in the United States. In some states, the majority of the population belongs to a national cultural minority, eg, New Mexico. Even a state such as Iowa, with only a 5% nonmajority population, has a school-aged population that is almost 10% nonmajority. This growth of diversity is likely to continue. Rather than viewing sensitivity to the influence of culture on language learning and other developmental areas as an "add-on" to a practice, it may be wiser to recognize that approaching all clients with as few assumptions about their behaviors as possible will guarantee nonbiased service delivery for all. Without nonbiased service delivery, incorrect diagnoses and provision of inappropriate therapy become more likely. Fortunately, many resources are available to assist pediatricians and speech-language pathologists in learning about various cultures. Institutional review boards have become more vigilant about the inclusion of a cross-section of subject populations as participants in research studies in addition to protecting the rights of all participants. Funding agencies also have expressed as a priority the inclusion of research subjects from minority populations to add to the information available about the incidence and prevalence of disorders across the range of our potential patients. In a society in which cultural differences are not just defined by race or ethnicity, but by gender, sexual orientation, age, geographic region, and religion, belief systems about disease, disability, and treatment are dynamic entities for health professionals to take into consideration. It is a challenge that speech-language pathologists and pediatricians must meet if they are to provide the best and most appropriate services for their patients.

  5. Risk of Bacterial Meningitis in Children with Cochlear Implants

    MedlinePlus

    ... Hearing Loss Homepage Basics Noise-Induced Hearing Loss Genetics of Hearing Loss Screening & Diagnosis Types of Hearing Loss About Sound Treatment & Intervention Services Learning Language Bacterial Meningitis Studies Data & Statistics EHDI Annual Data 2016 2015 2014 2013 ...

  6. Australian Pre-Service Teachers' Knowledge of Phonemic Awareness and Phonics in the Process of Learning to Read

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fielding-Barnsley, Ruth

    2010-01-01

    Recent Australian and international government reports refer to the importance of teacher knowledge in the sound structure of language and its relationship to beginning reading. In this study, a group of 162 pre-service teachers responded to a questionnaire including questions related to their attitudes towards using phonics instruction in the…

  7. How a One-Year Overseas Teacher Education Programme Improved a Teacher's Motivation Strategies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wong, Ruth

    2016-01-01

    This longitudinal study investigates how in-service study abroad can improve the professional skills of teachers in regard to the strategies and attitudes they use to better motivate their students to learn English. The subject of this study is an in-service English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teacher from China who undertook a one-year teacher…

  8. Development and evaluation of an intermediate-level elective course on medical Spanish for pharmacy students.

    PubMed

    Mueller, Robert

    The Spanish-speaking population in the United States is increasing rapidly, and there is a need for additional educational efforts, beyond teaching basic medical Spanish terminology, to increase the number of Spanish-speaking pharmacists able to provide culturally appropriate care to this patient population. This article describes the development and evaluation of an intermediate-level elective course where students integrated pharmacy practice skills with Spanish-language skills and cultural competency. Educational Activity and Setting: Medical Spanish for Pharmacists was developed as a two-credit elective course for pharmacy students in their third-professional-year who possessed a certain level of Spanish language competence. The course was designed so that students would combine patient care skills such as obtaining a medication list and providing patient education, and pharmacotherapy knowledge previously learned in the curriculum, along with Spanish-language skills, and apply them to simulated Spanish-speaking patients. Elements to promote cultural competency were integrated throughout the course through a variety of methods, including a service learning activity. Successful attainment of course goals and objectives were demonstrated through quizzes, assignments, examinations, and an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE). Based on these course assessments, students performed well during both offerings of the course. While the class cohort size was small in the two offerings of the course, the Medical Spanish for Pharmacists elective may still serve as an example for other pharmacy programs as an innovative approach in combining Spanish language, specific pharmacy skills, cultural competency, and service learning. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  9. Seamless Language Learning: Second Language Learning with Social Media

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wong, Lung-Hsiang; Chai, Ching Sing; Aw, Guat Poh

    2017-01-01

    This conceptual paper describes a language learning model that applies social media to foster contextualized and connected language learning in communities. The model emphasizes weaving together different forms of language learning activities that take place in different learning contexts to achieve seamless language learning. it promotes social…

  10. 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.

  11. Developing Collaborative Autonomous Learning Abilities in Computer Mediated Language Learning: Attention to Meaning among Students in Wiki Space

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kessler, Greg; Bikowski, Dawn

    2010-01-01

    This study reports on attention to meaning among 40 NNS pre-service EFL teachers as they collaboratively constructed a wiki in a 16-week online course. Focus is placed upon the nature of individual and group behavior when attending to meaning in a long-term wiki-based collaborative activity as well as the students' collaborative autonomous…

  12. Getting Their Feet Wet: Trainee EFL Teachers in Germany and Israel Collaborate Online to Promote Their Telecollaboration Competence through Experiential Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Waldman, Tina; Harel, Efrat; Schwab, Götz

    2016-01-01

    The paper presents a telecollaboration project between 54 pre-service teachers of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) studying at a teacher training college in Israel and a university in Germany. The telecollaboration involved a collaborative Project Based Learning Task (PBLT) in which the students compared and evaluated the ways EFL is taught in…

  13. Incidental acquisition of foreign language vocabulary through brief multi-modal exposure.

    PubMed

    Bisson, Marie-Josée; van Heuven, Walter J B; Conklin, Kathy; Tunney, Richard J

    2013-01-01

    First language acquisition requires relatively little effort compared to foreign language acquisition and happens more naturally through informal learning. Informal exposure can also benefit foreign language learning, although evidence for this has been limited to speech perception and production. An important question is whether informal exposure to spoken foreign language also leads to vocabulary learning through the creation of form-meaning links. Here we tested the impact of exposure to foreign language words presented with pictures in an incidental learning phase on subsequent explicit foreign language learning. In the explicit learning phase, we asked adults to learn translation equivalents of foreign language words, some of which had appeared in the incidental learning phase. Results revealed rapid learning of the foreign language words in the incidental learning phase showing that informal exposure to multi-modal foreign language leads to foreign language vocabulary acquisition. The creation of form-meaning links during the incidental learning phase is discussed.

  14. Native-language N400 and P600 predict dissociable language-learning abilities in adults

    PubMed Central

    Qi, Zhenghan; Beach, Sara D.; Finn, Amy S.; Minas, Jennifer; Goetz, Calvin; Chan, Brian; Gabrieli, John D.E.

    2018-01-01

    Language learning aptitude during adulthood varies markedly across individuals. An individual’s native-language ability has been associated with success in learning a new language as an adult. However, little is known about how native-language processing affects learning success and what neural markers of native-language processing, if any, are related to success in learning. We therefore related variation in electrophysiology during native-language processing to success in learning a novel artificial language. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded while native English speakers judged the acceptability of English sentences prior to learning an artificial language. There was a trend towards a double dissociation between native-language ERPs and their relationships to novel syntax and vocabulary learning. Individuals who exhibited a greater N400 effect when processing English semantics showed better future learning of the artificial language overall. The N400 effect was related to syntax learning via its specific relationship to vocabulary learning. In contrast, the P600 effect size when processing English syntax predicted future syntax learning but not vocabulary learning. These findings show that distinct neural signatures of native-language processing relate to dissociable abilities for learning novel semantic and syntactic information. PMID:27737775

  15. Writing Process Products in Intermediate-Grade Children With and Without Language-Based Learning Disabilities.

    PubMed

    Koutsoftas, Anthony D

    2016-12-01

    Difficulties with written expression are an important consideration in the assessment and treatment of school-age children. This study evaluated how intermediate-grade children with and without written language difficulties fared on a writing task housed within the Hayes and Berninger (2014) writing process framework. Sixty-four children completed a writing task whereby they planned, wrote, and revised a narrative story across 3 days. Children had extended time to produce an outline, first draft, and final copy of their story. Language transcription approaches were used to obtain measures reflecting writing productivity, complexity, accuracy, and mechanics, in addition to measures of planning and revision. Results indicated that children with writing difficulties produced poorer quality stories compared with their peers yet were not significantly different across all measures. Children with typical development produced longer stories with better spelling accuracy. Writing process measures predicted significant amounts of variance in writing quality across the sample. Writing should be considered as part of language assessment and intervention, whether as the sole language difficulty or alongside difficulties with speaking, listening, or reading in children with language-based learning difficulties. Implications for translation of research to practice and service delivery are provided.

  16. 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.

  17. "You Never Know What Research Is Like Unless You've Done It!": Action Research to Promote Collaborative Student-Teacher Research

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yan, Chunmei

    2017-01-01

    In contrast with its high level of popularity in both research and practice for in-service teacher development, teacher research has received much less attention in pre-service language teacher education as a reflective learning approach, particularly in China's context. Action research, as a major form of teacher research, has rarely been…

  18. Characteristics and Contributions of School Subjects at the Elementary Level: Results of a Survey of Pre-Service Elementary Teachers from Four Quebec Universities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lebrun, Johanne; Lenoir, Yves; Oliveira, Anderson Araujo; Morin, Marie-Pier; McConnell, Anne Catherine

    2011-01-01

    This article presents the results of a survey questionnaire involving 841 third and fourth year students enrolled in a French language Bachelors degree program in Elementary Education at four Quebec universities. The questionnaire dealt with pre-service elementary teachers' representations of the teaching and learning of four school subjects:…

  19. A Study of In-Service Teacher Educator Roles, with Implications for a Curriculum for Their Professional Development

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    O'Dwyer, John B.; Atli, Hilal Handan

    2015-01-01

    In-service educators have a crucial role to play in meeting the professional learning needs of teachers of the future, according to the Council of Europe's "ET 2020", although it is less clear what that role entails. This empirical study, undertaken in a university school of English language in Turkey, explores the everyday experience of…

  20. Computers in Small Libraries: Learning Server-Side Scripting

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roberts, Gary

    2005-01-01

    In this column, the author compares and contrasts the most popular scripting languages that are used to create truly dynamic service-oriented Web sites, building a conceptual framework that be can used as a starting point for specific server-side library projects.

  1. Native-language N400 and P600 predict dissociable language-learning abilities in adults.

    PubMed

    Qi, Zhenghan; Beach, Sara D; Finn, Amy S; Minas, Jennifer; Goetz, Calvin; Chan, Brian; Gabrieli, John D E

    2017-04-01

    Language learning aptitude during adulthood varies markedly across individuals. An individual's native-language ability has been associated with success in learning a new language as an adult. However, little is known about how native-language processing affects learning success and what neural markers of native-language processing, if any, are related to success in learning. We therefore related variation in electrophysiology during native-language processing to success in learning a novel artificial language. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded while native English speakers judged the acceptability of English sentences prior to learning an artificial language. There was a trend towards a double dissociation between native-language ERPs and their relationships to novel syntax and vocabulary learning. Individuals who exhibited a greater N400 effect when processing English semantics showed better future learning of the artificial language overall. The N400 effect was related to syntax learning via its specific relationship to vocabulary learning. In contrast, the P600 effect size when processing English syntax predicted future syntax learning but not vocabulary learning. These findings show that distinct neural signatures of native-language processing relate to dissociable abilities for learning novel semantic and syntactic information. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Collaborative Language Learning in Teletandem: A Resource for Pre-Service Teacher Education (Aprendizaje de lenguas colaborativo en Teletándem: un recurso para la educación de profesores en formación inicial)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Salomão, Ana Cristina Biondo

    2011-01-01

    This article presents some of the results of a qualitative research project about the influences of the pedagogic strategies used by a mediator (graduate student in applied linguistics) in the supervision process of a Teletandem partner (undergraduate student in languages) on her pedagogical practice. It was done within the project…

  3. [Internet-based continuing medical education: as effective as live continuing medical education].

    PubMed

    Maisonneuve, Hervé; Chabot, Olivier

    2009-10-01

    E-learning consists in using new multimedia and Internet technologies to improve the quality of learning activities by facilitating access to resources and services, as well as exchanges and remote collaboration. The Internet is used for adult education in most professional domains, but its use for continuing medical education is less developed. Advantages are observed for teachers (e.g., permanent updating, interactive links, illustrations, archiving, and collective intelligence) and for the learners (e.g., accessibility, autonomy, flexibility, and adaptable pace). Research and meta-analyses have shown that e-CME is as effective as live events for immediate and retained learning. English-language educational medical websites that grant CME credits are numerous; few such French-language sites can currently grant credits. Accreditation of websites for CME, in its infancy in Europe, is common in North America.

  4. Origin of symbol-using systems: speech, but not sign, without the semantic urge

    PubMed Central

    Sereno, Martin I.

    2014-01-01

    Natural language—spoken and signed—is a multichannel phenomenon, involving facial and body expression, and voice and visual intonation that is often used in the service of a social urge to communicate meaning. Given that iconicity seems easier and less abstract than making arbitrary connections between sound and meaning, iconicity and gesture have often been invoked in the origin of language alongside the urge to convey meaning. To get a fresh perspective, we critically distinguish the origin of a system capable of evolution from the subsequent evolution that system becomes capable of. Human language arose on a substrate of a system already capable of Darwinian evolution; the genetically supported uniquely human ability to learn a language reflects a key contact point between Darwinian evolution and language. Though implemented in brains generated by DNA symbols coding for protein meaning, the second higher-level symbol-using system of language now operates in a world mostly decoupled from Darwinian evolutionary constraints. Examination of Darwinian evolution of vocal learning in other animals suggests that the initial fixation of a key prerequisite to language into the human genome may actually have required initially side-stepping not only iconicity, but the urge to mean itself. If sign languages came later, they would not have faced this constraint. PMID:25092671

  5. A Critical Appraisal of Foreign Language Research in Content and Language Integrated Learning, Young Language Learners, and Technology-Enhanced Language Learning Published in Spain (2003-2012)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dooly, Melinda; Masats, Dolors

    2015-01-01

    This state-of-the-art review provides a critical overview of research publications in Spain in the last ten years in three areas of teaching and learning foreign languages (especially English): context and language integrated learning (CLIL), young language learners (YLL), and technology-enhanced language learning (TELL). These three domains have…

  6. Language Learning Strategies and Beliefs about Language Learning in High-School Students and Students Attending English Institutes: Are They Different?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Saeb, Fateme; Zamani, Elham

    2013-01-01

    This paper reports a comparative study exploring language learning strategy use and beliefs about language learning of high-school students and students attending English institutes. Oxford's (1990) strategy inventory for language learning (SILL) and Horwitz's (1987) beliefs about language learning inventory (BALLI), were used to collect data.…

  7. The Kaiser Permanente Clinician Cultural and Linguistic Assessment Initiative: Research and Development in Patient–Provider Language Concordance

    PubMed Central

    MSN, Gayle Tang; Lanza, Oscar; Rodriguez, Fátima Marinely; Chang, Annie

    2011-01-01

    Patient–clinician language concordance is a critical component of the language access equation and is considered the gold standard for communication. As a result of lack of validated testing standards, measures, and tools, Kaiser Permanente developed the Clinician Cultural and Linguistic Assessment Initiative to ensure verifiable linguistic proficiency in clinical encounters and has established a standard level whereby the clinician is deemed to have a qualifying level of proficiency in communicating directly with patients independent of an interpreter. Our benchmarking efforts in language concordance have been rooted with the key aim to identify talented bilingual and bicultural clinician workforce and to establish the systems foundation to coordinate appropriate language services. We share accomplishments, lessons learned, and promising practices to inform future efforts in language concordance. PMID:21228282

  8. Communication and language challenges experienced by Chinese and South Asian immigrant parents of children with cancer in Canada: implications for health services delivery.

    PubMed

    Gulati, Sonia; Watt, Lisa; Shaw, Nicola; Sung, Lillian; Poureslami, Iraj M; Klaassen, Robert; Dix, David; Klassen, Anne F

    2012-04-01

    Language is an important aspect of health literacy and plays a vital role in families' ability to access and use health information and resources. Our study explored the role of communication and language in the healthcare experiences of immigrant parents of children with cancer living in Canada. We used a grounded theory approach. Chinese and South Asian parents of children 6 months post-diagnosis were recruited from six Canadian pediatric oncology centers. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in Cantonese, Mandarin, Hindi, Punjabi, Urdu, or English. Questions relevant to communication included: how parents navigated the healthcare system; nature of interpreter services and translated materials; and suggestions about how to improve services. Analysis involved line-by-line, focused and theoretical coding, and constant comparison. Thirty-one (62%) parents reported no difficulty communicating with healthcare providers in English, while 13 (26%) parents struggled with English, and six (12%) parents could not communicate in English. Communication challenges influenced parents' role in caring for their child and made it difficult to learn complex medical terminology. Interpreting services were sometimes inadequate or not accessible. Parents occasionally missed out on services and resources, reported limited availability of linguistically and culturally appropriate information, and experienced a lack of social integration in the healthcare process. Language ability played an essential role in parents' healthcare experiences for pragmatic and social purposes. Language challenges can heighten systemic and socio-cultural barriers to accessing health information and resources. The provision of enhanced culturally and linguistically sensitive services may support immigrant families in their caregiving role. Copyright © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  9. Discharge experiences of speech-language pathologists working in Cyprus and Greece.

    PubMed

    Kambanaros, Maria

    2010-08-01

    Post-termination relationships are complex because the client may need additional services and it may be difficult to determine when the speech-language pathologist-client relationship is truly terminated. In my contribution to this scientific forum, discharge experiences from speech-language pathologists working in Cyprus and Greece will be explored in search of commonalities and differences in the way in which pathologists end therapy from different cultural perspectives. Within this context the personal impact on speech-language pathologists of the discharge process will be highlighted. Inherent in this process is how speech-language pathologists learn to hold their feelings, anxieties and reactions when communicating discharge to clients. Overall speech-language pathologists working in Cyprus and Greece experience similar emotional responses to positive and negative therapy endings as speech-language pathologists working in Australia. The major difference is that Cypriot and Greek therapists face serious limitations in moving their clients on after therapy has ended.

  10. 7 CFR 1980.302 - Definitions and abbreviations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... E to subpart A of part 1924 applicable to single family residential construction or other similar...) Receptive and expressive language, (iii) Learning, (iv) Mobility, (v) Self-direction, (vi) Capacity for... Lender on behalf of the borrower. Lender. The organization making, holding, and/or servicing the loan...

  11. 7 CFR 1980.302 - Definitions and abbreviations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... E to subpart A of part 1924 applicable to single family residential construction or other similar...) Receptive and expressive language, (iii) Learning, (iv) Mobility, (v) Self-direction, (vi) Capacity for... Lender on behalf of the borrower. Lender. The organization making, holding, and/or servicing the loan...

  12. 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.

  13. 7 CFR 1980.302 - Definitions and abbreviations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... codes listed in exhibit E to subpart A of part 1924 applicable to single family residential construction...: (i) Self-care, (ii) Receptive and expressive language, (iii) Learning, (iv) Mobility, (v) Self... Lender on behalf of the borrower. Lender. The organization making, holding, and/or servicing the loan...

  14. 7 CFR 1980.302 - Definitions and abbreviations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... codes listed in exhibit E to subpart A of part 1924 applicable to single family residential construction...: (i) Self-care, (ii) Receptive and expressive language, (iii) Learning, (iv) Mobility, (v) Self... Lender on behalf of the borrower. Lender. The organization making, holding, and/or servicing the loan...

  15. Pre-Service EFL Teachers' Online Participation, Interaction, and Social Presence

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Satar, H. Muge; Akcan, Sumru

    2018-01-01

    Participation in online communities is an increasing need for future language teachers and their professional development. Through such participation, they can experience and develop an awareness of the behaviors required to facilitate their future learners' participation in online learning. This article investigates participation, interaction…

  16. The Role of Mother Tongue Literacy in Language Learning and Mathematical Learning: Is There a Multilingual Benefit for Both?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dahm, Rebecca; De Angelis, Gessica

    2018-01-01

    The present study examines the multilingual benefit in relation to language learning and mathematical learning. The objective is to assess whether speakers of three or more languages, depending on language profile and personal histories, show significant advantages in language learning and/or mathematical learning, and whether mother tongue…

  17. Electronic Tandem Language Learning (eTandem): A Third Approach to Second Language Learning for the 21st Century

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cziko, Gary A.

