Results 1 - 10
of
31
Vocabulary acquisition from extensive reading: A case study”. Reading in a Foreign Language 18
, 2006
"... A number of studies have shown that second language learners acquire vocabulary through reading, but only relatively small amounts. However, most of these studies used only short texts, measured only the acquisition of meaning, and did not credit partial learning of words. This case study of a learn ..."
Abstract
-
Cited by 44 (1 self)
- Add to MetaCart
A number of studies have shown that second language learners acquire vocabulary through reading, but only relatively small amounts. However, most of these studies used only short texts, measured only the acquisition of meaning, and did not credit partial learning of words. This case study of a learner of French explores whether an extensive reading program can enhance lexical knowledge. The study assessed a relatively large number of words (133), and examined whether one month of extensive reading enhanced knowledge of these target words ' spelling, meaning, and grammatical characteristics. The measurement procedure was a one-on-one interview that allowed a very good indication of whether learning occurred. The study also explores how vocabulary acquisition varies according to how often words are encountered in the texts. The results showed that knowledge of 65 % of the target words was enhanced in some way, for a pickup rate of about 1 of every 1.5 words tested. Spelling was strongly enhanced, even from a small number of exposures. Meaning and grammatical knowledge were also enhanced, but not to the same extent. Overall, the study indicates that more vocabulary acquisition is possible from extensive reading than previous studies have suggested.
A framework for developing EFL reading vocabulary. Reading in a Foreign Language
, 2005
"... ..."
(Show Context)
Derivative word forms: what do learners know?
- TESOL QUARTERLY
, 2002
"... Some teachers and researchers may assume that when a learner knows one member of a word family (e.g., stimulate), the other members (e.g., stimulant, stimulative) are relatively easy to learn. Although knowing one member of a word family undoubtedly facilitates receptive mastery of the other members ..."
Abstract
-
Cited by 17 (4 self)
- Add to MetaCart
Some teachers and researchers may assume that when a learner knows one member of a word family (e.g., stimulate), the other members (e.g., stimulant, stimulative) are relatively easy to learn. Although knowing one member of a word family undoubtedly facilitates receptive mastery of the other members, the small amount of previous research has suggested that L2 learners often have problems producing the various derivative forms within a word family. This study examined the ability of 106 graduate and undergraduate nonnative-English-speaking students to produce appropriate derivatives in the four major word classes (i.e., noun, verb, adjective, and adverb) for 16 prompt words. The results indicated that it was relatively uncommon for subjects to know either all of the four word forms or none of them. Subjects usually had partial knowledge of the derivatives, with productive knowledge of two or three forms being typical. In a comparison of derivational mastery and knowledge of the prompt words on a four-stage developmental scale,
VOCABULARY, PROFICIENCY AND READING COMPREHENSION
"... This study set out to empirically determine the reliability and validity of the Vocabulary Levels Tests, both the passive and productive versions. Furthermore, attempt was made to investigate the nature of the students ' vocabulary knowledge with regard to their passive and active knowledge of ..."
Abstract
-
Cited by 10 (0 self)
- Add to MetaCart
(Show Context)
This study set out to empirically determine the reliability and validity of the Vocabulary Levels Tests, both the passive and productive versions. Furthermore, attempt was made to investigate the nature of the students ' vocabulary knowledge with regard to their passive and active knowledge of the L2 words as a whole and at different word frequency levels. Moreover, the relationships between these two types of vocabulary knowledge and the learners ' proficiency level and reading comprehension ability were studied. And finally, it was scrutinized if there were any significant differences between the High and Low proficient learners and also English majors and non-majors ' passive and active vocabularies. Three tests, the Vocabulary Levels Test, the Productive Version of the Vocabulary Levels Test, and a TOEFL test, were administered to a group of 76 Iranian undergraduate students majoring in engineering and English Language and Literature. The results proved the Vocabulary Levels Tests to be reliable and valid tests of vocabulary size. The learners ' passive and active vocabularies were also found to be highly correlated as a whole and at each separate word-frequency level. Passive vocabulary was always larger than active vocabulary at all levels; however, the gap between the two increased at lower word-frequency levels. In addition, there was a high correlation between the learners ' vocabulary knowledge on the one hand and proficiency and reading comprehension ability on the other hand. It was also found that there was a statistically significant difference between the vocabulary knowledge of High proficient and Low proficient groups and also between the English majors and non-majors. The High proficient group and the English majors had greater passive and active vocabulary knowledge than their corresponding Low proficient group and the non-majors.
