todoELE

The importance of textbooks in the shaping of world-language instruction in the US is undeniable: for better or for worse, published materials tend to define the content, pace, and pedagogical orientation of language courses at all levels in this country. As educators continue to confront the challenge of selecting and/or adapting published materials for their language courses (particularly for Spanish, which represents 69% of the total language textbook market at the high school level, and 52% at the college level), the need for information on the origin and evolution of our teaching materials becomes apparent. Following a diachronic perspective, this article traces the historical evolution of Spanish textbooks in the US, and examines the current state of affairs of language materials for learners K-16. In addition, this article provides a comparative analysis of the leading Spanish textbooks in the United States (US) (for both the high school and college markets) and reviews the most prominent recent titles to identify established trends and new directions in the publishing industry. A general framework for selection of Spanish textbooks is discussed, as well as specific recommendations on how to make sense of the increasing number of published materials for the teaching and learning of Spanish.

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La importancia de los libros de texto en la determinación de las prácticas pedagógicas para el español como lengua segunda o extranjera (ELE) en los Estados Unidos es innegable. Desafortunadamente, la información sobre el origen y la evolución histórica de dichos materiales es limitada (hecho por demás sorprendente, ya que los textos para ELE representan el 69% del total del mercado de libros de texto para lenguas extranjeras a nivel de secundaria y el 52% a nivel universitario en este país). Siguiendo una perspectiva diacrónica, este artículo traza la evolución de los textos para ELE en los Estados Unidos, y examina el estado actual de esta industria desde la escuela primaria hasta la universidad. Además, el artículo presenta un análisis comparativo de los más populares textos de ELE en los Estados Unidos (tanto al nivel de secundaria como universitario) y de los más prominentes títulos recientes (aquellos publicados en los últimos 2 años en este país), a fin de identificar las nuevas tendencias y direcciones de la industria ELE norteamericana. El lector podrá encontrar aquí un marco general para el análisis y selección de libros de texto para la enseñanza de lenguas extranjeras, así como una serie de parámetros que le ayuden a discernir las cualidades pedagógicas de la creciente oferta (nacional e internacional) de materiales para ELE.

This study investigated differences in students’ foreign language anxiety and foreign language self-efficacy related to skill-specific foreign language tasks (i.e., speaking, listening, reading, and writing) across five levels of university foreign language coursework. A total of 206 participants in 12 university Spanish classrooms (ranging from Beginning Spanish I to Intermediate Spanish II) were surveyed for this study. The findings revealed that students who have higher levels of skill-specific foreign language anxieties provided corresponding lower ratings on skill-specific foreign language self-efficacies. Analyses also revealed that students’ ratings for foreign language anxiety for each foreign language-learning skill were not significantly different across the five levels of coursework. However, students’ ratings of foreign language self-efficacies for each foreign language-learning skill were significantly different across different levels of coursework.

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Este estudio investiga las diferencias entre la ansiedad y la autoeficacia del estudiante relacionada con destrezas lingüísticas específicas (expresión oral, comprensión auditiva, comprensión lectora y expresión escrita) en cinco niveles de cursos de lengua extranjera de nivel universitario. Un total de 206 participantes repartidos en 12 grupos de cursos de español (español básico I y español intermedio II) fueron encuestados para este estudio. Los resultados revelan que los estudiantes que presentan un nivel más alto de ansiedad en el desarrollo de destrezas específicas de la lengua extranjera, mostraron una puntación más baja en la autoeficacia durante el desarrollo de las mismas destrezas. Este análisis también indica que la categorización de la ansiedad de los estudiantes por las destrezas realizadas en las lenguas extranjeras no fue significativamente distinta en los cinco niveles de los trabajos realizados. Por el contrario, la valoración en la autoeficacia de los estudiantes por cada destreza aprendida en la lengua extranjera fue significativamente distinta a lo largo de los diferentes niveles de los cursos.

This article investigates the three-way interface between foreign language anxiety (FLA), cognition and performance in Spanish L2 oral tasks, and examines qualitatively the construct of task anxiety (TA) in relation to its three interconnected facets: affective, cognitive and behavioral. 51 low-proficiency university learners of L2 Spanish performed two narrative tasks manipulated in their cognitive demands. Results revealed TA negatively affected certain functions of learners’ L2 cognition, especially at the attentional level and in word retrieval, highlighting the important role of L2 self-esteem in oral production tasks. This study advocates for a pedagogical approach that implements both curricular and individual aspects from a task-based language teaching perspective. It further emphasizes the importance of raising awareness of the interrelated emotional, cognitive and performance dimensions of the L2 learner, and how these may manifest in TA during oral task performance.

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Este artículo examina la interfaz entre la ansiedad en la lengua extranjera, la cognición y el desempeño en las tareas orales en español como L2, y examina de forma cualitativa el constructo de la ansiedad de tarea en relación con sus tres facetas interconectadas: la afectiva, la cognitiva y la conductual. 51 aprendices universitarios con un nivel inicial de competencia en español realizaron dos tareas narrativas orales manipuladas en sus demandas cognitivas. Los resultados del estudio indicaron que la ansiedad de tarea afectaba de forma negativa a varios procesos cognitivos del aprendiz, especialmente en el área de la atención y el acceso léxico, destacando el importante papel de la autoconfianza en las tareas de producción oral. Esta investigación propone un enfoque pedagógico que implemente tanto aspectos curriculares como aquellos ligados a factores individuales del aprendizaje, centrándose en comprender la interrelación entre las dimensiones afectivas, cognitivas y de desempeño de la tarea en el aprendiz de español.

