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Cognitive interviews play an important role in articulating the intended construct of educational assessments. This paper describes the iterative development of protocols for cognitive interviews with kindergarten through second-grade children to understand how their spatial reasoning skill development aligns with intended constructs. We describe the procedures used to gather evidence of construct relevance and improved alignment to task-based interview items through multiple pilot rounds before conducting cognitive interviews. We found improved alignment and reduced construct irrelevant variance after protocol revisions.

In this study, it was aimed to develop a rubric to determine the travel writing levels of secondary school 7th grade students and to determine the students' travel writing skill levels. The descriptive scanning design of the quantitative model was adopted. It was decided to develop an analytical rubric because it serves to measure the sub-skills of each skill and can be presented as feedback to the students. The rubric consists of three dimensions: layout, spelling, and punctuation, language and expression, and 18 items. It consists of 4 levels 1 (improved), 2 (moderate), 3 (good), and 4 (very good). The study group of the research consists of 114 7th grade students. The students in the study group were asked to write a travel writing text in one class hour and the travel writings were evaluated by two experts using the travel writing rubric. The collected data were analyzed using the descriptive analysis technique. As a result of the research, it was determined that most of the students were at a good level in using titles, including observations and impressions, commenting on the places visited, giving place to their memories about the trip, and making descriptions and coherent writing in their travel writings. In addition, it was determined that the students did not compare the places they visited and the places they lived in their travel writings in terms of place and society, did not give information about the geographical and historical characteristics of the place visited, and did not talk about the traditions and customs of the place visited.

In this article, the goal is to describe students' mathematical reasoning in the context of different settings of problem-solving tasks. The core of the tasks are real objects, which are presented to the students with the help of photos, a 3D model or in the environment itself. With reference to the experiential learning theory and relations to problem-solving and modelling, theoretical potentials for mathematical reasoning emerge. In a qualitative study with 19 secondary school students these are empirically tested. The evaluation of the video recordings of the students' solution processes are coded with the help of qualitative content analysis, among others with references to problem-solving and linguistic categories of conclusive speech acts. The results show that mathematical reasoning can be observed especially in the work with photos and that the work with real objects generally evokes reasoning activities in the area of planning and exploration of strategies.

Currently mathematics difficulties in schools are a major problem due to several factors. Some research suggest that mathematics teaching-learning methodology could be one of the causes. As a result, alternative teaching methods to the traditional approach (ciphers-based closed algorithm [CBC]) have emerged, such as numbers-based open algorithm (ABN) method. Some research about this new approach has emerged, including neuropsychological studies. The current study aims to analyze performance and potential cognitive differences in solving a computerized task linked to eye-tracking device, comparing CBC and ABN approaches. 18 5th & 6th graders participants were evaluated through a computerized mental arithmetic task. Nine participants learned mathematics with CBC, and nine with ABN approach. Participants were distributed according to his/her mathematical performance rate in three sub-groups, three students per sub-group: low, medium, and high. The ABN method group obtained a higher overall score in the computerized task (mean [M][subscript CBC]=16.22; M[subscript ABN]=17.11), but the differences were not statistically significant (p=0.690). However, significant differences have been found in two eye-tracking measures. ABN method group obtained a lower number of fixations average in areas of interest [AOIs]) (M[subscript CBC]=5.01; M[subscript ABN]=3.85; p=0.001), and a lower pupil diameter average in AOIs (M[subscript CBC]=4.07; M[subscript ABN]=3.91; p=0.001). This occurred regardless of the participants' mathematical performance. These results suggest that differences between groups were not in task performance, but in cognitive effort spent in solving the task.

Eye tracking technology enables the visualisation of a problem solver's eye movement while working on a problem. The eye movement of experts has been used to draw attention to expert problem solving processes in a bid to teach procedural skills to learners. Such affordances appear as eye movement modelling examples (EMME) in the literature. This work intends to further this line of work by suggesting how eye gaze data can not only guide attention but also scaffold learning through constructive engagement with the problem solving process of another human. Inferring the models' problem solving process, be it that of an expert or novice, from their eye gaze display would require a learner to make interpretations that are rooted in the knowledge elements relevant to such problem solving. Such tasks, if designed properly, are expected to probe or foster a deeper understanding of a topic as their solutions would require not only following the expert gaze to learn a particular skill, but also interpreting the solution process as evident from the gaze pattern of an expert or even of a novice. This position paper presents a case for such tasks, which we call eye gaze interpretation (EGI) tasks. We start with the theoretical background of these tasks, followed by a conceptual example and representation to elucidate the concept of EGI tasks. Thereafter, we discuss design considerations and pedagogical affordances, using a domain-specific (chemistry) spectral graph problem. Finally, we explore the possibilities and constraints of EGI tasks in various fields that require visual representations for problem solving.

