QUANTIFYING THE DIFFERENCE IN READING FLUENCY BETWEEN L1 AND L2 READERS OF ENGLISH

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-28
Author(s):  
Kelly Nisbet ◽  
Raymond Bertram ◽  
Charlotte Erlinghagen ◽  
Aleks Pieczykolan ◽  
Victor Kuperman
Keyword(s):  
Reading Fluency ◽  
Reading Speed ◽  
First Language ◽  
Statistical Prediction ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Linguistic Distance ◽  
Component Skills ◽  
Novel Method ◽  
The Difference ◽  
L1 And L2

Abstract This study is a comparative examination of reading behavior of first-language (L1) Canadian and second-language (L2) Finnish and German readers of English. We measured eye-movement patterns during reading the same set of English sentences and administered tests of English vocabulary, spelling, and exposure to print. The core of our study is a novel method of statistical prediction used to generate hypothetical Finnish and German participants with maximum observed L1 scores in all component skills. We found that with L1-like component skills, hypothetical German readers can show the same reading speed as the L1 group. We hypothesize this advantage comes from the small linguistic distance to English. Conversely, hypothetical Finnish readers remain disadvantaged even with maximum component skills, likely due to a larger linguistic distance. We discuss theoretical and applied implications of our method for L2 acquisition research.

scholarly journals Reading in English as a Foreign language: Examining differences in reading speed, comprehension, efficacy and L1 cross-linguistic influence across grades

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Àngels Llanes Baró
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Reading Fluency ◽  
Reading Speed ◽  
First Language ◽  
L2 Reading ◽  
English Reading ◽  
Fluency And Comprehension ◽  
Highly Correlated ◽  
Study Participants ◽  
L1 And L2

Reading in a second or foreign language (L2) is a more complicated process than reading in one's first language because it requires additional demands on the reader. Reading can be assessed from various domains. Reading fluency is known to be the most determining domain to identify reading problems (Rasinski, 2000). However, the goal of reading is comprehending a text, so comprehension should not be disregarded either. Despite the importance of reading in an L2, few studies have focused on examining its effects. The goal of the present study is threefold: first, to provide the estimates of L2 English reading rates of L1 Catalan/Spanish students of different ages and grades; second, to examine whether there are significant differences between participants of different grades in terms of reading rates, comprehension and efficacy; and third, to explore whether the students' reading rates in the L1 are correlated with their L2 reading rates and if so, the extent to which L1 reading rates explain L2 reading rates. 790 Catalan/Spanish learners of English participated in the present study. Participants were from 5th grade primary (age 12) to 2nd baccalaureate (age 18). They were asked to read two texts, one in English and the other one in their L1 (they could choose between Catalan or Spanish). They were asked to answer 7 multiple-choice comprehension questions after reading each text. Next, their scores on fluency (words read per minute), comprehension (percentage of comprehended text) and efficacy (a formula that integrates speed and comprehension) were obtained. Results show that reading fluency and comprehension are not linear and that they do not necessarily improve over time. Results also show that L1 and L2 reading fluency rates are highly correlated and that L1 reading rates explain a large percentage of L2 reading rates.

scholarly journals Reading in English as a Foreign language: Examining differences in reading speed, comprehension, efficacy and L1 cross-linguistic influence across grades

2018 ◽  
pp. 1-49
Author(s):  
Àngels Llanes Baró
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Reading Fluency ◽  
Reading Speed ◽  
First Language ◽  
L2 Reading ◽  
English Reading ◽  
Fluency And Comprehension ◽  
Highly Correlated ◽  
Study Participants ◽  
L1 And L2

Reading in a second or foreign language (L2) is a more complicated process than reading in one's first language because it requires additional demands on the reader. Reading can be assessed from various domains. Reading fluency is known to be the most determining domain to identify reading problems (Rasinski, 2000). However, the goal of reading is comprehending a text, so comprehension should not be disregarded either. Despite the importance of reading in an L2, few studies have focused on examining its effects. The goal of the present study is threefold: first, to provide the estimates of L2 English reading rates of L1 Catalan/Spanish students of different ages and grades; second, to examine whether there are significant differences between participants of different grades in terms of reading rates, comprehension and efficacy; and third, to explore whether the students' reading rates in the L1 are correlated with their L2 reading rates and if so, the extent to which L1 reading rates explain L2 reading rates. 790 Catalan/Spanish learners of English participated in the present study. Participants were from 5th grade primary (age 12) to 2nd baccalaureate (age 18). They were asked to read two texts, one in English and the other one in their L1 (they could choose between Catalan or Spanish). They were asked to answer 7 multiple-choice comprehension questions after reading each text. Next, their scores on fluency (words read per minute), comprehension (percentage of comprehended text) and efficacy (a formula that integrates speed and comprehension) were obtained. Results show that reading fluency and comprehension are not linear and that they do not necessarily improve over time. Results also show that L1 and L2 reading fluency rates are highly correlated and that L1 reading rates explain a large percentage of L2 reading rates.

