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Reading to Learn (R2L) is an instructional approach that leads students from aided to independent creation of meaning in reading and writing. The approach uses whole texts as the point of departure for instruction. This case study explored how R2L promoted ninth graders’ comprehension of explanation texts in EFL during six lessons and students’ perceptions about R2L. The study involved a group of ninth graders from a secondary state school in Colombia whose results in national standardized tests had been traditionally low, particularly in EFL reading. Results revealed that students became better readers of explanation texts and perceived R2L as a useful approach to develop their ability to understand written texts in EFL. The study highlights the benefits of R2L for enhancing L2 students’ meaning-making potential.

We report the adaptation of the Aachen Aphasia Test (AAT) to the Portuguese language (PAAT) and the results of its standardization in 125 persons with aphasia and 153 healthy controls. Patients with aphasia had a previous syndromic diagnosis, obtained through a Portuguese aphasia battery, which served as a reference. The control group was stratified by age and educational level. Hierarchical cluster analyses showed good construct validity. The increasing degree of difficulty and complexity throughout the item sets comprising subtests was confirmed. The discriminatory power of the PAAT for the selection of aphasic from non-aphasic persons proved to be as high as for the AAT versions in other languages. Classification of standard aphasic syndromes by means of discriminant analyses was good. Internal consistency, measured by means of Cronbach's alpha coefficient, was high to very high for the different PAAT subtests. Performance differences caused by age or educational level among the healthy control persons emphasized the need for correction factors. In conclusion, the PAAT showed robust psychometrical properties, comparable to the original German and to adaptations to other languages. It constitutes a useful tool for cross-linguistic and multicenter studies. (JINS, 2008(JINS, , 14, 1046(JINS, -1056

This study explores the relationship between group interaction and interlanguage development, specifically listening comprehension and the production of target grammar forms. Two groups (39 participants in total) of first-semester Spanish students at an American university took notes on a mini-lecture, then completed a text reconstruction and listening comprehension test. The experimental group (n = 18) interactively shared notes for five minutes in small groups; the control group (n = 21) did not interact, although students were allowed to study their notes for five minutes. The experimental group scored significantly higher (p = 0.001) on the listening comprehension task. The recorded interactions, analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively, revealed significant differences between the interaction groups in the amount and types of L2 words used in the joint construction of knowledge. Quantitative analysis, conducted by means of a customized computer program that identified and counted target linguistic forms, facilitated ready comparison across interaction groups through innovative analytic techniques. This study shows that interaction may have an effect on listening comprehension and suggests that the different ways in which learners interact may explain this effect.

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