Instructed second-language acquisition (ISLA) research endeavours to make positive changes in pedagogical practices. In this regard, there is a recent debate concerning whether teachers are (or should be) willing to engage with research. To investigate the research-pedagogy link, the current case study conducted interviews with 12 EFL teachers in…

In this paper, we analyse the cultural models (or folk theory of language) that the Mapuche intellectual elite have about Mapudungun, the native language of the Mapuche people still spoken today in Chile as the major minority language. Our theoretical frame is folk linguistics and studies of language ideology, but we have also taken an applied…

While language aptitude has been investigated actively within second language research, there is a current dearth of research on the effects of aptitude in cases of attrition. The aim of the present investigation was to explore the role of language aptitude for L1 proficiency in speakers who experienced a break with their L1 setting prior to…

Describes the study of the use of /s/ vs. /h/ or O (in Spanish) in Valdivia, Chile, by speakers who differed in sex and age. No marked differences in relation to sex and age were found, indicating a relatively homogeneous community. (MLS)

The Mapuches, a tribe now numbering about 500,000 people in south central Chile are the descendants of the Araucanians of Spanish legend. Many still speak only their own idiom, which now shows much lexical influence of the surrounding Spanish. This paper is an exposition of Maria Catrileo Chiguailaf de Godo's research in her native language. It…

A review of English language usage and instruction in Chile describes the role and status of English in society and outlines the situation of English-as-a-second-language instruction within the educational system at all levels. The profile covers the folLowing areas: the characteristics, qualifications, and pre- and in-service training of English…