On the Difference Between L1 and L2 Acquisition of Phonology

1987 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 245-259
Author(s):  
Terry Piper
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
First Language ◽  
First Language Acquisition ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Sound System ◽  
Phonological Processes ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
The Difference ◽  
L1 And L2

It has been argued extensively that children acquiring a second language (L2) simplify the target sounds of that language using the same phonological processes as children use in acquiring their first language (L1) (cf. Hecht and Mulford 1982; Piper, 1984a, 1984b; Garnica and Herbert 1979). Since these processes are generally thought to be universal, it is not surprising that this should be the case. Nevertheless, there are differences between L1 and L2 learners both in the simplification processes they use and in the way they use them. Some processes do not appear at all or appear unsystematically in L2 learners; some processes are retained much longer by L2 learners than would be expected given their early disappearance in L1 learners. In this paper, I take a closer look at the incidence, duration and systematicity of these processes in the developing phonology of ten ESL children, and attempt to demonstrate some ways in which normal acquisition of the L2 sound system by children differs from first language acquisition.

The acquisition of word order in Dutch and German as L1 and L2

1988 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Jordens
Keyword(s):  
Simple Model ◽  
Adult Learners ◽  
Word Order ◽  
Universal Grammar ◽  
First Language ◽  
Linguistic Theory ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
German Word ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
L1 And L2

In a recent paper, Clahsen and Muysken (1986) argue that children acquiring German as their first language have access to the 'move alpha' matrix when constructing a grammar for German. This should explain why children have SOV base order and the rule of verb-fronting from the very beginning. In this paper, it is argued that children's OV utterances cannot be related trans formationally to VO utterances. Initially, children acquire OV and VO with different sets of verbs.Clahsen and Muysken (1986) also claim that interlanguage rules of adult L2 learners are not definable in linguistic theory. Du Plessis et al. (1987) reply to this in arguing that the interlanguage rules of adults acquiring L2 German word order fall within the range of systems permitted by the Headedness parameter, the Proper Government parameter, and the Adjunction parameter. Therefore, these adult learners should have access to Universal Grammar (UG). It is argued here that it is not necessary to make this assumption. The L2-acquisition data can be easily accounted for within a simple model of L1-structural transfer.

scholarly journals Morphological awareness in L1 and L2 reading skills

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vassiliki Tsela ◽  
Georgia Andreou ◽  
Maria Liakou ◽  
Julie Baseki
Keyword(s):  
Reading Fluency ◽  
Reading Skills ◽  
First Language ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Morphological Awareness ◽  
L2 Reading ◽  
Reading Efficiency ◽  
Fluency And Comprehension ◽  
Student’S Performance ◽  
L1 And L2

The present study investigated the effect of morphological awareness on three measures of reading, namely decoding, fluency and comprehension, in Greek as a first language (L1) and in French as a foreign language (L2). Morphological awareness was assessed via two tasks, a verb inflection task and a word production task. The results of this study indicated that the student’s performance in the two morphological tasks was significantly associated with their performance in the reading tasks. Our results support our hypothesis that morphological awareness can be a significant predictor of the high or low performances in decoding, reading fluency and reading comprehension in both L1 and L2 and it plays a critical role in reading efficiency.

scholarly journals Factors Modifying the Amount of Neuroanatomical Overlap between Languages in Bilinguals—A Systematic Review of Neurosurgical Language Mapping Studies

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 983
Author(s):  
Monika M. Połczyńska ◽  
Susan Y. Bookheimer
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Early Age ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Linguistic Distance ◽  
Language Mapping ◽  
Neural Representations ◽  
Neurosurgical Patients ◽  
Two Factors ◽  
Language Areas ◽  
L1 And L2

Neurosurgery on individuals with lesions around language areas becomes even more complicated when the patient is bilingual. It is thus important to understand the principles that predict the likelihood of convergent versus separate neuroanatomical organization of the first (L1) and the second language (L2) in these individuals. We reviewed all English-language publications on neurosurgical language mapping in bilinguals before January 2020 in three databases (e.g., PubMed). Our search yielded 28 studies with 207 participants. The reviewed data suggest several principles of language organization in bilingual neurosurgical patients: (1) separate cortical areas uniquely dedicated to each language in both anterior and posterior language sites are the rule rather than occasional findings, (2) In cases where there was a convergent neuroanatomical representation for L1 and L2, two factors explained the overlap: an early age of L2 acquisition and a small linguistic distance between L1 and L2 and (3) When L1 and L2 diverged neuroanatomically, more L1-specific sites were identified for early age of L2 acquisition, high L2 proficiency and a larger linguistic distance. This work provides initial evidence-based principles predicting the likelihood of converging versus separate neural representations of L1 and L2 in neurosurgical patients.

scholarly journals Impact of Timed Reading on Comprehension and Speed: A Study on Turkish EFL Learners

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 204
Author(s):  
Kiymet Selin Armagan ◽  
Zubeyde Sinem Genc
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Reading Fluency ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Reading Speed ◽  
Reading Process ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Good And Poor Readers ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
The Impact