    2004-01-01

    Tandem language learning occurs when two learners of different native languages work together to help each other learn the other language. First used in face-to-face contexts, Tandem is now increasingly being used by language-learning partners located in different countries who are linked via various forms of electronic communication, a context…

  18. Building freeways: piloting communication skills in additional languages to health service personnel in Cape Town, South Africa.

    PubMed

    Claassen, Joel; Jama, Zukile; Manga, Nayna; Lewis, Minnie; Hellenberg, Derek

    2017-06-07

    This study reflects on the development and teaching of communication skills courses in additional national languages to health care staff within two primary health care facilities in Cape Town, South Africa. These courses were aimed at addressing the language disparities that recent research has identified globally between patients and health care staff. Communication skills courses were offered to staff at two Metropolitan District Health Services clinics to strengthen patient access to health care services. This study reflects on the communicative proficiency in the additional languages that were offered to health care staff. A mixed-method approach was utilised during this case study with quantitative data-gathering through surveys and qualitative analysis of assessment results. The language profiles of the respective communities were assessed through data obtained from the South African National census, while staff language profiles were obtained at the health care centres. Quantitative measuring, by means of a patient survey at the centres, occurred on a randomly chosen day to ascertain the language profile of the patient population. Participating staff performed assessments at different phases of the training courses to determine their skill levels by the end of the course. The performances of the participating staff during the Xhosa and Afrikaans language courses were assessed, and the development of the staff communicative competencies was measured. Health care staff learning the additional languages could develop Basic or Intermediate Xhosa and Afrikaans that enables communication with patients. In multilingual countries such as South Africa, language has been recognised as a health care barrier preventing patients from receiving quality care. Equipping health care staff with communication skills in the additional languages, represents an attempt to bridge a vital barrier in the South African health care system. The study proves that offering communication skills courses in additional languages, begins to equip health care staff to be multilingual, that allows patients to communicate about their illnesses within their mother tongues.

  19. Selective transfer of visual working memory training on Chinese character learning.

    PubMed

    Opitz, Bertram; Schneiders, Julia A; Krick, Christoph M; Mecklinger, Axel

    2014-01-01

    Previous research has shown a systematic relationship between phonological working memory capacity and second language proficiency for alphabetic languages. However, little is known about the impact of working memory processes on second language learning in a non-alphabetic language such as Mandarin Chinese. Due to the greater complexity of the Chinese writing system we expect that visual working memory rather than phonological working memory exerts a unique influence on learning Chinese characters. This issue was explored in the present experiment by comparing visual working memory training with an active (auditory working memory training) control condition and a passive, no training control condition. Training induced modulations in language-related brain networks were additionally examined using functional magnetic resonance imaging in a pretest-training-posttest design. As revealed by pre- to posttest comparisons and analyses of individual differences in working memory training gains, visual working memory training led to positive transfer effects on visual Chinese vocabulary learning compared to both control conditions. In addition, we found sustained activation after visual working memory training in the (predominantly visual) left infero-temporal cortex that was associated with behavioral transfer. In the control conditions, activation either increased (active control condition) or decreased (passive control condition) without reliable behavioral transfer effects. This suggests that visual working memory training leads to more efficient processing and more refined responses in brain regions involved in visual processing. Furthermore, visual working memory training boosted additional activation in the precuneus, presumably reflecting mental image generation of the learned characters. We, therefore, suggest that the conjoint activity of the mid-fusiform gyrus and the precuneus after visual working memory training reflects an interaction of working memory and imagery processes with complex visual stimuli that fosters the coherent synthesis of a percept from a complex visual input in service of enhanced Chinese character learning. © 2013 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  20. Pedagogy and Related Criteria: The Selection of Software for Computer Assisted Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Samuels, Jeffrey D.

    2013-01-01

    Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) is an established field of academic inquiry with distinct applications for second language teaching and learning. Many CALL professionals direct language labs or language resource centers (LRCs) in which CALL software applications and generic software applications support language learning programs and…

  1. Applying and evaluating computer-animated tutors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Massaro, Dominic W.; Bosseler, Alexis; Stone, Patrick S.; Connors, Pamela

    2002-05-01

    We have developed computer-assisted speech and language tutors for deaf, hard of hearing, and autistic children. Our language-training program utilizes our computer-animated talking head, Baldi, as the conversational agent, who guides students through a variety of exercises designed to teach vocabulary and grammer, to improve speech articulation, and to develop linguistic and phonological awareness. Baldi is an accurate three-dimensional animated talking head appropriately aligned with either synthesized or natural speech. Baldi has a tongue and palate, which can be displayed by making his skin transparent. Two specific language-training programs have been evaluated to determine if they improve word learning and speech articulation. The results indicate that the programs are effective in teaching receptive and productive language. Advantages of utilizing a computer-animated agent as a language tutor are the popularity of computers and embodied conversational agents with autistic kids, the perpetual availability of the program, and individualized instruction. Students enjoy working with Baldi because he offers extreme patience, he doesn't become angry, tired, or bored, and he is in effect a perpetual teaching machine. The results indicate that the psychology and technology of Baldi holds great promise in language learning and speech therapy. [Work supported by NSF Grant Nos. CDA-9726363 and BCS-9905176 and Public Health Service Grant No. PHS R01 DC00236.

  2. An Evaluation of a Counseling-Community Learning Approach to Foreign Language Teaching or Counseling-Learning Theory Applied to Foreign Language Learning. Final Report.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gallagher, Rosina Mena

    This study evaluates the counseling-learning approach to foreign language instruction as compared with traditional methods in terms of language achievement and change in personal orientation and in attitude toward learning. Twelve students volunteered to learn Spanish or German under simultaneous exposure to both languages using the…

  3. Learning Styles and Individual Differences in Learning English Idioms via Computer Assisted Language Learning in English as a Second Language.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Viteli, Jarmo

    The purpose of this study was to determine the learning styles of English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students and individual differences in learning English idioms via computer assisted language learning (CALL). Thirty-six Hispanic students, 26 Japanese students, and 6 students with various language backgrounds from the Nova University Intensive…

  4. A Working Model for Intercultural Learning and Engagement in Collaborative Online Language Learning Environments

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lawrence, Geoff

    2013-01-01

    Given the emerging focus on the intercultural dimension in language teaching and learning, language educators have been exploring the use of information and communications technology ICT-mediated language learning environments to link learners in intercultural language learning communities around the globe. Despite the potential promise of…

  5. Science As A Second Language: Acquiring Fluency through Science Enterprises

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shope, R.; EcoVoices Expedition Team

    2013-05-01

    Science Enterprises are problems that students genuinely want to solve, questions that students genuinely want to answer, that naturally entail reading, writing, investigation, and discussion. Engaging students in personally-relevant science enterprises provides both a diagnostic opportunity and a context for providing students the comprehensible input they need. We can differentiate instruction by creating science enterprise zones that are set up for the incremental increase in challenge for the students. Comprehensible input makes reachable, those just-out-of-reach concepts in the mix of the familiar and the new. EcoVoices takes students on field research expeditions within an urban natural area, the San Gabriel River Discovery Center. This project engages students in science enterprises focused on understanding ecosystems, ecosystem services, and the dynamics of climate change. A sister program, EcoVoces, has been launched in Mexico, in collaboration with the Universidad Loyola del Pacífico. 1) The ED3U Science Inquiry Model, a learning cycle model that accounts for conceptual change: Explore { Diagnose, Design, Discuss } Use. 2) The ¿NQUIRY Wheel, a compass of scientific inquiry strategies; 3) Inquiry Science Expeditions, a way of laying out a science learning environment, emulating a field and lab research collaboratory; 4) The Science Educative Experience Scale, a diagnostic measure of the quality of the science learning experience; and 5) Mimedia de la Ciencia, participatory enactment of science concepts using techniques of mime and improvisational theater. BACKGROUND: Science has become a vehicle for teaching reading, writing, and other communication skills, across the curriculum. This new emphasis creates renewed motivation for Scientists and Science Educators to work collaboratively to explore the common ground between acquiring science understanding and language acquisition theory. Language Acquisition is an informal process that occurs in the midst of exploring, solving problems, seeking answers to questions, playing, reading for pleasure, conversing, discussing, where the focus is not specifically on language development, but on the activity, which is of interest to the participant. Language Learning is a formal education process, the language arts aspect of the school day: the direct teaching of reading, writing, grammar, spelling, and speaking. Fluency results primarily from language acquisition and secondarily from language learning. We can view the problem of science education and communication as similar to language acquisition. Science Learning is a formal education process, the school science aspect of the school day: the direct teaching of standards-aligned science content. Science Acquisition is an informal process that occurs in the midst of exploring, solving problems, seeking answers to questions, playing, experimenting for pleasure, conversing, discussing, where the focus is not specifically on science content development, but on the inquiry activity, driven by the curiosity of the participant. Treating Science as a Second Language shifts the evaluation of science learning to include gauging the extent to which students choose to deepen their pursuit of science learning.

  6. Implementing the World Report on Disability in Malaysia: a student-led service to promote knowledge and innovation.

    PubMed

    Van Dort, Sandra; Coyle, Julia; Wilson, Linda; Ibrahim, Hasherah Mohd

    2013-02-01

    The lead article by Wylie, McAllister, Davidson, and Marshall (2013) puts forward pertinent issues facing the speech-language pathology profession raised by the World Report on Disability. This paper continues the discussion by reporting on a capacity building action research study on the development, implementation, and evaluation of a new approach to early intervention speech-language pathology through clinical education in Malaysia. This research evaluated a student-led service in community-based rehabilitation that supplemented existing and more typical institution-based services. A Malaysian community-based rehabilitation project was chosen due to its emphasis on increasing the equitability and accessibility of services for people with disabilities which was a catalyst for this research. Also, expanding awareness-building, education, and training activities about communication disability was important. The intention was to provide students with experience of working in such settings, and facilitate their development as advocates for broadening the scope of practice of speech-language pathology services in Malaysia. This article focuses on the findings pertaining to the collaborative process and the learning experiences of the adult participants. Through reflection on the positive achievements, as well as some failures, it aims to provide deeper understanding of the use of such a model.

  7. The Trauma Syndrome: Identification, Treatment, and Referral of Commonly Seen Problems.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cohon, Donald J., Jr.

    This paper provides counselors and social service case workers serving Indochinese refugees in northern California with guidelines for identifying, treating and making referrals of clients with emotional problems. Freud's theory of trauma neurosis and its effect on refugees' language acquisition, learning ability and job readiness are described.…

  8. Social Media Ethics in English Language Teaching

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Blyth, Andrew

    2015-01-01

    Many teachers are increasingly using Social Networking Services (SNS) in their classrooms, which allows for the first time the outside world to peer into students' private learning spaces (Blyth, 2011). However, the adoption of social media has mostly been done without careful consideration of possible ramifications students may suffer.…

  9. "My Award Is for My Students"

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Adults Learning, 2009

    2009-01-01

    This article features ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) co-ordinator Lynn Evans, recipient of the Learning and Skills Improvement Service STAR Award. Lynn's teaching is all about breaking down barriers, whether that means the personal barriers that prevent learners from achieving their potential or the barriers that exist among…

  10. Language Revitalization and Language Pedagogy: New Teaching and Learning Strategies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hinton, Leanne

    2011-01-01

    Language learning and teaching of endangered languages have many features and needs that are quite different from the teaching of world languages. Groups whose languages are endangered try to turn language loss around; many new language teaching and learning strategies are emerging, to suit the special needs and goals of language revitalization.…

  11. Language Transfer in Language Learning. Issues in Second Language Research.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gass, Susan M., Ed.; Selinker, Larry, Ed.

    Essays on language transfer in language learning include: excerpts from "Linguistics across Cultures" (Robert Lado); "Language Transfer" (Larry Selinker); "Goofing: An Indication of Children's Second Language Learning Strategies" (Heidi C. Dulay, Marina K. Burt); "Language Transfer and Universal Grammatical Relations" (Susan Gass); "A Role for the…

  12. Language Evolution by Iterated Learning with Bayesian Agents

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Griffiths, Thomas L.; Kalish, Michael L.

    2007-01-01

    Languages are transmitted from person to person and generation to generation via a process of iterated learning: people learn a language from other people who once learned that language themselves. We analyze the consequences of iterated learning for learning algorithms based on the principles of Bayesian inference, assuming that learners compute…

  13. Learning bias, cultural evolution of language, and the biological evolution of the language faculty.

    PubMed

    Smith, Kenny

    2011-04-01

    The biases of individual language learners act to determine the learnability and cultural stability of languages: learners come to the language learning task with biases which make certain linguistic systems easier to acquire than others. These biases are repeatedly applied during the process of language transmission, and consequently should effect the types of languages we see in human populations. Understanding the cultural evolutionary consequences of particular learning biases is therefore central to understanding the link between language learning in individuals and language universals, common structural properties shared by all the world’s languages. This paper reviews a range of models and experimental studies which show that weak biases in individual learners can have strong effects on the structure of socially learned systems such as language, suggesting that strong universal tendencies in language structure do not require us to postulate strong underlying biases or constraints on language learning. Furthermore, understanding the relationship between learner biases and language design has implications for theories of the evolution of those learning biases: models of gene-culture coevolution suggest that, in situations where a cultural dynamic mediates between properties of individual learners and properties of language in this way, biological evolution is unlikely to lead to the emergence of strong constraints on learning.

  14. The Relationship between Iranian EFL Learners' Beliefs about Language Learning and Their Use of Learning Strategies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Azar, Fereshteh Khaffafi; Saeidi, Mahnaz

    2013-01-01

    The present study investigated the relationship between Iranian EFL learners' learning strategies use and their language learning beliefs. A sample of 200 Iranian EFL learners who were all English language learners at different language institutes participated in this study. Two instruments, Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory (BALLI) and…

  15. Language Learning Strategies Used by Distance Learners of English: A Study with a Group of Turkish Distance Learners of EFL

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Altunay, Dilek

    2014-01-01

    Use of language learning strategies is important for language learning. Some researchers state that language learning strategies are important because their use affects the development of communicative competence (Lessard-Clouston, 1997 & Oxford, 1990). Effective use of language learning strategies has particular importance for distance…

  16. Language Learning Strategies and Styles among Iranian Engineering and Political Science Graduate Students Studying Abroad

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Alireza, Shakarami; Abdullah, Mardziha H.

    2010-01-01

    Language learning strategies are used with the explicit goal of helping learners improve their knowledge and understanding of a target language. They are the conscious thoughts and behaviors used by students to facilitate language learning tasks and to personalize language learning process. Learning styles on the other hand, are "general…

  17. Mobile-Assisted Second Language Learning: Developing a Learner-Centered Framework

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Leow, Choy Khim; Yahaya, Wan Ahmad Jaafar Wan; Samsudin, Zarina

    2014-01-01

    The Mobile Assisted Language Learning concept has offered infinite language learning opportunities since its inception 20 years ago. Second Language Acquisition however embraces a considerably different body of knowledge from first language learning. While technological advances have optimized the psycholinguistic environment for language…

  18. Intelligent Computer-Assisted Language Learning.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Harrington, Michael

    1996-01-01

    Introduces the field of intelligent computer assisted language learning (ICALL) and relates them to current practice in computer assisted language learning (CALL) and second language learning. Points out that ICALL applies expertise from artificial intelligence and the computer and cognitive sciences to the development of language learning…

  19. Language Views on Social Networking Sites for Language Learning: The Case of Busuu

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Álvarez Valencia, José Aldemar

    2016-01-01

    Social networking has compelled the area of computer-assisted language learning (CALL) to expand its research palette and account for new virtual ecologies that afford language learning and socialization. This study focuses on Busuu, a social networking site for language learning (SNSLL), and analyzes the views of language that are enacted through…

  20. Ten questions about terminology for children with unexplained language problems

    PubMed Central

    Bishop, D V M

    2014-01-01

    Background In domains other than language, there is fairly consistent diagnostic terminology to refer to children's developmental difficulties. For instance, the terms ‘dyslexia’, ‘attention deficit hyperactivity disorder’ and ‘autistic spectrum disorder’ are used for difficulties with reading, attention or social cognition, respectively. There is no agreed label, however, for children with unexplained language problems. Aims To consider whether we need labels for unexplained language problems in children, and if so, what terminology is appropriate. Main Contribution There are both advantages and disadvantages to labels, but they are important to ensure children receive services, and to increase our knowledge of the nature and causes of such problems. A survey of labels in current use found 132 different terms, 33 of which had 600 or more returns on Google Scholar between 1994 and 2013. Many of these labels were too general to be useful. Of the remainder, the term ‘specific language impairment’ was the most commonly used. Conclusions The current mayhem in diagnostic labels is unsustainable; it causes confusion and impedes research progress and access to appropriate services. We need to achieve consensus on diagnostic criteria and terminology. The DSM-5 term ‘language disorder’ is problematic because it identifies too wide a range of conditions on an internet search. One solution is to retain specific language impairment, with the understanding that ‘specific’ means idiopathic (i.e., of unknown origin) rather than implying there are no other problems beyond language. Other options are the terms ‘primary language impairment’, ‘developmental language disorder’ or ‘language learning impairment’. PMID:25142090

  1. Exploring Learner Autonomy: Language Learning Locus of Control in Multilinguals

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Peek, Ron

    2016-01-01

    By using data from an online language learning beliefs survey (n?=?841), defining language learning experience in terms of participants' multilingualism, and using a domain-specific language learning locus of control (LLLOC) instrument, this article examines whether more experienced language learners can also be seen as more autonomous language…

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

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    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…

  3. Computational Investigations of Multiword Chunks in Language Learning.

    PubMed

    McCauley, Stewart M; Christiansen, Morten H

    2017-07-01

    Second-language learners rarely arrive at native proficiency in a number of linguistic domains, including morphological and syntactic processing. Previous approaches to understanding the different outcomes of first- versus second-language learning have focused on cognitive and neural factors. In contrast, we explore the possibility that children and adults may rely on different linguistic units throughout the course of language learning, with specific focus on the granularity of those units. Following recent psycholinguistic evidence for the role of multiword chunks in online language processing, we explore the hypothesis that children rely more heavily on multiword units in language learning than do adults learning a second language. To this end, we take an initial step toward using large-scale, corpus-based computational modeling as a tool for exploring the granularity of speakers' linguistic units. Employing a computational model of language learning, the Chunk-Based Learner, we compare the usefulness of chunk-based knowledge in accounting for the speech of second-language learners versus children and adults speaking their first language. Our findings suggest that while multiword units are likely to play a role in second-language learning, adults may learn less useful chunks, rely on them to a lesser extent, and arrive at them through different means than children learning a first language. Copyright © 2017 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

  4. Ego Is a Hurdle in Second Language Learning: A Contrastive Study between Adults and Children

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Abdullah, Shumaila; Akhter, Javed

    2015-01-01

    The aim of this research paper is to find out by comparing and contrasting between the adults and children in second language learning process how language ego of adult learners affects them to learn second language, and how it becomes a barrier for them in second language learning process. Nowadays learning English as foreign and second language…

  5. Using Language Learning Conditions in Mathematics. PEN 68.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stoessiger, Rex

    This pamphlet reports on a project in Tasmania exploring whether the "natural learning conditions" approach to language learning could be adapted for mathematics. The connections between language and mathematics, as well as the natural learning processes of language learning are described in the pamphlet. The project itself is…

  6. Developmental Comparisons of Implicit and Explicit Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lichtman, Karen

    2013-01-01

    Conventional wisdom holds that children learn languages implicitly whereas older learners learn languages explicitly, and some have claimed that after puberty only explicit language learning is possible. However, older learners often receive more explicit instruction than child L2 learners, which may affect their learning strategies. This study…

  7. Routine Language: Speech Directed to Infants During Home Activities.

    PubMed

    Tamis-LeMonda, Catherine S; Custode, Stephanie; Kuchirko, Yana; Escobar, Kelly; Lo, Tiffany

    2018-05-15

    Everyday activities are replete with contextual cues for infants to exploit in the service of learning words. Nelson's (1985) script theory guided the hypothesis that infants participate in a set of predictable activities over the course of a day that provide them with opportunities to hear unique language functions and forms. Mothers and their firstborn 13-month-old infants (N = 40) were video-recorded during everyday activities at home. Transcriptions and coding of mothers' speech to infants-time-locked to activities of feeding, grooming, booksharing, object play, and transition-revealed that the amount, diversity, pragmatic functions, and semantic content of maternal language systematically differed by activity. The activities of everyday life shape language inputs to infants in ways that highlight word meaning. © 2018 Society for Research in Child Development.

