Many adult migrants lacking L2 linguistic autonomy cannot afford the time to master host countries' languages before providing for their basic needs. Thus, second language training that focuses on occupational integration is at times more urgent than a more generally social one, as the European 'language for work' approach suggests. Given the…

One of the most popular and widely used parent report instruments for assessing early language acquisition is the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories (MB-CDI). This study compares normative data of the Italian Words and Sentences complete form (WS-CF) and short form (WS-SF). The samples included 752 children for the WS-CF and 816…

The purpose of this two-phase study was to validate the giftedness checklist of Sommer, Fink, and Neubauer (2008) in the Italian context, in both the version for teachers and for parents. The first phase was conducted with a sample of 570 children, 392 parents, and 136 teachers, with the aim of exploring the instrument factor structure, and…

The globalised world in which we live demands multilingual and cross-culturally aware professionals. The role of intercultural awareness is now, more than ever, crucial in the language classroom in order to allow students to become competent and independent adults who will be highly employable beyond graduation. The recently published Companion…

The translation of bilingual literary texts may challenge a translator when s/he needs to transfer some embedded, foreign codes from a language other than the dominant language of the source text (ST) into the target text (TT). This study analyses the way in which code-switching (CS) is transferred into a TT, looking at the translation strategies…

In times when the humanities at large have suffered reductions in enrollments, the ability to build student communities has been seminal to the survival of many departments. Building student communities for language departments in particular includes planning conversation hours, movie nights, and cultural events aimed at attracting students and…

This study examined the role of child cognitive abilities for procedural and declarative learning in the earliest stages of second language (L2) exposure. In the context of a computer game, 53 first language Italian monolingual children were aurally trained in a novel miniature language over 3 consecutive days. A mixed effects model analysis of…

This paper considers how an increased awareness of translation in the language classroom might impact the instruction of Comparative Literature, and literary studies more broadly. Despite the arguments for translation's centrality to the study Comparative Literature (Apter, 2006; Bassnett, 2006; Newman 2017) translation pedagogy is still…

The present study investigates third language (L3) learners' processing of Chinese subject and object relative clauses in a supportive context. Using a self-paced reading task, we tested native Italian L3 learners of Mandarin Chinese and native Chinese speakers. The results showed that the L3 learners read significantly more slowly than the native…

This paper provides information about a multilingual (Portuguese, English, Spanish, Italian, and French) virtual card game for computers and smartphones. Facing the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, this game allows students to play remotely or face-to-face with friends in a fun and cooperative environment and review the topics related…

In the present study, we sought to advance the field of learner corpus research by tracking the development of phrasal vocabulary in essays produced at two different points in time. To this aim, we employed a large pool of second language (L2) learners (N = 175) from three proficiency levels--beginner, elementary, and intermediate--and focused on…

This paper explores how a transnational approach to university language classes may help develop students' intercultural competence. Researchers have shown that the integration of literature in the language class has the potential to raise intercultural competence (Deardorff, 2006), especially when migrant and travel literatures are used (Matos,…

As an emergent technology augmented reality (AR) demonstrated a plethora of advantages in foreign language education, promoting motivation, memorization of contents as well as contextualized learning. However, the majority of teachers are unfamiliar with AR, and their role as designers and facilitators requires further investigation. Moreover,…

Recent developments in machine translation (MT) might have led some people to believe that soon professional translation will not be needed, but most translator trainers are aware of the high demand for the quality that MT systems cannot deliver without human intervention. It is thus important that professional translators, trainers and their…

This article considers how language learners conceptualize their ideal teacher within the context of gig economy language platforms (GELPs). GELPs differ significantly from traditional language learning in that their users are able to change between teachers easily and also select teachers according to a far wider range of criteria than is…