A questionnaire relating to presumed good learning behaviors was administered to 37 students enrolled in an eight‐week intensive course in English as a second language in preparation for graduate study in the United States. The answers to the self‐report questionnaire were classified according to the students' cultural background (Asian versus Hispanic) and field of specialization (professional engineering/science versus social science/humanities) and related to gains on four English language proficiency measures: linguistic competence; auditory comprehension; overall oral proficiency; and communicative competence, conceptualized here primarily as the ability to convey information. Analyses indicated that while the Asian subjects engaged in fewer of the assumed “good” learning behaviors than the Hispanics, they tended to make greater gains in linguistic competence and communicative competence. On the other hand, the Hispanic students made more progress in overall oral proficiency and in auditory comprehension. Examination of the relationships between specific behaviors and second language learning gains revealed an interesting split: Some behaviors were associated with conscious learning, while others were related to acquisition and gains in general communicative competence. Results indicate that caution in prescribing good learning behaviors is warranted. Considerable further research is needed to explain which behaviors are helpful for learners at various levels and to relate these behaviors to current second language learning theories.

This study investigated the effects of training for peer revision in college freshman English composition classes. Four instructors and 169 students participated. Each instructor taught one class in the experimental condition, which included training for peer revision via instructor conferences, and one class in the control condition, which employed peer revision without such training. We assessed the effects of training in terms of (a) students' ability to critique peer writing; (b) quality of student writing; and (c) students' attitudes toward peer revision and writing in general. We used different measures, data sources, and methods. The combination of measures, data sources, and methods not only allowed triangulation of the finding that training for peer revision improved students' ability to critique peer writing and their attitudes toward peer revision but also illuminated other aspects of peer revision processes.

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The TESOL Quarterly welcomes evaluative reviews of publications relevant to TESOL professionals. In addition to textbooks and reference materials, these include computer and video software, testing instruments, and other forms of nonprint materials.