Additional Language Learning Research Articles

Translanguaging in the classroom: a strategy for English First Additional Language learning

: This article explores learners’ experiences of using translanguaging as a strategy for learning English as a First Additional Language by examining the opportunities and barriers associated with it. We followed a qualitative research design and conducted six focus group discussions with 44 multilingual learners who participated in after-school peer-tutoring programmes. These learners came from township schools in Gauteng province, South Africa. An inductive thematic approach was used to analyse the data. The findings of the study indicate that translanguaging acts as a tool for meaning-making and identity construction, thereby affirming learners’ linguistic fluidity. However, mismatches between teachers’ and learners’ home languages and monolingual school practices were identified as barriers to translanguaging. We argue that failure to include indigenous languages in educational systems is an act of curricular inequality that causes alienation as learners struggle to find their voice in a monolingual learning environment. The promotion of indigenous languages is a vehicle for inclusion of all learners in the school system as multilingualism facilitates greater opportunity for these learners to have their voices heard. We maintain that the valorisation and acknowledgement of all languages as legitimate sources of knowledge could have far-reaching benefits for education and could enhance nation building.

Breaking the cycle of poor critical reading comprehension: A strategy-based intervention

Critical reading comprehension is a crucial skill for lifelong learning, but many learners struggle with effectively extracting meaning from texts. This study aimed to address this issue by investigating how a strategy-based instruction intervention could impact learners’ critical reading comprehension competence. The study employed a quantitative approach with a quasi-experimental pre- and post-test control group design. The participants were 155 Grade 9 English first additional language (FAL) learners from two high schools in Gauteng, South Africa. The intervention programme was based on Bloom’s taxonomy categories for learning, teaching and assessing, modified into six strategies: (1) knowledge (pre-reading), (2) comprehension (extracting meaning), (3) application (asking questions), (4) analysis (reflection), (5) evaluation (outlining key concepts and decision-making) and (6) synthesis (summarising). Using a two-way mixed analysis of variance (ANOVA) paired sample t-tests, the study found that while both groups’ critical reading comprehension competence increased, the experimental group that received the strategy-based instruction intervention performed significantly better in the post-test, showing a significant improvement compared to the control group. The findings demonstrated that providing clear explanations, instruction and support on reading strategies can enhance learners’ critical reading comprehension, highlighting the mutual reliance between teaching and learning. The teacher’s instructional approach in guiding learners to effectively use reading strategies is crucial for enhancing critical reading comprehension in the English FAL classroom. In conclusion, the results suggest that the intervention effectively enhanced critical reading comprehension competence, and if implemented by teachers, it could potentially help break the cycle of poor critical reading comprehension among English FAL learners.Contribution: The contribution of this study lies in its provision of empirically supported perspectives and insights into the effectiveness of strategy-based instruction interventions. It emphasises the necessity of employing explicit reading comprehension pedagogies and targeted interventions, along with explicit instructional strategies, to address the reading comprehension challenges encountered by English FAL learners in South Africa and beyond.

A small lens on timescales and multimodality in classroom language learning emotions

AbstractEmpirical work exploring additional language (L+) learning emotions has both proliferated and expanded its focus over the past 15 years. The current article explores one possibility for responding to the challenge of capturing and describing emotions in order to furnish a more contextualized, multidimensional picture of emotions in L+ learning: the small‐lens approach. From the perspective of the author as a practitioner–researcher, this article draws on data from an L+ discussion activity. Via the activity, the practitioner–researcher identified an emotional outcome of interest and examined the historical buildup to this phenomenon. A narrative of the research process applied aims to illustrate the ways in which multimodal analysis and interrogation of psychological timescales might illuminate intersections between the social and individual. Rather than delineating a complete description of the research, the article strives to intimate possibilities and stimulate more nuanced, situated, and dynamic empirical work into the emergence of emotions in instructed L+ learning. While not the primary focus, some of the teleological (functional) aspects of emotions and emotional expression are also unearthed.

Internationalisation at home: Creating an equitable virtual space for language learning

ABSTRACT This study investigates the impact of telecollaborative practices grounded in internationalisation at home (IaH) on foreign or additional language learning and intercultural understanding. Two higher education institutions (HEIs) from Taiwan and Aotearoa New Zealand (NZ) collaboratively re-innovate a virtual learning space to facilitate equitable access to intercultural communication experiences for first-year university language learners. Using a qualitative approach, data were collected through student e-portfolios, social networking sites, and reflections to evaluate the effectiveness of the telecollaborative learning design in achieving its goals. Findings demonstrated that the telecollaborative practices not only afforded students opportunities to practice with peers from native-language countries but also prompted them to strengthen their sense of belonging and identity as their intercultural knowledge broadened and deepened. Future research is suggested to explore the potential impact of IaH initiatives on a broader range of tertiary students.

