This article examines how form recall of target lexical items by learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) is affected (1) by repetition (1, 3 or 5 number of occurrences), (2) by the type of target item (single words versus collocations), and (3) by the time of post-test administration (immediately or one week after the learning session).…

The current study compared the effectiveness of computer-delivered task-essential practice coupled with feedback consisting of (1) negative evidence with metalinguistic information (NE+MI) or (2) negative evidence without metalinguistic information (NE-MI) in promoting absolute beginners' (n = 58) initial learning of aspects of Latin…

This study examined the opportunities that pair and small group interaction offer for collaborative dialogue and second language (L2) vocabulary learning. It compared the performance of the same collaborative writing task by learners working in groups of four (n = 60) and in pairs (n = 50), focusing on the occurrence of lexical language-related…

This study focuses on the effects of task type on the retention and ease of activation of second language (L2) vocabulary, based on the multi-feature hypothesis (Moonen, De Graaff, & Westhoff, 2006). Two tasks were compared: a writing task and a list-learning task. It was hypothesized that performing the writing task would yield higher…

This article reports on three research studies, all of which concern second language task performance. The first focuses on planning, and compares on-line and strategic planning as well as task repetition. The second study examines the role of familiarity on task performance, and compares this with conventional strategic planning. The third study…

The construct of anxiety is often believed to be the affective factor with the greatest potential to pervasively affect the learning process (Horwitz, 2001), and recent research has demonstrated that anxiety can mediate whether learners are able to notice feedback and subsequently produce output (Sheen, 2008). In order to reduce the negative…

The study reported in this article investigated the comparative effects of two types of treatment--one of which emphasized input and the other output--on the vocabulary acquisition of young EFL learners. In the input-based instruction, the students were not required to produce output whereas in the production-based instruction the students were…

This study addresses the role that active translation may have in second language (L2) vocabulary learning. Some research suggests that translation might be an effective cognitive strategy for L2 vocabulary learning. Participants were 191 native French-speaking students enrolled in a TESL (Teaching English as a Second Language) program.The study…

This study consists of two instructional experiments. Within the framework of dual coding theory, the study compares the learning effects of two instructional encoding methods used in Chinese vocabulary instruction among students learning beginning Chinese as a foreign language. One method uses verbal encoding only, and the other method uses…

This study examined the effectiveness of reformulation and model text in a three-stage writing task (composing-comparison-revising) in an EFL writing class in a Beijing university. The study documented 10 university students' writing performance from the composing (Stage 1) and comparing (Stage 2, where students compare their own text to a…

Many studies have shown that reading can have a beneficial effect on second language learning, but relatively few of these have focused on extensive reading in classroom environments over a period of time. This study compares an extensive reading class against a more traditional class involving intensive reading and vocabulary exercises. The…

This article uses activity theory to consider how teacher learning and development occurs. It aims to show that imitation and orienting activity, both of which make use of the analysis of actions into means and goals, can help explain how a group of Malaysian mathematics and science teachers learned to use the language-teaching practice of tasks…

Developments in broadcast and multimedia technology have generated a readily available and vast supply of videotexts for use in second and foreign language learning contexts. However, without pedagogical direction learners are unlikely to be able to deal with the complexities of this authentic listening resource, and strategy instruction may be…

To extend the reach of the second language (L2) classroom, learners may be given opportunities to interact with native speakers through contact assignments or volunteer work organized through their L2 program. An underlying assumption of these practices is that "real-world" and classroom experience offer different but complementary opportunities…

This paper reports a study that examined the categories of pedagogical knowledge (knowledge related to the act of teaching) of novice ESL teachers as gleaned from their verbal reports of what they were thinking about while teaching and compared these categories to those found for experienced teachers in an earlier study (Gatbonton, 1999). The goal…