Running head: CASE STUDY

Case Study of an ESL Student

Brandon S. McLeod
University of Southern Mississippi
30 April 2015

Case Study of an ESL Student

Language is arguably the most complex task that, barring some sort of disability,
everyone uses. Second language acquisition, especially as an adult, is considered by many to be,
at best, incredibly difficult. The multifarious nature of language makes assessing a students
ability a complex and difficult task. The four strands (speaking, listening, writing, and reading)
are made up of morphology, syntax, phonology, pragmatics, semantics, and lexicon (Gass, 2013,
p. 5-10). These are often cited as the base of linguistic ability and use, but there are a
considerable amount other factors that affect them, including cultural identity and acculturation,
motivation, learning style, extroversion, attitude, and socio-economic influences (See Brown,
2014). Assessing communicative competence includes analyzing the students abilities in all of
these dimensions. Unfortunately, this type of in-depth, longitudinal assessment is rarely carried
out. Referencing Limbos and Geva (2001), Pray (2005) wrote, Research indicates that teachers

CASE STUDY

inappropriately use oral-language proficiency as an indication of the childs overall academic

performance (p. 388).
Because language involves so many different factors, limiting assessment to one area of
language use (or primarily one area) cannot provide an adequate depiction of a students
language progress. Moreover, many of the tasks used for assessment require several aspects of
language at the same time. For example, if a subject is asked a question regarding their
background, they must first comprehend the syntax and lexicon aurally. Then, perhaps they do
not have the lexical abilities to express the answer they want to give. The researcher, unless they
are able to communicate through the subjects first language, would be unable to determine
where the breakdown in communication occurredeither in the reception or the output.
Similarly, a research subject may have sufficient knowledge of lexicon, syntax, morphology, and
pragmatics, but not have the phonological ability for comprehensible communication.
Although there are considerable difficulties in making an adequate and accurate linguistic
assessment, this paper will present a case study of an adult English Language Learner. It begins
with a learner profile, followed by an examination of the assessments, instructional implications,
conclusions. To compensate for the inadequacies of any single assessment, this study examines
the student from multiple perspectives including motivation, learning style, communication
strategies, acculturation, and error analysis, which, by their nature address, the four principle
categories of speaking, listening, writing, and reading.
Profile of the Learner
The participant in this case study is a 31-year old man from Hidalgo, Mexico named
Jacinto. He arrived in the United States in 1999 by car. That same year, he settled in Charlotte,
North Carolina, where he has remained ever since. Before coming to the United States, he

CASE STUDY

completed ninth grade and has since completed his G.E.D. (taken in Spanish). His current goals
are to gain U.S. citizenship and start his own landscaping business (which includes getting
landscaping and business licenses).
He has been taking a free multi-level ESL course at Central Piedmont Community
College for ten seven-week long semesters. Other than these community college courses, he does
not have any formal schooling in the United States. The class in which he is enrolled is through
the department of College and Career Readiness and focuses on life skills (getting around town,
shopping, work, family, and similar topics). Level, in this program, is measured by the CASAS
Exam (Reading Component only). On his most recent test, he scored 229, placing him in the
sixth level of the seven-level program.
His L1, Spanish, is of native level, but he has little metalinguistic knowledge. He has
been working as a landscaper (lawn and garden development and maintenance) for almost eight
years. He is married with one child, a daughter, who is enrolled in public school. He and his
family would like to remain in the U.S. indefinitely. To that end, he has been working toward his
goal of citizenship through his language studies. He enjoys learning English and spends his free
time before class, during the break, and at home studying. He says that his greatest challenge is
talking to native English speakers on the phone (personal communication, April 21, 2015).
Assessments
These assessments were following an observation time of ten hours. They cover a range
of topics from affective considerations to L1 interference from a contrastive analysis perspective.
While such a short observation time is bound to present an incomplete picture of the student as a
whole, these analyses provide significant insight into the learners personality, strengths, and

