Opportunities and Outcomes: The Role of Peers in Developing the Oral Academic English Proficiency of Adolescent English Learners

2015 ◽  
Vol 99 (4) ◽  
pp. 678-695 ◽  
Author(s):  
AVARY CARHILL-POZA
2019 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jin Kyoung Hwang ◽  
Jeannette Mancilla-Martinez ◽  
Janna Brown McClain ◽  
Min Hyun Oh ◽  
Israel Flores

AbstractVocabulary represents a key barrier to language and literacy development for many English learners. This study examined the relationship between Spanish-speaking English learners’ conceptually scored Spanish–English vocabulary, academic English proficiency, and English reading comprehension. Second- and fourth-grade English learners (N = 62) completed standardized conceptually scored vocabulary measures in the fall and state-administered standardized measures of academic English proficiency and English reading comprehension in the spring. Conceptually scored vocabulary measures are designed to tap knowledge of the number of known concepts, regardless of the specific language (Spanish or English) used to label the concept. Regression analyses revealed that academic English proficiency and English reading comprehension were not predicted by the conceptually scored measure of receptive vocabulary. However, both academic English proficiency and English reading comprehension were predicted by the conceptually scored measure of expressive vocabulary. In addition, the relationship between conceptually scored expressive vocabulary and English reading comprehension remained after controlling for academic English proficiency. Results underscore the utility of measures that incorporate English learners’ first and second language skills in understanding the vocabulary knowledge English learners bring to English language and literacy learning tasks.


2020 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 342-358
Author(s):  
Hao Chen

AbstractIt is noticeable that the academic papers written by Chinese English learners are lacking in academic features largely due to their poor ability to use nominalization. Therefore, the instruction of nominalization in an academic English writing course is badly needed. The author conducted one-semester-long instruction of nominalization to 90 non-English majors under the guidance of the production-oriented approach (POA). This research demonstrated how to apply POA, specifically, the enabling procedure to the teaching of nominalization. By triangulating the data of students’ interviews, learning journals and written output, and the data of 4 teachers’ class observations and interviews, this study found that the accurate application of the three criteria of effective enabling contributed to the improvement of the quantity and quality of nominalization in academic writing.


2017 ◽  
Vol 111 (5) ◽  
pp. 631-643 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuliya Ardasheva ◽  
Zhe Wang ◽  
Anna Karin Roo ◽  
Olusola O. Adesope ◽  
Judith A. Morrison

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hui-Hua Chiang

<p>This article presents a preliminary investigation of the inter-relationships between English learners’ tolerance for ambiguity, their classroom work styles, and their level of English proficiency. The study population comprised 46 English as a foreign language (EFL) students attending a technical college in Taiwan. The findings indicated that a large percentage of these students had moderate to high levels of tolerance for ambiguity. In contrast to the findings of previous studies, our results showed no significant relationship between ambiguity tolerance and classroom work styles. The relationship between ambiguity tolerance and English proficiency in terms of the Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC) scores was almost statistically significant. However, tolerance for ambiguity and classroom work styles showed a statistically significant association with English proficiency. Recommended extensions of the study are discussed, and general directions for future research are suggested. Teaching implementations are also proposed.<strong></strong></p>


BELTA Journal ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
S. M. Sanzana Rahman ◽  
Lubaba Sanjana

Using an online platform, such as Google Classroom to engage learners, is a recent practice in the field of Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL). It can be used to engage learners to learn academic English skills at the tertiary level in Bangladesh. This paper examines adoption of Google Classroom through the lens of Rogers’ (2003) diffusion of innovations to investigate learners’ experiences, attitudes, and perceptions towards Google Classroom as a Learning Management System (LMS) to engage students to learn the four skills of English. The researchers have undertaken a mixed methods approach to collect data from 105 tertiary level students who are taking EAP courses in a private university. The findings suggest that the participants have strong positive attitude towards the use of different features of Google Classroom due to the availability of training and technological tools. This study is crucial for understanding the importance of using instructional technology (IT) in reshaping English teaching practices in Bangladesh.


2015 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 550-566 ◽  
Author(s):  
HE SUN ◽  
RASMUS STEINKRAUSS ◽  
JORGE TENDEIRO ◽  
KEES DE BOT

This study assesses the impact of internal and external factors on very young EFL learners in an instructional setting. 71 child English learners in China (onset age: 2;0 - 5;6) were involved: their receptive vocabulary, productive vocabulary and receptive grammar were taken as outcome variables, and age of onset, short-term memory, nonverbal intelligence, English input quantity and quality, English use, and maternal English level were taken as predictive variables. Multiple regression analyses, verified by Bayes factor comparisons, revealed that the total amount of school input and home English media environment were significant predictors for all of three aspects of English proficiency, with each aspect having different additional significant predictors. Both internal factors (e.g., age of onset) and external factors (e.g., English input quantity) played an important role, but in contrast to similar studies (e.g., Paradis, 2011) focusing on a L2 naturalistic setting, external factors explained more variance of English proficiency measures.


2011 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 343-365 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alison L. Bailey ◽  
Becky H. Huang

English language development or proficiency (ELD/P) standards promise to play an important role in the instruction and assessment of the language development of English language learner (ELL) pre-K-12 students, but to do so effectively they must convey the progression of student language learning in authentic school contexts for authentic academic purposes. The construct of academic English is defined as the vocabulary, sentence structures, and discourse associated with language used to teach academic content as well as the language used to navigate the school setting more generally. The construct definition is informed by a relatively modest number of empirical studies of textbooks, content assessments, and observations of classroom discourse. The standards of a state with a large ELL population and a large multi-state consortium are then reviewed to illustrate the role of the academic English construct in the standards’ coverage of language modalities or domains, levels of attainment or proficiency, grade spans, and the needs of the large number of young English learners. Recommendations and potential strategies for validating, creating, and augmenting standards that reflect authentic uses of academic language in school settings are also made.


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