<p> In the field of foreign language learning, there is much literature regarding the necessity of concurrent language and cultural competence acquisition, particularly in the 21^st century global community. The United States is the only industrialized nation in the world that does not require advanced foreign language study of its scholars. There is considerable resistance of individuals to foreign language acquisition and cultural adaptation, under the assumption that &ldquo;everyone else&rdquo; will speak English and will conduct business the same way we Americans do. While it is true that English is the most commonly used language used in international business, it is an indicator of an educated society that the citizens speak the languages and appreciate the cultures of their counterparts from other countries. Study Abroad programs have been increasing in popularity, particularly those eight weeks long or less. There is significant literature on the benefits derived from semester and year-long study abroad programs, but is scarce regarding the long-term benefits of short-term study abroad. This present qualitative study analyzed the reflections of a number of adults who have participated in at least one short term study abroad, to discover what their perceptions are regarding the long term benefits, in terms of language acquisition and increased cross cultural competence, of short term study abroad. The 13 participants had taken at least one short-term study abroad program, some of them as long as 20 or 30 years ago. Their reflections were strongly worded in favor of the life-changing benefits they still enjoy as a result of those programs, some as short as 10 days. They all reported a surge in personal growth and cross-cultural competence. Those who had a language component reported strong growth in fluency and culturally accurate usage, which has been carried forward in their personal and/or professional life. Some even reported a career change as a result of the study abroad. Further research could take the form of a mixed-methods longitudinal study of individuals, comprised of pre- and post-trip surveys and interviews, with further surveys and interviews after a period of several years.</p>

<p> Acquiring higher levels of proficiency in less commonly taught foreign languages such as Arabic, Chinese, and Korean is an extraordinarily high stressful process. Stress contributes to the cognitive demand imposed on both students and teachers. The cognitive demand is defined as the degree of concentration required for a person to solve problems or complete a task in a given time. The purpose of this qualitative single case study is to investigate the impact of teacher perceptions of cognitive theories for instruction and instructional design. The conceptual framework for this study is based on the ways to reduce cognitive load. Three types of cognitive load are recognized such as extraneous, intrinsic, and germane. It is noted that if both intrinsic and extraneous cognitive loads leave enough space in the working memory then learners may invest extra effort in the learning processes. Based on the problem and the purpose of the study, the research questions for this study were: (1) How do DLI instructors perceive and describe the ways that can be used to reduce cognitive load and its associated stress for the learners of less commonly taught foreign languages, and help them to manage their levels of cognitive load?; and (2) How do DLI instructors perceive and describe the best instructional design that can be used to reduce cognitive load and its associated stress for the learners of less commonly taught foreign languages? Fifteen Defense Language Institute teachers participated in this study. In-depth face-to-face interviews were conducted with each participant. The data collected from the interviews were studied to identify common themes of the participants&rsquo; perceptions about the concept and impact of cognitive load. Data of the fifteen interviews were digitally recorded, transcribed, coded and analyzed using NVivo12 qualitative software, which helps to organize the themes that emerged. The data and the results of this study show that the participants have general background knowledge of Cognitive Load Theory (CLT). However, when it comes to practice, there are certain challenges and different practices to alleviate students' stress level. Hopefully, with further institutional training, the process of applying theory to practice will be facilitated and theories will be more relevant to classroom practice. The findings of this study can be used to determine the best instructional practice and curriculum design for less-commonly taught foreign language learners.</p><p>

<p> This mixed methods study examines the difference in high school foreign language learners&rsquo; acquisition of French oral proficiency skills by types of task. This study also examines the roles of the student learners and the teacher in developing oral proficiency skills during two different types of tasks in the high school foreign language classroom, namely the power of the social interactions between learner groups and between learners and teacher in developing oral proficiency. Over the course of an eight-week unit of study, three participating French 2 classes and one participating French teacher completed a prescribed series of speaking tasks. Class one completed only information gap tasks. Class two completed only dictogloss tasks. Class three alternated each task types every other week. Learner pre- and post-test scores were collected from the World Languages Department&rsquo;s speaking test for the unit. ANOVA was conducted using the quantitative data collected. While no significant differences were present between classes, qualitative findings indicate that the learners and the teacher have created powerful constructs of learning and that students were able to progress conversational skills across a unit of study. Teacher interviews, classroom observations, and video transcripts display the scaffolding of learning inside the classroom and lend insight to the roles of the learners and the teacher in the development of high school foreign language learner oral proficiency skills. The findings of the study suggest that the tasks, implemented through social interactions in the classroom, and constructed by the teacher&rsquo;s purposeful design, support foreign language learner oral proficiency development. The manner in which the participating teacher in this study implemented the taught curriculum demonstrates the influence of scaffolding, support systems, and the ability of learners to take ownership over their learning.</p><p>