CASE STUDY

weaknesses. Each assessment will include a description of the process, analysis of the results,
and conclusions.
Motivation
For all learners, motivation is a dizzyingly complex array of influences both internal
(intrinsic) and external (extrinsic). Each learner has a combination of intrinsic and extrinsic (see
Deci, 1975; and Skinner, 1957) motivations that influence the decisions they make in language
learning. An order to assess Jacintos motivation, an interview was conducted. The student was
told to reflect on why he wants to learn English. Then he was asked to speculate his own
motivations. I encouraged greater introspection through targeted questions and clarification
requests. Following this, he was shown a level-appropriate lexically modified version of
Ausubels (1968) list of needs: Exploration, Manipulation, Activity, Stimulation, Knowledge,
and Ego Enhancement (pp. 368-379 cited in Brown, 2014, p. 159). The subject was provided
with descriptions and explanations, and he was instructed to rank each category from one to five
(with 1 being the least important and 5 being the most important. In addition to these findings,
I will present my own interpretations based on the content of his interview and the assessment.

Figure 1

CASE STUDY

After his initial reflection, Jacinto stated he wanted to learn English because if he starts
his own business, and he needs to be able to use English to talk to his customers. I asked him has
English speaking neighbors or friends that he wants to speak with. He said he has some
neighbors who speak English, but that he does not see them very often. However, he indicated he
would like to make more friends who are American (from the United States). Additionally, he
stated that he enjoys learning English because, Its interesting (personal communication, April
21, 2015).
The category rated the most important was manipulation. This is likely due to the
subjects desire to start his own landscaping business. Thus, it is not surprising that ego
enhancement was given the second highest rating. It is probable that Jacinto considers his
ability to start a business coincides with his social status. From a behavioral point a view
(Skinner, 1957), both of these could be related to anticipation of reward (Brown, 2014, p. 159).
If he can speak English well, then he can start his own business. If he can start his own business,
then he will make more money, resulting in a better quality of life and greater status within the
community.
This way of thinking also fits well with Williams and Burdens (1997) constructivist view
emphasizing the social context of motivation. Additionally, according to Drnyei and Ushioda
(2011), constructivist motivation develops from internal resolve and external interaction (as cited
in Brown, 2014, p. 159). Moreover, according to Drnyei and Ottts (1998) model of motivation
over time, Jacinto has already completed the preactional stage (setting the goal of learning
English) and is in the middle of the actional stage (as cited in Gass, 2013, p. 456). The
difficulty for Jacinto will be assessing when he has completed the actional stage (has learned to
use English with sufficient fluency to accomplish his other goals). The final three categories,

CASE STUDY

exploration, activity, and stimulation, were all valued at less than neutral (3)with stimulation
receiving the lowest rating. As will be discussed during the acculturation section, this may be due
to an already-developed social network.
Since learning a language is a long and difficult process, and assessing fluency is highly
complex, it is unlikely Jacinto will ever feel he has finished learning English. However, since
his end goal is not English fluency, but rather using English to accomplish other goals, he will
probably reach a level he considers good enough rather than fluent. However, since he does
enjoy using English (as indicated in the interview) and has a desire for knowledge, it is probable
he will continue in his language studies even after he has accomplished his ambition of running
his own business. Therefore, Jacintos motivation is an intricate combination of intrinsic and
extrinsic factors that serve to encourage his language studies.
Learning Style
Learning style is an important aspect of learning a second language. The ways materials
are presented can drastically improve or impede acquisition. Like motivation, there are many
different theories about learning styles and which factors are the most important in language
learning (Brown, 2014, p. 111). Additionally, Hatami (2012) cites Reid (1987) and Oxford (2011)
in her assertion that learning styles are not fixed modes of behaviour, and, based on different
situations and tasks, styles can be extended and modified (p. 488). Moreover, DelliCarpini
(2011) states, educators must also understand that learning preferences must be aligned to
teaching styles for optimal student success (p. 43). In short, learning style is widely varying,
difficult to accurately assess, and rather important.
For the sake of brevity, only one type of learning style assessment was made. For this, the
subject was asked to complete an online quiz (with no assistance) on http://www.learning-styles-

CASE STUDY

online.com. The quiz consisted of seventy statements, which the student would rate 0 - the
statement is nothing like me, 1 - the statement is partially like me, or 2 - the statement is
very much like me (Memletics Learning Styles Questionnaire, 2015). The website then
provided grades (out of twenty) for these six categories: visual, social, physical, aural, verbal,
solitary, and logical. These results were discussed with the subject, and compared to his
expectations.