  8. What do preservice teachers from the USA and the UK know about dyslexia?

    PubMed

    Washburn, Erin K; Binks-Cantrell, Emily S; Joshi, R Malatesha

    2014-02-01

    The purpose of the study was to examine the knowledge base of preservice teachers from the USA and the UK of dyslexia as a language-based learning disability. A survey (both US and UK versions) was constructed using current research-based understandings of dyslexia as a language-based learning disability. One hundred and one preservice teachers from the USA and 70 preservice teachers from the UK were administered the survey. Results indicated that participants in the two groups demonstrated some similar accurate knowledge about dyslexia as well as displaying some common misunderstandings about dyslexia. Recommendations concerning preservice teacher preparation and professional development for in-service teachers about dyslexia as well as future research directions are discussed. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  9. An anthropological approach to teaching health sciences students cultural competency in a field school program.

    PubMed

    Hutchins, Frank T; Brown, Lori DiPrete; Poulsen, Keith P

    2014-02-01

    International immersion experiences do not, in themselves, provide students with the opportunity to develop cultural competence. However, using an anthropological lens to educate students allows them to learn how to negotiate cultural differences by removing their own cultural filters and seeing events through the eyes of those who are culturally different. Faculty at the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Global Health Institute believed that an embedded experience, in which students engaged with local communities, would encourage them to adopt this Cultural Competency 2.0 position. With this goal in mind, they started the Field School for the Study of Language, Culture, and Community Health in Ecuador in 2003 to teach cultural competency to medical, veterinary, pharmacy, and nursing students. The program was rooted in medical anthropology and embraced the One Health initiative, which is a collaborative effort of multiple disciplines working locally, nationally, and globally to obtain optimal health for people, animals, and the environment. In this article, the authors identify effective practices and challenges for using a biocultural approach to educating students. In a semester-long preparatory class, students study the Spanish language, region-specific topics, and community engagement principles. While in Ecuador for five weeks, students apply their knowledge during community visits that involve homestays and service learning projects, for which they partner with local communities to meet their health needs. This combination of language and anthropological course work and community-based service learning has led to positive outcomes for the local communities as well as professional development for students and faculty.

  10. Beliefs about Learning English as a Second Language among Native Groups in Rural Sabah, Malaysia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Krishnasamy, Hariharan N.; Veloo, Arsaythamby; Lu, Ho Fui

    2013-01-01

    This paper identifies differences between the three ethnic groups, namely, Kadazans/Dusuns, Bajaus, and other minority ethnic groups on the beliefs about learning English as a second language based on the five variables, that is, language aptitude, language learning difficulty, language learning and communicating strategies, nature of language…

  11. Language Learning in Wittgenstein and Davidson

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kotzee, Ben

    2014-01-01

    In this paper, I discuss language learning in Wittgenstein and Davidson. Starting from a remark by Bakhurst, I hold that both Wittgenstein and Davidson's philosophies of language contain responses to the problem of language learning, albeit of a different form. Following Williams, I hold that the concept of language learning can explain…

  12. Examining Emotions in English Language Learning Classes: A Case of EFL Emotions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pishghadam, Reza; Zabetipour, Mohammad; Aminzadeh, Afrooz

    2016-01-01

    Emotions play a significant role in learning in general, and foreign language learning in particular. Although with the rise of humanistic approaches, enough attention has been given to the affective domain in language learning, the emotions English as a foreign language (EFL) learners experience regarding English language skills in listening,…

  13. The Use of Prosodic Cues in Learning New Words in an Unfamiliar Language

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kim, Sahyang; Broersma, Mirjam; Cho, Taehong

    2012-01-01

    The artificial language learning paradigm was used to investigate to what extent the use of prosodic features is universally applicable or specifically language driven in learning an unfamiliar language, and how nonnative prosodic patterns can be learned. Listeners of unrelated languages--Dutch (n = 100) and Korean (n = 100)--participated. The…

  14. Creating an Authentic Learning Environment in the Foreign Language Classroom

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nikitina, Larisa

    2011-01-01

    Theatrical activities are widely used by language educators to promote and facilitate language learning. Involving students in production of their own video or a short movie in the target language allows a seamless fusion of language learning, art, and popular culture. The activity is also conducive for creating an authentic learning situation…

  15. Rocking & Rolling: Supporting Infants, Toddlers, and Their Families. One Language, Two Languages, Three Languages . . . More?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Prieto, H. Victoria

    2009-01-01

    The belief that a child has to abandon his home language to learn English implies that the young brain has limited learning capacity. Early childhood teachers need to help families understand that children can learn two languages at the same time. What matters is that the infant/toddler is in an effective language-learning environment, whether it…

  16. Is CALL Obsolete? Language Acquisition and Language Learning Revisited in a Digital Age

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jarvis, Huw; Krashen, Stephen

    2014-01-01

    In this article, Huw Jarvis and Stephen Krashen ask "Is CALL Obsolete?" When the term CALL (Computer-Assisted Language Learning) was introduced in the 1960s, the language education profession knew only about language learning, not language acquisition, and assumed the computer's primary contribution to second language acquisition…

  17. Language Alternation and Language Norm in Vocational Content and Language Integrated Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kontio, Janne; Sylvén, Liss Kerstin

    2015-01-01

    The present article deals with language choice as communicative strategies in the language learning environment of an English-medium content and language integrated learning (CLIL) workshop at an auto mechanics class in a Swedish upper secondary school. The article presents the organisation and functions of language alternations (LAs) which are…

  18. A Whole-School Approach to Promoting Languages

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lane, Nathan

    2015-01-01

    Languages teachers are all aware of the significant advantages and benefits learning a language provides, and believe in the importance of second language acquisition. However, why is it that languages teachers need to justify learning a second language and work hard to encourage more students to see the importance of learning a language and to…

  19. Age and Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Collard, Lucien

    1977-01-01

    An investigation of the differences between first and second language acquisition and the relationship between age and second language learning. The stages in native language acquisition and the advantages of an early start in second language learning are discussed. (AMH)

  20. Language learning, language use and the evolution of linguistic variation

    PubMed Central

    Perfors, Amy; Fehér, Olga; Samara, Anna; Swoboda, Kate; Wonnacott, Elizabeth

    2017-01-01

    Linguistic universals arise from the interaction between the processes of language learning and language use. A test case for the relationship between these factors is linguistic variation, which tends to be conditioned on linguistic or sociolinguistic criteria. How can we explain the scarcity of unpredictable variation in natural language, and to what extent is this property of language a straightforward reflection of biases in statistical learning? We review three strands of experimental work exploring these questions, and introduce a Bayesian model of the learning and transmission of linguistic variation along with a closely matched artificial language learning experiment with adult participants. Our results show that while the biases of language learners can potentially play a role in shaping linguistic systems, the relationship between biases of learners and the structure of languages is not straightforward. Weak biases can have strong effects on language structure as they accumulate over repeated transmission. But the opposite can also be true: strong biases can have weak or no effects. Furthermore, the use of language during interaction can reshape linguistic systems. Combining data and insights from studies of learning, transmission and use is therefore essential if we are to understand how biases in statistical learning interact with language transmission and language use to shape the structural properties of language. This article is part of the themed issue ‘New frontiers for statistical learning in the cognitive sciences’. PMID:27872370

  1. Language learning, language use and the evolution of linguistic variation.

    PubMed

    Smith, Kenny; Perfors, Amy; Fehér, Olga; Samara, Anna; Swoboda, Kate; Wonnacott, Elizabeth

    2017-01-05

    Linguistic universals arise from the interaction between the processes of language learning and language use. A test case for the relationship between these factors is linguistic variation, which tends to be conditioned on linguistic or sociolinguistic criteria. How can we explain the scarcity of unpredictable variation in natural language, and to what extent is this property of language a straightforward reflection of biases in statistical learning? We review three strands of experimental work exploring these questions, and introduce a Bayesian model of the learning and transmission of linguistic variation along with a closely matched artificial language learning experiment with adult participants. Our results show that while the biases of language learners can potentially play a role in shaping linguistic systems, the relationship between biases of learners and the structure of languages is not straightforward. Weak biases can have strong effects on language structure as they accumulate over repeated transmission. But the opposite can also be true: strong biases can have weak or no effects. Furthermore, the use of language during interaction can reshape linguistic systems. Combining data and insights from studies of learning, transmission and use is therefore essential if we are to understand how biases in statistical learning interact with language transmission and language use to shape the structural properties of language.This article is part of the themed issue 'New frontiers for statistical learning in the cognitive sciences'. © 2016 The Authors.

  2. Is Native-Language Decoding Skill Related to Second-Language Learning?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Meschyan, Gayane; Hernandez, Arturo

    2002-01-01

    Investigated the mechanisms through which native-language (English) word decoding ability predicted individual differences in native- and second-language (Spanish) learning. Results are consistent with the hypothesis that second-language learning is founded on native-language phonological-orthographic ability among college-age adults, especially…

  3. Learning in Context: Preparing Latino Workers for Careers and Continuing Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Moore, Elizabeth; Oppenheim, Emma

    2010-01-01

    Adult education services, including education for those lacking basic literacy and numeracy, preparation for the high school equivalency diploma, and English-as-a-second-language courses, play a crucial role in bridging the basic skills gap for Latinos and other workers with limited formal education and training. With recent policy and program…

  4. Integration of Lean Method in English Language Teaching and Learning: A New Perspective

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tilfarlioglu, Filiz Yalçin; Anwer, Jivan Kamal

    2017-01-01

    Lean is regarded as a systematic approach to maximizing value by minimizing waste, and by flowing the product or service at the pull of the customer demand. These key concepts of "value," "flow," and "pull," align with the ultimate lean goal: "perfection," or a continuous striving for improvement in the…

  5. English-Teaching Problems in Thailand and Thai Teachers' Professional Development Needs

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Noom-ura, Sripathum

    2013-01-01

    This study surveys problems with English language teaching and learning and the professional development (PD) needs of high-school teachers in three provinces of three Secondary Educational Service Areas in Thailand. Both closed-and open-ended questionnaires were employed. The data was analyzed by frequency distribution and percentage; the…

  6. Preparing Teachers for English Learners: Integrating Academic Language and Community Service Projects

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    He, Ye; Journell, Wayne; Faircloth, Josh

    2018-01-01

    In this article we highlight elements of culturally and linguistically responsive pedagogy that prepare teachers to work with English Learners (ELs) from a variety of backgrounds. Specifically, we focus on the learning experiences and practices of one secondary social studies teacher to explore promising practices with ELs and effective teacher…

  7. PA-EFL: A Phonological Awareness Program For Indigenous EFL Students with Hearing Disabilities.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yonovitz, L.; Yonovitz, A.; Palmer, Juan C.

    2000-01-01

    Australia's indigenous populations have endemic levels of otitis media with conductive hearing loss. PA-EFL is a phonological awareness program designed for indigenous Australians who are at high risk for hearing disabilities and who are learning English as a foreign language (EFL). Hearing support services were provided; remarkable literacy gains…

  8. Spanish Basic Course: Units 46-55.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Trease, B. David; Ulsh, Jack L.

    This final volume in a series of four texts was prepared as an intensive language course in Spanish for Foreign Service Officers and other United States government agencies involved in foreign affairs who need to learn to speak Spanish. This volume differs from the first three primarily in that it is geared to advanced students whose…

  9. A Framework for Bilingual School Consultation to Facilitate Multitier Systems of Support for English Language Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Harris, Bryn; Sullivan, Amanda L.

    2017-01-01

    Bilingual students comprise a substantial and growing proportion of U.S. school enrollment and often experience unsatisfactory school outcomes attributed to limited opportunities to learn. Bilingual consultants have the unique opportunity to shape school psychological services and general education supports for all bilingual students by working…

  10. "Into the Realm of the Politically Incorrect": Intercultural Encounters in a Service-Learning Program

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Palpacuer-Lee, Christelle; Curtis, Jessie Hutchison

    2017-01-01

    Now more than ever, teachers of world languages are encouraged to become intercultural mediators in their communities and classrooms. This study describes the impact of an innovative community-based teacher education program for developing participants' interculturality. Building on narrative methods of investigation, we explore the potential of…

  11. Education and the Environment: Creating Standards-Based Programs in Schools and Districts

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lieberman, Gerald A.

    2013-01-01

    In this timely book, curriculum expert Gerald A. Lieberman provides an innovative guide to creating and implementing a new type of environmental education that combines standards-based lessons on English language arts, math, history, and science with community investigations and service learning projects. By connecting academic content with local…

  12. Setting the Standard for Challenge: Teaching English in Dimen, China

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Weick, Cynthia W.; Costigan, Samuel J.; Cunningham, Lindsey J.; Zeiser, Shelly R.; Camp-Bell, Jackson A.; Feliz, Michael C.; Iversen, Jennifer. M.; Kobayashi, Alison L.; Matej, Madelaine A.; Motoyasu, Colleen T.; Teague, Kathryn E.; Wong, Sarah A.

    2015-01-01

    Travelling from Hong Kong to Dimen, China, requires a full day. Creating and implementing an original course to teach English as a foreign language in rural China offered to some of the university's most talented undergraduates the opportunity to integrate hands-on learning with scholarship, cross-cultural understanding, and community service. At…

  13. Examining Social Political Contexts in Teacher Preparation in Palestine

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nasser, Ilham; Wong, Shelley

    2013-01-01

    This study explores teaching English as a foreign language in the West Bank, Palestine. It investigates the perspectives of a group of faculty, preservice, and in-service teachers about teaching and learning English in the primary grades under the overarching harsh realities of political conflict and instability. The study demonstrates the…

  14. Thinking and Content Learning of Mathematics and Science as Cognitional Development in Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL): Teaching Through a Foreign Language in Finland

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jappinen, Aini-Kristiina

    2005-01-01

    This paper presents a study on thinking and learning processes of mathematics and science in teaching through a foreign language, in Finland. The entity of thinking and content learning processes is, in this study, considered as cognitional development. Teaching through a foreign language is here called Content and Language Integrated Learning or…

  15. Beliefs and Out-of-Class Language Learning of Chinese-Speaking ESL Learners in Hong Kong

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wu, Manfred Man-fat

    2012-01-01

    Background: There has been a lack of research on exploring how beliefs about language learning (BALLs) and out-of-class language-learning activities are related. BALLs and out-of-class language-learning activities play an important role in influencing the learning behaviours of learners and learning outcomes. Findings of this study provide useful…

  16. 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…

  17. Beyond the Four Walls: Community-Based Learning and Languages

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    O'Connor, Anne

    2012-01-01

    At a time when languages in universities are under pressure, community-based learning language courses can have many positive benefits: they can increase interest in language learning, they can foster greater engagement with learning, and they can encourage active learning, creativity and teamwork. These courses, which link the classroom and the…

  18. Minority Languages Learned Informally: The Social Construction of Language Skills through the Discourse of Ontario Employers. NALL Working Paper.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Goldberg, Michelle; Corson, David

    Many immigrants, refugees, and aboriginal Canadians learn their own languages in the normal, informal way. These minority languages learned informally are not valued as a skill that yields returns in the labor market in the same way the official languages or formally learned languages do. What counts as a skill in a society, in a given point in…

  19. The Relationship between Iranian EFL Learners' Beliefs about Language Learning and Language Learning Strategy Use

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zarei, Abbas Ali; Rahmani, Hanieh

    2015-01-01

    The present study investigated the relationship between Iranian EFL learners' beliefs about language learning and language learning strategy use. A sample of 104 B.A and M.A Iranian EFL learners majoring in English participated in this study. Three instruments, the Michigan Test of English Language Proficiency (MTELP), Beliefs about Language…

  20. The Internet, Language Learning, and International Dialogue: Constructing Online Foreign Language Learning Websites

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kartal, Erdogan; Uzun, Levent

    2010-01-01

    In the present study we call attention to the close connection between languages and globalization, and we also emphasize the importance of the Internet and online websites in foreign language teaching and learning as unavoidable elements of computer assisted language learning (CALL). We prepared a checklist by which we investigated 28 foreign…

  1. "So They're Actually Real?" Integrating E-Tandem Learning into the Study of Language for International Business

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bruen, Jennifer; Sudhershan, Aleksandra

    2015-01-01

    Tandem learning involves learners with complementary target and native languages communicating for the purpose of learning each other's languages and cultures. Studies indicate that it can function as a powerful complement to formal language learning classes with regard to the development of both language proficiency and cultural intelligence.…

  2. Learning to Learn a Foreign Language. Principles of Second Language Acquisition: An Orientation for Foreign Language Teachers.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pfannkuche, Anthony; And Others

    The manual designed to accompany an orientation seminar for students concerning language learning processes and strategies and the design of their program includes materials for five sessions, in three sections. The first section covers language learning and acquisition in general and contains a survey of the participants' foreign language…

  3. Investigating the Language Learning Strategies of Students in the Foundation Program of United Arab Emirates University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ismail, Sadiq Abdulwahed Ahmed; Al Khatib, Ahmad Z.

    2013-01-01

    Recently, language learning strategies have gained a lot of importance in different parts of the world, including the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Successful foreign or second language learning attempts are viewed in the light of using appropriate and effective language learning strategies. This study investigated the patterns of language learning…

  4. Integrating Culture into Language Teaching and Learning: Learner Outcomes

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nguyen, Trang Thi Thuy

    2017-01-01

    This paper discusses the issue of learner outcomes in learning culture as part of their language learning. First, some brief discussion on the role of culture in language teaching and learning, as well as on culture contents in language lessons is presented. Based on a detailed review of previous literature related to culture in language teaching…

  5. The Impact of Language Experience on Language and Reading: A Statistical Learning Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Seidenberg, Mark S.; MacDonald, Maryellen C.

    2018-01-01

    This article reviews the important role of statistical learning for language and reading development. Although statistical learning--the unconscious encoding of patterns in language input--has become widely known as a force in infants' early interpretation of speech, the role of this kind of learning for language and reading comprehension in…

  6. Language-Learning Holidays: What Motivates People to Learn a Minority Language?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    O'Rourke, Bernadette; DePalma, Renée

    2017-01-01

    In this article, we examine the experiences of 18 Galician language learners who participated in what Garland [(2008). "The minority language and the cosmopolitan speaker: Ideologies of Irish language learners" (Unpublished PhD thesis). University of California, Santa Barbara] refers to as a "language-learning holiday" in…

  7. The Correlation between Early Second Language Learning and Native Language Skill Development

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Caccavale, Terry

    2007-01-01

    It has long been the assumption of many in the field of second language teaching that learning a second language helps to promote and enhance native language skill development, and that this correlation is direct and positive. Language professionals have assumed that learning a second language directly supports the development of better skills,…

  8. Important Constructs in Literacy Learning across Disciplines

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Foorman, Barbara R.; Arndt, Elissa J.; Crawford, Elizabeth C.

    2011-01-01

    Currently students who struggle with language and literacy learning are classified with various labels in different states--language learning disabilities, dyslexia, specific language impairment, and specific learning disability--in spite of having similar diagnostic profiles. Drawing on the research on comprehension of written language, we…

  9. Studying the mechanisms of language learning by varying the learning environment and the learner

    PubMed Central

    Goldin-Meadow, Susan

    2015-01-01

    Language learning is a resilient process, and many linguistic properties can be developed under a wide range of learning environments and learners. The first goal of this review is to describe properties of language that can be developed without exposure to a language model – the resilient properties of language – and to explore conditions under which more fragile properties emerge. But even if a linguistic property is resilient, the developmental course that the property follows is likely to vary as a function of learning environment and learner, that is, there are likely to be individual differences in the learning trajectories children follow. The second goal is to consider how the resilient properties are brought to bear on language learning when a child is exposed to a language model. The review ends by considering the implications of both sets of findings for mechanisms, focusing on the role that the body and linguistic input play in language learning. PMID:26668813

  10. Studying the mechanisms of language learning by varying the learning environment and the learner.

    PubMed

    Goldin-Meadow, Susan

    Language learning is a resilient process, and many linguistic properties can be developed under a wide range of learning environments and learners. The first goal of this review is to describe properties of language that can be developed without exposure to a language model - the resilient properties of language - and to explore conditions under which more fragile properties emerge. But even if a linguistic property is resilient, the developmental course that the property follows is likely to vary as a function of learning environment and learner, that is, there are likely to be individual differences in the learning trajectories children follow. The second goal is to consider how the resilient properties are brought to bear on language learning when a child is exposed to a language model. The review ends by considering the implications of both sets of findings for mechanisms, focusing on the role that the body and linguistic input play in language learning.