Reading process has always been one of the most significant and debatable topics in the area of learning and teaching languages. Reading process in mother tongue (L1) and in a foreign language (L2), the association of these processes, variables affecting reading and the qualities of good and poor readers in L1 and L2 have been investigated greatly. Developments in the area of reading in L1 have frequently raised questions about reading in L2 and a variety of theories have been proposed to account for the relationship between L1 and L2 reading. One of the most fundamental questions raised is related to “reading fluency”. Even though the importance of reading fluency in both L1 and L2 has been emphasized, studies on fluency in L2 are still scarce if we think about its more complicated and multifaceted nature when compared to reading fluency in L1. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of timed reading practices on the comprehension level and reading speed of learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) in Turkish context. A total of 74 students were the participants, who were randomly divided into two groups: experimental and control group. Experimental group received timed reading activities while the control group did not. Pre-test was applied on the 1st week and post-test was applied on the 7th week. Results illustrated that timed reading intervention positively affected EFL students’ comprehension level and reading speed. Implications for teaching reading in a foreign language were discussed in relation to a number of important details in the findings.

scholarly journals When timing is everything: Age of first-language acquisition effects on second-language learning

2007 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 537-549 ◽  
Author(s):  
RACHEL I. MAYBERRY
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
First Language ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Linguistic Structure ◽  
Specific Effects ◽  
Sensory Motor ◽  
L1 Acquisition ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
Motor Modality

The present paper summarizes three experiments that investigate the effects of age of acquisition on first-language (L1) acquisition in relation to second-language (L2) outcome. The experiments use the unique acquisition situations of childhood deafness and sign language. The key factors controlled across the studies are age of L1 acquisition, the sensory–motor modality of the language, and level of linguistic structure. Findings consistent across the studies show age of L1 acquisition to be a determining factor in the success of both L1 and L2 acquisition. Sensory–motor modality shows no general or specific effects. It is of importance that the effects of age of L1 acquisition on both L1 and L2 outcome are apparent across levels of linguistic structure, namely, syntax, phonology, and the lexicon. The results demonstrate that L1 acquisition bestows not only facility with the linguistic structure of the L1, but also the ability to learn linguistic structure in the L2.

The storage and composition of inflected forms in adult-learned second language: A study of the influence of length of residence, age of arrival, sex, and other factors

2012 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 820-840 ◽  
Author(s):  
LAURA BABCOCK ◽  
JOHN C. STOWE ◽  
CHRISTOPHER J. MALOOF ◽  
CLAUDIA BROVETTO ◽  
MICHAEL T. ULLMAN
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
First Language ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Past Tense ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Length Of Residence ◽  
Frequency Effects ◽  
Irregular Verbs ◽  
Past Tenses ◽  
L1 And L2

It remains unclear whether adult-learned second language (L2) depends on similar or different neurocognitive mechanisms as those involved in first language (L1). We examined whether English past tense forms are computed similarly or differently by L1 and L2 English speakers, and what factors might affect this: regularity (regular vs. irregular verbs), length of L2 exposure (length of residence), age of L2 acquisition (age of arrival), L2 learners’ native language (Chinese vs. Spanish), and sex (male vs. female). Past tense frequency effects were used to examine the type of computation (composition vs. storage/retrieval). The results suggest that irregular past tenses are always stored. Regular past tenses, however, are either composed or stored, as a function of various factors: both sexes store regulars in L2, but only females in L1; greater lengths of residence lead to less dependence on storage, but only in females; higher adult ages of arrival lead to more reliance on storage. The findings suggest that inflected forms can rely on either the same or different mechanisms in L2 as they do in L1, and that this varies as a function of multiple interacting factors.

scholarly journals Investigating the acquisition of the Split-IP parameter and the V2 parameter in second language Afrikaans

2006 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 64-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simone Conradie
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
English Learners ◽  
Universal Grammar ◽  
First Language ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Parameter Resetting ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
Parameter Values

Researchers who assume that Universal Grammar (UG) plays a role in second language (L2) acquisition are still debating whether L2 learners have access to UG in its entirety (the Full Access hypothesis; e.g. Schwartz and Sprouse, 1994; 1996; White, 1989; 2003) or only to those aspects of UG that are instantiated in their first language (L1) grammar (the No Parameter Resetting hypothesis; e.g. Hawkins and Chan, 1997). The Full Access hypothesis predicts that parameter resetting will be possible where the L1 and L2 differ in parameter values, whereas the No Parameter Resetting hypothesis predicts that parameter resetting will not be possible. These hypotheses are tested in a study examining whether English-speaking learners of Afrikaans can reset the Split-IP parameter (SIP) (Thráinsson, 1996) and the V2 parameter from their L1 ([-SIP], [-V2]) to their L2 ([+SIP], [+V2]) values. 15 advanced English learners of Afrikaans and 10 native speakers of Afrikaans completed three tasks: a sentence manipulation task, a grammaticality judgement task and a truth-value judgement task. Results suggest that the interlanguage grammars of the L2 learners are [+SIP] and [+V2] (unlike the L1), providing evidence for the Full Access hypothesis.

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