Figure 2

It is clear that Jacinto has no solid preference for any particular learning style. What is
evident, however, is the nature of how learning style inclinations are a mixture of somewhat
stronger and somewhat weaker propensities. As will be discussed further in the instructional
implications section, this suggests that what students need is a variety of activities that stimulate
multiple learning styles. Regarding Jacinto, he felt that overall the quiz was correct, but that
social should have been higher. He said he likes working in groups, and he enjoys doing roleplay in front of the class (personal communication, April 21, 2015). However, from my
observations I noted that before class and during the breaks, Jacinto chose to spend his time
studying alone, rather than conversing with his friends and classmates. Although it may be true
that, on his own, he often prefers to be solitary (which tied with physical for the highest rating),

CASE STUDY

his perception that he is more social could have a positive impact on social-oriented activities
like the ones he mentioned. In summary, learning styles can be a useful tool in identifying
students preferences. Nevertheless, identifying those preferences, which may change (as
suggested by Hatami), and being able to make use of that knowledge are two equally difficult
tasks.

Communication Strategies
Communication strategies can present significant issues when trying to assess a students
linguistic abilities. Though the ability to use some of these strategies (e.g. circumlocution or
approximation) is the result of some skill in the L2, reliance on others (e.g. appeal to authority,
abandonment, and avoidance) however can lead observers to conclude that linguistic competence
may be low. Nayer (1987) notes Canale and Swains (1980) case for strategic competence, that
is, the ability to use language effectively in spite of formal limitations, to be considered a part of
communicative competence (pp. 10-11). Later, he recalls the use of language switch to save
face (p.100). Communication strategies can be used for a variety of reasons: lack of vocabulary,
inadequate knowledge of a subject area, lack of confidence, deference, and countless others.
During my observation time, I notice several compensatory strategies used frequently.
Compensatory strategies (see Drnyei 1995 and Brown 2002) are a specific type of
communication strategy that is used, as the name suggests, to compensate for weakness and
avoid various pitfalls (Lai, 2000) (as cited in Brown, 2014, p. 128). The strategies Jacinto used
most often were: circumlocution, approximation, code switching (also called language switch),
appeal to authority, prefabricated patterns, and nonverbal signals. While it would take too much

CASE STUDY

space to expound on all of these principles and how they were used by the subject, I will expand
on one main compensatory strategy he used: appeal to authority.
The appeal to authority was interesting because it generally coincided with two
adjustments he made when talking to native English speakers. First, he would never interrupt
native speakersthough he sometimes (rarely) interrupted those use his L1 of Spanish. Second,
conversations with native English speakers included a large amount of receptive body language
(nodding) and conversational tokens (e.g. Oh I see.). Though it was not unusual for Jacinto to
utilize body language as a communication strategy, the amount of body language increased when
talking with a speaker of his target language.
Apart from these adjustments, there were often unnatural breaks in the conversation. This
occurred when a native English speaker would make a comment (like an assessment of
something being watched) that, typically, would receive a reply (either an upgrade, downgrade,
concurrence, or disagreement of the assessment). Jacintos replies, however, were either nonexistent or too slow and led to an irregular flow of dialogue.
Though these approaches were not uncommon, given the short duration of the
observation, it would be rash to conclude that he relied heavily on compensatory tactics.
Additionally, the use of these strategies is not definitively a sign of deficiency. In fact, Brown
(2014) states suchstrategies often spell the difference between a person who survives in a
language and one who does not (p. 128).
Acculturation
Acculturation, or the creation of a new identity (Brown, 2014, p. 187) within a target
culture is an important part of the language process, especially for immigrants. Though many are
familiar with culture shock (and reverse culture shock) that people experience during travels and