  11. Learning and Development of Second and Foreign Language Pragmatics as a Higher-Order Language Skill: A Brief Overview of Relevant Theories. Research Report. ETS RR-16-35

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Timpe-Laughlin, Veronika

    2016-01-01

    The development of effective second and foreign (L2) language learning materials needs to be grounded in two types of theories: (a) a theory of language and language use and (b) a theory of language learning. Both are equally important, insofar as an effective learning environment requires an understanding of the knowledge, skills, and abilities…

  12. The Relationship Between Artificial and Second Language Learning.

    PubMed

    Ettlinger, Marc; Morgan-Short, Kara; Faretta-Stutenberg, Mandy; Wong, Patrick C M

    2016-05-01

    Artificial language learning (ALL) experiments have become an important tool in exploring principles of language and language learning. A persistent question in all of this work, however, is whether ALL engages the linguistic system and whether ALL studies are ecologically valid assessments of natural language ability. In the present study, we considered these questions by examining the relationship between performance in an ALL task and second language learning ability. Participants enrolled in a Spanish language class were evaluated using a number of different measures of Spanish ability and classroom performance, which was compared to IQ and a number of different measures of ALL performance. The results show that success in ALL experiments, particularly more complex artificial languages, correlates positively with indices of L2 learning even after controlling for IQ. These findings provide a key link between studies involving ALL and our understanding of second language learning in the classroom. Copyright © 2015 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

  13. Why segmentation matters: experience-driven segmentation errors impair “morpheme” learning

    PubMed Central

    Finn, Amy S.; Hudson Kam, Carla L.

    2015-01-01

    We ask whether an adult learner’s knowledge of their native language impedes statistical learning in a new language beyond just word segmentation (as previously shown). In particular, we examine the impact of native-language word-form phonotactics on learners’ ability to segment words into their component morphemes and learn phonologically triggered variation of morphemes. We find that learning is impaired when words and component morphemes are structured to conflict with a learner’s native-language phonotactic system, but not when native-language phonotactics do not conflict with morpheme boundaries in the artificial language. A learner’s native-language knowledge can therefore have a cascading impact affecting word segmentation and the morphological variation that relies upon proper segmentation. These results show that getting word segmentation right early in learning is deeply important for learning other aspects of language, even those (morphology) that are known to pose a great difficulty for adult language learners. PMID:25730305

  14. Learning Theories and Skills in Online Second Language Teaching and Learning: Dilemmas and Challenges

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Petersen, Karen Bjerg

    2014-01-01

    For decades foreign and second language teachers have taken advantage of the technology development and ensuing possibilities to use e-learning facilities for language training. Since the 1980s, the use of computer assisted language learning (CALL), Internet, web 2.0, and various kinds of e-learning technology has been developed and researched…

  15. Community Language Learning and Counseling-Learning. TEAL Occasional Papers, Vol. l, 1977.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Soga, Lillian

    Community Language Learning (CLL) is a humanistic approach to learning which emphasizes the learner and learning rather than the teacher and teaching. In some situations where the teacher is not fluent in the various languages spoken by the students, such as in the English as a second language (ESL) classroom, advanced students may serve as…

  16. Access to oral health care services among adults with learning disabilities: a scoping review.

    PubMed

    Naseem, Mustafa; Shah, Altaf H; Khiyani, Muhammad Faheem; Khurshid, Zohaib; Zafar, Muhammad Sohail; Gulzar, Shabnam; AlJameel, AlBandary H; Khalil, Hesham S

    2016-01-01

    The prevalence of oral diseases including dental caries and periodontal conditions is remarkably higher in people with disabilities. The provision of accessible oral health services for people with learning disabilities may be challenging. The objectives of the review were to identify barriers in accessing oral health care that persists within society, enabling or disabling people with learning disabilities. Using the Arksey O'Malley framework, a scoping review was conducted on PubMed/Medline, OVIDSP, and EMBASE. Studies were evaluated and short-listed based on the inclusion criteria, which consisted of: (1) study participants or population with learning disabilities, (2) aged 16 years or over, (3) reporting on access to oral health services, (4) published in the English language. Those that justified the inclusion criteria were carefully chosen after a blind peer-reviewed process when relevance and quality were debated. Nine studies were eventually included from searches. Tabulation of data was done under the heading of study type, outcomes, the year of publication and patient selection. The majority of studies provided a biomedical overview of access for adults with learning disabilities. The concept of access for people with disability is still ill-defined and obscure. Access to oral health care and needs of people with learning disabilities are complex and multi-facet.

  17. Content and Language Integrated Learning with Technologies: A Global Online Training Experience

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cinganotto, Letizia

    2016-01-01

    The focus of this report is the link between CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) and CALL (Computer-Assisted Language Learning), and in particular, the added value technologies can bring to the learning/teaching of a foreign language and to the delivery of subject content through a foreign language. An example of a free online global…

  18. "Seamlessly" Learning Chinese: Contextual Meaning Making and Vocabulary Growth in a Seamless Chinese as a Second Language Learning Environment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wong, Lung-Hsiang; King, Ronnel B.; Chai, Ching Sing; Liu, May

    2016-01-01

    Second language learners are typically hampered by the lack of a natural environment to use the target language for authentic communication purpose (as a means for "learning by applying"). Thus, we propose MyCLOUD, a mobile-assisted seamless language learning approach that aims to nurture a second language social network that bridges…

  19. Perceptions of Turkish EFL Students on Online Language Learning Platforms and Blended Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Istifci, Ilknur

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to examine the perceptions of EFL students studying English at the School of Foreign Languages, Anadolu University (AUSFL) on blended language learning and online learning platforms. The participants of the study consisted of 167 students whose English language proficiency level was B2 according to the Common European…

  20. Should Bilingual Children Learn Reading in Two Languages at the Same Time or in Sequence?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Berens, Melody S.; Kovelman, Ioulia; Petitto, Laura-Ann

    2013-01-01

    Is it best to learn reading in two languages simultaneously or sequentially? We observed second- and third-grade children in two-way "dual-language learning contexts": (a) 50:50 or Simultaneous dual-language (two languages within same developmental period) and (b) 90:10 or Sequential dual-language (one language, followed gradually by the other).…

  1. Improving Science and Vocabulary Learning of English Language Learners. CREATE Brief

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    August, Diane; Artzi, Lauren; Mazrum, Julie

    2010-01-01

    This brief reviews previous research related to the development of science knowledge and academic language in English language learners as well as the role of English language proficiency, learning in a second language, and first language knowledge in science learning. It also describes two successful CREATE interventions that build academic and…

  2. An Integrative Approach to Foreign Language Teaching: Choosing Among the Options. ACTFL Foreign Language Education Series, Vol. 8.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jarvis, Gilbert A., Ed.

    This volume on foreign language teaching and learning concerns the following topics: lifelong learning, small-group learning, the minicourse, student attitudes toward foreign languages, problems in secondary schools, humanistic education, curricula in uncommonly taught languages, foreign languages in elementary and adolescent-centered education,…

  3. Statistical Learning in a Natural Language by 8-Month-Old Infants

    PubMed Central

    Pelucchi, Bruna; Hay, Jessica F.; Saffran, Jenny R.

    2013-01-01

    Numerous studies over the past decade support the claim that infants are equipped with powerful statistical language learning mechanisms. The primary evidence for statistical language learning in word segmentation comes from studies using artificial languages, continuous streams of synthesized syllables that are highly simplified relative to real speech. To what extent can these conclusions be scaled up to natural language learning? In the current experiments, English-learning 8-month-old infants’ ability to track transitional probabilities in fluent infant-directed Italian speech was tested (N = 72). The results suggest that infants are sensitive to transitional probability cues in unfamiliar natural language stimuli, and support the claim that statistical learning is sufficiently robust to support aspects of real-world language acquisition. PMID:19489896

  4. Statistical learning in a natural language by 8-month-old infants.

    PubMed

    Pelucchi, Bruna; Hay, Jessica F; Saffran, Jenny R

    2009-01-01

    Numerous studies over the past decade support the claim that infants are equipped with powerful statistical language learning mechanisms. The primary evidence for statistical language learning in word segmentation comes from studies using artificial languages, continuous streams of synthesized syllables that are highly simplified relative to real speech. To what extent can these conclusions be scaled up to natural language learning? In the current experiments, English-learning 8-month-old infants' ability to track transitional probabilities in fluent infant-directed Italian speech was tested (N = 72). The results suggest that infants are sensitive to transitional probability cues in unfamiliar natural language stimuli, and support the claim that statistical learning is sufficiently robust to support aspects of real-world language acquisition.

  5. Cross-Cultural Learning: The Language Connection.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Axelrod, Joseph

    1981-01-01

    If foreign language acquisition is disconnected from the cultural life of the foreign speech community, the learning yield is low. Integration of affective learning, cultural learning, and foreign language learning are essential to a successful cross-cultural experience. (MSE)

  6. Language Learning in Virtual Reality Environments: Past, Present, and Future

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lin, Tsun-Ju; Lan, Yu-Ju

    2015-01-01

    This study investigated the research trends in language learning in a virtual reality environment by conducting a content analysis of findings published in the literature from 2004 to 2013 in four top ranked computer-assisted language learning journals: "Language Learning & Technology," "CALICO Journal," "Computer…

  7. Language Learning Strategies and Its Training Model

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Liu, Jing

    2010-01-01

    This paper summarizes and reviews the literature regarding language learning strategies and it's training model, pointing out the significance of language learning strategies to EFL learners and an applicable and effective language learning strategies training model, which is beneficial both to EFL learners and instructors, is badly needed.

  8. Learning Spanish the Fenix Way

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wholey, Jane

    1977-01-01

    The Instituto Fenix, a language learning school in Cuernavaca, Mexico, features oral language learning and a creative teaching technique to help language students to learn Spanish both effectively and quickly. (RK)

  9. 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

  10. 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.

  11. Teacher-Student Interaction and Learning.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hall, Joan Kelly; Walsh, Meghan

    2002-01-01

    Reviews literature on recent developments in teacher-student interaction and language learning. Based on a sociocultural perspective of language and learning, draws from three types of classrooms: first language, second language, and foreign language. Attention is given to studies that investigate the specific means used in teacher-student…

  12. Comparing Local and International Chinese Students' English Language Learning Strategies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Anthony, Margreat Aloysious; Ganesen, Sree Nithya

    2012-01-01

    According to Horwitz (1987) learners' belief about language learning are influenced by previous language learning experiences as well as cultural background. This study examined the English Language Learning Strategies between local and international Chinese students who share the same cultural background but have been exposed to different…

  13. Infant Statistical-Learning Ability Is Related to Real-Time Language Processing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lany, Jill; Shoaib, Amber; Thompson, Abbie; Estes, Katharine Graf

    2018-01-01

    Infants are adept at learning statistical regularities in artificial language materials, suggesting that the ability to learn statistical structure may support language development. Indeed, infants who perform better on statistical learning tasks tend to be more advanced in parental reports of infants' language skills. Work with adults suggests…

  14. Metacognition and Second/Foreign Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Raoofi, Saeid; Chan, Swee Heng; Mukundan, Jayakaran; Rashid, Sabariah Md

    2014-01-01

    Metacognition appears to be a significant contributor to success in second language (SL) and foreign language (FL) learning. This study seeks to investigate empirical research on the role metacognition plays in language learning by focusing on the following research questions: first, to what extent does metacognition affect SL/FL learning? Second,…

  15. Self-Regulated Out-of-Class Language Learning with Technology

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lai, Chun; Gu, Mingyue

    2011-01-01

    Current computer-assisted language learning (CALL) research has identified various potentials of technology for language learning. To realize and maximize these potentials, engaging students in self-initiated use of technology for language learning is a must. This study investigated Hong Kong university students' use of technology outside the…

  16. Do Language Proficiency Levels Correspond to Language Learning Strategy Adoption?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gharbavi, Abdullah; Mousavi, Seyyed Ahmad

    2012-01-01

    The primary focus of research on employment of language learning strategies has been on identification of adoption of different learning strategies. However, the relationship between language learning strategies and proficiency levels was ignored in previous research. The present study was undertaken to find out whether there are any relationship…

  17. 76 FR 54283 - 30-Day Notice of Proposed Information Collections: Language Learning Survey Questions

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-08-31

    ...: Language Learning Survey Questions ACTION: Notice of request for public comment and submission to OMB of... the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. Title of Information Collection: Language Learning Programs: Pre... critical language learning instruction. Estimated Number of Respondents: 1,400 annually Estimated Number of...

  18. Teachers' and Students' Beliefs regarding Aspects of Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Davis, Adrian

    2003-01-01

    The similarities and dissimilarities between teachers' and students' conceptions of language learning were addressed through a questionnaire survey concerning the nature and methods of language learning. The results indicate points of congruence between teachers' and students' beliefs about language learning in respect of eight main areas.…

  19. Associations between Chinese EFL Graduate Students' Beliefs and Language Learning Strategies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tang, Mailing; Tian, Jianrong

    2015-01-01

    This study, using Horwitz's Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory and Oxford's Strategy Inventory for Language Learning, investigated learners' beliefs about language learning and their choice of strategy categories among 546 graduate students in China. The correlation between learners' beliefs and their strategy categories use was examined.…

  20. Pedagogy of Language Learning in Higher Education: An Introduction. Advances in Foreign Language Pedagogy, Volume 2.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brauer, Gerd, Ed.

    This second volume in the series "Advances in Foreign and Second Language Pedagogy" is an introduction to the pedagogy of language learning in higher education focusing on learner motivation, classroom environments, relationships for learning, and the future of language education. The book reveals numerous links to language education on the…

  1. Which Methodology Works Better? English Language Teachers' Awareness of the Innovative Language Learning Methodologies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kurt, Mustafa

    2015-01-01

    The present study investigated whether English language teachers were aware of the innovative language learning methodologies in language learning, how they made use of these methodologies and the learners' reactions to them. The descriptive survey method was employed to disclose the frequencies and percentages of 175 English language teachers'…

  2. Language Acquisition and Language Learning: A Plea for Syncretism.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Higgs, Theodore V.

    1985-01-01

    Discusses the apparent opposition between the concepts of language learning and language acquisition in the context of adult second-language study. Proposes that these two concepts are mutually supportive, not mutually exclusive. Demonstrates how the implications of learning vs. acquisition can be integrated into a communicative…

  3. The Use of Vocabulary Learning Strategies in Teaching Turkish as a Second Language

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Baskin, Sami; Iscan, Adem; Karagoz, Beytullah; Birol, Gülnur

    2017-01-01

    Vocabulary learning is the basis of the language learning process in teaching Turkish as a second language. Vocabulary learning strategies need to be used in order for vocabulary learning to take place effectively. The use of vocabulary learning strategies facilitates vocabulary learning and increases student achievement. Each student uses a…

  4. Should bilingual children learn reading in two languages at the same time or in sequence?

    PubMed Central

    Berens, Melody S.; Kovelman, Ioulia; Petitto, Laura-Ann

    2013-01-01

    Is it best to learn reading in two languages simultaneously or sequentially? We observed 2nd and 3rd grade children in two-way dual-language learning contexts: (i) 50:50 or Simultaneous dual-language (two languages within same developmental period) and (ii) 90:10 or Sequential dual-language (one language, followed gradually by the other). They were compared to matched monolingual English-only children in single-language English schools. Bilinguals (home language was Spanish only, English-only, or Spanish and English in dual-language schools), were tested in both languages, and monolingual children were tested in English using standardized reading and language tasks. Bilinguals in 50:50 programs performed better than bilinguals in 90:10 programs on English Irregular Words and Passage Comprehension tasks, suggesting language and reading facilitation for underlying grammatical class and linguistic structure analyses. By contrast, bilinguals in 90:10 programs performed better than bilinguals in the 50:50 programs on English Phonological Awareness and Reading Decoding tasks, suggesting language and reading facilitation for surface phonological regularity analysis. Notably, children from English-only homes in dual-language learning contexts performed equally well, or better than, children from monolingual English-only homes in single-language learning contexts. Overall, the findings provide tantalizing evidence that dual-language learning during the same developmental period may provide bilingual reading advantages. PMID:23794952

  5. Gradient language dominance affects talker learning.

    PubMed

    Bregman, Micah R; Creel, Sarah C

    2014-01-01

    Traditional conceptions of spoken language assume that speech recognition and talker identification are computed separately. Neuropsychological and neuroimaging studies imply some separation between the two faculties, but recent perceptual studies suggest better talker recognition in familiar languages than unfamiliar languages. A familiar-language benefit in talker recognition potentially implies strong ties between the two domains. However, little is known about the nature of this language familiarity effect. The current study investigated the relationship between speech and talker processing by assessing bilingual and monolingual listeners' ability to learn voices as a function of language familiarity and age of acquisition. Two effects emerged. First, bilinguals learned to recognize talkers in their first language (Korean) more rapidly than they learned to recognize talkers in their second language (English), while English-speaking participants showed the opposite pattern (learning English talkers faster than Korean talkers). Second, bilinguals' learning rate for talkers in their second language (English) correlated with age of English acquisition. Taken together, these results suggest that language background materially affects talker encoding, implying a tight relationship between speech and talker representations. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. The Relationship between Artificial and Second Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ettlinger, Marc; Morgan-Short, Kara; Faretta-Stutenberg, Mandy; Wong, Patrick C. M.

    2016-01-01

    Artificial language learning (ALL) experiments have become an important tool in exploring principles of language and language learning. A persistent question in all of this work, however, is whether ALL engages the linguistic system and whether ALL studies are ecologically valid assessments of natural language ability. In the present study, we…

  7. Adult Basic Learning in an Activity Center: A Demonstration Approach.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Metropolitan Adult Education Program, San Jose, CA.

    Escuela Amistad, an activity center in San Jose, California, is now operating at capacity, five months after its origin. Average daily attendance has been 125 adult students, 18-65, most of whom are females of Mexican-American background. Activities and services provided by the center are: instruction in English as a second language, home…

  8. Qanimarisaj Qano'jib'alil--Engrandezcamos Nuestro Pensamiento (Let's Broaden Our Thinking). [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. The CD-ROMs help bilingual pre-service teachers improve their reading, writing, and listening comprehension skills in their own Mayan language. After a musical and colorful introduction, users may choose introductions to…

  9. Learning from Interpersonal Interactions during the Practicum: A Case Study of Non-Native ESL Student Teachers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gan, Zhengdong

    2014-01-01

    Although research reveals that pre-service student teachers often regard their relationships with their significant others as an important element of their initial teaching practice experience, much remains unknown about the influence of significant others on non-native English as a Second Language (ESL) student teachers' professional learning…

  10. The Day Bolivian Students Came to School Motivating Students through Culture

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Davin, Kristin

    2010-01-01

    Like many elementary foreign language teachers, the author traveled from room to room to teach. Each room had different materials and a different classroom culture. This article describes how the author taught her students about Bolivia and how to motivate them through culture. It discusses a service-learning project that brings life-changing…

  11. Lessons from the Renaissance: The Power of Multiple Knowledge Bases

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Whitmire, Kathleen; Beck, Joanna

    2010-01-01

    This article applies the Renaissance paradigm of "Homo universalis" to a 30-year retrospective of services provided in education settings to children and youth with language disorders. It also proposes directions to take for the future. The Renaissance ideal of "Homo universalis" refers to an individual who acquires learning in a wide variety of…

  12. Examining the Internal Structure of the Test of English-for-Teaching ("TEFT"™). Research Report. ETS RR-15-16

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gu, Lin; Turkan, Sultan; Gomez, Pablo Garcia

    2015-01-01

    ELTeach is an online professional development program developed by Educational Testing Service (ETS) in collaboration with National Geographic Learning. The ELTeach program consists of two courses: English-for-Teaching and Professional Knowledge for English Language Teaching (ELT). Each course includes a coordinated assessment leading to a score…

  13. Language Policy, Tacit Knowledge, and Institutional Learning: The Case of the Swiss Public Service Broadcaster SRG SSR

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Perrin, Daniel

    2011-01-01

    "Promoting public understanding" is what the programming mandate asks the Swiss public broadcasting company SRG SSR to do. From a sociolinguistic perspective, this means linking speech communities with other speech communities, both between and within the German-, French-, Italian-, and Romansh-speaking parts of Switzerland. In the…

  14. Idiographic Roles of Cooperating Teachers as Mentors in Pre-Service Distance Teacher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Koc, Ebru Melek

    2012-01-01

    This study aims to define the roles of cooperating teachers as mentors in the context of distance-learning teacher education. The participants included 358 cooperating teachers who mentored 4th-year student teachers in a Distance English Language Teacher Training Program in Turkey. To determine the roles that were perceived as mentoring roles by…

  15. Symposium on Literacy and Disabilities (6th, Durham, North Carolina, January 23-24, 1997). Proceedings.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Duke Univ., Durham, NC. Medical Center.

