Despite the status of Arabic as a global language and the high demand to learn it, the field of Arabic second language acquisition remains underinvestigated. Second language acquisition findings are crucial for informing and advancing the field of Arabic foreign language pedagogy including Arabic language teaching, testing, and syllabus design.

Arabic Second Language Learning and Effects of Input, Transfer, and Typology provides data-driven empirical findings for a number of basic and high-frequency morphosyntactic structures with two novel typological language pairings, examining Arabic second language acquisition data from adult L1 Chinese- and Russian-speaking learners of Arabic as a foreign language. Alhawary’s study examines the different processes, hypotheses, and acquisition tendencies from the two learner groups, and documents the extent of the successes and challenges faced by such learners in their L2 Arabic grammatical development during the first three years of learning the language. In addition, the book offers both theoretical and practical implications related to input exposure, L1 and L2 transfer, and typological and structural proximity effects.

This book serves as a valuable resource for both second language acquisition experts and foreign language teaching practitioners.

The Art of Teaching Spanish explores in-depth the findings of research in second language acquisition (SLA) and other language-related fields and translates those findings into practical pedagogical tools for current—and future—Spanish-language instructors. This volume addresses how theoretical frameworks affect the application of research findings to the teaching of Spanish, how logistical factors affect the way research findings can be applied to teach Spanish, and how findings from Spanish SLA research would be applicable to Spanish second language teaching and represented in Spanish curricula through objectives and goals (as evidenced in pedagogical materials such as textbooks and computer-assisted language learning software).

Top SLA researchers and applied linguists lend their expertise on matters such as foreign language across curriculum programs, testing, online learning, the incorporation of linguistic variation into the classroom, heritage language learners, the teaching of translation, the effects of study abroad and classroom contexts on learning, and other pedagogical issues. Other common themes of The Art of Teaching Spanish include the rejection of the concept of a monolithic language competence, the importance of language as social practice and cultural competence, the psycholinguistic component of SLA, and the need for more cross-fertilization from related fields.

Robert Blake, now with Gabriel Guillén, updates his successful book (1st ed. 2008, 2nd ed. 2013) on how to teach foreign languages using technology. Brave New Digital Classroom touches on all of the key concepts and challenges of teaching with technology, focusing on issues specific to FLL or L2 learning and CALL. Originally referred to as computer-assisted language learning, CALL has come to encompass any kind of learning that uses digital tools for language learning.

This edition reframes the conversation to account for how technology has been integrated into our lives. Blake and Guillén address the ways technology can help with L2, how to choose the right digital tools, how to use those tools effectively, and how technology can impact literacy and identity. The book is primed for use in graduate courses: terminology is in bold and a comprehensive glossary is included; each chapter finishes with a short list of references for further reading on the topic and discussion questions. The authors provide short interview videos (free via GUP website) to enhance discussions on each chapter’s topic.

Informed by the latest research in the fields of second language acquisition and applied linguistics, El español y la lingüística aplicada responds to the central questions that lie at the heart of learning Spanish as a second or foreign language. What does it mean to know a language? Can technology help second language learners? How does studying abroad promote language acquisition?

Framing chapters in terms of these and other critical areas of inquiry, Robert J. Blake and Eve C. Zyzik examine the linguistic challenges and pitfalls involved in Spanish-language learning and delve into practical implications for students and teachers. Written entirely in Spanish, some chapters focus on specific areas of Spanish grammar that tend to pose difficulty for learners, while others explore broad pedagogical themes related to the concept of proficiency, the nature of input, and the impact of learning context. Each chapter ends with a series of guided questions for reflection and further research.

Designed to address the pre-service training needs of Spanish language professionals, El español y la lingüística aplicada will also be of interest to anyone wishing to develop linguistic expertise in this important world language.

Over the last several decades, neuroscientists, cognitive psychologists, and psycholinguists have investigated the implicit and explicit continuum in language development and use from theoretical, empirical, and methodological perspectives. This book addresses these perspectives in an effort to build connections among them and to draw pedagogical implications when possible.

The volume includes an examination of the psychological and neurological processes of implicit and explicit learning, what aspects of language learning can be affected by explicit learning, and the effects of bilingualism on the mental processing of language. Rigorous empirical research investigations probe specific aspects of acquiring morphosyntax and phonology, including early input, production, feedback, age, and study abroad. A final section explores the rich insights provided into language processing by bilingualism, including such major areas as aging, third language acquisition, and language separation.

Presenting a new Teaching Arabic as a Foreign Language (TAFL) curriculum that can be used in secondary and postsecondary educational settings, Kalima wa Nagham (Volume I) is a textbook that uniquely and simultaneously introduces Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) and salient aspects of Educated Spoken Arabic (ESA) to beginning language students. Students who fully utilize this book should be able to develop the different language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and expressing deep cultural knowledge.