Teacher language awareness for CLIL in multilingual settings: insights from across UK and Dutch primary classrooms

Schools are increasingly using content and language integrated learning (CLIL) approaches to education, whereby the teaching of subject content and an additional language occurs in an integrated manner. While language and learning are inextricably linked and the rewards of CLIL many, integrated teaching requires a specialised professional awareness of how an additional language operates and is acquired within content classrooms. However, research focused on teacher language awareness (TLA) for CLIL is still sparse. Moreover, it has focused solely on CLIL teachers’ awareness of the target language, thereby disregarding the teacher plurilingual awareness (TPLA) required for effective CLIL, which is inherently multilingual and increasingly implemented in linguistically diverse settings. This study brings together the expertise of Dutch primary school teachers using CLIL to teach English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners, with the expertise in teaching in multilingual settings of UK teachers supporting English as an Additional Language (EAL) learners. Using a CLIL Teaching Wall activity within interviews, it was possible to gain rich insight into the characteristics of the TLA and TPLA underpinning teachers’ ability to recognise and teach to the language demands of multilingual dual-focused classrooms.

Learning and using multiple languages: Experiences of adults with ADHD

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that impacts many areas of a person's life. So far little is known on how ADHD affects the learning and usage of additional languages. The present study investigates what potential challenges and benefits adults with ADHD experience in second language (L2) learning, and what strategies they have developed to offset ADHD-related differences in cognition and behaviour. As part of a larger questionnaire, 59 participants with ADHD provided written responses, answering questions on how ADHD has influenced their learning and use of multiple languages. After a multiple-step classification process, three overarching topics were identified: (1) the effects of cognition on language learning and use; (2) how different language components and language modalities are affected by ADHD; and (3) what language learning strategies adults with ADHD apply. In our analysis, we present authentic quotes from individuals with ADHD and place them into the larger context of research on neurodivergence and L2 acquisition. Our results highlight the great heterogeneity in learning experiences and pathways in adults with ADHD. Interestingly, many respondents embrace their neurodiversity and develop individual strategies to enhance L2 proficiency. Our research aims to contribute to a better understanding of multilingualism within neurodiverse populations.

Braiding the Ropes: Adding Second or Additional Language Acquisition to Reading and Writing Metaphors

Drawing on second language acquisition theories and existing visuals, this article proposes a new educational metaphor, Lane’s L2+ Acquisition Rope, to encompass the complexities of second or additional language learning. This metaphor integrates five major strands—external factors, social factors, affective factors, innate factors, and internal factors—to provide a comprehensive framework for understanding proficient second language acquisition. Implications of this visual highlight the importance of incorporating socio-cultural, neurological, and affective dimensions into educational metaphors to support diverse learners effectively. Lane’s L2+ Acquisition Rope offers a promising avenue for educators to enhance instructional practices and promote equitable learning outcomes for English Language Learners and other student subgroups.

Making sense of a new language: authenticity and semiotics in additional language learning

Abstract The concept of authenticity has received much discussion in applied linguistics and educational studies. Valuable insights have been gained into how authenticity is problematised in language teaching and how to improve the situation by engaging learners with better-designed materials and activities. These achievements notwithstanding, empirical evidence remains insufficient to understand learners’ meaning-making endeavours in real-life learning scenarios. The current study attempts to examine authenticity in additional language learning from a semiotic perspective, which may shed new light on the complex cognitive process of beginner learners’ first encounter with a new language and how this process could be motivated and facilitated by teachers in a classroom setting. Evidence of semiotic articulation and production of authenticity from a low-pressure Spanish classroom is analysed focussing on cultural authenticity, interactive authenticity and authenticity of behaviour and engagement. The evidence is discussed to find how semiotic resources in combination with lived experiences may help learners’ comprehension and appreciation of the target language and its culture. These findings reveal the relevance and value of semiotic approaches to language teaching research and provide practical implications for exposing pre-tertiary young learners to languages other than English for more diverse and extensive learning experiences.

