An ethnographic study was conducted through film recordings and observations in an attempt to investigate the methods Vägar in i Arbete used when conducting exercises in second language acquisition. Vägar in i Arbete is a labor market policy program with the goal that the participants will improve their ability to speak Swedish, as well as attain a concise plan for their future financial prospects. The intent of the project was to facilitate learning by having the participants engage with the language in an informal, non-educational context. The study investigated the methods used at the project during exercises related to the participants’ second language acquisition, as well as how the participants’ progression was evaluated. The purpose of the study was to investigate to what extent the programs context could be perceived as informal. Furthermore, the validity of the assessment was investigated in an attempt to establish if the evaluation of the participants’ progression were accurate. In order to investigate the context, two methods for language acquisition were used as comparisons. Krashen’s Natural Approach was included to represent a more informal approach, and this was contrasted with the more formally structured Audiolingual method. These methods were then compared to the exercises at Vägar in i Arbete to determine to what extent the environment could be considered informal. The results indicate that the exercises closely resemble the construct of the exercises favored by the Audiolingual method. Certain aspects of the Natural Approach are greatly present in the daily activities. However, these aspects do not become explicitly apparent in the linguistic exercises. Furthermore, a significant discrepancy which puts the validity of the summative assessment in question was observed.

The purpose of this study was to create and evaluate the effects of a creative drama curriculum for English Language Learners. It was hypothesized that drama would be helpful in lowering the affective filter--psychological attributes that can impede language acquisition. A group of third graders who had good comprehension of English, yet, were reluctant to speak, and a group of sixth and seventh graders with fledgling English skills participated in the study. Participants' response to the drama curriculum was measured by pretest-posttest, observations, and interviews with both participants and their teachers. Results of the study revealed that drama was successful in considerably reducing the third grade participants' anxiety and increasing their confidence and motivation towards speaking English. There was evidence of positive benefit of the drama with the sixth and seventh graders, but there was little change in participants' anxiety, confidence and motivation towards speaking English.

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There is an increase in Hispanic English Language Learners (ELL). Poverty levels and lack of teacher training can also be stacked against the ELL population. Gesturing is a teaching technique that is used in successful methods such as The Natural Approach (NA) and Total Physical Response (TPR) in helping ELL students in English comprehension and output. This study examined the effects that increased teacher gestures have on the number of words spoken by the child in multiple settings. Data were collected in the context of a multiple baseline design across three settings. The results indicate that there was an effect on the amount of words spoken in two out of three settings. Suggestions are presented to expand on this effect.