Poor retention rates for Core French, combined with the federal government's action plan to increase bilingualism in Canada, have led to the introduction of Intensive French (IF) in Grade 6 as an alternative for learning French. While anecdotal reports suggest that IF has no negative impact on English language skill development, empirical evidence…

In the academic year 2017-2018, the Ministry of National Education in Türkiye launched intensive English as a foreign language program specifically designed for fifth-grade students in middle school. This study, employing a quantitative research design methodology, aims to assess the program's effectiveness from the perspective of fifth-grade…

Language policies of countries have focused especially on the teaching and learning of English, the universal language of communication because of the increase in international exchange of information. In this context, one of the changes which were made in the field of foreign language teaching in recent years in Turkey is that the intensive…

This research aimed to examine the perceptions of English and kindergarten teachers about the English language learning needs of very young learners and to design an intensive English education program with the help of the data obtained. In this vein, a case study was conducted in a private school in Turkey. The data were obtained via interviews…

With respect to cooperative learning, one aspect of particular interest to educators is its inclusive nature in terms of ensuring that all team members in group work are more or less equally involved in the task. Despite the inherent relevance for second language teaching, however, research is scant. To contribute to this area, the present study…

Formal English language education in Taiwan now starts at Year 3 in primary school, with an emphasis on communicative proficiency. In addition to formal education, attending English cram schools after regular school has become a common phenomenon for Taiwanese students. The main purpose of gaining additional reinforcement in English cram schools…

While there is a body of research concerning the education of students with migrant or refugee backgrounds, little of this research focuses on primary school-aged children. In order to address this gap, the current paper utilises data gained from an ethnographic study to consider the challenges and opportunities associated with diverse classrooms…

Educational experiences during childhood are critically important for development, but migrant children often experience unique challenges. To ameliorate these, extra training in English language--such as provided by the intensive English language programme in South Australia (IELP)--is frequently offered to children taking on English as an…

There is considerable interest in teacher collaboration across mother tongue and second language curricula. However, cross-curricular collaboration in reading strategy instruction has seldom been investigated. We report a two-year study involving collaboration between the French first language (L1) and English second language (L2) teachers in an…

Early years and primary teachers have a unique opportunity to apply their strong teaching practices, classroom management and understanding of childhood literacy development to teaching a language. This paper reports on a project from Independent Schools Queensland to increase language programs in schools by retraining classroom teachers.…

This article reports on a study examining the language practice opportunities that occurred during a range of paired and small group interactive tasks in an intensive English as a Second Language (ESL) class of francophone Grade 6 students. The analysis focussed on the opportunities the tasks provided for the use of two complex and challenging…

Although a number of studies have investigated classroom-based peer interaction with adults and high school students, research pertaining to children in the elementary grades is scant. Drawing on sociocultural theory, the present study investigated how children in an intensive elementary level Grade 6 class for English as a second language (ESL)…

This paper portrays the activity system of eight classes of Grade 6 children with special educational needs in an Intensive French as a second-language education program. Classroom norms and tools reflected a social-interactionist and social-constructivist approach with scaffolding, social interaction, multiple modes of representing, holistic,…

Through research and classroom observation undertaken while conceptualizing and implementing the Intensive French program in Canada, many new insights were gained into the development of communication skills in a classroom situation. Five lessons learned about the development of spontaneous oral communication are presented in this article: the…