This study was set out to shed light on the efficacy of pushed output directed by scaffolding on 41 (24 female and 17 male) upper-intermediate EFL learners’ speaking fluency and accuracy. A public version of IELTS speaking test was held to measure learners’ entrance behavior. Then, they were randomly assigned into symmetrical, asymmetrical, and control group. The experimental and control groups...

As a mixed-method study, this study investigated EFL test-takers’ perceptions of paired speaking tests and the role of interlocutor variables (i.e., peer interlocutor’s acquaintanceship, gender, and proficiency level) in pairing in a Cambridge English Language Assessment Open Center. The participants (N = 148), having experienced sitting either live paired speaking tests of Cambridge E...

PURPOSE Research has shown that hand gestures affect comprehension and production of speech at semantic, syntactic, and pragmatic levels for both native language and second language (L2). This study investigated a relatively less explored question: Do hand gestures influence auditory learning of an L2 at the segmental phonology level? METHOD To examine auditory learning of phonemic vowel leng...

A rich data set gives a unique opportunity to study heterogeneity in intergenerational mobility. Here, we explore whether the intergenerational association in education and income is the same for children with different results in a cognitive ability test (the Swedish Military Enlistment test). Despite an endogenous test score, the argument is that this is the policy relevant case to analyze, i...