CASE STUDY

10

while living in a foreign environment, acculturation is the development of a new self. It is not the
total abandonment of ones culture and values, but, rather, a type of adaptation to the new
environment. Berry (2001) provides four patterns of acculturation: assimilation, separation,
integration, and marginalization (as cited by Ndika, 2013, pp.1-2). These categories, from my
interpretation, are not rigid. Like types of learning and motivation, there are varying degrees of
each and these degrees can change depending on time and context. Jacintos level of
acculturation, and my proposition of his levels according to Berrys distinctions, was determined
through an interview conducted on April 21, 2015. In this interview, I questioned the subject
about his education, trip to America, family, schooling, work, and community.
Acculturation is a complex area to investigate. How does one, for example, define
American culture? Each person asked would provide a different response, and they would all
be correct (at least according to their perspectives). From the interview, I was able to determine
that Jacinto feels, American, but, since that can mean so many things, it is helpful to look at
this subject in the light of Berrys differentia. These four patterns can even be divided into two
other categories, with assimilation and separation being labeled as intrinsic factors, and
integration and marginalization being labeled as extrinsic factors. What this implies is that
acculturation is not solely on the proverbial shoulders of the individual, but it is something which
involves the target culture as well. With this distinction, assimilation contrasts with
marginalization, and integration contrasts with separation. Though these distinctions could be
expanded greatly, that is not the focus of this paper and will have to be neglected.
Jacinto indicated his feeling of being American (assimilation). However, in the same
interview, he stated is unable to participate as a full member of his community (marginalization).
Additionally, though he attends an English class at an English speaking community college

CASE STUDY

11

(integration), he is unable to make American friends (separation). Though he says he would like
more assimilation (through owning his own business) and integration, he also makes choices that
cause lack of integration and encourage separation. For example, he attends a Spanish-language
church. While it can be argued that this could be a matter of preference, it can also be argued that
he is maintaining his birth culturewhich is not negative, but it is movement away from
acculturation. Furthermore, since he has an already established social network within his own
language community, this likely impedes his motivation for stimulation, activity, and exploration.
This view is supported by his answer to a follow-up question during the interview. I asked what
he is doing to try and make more American friends. He replied, Not really anything (personal
communication, April 21, 2015). Moreover, if, for example, he were to move to a new city with
no prior contacts there, there would probably be an increase in these dimensions. In addition, in
that situation, there is the chance of increased feelings of separation, driving him to develop a
new social network (possibly including members of the target language and culture).
There are many factors that tie into acculturation including family, religion, ethnic
identity, language abilities, race, and more. The ways that a language learner (and immigrant)
reacts to the new culture, and the ways that the new culture react to the learner, can have
incredibly positive or devastating impacts on the learners acquisition of the target language and
their acculturation. For Jacinto, it seems that he both is and is not becoming part of the culture
which leads to the conclusion that he is part of a third culture (see Pollock and Van Reken, 1999).
Error Analysis
The final assessment category, error analysis, examines some common production errors
during the observation period. These are analyzed according to the research by Corder (1971),
Burt and Kiparsky (1972), and Lennon (1991), and synthesized by Brown (2014, pp. 250-270).