Spoken word choreographies in additional language learning practices in upper secondary school: Entanglements between languaging‐and‐dancing

AbstractThere are calls for developing ways to teach language that can inspire and motivate students to study additional languages. While previous research has pointed toward benefits of arts‐based activities in language learning, combining language and dance has mainly been studied with younger language learners. Contextualized within the course “Dance with language,” this study explores spoken word choreographies—word‐ and movement‐based choreographies—that combine dance and the learning of Swedish as an additional language at a Finnish upper secondary school. The study engages with new materialist theories to understand languaging as an activity and relational, embodied, and material processes. Using diffractive analysis with comics‐based research strategies, the analysis suggests that languaging‐and‐dancing become entangled through four doings: exploring, re‐working, co‐creating, and negotiating‐and‐switching. The spoken word choreographies offer a potentially valuable way to teach language in their move beyond students’ potential restrictions of vocabulary, structure, and grammar in the language to emphasize playfulness and creative explorations as part of language‐learning processes. In conclusion, the study proposes that dancing and spoken word, and the combination thereof, bring specific qualities to creating smooth languaging spaces that embrace wild, playful, creative, and unpredictable forces and movements in language‐learning practices.

Dialogic reading in preschool: a pragmatic randomized trial enrolling additional language learners

Additional language learners are at risk of presenting lower language skills in the majority language compared to peers. These differences in language skills have been observed at an early stage of education and may impact academic achievement later on. A randomized trial with a switching replications design was performed in Swedish preschools to examine the effectiveness of small group dialogic reading, aiming to promote oral language skills. The sample comprised 85 children with diverse language, socioeconomic, and cultural backgrounds attending nine preschools in three school districts. Dialogic reading was conducted by ten teachers, trained in dialogic reading and coached by three special education teachers. The dialogic reading intervention was feasible in preschool context and children progressed in their oral language skills during the intervention.

Evaluating the AI dialogue System's intercultural, humorous, and empathetic dimensions in English language learning: A case study

The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies has been notable in supporting English as an Additional Language (EAL) learners, particularly in offering interactive assessments. AI-driven dialogue systems that produce culturally relevant humor and empathy, bridging the native language (L1) and the target language (L2), have been employed to engage EAL learners more effectively and boost their learning results. However, there's a noticeable gap in research concerning the fusion of humor, empathy, and intercultural dimensions in language learning. Intercultural dimensions encompass acquiring crucial knowledge, communication skills, and the values essential for meaningful interactions across cultures. This case study examines the effectiveness of an AI dialogue system, termed the Multidimensional Approach Culture, Humor, and Empathy Bot (MACHE-Bot), in elevating the English language learning experience and its potential to enhance EAL proficiency. Using convenience sampling, 37 individuals were selected from an English language learning group on Facebook. Following a two-week pilot study, semi-structured interviews were conducted. The results revealed that MACHE-Bot adeptly initiated and reciprocated with humor, empathy, and cultural nuances in a manner well-received by participants. Additionally, the study identified five pivotal factors in EAL learning with MACHE-Bot: (1) intercultural dimensions, which include culturally humorous interaction and culturally empathetic support; (2) user trust comprising both affective and cognitive elements; (3) anthropomorphism; (4) reciprocal self-disclosure; and (5) higher engagement and motivation. These five factors collectively contribute to creating an engaging, relatable, and supportive learning environment, facilitating a more natural learning process, and fostering a deeper learner-bot connection, thereby potentially enhancing motivation and investment in the learning process.

Effects of playback speed and language proficiency on listening comprehension of multilingual English learners

ABSTRACT For multilingual English as an additional language learners (EALLs), listening is a critical skill that they must master. This quasi-experimental study examined if playback speed, overall English proficiency, and listening sub-scores affected the listening comprehension of EALLs. It also addressed if any of these effects were moderated by certain background and experiential factors. Data sources included a survey, listening comprehension sub-scores, overall English proficiency scores (TOEFL), and two listening comprehension test scores based on a set of easier and harder questions. Before taking the listening comprehension test, 168 students in English-medium institutions in Turkey and China listened to a 10-minute TED-talk YouTube video at three playback speed levels (slower: 0.75; default/normal: 1; faster: 1.25). Several statistically significant differences were obtained between the three groups regarding these measures. Results suggested that the playback speed and proficiency levels (both overall proficiency and listening sub-scores) matter both for the easier and harder comprehension questions. Implications of these findings for additional language education are described. Through the use of playback speed manipulation, this study underscores the crucial role customized instructional approaches play in enhancing listening comprehension for EALLs on video platforms like YouTube.

