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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Open Educational Resources In The United States: Insights From University Foreign Language Directors, Joshua J. Thoms, Becky L. Thoms Aug 2014

Open Educational Resources In The United States: Insights From University Foreign Language Directors, Joshua J. Thoms, Becky L. Thoms

Joshua J. Thoms

This study reports the results of a survey completed by 155 university foreign language (FL) directors in the United States (US) during Fall 2012. Survey respondents come from a variety of institutions and direct a range of FL programs. The objectives of the study are to (a) determine what FL directors know about open educational resources (OER), (b) understand respondents’ perceived benefits and challenges of using OER, and (c) determine what resources and support are critical to establish or expand the use of OER in FL courses in the US. Results indicate that while 66% of FL directors do not …


The Future Tense In Spanish L2 Textbooks, Rafael Orozco, Joshua J. Thoms May 2014

The Future Tense In Spanish L2 Textbooks, Rafael Orozco, Joshua J. Thoms

Joshua J. Thoms

This paper revisits the treatment of the expression of futurity in Spanish foreign language (FL) textbooks. We analyzed twenty college-level Spanish FL textbooks to determine and quantify how futurity is represented. Variationist research has shown the periphrastic future (PF) to be the most frequent variant of futurity followed by the simple present (SP) and the morphological future (MF). Our findings reveal that, despite over two decades of communicative language teaching, Spanish FL textbooks still do not completely present the reality of the expression of futurity. Introductory texts present all three variants of futurity. However, there is a dramatic difference in …


Alice's Adventure Through Second Language Acquisition: An Educator's Perspective, Jessica Pryor Lee May 2014

Alice's Adventure Through Second Language Acquisition: An Educator's Perspective, Jessica Pryor Lee

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The author employs narrative writing to illustrate annotated bibliographies, classroom observations, research and research proposals, and self-reflections for second language learning. Elementary, secondary, adult, and college-level teachings are addressed. The author focuses on communicative language teaching, brain-based teaching, and dual language immersion with content based instruction. She addresses the importance of writing, authentic materials, task-based activities, communication, and the recognition of heritage learners. The main character is Alice and she travels through Argentina and Chile. Footnotes are used to keep the narrative style of the portfolio coherent. While the storyline is fictitious, all information included is based on the author’s …


Teaching Arabic And English To Speakers Of Other Languages: The Application Of Theory-Grounded Methods, Mohammed Hussein May 2014

Teaching Arabic And English To Speakers Of Other Languages: The Application Of Theory-Grounded Methods, Mohammed Hussein

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This portfolio is a collection of artifacts that represent the author’s beliefs and ideas about teaching a second language. The first section is the author’s teaching philosophy statement, in which he explains how to apply the three modes of communication in the second language classroom. The second section is a literacy artifact that addresses how to use literature to heighten learners’ level of second language literacy. The following two artifacts are on two basic applications of sociocultural theory: concept-based instruction and dynamic assessment. The cultural artifact addresses the pedagogical implications of code-switching in the Arabic language classroom. The third artifact …


An Ecological View Of Whole-Class Discussions In A Second Language Literature Classroom: Teacher Reformulations As Affordances For Learning, Joshua J. Thoms Jan 2014

An Ecological View Of Whole-Class Discussions In A Second Language Literature Classroom: Teacher Reformulations As Affordances For Learning, Joshua J. Thoms

Joshua J. Thoms

This article analyzes whole-class discussions between a teacher and her students in a Latin American Colonial literature course at the college level. The study is theoretical–exploratory in nature in that it (a) articulates theoretical assumptions inherent in an ecological perspective on second language learning and teaching, and (b) attempts to operationalize the affordance construct (van Lier, 2000, 2004) in the context of a second language (L2) literature classroom. The study’s findings underscore the importance of teacher reformulations when engaging students in whole-class discussions, as well as students’ engagement with and awareness of the unfolding talk. Furthermore, how the teacher dynamically …