Editorial

The goal of the special issue is to provide robust examples of how we as a field can research the dynamic nature of learner individual differences (IDs). The papers in this volume provide both a sound theoretical discussion of several IDs in relationship to their (posited or empirically attested) role(s) in L2 learning, as well as specific methodological ideas on how to best reveal the dynamic nature of IDs

Using a Decision-making Process to Determine Where to Relocate a Newer Dual Language Program

This qualitative research study used culturally responsive protocols to provide stakeholders in a small rural community access to a district’s decision-making process. Community stakeholders were tasked with making a recommendation for relocating its dual language program (DLP). The committee identified three themes to guide their decision making: (a) keep the school in one location, (b) maintain the culture, and (c) provide access to resources. Despite intentional protocols used, barriers remained that impacted committee members’ level of engagement and participation. Key factors contributing to a lack of engagement included insufficient time and lack of trust. Additionally, native Spanish speakers (NSS) and nonheritage English-speaking participants identified language access, lack of resources, and lack of trust as barriers. The small sample size did not provide an equitable representation of stakeholders. Implications for this study suggest the need for districts to consider the following strategies when engaging a cross representative group of community stakeholders in decision-making processes: (a) extend more time to make decisions, (b) provide linguistic access, (c) take time to establish trust, (d) increase/recruit the number of NSS and nonheritage English speakers on committees and (e) identify allies who can help nonheritage English speakers navigate the unfamiliar U.S. educational system and serve as advocates in a culturally responsive manner. A deliberate and well-developed equity plan can help mitigate and remove barriers for all participants to engage equitably in discussions and processes to benefit student outcomes

Leadership considerations for executive vice chairs, new chairs, and chairs in the 21st century.

The need to fulfill academic goals in the context of significant economic challenges, new regulatory requirements, and ever-changing expectations for leadership requires continuous adaptation. This paper serves as an educational resource for emerging leaders from the literature, national leaders, and other “best practices” in the following domains: 1. Mentorship; 2. Faculty Development; 3. Promotion; 4. Demonstrating value in each of the academic missions; 5. Marketing and communications; and 6. Barrier

Salary, Benefits Packages, and Negotiation Skills for Nurse Practitioners

Currently, there are nearly 250,000 practicing nurse practitioners providing care in a broad variety of healthcare settings, and that number is growing by three to four thousand every year. Historically, nurse practitioners have been paid a salary commensurate with experience. As the healthcare market changes, so too is the way NPs are being paid. It is imperative that nurse practitioner students are educated and knowledgeable about nurse practitioner salary, benefits packages and negotiation techniques. This information is necessary to make informed decisions on these matters, and before signing any formal contract. Through a substantial literature review, it was determined there was a paucity of information detailing what new graduates can expect regarding compensation and benefits packages; and negotiation techniques necessary to be successful during the interview and hiring process. The purpose of this project was to determine if educating nurse practitioner students on compensation, benefits packages and negotiation skills allows them to feel an increased sense of confidence and understanding of this process so they feel better equipped to fully evaluate and negotiate job offers. A 90-minute presentation was given to NP students on these matters at a small, midwestern University. A pre- and posttest format was used. The findings were significant, showing that prior to the intervention students felt vastly unprepared to discuss and negotiate salary and benefits packages with potential employers. The authors also found that the presentation of information on these matters significantly increased their confidence and helped them feel better prepared to participate in this process. For sustainability, the authors plan to copyright the information and present in both poster and podium format

Tracking the dynamic nature of learner individual differences: Initial results from a longitudinal study

Individual differences (IDs) have long been considered one of the most important factors explaining variable rates and outcomes in second language acquisition (Dewaele, 2013). While traditional operationalizations of IDs have, explicitly or implicitly, assumed that IDs are static traits that are stable through time, more recent research inspired by complex dynamic systems theory (Larsen-Freeman, 1997, 2020) demonstrates that many IDs are dynamic and variable through time and across contexts, a theme echoed throughout the current issue. This study reports the initial semester of a diachronic project investigating the dynamicity of four learner IDs: motivation, personality, learning and cognitive styles, and working memory. In the initial semester, data from 323 participants in their first year of university-level Spanish were collected and analyzed to determine what type of variability may be present across learners with respect to the four IDs studied at one time point and to discern possible learner profiles in the data or patterns via which the data may be otherwise meaningfully described. The results revealed four types of learner profiles present in the dataset

Multi-Pattern Visual Statistical Learning in Monolinguals and Bilinguals

To date, the impact of bilingualism on statistical learning remains unclear. Here we test a novel visual statistical learning task that affords simultaneous learning of two types of regularities: co-occurrence regularities between pairs of elements and the co-occurrence of visual features that could define categories. We compared performance by English monolinguals, Spanish-Catalan bilinguals and Spanish-English bilinguals, as previous studies have suggested that bilinguals might be more open than monolinguals to the presence of multiple regularities, though no previous studies have tested the learning of multiple patterns within a single task. We demonstrated that both monolingual and bilingual participants could learn the co-occurrence probabilities and the features that define categories. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to demonstrate that learners can extract co-occurrence regularities along two dimensions in the visual modality. However, we did not detect significant differences in performance across groups. We close by discussing the implications for the growing literature on bilingualism and statistical learning