Though an abundance of academic literature supports the inclusion of aesthetic activities in university and K-12 L2 learning contexts, less attention has been focused on aesthetic approaches in community-based adult ESL contexts. Inspired by a pedagogy of multiliteracies/Design (New London Group, 1996), this paper explores creative meaning making…

The song 'La ballata dell'amore cieco (o della vanità)' (1966), by Italian singer-songwriter Fabrizio De André (1940-1999), offers students opportunities to practise their language skills, stimulate their cultural appreciation, and expand their knowledge of a musical and poetic form (the ballad), while reflecting on the close connection between…

Since 2000, I have been coordinating a web-based Virtual Exchange (VE) project, "Project Ibunka." "Ibunka" means different cultures in Japanese. It aims to provide opportunities for authentic interaction among English as a Foreign Language (EFL) and English as a Second Language (ESL) learners all over the world. By the end of…

Web based writing platforms allowing for exchanges across the world are increasingly being used in education. These recent forms of textual practice are highly related to conditions offered by the technology, allowing users, who previously were primarily consumers, to become producers of text. This chapter investigates student interaction over a…

The qualitative study reported in this article analyzes how novice learners develop the interpretive mode (as outlined in Standard 1.2 of the "Standards for Foreign Language Learning in the 21st Century," 1996, 1999 ) in a classroom setting when reading a literary text in a foreign language (FL). Using unmotivated looking through conversation…

Why are many teachers around the world moving toward task-based learning (TBL)? This shift is based on the strong belief that TBL facilitates second language acquisition and makes second language learning and teaching more principled and effective. Based on insights gained from using tasks as research tools, this volume shows how teachers can use…

Describes an interactive approach to the study of German lyric texts, based upon reader response theory. Using this approach, students observe themselves and their reactions to the experience, and their observations become the basis for class discussion and analysis of the text. (GLR)