    Shortened versions of papers from a symposium on literacy and disabilities are provided. Paper topics include: (1) a literacy bill of rights; (2) balanced instruction for diverse learners; (3) historical trends in vocabulary selection; (4) inclusive/collaborative service delivery for language/learning disabled school-age children; (5) literacy,…

  16. Learning from Families: Pre-Service Teachers' First Interactions with Parents

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brannon, Diana

    2014-01-01

    Parent involvement is essential to student success. However, it is also often a struggle for even the most experienced teacher to get parents involved. There are many barriers to parent involvement including issues related to parents finding the time, understanding its importance, and speaking a different language in the home. That is the reality…

  17. Efficacy of a Systematic Prompt Reduction Strategy in Teaching Independent Composition. [Final Report.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Harriman, Nancy; Schloss, Patrick J.

    The use of systematic prompting and monitoring to increase written sentence production during a ten-minute assigned composition task was investigated with 78 learning disabled (LD) students in grades 7-12. Subjects were classified as LD, were receiving special education services, and evidenced at least a 2-year lag in written language skills. Six…

  18. In-Service Education Mediated through Curriculum Development: An Issues-Based Study of Language Learning and Teaching

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Erben, Tony

    2006-01-01

    This article outlines the results of an issues-based study conducted over a 12-month period that investigated how the systematic inclusion of teachers within the design, operationalization and implementation of an online curriculum development project in Florida led simultaneously to teachers' own professionalizing in areas of education they were…

  19. Learning to Support Adolescent Literacy: Teacher Educator Pedagogy and Novice Teacher Take up in Secondary English Language Arts Teacher Preparation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kavanagh, Sarah Schneider; Rainey, Emily C.

    2017-01-01

    Disciplinary literacy scholars promote text-based instruction in the service of disciplinary inquiry, and scholars of teacher education promote practice-based preparation for teachers. This study brings these scholarly communities into conversation by investigating how practice orientations in teacher education influence novice teachers' literacy…

  20. The Role of Consciousness in Second Language Learning.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Schmidt, Richard W.

    1990-01-01

    Summarizes recent psychological research and theory on the topic of consciousness, and looks at three questions in second-language learning related to the role of consciousness in input processing. The discussion involves the requirement in learning a second language of subliminal learning, implicit learning, and incidental learning. (142…

  1. Learning Languages: The Journal of the National Network for Early Language Learning, 1998-1999.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rosenbusch, Marcia H., Ed.

    1999-01-01

    These three journals include articles on issues related to language learning. The fall 1998 journal presents: "Attention! Are You Seeking a Position with Excellent Long-Term Benefits? Be an Advocate!" (Mary Lynn Redmond); "National Town Meeting Energizes Support for Early Language Learning" (Marcia Harmon Rosenbusch);…

  2. Competence Visualisation: Making Sense of Data from 21st-Century Technologies in Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bull, Susan; Wasson, Barbara

    2016-01-01

    This paper introduces an open learner model approach to learning analytics to combine the variety of data available from the range of applications and technologies in language learning, for visualisation of language learning competences to learners and teachers in the European language context. Specific examples are provided as illustrations…

  3. Child-Adult Differences in Implicit and Explicit Second Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lichtman, Karen Melissa

    2012-01-01

    Mainstream linguistics has long held that there is a fundamental difference between adult and child language learning (Bley-Vroman, 1990; Johnson & Newport, 1989; DeKeyser, 2000; Paradis, 2004). This difference is often framed as a change from implicit language learning in childhood to explicit language learning in adulthood, which is…

  4. Visualization Analytics for Second Language Vocabulary Learning in Virtual Worlds

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hsiao, Indy Y. T.; Lan, Yu-Ju; Kao, Chia-Ling; Li, Ping

    2017-01-01

    Language learning occurring in authentic contexts has been shown to be more effective. Virtual worlds provide simulated contexts that have the necessary elements of authentic contexts for language learning, and as a result, many studies have adopted virtual worlds as a useful platform for language learning. However, few studies so far have…

  5. A Preliminary Survey of the Preferred Learning Methods for Interpretation Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Heinz, Michael

    2013-01-01

    There are many different methods that individuals use to learn languages like reading books or writing essays. Not all methods are equally successful for second language learners but nor do all successful learners of a second language show identical preferences for learning methods. Additionally, at the highest level of language learning various…

  6. High School Foreign Language Students' Perceptions of Language Learning Strategies Use and Self-Efficacy.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    National Capital Language Resource Center, Washington, DC.

    This study investigated the relationship of language learning strategies use and self-efficacy of high school students learning Chinese, German, Russian, Japanese, and Spanish. Through two questionnaires, The Language Learning Strategies Questionnaire and The Self-Efficacy Questionnaire, researchers were able to collect and analyze data on…

  7. Using Ontologies to Interlink Linguistic Annotations and Improve Their Accuracy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pareja-Lora, Antonio

    2016-01-01

    For the new approaches to language e-learning (e.g. language blended learning, language autonomous learning or mobile-assisted language learning) to succeed, some automatic functions for error correction (for instance, in exercises) will have to be included in the long run in the corresponding environments and/or applications. A possible way to…

  8. Cooperative Language Learning: Increasing Opportunities for Learning in Teams

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wichadee, Saovapa; Orawiwatnakul, Wiwat

    2012-01-01

    This paper conceptualizes cooperative language learning, group instruction which is under the learner-centered approach where the groups are formed in such a way that each member performs his or her task to achieve the goal. Previous research indicates that cooperative language learning doesn't only improve learners' language skills, but also…

  9. A Program That Acquires Language Using Positive and Negative Feedback.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brand, James

    1987-01-01

    Describes the language learning program "Acquire," which is a sample of grammar induction. It is a learning algorithm based on a pattern-matching scheme, using both a positive and negative network to reduce overgeneration. Language learning programs may be useful as tutorials for learning the syntax of a foreign language. (Author/LMO)

  10. Students with Learning Disabilities in the Foreign Language Learning Environment and the Practice of Exemption

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wight, Mary Caitlin S.

    2015-01-01

    This examination of the literature on foreign, or second, language learning by native English-speaking students with disabilities addresses the benefits of language learning, the practices and policies of language exemption, the perceptions of students and educators regarding those practices, and available resources for supporting students with…

  11. Beliefs about Language Learning of Thai Upper Secondary School Students in Different Educational Contexts

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Apairach, Sirawit; Vibulphol, Jutarat

    2015-01-01

    Beliefs about language learning are considered key for success in language learning. These beliefs can be shaped by contextual factors (Amuzie & Winke, 2009; Dole & Sinatra, 1994; Negueruela-Azarola, 2011). This paper explores the beliefs about language learning of Thai secondary school students in two educational contexts: in the…

  12. The Role of Language Learning Progressions in Improved Instruction and Assessment of English Language Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bailey, Alison L.; Heritage, Margaret

    2014-01-01

    This article addresses theoretical and empirical issues relevant for the development and evaluation of language learning progressions. The authors explore how learning progressions aligned with new content standards can form a central basis of efforts to describe the English language needed in school contexts for learning, instruction, and…

  13. Teaching and Learning Vocabulary: What English Language Learners Perceive to Be Effective and Ineffective Strategies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sa'd, Seyyed Hatam Tamimi; Rajabi, Fereshte

    2018-01-01

    Vocabulary constitutes an essential part of every language-learning endeavour and deserves scholarly attention. The objective of the present study was three-fold: 1) exploring Iranian English language learners' Vocabulary Learning Strategies (VLSs), 2) examining language learners' perceptions of vocabulary learning, and 3) exploring Iranian…

  14. 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.…

  15. Sleep Disorders as a Risk to Language Learning and Use. EBP Briefs. Volume 10, Issue 1

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McGregor, Karla K.; Alper, Rebecca M.

    2015-01-01

    Clinical Question: Are people with sleep disorders at higher risk for language learning deficits than healthy sleepers? Method: Scoping Review. Study Sources: PubMed, Google Scholar, Trip Database, ClinicalTrials.gov. Search Terms: sleep disorders AND language AND learning; sleep disorders language learning--deprivation--epilepsy; sleep disorders…

  16. An Intelligent Computer Assisted Language Learning System for Arabic Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shaalan, Khaled F.

    2005-01-01

    This paper describes the development of an intelligent computer-assisted language learning (ICALL) system for learning Arabic. This system could be used for learning Arabic by students at primary schools or by learners of Arabic as a second or foreign language. It explores the use of Natural Language Processing (NLP) techniques for learning…

  17. Exploring Prospective EFL Teachers' Perceived Self-Efficacy and Beliefs on English Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Genç, Gülten; Kulusakli, Emine; Aydin, Savas

    2016-01-01

    Learners' perceived self-efficacy and beliefs on English language learning are important in education. Taking into consideration the important impact of individual variables on language learning, this study seeks to highlight the relationship between Turkish EFL learners' beliefs about language learning and their sense of self-efficacy. The…

  18. Applications of Cognitive Load Theory to Multimedia-Based Foreign Language Learning: An Overview

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chen, I-Jung; Chang, Chi-Cheng; Lee, Yen-Chang

    2009-01-01

    This article reviews the multimedia instructional design literature based on cognitive load theory (CLT) in the context of foreign language learning. Multimedia are of particular importance in language learning materials because they incorporate text, image, and sound, thus offering an integrated learning experience of the four language skills…

  19. How relevant is social interaction in second language learning?

    PubMed Central

    Verga, Laura; Kotz, Sonja A.

    2013-01-01

    Verbal language is the most widespread mode of human communication, and an intrinsically social activity. This claim is strengthened by evidence emerging from different fields, which clearly indicates that social interaction influences human communication, and more specifically, language learning. Indeed, research conducted with infants and children shows that interaction with a caregiver is necessary to acquire language. Further evidence on the influence of sociality on language comes from social and linguistic pathologies, in which deficits in social and linguistic abilities are tightly intertwined, as is the case for Autism, for example. However, studies on adult second language (L2) learning have been mostly focused on individualistic approaches, partly because of methodological constraints, especially of imaging methods. The question as to whether social interaction should be considered as a critical factor impacting upon adult language learning still remains underspecified. Here, we review evidence in support of the view that sociality plays a significant role in communication and language learning, in an attempt to emphasize factors that could facilitate this process in adult language learning. We suggest that sociality should be considered as a potentially influential factor in adult language learning and that future studies in this domain should explicitly target this factor. PMID:24027521

  20. How relevant is social interaction in second language learning?

    PubMed

    Verga, Laura; Kotz, Sonja A

    2013-09-03

    Verbal language is the most widespread mode of human communication, and an intrinsically social activity. This claim is strengthened by evidence emerging from different fields, which clearly indicates that social interaction influences human communication, and more specifically, language learning. Indeed, research conducted with infants and children shows that interaction with a caregiver is necessary to acquire language. Further evidence on the influence of sociality on language comes from social and linguistic pathologies, in which deficits in social and linguistic abilities are tightly intertwined, as is the case for Autism, for example. However, studies on adult second language (L2) learning have been mostly focused on individualistic approaches, partly because of methodological constraints, especially of imaging methods. The question as to whether social interaction should be considered as a critical factor impacting upon adult language learning still remains underspecified. Here, we review evidence in support of the view that sociality plays a significant role in communication and language learning, in an attempt to emphasize factors that could facilitate this process in adult language learning. We suggest that sociality should be considered as a potentially influential factor in adult language learning and that future studies in this domain should explicitly target this factor.

  1. Language Anxiety and Achievement.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Horwitz, Elaine K.

    2001-01-01

    Considers the literature on language learning anxiety in an effort to clarify the relationship between anxiety and second language learning. Suggests that anxiety is indeed a cause of poor language learning in some individuals and discusses possible sources of this anxiety. (Author/VWL)

  2. The Pediatrician's Role in Optimizing School Readiness.

    PubMed

    2016-09-01

    School readiness includes not only the early academic skills of children but also their physical health, language skills, social and emotional development, motivation to learn, creativity, and general knowledge. Families and communities play a critical role in ensuring children's growth in all of these areas and thus their readiness for school. Schools must be prepared to teach all children when they reach the age of school entry, regardless of their degree of readiness. Research on early brain development emphasizes the effects of early experiences, relationships, and emotions on creating and reinforcing the neural connections that are the basis for learning. Pediatricians, by the nature of their relationships with families and children, may significantly influence school readiness. Pediatricians have a primary role in ensuring children's physical health through the provision of preventive care, treatment of illness, screening for sensory deficits, and monitoring nutrition and growth. They can promote and monitor the social-emotional development of children by providing anticipatory guidance on development and behavior, by encouraging positive parenting practices, by modeling reciprocal and respectful communication with adults and children, by identifying and addressing psychosocial risk factors, and by providing community-based resources and referrals when warranted. Cognitive and language skills are fostered through timely identification of developmental problems and appropriate referrals for services, including early intervention and special education services; guidance regarding safe and stimulating early education and child care programs; and promotion of early literacy by encouraging language-rich activities such as reading together, telling stories, and playing games. Pediatricians are also well positioned to advocate not only for children's access to health care but also for high-quality early childhood education and evidence-based family supports such as home visits, which help provide a foundation for optimal learning. Copyright © 2016 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

  3. How Does Anxiety Affect Second Language Learning? A Reply to Sparks and Ganschow.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    MacIntyre, Peter D.

    1995-01-01

    Advocates that language anxiety can play a significant causal role in creating individual differences in both language learning and communication. This paper studies the role of anxiety in the language learning process and concludes that the linguistic coding deficit hypothesis errs in assigning epiphenomenal status to language anxiety. (57…

  4. Task-Based EFL Language Teaching with Procedural Information Design in a Technical Writing Context

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roy, Debopriyo

    2017-01-01

    Task-based language learning (TBLL) has heavily influenced syllabus design, classroom teaching, and learner assessment in a foreign or second language teaching context. In this English as foreign language (EFL) learning environment, the paper discussed an innovative language learning pedagogy based on design education and technical writing. In…

  5. Literacy through Languages: Connecting with the Common Core

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sandrock, Paul

    2013-01-01

    The Common Core Standards have defined literacy and outlined the mission for English Language Arts in a way that provides a natural fit with the National Standards for Language Learning. Taking advantage of this connection, language teachers can showcase the importance of learning languages by demonstrating how literacy is learned, practiced, and…

  6. Nahuatl as a Classical, Foreign, and Additional Language: A Phenomenological Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    De Felice, Dustin

    2012-01-01

    In this study, participants learning an endangered language variety shared their experiences, thoughts, and feelings about the often complex and diverse language-learning process. I used phenomenological interviews in order to learn more about these English or Spanish language speakers' journey with the Nahuatl language. From first encounter to…

  7. Assessment of Language Learning Strategies Used by Palestinian EFL Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Khalil, Aziz

    2005-01-01

    This article assesses the language learning strategies (LLSs) used by 194 high school and 184 university English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) learners in Palestine, using Oxford's (1990) Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL). It also explores the effect of language proficiency and gender on frequency of strategy use. The findings show…

  8. A Project for Everyone: English Language Learners and Technology in Content-Area Classrooms.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Egbert, Joy

    2002-01-01

    Discussion of student participation in classroom projects when learning English as a second language highlights conditions that support language and content learning; approaches that can facilitate language and content learning; and what technology and other resources support English language learners in content-area classrooms. Uses a project on…

  9. The Use of the First Language in Second Language Learning Reconsidered

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Halasa, Najwa Hanna; Al-Manaseer, Majeda

    2012-01-01

    This paper aims to study new techniques in second language learning involving the active use of the mother tongue in classroom situations. Several teaching methods will be discussed such as The Alternating Approach, The New Concurrent Method, and Community Language Learning method. These methods of employing the first language recognise the link…

  10. The Relationships among Group Size, Participation, and Performance of Programming Language Learning Supported with Online Forums

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shaw, Ruey-Shiang

    2013-01-01

    This study examined the relationships among group size, participation, and learning performance factors when learning a programming language in a computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) context. An online forum was used as the CSCL environment for learning the Microsoft ASP.NET programming language. The collaborative-learning experiment…

  11. Surveying and Modeling Students' Motivation and Learning Strategies for Mobile-Assisted Seamless Chinese Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

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

    2016-01-01

    Seamless language learning promises to be an effective learning approach that addresses the limitations of classroom-only language learning. It leverages mobile technologies to facilitate holistic and perpetual learning experiences that bridge different locations, times, technologies or social settings. Despite the emergence of studies on seamless…

  12. Statistical learning and language acquisition

    PubMed Central

    Romberg, Alexa R.; Saffran, Jenny R.

    2011-01-01

    Human learners, including infants, are highly sensitive to structure in their environment. Statistical learning refers to the process of extracting this structure. A major question in language acquisition in the past few decades has been the extent to which infants use statistical learning mechanisms to acquire their native language. There have been many demonstrations showing infants’ ability to extract structures in linguistic input, such as the transitional probability between adjacent elements. This paper reviews current research on how statistical learning contributes to language acquisition. Current research is extending the initial findings of infants’ sensitivity to basic statistical information in many different directions, including investigating how infants represent regularities, learn about different levels of language, and integrate information across situations. These current directions emphasize studying statistical language learning in context: within language, within the infant learner, and within the environment as a whole. PMID:21666883

  13. Learning a Language with Web 2.0: Exploring the Use of Social Networking Features of Foreign Language Learning Websites

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stevenson, Megan P.; Liu, Min

    2010-01-01

    This paper presents the results of an online survey and a usability test performed on three foreign language learning websites that use Web 2.0 technology. The online survey was conducted to gain an understanding of how current users of language learning websites use them for learning and social purposes. The usability test was conducted to gain…

  14. How Successful Learners Employ Learning Strategies in an EFL Setting in the Indonesian Context

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Setiyadi, Ag. Bambang; Sukirlan, Muhammad; Mahpul

    2016-01-01

    Numerous studies have been conducted to correlate the use of language learning strategies and language performance and the studies have contributed to different perspectives of teaching and learning a foreign language. Some studies have also revealed that the students learning a foreign language in Asian contexts have been proved to use different…

  15. Vocabulary Instruction: Software Flashcards vs. Word Clouds

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mansouri, Vahid

    2015-01-01

    When it comes to language learning, vocabulary learning is the main activity focused on. Vocabulary learning is the main problem and also the goal of new language learners. It is one of the major problems that language learners encounter during learning a new language. Krashen (1989) (cited in Tokac, 2005) points out the role of vocabulary in a…

  16. Paradoxes of Social Networking in a Structured Web 2.0 Language Learning Community

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Loiseau, Mathieu; Zourou, Katerina

    2012-01-01

    This paper critically inquires into social networking as a set of mechanisms and associated practices developed in a structured Web 2.0 language learning community. This type of community can be roughly described as learning spaces featuring (more or less) structured language learning resources displaying at least some notions of language learning…

  17. Understanding the Nature of Learners' Out-of-Class Language Learning Experience with Technology

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lai, Chun; Hu, Xiao; Lyu, Boning

    2018-01-01

    Out-of-class learning with technology comprises an essential context of second language development. Understanding the nature of out-of-class language learning with technology is the initial step towards safeguarding its quality. This study examined the types of learning experiences that language learners engaged in outside the classroom and the…

  18. On Using Intelligent Computer-Assisted Language Learning in Real-Life Foreign Language Teaching and Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Amaral, Luiz A.; Meurers, Detmar

    2011-01-01

    This paper explores the motivation and prerequisites for successful integration of Intelligent Computer-Assisted Language Learning (ICALL) tools into current foreign language teaching and learning (FLTL) practice. We focus on two aspects, which we argue to be important for effective ICALL system development and use: (i) the relationship between…

  19. Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) in Support of (Re)-Learning Native Languages: The Case of Runyakitara

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Katushemererwe, Fridah; Nerbonne, John

    2015-01-01

    This study presents the results from a computer-assisted language learning (CALL) system of Runyakitara (RU_CALL). The major objective was to provide an electronic language learning environment that can enable learners with mother tongue deficiencies to enhance their knowledge of grammar and acquire writing skills in Runyakitara. The system…

  20. Cultural Conceptualisations in Learning English as an L2: Examples from Persian-Speaking Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sharifian, Farzad

    2013-01-01

    Traditionally, many studies of second language acquisition (SLA) were based on the assumption that learning a new language mainly involves learning a set of grammatical rules, lexical items, and certain new sounds and sound combinations. However, for many second language learners, learning a second language may involve contact and interactions…

  1. Exploring Effectiveness and Moderators of Language Learning Strategy Instruction on Second Language and Self-Regulated Learning Outcomes

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ardasheva, Yuliya; Wang, Zhe; Adesope, Olusola O.; Valentine, Jeffrey C.

