For the full implementation of strategic goals of public administration, as well as a worthy representation of the interests of the state at the international level, civil servants must have high foreign-language professional competencies. Practical issues of educational and training programs in the field of development of these competencies are…

This study explores the effect of prior discipline-related knowledge in reading comprehension for two groups of students of Spanish as a Heritage Language (SHL). The first group (G1), had 22 students enrolled in a general Spanish course and the second (G2), had 18 students enrolled in a course of Spanish for medical professions. The aim was to…

The present study was motivated by theoretical considerations in cognitive linguistics associated with the concept projection as well as by theories in cognitive science related to self-directed learning on computers, to apply them in developing Japanese learners' knowledge of the different degrees of sureness attached to CERTAIN, PROBABLE, and…

While there is increasing evidence that learners pick up new words while viewing video with captions (i.e. L2 subtitles), little is known about the role of instructional interventions prior to viewing. This study uses eye-movement registration to investigate the effect of pre-learning vocabulary before watching a captioned video. Thirty…

In times of widening participation, Australian universities trade on notions of diversity, framing themselves as hospitable places of access and inclusion. In this space, Academic Language and Learning (ALL) practitioners may be seen as extending the welcome of the university through practices aimed at addressing students' diverse needs. These…

The Ministry of Education in Taiwan encourages universities to adopt English ability as an exit requirement for graduates. Nearly 65% of universities use the General English Proficiency Test (GEPT) or other compatible standardized tests as an exit test for university graduates. However, it remains unclear what level of vocabulary knowledge a…

This study explored the impact of contextualized practice on second language (L2) learners' production of wh-questions in the L2 classroom. It examined the quality of practice (correct vs. incorrect production) and the contribution of declarative knowledge to proceduralization. Thirty-four university-level English as a foreign language learners…

Critical thinking is crucial to the learning process, cognitive development, and effective information seeking. People can use critical thinking skills to understand, interpret, and assess what they hear or read in order to formulate appropriate reactions or responses. The present study intends to investigate the predictive power of critical…

This study aimed to examine the sources of variability in the second-language (L2) writing scores of test-takers who repeated an English language proficiency test, the Pearson Test of English (PTE) Academic, multiple times. Examining repeaters' test scores can provide important information concerning factors contributing to "changes" in…

Background: This study aims to empirically answer the question of whether the role of sub-reading skills changes depending on the test format (e.g., multiple-choice vs. open-ended reading questions). The test format effect also addresses the issue of test validity--whether the reading test properly elicits construct-relevant reading skills or…

The present study sought to explore and identify vocabulary learning strategies that lead to the attainment of depth of vocabulary knowledge in a second language. For the purpose, 110 Bulgarian language learners of English took Qian and Schedl's (2004) depth of vocabulary knowledge test and completed a related survey. After dividing the sample…

This study integrated the multimodal framework of learning analytics (IMFLA) with the concept mapping (Cmap) approach to improve students' vocabulary and reading abilities. A total of 70 participants were divided into 2 classes, Class 1 (experimental) and Class 2 (control), for a 1-year period. Vocabulary and reading tests were implemented 3…

Benjamin Bloom's taxonomy of educational objectives plays a crucial role in developing assessments that measure higher and lower level cognitive skills. Since it is important to assess how well students master the information within the levels of the taxonomy, the present study first presents the higher and lower levels of Bloom's taxonomy and…

Various forms of pre-listening support, such as the provision of vocabulary and topic information, have been used to help second language (L2) learners better understand what they listen to. Results of studies on the effects of vocabulary support have been mixed. Furthermore, there has been little research on the effects of different quantities of…

This article contests the narrative of Chinese international students (internationals for short) as passive and problematic to reveal the complexity and fluidity of their experiences. Simultaneously, it troubles the overly linear approach of stage theory in understanding internationals' adjustment. Following nine first- and nine second-year…