AN ANALYSIS OF CHINESE EFL LEARNERS ’ BELIEFS ABOUT THE ROLE OF ROTE LEARNING IN VOCABULARY LEARNING STRATEGIES
, 2004
"... iii To my dear parents, for their understanding and support This study sets out to investigate Chinese EFL learners ’ beliefs about the role of rote learning (RL) in vocabulary learning strategies. The focus of the study is Chinese EFL learners ’ culturally-influenced beliefs about their preference ..."
Abstract
-
Cited by 6 (0 self)
- Add to MetaCart
iii To my dear parents, for their understanding and support This study sets out to investigate Chinese EFL learners ’ beliefs about the role of rote learning (RL) in vocabulary learning strategies. The focus of the study is Chinese EFL learners ’ culturally-influenced beliefs about their preference for RL strategies as opposed to other memory strategies (MSs). Based on the literature, there is a widely held belief that Chinese EFL learners rely on RL and that they are passive learners. Although recent studies (e.g. Bond ed. 1996; Kember 1998; Kennedy 2002), have offered reinterpretations of the values concerning RL from Confucian heritage cultures (CHCs), no specific or systematic study appears to have been carried out to focus on RL to discover precisely how and why Chinese learners hold the belief that they rely on RL. What is more lamentable, there is no clear description of the features of RL and almost no consensus in the
Twist in the List: Frame Semantics as Vocabulary Teaching and Learning Tool
, 2011
"... Copyright by ..."
(Show Context)
Two Formats of Word Association Tasks: A Study of Depth of Word Knowledge
"... Vocabulary development is an essential goal in any language teaching program, and considering the multidimensional nature of this construct, achieving this goal needs effective assessment of all dimensions of word knowledge, i.e. breadth, depth and accessibility of word knowledge. Most of the curren ..."
Abstract
- Add to MetaCart
Vocabulary development is an essential goal in any language teaching program, and considering the multidimensional nature of this construct, achieving this goal needs effective assessment of all dimensions of word knowledge, i.e. breadth, depth and accessibility of word knowledge. Most of the current vocabulary assessment tools measure the breadth dimension of vocabulary (Christ, 2011). However, there have been studies which have developed Selective or Productive word association tasks (WAT) to measure depth of word knowledge (Meara & Fitzpatrick, 2000; Read, 1998). This study used both selective and productive WAT tasks to measure depth of word knowledge in 82 elementary and 71 advanced EFL learners to explore which format is better for assessing deep word knowledge for each group. Results showed that elementary learners did better in selective format while advanced learners acted better in productive format.
doi:10.1093/applin/amq017 Partial Word Form Learning in the Written Mode in L2 German and Spanish
"... Previous research on second language (L2) vocabulary learning has examined the relationship between word properties and learnability (e.g. Ellis and Beaton 1993). Few studies, however, have examined patterns in partial word form learning as a method of assessing learnability and improving our unders ..."
Abstract
- Add to MetaCart
(Show Context)
Previous research on second language (L2) vocabulary learning has examined the relationship between word properties and learnability (e.g. Ellis and Beaton 1993). Few studies, however, have examined patterns in partial word form learning as a method of assessing learnability and improving our understanding of allocation of processing resources during word-level input processing. Expanding on the research of Barcroft (2000b, 2008), the present study exam-ined partial word form learning in L2 German and Spanish while testing for effects of number of syllables in target words. Production data from an L1-to-L2 translation task (administered after a learning phase) were analyzed to determine percentage of partial versus fully produced words; amount of word produced in partial words; fragment length in partial words; and word-internal location of target letters. Results indicated production of approximately 49 percent more partial words than whole words, a high percentage of one-letter fragments, and privileging for word-initial position for both languages.
Exploring the Increase of Receptive Vocabulary Knowledge in the Foreign Language: A Longitudinal Study
"... This paper tracks the increase in the overall word reception knowledge of 224 young pupils in their 4th, 5th and 6th grades of primary education and in their 1st year of secondary education (7th grade), who learn EFL in a formal context. The 2,000 word frequency band of The Vocabulary Levels Test (S ..."
Abstract
- Add to MetaCart
(Show Context)
This paper tracks the increase in the overall word reception knowledge of 224 young pupils in their 4th, 5th and 6th grades of primary education and in their 1st year of secondary education (7th grade), who learn EFL in a formal context. The 2,000 word frequency band of The Vocabulary Levels Test (Schmitt, Schmitt and Clapham, 2001, version 2) is used to establish their word knowledge level. Results reveal that the development of these students’ receptive English vocabulary size is incremental and constant, and that it falls within the 1,000 frequency level. Learners increase their receptive vocabulary knowledge in a significant way from one grade to the next. The rate of the gain remains constant across grades.