Written by Arabic language teaching practitioners and experienced educators who are certified language testers, Volume I of Kalima wa Nagham employs a threaded story that introduces language concepts along with music to enhance vocabulary retention and recall. At the core of the textbook are dialogues that present students and teachers with examples of Arabic grammatical concepts and important cultural aspects, as well as related vocabulary. These are supplemented by drills and activities that can be used in a classroom setting or pursued individually. Dialogues, pronunciation and listening drills, and charts to accompany the lessons are available on the UT Press website. This volume is student-centered in content and methodology, which will enable learners to meet and exceed linguistic and cultural proficiency expectations.

Presenting a new Teaching Arabic as a Foreign Language (TAFL) curriculum that can be used in secondary and postsecondary educational settings, Kalima wa Nagham, Volume 2, is a textbook that uniquely and simultaneously introduces Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) and salient aspects of Educated Spoken Arabic (ESA) to level two language students. Students who fully utilize this book should be able to develop important language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and expressing deep cultural knowledge.

Written by Arabic language teaching practitioners and experienced educators who are certified language testers, Kalima wa Nagham employs a threaded story that introduces language concepts along with music to enhance vocabulary retention and recall. At the core of the textbook are dialogues that present students and teachers with examples of Arabic grammatical concepts and important cultural aspects, as well as related vocabulary. These are supplemented by drills and activities that can be used in a classroom setting or pursued individually. Volume 2 incorporates media language to help students understand news reports and other media texts as well as original cartoons that demonstrate the meaning and significance of idiomatic expressions in a refreshing way. Dialogues and pronunciation and listening drills to accompany the lessons are available on the University of Texas Press website. This volume is student-centered in content and methodology, which will enable learners to meet and exceed linguistic and cultural proficiency expectations.

Presenting a new Teaching Arabic as a Foreign Language (TAFL) curriculum that can be used in secondary and postsecondary educational settings, Kalima wa Nagham, volume 3, is a textbook that uniquely and simultaneously introduces Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) and salient aspects of Educated Spoken Arabic (ESA) to students whose proficiency level is at least intermediate high according to ACTFL’s rating scale. Students who fully use this book should be able to develop important language skills—listening, speaking, reading, writing, and expressing deep cultural knowledge—and reach the advanced high proficiency level by the end of the book.

Written by Arabic language teaching practitioners and experienced educators who are certified language testers, Kalima wa Nagham employs a threaded story that introduces language concepts along with music to enhance vocabulary retention and recall. At the core of the textbook are written and oral texts that present students and teachers with examples of Arabic grammatical concepts and important cultural aspects, as well as related vocabulary. These are supplemented by drills and activities that can be used in a classroom setting or pursued individually. Dialogues and pronunciation and listening drills that accompany the lessons are available on the University of Texas Press website. This volume is student-centered in content and methodology, which will enable learners to meet and exceed linguistic and cultural proficiency expectations.

“At once an eloquent memoir, a wide-ranging commentary on cultural diversity, and an expert distillation of the research on language learning, loss, and recovery.”—The Economist

“Insightful and informative…Sedivy examines what happens to memory, dreams, and even the sense of self when you enter another language.”—Eva Hoffman, author of Lost in Translation

“Engagingly describes the disorienting and sometimes shattering experience of feeling one’s native language atrophy as a new language takes hold…Sedivy elegantly captures why the language(s) we use are so dear to us and how they play a central role in our identities.”—Science

“A profound elegy to memories that endure despite displacement and the many time zones that define our lives.”—André Aciman

Julie Sedivy was two years old when her parents left Czechoslovakia. By the time she graduated from college, she rarely spoke Czech, and English had taken over her life. When her father died unexpectedly and her strongest link to her native tongue was severed, she discovered that more was at stake than the loss of language: she began to feel she was losing herself.

In Memory Speaks, Sedivy explores the brain’s capacity to learn—and forget—languages at various stages of life, poignantly combining a rich body of psychological research with a moving story that is at once deeply personal and universally resonant.

How do people learn nonnative languages? Is there one part or function of our brains solely dedicated to language processing, or do we apply our general information-processing abilities when learning a new language? In this book, an interdisciplinary collaboration of scholars and researchers presents an overview of the latter approach to adult second language acquisition and brings together, for the first time, a comprehensive picture of the latest research on this subject.

Clearly organized into four distinct but integrated parts, Mind and Context in Adult Second Language Acquisition first provides an introduction to information-processing approaches and the tools for students to understand the data. The next sections explain factors that affect language learning, both internal (attention and awareness, individual differences, and the neural bases of language acquisition) and external (input, interaction, and pedagogical interventions). It concludes by looking at two pedagogical applications: processing instruction and content based instruction.

This important and timely volume is a must-read for students of language learning, second language acquisition, and linguists who want to better understand the information-processing approaches to learning a non-primary language. This book will also be of immense interest to language scholars, program directors, teachers, and administrators in both second language acquisition and cognitive psychology.

David Block asks the question "What is second language acquisition (SLA)?" by offering an extended critique of one of the main theoretical approaches to second language acquisition: the "Input-Interaction-Output" model. He argues that a more interdisciplinary and socially informed approach to SLA research is in order, and he draws on recent work in sociolinguistics as well as SLA research influenced by sociolinguistic and sociohistorical approaches to language and language learning. In so doing, he demonstrates that there is a need to broaden the horizons of second language acquisition. Finally, he offers some important thoughts on the future direction of SLA research, and includes an extensive bibliography.