A large number of research studies have highlighted the relevance of oral narratives for describing children's linguistic constraints, developmental stages of narrative discourse patterns, and sociocultural identities. Yet, little research has been found on the use of oral narratives as a means to longitudinally improve oral discourse coherence and fluency in English as a Foreign Language (EFL). This article reports a case study which was aimed at exploring and describing oral language enhancement in 26 Chilean preservice teachers of English through the implementation of oral narrative tasks over four months. Oral narrative samples were collected through audio recordings, then transcribed and analyzed through the Narrative Assessment Profile, and analytic rubrics elaborated in light of the literature review carried out for oral fluency. Findings suggest a relation between oral narrative tasks and oral discourse coherence and fluency improvement, with a large effect size (25% for social sciences) on oral discourse coherence. Also, a new measure and dysfluency indicator of L2 oral fluency was discovered and defined as false reformulation. It could be concluded that oral narrative tasks might constitute a valuable instrument for enhancing oral English as a foreign language over time.

Socratic pedagogy is a systematized method that encourages learners to question themselves and each other - without being judgmental. It aims at boosting empathy and developing an ability to reach informed conclusions. It supports the acquisition of social skills and fosters collaboration while helping them to think critically, deepen their understanding, and find reality in equilibrium. In reaching for insights, students acquire vital skills, knowledge, and practices. Socratic learning depends on how participants can use systematic dialogue. This study monitored the effects of students' use of specific discourse markers (DMs) over a series of speaking tasks undertaken in Socratic seminars. Each task was devised to support the learning objectives of a standardized English language course given to pre-service English teachers in Turkey. Recordings were used to provide feedback to ten participants and then analyzed for appropriate use of spoken DMs. The findings of the study revealed solid evidence of accurate and contextually appropriate DM usage as the number of appropriate DM use increased significantly in the seminars conducted at the end of the intervention period.

A bulk of research has revealed that emotions play a crucial role in different aspects of second/foreign language (L2) education. However, the emotions that English as a foreign language (EFL) students experience during assessment have been neglected, so far. Against this backdrop, this qualitative study intended to unveil the typologies, antecedents, and outcomes of assessment-related emotions of 24 Iranian EFL undergraduate students studying applied linguistics. To this end, a semi-structured interview and a narrative frame were employed. The results of the thematic analysis demonstrated that undergraduate EFL students experienced different positive and negative emotions before, during, and after assessment practices at the university. Furthermore, it was found that "teacher", "tasks", and "textbook" were the most frequent causes of the participants' perceived emotions in assessment. Concerning the outcomes of assessment-induced emotions, the results demonstrated that "burnout", "frustration", "demotivation", "stress", and "self-doubt" were the most frequent negative outcomes, while "motivation", "learning", "pride", and "excitement" were repeatedly posited as positive outcomes. Finally, the study enumerates some implications for L2 educators and researchers concerning the role of emotions in assessment processes and practices.

Based on the theoretical approaches to interlanguage and discourse cohesiveness, this study examines international students' growth in discourse awareness and discourse competence in the teaching of elementary Chinese reading and writing, and explores a set of assessment methods for teaching discourse. The learners' knowledge and production of Chinese conjunctive words were assessed with multiple test methods, including the sentence sequencing test for testing learners' cognitive understanding of discourse cohesiveness, the elicitation tasks for assessing learners' production of conjunctive words, the tests of picture-based sentence writing and essay writing for evaluating learners' discourse awareness of the cohesiveness in form and meaning. 13 students were recruited by us to participate in these tests. A comprehensive discussion of the data supports that appropriate reading and writing instruction can develop learners' discourse competence and enhance their discourse awareness to a certain extent.

This paper provides an experimental study of interlanguage phonological characteristics of Chinese students learning Thai as a foreign language and the accentedness perceived by native Thai speakers. Both production and perception experiments were designed to see how Chinese students acoustically produced Thai final nasal consonants and how Thai native speakers perceived these Chinese-accented nasals. The production experiment compared the acoustic features of Thai final nasal consonants (i.e. /m/, /n/, and /[eng]/) produced by Chinese students and native Thai speakers (n = 5 in each group), who provided speech samples from a wordlist reading task, consisting of 28 words (840 tokens). Nasal acoustic properties of 840 tokens (duration, nasal murmurs, and formant transitions) were examined. The findings showed that the Chinese students produced significantly longer nasal duration and more drastic formant transitions compared to the native speakers. The perception experiment analyzed how native Thai raters (n = 10) rated speech samples concerning degrees of accentedness by using a 5-point Likert scale with 5 as the most native level. Based on this, the native Thai raters rated the Chinese students' speech as 3.22 on average, while native Thai speech was judged with an average score of 4.65, which demonstrated that native Thai raters could distinguish foreign speech from those pronounced by native speakers. To find out to what extent nasal acoustic characteristics in Chinese students' interlanguage phonology contributed to the degree of accentedness, stepwise regression analyses were utilized to discover that nasal duration was particularly important in accurately predicting accentedness in Thai with Chinese accents.

