First and Second Language Acquisition Commons^™

Realizing The Sustainability Of Portfolio Assessment In Second-Language Writing, Pauline Mak, Kevin M. Wong

Education Division Scholarship

Portfolio assessment, as an alternative writing assessment approach, has received growing attention in the past few decades. Although the benefits of portfolio assessment are well validated, there is a dearth of empirical research on how portfolio assessment can be sustained over time and the support teachers need to sustain portfolio assessment practice in their teaching contexts. To fill this significant void, the present study examines the influences that contribute to the sustainability of portfolio assessment in second-language writing. Drawing on data from interviews with the principal, English department chair and four English teachers from one elementary school in Hong Kong, …

Empowering Spanish Heritage Learners Through A Community Informed, Online Medical Spanish Curriculum, Bonnie C. Holmes Ph.D., Kenneth Rhee Md

11th National Symposium on Spanish as a Heritage Language (Archived)

The lack of standardized medical Spanish curriculum leads to variable content and quality, often neglecting heritage language learners. Also, community engagement efforts seldom extend to curriculum development. Learn about a collaboration between Spanish faculty and a physician to create an innovative, virtual Spanish for healthcare curriculum that addresses these challenges.

Retórica Intercultural En El Discurso Académico Universitario: Las Funciones Retóricas De La Citación En Los Trabajos De Fin De Máster Escritos En Español Y En Inglés Por Hablantes Nativos Y No Nativos, David Sanchez-Jimenez

Publications and Research

This research derives from the interest in learning the cultural differences in citation practices in the academic genre of Master's thesis of native Spanish (Ee), non-native Filipino writers of Spanish (Fe), native Filipino writers of English (Fi), and American writers of English. A total of thirty-two (32) master´s theses – eight (8) for each group – were analyzed. A quantitative and qualitative methodology was used to study this phenomenon based on the computerized textual analysis of the rhetorical function of citations arranged in typological classification that modified the outline proposed by Petrić in his 2007 article. The results obtained from …

Home Of The Brave Book Study Assignment Description, David Wolff

Open Educational Resources - Teaching and Learning

Individuals lead storied lives, and everyone has a story to tell. Our stories can be shared orally and documented in print. Often, learners are exposed to stories through novels and other trade books. Teacher educators may benefit from using the stories in novels and trade books as case studies in preservice teacher preparation course. This assignment description outlines how to use the novel, Home of the Brave by Katherine Applegate, as a case study to contextualize and understand the lived story of an individual learning a second language and living in a new country. Through the novel, preservice teachers experience …

Unveiling Spanish Language Attitudes In A Los Angeles School And A Third-Generation Multigenerational Mexican-American Family, Eric Alvarez

International Journal of the Linguistic Association of the Southwest

This chapter unearths some of the diverse attitudes towards Spanish of a third-generation child in Los Angeles (L.A.), California, her family members, and school personnel. L.A. is a tension-ridden contact zone (Pratt, 1991) where Spanish has traditionally been subjugated and is still a lesser-taught language (LTL) despite decades of research showing that bilingual education positively impacts student attitudes (Potowski & Muñoz-Basols, 2020). Lack of continuity (Caloi & Torregrossa, 2021) in formal instruction and inconsistent heritage Spanish use in the home may entail divergent attitudes towards Spanish, possibly hindering multigenerational transmission. Decades-long turbulent California language policies (CLP) (Macias, 2001) have consistently …

When Would You Feel Like A Writer? Exploring Writing With Newcomer Students, Sinélia Peixoto, Thea Williamson

English Faculty Publications

The authors share a story of a middle school writer's experience navigating across languages in an English for Speakers of Other Languages support classroom.

L2 Investment In The Transnational Context: A Case Study Of Prc Scholar Students In Singapore, Chang Liu, Guangxiang Liu

Journal of English and Applied Linguistics

Despite growing research on mainland Chinese international students’ intercultural language learning and adjustment experiences in Anglophone countries, few studies have delved into these students’ socially constructed language learning practices as an essential component of their study-abroad journey, especially in Singapore which shares linguistic and cultural affinities with China. As such, building on Darvin and Norton’s (2015) theory of investment at the intersection of identity, capital, and ideology, this case study focuses on Chinese foreign talent students in Singapore and aims to understand how they invest in learning English as an additional language (L2) and assert their legitimate place in the …

Minority Language Education In Russia: An Example Of Social And Cultural Reproduction And Correspondence Theories, Nadezhda Braun