Spanish Second Language Acquisition provides a panoramic overview of previous studies on the acquisition of Spanish as a second or foreign language, the theoretical approaches used in these studies, and the effects of various pedagogical approaches on the development of Spanish interlanguage systems. Barbara Lafford and Rafael Salaberry have compiled the first volume to provide a comprehensive critical overview of the research done and data compiled on how adults acquire Spanish as a second language. Major scholars in the field of SLA have contributed chapters having to do with a wide range of "products" (phonology, tense/aspect, subjunctive, clitics, lexicon, discourse/pragmatics) and "processes" (generative, cognitive and sociocultural theories) involved in the acquisition process-concluding with a discussion of the effects of instruction on Spanish interlanguage development.

While being an invaluable reference tool for undergraduate and graduate programs that focus on the acquisition of Spanish as a second language, due to the extraordinary range of the review research on theoretical and methodological issues, this is also an extremely useful volume for second language theoreticians and practitioners involved in all aspects of the pedagogy of other second languages. It is the editors' desire that students, teachers, program administrators and scholars alike will benefit from the insights that the contributors bring to the myriad issues that language professionals confront.

Using debate to develop advanced competency in a second language is a method that is finding increased interest among instructors and students alike, whether in synchronous online teaching or the individual classroom. Through debate, students learn how to make hypotheses, support their conclusions with evidence, and deploy the rhetoric of persuasion in the target language. Though this method provides an exciting pedagogy for moving students from the advanced to the superior level, there is a paucity of materials available for instructors who wish to plan a curriculum focused on debate. Teaching Advanced Language Skills through Global Debate: Theory and Practice provides teachers with both the theoretical underpinnings for using debate in the foreign language classroom as well as practical advice for developing reading, listening, writing, and speaking skills through debate. It discusses task-based language learning and helps instructors design debate-related tasks for the classroom.

Teaching Advanced Language Skills through Global Debate will be useful for any instructor working at the advanced level, and particularly for those training future language instructors. One of the new digital short publications available through Georgetown University Press, it is an ideal complement to the press’s new titles on mastering languages through global debate.

Georgetown Digital Shorts—longer than an article, shorter than a book—deliver timely works of peer-reviewed scholarship in a fast-paced, agile environment. They present new ideas and original texts that are easily and widely available to students, scholars, libraries, and general readers.

This guide clearly and succinctly presents the basic tenets of teaching foreign languages specifically for Arabic teachers. Consolidating findings from second language acquisition (SLA) research and applied linguistics, it covers designing curricula, theory and methods, goals, testing, and research, and intersperses practical information with background literature in order to help teachers improve their teaching of Arabic as a foreign language (TAFL).

Karin C. Ryding, a well-regarded scholar of Arabic linguistics and former president of the American Association of Teachers of Arabic, frames the discussion with SLA literature and suggests practical and effective ways of helping students learn. Ryding discusses issues at the core of Arabic teaching effectiveness and the achievement of communicative competence, such as the teaching of pronunciation, speaking, reading, listening, and writing; teaching mixed-level classes; creative classroom organization; corrective feedback; and use of activities and exercises, with plenty of examples from Arabic and tips for teachers. She also covers materials development and proficiency testing, providing study questions and recommended readings for each chapter.

This guide, which can be used as a textbook, is the first of its kind aimed specifically at TAFL, and should be of interest to Arabic instructors-in-training, academics, graduate students, linguists, department chairs, language coordinators, and teacher trainers. It also serves as a resource for teachers of other less commonly taught languages (LCTLs), who struggle with similar issues.

To Advanced Proficiency and Beyond: Theory and Methods for Developing Superior Second Language Ability addresses an important issue in Second Language Acquisition—how to help learners progress from Intermediate and Advanced proficiency to Superior and beyond. Due to the pressures of globalization, American society encounters an ever-increasing demand for speakers with advanced language abilities. This volume makes available cutting edge research on working memory and cognition and empirical studies of effective teaching. In addition it can serve as a practical handbook for seasoned and pre-professional instructors alike. The bringing together of the latest in second language acquisition theory, decades of empirical research, and practical classroom application makes for an unprecedented volume examining the achievement of Superior-level foreign language proficiency.

When humans learn languages, are they also learning how to create shared meaning? In The Usage-based Study of Language Learning and Multilingualism, a cadre of international experts say yes and offer cutting-edge research in usage-based linguistics to explore how language acquisition, in particular multilingual language acquisition, works.

Each chapter presents an original study that supports the view that language learning is initiated through local and meaningful communication with others. Over an accumulated history of such usage, people gradually create more abstract, interactive schematic representations, or a mental grammar. This process of acquiring language is the same for infants and adults and across varied contexts, such as the family, the classroom, the laboratory, a hospital, or a public encounter. Employing diverse methodologies to study this process, the contributors here work with target languages, including Cantonese, English, French, French Sign Language, German, Hebrew, Malay, Mandarin, Spanish, and Swedish, and offer a much-needed exploration of this growing area of linguistic research.