Enhancing English First Additional Language Teaching and Learning in Grade seven Rural Classrooms: A Comprehensive Evaluation of Teaching Strategies

Enhancing English First Additional Language Teaching and Learning in Grade seven Rural Classrooms: A Comprehensive Evaluation of Teaching Strategies

Multimodality in CLIL assessment: implications for teacher assessment literacy

ABSTRACT Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) features the integration of content learning and additional language learning. With the increasing recognition that representation and construction of content knowledge often involve multiple semiotic modes, it follows that the ‘language’ dimension in CLIL should be extended to a multimodal dimension. Researchers have been examining the affordance of multimodal resources in facilitating CLIL instruction, but little attention has been paid to CLIL assessment, where students’ knowledge is assessed in their less proficient language. It is then worth exploring whether and how CLIL assessment allows students to mobilise multimodal resources to demonstrate their actual learning. Through in-depth individual interviews with 10 purposefully sampled secondary school CLIL teachers in Asian contexts and examining their assessment materials, this study investigates teachers’ perceptions and practices of using multimodal resources in CLIL assessment. It is found that although teachers are aware of the affordance of multimodal resources in making assessment questions accessible to students and mediating students’ content knowledge expression, teachers generally need more systematic knowledge and skills to design effective multimodal assessment tasks, develop multimodal assessment criteria, and provide feedback on students’ multimodal production. These findings have important implications for CLIL assessment design and CLIL teacher assessment literacy.

Proactive Language Learning Theory

AbstractSecond language acquisition theory has traditionally focused on the cognitive and psycholinguistic processes involved in additional language (L2) learning. In addition, research on learner psychology has primarily centered on learners’ cognitive abilities (e.g., aptitude and working memory) and internal traits or states (e.g., dispositions, motivations, and affect). Language learning behavior, however, has remained largely neglected and under‐theorized. To address this gap, this paper proposes the proactive language learning theory, which delineates the agentic and strategic behaviors that learners employ to learn an additional language. These behaviors include input‐seeking behavior, interaction‐seeking behavior, information‐seeking behavior, and feedback‐seeking behavior. This paper presents theoretical arguments supporting the proposal, describes the four behavioral dimensions of the theory, and outlines general hypotheses concerning the contextual and learner‐related antecedents of these behaviors and their effects on L2 outcomes. Finally, the potential implications of this theory for advancing our understanding of L2 learning and instruction are discussed.

The Student’s Perceptions of Netflix Movies in Learning English to Improve Writing Skills on Vocational High School

This study investigates how students feel about using Netflix as an additional English language learning resource to improve their writing abilities in vocational high schools. The increasing significance of technology in education makes it necessary to understand the positive effects of non-traditional platforms such as Netflix when it comes to language learning. The study employs a qualitative approach, and interviews to gather insights from vocational high school students engaged in English language learning through Netflix. This article aims to investigate students' perceptions of the use of Netflix in the context of English language learning, and to investigate students' How does the use of Netflix contribute in the context of English language learning, particularly in the development of writing skills. The study findings will be the knowledge which can be implemented in the future prospect as the educator, specifically when facing the related problem about The Student Perceptions of Netflix in Learning English to Improve Writing Skills on Vocational High School.

Profiling reading strategies used by Grade 10 English First Additional Language learners in two selected high schools in KwaZulu-Natal

In order to address learners’ reading difficulties, several researchers recommend the development of their reading profiles. To this end, South Africa is no exception. Many South African based researchers are of the view that designing and analysing learners’ reading profiles should be seen as a wise move towards fixing South African learners’ reading challenges. The study sought to profile the reading strategies that Grade 10 English First Additional Language (EFAL) learners used more and least frequently. The idea was to make teachers aware of their learners’ strengths and weaknesses with regard to reading. The study was quantitative in nature and a survey design was followed. A reading strategies questionnaire was administered to 60 Grade 10 EFAL learners who were purposively selected from two high schools. The mean and standard deviation (SD) were calculated in order to assess the frequency of strategy used by the Grade 10 EFAL learners. The results indicated that before-reading and during-reading strategies were least frequently used by the learners. Moreover, the results showed that learners appeared to be using after-reading strategies more frequently. Recommendations are made that learners need to be made aware of the wide range of before-reading and after-reading strategies, along with how to use them during the process of reading.Contribution: The contribution of the study resides in the conclusion that teachers’ knowledge on how to develop and monitor learners’ reading profiles has the potential to improve learners’ reading proficiency.