CASE STUDY

12

That is, it will look at the most common errors in terms of overt (obvious) versus covert (nonobvious) (Corder), global (impeding communication) versus local (not impeding
communication) (Burt and Kiparsky), and error types (Lennon). The errors to be examined are of
pronunciation (phonological), article use (grammatical), subject-verb agreement (grammatical),
and auxiliary use (grammatical).
The first error is one of L1 transfer and is an example of cross-linguistic influences (see
Kellerman and Sharwood-Smith, 1986; Kellerman, 1995; and White 2012). In oral production,
Jacinto frequently (though not always) pronounces the /y/ as /j/a common mistake for many
Spanish speakers. While this does constitute an error, and it is overt, it does not impede
communication (local). There is some indication that this error has plateaued since it is not
ubiquitous even within the same context (as it would be if it were fossilized).
Regarding article use, Jacinto had two different but related errors. He committed errors of
both omission and addition. These errors occurred most often with the article the, with
examples being, I need to go the home and I going to store (personal communication, April
13, 2015 and April 15, 2015 respectively). Like the phonological error, these are overt and local.
Additionally, the omission of articles could be due to overgeneralization of the rule that an article
is not needed every time in English, where it is in Spanish (a kind of differentiation)(see Gass,
2013, pp.89-92).
The next error is similar in that it also deals with differentiation between the L1 and the
L2. Frequently in writing, Jacinto produced sentences such as: She procrastinate, She feel,
Marlon work, Adriana take, and, NgocCam work (personal communication, April 13-15,
2015). This overt and local error amounted to 25% (7 of 28) of all observed written errors.
Likely, as with the previous example, it is due to an overgeneralization that English verbs have

CASE STUDY

13

one form. Spanish verbs are morphologically marked. This differentiates from English, which
only marks the third-person singular verb form (except for the verb be).
The final error analyzed was the second most common. 17.8% of observed written errors
were missing an auxiliary verb in the present/past progressive (or continuous) verb forms. For
example, She going, She studying last Monday, and, She reading (personal
communication, April 13-15) are all examples of the observed error. This is an error of omission,
but, like the other of errors, it is overt and, generally local. Though it is possible for a breakdown
of communication to arise from the omission of the auxiliary be, it is unlikely.
In summary, this error analysis provides a snapshot of the stage of language acquisition
that the subject as acquired. While incomplete, this type of assessment can lead instructors to
focus future lessons in ways that could encourage correct production, improve plateaued
language, and help overcome some of the intralingual and interlingual issues that Jacinto and all
learners experience.
Instructional Implications and Recommendations
This section of the paper will address insights on instructional implications and
instructional recommendations drawn from the five assessments. These analyses and suggestions
are specific to this learner. However, the underlying concepts behind these recommendations are
applicable to learners of many different backgrounds and levels. Each assessment (motivation,
learning style, communication strategies, acculturation, and error analysis) provides valuable
insight into the students approach to the target language, affective influences in acquisition, and
level of acquisition.
As for the assessment of motivation, knowing a students conscious and subconscious
motivating factors can aid an instructor in providing targeted instruction. Being able to gear a

CASE STUDY

14

lesson towards the needs of a student makes the student more engaged and the lesson more
accessible. For example, focused instruction for Jacinto could include lessons on applying for a
business loan, landscaping terminology, or advanced conversation techniques (for starting
conversations with strangers). While this list is not exhaustive, it does demonstrate the wide
scope of activities available that appeal to the students motivation and the range that teachers
have in making instruction more meaningful to individual students. An ideal situation would be a
class of students with a common set of motivations. However, even if that is not the case (as it
typically would not be), instructors can create activities that solicit multiple types of motivations
all at once.
Learning style, as with motivation, allows for greater acquisition with less effort. By
engaging a students optimal learning style, we can streamline the acquisition process. This is not
to say that acquisition will not take time, since, as Lightbown (1985) states, One cannot achieve
nativelike (or near-native like command of a second language in one hour a day (as cited in
Brown, 2014, p. 284). It does, however, mean that activities and exercises can be modified to
favor a students strengths. In the case of the research subject, based on his learning styles
assessment and his interview, one targeted activity would be to have the student (individually)
interpret an illustrated sequence of events (visual and logical) of, for example, someone at a job
interview. Then, joining with a partner, who has also examined the sequence (social), they will
develop a dialogue, which they perform in front of the class (verbal and physical/kinesthetic). By
making the activity a multi-step, multi-modal process, the instructor involves several different
learning styleswhich, as discussed in the learning styles assessment, is crucial for an effective
assignment. Since all student have varying degrees of learning style preferences (which can