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World language teachers have historically relied on the notion of teaching methods to inform elements of design and procedure in their instructional practice. Teacher beliefs about teaching methods, however, have been shown to be significantly influenced by their context, including their institution and their learners. This phenomenon has led some scholars to identify a postmethod condition, where teachers prioritize making responsive, principled decisions about instruction based on their context. This qualitative study investigated the patterns and realities of the postmethod condition in practice through the lens of teacher beliefs about teaching methods, focusing on ten secondary-level world language teachers of French and Spanish in the USA. Data sources included a survey about teaching methods, in-depth interviews, and classroom observations. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, multiple phases of coding, and integrating analysis of the three sources. Findings indicated that teachers in this group largely identified as adhering to one main teaching approach, with eight of the ten self-identifying as using primarily comprehensible input and/or TPRS (Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling) methods. However, through investigating their beliefs about grammar and accuracy; the four skills of reading, writing, listening, and speaking; the importance of input and output; and instructional flow, we found that the teachers examined and reexamined their teaching methods regularly, largely due to the influences of their learners and their institution. The relationship between the teachers’ beliefs and practices was mediated by context-driven instructional decision-making, indicating the presence of a postmethod condition.

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Multimodal input – which combines written, auditory, and/or visual modalities – is pervasive in everyday life and could serve as a source of rich input in language teaching. In recent years, research has determined that vocabulary learning is one of the clear benefits of being exposed to such input. Regrettably, only a handful of studies have investigated whether and how second language (L2) teachers approach multimodal input in teaching. To further contribute to the research–practice dialogue, we examined factors that influence L2 teachers’ use of multimodal input in L2 teaching. This qualitative case study presents an in-depth analysis of interview data derived from 21 practitioners in various L2 teaching contexts globally. Following three rounds of data analysis, 24 factors were identified and are presented in four themes. The results indicate that teachers: (1) paid close attention to their students’ needs and goals; (2) drew on their own learning and teaching experiences and training supported by research-based practices; (3) relied on sound pedagogical principles; and (4) faced a number of contextual challenges relevant to their curricula and teaching contexts.

In this paper we focus on the relationship between Spanish compounding and derivation on the one hand, and anaphoric relations involving null and overt subjects, on the other, in order to argue that a pedagogical grammar of Spanish for non-native speakers should take into consideration: (i) universal approaches to the analysis of Spanish which also depict its specific structural properties; (ii) psycholinguistic proposals on how Spanish morphosyntactic structures are acquired and processed; and (iii) empirical research that provides information about the learnability principles and the mechanisms involved in the acquisition of Spanish grammar. This threefold approach draws from developments that have taken place in this century. First, linguistic theory has refined the “universal” principles and parameters approach developed to account for similarities and differences between languages. This means that the parameters that were central to Chomsky's and Chomsky and Lasnik's Principles and Parameters model co-exist now with the feature accounts that characterize Chomsky's Minimalist Program, allowing us to undertake sophisticated research on the representation of language in the mind, language contact, and language acquisition. Second, recent studies on processing and interfaces involving different languages allow us to compare native and non-native speakers' linguistic abilities beyond strict grammatical competence. Finally, research on language acquisition informs us not only about the idiosyncratic nature of any given interlanguage but also about the characteristics interlanguages share with natural languages.

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En este trabajo partimos de la relación entre los procesos morfológicos que se conocen como composición y derivación así como de las relaciones anafóricas que establecen los sujetos implícitos y los sujetos explícitos con objeto de proponer que una gramática pedagógica dirigida a hablantes no nativos debe de tener en cuenta: (i) un análisis del español de corte universal que a su vez tenga en cuenta las propiedades estructurales específicas de esta lengua; (ii) propuestas de la psicolingüística sobre cómo se adquieren y procesan las estructuras morfosintácticas del español; y (iii) datos de investigaciones empíricas que proporcionen información sobre los principios y los mecanismos que forman parte de la adquisición de la gramática del español. Este triple acercamiento se nutre de propuestas lingüísticas que ocupan un lugar destacado en este siglo. En primer lugar, se ha precisado la teoría “universal” de los principios y parámetros que se propuso para dar cuenta de las similitudes y diferencias entre las lenguas. Esto significa, por un lado, que los parámetros que ocupaban un lugar central en el modelo de Principios y Parámetros de Chomsky y Chomsky y Lasnik coexisten ahora con los rasgos formales que son los protagonistas del Programa Minimista de Chomsky. Esto nos permite llevar a cabo investigaciones más precisas sobre la representación del lenguaje en la mente y el contacto y la adquisición de lenguas. En segundo lugar, los estudios recientes sobre el procesamiento y las interfaces en distintas lenguas nos permiten ir más allá de la mera competencia cuando comparamos las habilidades lingüísticas de hablantes nativos y no nativos. Finalmente, y partiendo de los estudios sobre la adquisición del lenguaje, podemos abordar no solo la naturaleza idiosincrática de una interlengua dada sino también las características que las interlenguas comparten con las lenguas naturales.