Many international students come to Canada to improve their English language proficiency and develop friendships with Canadians and other international students. However, gaining access to host nationals (i.e., Canadians) is not an easy task for most English as a second language (ESL) learners. Factors such as language proficiency may hamper…

Studying task repetition for adult and young foreign language learners of English (EFL) has received growing interest in recent literature within the task-based approach (Bygate, 2009; Hawkes, 2012; Mackey, Kanganas, & Oliver, 2007; Pinter, 2007b). Earlier work suggests that second language (L2) learners benefit from repeating the same or a…

In response to the research priorities of members of TESOL (Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages), this study investigated language learners' realworld tasks in mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) to inform the future development of pedagogic tasks for academic English as a second language (ESL) courses. The data included…

We examined several popular integrated skills textbooks used in Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada (LINC) and English as a second language (ESL) programs for pragmatics and oral fluency activities. Although many instructors use other resources to supplement classroom instruction, the textbook is still the backbone of many language…

Transitions in ESL contexts generally refer to those linking words placed between sentences and between paragraphs. Transitions in writing (and in speaking) are helpful; they facilitate coherence and cohesion when used correctly. Understanding them when reading allows us to join the writer in seeing why and how idea B follows idea A. In this…

Exploring learners' processes of memory and analysis has captivated considerable attention among language-learning researchers due to the recent prevalence of key concepts from feeder disciplines such as cognitive psychology and phraseology. However, there has been little empirical effort to describe the nature of interaction between these two…

This article reports on the preliminary findings of a two-staged empirical study aimed at gaining insights into the variables salient in the early language and literacy development of young English language learners (ELL). Increasingly, young ELL, whether foreign-born or Canadian-born, arrive at school with little developed English-language…

This article explores how teachers, students, and other stakeholders collaboratively develop classroom-based assessment procedures for the evaluation of oral skills. By considering crucial issues in assessment such as validity, teacher-learner collaboration, and contextual factors, the authors provide a checklist that will help ESL/EFL teachers…

Examines the relationship between individual variables and the progress in English as a Second Language (ESL) among Kurdish and Bosnian adult immigrants living in Canada. Findings reveal significant correlations between the dependent variables of oral and written progress and the independent variables of literacy level, years of schooling, and…

Two Toronto community English-as-a-second-language (ESL) programs used oral interview tests to place adults in appropriate programs. Instruments used included: Foreign Service Oral Interview; Ilyin Oral Interview; object-oriented testing; group testing; performance in authentic situations; Ontario Test of English as a Second Language; and George…

Discusses different characteristics of conversational English, including: pronunciation, ellipsis, use of "you" as a general pronoun, hesitation markers, subject-verb agreement, pronoun agreement, verbs, modifiers, comparisons, euphemisms, idioms, slang, and phatic/ritualistic expressions. (Author/CB)

The phonology/pronunciation course of the Canadian government's advanced language training program emphasizes activities which generate student motivation and optimism in overcoming "fossilized" pronunciation (pronunciation highly resistant to change). Activities include: oral reading, feedback, recording of reading, and self-directed learning.…

A review of the literature on lecture notetaking delineates research concerning learning from native-language (L1) lectures as a function of L1 notetaking, outlines accepted axioms of good notetaking, and suggests continued research to assess the utility of these axioms and to explore further second-language lecture information processing.…

Discusses complexities inherent in correcting second language students' spoken and written errors. Alternatives to current error correction methods (1) focus on the use of error correction to improve students' language form, (2) involve the real communicative consequences of inaccuracy, (3) suggest strategies for attending to form when listening…

Describes a study which examines "introducer forms" used by English as a second language learners to initiate picture descriptions. Results suggest that students receiving formal second language instruction process the input data in ways which are more "acquisition-like" and often not consistent with what the teacher intends for them to learn.…