<p>Military adult learners enrolled in intensive language courses such as the Arabic Basic Course at the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center may need to utilize specific learning strategies in order to reach high proficiency language achievement. These strategies are established in the literature as contributors to high language proficiency achievement. The problem addressed in this study was that the desired high proficiency levels defined as 2+/2+/2 on the Defense Language Proficiency Test remains unrealized. In order to understand how to help students excel in foreign language learning, this study compared self-regulated learning scores of students who met the proficiency goal of 2+/2+/2 to those who did not. The 2+/2+/2 are the scores of the listening, reading and speaking measured by Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR) scale. The Motivated Strategies for Leering questionnaire was used to compare the self-regulated learning strategies of the high and the low language proficiency achievers. Interviews of the Arabic learners to understand what self-regulated learning strategies these learners used and how they developed their self-regulated learning strategies were necessary to determine what the high achievers did and what the low achievers did not do so that this information can be used to improve the way that the foreign language learners are taught. Quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS and Interviews were analyzed following the Powell and Renner&rsquo;s (2003) five steps of data analyses. The results of this mixed-methods study showed that using more self-regulated learning strategies increased the students&rsquo; language proficiency levels and also revealed how the students developed and used these strategies to increase Arabic language proficiency levels. </p>

<p> Communication is a key component in learning a second language (L2). As important as the <i>ability</i> to communicate in the L2 is the <i> willingness</i> to use the L2 or, what has been identified in the literature as <i>Willingness to Communicate</i> (WTC). Language is best learned when situated in, and based on, real-life experiences. Technological tools such as virtual worlds, mobile devices, and augmented reality (AR) are increasingly used to take language learning outside of the classroom. The affordances (e.g., portability, engagement, context-sensitivity) of these tools may have an impact on the following WTC antecedents: perceived competence, reduced L2 anxiety, security, excitement, and responsibility. The nature of this impact suggests that an AR mobile game may positively affect students' WTC. The purpose of this case study was to examine student perceptions regarding the use and design qualities of an AR mobile game in the language learning process and the effect of these qualities on student perceptions of their WTC. Nine students in a second-year Japanese language class at an institute of higher education in California participated in the study by playing an AR mobile game for three weeks. Data were collected through a demographic survey, game-play observations, game artifacts in the form of images and audio, game log data, and interviews. Findings suggest that AR mobile games can provide a viable means to take language learning outside the classroom and into self-selected spaces to affect positively students' WTC. From this investigation, it is evident that AR mobile language learning games can: (a) extend learning outside the classroom, (b) reduce L2 anxiety, and (c) promote personalized learning.</p>

Dissertation (Ph. D.)--University of Akron, Dept. of Curricular and Instructional Studies, 2005. / "August, 2005." Title from electronic dissertation title page (viewed 12/18/2005) Advisor, Susan Kushner Benson; Committee members, Susan Colville-Hall, Catharine Knight, Lynn Smolen, Matt Wyszynski; Department Chair, Walter Yoder, Jr.; Dean of the College, Patricia Nelson; Dean of the Graduate School, George R. Newkome. Includes bibliographical references.

<p> Teacher professional development opportunities in Mexico are currently lacking. The traditional approaches of professional development such as workshops and conferences are commonplace but do little to bridge the gap between abstract concepts about teaching and learning and the practicalities teachers face in the classroom. The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to describe how ideas, materials, and social interactions form a PLN through online, informal pedagogical dialogues among English language educators as it relates to professional learning. The five participants of this study were selected from a total of 10 based on their willingness to complete an informed consent form, complete an initial online survey, interact with other professionals publically online, and participate in a final interview. The online survey contained demographic information about each case and included both open and closed items; a content analysis was done on public interactions that tool place online; and a final in-depth interview used open questions to inquire about how respective PLNs changed over time. All data was coded, categorized, and placed into themes based on the ideational, material, and social aspects of each PLN. The findings show that professional knowledge, skills sets, and overall dispositions emerge in unique ways based on how ideas, technologies, and personal contacts interrelate with each other over time, and that an individual&rsquo;s PLN provides unanticipated benefits when sharing publicly online.</p>