    2017-01-01

    This meta-analysis synthesized recent research on strategy instruction (SI) effectiveness to estimate SI effects and their moderators for two domains: second/foreign language and self-regulated learning. A total of 37 studies (47 independent samples) for language domain and 16 studies (17 independent samples) for self-regulated learning domain…

  2. Language Learning Strategies of Language e-Learners in Turkey

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Solak, Ekrem; Cakir, Recep

    2015-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to determine the use of language learning strategies of e-learners and to understand whether there were any correlations between language learning strategies and academic achievement. Participants of the study were 274?e-learners, 132 males and 142 females, enrolled in an e-learning program from various majors and…

  3. Language Learning and Its Impact on the Brain: Connecting Language Learning with the Mind through Content-Based Instruction

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kennedy, Teresa J.

    2006-01-01

    Cognitive sciences are discovering many things that educators have always intuitively known about language learning. However, the important point is actively using this new information to improve both students learning and current teaching practices. The implications of neuroscience for educational reform regarding second language (L2) learning…

  4. Synchronous and Asynchronous E-Language Learning: A Case Study of Virtual University of Pakistan

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Perveen, Ayesha

    2016-01-01

    This case study evaluated the impact of synchronous and asynchronous E-Language Learning activities (ELL-ivities) in an E-Language Learning Environment (ELLE) at Virtual University of Pakistan. The purpose of the study was to assess e-language learning analytics based on the constructivist approach of collaborative construction of knowledge. The…

  5. The Relationship between Instructor Humor Orientation and Students' Report on Second Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ziyaeemehr, Ali; Kumar, Vijay

    2014-01-01

    Humor is an integral component of any language and therefore has an impact on the way languages are acquired/learned. Numerous studies have investigated the role of instructor humor in teaching/learning processes; however, there is little empirical research on the relationship between instructor humor and learning of a second language. This paper…

  6. Future Directions for the Learning of Languages in Universities: Challenges and Opportunities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pauwels, Anne

    2011-01-01

    The place of foreign language learning in education has a rich and diverse history since the introduction of compulsory schooling, with some countries including the learning of a foreign language as a compulsory part of the curriculum, whilst in others foreign language learning is seen as an optional subject suited for more academically minded…

  7. The Relationship between Socio-Economic Status, General Language Learning Outcome, and Beliefs about Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ariani, Mohsen Ghasemi; Ghafournia, Narjes

    2016-01-01

    The objective of this study is to explore the probable relationship between Iranian students' socioeconomic status, general language learning outcome, and their beliefs about language learning. To this end, 350 postgraduate students, doing English for specific courses at Islamic Azad University of Neyshabur participated in this study. They were…

  8. Child first language and adult second language are both tied to general-purpose learning systems.

    PubMed

    Hamrick, Phillip; Lum, Jarrad A G; Ullman, Michael T

    2018-02-13

    Do the mechanisms underlying language in fact serve general-purpose functions that preexist this uniquely human capacity? To address this contentious and empirically challenging issue, we systematically tested the predictions of a well-studied neurocognitive theory of language motivated by evolutionary principles. Multiple metaanalyses were performed to examine predicted links between language and two general-purpose learning systems, declarative and procedural memory. The results tied lexical abilities to learning only in declarative memory, while grammar was linked to learning in both systems in both child first language and adult second language, in specific ways. In second language learners, grammar was associated with only declarative memory at lower language experience, but with only procedural memory at higher experience. The findings yielded large effect sizes and held consistently across languages, language families, linguistic structures, and tasks, underscoring their reliability and validity. The results, which met the predicted pattern, provide comprehensive evidence that language is tied to general-purpose systems both in children acquiring their native language and adults learning an additional language. Crucially, if language learning relies on these systems, then our extensive knowledge of the systems from animal and human studies may also apply to this domain, leading to predictions that might be unwarranted in the more circumscribed study of language. Thus, by demonstrating a role for these systems in language, the findings simultaneously lay a foundation for potentially important advances in the study of this critical domain.

  9. Modeling the language learning strategies and English language proficiency of pre-university students in UMS: A case study

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kiram, J. J.; Sulaiman, J.; Swanto, S.; Din, W. A.

    2015-10-01

    This study aims to construct a mathematical model of the relationship between a student's Language Learning Strategy usage and English Language proficiency. Fifty-six pre-university students of University Malaysia Sabah participated in this study. A self-report questionnaire called the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning was administered to them to measure their language learning strategy preferences before they sat for the Malaysian University English Test (MUET), the results of which were utilised to measure their English language proficiency. We attempted the model assessment specific to Multiple Linear Regression Analysis subject to variable selection using Stepwise regression. We conducted various assessments to the model obtained, including the Global F-test, Root Mean Square Error and R-squared. The model obtained suggests that not all language learning strategies should be included in the model in an attempt to predict Language Proficiency.

  10. A Spanish language and culture initiative for a doctor of pharmacy curriculum.

    PubMed

    VanTyle, W Kent; Kennedy, Gala; Vance, Michael A; Hancock, Bruce

    2011-02-10

    To implement a Spanish language and culture initiative in a doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) curriculum that would improve students' Spanish language skills and cultural competence so that graduates could provide competent pharmaceutical care to Spanish-speaking patients. Five elective courses were created and introduced to the curriculum including 2 medical Spanish courses; a medical Spanish service-learning course; a 2-week Spanish language and cultural immersion trip to Mexico; and an advanced practice pharmacy experience (APPE) at a medical care clinic serving a high percentage of Spanish-speaking patients. Advisors placed increased emphasis on encouraging pharmacy students to complete a major or minor in Spanish. Enrollment in the Spanish language courses and the cultural immersion trip has been strong. Twenty-three students have completed the APPE at a Spanish-speaking clinic. Eleven percent of 2010 Butler University pharmacy graduates completed a major or minor in Spanish compared to approximately 1% in 2004 when the initiative began. A Spanish language and culture initiative started in 2004 has resulted in increased Spanish language and cultural competence among pharmacy students and recent graduates.

  11. Ganando Confianza: Research Focus Groups with Immigrant Mexican Mothers

    PubMed Central

    Hausmann-Stabile, Carolina; Zayas, Luis H.; Runes, Sandra; Abenis-Cintron, Anna; Calzada, Esther

    2014-01-01

    Immigrant families with children with developmental disabilities must be served using culturally sensitive approaches to service and research to maximize treatment benefits. In an effort to better understand cultural issues relevant to the provision of parenting programs for immigrant Mexican mothers of children with developmental disabilities, we conducted sustained focus groups through which we could learn more about our participants and thereby improve services. This paper reports on the challenges and lessons learned from these groups. We characterize the key lessons as (a) recruitment and retention is more than agreement to participate; (b) confidentiality is not just a word but an activity; (c) the complicated nature of language; (d) cultural norms shape the group process; (e) appreciating the value of taking time; and (f) gender issues and group interaction. Service providers and researchers who work with Mexican families may benefit from our experiences as they promote and develop programs and projects in the developmental disabilities field. PMID:25674353

  12. Ganando Confianza: Research Focus Groups with Immigrant Mexican Mothers.

    PubMed

    Hausmann-Stabile, Carolina; Zayas, Luis H; Runes, Sandra; Abenis-Cintron, Anna; Calzada, Esther

    2011-03-01

    Immigrant families with children with developmental disabilities must be served using culturally sensitive approaches to service and research to maximize treatment benefits. In an effort to better understand cultural issues relevant to the provision of parenting programs for immigrant Mexican mothers of children with developmental disabilities, we conducted sustained focus groups through which we could learn more about our participants and thereby improve services. This paper reports on the challenges and lessons learned from these groups. We characterize the key lessons as (a) recruitment and retention is more than agreement to participate; (b) confidentiality is not just a word but an activity; (c) the complicated nature of language; (d) cultural norms shape the group process; (e) appreciating the value of taking time; and (f) gender issues and group interaction. Service providers and researchers who work with Mexican families may benefit from our experiences as they promote and develop programs and projects in the developmental disabilities field.

  13. Technology and Second Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lin, Li Li

    2009-01-01

    Current technology provides new opportunities to increase the effectiveness of language learning and teaching. Incorporating well-organized and effective technology into second language learning and teaching for improving students' language proficiency has been refined by researchers and educators for many decades. Based on the rapidly changing…

  14. Social Interaction in Infants' Learning of Second-Language Phonetics: An Exploration of Brain-Behavior Relations.

    PubMed

    Conboy, Barbara T; Brooks, Rechele; Meltzoff, Andrew N; Kuhl, Patricia K

    2015-01-01

    Infants learn phonetic information from a second language with live-person presentations, but not television or audio-only recordings. To understand the role of social interaction in learning a second language, we examined infants' joint attention with live, Spanish-speaking tutors and used a neural measure of phonetic learning. Infants' eye-gaze behaviors during Spanish sessions at 9.5-10.5 months of age predicted second-language phonetic learning, assessed by an event-related potential measure of Spanish phoneme discrimination at 11 months. These data suggest a powerful role for social interaction at the earliest stages of learning a new language.

  15. Developing an eLearning tool formalizing in YAWL the guidelines used in a transfusion medicine service.

    PubMed

    Russo, Paola; Piazza, Miriam; Leonardi, Giorgio; Roncoroni, Layla; Russo, Carlo; Spadaro, Salvatore; Quaglini, Silvana

    2012-01-01

    The blood transfusion is a complex activity subject to a high risk of eventually fatal errors. The development and application of computer-based systems could help reducing the error rate, playing a fundamental role in the improvement of the quality of care. This poster presents an under development eLearning tool formalizing the guidelines of the transfusion process. This system, implemented in YAWL (Yet Another Workflow Language), will be used to train the personnel in order to improve the efficiency of care and to reduce errors.

  16. Some Questions Answered About "Right Brain" Language Learning and Teaching.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lawlor, Michael

    1987-01-01

    Centers on the opinions of Michael Lawlor of the Society for Effective Affective Learning (S.E.A.L.) about "right brain" language learning and includes suggestions (with examples presented about learning Greek) for developing one's power of suggestion and applying it to foreign language learning. (CB)

  17. Overcoming Learning Time and Space Constraints through Technological Tool

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zarei, Nafiseh; Hussin, Supyan; Rashid, Taufik

    2015-01-01

    Today the use of technological tools has become an evolution in language learning and language acquisition. Many instructors and lecturers believe that integrating Web-based learning tools into language courses allows pupils to become active learners during learning process. This study investigates how the Learning Management Blog (LMB) overcomes…

  18. A Context-Aware Ubiquitous Learning Environment for Language Listening and Speaking

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Liu, T.-Y.

    2009-01-01

    This paper reported the results of a study that aimed to construct a sensor and handheld augmented reality (AR)-supported ubiquitous learning (u-learning) environment called the Handheld English Language Learning Organization (HELLO), which is geared towards enhancing students' language learning. The HELLO integrates sensors, AR, ubiquitous…

  19. Is Online Learning Suitable for All English Language Students?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kuama, Settha; Intharaksa, Usa

    2016-01-01

    This study aimed to examine online language learning strategies (OLLS) used and affection in online learning of successful and unsuccessful online language students and investigate the relationships between OLLS use, affection in online learning and online English learning outcomes. The participants included 346 university students completing a…

  20. Second Language Experience Facilitates Statistical Learning of Novel Linguistic Materials

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Potter, Christine E.; Wang, Tianlin; Saffran, Jenny R.

    2017-01-01

    Recent research has begun to explore individual differences in statistical learning, and how those differences may be related to other cognitive abilities, particularly their effects on language learning. In this research, we explored a different type of relationship between language learning and statistical learning: the possibility that learning…

  1. Strategies for Better Learning of English Grammar: Chinese vs. Thais

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Supakorn, Patnarin; Feng, Min; Limmun, Wanida

    2018-01-01

    The success of language learning significantly depends on multiple sets of complex factors; among these are language-learning strategies of which learners in different countries may show different preferences. Needed areas of language learning strategy research include, among others, the strategy of grammar learning and the context-based approach…

  2. 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…

  3. Language Learning and the Raising of Cultural Awareness through Internet Telephony: A Case Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Polisca, Elena

    2011-01-01

    This article seeks to assess the impact of V-Pal (Virtual Partnerships for All Languages) on the student language learning experience within a conventional UK higher education (HE) curriculum. V-Pal is an innovative computer-mediated language scheme, based on a reciprocal, distance-learning language project, run by the University of Manchester in…

  4. Implementing Mobile-Assisted Language Learning (MALL) in an EFL Context: Iranian EFL Teachers' Perspectives on Challenges and Affordances

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dashtestani, Reza

    2013-01-01

    The implementation of computer-assisted language learning (CALL) has provided tremendous opportunities for language teachers to promote their computer literacy and adopt a learner-centered approach to teaching. Accordingly, with the rising advent of language learning technologies, language teachers would occupy a fundamental role in preparing and…

  5. Adaptation of Communicative Language Teaching Methodology to an English Textbook for English Language Learning of NIDA Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    West, Andrew J.

    2016-01-01

    In this paper, the researcher focuses on assessing the language learning benefits for students of adapting the communicative language teaching (CLT) methodology to an English textbook, a methodology that, according to Richards (2006), Littlewood (2008) and others, is influential in shaping second language learning worldwide. This paper is intended…

  6. Toward Mobile Assisted Language Learning Apps for Professionals That Integrate Learning into the Daily Routine

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pareja-Lora, Antonio; Arús-Hita, Jorge; Read, Timothy; Rodríguez-Arancón, Pilar; Calle-Martínez, Cristina; Pomposo, Lourdes; Martín-Monje, Elena; Bárcena, Elena

    2013-01-01

    In this short paper, we present some initial work on Mobile Assisted Language Learning (MALL) undertaken by the ATLAS research group. ATLAS embraced this multidisciplinary field cutting across Mobile Learning and Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) as a natural step in their quest to find learning formulas for professional English that…

  7. My Personal Mobile Language Learning Environment: An Exploration and Classification of Language Learning Possibilities Using the iPhone

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Perifanou, Maria A.

    2011-01-01

    Mobile devices can motivate learners through moving language learning from predominantly classroom-based contexts into contexts that are free from time and space. The increasing development of new applications can offer valuable support to the language learning process and can provide a basis for a new self regulated and personal approach to…

  8. Adult Learners' Perceptions of the Significance of Culture in Foreign Language Teaching and Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brooks-Lewis, Kimberly Anne

    2014-01-01

    Is learning about culture important when learning a foreign language? One would think that after its long history in the field of foreign language teaching this question had been answered with a resounding "yes". However, I saw little evidence of this in the classroom when I returned to the university to learn a foreign language or when…

  9. The Learning of Grammar: An Experimental Study. Experimental Studies on the Learning of Language, Progress Report II, Revised.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Torrey, Jane W.

    An experiment in language behavior comparing two methods of learning grammatical word order in a new language presents scientific evidence supporting the use of pattern drills in foreign language teaching. The experiment reviews the performance of three groups attempting to learn small segments of Russian "microlanguage": (1) a drill group learned…

  10. The Exploring Nature of Definitions and Classifications of Language Learning Strategies (LLSs) in the Current Studies of Second/Foreign Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fazeli, Seyed Hossein

    2011-01-01

    This study aims to explore the nature of definitions and classifications of Language Learning Strategies (LLSs) in the current studies of second/foreign language learning in order to show the current problems regarding such definitions and classifications. The present study shows that there is not a universal agreeable definition and…

  11. Influence of Grade Level on Perceptual Learning Style Preferences and Language Learning Strategies of Taiwanese English as a Foreign Language Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chen, Mei-Ling

    2009-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate relationships between grade level, perceptual learning style preferences, and language learning strategies among Taiwanese English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students in grades 7 through 9. Three hundred and ninety junior high school students participated in this study. The instruments for data…

  12. A Stroke of Language

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Blaisdell, Bob

    2011-01-01

    The author reflects on foreign-language learning by his EFL students as well as his own foreign-language learning. He concludes by musing on the possible and fantastical devastation on language-ability wrought by strokes.

  13. When It Hurts (and Helps) to Try: The Role of Effort in Language Learning

    PubMed Central

    Finn, Amy S.; Lee, Taraz; Kraus, Allison; Hudson Kam, Carla L.

    2014-01-01

    Compared to children, adults are bad at learning language. This is counterintuitive; adults outperform children on most measures of cognition, especially those that involve effort (which continue to mature into early adulthood). The present study asks whether these mature effortful abilities interfere with language learning in adults and further, whether interference occurs equally for aspects of language that adults are good (word-segmentation) versus bad (grammar) at learning. Learners were exposed to an artificial language comprised of statistically defined words that belong to phonologically defined categories (grammar). Exposure occurred under passive or effortful conditions. Passive learners were told to listen while effortful learners were instructed to try to 1) learn the words, 2) learn the categories, or 3) learn the category-order. Effortful learners showed an advantage for learning words while passive learners showed an advantage for learning the categories. Effort can therefore hurt the learning of categories. PMID:25047901

  14. When it hurts (and helps) to try: the role of effort in language learning.

    PubMed

    Finn, Amy S; Lee, Taraz; Kraus, Allison; Hudson Kam, Carla L

    2014-01-01

    Compared to children, adults are bad at learning language. This is counterintuitive; adults outperform children on most measures of cognition, especially those that involve effort (which continue to mature into early adulthood). The present study asks whether these mature effortful abilities interfere with language learning in adults and further, whether interference occurs equally for aspects of language that adults are good (word-segmentation) versus bad (grammar) at learning. Learners were exposed to an artificial language comprised of statistically defined words that belong to phonologically defined categories (grammar). Exposure occurred under passive or effortful conditions. Passive learners were told to listen while effortful learners were instructed to try to 1) learn the words, 2) learn the categories, or 3) learn the category-order. Effortful learners showed an advantage for learning words while passive learners showed an advantage for learning the categories. Effort can therefore hurt the learning of categories.

  15. Desirable Difficulties in Vocabulary Learning

    PubMed Central

    BJORK, ROBERT A.; KROLL, JUDITH F.