The present study adopts the four-step framework of course development processes proposed by Graves (1996) to develop a writing course for EFL Vietnamese undergraduates. A total of 60 students were asked to take a writing test and a survey about writing problems to identify their "objective needs". Then "subjective needs" were collected from interviews. In addition, the three language teachers were invited to the semi-structured interviews to collect their perspectives on teaching writing, which were analyzed in parallel with students' needs. The findings show that students' writing levels are low-intermediate and intermediate, and they have major problems with the organization of ideas, followed by grammar and idea development. Regarding teaching, students' main concerns are a lack of writing activities and teacher feedback, which may be due to large classes and heavy workloads. To improve students' writing problems, more writing tasks are needed, including pre-planning (idea development), performance (writing practice), and post-writing (peer feedback, teacher feedback, final draft). These writing tasks are arranged into different phases to help teachers follow up on students' writing practice and reduce their workloads. Considering these conditions, a proposed writing task-based course was suitable to develop, including the five components of course design: context; goals and objectives; content; method and material; and assessment, as professional support for EFL or ESL language teachers in designing a writing course that can be used for teaching, training, or coaching in a similar context.

First Language (L1) has been assumed to play a role in Second Language ability (Bachman & Palmer, 1996). However, the interplay between them across skill, task, or scoring criteria is more complex (Hamp-Lyons & Davies, 2008). Using Many-Facets Rasch Measurement, this study investigates the main effects of examinee ability, rater severity, task difficulty, and rubric scale difficulty and functionality on the writing section of an English as a Second Language program's placement test, then compares performance among L1 Spanish and Japanese examinees to discern the presence of bias across facet. The results for examinee ability and rater severity suggest score variability not expected by the model. Regarding task difficulty and scale difficulty and functionality, it can be concluded that an argumentative essay genre was more difficult than a customer review, or that rater assessed rubric criteria for Content, Organization, and Language more harshly for the former. A bias analysis among L1 Spanish and Japanese examinees revealed that the customer review displayed a bias against Japanese examinees, particularly for Organization, while the argumentative essay displayed bias for them, particularly for Organization and Language. These results demonstrate how placement testing could inform curricula in language programs with linguistically diverse student populations.

The design of mathematical tasks has taken the replacement on the research agenda of Mathematics Education. In this article, we provide principles of design of interactive mathematical tasks that make up the reasoning and the Ethnomathematics program. The research context involved the design, the development, and the analysis of written and oral prospective mathematics teacher (PMT) in an initial training course. The methodology implemented was descriptive-interpretative and implicated the design of mathematical tasks by the PMTs based on the adaptation of the HiCuA analytical framework. Regarding to the analysis of the data collected, categories of mathematical task types were constructed because of a thematic analysis carried out with the purpose of characterizing the tasks designed by the prospective teacher. The findings of the study provide information on the design principles implemented by prospective teacher in the context of Reasoning and Ethnomathematics. Likewise, it was identified that promoting reasoning and Ethnomathematics through interactive mathematical task designs supports students by developing skills such as: justifying, criticizing, and reasoning the conclusions presented by others.

This study explored how the first language (L1) influences discourse marker use in second language (L2) speech. Some studies (e.g., Liu, 2013; Sankoff et al., 1997) have addressed the issue of L1 transfer of discourse markers in L2 speech, suggesting that non-native speakers' L1 use may influence the frequency and usage of English discourse markers in their speech. However, only a few detailed studies have investigated L2 learners' use of discourse markers under the influence of their L1. To compensate for these shortcomings, this study examines whether Japanese speakers' L1 use influences their use of English discourse markers in speech. Two experiments were performed with Japanese college students using a question-and-answer task, a short speech task, and a picture description task. The results of the quantitative and qualitative analyses suggest that the use of some Japanese discourse markers may be transferred to the use of some English discourse markers such as "and, so," and "but" in each task. Additionally, differences were observed in the items used as discourse markers in both English and Japanese by task.

This study investigated L1 Chinese learners' acquisition of the English "Noun + Relative Clause (N + RC)" based on Structural Priming (SP)(Bock,1986; Bock & Griffin, 2000) and Lexical Residual Activation (LRA)(Cleland, 2003). It was hypothesized that, based on SP, when L1 Chinese learners were primed by the English "N + RC," when the priming and the target structures shared different head nouns, they would produce more "N + RC" than when they were primed by the English "Adj + Noun (Adj + N)," and the priming effect was significant. Also, based on SP and LRA, when the priming and the target structures shared the same head noun, the increasing priming effect would be enhanced. The participants were 90 first year non-English major Chinese students attending Guizhou University of Finance and Economics, and 10 native English speakers. A picture description task was used to elicit data. The results confirmed the hypotheses. The study also found that there were different SP and LRA effects for L1 speakers and L2 speakers in that, while L2 speakers were significantly affected, L1 speakers were not. A long-term priming effect was found indirectly after the priming "Simple Sentence." The study contributed to Second Language Acquisition in that SP and LRA would facilitate L1 Chinese learners' acquisition of the English "Noun + Relative Clause," although this structure is nonexistent in the learners' L1. The study also gave pedagogical implications in that the application of SP and LRA would facilitate the acquisition of the L2 structures.