Russian Language Journal

Russia is an incredibly diverse country, both linguistically and ethnically. However, Russia is often presented, and presents itself, as a monolith. Russia’s approach to minority language teaching further perpetuates this monolithic view by creating a hierarchical language structure with Russian at the top. This hierarchy is created through societal pressure, language requirements in the Russian education system, and the minimization of minority language instruction, in direct contrast to best practices for language instruction. Chuvash in Chuvashia and Nenets, Khanty, and Selkup in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug serve as examples of this linguistic hierarchy. This paper uses social and cultural reproduction …

Forming A Global Citizen: Personal Development Through Study Abroad, Anna L. Reiter

Honors Thesis

This literature review examines key benefits of studying abroad, while investigating which elements most contribute to students’ overall success. Current literature suggests that benefits of studying abroad include, but are not limited to, second language acquisition (SLA), identity formation, and intercultural competence. The degree of which each is improved depends on a multitude of variables. SLA improvement is explored via consideration of students’ baseline proficiency level, degree of receptivity of the host country, and length of the study abroad program. Students’ identity formation is explained through the three bases of identity: person, role, and group/social. Finally, intercultural competence in study …

Deictic Pointing And Demonstrative Usage In American Sign Language, Paul Twitchell

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

American Sign Language (ASL), like many different signed languages, has a systematic way of using pointing signs for multiple types of nominal reference. Possibly the most basic function of pointing is to indicate, direct and modulate reference to physical objects located in proximal and distal areas called exophoric demonstratives.

This study aims to investigate ASL exophoric demonstratives and how ASL fits within the different typological systems of demonstratives that have been documented (Diessel & Coventry, 2020). Several research questions focus on how signers direct attention to proximal and distal referents in ASL using an elicitation task. The two studies (adult …

Teaching Culture In The Argentinian Efl Classroom: Beliefs, Practice And Challenges, María Mercedes Sempé

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

The need to address culture in EFL/ESL classrooms has been stressed by scholars in the SLA field for decades (see Kramsch, 1993, 2009, 2011; Byram, 1988; Liddicoat & Scarino, 2013). The original intention of working with culture in the English classes as a means to develop language proficiency –sociocultural competence– was expanded, and nowadays, the focus is on the role culture instruction has in developing empathy and respect for other ways of living and in promoting reflection about learners’ own lifestyle –intercultural competence (Byram, 1988, 2008; Deardoff, 2006). This new focus on cultural instruction is reflected in national curriculums around …

“My Work Doesn’T Need To Be Perfect As Long As The Effort Is There”: A Case Study Of Multilingual Student Perceptions Of Labor-Based Grading Contracts In The First-Year Writing Classroom, Allison M. Hosman

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Recent developments in the fields of both TESOL and Composition indicate a need for conceptualizing and developing assessment practices that support the needs of multilingual writers that are in line with the aims of justice-oriented pedagogies. One such specific pedagogical practice, assessment, has been proposed as an area of pedagogy in which to operationalize approaches that maintain and sustain justice in the multilingual composition classroom. Although contract grading, and more specifically labor-based grading contracts, have been at the center of such recent conversations, few investigations have centered multilingual students, asking how they perceive and understand such an assessment method in …

Preparing Global South Accountants To Be 'Superstar' Communicators, Pia Patricia P. Tenedero

Journal of English and Applied Linguistics

This paper investigates how universities in the Philippines prepare accounting students for communication in global workplaces. As an emerging global leader in offshore accounting services, the Philippines is seeing a growing demand for communicatively competent accountants who can be deployed globally. This trend consequently places a greater onus on the higher education system to produce accounting graduates who can communicate effectively. This paper examines what constitutes “effective communication” in the context of two Manila-based, top-performing accounting schools. Using ethnographic data, I examine how communication is entextualized in curricular documents and how these notions are enacted in classroom interactions. Analysis of …

Teachers' Perspectives On Translanguaging As A Pedagogical Resource In Senior High School English Classes, Karen Lynn G. Macawile, Sterling M. Plata

Journal of English and Applied Linguistics

Translanguaging has been documented in previous research as a pedagogical resource in language classrooms. However, the monolinguistic culture prevents the leveraging of this resource in language learning. In addition, despite the extensive research on translanguaging, its use as a pedagogical resource is limited, particularly in the Philippine context. This study explores teachers’ perspectives on translanguaging in Senior High School subjects where English is the medium of instruction. Findings from focus group discussions reveal that the participants leverage translanguaging as a resource to help students in knowledge construction, meaning-making, and problem-solving. This study concludes with implications for policymakers and language teachers …

Translanguaging In The Mtb-Mle Classroom: A Case Of An Island School With Multilingual Learners, Marvin C. Casalan

