Learner characteristics have been at the center of second language acquisition and foreign language education research in response to the puzzling questions: Why are there often large differences in second language (L2) learning achievement and why do many learners, though proficient first language speakers, not succeed in learning a L2? The papers in this book explore and challenge the three key factors in individual difference research: language aptitude, language learning strategies and motivation.

The scope of individual learner differences is broad, yet there is no current, comprehensive, and unified volume that provides an overview of the considerable amount of research conducted on various language learner differences, until now.

This book introduces readers to the principles of a fairly new branch of psychology – positive psychology – and demonstrates how they can be applied in the context of second language acquisition in a natural environment and in instructed foreign language (FL) learning. It focuses both on the well-being and success of the learner and the professional and personal well-being of the teacher. Further, the book stresses the importance of the positive emotions and character strengths of those involved in the process of language learning and teaching, as well as the significant role played by enabling institutions such as school and, at the micro-level, individual FL classes.

Second language learners differ in how successfully they adapt to, and profit from, instruction. This book aims to show that adaptation to L2 instruction, and subsequent L2 learning, is a result of the interaction between learner characteristics and learning contexts. Describing and explaining these interactions is fundamentally important to theories of instructed SLA, and for effective L2 pedagogy. This collection is the first to explore this important issue in contemporary task-based, immersion, and communicative pedagogic settings. In the first section, leading experts in individual differences research describe recent advances in theories of intelligence, L2 aptitude, motivation, anxiety and emotion, and the relationship of native language abilities to L2 learning. In the second section, these theoretical insights are applied to empirical studies of individual differences-treatment interactions in classroom learning, experimental studies of the effects of focus on form and incidental learning, and studies of naturalistic versus instructed SLA.

The teaching of culture and interculturality is today viewed as an integral part of foreign language education. This book presents insights from recent research on the role of culture in second/foreign and heritage language education. It contains 14 chapters including an introductory chapter that discusses diachronically the evolving notion of culture and how the sociocultural view of culture as a complex and dynamic concept informs language teaching and language learning research. The chapters following the introduction are organised in four parts focusing on: 1) the teacher's role in integrated language and culture learning; 2) the interrelationship between culture, identity, and language learning and use; 3) the effect of culture on learner characteristics which impact language learning processes and outcomes; and 4) curriculum development aimed at fostering language and culture learning. The chapters in Parts 1 to 3 present contributions from current research - either in the form of the authors' original studies or comprehensive reviews of relevant essential research - which bears important implications for curricular practice in foreign language and language teacher education. This close link between research, theory and practice is also maintained in the two chapters in Part 4, which present developmental projects based on well-grounded theoretical frameworks.

Study abroad is now both an international industry and an experience that can have a deep impact on students' attitudes and approaches to second language learning. Narratives of Second Language Identity in Study Abroad brings together three important research areas by exploring the impact of study abroad on second language identities through narrative research. It outlines a new model of second language identity that incorporates a range of language and personal competencies. The three main dimensions of this model are explored in chapters that begin with students' study abroad narratives, followed by the authors' in-depth analysis. Further chapters use narratives to assess the impact of programme type and individual difference. Arguing that second language identity development is one of the more important outcomes of study abroad, the book concludes with recommendations on how study abroad programmes can best achieve this outcome.

This book provides an accessible, evidence-based account of how teacher noticing, the process of attending to, interpreting and acting on events which occur during engagement with learners, can be examined in contexts of language teacher education and highlights the importance of reflective practice for professional development. Central to the work is an innovative mixed-methods study of task-based interaction which was undertaken with pre-service English language teachers in Japan. Through close analyses of task interaction coupled with recall data, it illustrates the ways in which pre-service teachers noticed their student partners’ use of embodied and linguistic resources. This focus on what teachers attend to, how they interpret it, and their subsequent decisions has multiple implications for language learning and teacher development. It demonstrates the value of teacher noticing for developing rapport, supporting pupils’ language acquisition, enhancing participation, fostering reflection and guiding observation, a central feature of language teachers’ career advancement.