To unlock language proficiency among learners, speaking is regarded to be an essential and crucial aspect to master, not only for learning purposes but for recognized communication dynamics. Language learning has numerous critical aspects. To be lacking in speaking proficiencies has been noted to impart negatively toward language learning. This paper explores whether oral presentations can be regarded as a vital tool to unlock learner language development. To collect data, qualitative research approaches embedded in a case study design were used. These are methods well known to assist in attaining better understanding in real-life situations. Three English language teachers were perceived relevant since they teach English to first-year university students. Although studies have been conducted on advantages of using oral tasks in a schooling environment, little to nothing is mentioned in the literature about how such tasks can be viable instruments to augment critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Findings suggest that motivated learning and enhanced communication skills were major factors that could lead to enhanced language aptitudes. This paper concludes that for teaching and learning to incorporate oral tasks brings numerous benefits for language learning as well as other subjects underpinning the prescribed curriculum. It is proposed that it is necessary to consider diverse perspectives in discussions related to teaching methods as oral activities are prominent tools for language expansion.

This study investigated Thai EFL learners' acquisition of English dative constructions, i.e., Prepositional Dative (PD) and Double Object (DO) constructions employing Radford's (2004) Minimalist accounts as a framework and Acceptability Judgment as a task. Two hypotheses were formulated. Firstly, the English PD would be accepted more readily than the English DO, due to the availability of PDs in both languages and the absence of DOs, by English standards, in Thai. Secondly, if there was L1 transfer, English counterparts of Thai DO and Thai Serial Verb constructions (SVC) would be initially accepted at a greater rate than English DOs. At later stages, given access to UG and adequate L2 input, the English DO would be accepted more significantly than the Thai DO and Thai SVC. Participants consisted of three groups of Thai EFL learners (beginning, intermediate, and upper intermediate). Results largely confirm both hypotheses. Particularly, Thai DOs and SVCs were rejected substantially from the intermediate learners onwards. This shows that the initial transfer of Thai DO and SVCs did not occur. Therefore, this study does not support Full Transfer at the initial stage (contra Schwartz & Sprouse, 1996). This study suggests L2 learners' indecision on the target L2 structure at the early stage and progress to attainment at later stages, in line with Wakabayashi's Lexical Learning and Lexical Transfer hypothesis (2009), and accessibility to UG at large.

A direct test of English speaking is important to evaluate what learners can do in real-life situations. However, due to challenges in test administration, especially with a large number of test-takers, a direct speaking test may not be feasible in many contexts and thus indirect tests, such as conversational cloze tests, are mainly used. In response to this problem, this study utilized communication technology to create speaking tests with two different delivery modes: Real-Time Interview with a human interviewer (RTI) and Pre-Recorded Video (PRV). The tests were given to a group of 40 first-year university students to complete, followed by a perception questionnaire and a group interview to collect data about test-takers' perceptions of the tasks. Results showed that the participants performed significantly better on the PRV test tasks and they perceived both tasks positively. The strongest quality of both test tasks, as perceived by the participants, was authenticity. While the RTI tasks were perceived to significantly have more impact and interactiveness than the PRV tasks, the test-takers shared in the interview that they felt more comfortable and less anxious while completing the PRV tasks.

The learning effects of task-based interaction is an emerging topic in the field of instructed pragmatics for ESL learners. Specifically, researchers are exploring the impact of different task features on pragmatics learning. This article reports a review of the extant research. First, the review aimed to identify specific task design and implementation characteristics that appeared to enhance learners' use of pragmatic features during task performance. Inter alia, the review indicated greater benefits from tasks which learners completed collaboratively versus individually and tasks which presented learners with relatively complex versus relatively simple cognitive demands. Secondly, the review aimed to assess evidence of learning across this body of research. The review could not establish whether the enhanced pragmatic language use observed during task performance equated with long-term learning as very few studies included delayed post-tests, an obvious lacuna in the body of research to date.

The objective of textbook study is to create high-quality textbooks. Analysis was done using a praxeological-didactical analysis (PDA) method. PDA offers space to analyze curriculum materials, such as math textbooks, which are the outcome of human action in the anthropology of a specific nation's society. There are 10 types of tasks given in the mathematics textbook on measurement of spatial figures and seven techniques are identified as possible ways to complete the tasks. The justification of praxis is that there are three emerging technologies and two theories that are used as the final direction of the given task type. There is a sequence of task composition at the start with loads at level 2 and level 3 that can affect student readiness. Psychologically, it is regarded as difficult at first, which can lead to students becoming disinterested as well as bored, thus experiencing difficulties, creating ontogenetic obstacles. The other predicted learning obstacles identified in this textbook are epistemological and didactic obstacles. All the findings from this analysis can be applied to continuously raise the standard of the currently available mathematics textbooks.

An onto-semiotic analysis of the mathematical connections established by one in-service mathematics teachers and university students when solving a problem about launching a projectile using the derivative was carried out. Theoretically, this research was based on the articulation between the Extended Theory of Mathematical Connections and the Onto-semiotic Approach. The methodology was qualitative-descriptive where data was collected through interviews based on a task. Subsequently, following the joint analysis method of both theories, the mathematical activity of the participants when they solved the task was analyzed. The results show that, teacher and students established a system of connections of feature type, different representations, meanings, part-whole, procedural and implications in terms of practices, processes, objects, and semiotic functions that relate them. However, some students presented difficulties caused by some incorrect mathematical connection such as stating that the maximum height of the projectile is the time obtained with the critical number, errors in performing arithmetic calculations when evaluating the function, graphically representing the quadratic function as a straight line and use the general formula in an inappropriate way that prevents the procedural connection from being made.

