scholarly journals Self-Views and Positive Psychology Constructs Among Second Language Learners in Japan, Taiwan, and the United States

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xinjie Chen ◽  
J. Lake ◽  
Amado M. Padilla
English Today ◽  
1996 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 44-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Norma A. Register

A review of the problems learners of English can have with actual and borderline taboo usages in the United States


2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Enriqueta Claudia Serrano Romero

ABSTRACTIn the United States, typically since the 1970s, among the instructors dedicated to the teaching of a Second Language (L2) there is a great dilemma that may be caused by an apparent pedagogical confusion about the term competence and the teaching of grammatical rules. Cognitive approach has been feasible and current alternative for teaching a second language. However, literature in the field shows that teaching a foreign language is much more complex aspect than a simple choice. Also, it has been perceived that the student's purpose is not only using the language in regular basis of communicating but also in academic and professional settings. Second language learners must distinguish between acquiring a language and learning it.RESUMENEn los Estados Unidos, típicamente desde la década de los 70’s, los instructores que se enfrentan al dilema sobre qué método es más conveniente para la enseñanza de una segunda lenguas. La aparente causa puede ser la confusión pedagógica sobre el término de competencia y la enseñanza de las reglas gramaticales. Los instructores han recurrido al método cognitivo por figurar éste como la alternativa viable e inmediata para tal propósito. Sin embargo, la literatura especializada muestra que el tema sobre los métodos de instrucción de lenguas extranjeras resulta ser un problema más complejo que el de una simple elección, particularmente cuando se percibe que el propósito del estudiante no es sino sólo lograr el manejo de un idioma extranjero para la comunicación en todos los ámbitos y para cuestiones académicas y profesional, lo que involucra distinguir entre adquirir una lengua y aprenderla


Author(s):  
Stephen Fafulas

AbstractThis research documents the acquisition of a range of progressive constructions and their associated predictors of use by English-speaking learners of Spanish in the United States. The few existing studies on acquisition of the Spanish progressive by adult second language learners analyze only the


2020 ◽  
pp. 38-69
Author(s):  
Mary Beaton

Previous studies demonstrate that some aspects of the phonological grammar of heritage Spanish speakers in the United States are monolingual-like while other aspects show influence from English (Ronquest & Rao, 2018). The syllabification of vowel sequences is an interesting trait to study in the Spanish of U.S. heritage speakers due to the tendency in English phonology to separate vowels into separate syllables and the contrasting preference for diphthongs in Spanish. Studies across several language pairs have shown that second-language learners use the syllable structure of their first language in their second language, creating non-native-like patterns. We have little understanding, however, about whether heritage speakers syllabify like monolingual Spanish speakers or if they rely on the structure of the dominant language in their environment. The present study compares the syllabification judgments of 54 heritage speakers to those of 40 monolingual speakers. The results show that heritage speakers have monolingual-like syllabification intuitions for verbs ending in -ear and -iar overall, but heritage speakers who have spent less than two years in their parents’ home country syllabify differently in reading versus listening tasks. Lexical frequency did not affect the results, indicating that syllabification intuitions are robust even in unfamiliar words.


Author(s):  
Patricia Montiel Overall

Science is considered a critical area within the curriculum and instruction by teachers alone is not enough to ensure success for all students. School librarians must be considered in delivering science information to students, particularly those who are second language learners. This two-year study examined the effect of teacher and librarian collaboration (TLC) on inquiry-based science information literacy of Latino students in the United States. Although no significant gains were found between Control and Intervention classes, qualitative data indicated that TLC was successful in motivating students, improving inquiry and information literacy, and understanding of science concepts. The implication is that that test scores alone do not provide a complete assessment of student learning. Factors limiting student gains included reduced science and library time, and state policies that removed second language learners from regular classroom instruction. Continued advocacy for TLC is recommended to provide students needed tools for long-term academic success.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (9) ◽  
pp. 48
Author(s):  
Mustafa A. Hersi

Writing in a second language is considered extremely challenging for several reasons. Concerns that perplex second-language learners include cognitive complications, the composing process, building arguments, and constructing an identity as a writer. Cultural issues related to writing also pose problems for second-language writers This paper focuses exclusively on how international students, female Saudi ESL students, construct their writing identity in the ESL milieu and navigate critical issues in cross-cultural writing. This paper explores how two ESL Saudi Arabian female students in an English program in the United States negotiate and construct their identities while writing in English. The study will also investigate challenges faced by those students in acquiring English writing skills and how those challenges inform their thinking and shape or reshape their identities as writers.  The study involves two female Saudi students who are studying the English language at a mid-size diverse Southwest public university in the United States. The researcher collected the data through semi-structured interviews with the participants and then performed a textual analysis of their responses. The researcher transcribed and analyzed the data and describes the results thematically herein. The findings of this study augment our understanding in how female Saudi ESL students construct their identities as writers. The analysis covers some sociocultural factors that shape their writing. The paper concludes with pedagogical implications for ESL teachers and suggestions for future study. 


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-22
Author(s):  
Okhee Lee

Abstract In the United States, A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012) and Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) offer a vision of rigorous science standards for all students across K-12 classrooms. As science and engineering practices (e.g., develop models, argue from evidence, construct explanations) are language intensive, engagement in these practices presents both language learning opportunities and demands to all students, especially second language learners. The purpose of this article is to describe science instructional shifts, spurred by the Framework and the NGSS, and language instructional shifts, informed by contemporary views in second language acquisition described in English Learners in STEM Subjects (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2018). The article describes a yearlong fifth-grade science curriculum to illustrate how science and language instructional shifts are mutually supportive of each other to promote rigorous science learning and rich language use with a focus on second language learners.


2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 28
Author(s):  
Rosalie S. Aldrich ◽  
Dianne Moneypenny

<p>Online (OL) second language (L2) courses are becoming more widely offered in the United States; however, little information exists about the effectiveness of OL L2 courses beyond one semester or course. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess Spanish students’ oral proficiency after completing one year of OL only L2 courses. At the end of year one, students (<em>n</em>=65) completed the Versant exam, which scored overall level of oral proficiency as well as four sub-categories: pronunciation, fluency, sentence formation, and vocabulary production. The results showed that 40% of OL Spanish students met the ACTFL benchmark of Intermediate-Low, while 49% scored Novice-High, one level below the benchmark. A portion (15%) of students not reaching Intermediate-Low scored within a few points of the benchmark. A majority of the students also met the benchmark for pronunciation and fluency, but not for sentence formation or vocabulary production. These results show that it is possible for students enrolled exclusively in online Spanish language classes to meet benchmarks. Thus, OL language students can and should be held to the same standards of oral proficiency as their peers in seated classrooms.</p>


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document