There are grounds for believing that prompting language learners to infer the meaning of new lexical items is beneficial because inferring the meaning of lexical items and verifying one's inferences invites more cognitive investment than simply being presented with the meanings. However, concerns have been raised over the risk that wrong…

This study compares the effect of ZPD feedback with explicit feedback on accuracy in second language (L2) writing. It also examines the effect of focused vs. unfocused ZPD feedback on L2 writing development during teacher-student tutorial sessions. Four participants wrote five persuasive essays and were provided with ZPD or explicit feedback…

While the Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB) document has been a milestone in supporting the teaching of English as an additional language to adults in Canada, few studies examined practitioners' experiences with the language standard. The expectation of ongoing use of the CLB by teachers in the Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada (LINC)…

This edited book documents practices of learning-oriented language assessment through practitioner research and research syntheses. Learning-oriented language assessment refers to language assessment strategies that capitalise on learner differences and their relationships with the learning environments. In other words, learners are placed at the…

There is growing research on the linguistic features that most contribute to making second language (L2) speech easy or difficult to understand. Comprehensibility, which is usually captured through listener judgments, is increasingly viewed as integral to the L2 speaking construct. However, there are shortcomings in how this construct is…

The "Diplôme d'études de langue française" (DELF) has recently gained attention in Canada for its potential as a national French second language (FSL) proficiency test. This article explores the perceptions of students, teachers, and parents in various school jurisdictions across Canada on a range of issues related to the DELF test and…

Test preparation for high-stakes English language tests has received increasing research attention in the language assessment field; however, little is known about what aspects of test preparation students attend to and value. In this study, we considered the perspectives of 12 Chinese students who were enrolled in various academic programs in a…

A team of French language teachers across Canada developed prototype evaluation instruments congruent with recent curriculum changes for core French. A series of formative evaluation instruments for beginning level students was refined and field tested. Results of the test highlight a positive response to the experimental nature of the evaluation…

An experimental study was designed to evaluate the effect on French language proficiency of an integrated, formal, analytic and functional, communicative approach to second-language teaching in French immersion. The study consisted of 315 grade 7 early French immersion students. (28 references) (VWL)

In Quebec, English is taught as a second language to four groups of people: French-speaking Canadians; immigrants; Indians and Eskimos; and foreign students. The first group, in contrast to the others, is not integratively or instrumentlly motivated. They are not submitting to anglicization in North America nor are they being required to know…

Describes the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages oral proficiency interview and its applications as a measure of French language competence in Canada. Suggests that, as a curriculum-free, criterion-referenced assessment, this test could provide a common national yardstick for both student achievement and teacher qualification.…

Selected papers from the conference address four priorities in second language teaching: teacher education; instruction; curriculum; and testing. Papers include: "Listening Processes and Authentic Texts" (Donna Reseigh Long); "Directory of Foreign Language Teacher Preparation Programs in the United States: A Preliminary Report"…

The annotated bibliography of research on Canadian core French programs, in which French is taught as a regular subject in English-language schools, provides a comprehensive summary of empirical research since 1970. It includes research reports from school boards, reports of government-funded research, unpublished theses, published books, and…