This study aimed to determine the effects of a teaching model combining Task-Based Learning (TBL) and Game-Based Learning (GBL), called the Orientation Performance Presentation Analysis Application (OPPAA) model, developed by the researchers, on primary students' English proficiency and to explore teachers' and students' opinions of the model. The research employed a one-group pre-test post-test design with seven English teachers and 69 Grade 6 students chosen by means of cluster random sampling and simple random sampling. The instruments used included the OPPAA model, an English proficiency test, an opinion questionnaire, and interview questions. Data were analyzed using means, standard deviation, paired samples t-test, and content analysis. The findings revealed that 1) the students' scores on the post-test demonstrated a statistically significant improvement when compared to their pre-test scores (p < 0.05); 2) teachers displayed a strong inclination to express favorable opinions of the model; and 3) the students expressed positive opinions of the model, the teachers, and course contents. This was probably because TBL encouraged language learning through communicative tasks and collaborative learning, while GBL enhanced fun and active engagement, both of which assisted students in learning the language in an enjoyable and interactive environment. Based on the study findings, it can be concluded that the OPPAA model integrating task-based and game-based learning could be used to enhance primary students' English proficiency.

Nowadays, digital technologies are crucial in supporting students in geometry in secondary mathematics classrooms. However, in some cases, the role of visual function in technology was only utilized for seeing and conjecturing, not for experimenting, while to develop a relational understanding of geometry concepts, students should actively participate in the learning process. To address the issue, this study investigated how students learn geometry with digital technology assistance based on students' diversity in their mathematics abilities. A task with a dynamic geometry software called Techno-based Mathematical Tasks (TbMT) was designed to assist students in exploring geometrical activities and solving a problem through investigations on tessellation. This research employs educational design research and focuses on the preliminary design by conducting a pilot study on three students based on the diversity in their ability in mathematics classrooms, i.e., low, middle, and high. As part of data collection, we captured students' works to examine critical information in their responses based on their differences in abilities. We collected the data through online meetings and recorded the data. We analyzed students' work from the recording by capturing critical information. The results revealed that the TbMT might provide students with opportunities to learn by exploring tessellation activities that might contribute to students' understanding of geometry concepts. Due to the limited number of participants in this study, further research can be an opportunity to expand the number of participants to enhance the contribution to the literature with more comprehensive empirical evidence. [Note: The page range (585-602) shown on the PDF is incorrect. The correct page range is 585-604.]

Mastery of mathematics depends on the people's ability to manipulate and abstract values such as negative numbers. Knowledge of arithmetic principles does not necessarily generalize from positive number arithmetic to arithmetic involving negative numbers (Prather & Alibali, 2008, https://doi.org/10.1080/03640210701864147). In this study, we evaluate the relationship between participant's knowledge of the Relation to Operands arithmetic principle in both positive and negative numbers and their spontaneous on numerical relations. Additionally, we tested if the feedback that directs attention to relations affects participants' attention to relation and their arithmetic principle knowledge. This study contributes to our understanding of the specific skills and cognitive processes that are associated with understanding high-level mathematics.

This study investigated the effects of two types of classroom instructions on EFL learners' oral proficiency by implementing teachers' judgment. Two intact classes of EFL university students studied a compulsory subject of their department under two different types of classroom instruction. The first group of students was trained with explicit oral strategy training instruction, which taught them to learn and practice strategies to improve their speech fluency. The second group was instructed to practice the task twice as much as the first group using implicit task-based instruction. The audio recording of both groups' oral task performance in the pre-test and post-test conditions were rated for proficiency, pronunciation, discourse, vocabulary, grammar, and complexity. Two English teachers were trained to rate the recordings based on two oral proficiency rubrics. The non-parametric tests and estimation analysis results showed that both groups' oral proficiency improved significantly, with effect sizes ranging from medium to large. The comparison of both groups' results showed that the two types of instruction had a comparable effect on students' oral proficiency. The current study's findings suggest that the use of teachers' judgments can be necessary for classroom-based studies to measure the effects of instruction on gains in learners' oral proficiency.

The aim of the article is to present a study of the literary text from a discursive perspective focusing on the development of the discourse competence in the English language. It is a new approach in the EFL methodology which highlights the relation between the holistic understanding of the comunication, social phenomena and the study of language structures in their use. The European educational policies favour the literary text as a key factor in boosting the students' communicative skills. Thus, the paper presents a theoretical framework of the researches in the field and shares our vision on the discourse competence which places the discourse component on the central position in the process of developing the communicative competence. The text interpretation through a discursive approach constitutes an effective tool for examining the language correlation with the intent and sociocultural context. In this regard, in the second part of the article, we offer some concrete didactic activities related to the necessary conditions (such as the context and communicative situations) and discourse-oriented practices (activities simulating real needs outside the classroom) used for an optimal development of students' discourse competence.

