Vocabulary knowledge is a critical determinant of the difference in reading comprehension growth between first and second language learners

This study aimed at assessing reading rates for learners in grade seven English second language (ESL) in Morogoro region, Tanzania. A total of 220 participants were randomly selected and assigned two grade appropriate English texts to read so as determine their reading rates. Fluency scale test was used to assess pupils’ reading fluency rates and the data was statistically analysed using SPSS software. It was necessary to asses pupils’ reading rates in the study context because there are no established fluency rate norms set for grade seven pupils in the country. In this case the current study serves as a reference for improvement. Results show that grade seven pupils in Morogoro region had an average reading fluency rate of 101words per minute (WPM) for fiction text and 95WPM for non-fiction text. The difference in the two texts can be due to the length of words and difficulty level in non-fiction text against fiction text. The scored rate is below the adopted benchmarks which implies that these pupils are at risk in reading fluency, consequently, calling for immediate interventions.

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Is Receptive Vocabulary Knowledge a Predictor for English as a Second Language Learners’ Level of Speaking Performance?

Advanced Science Letters ◽

10.1166/asl.2017.7601 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 23 (4) ◽

pp. 2907-2910

Author(s):

Nor Hazwani Munirah Lateh ◽

Sarimah Shamsudin ◽

Manvender Kaur Sarjit Singh ◽

Seriaznita Mat Said

Keyword(s):

Second Language ◽

Language Learners ◽

Second Language Learners ◽

Vocabulary Knowledge ◽

Receptive Vocabulary ◽

Speaking Performance

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The Impact of Video-based Materials on Chinese-Speaking Learners’ English Text Comprehension

English Language Teaching ◽

10.5539/elt.v9n10p1 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 9 (10) ◽

pp. 1

Author(s):

Lu-Fang Lin

Keyword(s):

Second Language ◽

Reading Comprehension ◽

Language Learners ◽

Text Comprehension ◽

Second Language Learners ◽

Second Language Reading ◽

Treatment Groups ◽

Reading Comprehension Instruction ◽

Second Language Reading Comprehension ◽

The Impact

<p>This study investigated whether video-based materials can facilitate second language learners’ text comprehension at the levels of macrostructure and microstructure. Three classes inclusive of 98 Chinese-speaking university students joined this study. The three classes were randomly assigned to three treatment groups: on-screen text (T Group), concurrent narration with on-screen text (NT Group), and video with concurrent narration and on-screen text (VNT Group). The data were collected through the macrostructure and microstructure reading comprehension pre- and post-tests and the immediate test. The statistic results of the immediate test and the post-tests showed that the VNT group performed significantly better on the macrostructure comprehension than the T and NT groups. Armed with the perspectives of multiliteracies and the significant results, the study makes instructional recommendations to integrate video in second-language reading comprehension instruction.</p>

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Lexical Competence and Reading Comprehension: A Pilot Study with Heritage Language Learners of Spanish

GiST Education and Learning Research Journal ◽

10.26817/16925777.312 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 56-74

Author(s):

Edna Velásquez

Keyword(s):

Second Language ◽

Reading Comprehension ◽

Language Learners ◽

Heritage Language ◽

Vocabulary Knowledge ◽

Heritage Language Learners ◽

Logarithmic Function ◽

Newspaper Article ◽

Lexical Competence ◽

The Relationship

The basic questions that guide this study are: (a) what percentage of vocabulary from a passage would a Spanish learner need to know to demonstrate ‘adequate’ (a score of 70 out of 100) comprehension of it? And, (b) what type of curve would best describe the relationship between vocabulary knowledge and reading comprehension? Fifty-three students enrolled in two courses of Spanish as a Heritage Language (SHL) at a metropolitan university read a newspaper article, underlined the unknown vocabulary and then answered a reading comprehension test. Our findings suggest, as in previous studies for English as a Second Language (ESL), that a 98% of vocabulary coverage is needed to show adequate comprehension of an authentic passage. The curve that best describes this relationship was not linear as they concluded but was similar to a logarithmic function, which appears to suggest a relationship that obeys to a law of diminishing returns for Spanish as a Second Language (SSL) reading.

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Measuring the Vocabulary Knowledge of Hong Kong Primary School Second Language Learners Through Word Associations: Implications for Reading Literacy

English Literacy Instruction for Chinese Speakers ◽

10.1007/978-981-13-6653-6_3 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 35-56

Author(s):

Qing Ma ◽

Hung Yuk Lee

Keyword(s):

Second Language ◽

Hong Kong ◽

Primary School ◽

Language Learners ◽

Second Language Learners ◽

Vocabulary Knowledge ◽

Reading Literacy ◽

Word Associations

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Markedness and Second Language Acquisition

Studies in Second Language Acquisition ◽

10.1017/s0272263100006689 ◽

1987 ◽

Vol 9 (3) ◽

pp. 261-285 ◽

Cited By ~ 39

Author(s):

Lydia White

Keyword(s):

Second Language ◽

Second Language Acquisition ◽

Language Learners ◽

Second Language Learners ◽

Native Language ◽

Double Object ◽

Double Object Construction ◽

Object Construction ◽

Preposition Stranding ◽

The Difference

In this paper, various definitions of markedness are discussed, including the difference in the assumptions underlying psychological and linguistic approaches to markedness. It is proposed that if one adopts a definition derived from theories of language learnability, then the second language learner's prior linguistic experience may predispose him or her towards transferring marked structures from the first language to the second, contrary to usual assumptions in the literature that suggest that second language learners will avoid marked forms. To test this hypothesis, adult and child learners of French as a second language were tested using grammaticality judgment tasks on two marked structures, preposition stranding and the double object construction, which are grammatical in English but ungrammatical in French, to see if they would accept French versions of these structures. It was found that the second language learners did not accept preposition stranding in French but did accept the double object construction, suggesting that transfer takes place only with one of the two marked structures. In addition, the children took tests on these structures in their native language to see if they perceived them as in any sense psycholinguistically marked. Results show that they do not treat marked and unmarked structures differently in the native language. It is suggested that the concept of markedness may cover a range of phenomena that need to be further clarified and investigated.

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