CASE STUDY

15

change based on the activity) it would remiss to not integrate multiple styles into all possible
exercises.
In regards to communication strategies, by assessing the strategies that our students
employ, we can better understand their communicative strengths and weaknesses. This is
especially true for compensatory strategies, like those used by Jacinto. Through careful
observation, instructors can see patterns in students communicative compensation techniques
(such as abandonment, appeal to authority, or circumlocution). It is important, however, that the
instructor does not actively discourage these methods. Since these methods, by their nature, are
used for communication, they should not be frowned upon in the second language classroom. In
fact, they are largely beneficial because they give students greater courage when speaking to
those of higher levels and native speakers. Instructors can modify activities or instruction to
concentrate on the areas or subjects where students are the weakest. If, for example, a student
often changes the subject when asked about hobbies (avoidance), tasks can be created to improve
the students communicative competence in this area. This can be done without drawing attention
to a particular students deficiency in that domain by presenting the activities to the whole class.
These activities should include role-play and communication activities that encourage (or
require) the student to use the target interest in ways that are contextual, meaningful, and as
authentic as possible.
The instructional implications for acculturation are a bit harder to define. Often, when it
comes to social interactions, an instructors influence stops at the classroom door. How then is a
teacher able to encourage a positive acculturation in their students? The most obvious answer is
to have the students attend campus eventsas many as possible. Additionally, many intensive
language programs utilize conversation partners or have coffee hours where they provide free

CASE STUDY

16

coffee to second language and native speaking students to encourage interaction. At the
community second language program level, it becomes a bit more complicated. Many of the
students, like Jacinto, have children and work, so they do not have time to go to extracurricular
events. Moreover, Jacinto works primarily by himself at clients homes. He does not have much
opportunity to interact with English speakers much due to his type of work and the Spanishspeaking social network he associates with. For a student like Jacinto, it is difficult to have an
impact on their level of acculturation. However, there are activities that an instructor can assign
that encourage interaction with native speakers. For instance, an assignment could be to learn the
name of a native speaker who works at the school (like administrative assistants, janitors, and
security guards, who are employed by the college but are not affiliated with the language
program) and to make small talk with them on a daily basis. The content of the small talk can be
recorded in a daily journal that the students can share and compare. In this way, they begin to
develop a relationship with someone new in their target language and culture. Furthermore,
through reflection and examination (in the journaling and comparing), the students can hone their
communication skills, as well as aid and encourage their fellow students.
The final category, error analysis, has a much more obvious application. Careful
observation and assessment of students errors can lead to in-depth knowledge of their
proficiencies and deficiencies. By isolating various issues, the language instructor can use formfocused instructions and activities (see Gass, 2014, pp. 267-276; and Dougherty and Williams,
1998) to encourage noticing (Long and Robinson, 1998, pp. 24-25) and bringing about a
change from the incorrect to the target form. Following a form-focused methodology, by
employing explicit instruction, contextual activities, wide range of meaningful and authentic
input, and a variety of correction techniques, assists the student in developing their interlanguage

CASE STUDY

17

(Brown, 2014, p. 243) and moving to more target-like use of the language. For a student like
Jacinto, the instructor would want to incorporate a focus on auxiliary verbs or third-person
singular verb agreement into content-based instruction. This methodology applies to students of
all levels, and, through careful analysis of student error, instructors can provide instruction to the
areas where students have the most difficulties.

Conclusion
All of the observations and analyses of the research subject in this paper is just merely a
snapshot of the learners profile. Every student is an incredibly complex amalgamation of
motivations, learning styles, communicative competence, levels of acculturation, and
interlanguage development (as evident through errors). This paper presents a small sampling of
the types of assessment that can be performed on second language learners and the instructional
implications of those findings. Though it is not a complete learner profiledue to the everchanging nature of many affective factors, motivations, learning styles, etc.it does provide a
model of the many advantages an instructor can gain through the careful observation and
assessment of their individual students.
References
Ausubel, D. (1968). Educational psychology: A cognitive view. New York: Holt, Rinehart and
Winston.
Berry, J. (2001). A psychology of immigration. Journal of Social Issues, 57(3), 615-631.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/0022-4537.00231