<p> This research study was conducted with the intention of determining the most common errors that occur in the development of Italian oral language skills among 102 students participating in a 90/10 (90% in Italian/10% in English) dual language program offered at a California public elementary school. The 90/10 program breaks down instruction as follows: Kfirst grade 90% instruction in the target language/10% in English; in second grade 80/20; in third grade, 70/30; in fourth, 60/40, and in fifth, 50/50. Although the ratios change, the program is officially known as 90/10. The students in this study, a mixed group ranging from first to fifth grade, observed a series of pictures representing a story, which they then had to orally tell in their own words. The oral presentations were recorded and then transcribed word by word, including pauses and hesitations. The productions were then analyzed in depth, with special attention given to hesitations, the insertion of phrases and/or words in English, errors with lexical choice and grammatical errors (auxiliary verb choice, as well as the usage of subjects, verbs, and pronouns). The results from this study demonstrate that the age of the student influences second language oral fluency. In general, students with more schooling tended to commit fewer errors in their oral production. However, some categories of errors did not seem to be affected by the length of time students had been enrolled in the program. It is hypothesized that some errors persist due to the decreased amount of Italian instruction that characterizes the upper years in the program.</p><p>

<p> Understanding mathematics is an essential part of everyday life and can range from simple tasks such as using basic math skills to more complex tasks. Success in mathematics is a requirement for success in today&rsquo;s modern world. A gap in developing mathematical skills can create complications and interfere with job opportunities. Another basic essential for success in society is reading. There are important problems associated with students who cannot read successfully, such as higher dropout rates. Studies have shown that learning a foreign language during elementary school increases a child&rsquo;s ability to develop cognitive skills, and research has shown that proper development of cognitive skills improves a student&rsquo;s ability to read and perform mathematical skills successfully. Research studies involving dual-language/two-way immersion schools suggest that students at these schools obtain higher scores on achievement tests in both mathematics and reading. This study is a meta-analysis of studies involving dual-language/two-way immersion schools in an effort to confirm the hypotheses that (1) there are differences in student performance when comparing students who learn foreign language in elementary school versus those who don&rsquo;t, and (2) students score higher in reading, vocabulary, and/or mathematics if they learn foreign language in elementary school when compared to those who don&rsquo;t. The meta-analysis began with 51 quantitative research studies but was narrowed down to 17 after categorizing the studies. Using weighted effect sizes and Cohen&rsquo;s <i>d</i>, the results for the <i>d</i> values were .64 (medium) for vocabulary, .22 (small) for reading, and .11 for mathematics. Only homogeneity tests were calculated in each category. The Q values indicated homogeneity for the category of mathematics only. Therefore, additional research is suggested, beginning with heterogeneity testing.</p><p>

<p> Promoting global awareness is commonly cited as a main benefit of early foreign language education; however, little research backs this claim. This study explores a partial Spanish immersion preschool and how it shapes young children&rsquo;s global awareness and knowledge of foreign languages and cultures. The study used a series of games, activities, and interviews to address the following three aspects of the classroom: (1) foreign language activities and language use, (2) how global awareness was portrayed by students and teachers, and (3) the beliefs, goals, and motivations of parents who chose to enroll their children there. The frameworks of translingualism and global education informed analysis of classroom observations, activities with children, and interviews with parents and teachers.</p><p> Findings indicated that children did show signs of early learning related to global awareness, though language and culture were not always the primary goals for parents and teachers at the school. Children&rsquo;s literature and games allowed children to express their views and understanding about their learning about Spanish and other cultures in the classroom. They were able to talk about speaking Spanish in school and knew some words and phrases learned through exposure from the teachers in the classroom. Parents and members of the staff expressed their beliefs in the value of early second language exposure; however, primary needs of the children such as keeping them safe and developing a nurturing environment were always the priority. The findings will inform future development of language immersion programs for young children and give directors of such programs insights into what parents may hope for their children to learn regarding language and other cultural instruction.</p><p>

This thesis is focused on dynamic assessment (DA), an instructional approach based on Vygotskian sociocultural theory, applied to French pronunciation instruction, which can be neglected or inconsistent in the foreign language curriculum. DA aims to combine instruction and assessment into a cooperative, mediated approach in which the mediator works with the learner to identify and develop emergent abilities. These emergent abilities can appear in what is often referred to as the zone of proximal development (ZPD), or the difference between what a learner can do independently and what he/she can do with mediation, which in the present study was the difference between what the participant could pronounce correctly with or without mediation. In carrying out an individual DA session with a learner, the author aimed to find suggestions of potential benefits by applying DA to French pronunciation instruction and gain a more detailed understanding of the learner's performance than is generally possible from a traditional assessment, which is totally devoid of mediation for the sake of validity and reliability. The study includes a discussion of some potential benefits and limitations related to the use of DA for teaching French pronunciation to intermediate L2 learners based on what was observed in the DA session, for example suggestions of increased awareness of pronunciation, suggestions of increased independent performance, and suggestions of decreased errors in specific problem areas.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Hong Kong, 1998. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 72-76).

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Hong Kong, 1998. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 72-76). Also available in print.