Although previous literature has discussed ways of promoting the study of Portuguese, to our knowledge no study has ever directly surveyed students to ascertain why they chose to learn the language. This study reports on a survey of the motivations of first- and second-year Portuguese students to study the language, and contrasts their motivations…

This study sought to extend previous research on ethnographic interviews as a method of culture learning in foreign language classes by employing a qualitative case study methodology. Fifty-four university students in a first-year Spanish course worked in pairs to conduct a series of three ethnographic interviews with a native speaker of Spanish.…

Explains how conducting ethnographic interviews can promote openness toward culture learning. Reports on a study in which 35 college students from second-year Spanish classes were introduced to ethnographic interviewing skills and assigned to interview native speakers of Spanish. Results showed the interviews positively affected students'…