This paper highlights the concept of constructivism that underpins the theory and practice of foreign language teaching. The dominance of this pedagogical movement in the second half of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century has been particularly important for the study and understanding of digitally supported forms of learning. Constructivism can provide a response to the analysis and practice of new forms of learning: it is based on the premise that knowledge transfer and the role of the teacher are undergoing intense change. Its implications in the classroom define and influence the pedagogical models and traditions of our time. The paper traces the emergence and dimensions of constructivism in today's digitally infused education, providing a theoretical and literature overview.

The role of executive function training in supporting child development has been increasingly studied. Executive function is largely related to the prefrontal cortex. The anterior portion of the prefrontal cortex, which is area 10 on the Brodmann map, is essential for the emergence of higher-order executive functions. Accumulating evidence indicates that mental abacus training, which is closely related to mathematics education, activates the prefrontal cortex. Based on these findings, it can be hypothesized that the mental abacus is valuable for training more advanced functions. Therefore, this study analyzed the activation of children's brains with a focus on the frontal pole (Brodmann area 10). The results illustrated that mental abacus task more strongly activated the brain than piano task, the marshmallow test, or letter-number sequencing tasks. Thus, it was suggested that the mental abacus is valuable for training higher-level executive functions (i.e., frontal pole).

This exploratory practice study addresses the puzzle of EFL writing anxiety experienced by pre-service teachers. To decipher the puzzle, probe its likely causes, and propose solutions, we conducted an exploratory study with a group of 37 first-year, preservice teachers at the Higher Institute of Human Sciences of Medenine (HIHSM), Tunisia, using a task-based language teaching (TBLT) approach as a potential remedy for the puzzle. Data were gathered via (a) a student needs analysis on the challenges encountered while doing writing assignments, (b) our reflections on the design and implementation of a TBLT lesson plan, (c) a student satisfaction survey on the TBLT experiment, and (d) students' writing assignments. Our findings show that a TBLT-inspired writing sequence boosted students' enthusiasm, motivation and self-confidence, lessened their anxiety, and improved their writing quality. The implementation of TBLT was, however, not without challenges.

This exploratory practice study, conducted at the Higher Institute of Human Sciences of Jendouba and the Higher Institute of Languages of Gabès, Tunisia, investigated the impact of task-based language teaching (TBLT) on pre-service teachers' functional competence and explored both teachers' and students' perceptions of TBLT in their English courses. Data came primarily from classroom observations and focus-group interviews. Findings suggest that TBLT fostered pre-service teachers' functional competence in English. Both teachers and students reported that TBLT helped improve learners' linguistic and communicative skills.

The aim of this task-based needs analysis is two-fold: firstly, to uncover the tasks performed by U.S.-based Spanish-language flight attendants and the associated language needs and, in doing so, to expand the breadth of task-based needs analysis (TBNA) through the application of multiple methods and sources (Long, 2005) and tackling the under-researched issue of transfer from TBNA to task design (Gilabert & Malicka, 2021a; 2021b). A questionnaire-guided interview and online survey were used. Analysis of the extracted information illuminated the essential tasks and subtasks (Gilabert, 2005), including details regarding frequency, need for training, and language use. Findings suggest that each task and subtask requires varying amounts of Spanish, as well as knowledge of distinct linguistic dimensions. Triangulation of multiple sources and methods adds to the understanding of the tasks and language needs. Finally, suggestions as to how the outcome of this NA may transfer to task design are presented, hence extending the field of TBNA.

Translators employ an array of tools to streamline the translation process, ensuring precision and coherence. The necessity of these tools is particularly pronounced when tackling authentic materials, such as texts from the United Nations (UN). Among these tools, corpora stand out as a pivotal resource. In light of this, this study undertook a comprehensive qualitative and quantitative exploration into the impact of UN parallel corpora on novice translators. The research sought to address two fundamental questions: Does the utilization of parallel corpora significantly enhance translation performance? Furthermore, what specific areas of improvement, if any, are facilitated by the incorporation of parallel corpora? To address these questions, a cohort of 30 students undertook two translation tasks of equal complexity. The initial task was conducted without the support of UN corpora, while the subsequent task integrated the use of these corpora. Employing a t-test, the study scrutinized the statistical significance of divergence among the participants. The outcomes illuminate that the integration of corpora within translation pedagogy, particularly for UN texts, plays an indispensable role. This integration furnishes students with authentic source materials, facilitating comprehension of intricate terminologies inherent in these documents. Furthermore, corpora enable students to discern underlying linguistic patterns, encompassing syntax, collocations, and discourse structures. This linguistic insight equips translators to faithfully convey intended meanings and registers in their translations. Notably, the T-test outcomes establish a substantial positive influence of corpora utilization on the achievement of students.

