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The primary aim of this study was to assess the impact of a curricular intervention on studyabroad students' use of language-and culture-learning strategies and on their acquisition of requests and apologies. The intervention consisted of a brief face-to-face orientation to learning speech acts, a self-study guidebook on language and culture strategies, which included strategies for learning speech acts, and electronic journaling by the students. The study used an experimental design in which the participants, all university students (N = 86) who spent 1 semester abroad in a Spanish-or a French-speaking country, were randomly assigned to an experimental (E) group (N = 42) or to a control (C) group (N = 44). The findings indicated that the students as a whole improved their request and apology performance over the course of 1 semester, as rated by the Spanish and French native speakers. In addition, whereas there were no statistically significant differences between the E and C groups in their rated speech act performance overall, a qualitative analysis of speech act development among learners of Spanish (N = 67) helped to identify areas in which their performance on requests and apologies either resembled that of native speakers or diverged from it. Although fewer students than native speakers used the "query preparatory with verbal downgrading," there appeared to be some increase in the use of this strategy by study-abroad students from pre-to posttest, especially among the E group students, perhaps suggesting that for some of these students awareness about mitigating requests was enhanced by the treatment. In making apologies, not as many study-abroad students intensified their apologies in instances where native speakers tended to do so. Likewise, the percentage of study-abroad students who acknowledged responsibility for certain infractions tended to be lower than that of the native speakers, suggesting that these nonnative speakers were unaware of sociopragmatic norms for what might be expected in such situations.AN INTRIGUING FINDING IN THE STUDYabroad research literature that prompted the current study was that study-abroad students do not necessarily achieve greater language gains than their peers who stay home and study the target language (Collentine

The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of the study abroad experience, in general, and the impact of a curriculum intervention, in particular, on students’ intercultural development, second language acquisition, and employment of learning strategies related to language and culture. Cohen and Paige – two of the authors of this article – were the senior authors of a three-volume set of guidebooks, the Maximizing Study Abroad Guides which were intended to enhance overseas students’ language and culture learning through a strategies-based approach. By utilizing a scientifically rigorous set of research procedures, we sought to ascertain the impact and efficacy of the Students’ Guide  – one of the volumes in the series – as well as to test a set of hypotheses about the learning outcomes associated with study abroad.

With its focus on the use of language forms in cultural context, the study of pragmatics can be a valuable component in a program that prepares students to learn both language and culture in study abroad. The goal of the present study is to propose a model for pragmatic instruction in study abroad that fosters both intercultural competence and language skills, is informed by research and practice, and takes advantage of the affordances that an immersion environment and new technologies offer. The article provides an overview of the pertinent research, discusses the pedagogical implications of an ethnographic research project on the acquisition of Spanish pragmatics in study abroad, and presents a model for pragmatic instruction in the study abroad context.

The present study examines an area of SLA that has to date received little attention: the development of L2 humor. Both creation and comprehension of humor in an L2 can be challenging for learners, even those with advanced proficiency (e.g., Bell, 2005; Shardakova, 2010). At the same time, learners at all proficiency levels have been shown to use L2 humor and research suggests that with increased proficiency and exposure to the language, learners can develop their L2 humor abilities (Bell, 2005; Davies, 2003, 2005; Shardakova, 2010). Previous research, however, has not examined the processes by which L2 learners develop their humor skills. Using a language socialization framework, the present article analyzes a case study of one study abroad student who developed his ability to be funny in Spanish conversations with age peers during one semester in Spain. Factors that may have been associated with a reduction in failed humor over time included developing friendships, eliminating deadpan humor, and revoicing the words, expressions, and ways of speaking in the L2 to which the learner was exposed during study abroad.