    2016-01-01

    In this article we discuss the role of desirable difficulties in vocabulary learning from two perspectives, one having to do with identifying conditions of learning that impose initial challenges to the learner but then benefit later retention and transfer, and the other having to do with the role of certain difficulties that are intrinsic to language processes, are engaged during word learning, and reflect how language is understood and produced. From each perspective we discuss evidence that supports the notion that difficulties in learning and imposed costs to language processing may produce benefits because they are likely to increase conceptual understanding. We then consider the consequences of these processes for actual second-language learning and suggest that some of the domain-general cognitive advantages that have been reported for proficient bilinguals may reflect difficulties imposed by the learning process, and by the requirement to negotiate cross-language competition, that are broadly desirable. As Alice Healy and her collaborators were perhaps the first to demonstrate, research on desirable difficulties in vocabulary and language learning holds the promise of bringing together research traditions on memory and language that have much to offer each other. PMID:26255443

  16. Desirable Difficulties in Vocabulary Learning.

    PubMed

    Bjork, Robert A; Kroll, Judith F

    2015-01-01

    In this article we discuss the role of desirable difficulties in vocabulary learning from two perspectives, one having to do with identifying conditions of learning that impose initial challenges to the learner but then benefit later retention and transfer, and the other having to do with the role of certain difficulties that are intrinsic to language processes, are engaged during word learning, and reflect how language is understood and produced. From each perspective we discuss evidence that supports the notion that difficulties in learning and imposed costs to language processing may produce benefits because they are likely to increase conceptual understanding. We then consider the consequences of these processes for actual second-language learning and suggest that some of the domain-general cognitive advantages that have been reported for proficient bilinguals may reflect difficulties imposed by the learning process, and by the requirement to negotiate cross-language competition, that are broadly desirable. As Alice Healy and her collaborators were perhaps the first to demonstrate, research on desirable difficulties in vocabulary and language learning holds the promise of bringing together research traditions on memory and language that have much to offer each other.

  17. 25 CFR 39.131 - What is a Language Development Program?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... learning their Native language for the purpose of maintenance or language restoration and enhancement; (d) Are being instructed in their Native language; or (e) Are learning non-language subjects in their...

  18. Improving English Language Learners' Academic Writing: A Multi-Strategy Approach to a Multi-Dimensional Challenge

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Marulanda Ángel, Nora Lucía; Martínez García, Juan Manuel

    2017-01-01

    The demands of the academic field and the constraints students have while learning how to write appropriately call for better approaches to teach academic writing. This research study examines the effect of a multifaceted academic writing module on pre-service teachers' composition skills in an English teacher preparation program at a medium sized…

  19. The Bilingual Program in Auxiliary Services for High Schools, 1982-1983. O.E.E. Evaluation Report.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lehman, Sheila; Schulman, Robert

    In 1982-83, this program provided instruction in English as a Second Language and bilingual instruction in four content areas to 1,690 Spanish, Chinese, Haitian, Greek, and Italian students of limited English proficiency (LEP) at eight daytime and eight evening learning centers located at 15 different sites throughout New York City. Created in…

  20. Ouachita Parish Public Library, Final Performance Report for Library Services and Construction Act (LSCA) Title VI, Library Literacy Program, 1992-1993.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Camp, Gloria S.

    The Ouachita Parish Public Library (Louisiana) conducted a project that involved recruitment, coalition building, public awareness, training, basic literacy, collection development, tutoring, technology, and English as a Second Language (ESL) programs. The project served a community of over 200,000 people, and targeted the learning disabled,…

  1. An Exploratory Study on the Digital Identity Formation of Korean University EFL Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lee, Jang Ho; Kim, Heyoung

    2014-01-01

    The present study aims to sketch the contours of new media ecology for Korean university students as well as to examine how these learners shape and negotiate their digital identity by using social networking services and digital devices. It also investigates their use of digital media for learning English as a foreign language (EFL). In total,…

  2. Selecting and Creating a Word List for English Language Teaching

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kwary, Deny A.; Jurianto

    2017-01-01

    Since the introduction of the General Service List (GSL) in 1953, a number of studies have confirmed the significant role of a word list, particularly GSL, in helping ESL students learn English. Given the recent development in technology, several researchers have created word lists, each of them claims to provide a better coverage of a text and a…

  3. Understanding the Use of Online Role-Play for Collaborative Argument through Teacher Experiencing: A Case Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zhang, Li; Beach, Richard; Sheng, Yue

    2016-01-01

    As computers and the Internet are increasingly employed in language teaching and learning, preparing teachers for the impending reality of online teaching is of paramount importance. This study investigated 10 in-service teachers participating in an online role-play as part of a digital education methods course to acquire an understanding of the…

  4. Exploring the Influence of Video Feedback upon Teacher Candidates' Evolution of Teaching Beliefs and Second Language Acquisition Specialized Knowledge of Comprehensible Input

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Li, Shikun

    2017-01-01

    Theorists agree that adequate knowledge does not guarantee better decisions or performances in the future (Gu, 2007; Dana & Yendol-Hpppery, 2008). Instead, they suggest that in order to comprehend teachers' decision and practices, researchers need to learn about both teachers' belief and knowledge. Meanwhile, in-service teachers were…

  5. An Extended Positioning Analysis of a Pre-Service Teacher's "Better Life" Small Story

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Barkhuizen, Gary

    2010-01-01

    The analysis of narrative data in applied linguistics has focused to varying degrees on their content, form, and context, with content and thematic analyses being the focus in much of the narrative research in language learning and teaching (Pavlenko 2007). The aim of this article is to report on a positioning analysis of a small story about the…

  6. Linking Service-Learning with Sense of Belonging: A Culturally Relevant Pedagogy for Heritage Students of Spanish

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pak, Chin-Sook

    2018-01-01

    A growing number of colleges and universities in the United States offer Spanish classes intended to meet specific needs of heritage speakers. In predominantly White institutions, beyond the language focus, these classes can also provide Latino students with a unique place on campus to strengthen their sense of belonging in ways that might not be…

  7. Access to oral health care services among adults with learning disabilities: a scoping review

    PubMed Central

    Naseem, Mustafa; Shah, Altaf H; Khiyani, Muhammad Faheem; Khurshid, Zohaib; Zafar, Muhammad Sohail; Gulzar, Shabnam; AlJameel, AlBandary H.; Khalil, Hesham S.

    2016-01-01

    Summary Background The prevalence of oral diseases including dental caries and periodontal conditions is remarkably higher in people with disabilities. The provision of accessible oral health services for people with learning disabilities may be challenging. Objectives The objectives of the review were to identify barriers in accessing oral health care that persists within society, enabling or disabling people with learning disabilities. Methods Using the Arksey O’Malley framework, a scoping review was conducted on PubMed/Medline, OVIDSP, and EMBASE. Studies were evaluated and short-listed based on the inclusion criteria, which consisted of: (1) study participants or population with learning disabilities, (2) aged 16 years or over, (3) reporting on access to oral health services, (4) published in the English language. Those that justified the inclusion criteria were carefully chosen after a blind peer-reviewed process when relevance and quality were debated. Results Nine studies were eventually included from searches. Tabulation of data was done under the heading of study type, outcomes, the year of publication and patient selection. The majority of studies provided a biomedical overview of access for adults with learning disabilities. Conclusions The concept of access for people with disability is still ill-defined and obscure. Access to oral health care and needs of people with learning disabilities are complex and multi-facet. PMID:28149451

  8. Aptitude for Learning a Foreign Language.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sparks, Richard; Ganschow, Leonore

    2001-01-01

    Review research on foreign language aptitude and its measurement prior to 1990. Describes research areas in the 1990s, including affective variables, language learning strategies, learning styles as contributors to aptitude and aptitude as a cognitive construct affected by language variables. Reviews research on individual differences and the…

  9. Second Language Experience Facilitates Statistical Learning of Novel Linguistic Materials.

    PubMed

    Potter, Christine E; Wang, Tianlin; Saffran, Jenny R

    2017-04-01

    Recent research has begun to explore individual differences in statistical learning, and how those differences may be related to other cognitive abilities, particularly their effects on language learning. In this research, we explored a different type of relationship between language learning and statistical learning: the possibility that learning a new language may also influence statistical learning by changing the regularities to which learners are sensitive. We tested two groups of participants, Mandarin Learners and Naïve Controls, at two time points, 6 months apart. At each time point, participants performed two different statistical learning tasks: an artificial tonal language statistical learning task and a visual statistical learning task. Only the Mandarin-learning group showed significant improvement on the linguistic task, whereas both groups improved equally on the visual task. These results support the view that there are multiple influences on statistical learning. Domain-relevant experiences may affect the regularities that learners can discover when presented with novel stimuli. Copyright © 2016 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

  10. Second language experience facilitates statistical learning of novel linguistic materials

    PubMed Central

    Potter, Christine E.; Wang, Tianlin; Saffran, Jenny R.

    2016-01-01

    Recent research has begun to explore individual differences in statistical learning, and how those differences may be related to other cognitive abilities, particularly their effects on language learning. In the present research, we explored a different type of relationship between language learning and statistical learning: the possibility that learning a new language may also influence statistical learning by changing the regularities to which learners are sensitive. We tested two groups of participants, Mandarin Learners and Naïve Controls, at two time points, six months apart. At each time point, participants performed two different statistical learning tasks: an artificial tonal language statistical learning task and a visual statistical learning task. Only the Mandarin-learning group showed significant improvement on the linguistic task, while both groups improved equally on the visual task. These results support the view that there are multiple influences on statistical learning. Domain-relevant experiences may affect the regularities that learners can discover when presented with novel stimuli. PMID:27988939

  11. 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…

  12. 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.…

  13. E?ffects of English Language Proficiency on the Choice of Language Learning Strategies by Saudi English-Major Undergraduates

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Javid, Choudhary Z.; Al-thubaiti, Turki S.; Uthman, Awwadh

    2013-01-01

    It is reported that language learning is a creative and dynamic process and the learners are active partners in this process. This trend in language teaching motivated the researchers to investigate the learners' individual differences and the identification of language learning strategies (LLS) has become a major area of interest in this regard…

  14. Nonadjacent Dependency Learning in Cantonese-Speaking Children With and Without a History of Specific Language Impairment.

    PubMed

    Iao, Lai-Sang; Ng, Lai Yan; Wong, Anita Mei Yin; Lee, Oi Ting

    2017-03-01

    This study investigated nonadjacent dependency learning in Cantonese-speaking children with and without a history of specific language impairment (SLI) in an artificial linguistic context. Sixteen Cantonese-speaking children with a history of SLI and 16 Cantonese-speaking children with typical language development (TLD) were tested with a nonadjacent dependency learning task using artificial languages that mimic Cantonese. Children with TLD performed above chance and were able to discriminate between trained and untrained nonadjacent dependencies. However, children with a history of SLI performed at chance and were not able to differentiate trained versus untrained nonadjacent dependencies. These findings, together with previous findings from English-speaking adults and adolescents with language impairments, suggest that individuals with atypical language development, regardless of age, diagnostic status, language, and culture, show difficulties in learning nonadjacent dependencies. This study provides evidence for early impairments to statistical learning in individuals with atypical language development.

  15. Emerging Approach of Natural Language Processing in Opinion Mining: A Review

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, Tai-Hoon

    Natural language processing (NLP) is a subfield of artificial intelligence and computational linguistics. It studies the problems of automated generation and understanding of natural human languages. This paper outlines a framework to use computer and natural language techniques for various levels of learners to learn foreign languages in Computer-based Learning environment. We propose some ideas for using the computer as a practical tool for learning foreign language where the most of courseware is generated automatically. We then describe how to build Computer Based Learning tools, discuss its effectiveness, and conclude with some possibilities using on-line resources.

  16. The Pedagogical, Linguistic, and Content Features of Popular English Language Learning Websites in China: A Framework for Analysis and Design

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kettle, Margaret; Yuan, Yifeng; Luke, Allan; Ewing, Robyn; Shen, Huizhong

    2012-01-01

    As increasing numbers of Chinese language learners choose to learn English online, there is a need to investigate popular websites and their language learning designs. This paper reports on the first stage of a study that analyzed the pedagogical, linguistic, and content features of 25 Chinese English Language Learning (ELL) websites ranked…

  17. An Analysis of Social Network Websites for Language Learning: Implications for Teaching and Learning English as a Second Language

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Liu, M.; Abe, K.; Cao, M. W.; Liu, S.; Ok, D. U.; Park, J.; Parrish, C.; Sardegna, V. G.

    2015-01-01

    Although educators are excited about the potential of social network sites for language learning (SNSLL), there is a lack of understanding of how SNSLL can be used to facilitate teaching and learning for English as Second language (ESL) instructors and students. The purpose of this study was to examine the affordances of four selected SNSLL…

  18. The Significance of the Poetic in Early Childhood Education: Stanley Cavell and Lucy Sprague Mitchell on Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Frank, Jeff

    2012-01-01

    This paper begins with a discussion of Stanley Cavell's philosophy of language learning. Young people learn more than the meaning of words when acquiring language: they learn about (the quality of) our form of life. If we--as early childhood educators--see language teaching as something like handing some inert thing to a child, then we unduly…

  19. Ecologia: The Assumptions, Expectations, and Strategies of Modern Language Students Working in a Self-Access Learning Environment for the First Time.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Piper, Alison

    1994-01-01

    This study examined 29 second-year undergraduate students of Spanish using a self-access learning environment for the first time, focusing on their language attitudes and learning strategies. The results show that, even as modern languages majors, the students possessed a model of language and strategies for learning that were significantly…

  20. Social Interaction in Infants’ Learning of Second-Language Phonetics: An Exploration of Brain-Behavior Relations

    PubMed Central

    Conboy, Barbara T.; Brooks, Rechele; Meltzoff, Andrew N.; Kuhl, Patricia K.

    2015-01-01

    Infants learn phonetic information from a second language with live-person presentations, but not television or audio-only recordings. To understand the role of social interaction in learning a second language, we examined infants’ joint attention with live, Spanish-speaking tutors and used a neural measure of phonetic learning. Infants’ eye-gaze behaviors during Spanish sessions at 9.5 – 10.5 months of age predicted second-language phonetic learning, assessed by an event-related potential (ERP) measure of Spanish phoneme discrimination at 11 months. These data suggest a powerful role for social interaction at the earliest stages of learning a new language. PMID:26179488

  1. Learner Behaviors and Perceptions of Autonomous Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bekleyen, Nilüfer; Selimoglu, Figen

    2016-01-01

    The purpose of the present study was to investigate the learners' behaviors and perceptions about autonomous language learning at the university level in Turkey. It attempts to reveal what type of perceptions learners held regarding teachers' and their own responsibilities in the language learning process. Their autonomous language learning…

  2. 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…

  3. The Journal of the Imagination in Language Learning, 1997.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Coreil, Clyde, Ed.; Napoliello, Mihri, Ed.

    1997-01-01

    Articles on second language teaching and learning include: "Creativity with a Small 'c'" (Alan Maley); "National Standards & the Role of the Imagination in Foreign Language Learning" (Rebecca M. Valette); "Who Am I in English? Developing a Language Ego" (Jean Zukowski/Faust); "Steps to Dance in the Adult EFL…

  4. Spanish-Speaking English Language Learners' Experiences in High School Chemistry Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Flores, Annette; Smith, K. Christopher

    2013-01-01

    This article reports on the experiences of Spanish-speaking English language learners in high school chemistry courses, focusing largely on experiences in learning the English language, experiences learning chemistry, and experiences learning chemistry in the English language. The findings illustrate the cognitive processes the students undertake…

  5. Language Learning Strategies of Multilingual Adults Learning Additional Languages

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dmitrenko, Violetta

    2017-01-01

    The main goal consisted in identifying and bringing together strategies of multilinguals as a particular learner group. Therefore, research was placed in the intersection of the three fields: language learning strategies (LLS), third language acquisition (TLA), and the didactics of plurilingualism. First, the paper synthesises the major findings…

  6. The Distance Learning of Foreign Languages: A Research Agenda

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    White, Cynthia

    2014-01-01

    Research into the distance learning of languages is now established as a significant avenue of enquiry in language teaching, with evident research trajectories in several domains. This article selects and analyses significant areas of investigation in distance language learning and teaching to identify new and emerging gaps, along with research…

  7. Student Modeling and Ab Initio Language Learning.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Heift, Trude; Schulze, Mathias

    2003-01-01

    Provides examples of student modeling techniques that have been employed in computer-assisted language learning over the past decade. Describes two systems for learning German: "German Tutor" and "Geroline." Shows how a student model can support computerized adaptive language testing for diagnostic purposes in a Web-based language learning…

  8. Students' Motivation towards Computer Use in EFL Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Genc, Gulten; Aydin, Selami

    2010-01-01

    It has been widely recognized that language instruction that integrates technology has become popular, and has had a tremendous impact on language learning process whereas learners are expected to be more motivated in a web-based Computer assisted language learning program, and improve their comprehensive language ability. Thus, the present paper…

  9. Informal Language Learning Setting: Technology or Social Interaction?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bahrani, Taher; Sim, Tam Shu

    2012-01-01

    Based on the informal language learning theory, language learning can occur outside the classroom setting unconsciously and incidentally through interaction with the native speakers or exposure to authentic language input through technology. However, an EFL context lacks the social interaction which naturally occurs in an ESL context. To explore…

  10. A Study of Flow Theory in the Foreign Language Classroom.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Egbert, Joy

    2003-01-01

    Focuses on the relationship between flow experiences and language learning. Flow theory suggests that flow experiences can lead to optimal learning. Findings suggest flow does exist in the foreign language classroom and that flow theory offers an interesting and useful framework for conceptualizing and evaluating language learning activities.…

  11. Outcomes of an International Audiology Service-Learning Study-Abroad Program.

    PubMed

    Krishnan, Lata A; Richards, K Andrew R; Simpson, Jennifer M

    2016-03-01

    The purpose of this study was to evaluate students' academic and civic learning, with particular interest in cultural competence, gained through participation in the Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences in Zambia study-abroad program. Twelve female students participated in the program. Quantitative data collected included pre- and postprogram administration of the Public Affairs Scale (Levesque-Bristol & Cornelius-White, 2012) to measure changes in participants' civic learning. Qualitative data included journals, end-of-program reflection papers, videos, and researcher field notes. Feedback was also obtained from community-partner organizations via a questionnaire and rating scale. Comparison of the pre- and postprogram Public Affairs Scale data showed a significant increase in cultural competence and a marginal increase in community engagement at the conclusion of the program. Qualitative data showed that participants' cultural awareness was increased, they benefited from hands-on learning, and they experienced a variety of emotions and emotional and personal growth. Results show that a short-term study-abroad program with a service-learning component can be a mechanism for students to enhance academic and civic learning, specifically cultural competence and clinical skills. Sustainability of programs is a challenge that needs to be addressed.

  12. Neurobiological Basis of Language Learning Difficulties.

    PubMed

    Krishnan, Saloni; Watkins, Kate E; Bishop, Dorothy V M

    2016-09-01

    In this paper we highlight why there is a need to examine subcortical learning systems in children with language impairment and dyslexia, rather than focusing solely on cortical areas relevant for language. First, behavioural studies find that children with these neurodevelopmental disorders perform less well than peers on procedural learning tasks that depend on corticostriatal learning circuits. Second, fMRI studies in neurotypical adults implicate corticostriatal and hippocampal systems in language learning. Finally, structural and functional abnormalities are seen in the striatum in children with language disorders. Studying corticostriatal networks in developmental language disorders could offer us insights into their neurobiological basis and elucidate possible modes of compensation for intervention. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  13. Domain-specific and domain-general constraints on word and sequence learning.

    PubMed

    Archibald, Lisa M D; Joanisse, Marc F

    2013-02-01

    The relative influences of language-related and memory-related constraints on the learning of novel words and sequences were examined by comparing individual differences in performance of children with and without specific deficits in either language or working memory. Children recalled lists of words in a Hebbian learning protocol in which occasional lists repeated, yielding improved recall over the course of the task on the repeated lists. The task involved presentation of pictures of common nouns followed immediately by equivalent presentations of the spoken names. The same participants also completed a paired-associate learning task involving word-picture and nonword-picture pairs. Hebbian learning was observed for all groups. Domain-general working memory constrained immediate recall, whereas language abilities impacted recall in the auditory modality only. In addition, working memory constrained paired-associate learning generally, whereas language abilities disproportionately impacted novel word learning. Overall, all of the learning tasks were highly correlated with domain-general working memory. The learning of nonwords was additionally related to general intelligence, phonological short-term memory, language abilities, and implicit learning. The results suggest that distinct associations between language- and memory-related mechanisms support learning of familiar and unfamiliar phonological forms and sequences.

