Second language program evaluation has in recent years included an increasing variety of
analytical methods.
These methods range from experimental or quasi-experimental to
With such variation in research
ethnographic (Alderson and Beretta, 1992; Lynch, 1996).
methods, it has become considerably more difficult to summarize second language program
evaluations in a comprehensive manner that can provide aggregate effect size estimations.
Despite this difficulty, there continues to be a need for general summative overviews of
language education program outcomes.
One motivation for establishing a general
overview of the product of second language program evaluations is that it potentially
provides an aid to program developers and curriculum designers.