The purpose of this follow-up study was to determine the specific contribution of phonological processing abilities, including phonological awareness (PA), rapid automatized naming (RAN) and verbal short-term memory (VSTM), as well as visual perception (VP), in word reading accuracy. A sample of 62 native Arabic speaking children from Grade 1 participated in study, were subdivided into typical readers (n= 42) and poor readers (n=20). Along with a diagrammatic representations test to assess visual perception, phonological processing tasks included syllable deletion, RAN objects, and pseudo-word repetition, in addition to word and pseudo-word reading tests. Participants were tested in grade 1 using the phonological and VP tasks and one year later in grade 2 using the same tasks in addition to the reading test. The main research hypotheses stipulated that typical and poor readers differ significantly in all the phonological and VP measures. It was also hypothesized that phonological and VP processing abilities contribute independently to the prediction of word reading accuracy for the entire sample. The results showed that the two groups differ significantly in PA and VSTM which were assessed in Grade 1, and in PA and VP assessed in grade 2. More importantly, hierarchical regression analyses showed that among the three phonological processing skills, PA as assessed in both grade 1 and grade 2 was the unique predictor of word reading accuracy after controlling for age and the Raven's matrices for nonverbal abstract reasoning. Visual perception also contributed significantly to the prediction of reading but only when assessed in grade 2. The findings demonstrate the key role of both PA and VP for the early development of word reading accuracy in Arabic.

This article discusses a pilot project aimed at giving tertiary students a wider repertoire of resources to use in language learning, with a particular focus on Italian. This project responds to the exponential increase in and access to online data and the potential value such data represent for students studying additional languages at tertiary level. By examining whether current language students are aware of online resources, such as linguistic corpora and other potential applications of big data, we aim to provide an insight into the possible uses of corpus-assisted learning in the language classroom. In this paper, we detail a project undertaken in 2017 with undergraduate students of Italian in a major metropolitan university. Our project directed students to complete a translation task using corpora-based resources and assessed their experience through a post-assessment survey. Subsequently, we present our initial findings in relation to the possibilities of a corpus-based approach to language teaching and learning. While today's students are already predisposed to relying on online resources as part of their language studies, our results suggest students are not aware of emerging online resources such as corpora. Moreover, even when these resources are presented to students, the complex nature of the software programs used to interrogate corpora often results in their underutilisation.

In the field of second and foreign language education, conscious cognitive models of motivation dominate, while the role of unconscious motivation has not been studied systematically. Expanding the language motivation research to include implicit processes is likely to enrich the field of language learning and open up new contributions to current knowledge in this domain. To date little research has examined priming effects in the field of language learning motivation. The purpose of this study was therefore to contribute to this literature using a within-subject experimental design that aimed to prime motivation for language learning in an instructed setting. Specific aims of our study were: (1) to construct implicit measures for motivational priming in the field of second language education; (2) to examine the feasibility of experimentally priming implicit motivation for second language learning, using self-report motivation and attitudes as an explicit control, and to identify what effects this priming has on key behavioral outcomes. We preregistered our design and statistical analyses prior to undertaking this study, and then we adhered to our preregistration protocols. South Korean university learners of English (N = 244) responded to motivational and control tasks. Using a within-subject design, we measured language behavior (response latencies, number of sentences produced, and linguistic accuracy) in subsequent tasks, as well as self-reported motivation. We found no evidence of a motivational effect either in language behavior or self-reported motivation. While the initial results reported in this study did not support a significant role played by motivational primes, the study addresses important conceptual and methodological questions that are of interest to the field and which can contribute to growing work on second language motivational interventions.

This study investigated the interactions among different cognitive abilities, linguistic structures, and the efficacy of different corrective feedback (CF) types. The cognitive abilities examined were declarative and procedural memory. The target linguistic structures were English regular and irregular past tense forms. In terms of the relationships between English past tense forms and the two memory systems, the declarative and procedural (D/P) model (Ullman, 2020) posits that regular past tense forms are learned in procedural memory while irregular past tense forms are learned in declarative memory. However, these relationships have not been investigated for second language learners. The participants were divided into recast, explicit correction, metalinguistic prompt groups. Second language learning was measured using an untimed grammaticality judgment task (UGJT) and an elicited imitation task (EIT). The results showed that procedural memory significantly predicted the UGJT posttest scores for regular past tense forms in the metalinguistic prompt group, while declarative memory significantly predicted the EIT posttest scores for irregular past tense forms in the recast group. These results were consistent with the predictions of the D/P model that the learning of regular past tense forms is related to procedural memory, whereas that of irregular past tense forms is related to declarative memory, although relationships were not observed for all the treatment groups.

Vietnamese learners and teachers experienced enormous difficulty in online learning during COVID-19 due to their previous limited exposure to virtual learning. The primary purpose of the study is to develop an appropriate and effective grammar instruction approach for virtual learning. To achieve that purpose, this study compared the relative effects of two types of grammar instruction (Traditional Instruction and Processing Instruction) on online learning of the Past Perfect Tense. More than 160 learners from two elementary classes at a university in Ho Chi Minh City participated in the study with two treatment groups: Traditional Instruction (TI) and Processing Instruction (PI). All the lessons were conducted in a virtual classroom. Pre-test and post-test involving comprehension and production tasks were measured. Overall, the learners who experienced PI gained significantly better results than the TI group in comprehension tasks, while both groups performed similarly in production tasks. Moreover, many features of Processing Instruction are well-suited for the nature of online learning, which benefits learners while they are struggling with virtual classrooms.

