This study applies the model of expertise developed by Ericsson et al (2007) to second and foreign language learning. Ericsson et al posits that in order to achieve expertise (as they define it) requires 10,000 or longer of "intense training". Applying this model to language learning, equating an expert level of competence with fluency, various…

As a language, Irish is unique to Ireland and is, therefore, of crucial importance to the identity of the Irish people, to Irish culture and to world heritage. The Irish language however has had a turbulent and traumatic history and has endured a complex and varied relationship with the Irish people. Since the foundation of the Irish Free State,…

The English immersion program in China is a case of educational mode transfer from foreign language immersion in North America. This article analyzes the process of the transfer from the perspective of comparative education, using the model of "four stages of educational borrowing." First, it revisits the recent research on educational…

An immersion training model is described that incorporates culturally focused community-centered service in South Africa as an experiential learning approach. Recommendations for developing international cultural immersion training with a goal of developing cultural competencies are suggested.

This study investigated the validity of four theoretically motivated traits of writing ability across English and Korean, based on elementary school students' responses to letter- and story-writing tasks. Their responses were scored analytically and analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis. The findings include the following. A model of writing…

Educational policies for English language learners (ELLs) tend to focus on English language acquisition. In this chapter, the authors argue that educators need to give more attention to the development of bilingualism and biliteracy to draw upon the tremendous intellectual, linguistic, and cultural resources that bilingual children bring to the…

Data from the educational technology development initiatives (technology grants and technology-immersion seminars) were used to map trends in the technology development of faculty at a large, research-one, public university. The study's populations are described by gender, appointment status, and disciplinary area. Changes over a five-year period…

As an instructional practice in second and foreign language education, content-based instruction is not a fully revolutionary paradigm, but a spin-off approach which derives from the evolution of Communicative Language Teaching. Sharing with CLT the same fundamental principles, CBI bases its idiosyncrasy on promoting the use of subject matter for…

Describes dual language instruction models, and presents a paradigm for examining congruence among theoretical models, teacher beliefs, and actual classroom practices to determine program effectiveness. Examples illustrate implementation pitfalls. Analysis of Proposition 227 finds it to be a decontextualized procedural model; it has an incoherent…

Two models of content-based second language instruction are compared. The two models, French language immersion and mainstreaming, are illustrated in two case studies that focus on how minority language children fare in kindergarten programs. The first case study is of a native Cantonese-speaking child enrolled in an early French immersion program…

A discussion of multilingualism in Switzerland begins with a description of the country's linguistic characteristics. Historical Swiss policy recognizing four official languages, one of which (Romansch) is spoken by very few people, is compared with the current situation in which internal and external migration and multilingualism are common. The…