Journal of English and Applied Linguistics

Several studies on the development of translanguaging as a linguistic resource in a multilingual classroom have been done. The findings of the research imply that using translanguaging in English language teaching and learning is a useful method, especially in a classroom where English is taught as a second or foreign language. The primary goal of this research, on the other hand, is to look into the languages presented in an MTB-MLE as a subject and investigate the linguistic hybridity of the mother tongue used in the classroom as a language exercise, and find out the teacher’s perspectives on teaching a …

Technology In The Classroom: The Features Language Teachers Should Consider, Sophie Cuocci, Padideh Fattahi Marnani

Journal of English Learner Education

The fast development of technology and the new generation of highly computer literate students led to consider the integration of technology in school as essential. Throughout the last two decades, research has identified multiple factors leading to the successful and unsuccessful integration of technology in the classroom. Educators must consider these factors when deciding on which technology tools to use and how to integrate them to their lessons. Simultaneously, the increasing number of English learners in the United States calls for the identification of teaching strategies that will best support their needs. Many language teachers now rely on teaching techniques …

Foreign Language Anxiety: A Review On Theories, Causes, Consequences And Implications For Educators, Padideh Fattahi Marnani, Sophie Cuocci

Journal of English Learner Education

Anxiety has been considered one of the main obstacles in second language learning in instruction-based contexts. During the last few decades, many scholars have tried to shed light on different aspects of this phenomenon. This literature review clarifies previous scholarly works and covers some of the most significant empirical studies conducted in this field. The purpose of this literature review is to review various aspects of foreign language anxiety, its corresponding theoretical frameworks and models, causes, consequences, gender differences, class modalities (face-to-face and online) and lastly, implications for educators. Foreign language anxiety is a significant barrier that hinders the learning …

The International Academy Of Language And Culture: The Global (Pre)K-12 Charter School Network, Dree-El Simmons

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The International Academy of Language and Culture (IALC) is a charter school based on the original concept of charter schools by Ray Budde and Albert Shanker, as an academic environment dedicated and designed to improving the educational outcomes for its students through innovative pedagogy. Committed to American (and global) education reform, the IALC incorporates elements from higher education into the early childhood and adolescent settings. We accomplish this by utilizing an interdisciplinary approach in our language and culture-based program.

The IALC is a multilingual, full-immersion program. Food Studies (including culinary arts), the Arts, the Humanities, Social Sciences, and Martial Arts …

Applying The Dialogic Method In An Eighth Grade English Curriculum, Maggie Repko

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

In this thesis, I provide an analysis of Paulo Freire’s (1973) dialogic method for language education. I then synthesize his theories with the work of sociocultural and linguistic researchers who have determined the strongest activities to bring about student language development. Finally, I apply these theories to my appendices of created works that might be utilized in an eighth-grade creative writing course. This thesis demonstrates the similarities between Freire’s students and our students in the USA today and the ways that a critical dialogic pedagogy will meet their language learning needs while also inspiring their creative, critical conscientização. Paulo Freire …

Sheltered Math Curriculum For Middle School English Learners, Jasmine Ercink

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

Language barriers have shown a need for differentiation and sheltered instruction in the classroom for English Learners (ELs) to be successful in the United States public school system. This project proposes a mathematics curriculum using SIOP so that both groups of students in the middle school level can increase their proficiency in the mathematics content area as well as experience opportunities for academic and social language development. The purpose of this report is to describe the processes, methods, data, and intent of the mathematics curriculum for these learners. The curriculum acts as an effective intervention to fill gaps in both …

Posicionamiento Y Dialogicidad En La Escritura Académica Y Profesional, David Sánchez-Jiménez, Paulina Meza

Publications and Research

Esta investigación ofrece una perspectiva intercultural de los aspectos del posicionamiento y la dialogicidad en la producción de textos escritos en español y en inglés tanto por estudiantes universitarios de grado como graduados, y de autores expertos en sus respectivas disciplinas. Los conceptos de posicionamiento y dialogicidad son dos componentes esenciales de los textos académicos y profesionales, pues contribuyen a expresar la identidad, el punto de vista y la pertenencia social del autor a una determinada comunidad discursiva, a partir de los cuales se logra la credibilidad de sus juicios y la adhesión a sus ideas en la interacción discursiva …

Pragmatics In Game Activities, Humor, And Technology In Second Language Learning, Zachary Brandon Brown

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

This portfolio compiles work the author explored and developed during the Master of Second Language Teaching (MSLT) program at Utah State University (USU). It encompasses a range of experiences from teaching abroad and at USU, insights from the observation of other classrooms, and reflections from studies in the MSLT program.

