The main purpose of this study is to present a detailed description of the interaction between students and teacher, focusing on which literary elements kindergarteners learning English as a Foreign Language (EFL) respond to during the story-reading sessions. Two teachers and a total of 101 kindergarteners from a private kindergarten located in Taipei, the capital city of Taiwan, were chosen for this study. Both qualitative and quantitative data were gathered in the form of classroom observations and student and teacher interviews. This analysis revealed that format was the literary element that students responded to the most. However, factors such as the variance in the students' cognitive level, age, exposure to the target language, teaching method and personality may have affected the results. Consequently, teachers need to take into consideration other literary elements when it comes to storybook selection. Results from this study can be used firstly in developing criteria on how to select storybooks for young EFL learners and how these storybooks can be integrated into the EFL classroom. Secondly, this study can provide information to help further our understanding of how stories motivate children in learning languages, and how stories can be integrated into the EFL classroom. Thirdly, the data from this study can be useful to writers and illustrators of children's books. Finally, it is hoped that this project can also inspire other researchers in pursuing this topic for further study.

This study examined a group of English-speaking individuals temporarily residing in the province of Quebec who were studying French. I expected to find that language students who take an active role seeking opportunities to practice French outside of the classroom would demonstrate acquisition of a native speaker (NS) language variant more than those students who take a passive role in seeking out informal French interactions or those who actively sought instead interaction in English. However, no significant correlation between active or passive reactions to the learning environment and the production of the language variant was established. Students who actively sought French interaction were those who were focused on French language study, favored linguistic diversity, and spoke more French at school. For future French language students coming to Quebec to acquire native-like French I suggest developing a strong foundation of French beforehand and, once in Quebec, to live in a Francophone area.

This study explores issues related to native and non-native English speaking teachers in the context of Japanese English education, specifically in public junior high school settings in relatively rural areas of Japan. The study mainly asks Japanese teachers of English, assistant language teachers employed in the Japan Exchange and Teaching Programme, and students about their perceptions of the roles of native and non-native teachers in their English classrooms. These stakeholders seem to have preconceived assumptions about the roles of native and non-native teachers. These include native teachers as opportunity providers and motivators and non-native teachers as facilitators. These fixed roles in the stakeholders' perceptions of the roles of native and non-native teachers may prevent them from expanding their possibilities and may reinforce the existing distinction between native and non-native speakers. Implications for policy makers and stakeholders include the need to adopt a perspective of English as an international language into the goals of Japanese English education to value collaborative teaching and reconceptualize the roles of Japanese English teachers and assistant language teachers in classrooms.

This study investigates whether the remedial tertiary-level EFL classes in the Arabian Gulf States optimize the process of acquiring English for the majority of the students, namely the graduates of government high schools. I have endeavoured to uncover, by reference to my three years as an EFL teacher in the Gulf and the pertinent literature, why so much time and effort invested by myself and my students resulted in such a disproportionate lack of progress in reading and writing. I show how three major factors (diglossia, a linguistic trichotomy, and low literacy levels) conspire to impede students from learning to read and write in English through second language methodology and compare this situation to the one in Quebec. I conclude with two suggestions to make tertiary-level EFL classes more efficient and effective: the use of more familiar methodology and the teaching of reading and writing through a literacy framework. I also propose some longer-term solutions to deal with the linguistic trichotomy, a problem the Gulf Arabian States may wish to address if they intend to pursue the goal of providing a world-class education to their children.

Research has shown that children attending immersion programs reach a native-like level in comprehension and in reading by the end of elementary level. However, in writing and speaking, they rarely achieve target-like proficiency. Some conditions seem to favor the production of output. This study presents an investigation of children's ability to notice errors in their French second language in immersion program in Montreal. The study was conducted with forty-three (43) children aged 8-9, and aimed to gather information related to the following research questions: / Can we train 8 year-old second language learners to: (a) notice their errors; (b) self-correct (given certain prompts); (c) use metalinguistic terminology to identify forms; and (d) negotiate form using language as a conscious tool to improve their L2 oral production? / Children were required to participate in two (2) stages: first, video recording of communicative activities whit ungrammatical episodes with provision of corrective feedback were selected; and second, audio recording of children's attempts to negotiate form. The database was collected from these stimulated recall sessions of collaborative discussion. Results show how young learners may benefit from the provision of metalinguistic information, thus facilitating their second language learning development.

