Numerous studies have recognized collaboration as an effective way of learning. When collaboration involves students from different cultural backgrounds, a question arises: "Will cultural differences influence the manner in which roles are adopted within collaborative learning?" In this study, a correlation analysis was used to explore…

The violent and protracted Israeli-Palestinian conflict continues, and Jewish Americans play a significant role in influencing related US foreign policy as well as in promoting positive interactions with Palestinians globally. Diaspora populations have played an important role in international peace processes and American Jews are actively…

This study investigated how English learners at a university in Japan perceive connections with students in the US through an educational social network platform, called Edmodo. The instructor of English at the Japanese university cooperated with a Japanese language instructor at an American university and they incorporated Edmodo into their…

This article explores using spoken word poetry and song analysis in the classroom to inspire students to analyze their identities and strive for social justice in their research efforts. Poetry is empowering. It can show students how people express themselves, push them to consider their own identities, and inspire them to seek social change.…

Recent research has shown that speakers are sensitive to non-contrastive phonetic detail present in nonnative speech (e.g. Escudero et al. 2012; Wilson et al. 2014). Difficulties in interpreting and implementing unfamiliar phonetic variation can lead nonnative speakers to modify second language forms by vowel epenthesis and other changes. These…

Motivating students has been a key challenge facing instructors in non-face-to-face instructional contexts. Existing researches into motivation in online learning environment have revealed that there are learning motivation differences among students from different cultural backgrounds. The purpose of this study is to identify whether American and…

This study investigates how fluent second-language (L2) learners of English produce and perceive the /ae/-/?/ vowel contrast of Southwestern American English. Two learner groups are examined: (1) early, proficient English speakers who were raised by Spanish-speaking families but who became dominant in English during childhood and, as adults, lack…

Growing numbers of American students are travelling overseas to study abroad and enroll in full degree programs. Despite this trend, relatively little is known about the experiences of United States (U.S.) students abroad. The aim of this research was to examine the experiences of American international students in Ireland. Findings suggest that…

This study aims to find out the extent to which students attending the English Language Teaching Programme (ELT) at Ondokuz Mayis University are aware of the major spelling, vocabulary, and pronunciation differences between American and British English which constitute the most commonly used varieties of English. To this end, 42 randomly selected…

Genre analysis is today's dominant approach for textual analysis, especially in the ESP learning and teaching profession. Adopting this approach, the present study compares the Introduction chapters of MA theses in ELT (English Language Teaching) written by Thai students to those written by American university students based on the move-step…

This research examines the emerging academic subculture of international students from East Asia in U.S. academics from the cultural hybridization perspective. In a knowledge-based economy, international education plays a pivotal role in the global educational environment. Advocacy of international student mobility is essential; international…

Examining speech samples from 75 American university students learning 1 of 3 languages (Mandarin, Russian, and Spanish), this article reports on a study of second language (L2) learners' oral fluency development and its relationship with their gains in holistic proficiency ratings during a semester abroad. In study abroad research, there is a…

This study investigates the perception of Jordanian EFL learners' (JEFL) pragmatic transfer of refusal strategies in terms of contextual and cultural factors. Data were collected using a discourse completion test (DCT) and a scaled-response questionnaire (SRQ) to elicit perception data from the participants. Data from the SRQ were analyzed based…

This study aimed at investigating the problems that translators faced when subtitling cultural expressions from English into Arabic. To achieve this goal, the researchers selected a convenient sample comprising 40 graduate and 40 undergraduate students who were enrolled in the English language programs during the academic year 2012/2013 in…

The main purpose of this study was to explore the perceived social distance among a small Arab community residing in a college town in the Midwest of the USA. The study examines its possible impact on the process of learning/acquiring English as a second language (ESL). It draws on the findings and contentions of the acculturation model as…