Learner Experiences of Mobile Apps and Artificial Intelligence to Support Additional Language Learning in Education

This study examines learners’ experiences and the use of language learning applications (“apps”) as a primary source of second or additional language learning (“L2”) instruction and assessment in higher education. It purviews the integration of artificial intelligence (AI)-powered features that support technology-enhanced language learning experiences. Principles of pedagogy, heutagogy, and self-determination theory are used to inform the appropriate design and application of AI to support language learning. We examine the congruence between learner's goals with perceived outcomes following a 4-week language learning intervention using an app. A survey of n = 151 adult learners across two Canadian universities revealed: (a) apps are perceived as an engaging, convenient, and structured approach to early stages of L2 learning and (b) the integration of AI for conversation-based simulations or speech recognition would enable more adaptive, personalized L2 learning experiences. The authors discuss implications for future developments and AI uptake for language learning apps.

The role of metalinguistic knowledge in third-language development among heritage and late bilinguals

Aims and objectives: This study examined whether bilinguals’ metalinguistic knowledge (MK) across both of their languages as well as heritage/late bilingual experience contributed to the initial development of third-language (L3) morphosyntax using Japlish, a semi-artificial language. Methodology: 48 heritage and 63 late English-Spanish bilinguals were exposed aurally to Japlish sentences containing word order patterns and case markers. Participants completed an acceptability judgment task (AJT) and a picture-matching task (PMT) immediately after exposure and again 2 weeks later as well as English and Spanish MK tests. Data and analysis: Logistic mixed effects analyses were run on AJT and PMT accuracy scores, grammatical/ungrammatical items, linguistic structure, and time of testing. MK scores and heritage/late bilingual status were included as predictors in the statistical model. Findings: MK significantly contributed to overall AJT scores, including grammatical and ungrammatical items and time of testing. MK also contributed to ungrammatical word order and case markers. For the PMT, MK significantly contributed to scores, especially during delayed testing. A weak correlation emerged between participants’ MK across both of their languages and their rule-based knowledge of Japlish linguistic structures. Heritage and late bilingual experiences did not significantly contribute to these results. Originality: This study included two different bilingual groups to investigate how variation in bilingual experience shapes additional language learning. It also advances our knowledge on the role of MK in the learning of linguistic structures not involved in transfer. Furthermore, a more nuanced examination of MK is considered as it relates to type of assessment, linguistic structure, and time of testing. Significance: The findings highlight the critical role of MK for both bilingual populations and its facilitative role in the development of initial L3 morphosyntax. The results are interpreted under the lens of structural sensitivity theory.

Investigating the role of affects in additional language learning in the context of mobility through a multimodal autobiographical approach

This study focuses on the role of affects in additional language learning in the context of mobility. The starting point is the discovery of Francophone migrant literature by intermediate-level learners of French at an international university in Bulgaria. It concerns in particular the encounter with the Hungarian-Swiss writer Agota Kristof and her autobiographical text “L’Analphabète” [The Illiterate], which reveals a polarized attitude towards languages that have marked her life and career. Brought to reflect on the tension behind the way the author qualifies languages as “enemies” or “friends”, the learners share their own attitudes towards the languages of their repertoires through reflective drawings (language portraits), autobiographical narratives, and semi-structured interviews. Qualitative analysis of the collected data was conducted to examine in what ways students express their affects relating to languages with different status and how their attitudes are connected to the mobilities and other significant changes they have experienced. The results indicate that the participants express predominantly positive affects. All are attached to their initial languages, although this strong identification may be destabilizing in critical situations like mobilities abroad and significant life changes. English has an important place in the learners’ identity and is related to fluency, comfort, desire, and various opportunities. French is cherished mostly for its aesthetic values, although pleasure is often mixed with anxiety due to the lower levels of proficiency. Students feel attracted to additional languages, which they connect to cultural and leisure activities but have omitted other languages from their repertoires since they do not feel strongly attached to them. It appears that both teachers and learners can benefit from the multimodal autobiographical approach as it allows to explore the complexity of the learners’ plurilingual repertoires, the stories behind their construction, and the affects related to this process. / Keywords: additional language, affects, language portrait, migrant literature, mobility, multimodality, plurilingualism