While language learners and teachers have long known that individual differences (IDs) among students result in differential learning, we still do not know how traditional ID variables interact or the specific impact each one has on language learning. The present study proposes that instead of looking at isolated variables, researchers should…

The paper reports on a longitudinal multiple-case study that probed into four advanced university-level Chinese EFL learners' situated vocabulary learning experiences and explored the role of L2 motivation in their productive vocabulary development. In the study, Lexical Frequency Profile analysis and semi-structured interviews were conducted with…

The relationship between teachers' beliefs and practices is generally understood to be a complex one. In recent years the topic of language teachers' beliefs has attracted considerable research interest, mostly in the form of case studies of teachers in particular contexts. A number of such studies focus in part on the relationship between beliefs…

This article reports on a multiple-case study designed to investigate factors influencing willingness to communicate (WTC) in the English as a foreign language (EFL) classroom in China. Four university students participated in this study; data were collected through semi-structured interviews, learning journals recorded by the students, and…

Drawing on an ecological perspective, this paper reports on an investigation into the changes in one first-year college student's beliefs about English teaching and learning since his enrollment. These changes in beliefs are part of the empirical findings of a multiple-case study conducted in the Chinese EFL context. Semi-structured interviews,…

This paper aims at contributing to a fuller understanding of the nature and potential dynamism of self-concept in the foreign language learning domain. Data were generated in a single, three-year longitudinal case study using journals and in-depth interviews. The data were then analysed using a Grounded Theory approach in which the analysis…

Framed in Vygotsky's sociocultural theory (SCT) of mind, this paper explores second language (L2) learning beliefs in study-abroad (SA) contexts. Previous research on learner beliefs has relied mostly on survey methods, while regarding belief as a static, internal representation of experience that is resistant to change. Due to the concern…

Departing from the view that learner beliefs are mental traits and in keeping with the discursive turn in SLA (Kalaja, 1995, 2003; Young, 2009), I argue that SLA learner beliefs research can be advanced through the use of two constructs--language ideology and positioning--that originate from linguistic anthropology and discursive psychology,…

Previous research into willingness to communicate (WTC) in L2 has focused primarily on its trait dispositions that remain stable across contexts and its situated nature is under explored. Framed with an ecological perspective on second language learning, this multiple case study investigated the dynamic and situated nature of WTC in second…

With the spread of English as the global language, many people from English-speaking countries go to foreign land to work as English teachers. A review of the literature reveals that there is little research on these teachers' teaching-abroad experiences. The current study is an attempt to address this gap in the literature. Situated in an…

In this article, I explore how an English teacher's self-efficacy beliefs in using groupwork developed, specifically with regard to his work with young learners, while he was engaged part-time on an in-service BA TESOL programme in the Middle East. Using qualitative case study methodology, I uncover various aspects of his self-efficacy growth,…

Awareness of how different cultural beliefs may influence one's own and others' linguistic choices is fundamental to successful spoken communication, particularly in intercultural professional settings such as contemporary healthcare. The aim of this paper is to outline how this sensitivity can be enhanced through teaching that develops…

Second language pre-service teachers in their final field experience are faced with many challenges as they move from student to professional teacher. During a particularly intense period of transition, they confront new information and issues as they move forward into actual classroom teaching. Guided reflective journals provide pre-service…

Language teacher cognition research is a growing field. In recent years several features of language teacher cognitions have been noted: they can be complex, ranging over a number of different subjects; they can be dynamic, changing over time and under different influences; and they can be systems, forming unified and cohesive personal or…

The interactive functions of weblogs facilitate computer-mediated peer reviews for collaborative writing. As limited research has been conducted on examining the training effects of peer reviews on students' peer comments, their revision quality, and their perceptions when composing in weblogs, the present case study aims to fill the gap. Thirteen…