Three distinct sections comprise the portfolio: teaching perspectives, research perspectives, and an annotated bibliography. The teaching perspectives detail beliefs regarding games, computer technology, humor, and pragmatics and how they influence second language learning based on the author’s personal experiences. The research perspectives and annotated bibliography elaborate further on those topics …

Emergency Remote Teaching (Ert) Forced By The Covid-19 Pandemic: Efl Teachers' Practices And Perspectives Two Years Later, Eman Barri

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

When the Covid-19 pandemic first hit the world in March 2020, all aspects of life were drastically disrupted, and the education sector underwent radical changes. An almost overnight shift from traditional classrooms to delivering instruction online became an enforced necessity rather than an option to continue education during the pandemic, which required teachers around the world to adapt to the new reality on very short notice. Because little research has been undertaken to understand language teaching practices globally during the pandemic from the teachers' perspectives, shedding light on how English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers responded to the emergency …

The Lived Experiences Of Latinx Parents And Their Perception Of Bilingual Programs: A Phenomenological Reflection, Manuel O. Adrianzen

Dissertations

The aim of this study is two-fold. First, to better understand and capture the lived experiences of Latinx parents as they navigate the registration/enrollment process at the school and select a language program for their Pre-kindergarten child. Second, to understand what lived experiences influence their perception about bilingual education programs. Using Van Manen’s (2016) concept of human sciences and phenomenology, data was collected through the use of conversational interviews. The responses provided by the parents and school clerk revealed five themes, fear & anxiousness, hope for things to come & for a brighter future, use of social networks to understand …

The Effects Of Watching Text-Relevant Video Segments On Reading Comprehension Of Culturally Unfamiliar Texts With Adult English Language Learners Supported By The Schematic Information-Processing (Sip) Model Of Reading Comprehension, Amirreza Karami

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this mixed-methods sequential explanatory study was to investigate the effects of watching text-relevant video segments on reading comprehension of a culturally unfamiliar text when technical words are present or absent. Therefore, 44 adult English Language Learners (ELLs) with higher-intermediate to advanced English language proficiency levels from the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo (UASD) School of Languages located in the Dominican Republic were chosen and randomly assigned to two different groups: control vs. experimental.

First, the researcher compared two different types of reading instruction—traditional text-based vs. video-based reading instruction supported by the Schematic Information-Processing (SIP) model of reading …

Black Lives Matter In Teaching English As A Second Language!, Kristin Lems

Faculty Publications

The Winter 2020 issue of theIllinois Reading Council Journal published a special issue focusing on “action for equity,” with thoughtful articles and abundant family and classroom resources. This issue of the “wELLcome”column, which is dedicated to topics regarding English language learners (ELLs), continues in that same vein. In this issue, we place the spotlight on ELLs of African descent, their teachers, and their schools.

Predictors Of Refugees’ Ability To Pass The United States Citizenship Exam, Molly Grover, Fern Hauck, Sarah Blackstone, Emily Cloyd

Virginia Journal of Public Health

Background: Passing the United States citizenship exam can be challenging for refugee populations for several reasons, including affordability of English classes, time restraints, medical stressors, and limited formal education. The purpose of this study was to examine factors that may influence a refugees’ ability to pass the citizenship exam, including English proficiency, education, employment, and completion of English as a Second Language (ESL) classes.

Methods: Refugee patients at the International Family Medicine Clinic (IFMC) in Central Virginia participated in a survey that assessed their levels of English proficiency and whether or not they had passed the citizenship exam. The survey …

Tools For College Composition Success I For High Beginning Esl Learners, Gina M. Vellani

English OER Repository

Tools for College Composition Success I is a practical classroom resource for high beginning ESL learners. This book covers composition skills and syntax using the descriptive, narrative and process writing genres. In addition, this resource helps students at this level of language acquisition transition from writing paragraphs to writing short essays.

Using Film As A Multimodal Text In The Language Classroom, Kate Marie Steckmest

MA TESOL Collection

Film is a powerful medium for language acquisition; Not only does viewing films allow learners to experience language used in various real-life contexts, but the medium of film itself is a form of communication. Through the active viewing of films, students can explore how people with diverse backgrounds, accents, and cultures communicate using multiple modes such as gestures, images, and sounds. When learners are familiar with the techniques used by filmmakers to convey meaning, they can use the medium of film themselves to tell their stories and share their perspectives through filmmaking projects. Such projects can be collaborative and engaging …

Approaches To Narrative Instruction For Second Language Learners, Mathew Peters

MA TESOL Collection

Narratives have reemerged as a dominant form of rhetoric over the last fifty years. This dominant use of narrative discourse has only increased with the rise of social media. Walther Fisher (1987) proposed the narrative paradigm as a unifying theory of human communication. His major claim is that people are inherently storytellers and that people use a narrative rationality and a logic of good reasons to inform their beliefs, values, and actions. This paper utilizes his theories, along with recent findings in neuroscience, to establish an argument for greater inclusion of narratives into second language teaching. Narratives can have a …