This cross-sectional inquiry examines first-, third-, and eighth-grade dual immersion students' use of Spanish and English when interacting with their teachers and peers in a U.S. school. Findings are based on classroom interactions, student and teacher interviews, and student questionnaires intended to determine when students diverged from using the language of instruction and whether their age or language background affected their language use. In addition, teachers' impact on student language use is examined, and other factors affecting language use—such as the length of a students' stay in the United States—are discussed. An overall preference for English was found among first and third graders, while eighth graders spoke more Spanish to their peers and teachers. Findings indicate that this language behavior may have been more than a function of the students' age. It appeared to be linked to students' language background, teaching activities that promoted students' positive identification with Spanish language and Hispanic culture, the absence of native English speakers, and the presence of Spanish-dominant newcomers.

This study focuses on the use of English as the sole medium of instruction in Zimbabwean schools and the effect of such a policy on the educational achievement of students, particularly in secondary schools. The role of Shona and Ndebele, two other Zimbabwean official languages, in schooling is also examined. / Some of the findings reveal a learning and teaching environment that prevents strategies from addressing linguistic, social and cultural development with a coherent workable vision in the English classroom. / Because English is the working language of government, business, and industry in Zimbabwe, an English-only policy seems to be a practical means to prepare students for higher education and the workforce. The growing status of English as an international lingua franca provides additional support for such a policy. / This study reveals the need to rethink the imposition of an English-only policy. The findings indicate that current teaching approaches/methods and materials do not entirely support language development in English, largely because they do not take into account the economic, social, and linguistic situations of the students. / The study supports and calls for a multifaceted approach to the way language is currently taught in Zimbabwe, and sees this as one way secondary schools can produce, through the medium of English instruction, students and teachers who can adapt to rapid change, and relate to people from diverse socio-cultural and linguistic backgrounds. / The study emphasizes the integration and expectations of people's views on language and education, as heard and expressed by many respondents. This is considered central to any meaningful effort towards linguistic competence, a challenging but stimulating learning environment, and better communication among students and teachers.

This study investigates L2 pragmatic performance of EFL learners in an English immersion program in Japan. More specifically, the study examines whether the leamers are able to express appropriate politeness when making a request in English. Participants were 28 Japanese-Ll English immersion students and 4 native speakers of English at high school level (Grades 10, 11 and 12). Data collection was completed using role-play tasks, entailing the use of polite requests to a person of higher status, to elicit speech samples from participant dyads. Classroom observations, interviews, and a written questionnaire, involving 10 teachers and 42 students, were also conducted in order to better understand the L2 oral production data. / Cette étude s'intéresse à la performance pragmatique en langue seconde (L2) d'étudiants en anglais langue étrangère (ALE) dans un programme d'immersion anglaise au Japon. Plus spécifiquement, l'étude examine si les étudiants sont capables d'exprimer la politesse appropriée en faisant une demande en anglais. Les participants étaient 28 étudiants japonais de l'immersion anglais et quatre étudiants de langue maternelle anglaise de niveau lycée (niveaux 10, 11 et 12). La collecte de données a été accomplie en utilisant des jeux de rôle, qui nécessitaient l'utilisation de demandes polies à une personne d'un statut plus élevé, pour obtenir des échantillons de discours des dyades de participants. Des observations en salle de classe, des entrevues, et un questionnaire écrit, faisant participer dix professeurs et 42 étudiants, ont également été menés afin de mieux comprendre les données de production orales de L2.

No description available.

The purpose of this study was to determine the relative effectiveness of videotape recorders (VTR) as a medium of instruction in teaching English listening comprehension as compared to audiotape recorders (ATR).The material used for this study was a videotaped 16 minute talk by an American native speaker. Based on the talk, 32 questions were prepared for the listening comprehension tests.The subjects chosen for this study were 18 students from the Intensive English Institute (IEI), Ball State University, enrolled in the Summer Quarter, 1984. They were divided into two groups, A and B.Based on the evaluation and interpretation of the results of the tests by means of the statistical tests, t-test and ANOVA, it was discovered that the students' listening comprehension was slightly greater with the VTR than the ATR.This study suggests that the VTR will help EFL/ESL students' listening comprehension in addition to the ATR alone in a language laboratory.