Invention activities and worked solutions are considered to be effective learning tasks. To date, limited research has been conducted regarding these tasks in teacher education and the process of solving these tasks. This study focuses on the solution quality of student teachers' task solutions. 149 students were randomly assigned to one of two experimental conditions: invention activity and worked solution. The latter group were given a set of categories; the former group had to invent their own categories to compare two constructed contrasting auditive cases with a focus on the subject classroom management. To determine whether it is more effective to compare cases with given categories (worked solution) or with self-generated categories (invention activity), we coded the 149 solutions regarding the content-related solution quality using qualitative content analysis. Students in the worked solution condition demonstrated a significantly higher content-related solution quality than those in the invention activity condition. Thus, it may be assumed that students of the worked solution gained a better conceptual understanding of classroom management through working on this task. Implications for the use of this task format in teacher education are discussed.

Who should evaluate the originality and task-appropriateness of a given idea has been a perennial debate among psychologists of creativity. Here, we argue that the most relevant evaluator of a given idea depends crucially on the level of expertise of the person who generated it. To build this argument, we draw on two complimentary theoretical perspectives. The model of domain learning (MDL) suggests that, for novices in a domain, creativity is by-necessity self-referenced, but as expertise develops, more socially referenced creativity is possible. Relatedly, the four-C model posits four forms of creativity that fall along a continuum of social impact: mini-c, little-c, Pro-c, and Big-C. We show that the MDL implies a learning trajectory that connects the four Cs because, as socially referenced creativity develops, greater societal impact becomes available to a creator. Then, we describe four sources of evaluations that become relevant as an individual learns: judgments from the creators themselves, their local community, consumers of the idea, and finally, critics in the domain. We suggest that creators' judgments are of essential importance for mini-c, community judgments are paramount for little-c, Pro-c requires either positive evaluations from consumers or critics, and Big-C requires both consumers and critics to evaluate an idea positively for an extended time. We identify key insights and imperatives for the field: aligning our measures (both human and AI scored) with the most relevant evaluations of ideas to support the reliability and validity of our measurements, using evaluations as feedback for learners to support the development of creative metacognition, and the importance of considering domain differences when evaluating ideas.

The present study investigates the effect of task repetition and individual differences on Vietnamese English as a foreign language (EFL) learners' lexical use and fluency in oral task performance. The study adopts a within-subjects design with forty students performing the same narrative task twice. Students also completed two prior vocabulary knowledge tests (i.e., a receptive size test and a productive level test) and two working memory tests(i.e., a backwardspan task and a Vietnamese-version operation-span task). Lexical complexity was measured in two aspects (i.e., lexical sophistication and lexical diversity). Fluency was assessed in terms of articulation rate. Unlike previous studies, our study surprisingly did not reveal an effect of task repetition on lexical complexity and fluency. Interestingly, prior vocabulary knowledge and working memory appeared to be good predictors of learners' lexical complexity and fluency.

Middle school students with social and behavioral concerns need additional support. The current study investigated the effects of Class-Wide Function-related intervention teams adapted for middle school contexts (CW-FIT MS) and self-management (SM) in a sixth-grade reading class. CW-FIT MS was implemented, subsequently, for students with data indicating additional support was needed, and a self-management component was added to intensify the intervention (CW-FIT MS w/ SM). A single-subject multiple baseline design was implemented across four student participants, and the on-task student behavior as well as the teacher-student relationship were examined to assess the effects of the intervention. Results indicated improved on-task behavior for three of four students with the implementation of the self-management intervention, demonstrating promising maintenance effects. Preliminary data showed an overall improvement in the teacher-student relationship. Both teachers and students reported positive perceptions about the intervention, consistent with earlier findings in CW-FIT MS studies. Limitations and areas for future research are addressed. [For the Grantee Submission, see ED616821.]

The speed-accuracy trade-off (SAT) suggests that time constraints reduce response accuracy. Its relevance in observational settings--where response time (RT) may not be constrained but respondent speed may still vary--is unclear. Using 29 data sets containing data from cognitive tasks, we use a flexible method for identification of the SAT (which we test in extensive simulation studies) to probe whether the SAT holds. We find inconsistent relationships between time and accuracy; marginal increases in time use for an individual do not necessarily predict increases in accuracy. Additionally, the speed-accuracy relationship may depend on the underlying difficulty of the interaction. We also consider the analysis of items and individuals; of particular interest is the observation that respondents who exhibit more within-person variation in response speed are typically of lower ability. We further find that RT is typically a weak predictor of response accuracy. Our findings document a range of empirical phenomena that should inform future modeling of RTs collected in observational settings. [This work was co-written by the Project iLEAD Consortium.]

This research compared the contributions of lexical inferencing, decoding, and listening comprehension to reading comprehension in Chinese-speaking learners of English as a second language (ESL) enrolled in university bridging programs in the U.S. and Chinese-speaking university learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) in mainland China. The findings suggested that the contributions of these three reading component skills differed in ESL and EFL contexts: In the ESL context, both second language (L2) lexical inferencing and L2 decoding were significant predictors of L2 reading comprehension, but L2 listening comprehension did not correlate with L2 reading comprehension. In the EFL context, L2 lexical inferencing was the only significant predictor of L2 reading comprehension. Thus, it appears that the Simple View Reading (decoding + listening comprehension = reading comprehension) is not applicable to Chinese-speaking adult learners of L2 English because learners in both ESL and EFL contexts rely on word-level reading subskills.