CASE STUDY

18

Brown, H. (2002). Strategies for success: A practical guide to learning English. White Plains,
NY: Pearson Education.
Brown, H. (2014). Principles of language learning and teaching (6th ed.). White Plains, NY:
Pearson Education.
Burt, M. and Kiparsky, C. (1972). The gooficon: A repair manual for English. Rowley, MA:
Newbury House.
Canale, M. and Swain, M. (1980). Theoretical bases of communicative approaches to second
language teaching and testing. Applied Linguistics, 1(1), 1-47.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/applin/I.1.1
Corder, S. (1971). Idiosyncratic dialects and error analysis. International Review of Applied
Linguistics, 9(2), 147-159. http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/iral.1971.9.2.147
Deci, E. (1975). Intrinsic motivation. New York: Plenum Press.
DelliCarpini, M. (2011). Enhancing cooperative learning in TESOL teacher education. ELT
Journal 63(1), 42-50. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/elt/ccn016
Drnyei, Z. (1998). Motivation in second and foreign language learning. Language Teaching, 31,
117-135. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S026144480001315X
Drnyei, Z. and Ottt, I. (1998). Motivation in action: A process model of L2 motivation.
Working Papers in Applied Linguistics, 4, 43-69. Retrieved from
http://www.zoltandornyei.co.uk/
Drnyei, Z. and Ushioda, E. (2011). Teaching and researching motivation. Harlow, UK: Pearson
Education Ltd.
Dougherty, C. and Williams, J. (Eds.) (1998). Focus on form in classroom second language
acquisition. New York: Cambridge University Press.

CASE STUDY

19

Gass, S. (2013). Second language acquisition: An introductory course (4th ed.). New York:
Routledge.
Hatami, S. (2013). Learning styles. ELT Journal, 67(4), 488-490.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/elt/ccs083
Kellerman, E. (1995). Cross-linguistic influence: Transfer to nowhere? Annual Review of
Applied Linguistics, 15, 125-150. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0267190500002658
Kellerman, E. and Sharwood-Smith, M. (1986). Cross-linguistic influence in second language
acquisition. New York: Pergamon Press.
Lennon, P. (1991). Error: Some problems of definition, identification, and distinction. Applied
Linguistics, 12(2), 180-196. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/applin/12.2.180
Lightbown, P. (1985). Great expectations: Second language acquisition research and classroom
teaching. Applied Linguistics, 6(2), 173-189. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/applin/6.2.173
Limbos, M. and Geva, E. (2001). Accuracy of teaching assessments of second-language students
at risk for reading disability. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 34(2), 136-151.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/002221940103400204
Long, M. and Robinson, P. (1998). Focus on form: Theory, research, and practice. In C.
Dougherty and J. Williams (Eds.), Focus on form in classroom second language
acquisition (pp. 15-41). New York: Cambridge University Press.
Advanology.com (2015). Mimletics Learning Styles Questionnaire. Retrieved from
http://learning-styles-online.com
Nayer, P. (1987). Communication strategies in ESL (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from
http://proquest.com (Order number: 8724859).

CASE STUDY

20

Ndika, N. (2014). Acculturation: A pilot study on Nigerians in America and their coping
strategies. Sage Open, 3(4), 1-8. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2158244013515687
Oxford, R. (2011). Teaching and researching language learning strategies. Harlow: Pearson
Longman.
Pollock, D. and Van Reken, R. (1999). The third culture kid experience growing up among
worlds. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press
Pray, L. (2005). How well do commonly used language instruments measure English orallanguage proficiency? Bilingual Research Journal, 29(2), 387-409.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15235882.2005.10162841
Reid, J. (1987). The learning style preferences of ESL students. TESOL Quarterly, 21(1), 87-111.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/3586356
Skinner, B. (1957). Verbal behavior. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts.
White, L. (2012). Universal grammar, crosslinguistic variation and second language acquisition.
Language Teaching, 45(3), 309-328. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0261444812000146
Williams, M. & Burden, R. (1997). Psychology for language teachers: A social constructivist
approach. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.