  14. At the Crossroads of Learning and Culture: Identifying a Construct for Effective Computer-Assisted Language Learning for English Language Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shaw, Yun

    2010-01-01

    Many of the commercial Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) programs available today typically take a generic approach. This approach standardizes the program so that it can be used to teach any language merely by translating the content from one language to another. These CALL programs rarely consider the cultural background or preferred…

  15. A Study of Language Learning Strategy Use in the Context of EFL Curriculum and Pedagogy Reform in China

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yu, Yuanfang; Wang, Bing

    2009-01-01

    Language learning strategy (LLS) use is not only an individual attribute of language users, but also a group behaviour reflecting the learning culture and language pedagogy in a particular social context. This article reports a study on the LLS use of Chinese secondary school students of English as a foreign language (EFL) in Northeast China from…

  16. 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…

  17. Korean University EFL Student Perspectives of Smartphone Applications (Apps) as Tools for Language Learning: An Action Research Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jackson, Bernedette S.

    2017-01-01

    Learning a second or foreign language may be a daunting task for anyone; however, learning a language that is vastly different from a person's native language can be extremely difficult. This is especially true in South Korea where English is taught and spoken as a foreign language. For Korean students, who typically study English from a young…

  18. Student Perception of Language Achievement and Learner Autonomy in a Blended Korean Language Course: The Case Study of Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ahn, Misook

    2017-01-01

    The blended learning model, which combines the traditional face-to-face learning method with an online application such as a learning management system (LMS), became popular and more practical for both teachers and learners in foreign and second language education because of its effective methodology for course delivery and socialization…

  19. Multilingual Effects on EFL Learning: A Comparison of Foreign Language Anxiety Experienced by Monolingual and Bilingual Tertiary Students in the Lao PDR

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Phongsa, Manivone; Mohamed Ismail, Shaik Abdul Malik; Low, Hui Min

    2018-01-01

    Foreign language anxiety is common among adult learners, especially those who lack exposure to the language that they are learning. In this study, we compared the foreign language anxiety experienced by monolingual and bilingual tertiary students in the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR) who were learning English as a Foreign Language. The…

  20. Language Learning Shifts and Attitudes towards Language Learning in an Online Tandem Program for Beginner Writers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tolosa, Constanza; Ordóñez, Claudia Lucía; Guevara, Diana Carolina

    2017-01-01

    We present findings of a project that investigated the potential of an online tandem program to enhance the foreign language learning of two groups of school-aged beginner learners, one learning English in Colombia and the other learning Spanish in New Zealand. We assessed the impact of the project on students' learning with a free writing…

  1. Data-Driven Learning of Speech Acts Based on Corpora of DVD Subtitles

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kitao, S. Kathleen; Kitao, Kenji

    2013-01-01

    Data-driven learning (DDL) is an inductive approach to language learning in which students study examples of authentic language and use them to find patterns of language use. This inductive approach to learning has the advantages of being learner-centered, encouraging hypothesis testing and learner autonomy, and helping develop learning skills.…

  2. Mobile-Assisted Language Learning: Student Attitudes to Using Smartphones to Learn English Vocabulary

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Davie, Neil; Hilber, Tobias

    2015-01-01

    This project examines mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) and in particular the attitudes of undergraduate engineering students at the South Westphalia University of Applied Sciences towards the use of the smartphone app Quizlet to learn English vocabulary. Initial data on attitudes to learning languages and to the use of mobile devices to do…

  3. Self-Determination, Engagement, and Identity in Learning German: Some Directions in the Psychology of Language Learning Motivation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Noels, Kimberly A.; Chaffee, Kathryn; Lou, Nigel Mantou; Dincer, Ali

    2016-01-01

    Drawing from Self-Determination Theory and diverse theories of language learning motivation, we present a framework that (1) represents a range of orientations that students may take towards learning German, and (2) explains how these orientations are connected to language learning engagement and diverse linguistic and non-linguistic outcomes. We…

  4. 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.

  5. Iranian EFL Learners' Emotional Intelligence, Learning Styles, Strategy Use, and Their L2 Achievement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Afshar, Hassan Soodmand; Tofighi, Somayyeh; Hamazavi, Raouf

    2016-01-01

    The idea that language learning is facilitated or inhibited by a multitude of factors has prompted scholars in the field to investigate variables considered to be crucial in the process of second or foreign language learning. This study investigated relationships between emotional intelligence, learning style, language learning strategy use, and…

  6. Object Familiarity Facilitates Foreign Word Learning in Preschoolers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sera, Maria D.; Cole, Caitlin A.; Oromendia, Mercedes; Koenig, Melissa A.

    2014-01-01

    Studying how children learn words in a foreign language can shed light on how language learning changes with development. In one experiment, we examined whether three-, four-, and five-year-olds could learn and remember words for familiar and unfamiliar objects in their native English and a foreign language. All age groups could learn and remember…

  7. An Investigation of Undergraduate Students' Beliefs about Autonomous Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Orawiwatnakul, Wiwat; Wichadee, Saovapa

    2017-01-01

    The concept of learner autonomy is now playing an important role in the language learning field. An emphasis is put on the new form of learning which enables learners to direct their own learning. This study aimed to examine how undergraduate students believed about autonomous language learning in a university setting and to find out whether some…

  8. The Alignment of CMC Language Learning Methodologies with the Bridge21 Model of 21C Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bauer, Ciarán; Devitt, Ann; Tangney, Brendan

    2015-01-01

    This paper explores the intersection of learning methodologies to promote the development of 21st century skills with the use of Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) tools to enhance language learning among adolescent learners. Today, technology offers a greater range of affordances in the teaching and learning of second languages while research…

  9. Cognitive Learning Strategy of BIPA Students in Learning the Indonesian Language

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Suyitno, Imam; Susanto, Gatut; Kamal, Musthofa; Fawzi, Ary

    2017-01-01

    The study outlined in this article aims to describe and explain the cognitive learning strategies used by foreign students in learning the Indonesian language. The research was designed as a qualitative study. The research participants are foreign students who were learning the Indonesian language in the BIPA program. The data sources of the…

  10. A Teacher’s Guide for Using Learning Strategies in English-as-a-Second- Language Instruction

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1984-11-01

    learner strategies used in the acquisition of English as a second language (ESL). The Teacher’s Guide demonstrates for ESL...strategies to apply to a wide range of language learning tasks are far more likely to be effective language learners . The language lessons in this section...skills in the acquisition of English as a second language (ESL). This study completed a review of the literature on learning strategies in

  11. The Journal of the Imagination in Language Learning and Teaching, 2002-2003.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Coreil, Clyde, Ed.

    2003-01-01

    This collection of papers includes: "Martians Invade the Classroom: A Workshop in Language Learning" (Carmine Tabone and Robert Albrecht); "Autonomous Learning through Cinema: One Learner's Memories" (Connie Haham); "Learning a Second Language Through Culture" (Barbara Le Blanc and Joseph Dicks); "Shakespeare for…

  12. Learning to Swim in New Waters: A Meta-Narrative about the Design and Implementation of a Virtual Learning Environment for Language Learning and Teaching

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    MacKinnon, Teresa

    2015-01-01

    In the past 5 years, the Language Centre at the University of Warwick has designed and implemented a blended learning environment in order to meet two important challenges to our Institution-Wide Language Programme (IWLP) language teaching mission. These were to connect teachers and learners together online in order to better support progress…

  13. The Adaptation Study of the Questionnaires of the Attitude towards CALL (A-CALL), the Attitude towards CAL (A-CAL), the Attitude towards Foreign Language Learning (A-FLL) to Turkish Language

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Erdem, Cahit; Saykili, Abdullah; Kocyigit, Mehmet

    2018-01-01

    This study primarily aims to adapt the Foreign Language Learning (FLL), Computer assisted Learning (CAL) and Computer assisted Language Learning (CALL) scales developed by Vandewaetere and Desmet into Turkish context. The instrument consists of three scales which are "the attitude towards CALL questionnaire" ("A-CALL")…

  14. Academic language and the challenge of reading for learning about science.

    PubMed

    Snow, Catherine E

    2010-04-23

    A major challenge to students learning science is the academic language in which science is written. Academic language is designed to be concise, precise, and authoritative. To achieve these goals, it uses sophisticated words and complex grammatical constructions that can disrupt reading comprehension and block learning. Students need help in learning academic vocabulary and how to process academic language if they are to become independent learners of science.

  15. Why is number word learning hard? Evidence from bilingual learners.

    PubMed

    Wagner, Katie; Kimura, Katherine; Cheung, Pierina; Barner, David

    2015-12-01

    Young children typically take between 18 months and 2 years to learn the meanings of number words. In the present study, we investigated this developmental trajectory in bilingual preschoolers to examine the relative contributions of two factors in number word learning: (1) the construction of numerical concepts, and (2) the mapping of language specific words onto these concepts. We found that children learn the meanings of small number words (i.e., one, two, and three) independently in each language, indicating that observed delays in learning these words are attributable to difficulties in mapping words to concepts. In contrast, children generally learned to accurately count larger sets (i.e., five or greater) simultaneously in their two languages, suggesting that the difficulty in learning to count is not tied to a specific language. We also replicated previous studies that found that children learn the counting procedure before they learn its logic - i.e., that for any natural number, n, the successor of n in the count list denotes the cardinality n+1. Consistent with past studies, we found that children's knowledge of successors is first acquired incrementally. In bilinguals, we found that this knowledge exhibits item-specific transfer between languages, suggesting that the logic of the positive integers may not be stored in a language-specific format. We conclude that delays in learning the meanings of small number words are mainly due to language-specific processes of mapping words to concepts, whereas the logic and procedures of counting appear to be learned in a format that is independent of a particular language and thus transfers rapidly from one language to the other in development. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  16. Learning for Life, a Structured and Motivational Process of Knowledge Construction in the Acquisition/Learning of English as a Foreign Language in Native Spanish Speakers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mino-Garces, Fernando

    2009-01-01

    As language learning theory has shifted from a highly guided to a more open learning process, this paper presents the teaching/learning philosophy called Learning for Life (L for L) as a great way to motivate native Spanish speaker students learning English as a foreign language, and to help them be the constructors of their own knowledge. The…

  17. Own-Language Use in Language Teaching and Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hall, Graham; Cook, Guy

    2012-01-01

    Until recently, the assumption of the language-teaching literature has been that new languages are best taught and learned monolingually, without the use of the students' own language(s). In recent years, however, this monolingual assumption has been increasingly questioned, and a re-evaluation of teaching that relates the language being taught to…

  18. Effects of Language Context on Ratings of Shy and Unsociable Behaviors in English Language Learning Children

    PubMed Central

    Ash, Andrea C.; Rice, Mabel L.; Redmond, Sean M.

    2014-01-01

    Purpose The primary goal of this study was to explore the effect of the language context on the socially withdrawn behaviors of school aged-children who are English Language Learners (ELLs) from middle to high SES backgrounds. This is one of the first studies to address the frequently confused concepts of shyness and unsociability as independent constructs within the ELL population. This study also investigated the feasibility of an experimental parent and child questionnaire that examines shyness and unsociability across native and English speaking contexts. Method Children and parents (34 ELL and 37 native English speaking) were administered an experimental questionnaire examining shy and unsociable behavior in native language and English-speaking contexts. Results Parents and children from the ELL group reported significantly higher ratings of shy behavior in English versus native language contexts, whereas unsociable ratings did not differ across language contexts. Conclusions Shyness and unsociability are distinguishable behaviors in ELL children and these constructs should be considered when examining withdrawal. Additionally, examining ELL children’s behavior across language contexts provides a valuable method for investigating language influenced behavioral problems. This study demonstrates the need for service providers to evaluate behavior across subtype and language context before pathologizing withdrawal in ELL children. PMID:24687767

  19. Lorma: A Reference Handbook of Phonetics, Grammar, Lexicon and Learning Procedures.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dwyer, David James

    The grammar, phonetics, and lexicon of Lorma, one of the Mande languages of Liberia, are described for the use of Peace Corps volunteers learning the language without teacher assistance. This handbook includes an introduction to the languages of Liberia, procedures for learning a language without assistance, guidelines for tutors, a reference…

  20. Traces of an Early Learned Second Language in Discontinued Bilingualism

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sadat, Jasmin; Pureza, Rita; Alario, F.-Xavier

    2016-01-01

    Can an early learned second language influence speech production after living many years in an exclusively monolingual environment? To address this issue, we investigated the consequences of discontinued early bilingualism in heritage speakers who moved abroad and switched language dominance from the second to the primary learned language. We used…

  1. E-Learning Turkish Language and Grammar: Analyzing Learners' Behavior

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Georgalas, Panagiotis

    2012-01-01

    This study analyses the behavior and the preferences of the Greek learners of Turkish language, who use a particular e-learning website in parallel with their studies, namely: http://turkish.pgeorgalas.gr. The website offers free online material in Greek and English language for learning the Turkish language and grammar. The traffic of several…

  2. The Linguistic Landscape as a Learning Space for Contextual Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Aladjem, Ruthi; Jou, Bibiana

    2016-01-01

    One of the challenges of teaching and learning a foreign language is that students are not being sufficiently exposed to the target language. However, it is quite common to find linguistic and cultural exponents of different foreign languages in authentic contexts (termed the "Linguistic landscape"). Using the Linguistic landscape as a…

  3. From Pedagogically Relevant Corpora to Authentic Language Learning Contents

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Braun, Sabine

    2005-01-01

    The potential of corpora for language learning and teaching has been widely acknowledged and their ready availability on the Web has facilitated access for a broad range of users, including language teachers and learners. However, the integration of corpora into general language learning and teaching practice has so far been disappointing. In this…

  4. Language Learning Strategy Use among Iranian Engineering EFL Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nahavandi, Naemeh; Mukundan, Jayakaran

    2014-01-01

    The present study aimed at understanding the language learning strategy use of Iranian EFL learners' about learning a foreign language. The main purpose of the study was to understand if there was any relationship between proficiency level, gender and extra education in language institutes and strategy use. To achieve this end, 369 engineering…

  5. Language Learning of Gifted Individuals: A Content Analysis Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gokaydin, Beria; Baglama, Basak; Uzunboylu, Huseyin

    2017-01-01

    This study aims to carry out a content analysis of the studies on language learning of gifted individuals and determine the trends in this field. Articles on language learning of gifted individuals published in the Scopus database were examined based on certain criteria including type of publication, year of publication, language, research…

  6. Web-Based Language Learning Perception and Personality Characteristics of University Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mirzaee, Meisam; Gharibeh, Sajjad Gharibeh

    2016-01-01

    The significance of learners' personality in language learning/teaching contexts has often been cited in literature but few studies have scrutinized the role it can play in technology-oriented language classes. In modern language teaching/learning contexts, personality differences are important and should be taken into account. This study…

  7. Why Aren't All Children in the Nordic Countries Bilingual?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Skutnabb-Kangas, Tove

    1984-01-01

    Examines three Nordic bilingual programs: (1) immersion, where majority children with a high status mother tongue learn a second language; (2) submersion, where minority children with a low status mother tongue are forced to learn the majority language; and (3) language shelter, where minority children learn the majority language as a second…

  8. The Discourse of Language Learning Strategies: Towards an Inclusive Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jones, Alexander Harris

    2016-01-01

    This paper critiques discourse surrounding language learning strategies within Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) and argues for the creation of new definitions of language learning strategies that are rooted in the socio-political and socio-economic contexts of the marginalized. Section one of this paper describes linguistic…

  9. Formulaic Sequences and the Implications for Second Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Xu, Qi

    2016-01-01

    The present paper is a review of literature in relation to formulaic sequences and the implications for second language learning. The formulaic sequence is a significant part of our language, and plays an essential role in both first and second language learning. The paper first introduces the definition, classifications, and major features of…

  10. 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…

  11. Language Learning and Control in Monolinguals and Bilinguals

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bartolotti, James; Marian, Viorica

    2012-01-01

    Parallel language activation in bilinguals leads to competition between languages. Experience managing this interference may aid novel language learning by improving the ability to suppress competition from known languages. To investigate the effect of bilingualism on the ability to control native-language interference, monolinguals and bilinguals…

  12. Language experience changes subsequent learning

    PubMed Central

    Onnis, Luca; Thiessen, Erik

    2013-01-01

    What are the effects of experience on subsequent learning? We explored the effects of language-specific word order knowledge on the acquisition of sequential conditional information. Korean and English adults were engaged in a sequence learning task involving three different sets of stimuli: auditory linguistic (nonsense syllables), visual non-linguistic (nonsense shapes), and auditory non-linguistic (pure tones). The forward and backward probabilities between adjacent elements generated two equally probable and orthogonal perceptual parses of the elements, such that any significant preference at test must be due to either general cognitive biases, or prior language-induced biases. We found that language modulated parsing preferences with the linguistic stimuli only. Intriguingly, these preferences are congruent with the dominant word order patterns of each language, as corroborated by corpus analyses, and are driven by probabilistic preferences. Furthermore, although the Korean individuals had received extensive formal explicit training in English and lived in an English-speaking environment, they exhibited statistical learning biases congruent with their native language. Our findings suggest that mechanisms of statistical sequential learning are implicated in language across the lifespan, and experience with language may affect cognitive processes and later learning. PMID:23200510

  13. A Review of Integrating Mobile Phones for Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Darmi, Ramiza; Albion, Peter

    2014-01-01

    Mobile learning (m-learning) is gradually being introduced in language classrooms. All forms of mobile technology represent portability with smarter features. Studies have proven the concomitant role of technology beneficial for language learning. Various features in the technology have been exploited and researched for acquiring and learning…

  14. Conceptualizing Learning Style Modalities for ESL/EFL Students.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wintergerst, Ann C.; DeCapua, Andrea; Verna, Marilyn Ann

    2003-01-01

    Reports results of testing a newly developed learning styles instrument on three groups of language learners: Russian English-as-a-Foreign-Language students, Russian English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students, and Asian ESL students to determine their learning style preference. Results indicate that these students learn English under three…

  15. Students' Evaluation of Their English Language Learning Experience

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Maizatulliza, M.; Kiely, R.

    2017-01-01

    In the field of English language teaching and learning, there is a long history of investigating students' performance while they are undergoing specific learning programmes. This research study, however, focused on students' evaluation of their English language learning experience after they have completed their programme. The data were gathered…

  16. Malaysian Gifted Students' Use of English Language Learning Strategies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yunus, Melor Md; Sulaiman, Nur Ainil; Embi, Mohammed Amin

    2013-01-01

    Many studies have been done on language learning strategies employed by different type of learners and in various contexts. However, very little studies have been done on gifted students regarding language learning. Gifted students have unique characteristics and have different ways of thinking and learning. These characteristics affect how they…

  17. Awareness and Learning under Incidental Learning Conditions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rogers, John

    2017-01-01

    Recent years have witnessed a strong and increasing interest in the incidental learning of second language grammar. While much of this research has focused on the acquisition of second language word order or noun-determiner systems, relatively fewer studies have examined the learning of second language morphology. Results of studies that have…

  18. Second-Language Learning in Early Childhood: Some Thoughts for Practitioners.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McLaughlin, Barry

    There is much that can be done in early childhood education programs to foster second language learning in young children. The research literature on early childhood bilingualism clearly indicates that children can learn two languages simultaneously without apparent effort, without cognitive strain or interference in learning either language…

  19. Collaboration and Computer-Assisted Acquisition of a Second Language.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Renie, Delphine; Chanier, Thierry

    1995-01-01

    Discusses how collaborative learning (CL) can be used in a computer-assisted learning (CAL) environment for language learning, reviewing research in the fields of applied linguistics, educational psychology, and artificial intelligence. An application of CL and CAL in the learning of French as a Second Language, focusing on interrogative…

  20. Profiling Language Learners in Hybrid Learning Contexts: Learners' Perceptions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lintunen, Pekka; Mutta, Maarit; Pelttari, Sanna

    2017-01-01

    This article discusses formal and informal foreign language learning before university level. The focus is on beginning university students' perceptions of their earlier learning experiences, especially in digital contexts. Language learners' digital competence is a part of their everyday lives, but its relationship to learning in and outside…

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