scholarly journals Cloze Test and C-test Revisited: Appraising Collocational Competence on Second Language Learners’ Performance

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 50
Author(s):  
Mustapha Hajebi ◽  
Hosna Zarei
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Quantitative Research ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Advanced Proficiency ◽  
Cloze Test

The current study tried to investigate the particular role of the text in EFL learners’ performance on three types of tests, i.e. cloze test, C-test and open-ended test. This study aimed at comparing three test types of cloze test, C-test and open-ended test in measuring collocational knowledge of Iranian EFL learners. This was a quantitative research. This type of research placed more emphases on collecting data in the form of numbers. To this end, 84 Persian EFL learners were selected. They were both male and female with intermediate and advanced proficiency groups. The results showed that advanced participants in all of these three tests performed much more efficiently compared to their intermediate peers and indicated more collocational competence. The findings of this study had some implications for language learners, EFL instructors and material developers.

scholarly journals Shadow-Reading Effect on Reading Comprehension: Actualization of Interactive Reading Comprehension: (A Vygotskyan View!)

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elahe Sadeghi ◽  
Akbar Afghari ◽  
Gholam-Reza Zarei
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Reading Comprehension ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Main Concern ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Language Classrooms ◽  
Post Test ◽  
And Control

<p>Reading comprehension has been the main concern for second language learners and researchers. Today with rising interests towards Vygotskyan Sociocultural Theory (SCT), attempts have been made to insert Vygotskyan approach into Foreign/Second Language classrooms emphasizing the role of scaffolding and meaningful interactions to promote learners’ comprehension. Having this on mind, the current study used shadow-reading as a means of meaning internalization to see if it affects on reading comprehension. To this end, 52 junior EFL learners from two universities were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. A pretest of reading comprehension including 4 reading passages with 20 Multiple Choice items was administered to the learners to see if they were at the similar level of reading comprehension. During 10 sessions, the learners were provided with shadow-reading strategy in which they were required to listen and repeat the passage in a well-disciplined imitative task and, then summarize what they had comprehended from the text. A reading comprehension post test was also administered at the end of the semester after 10 sessions of conducting shadowing. The data of the first and the last sessions was analysed. The findings of the study showed that shadow-reading has significantly influenced learners’ comprehension. The results also lent support to Vygotskyan theory in that using shadowing as a means of meaningful imitation and interaction facilitates comprehension among learners. The results also shed light on the way through which instructors try to promote learners’ comprehension. It seems that shadow reading due to its sociocultural traits can be used as an appropriate means of promoting reading comprehension all over the world.</p>

Phonological awareness in young second language learners

1995 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 307-324 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maggie Bruck ◽  
Fred Genesee
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Phonological Awareness ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Phoneme Awareness ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Group Differences ◽  
Bilingual Group ◽  
English Speaking

ABSTRACTEnglish-speaking children (N = 91) who were attending French schools (bilingual group) were given a battery of phonological awareness tests in kindergarten and in grade 1. At the time of kindergarten testing the mean age of the children was 5:9. Their performance was compared to age-matched English-speaking children (N = 72) attending English schools (monolingual group). The bilingual children showed heightened levels of phonological awareness skills in kindergarten in the area of onset-rime awareness. By grade 1, the pattern of group differences was more complex. The monolingual and bilingual children performed similarly on onset-rime segmentation tasks. The monolingual children had higher phoneme awareness scores than their French-schooled peers; this result is interpreted to reflect the role of literacy instruction on phoneme awareness development. In comparison, the bilingual children had higher syllable segmentation scores than their monolingual peers. This result is interpreted to reflect the role of second language input on phonological awareness.

scholarly journals Assessing Collocational Competence by Probating Emotioncy: Testing the Mediating Role of Gender in Educational Dimensions

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (7) ◽  
pp. 123
Author(s):  
Mustapha Hajebi ◽  
Sadegh Ghaffary
Keyword(s):  
Quantitative Methods ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
Inadequate Knowledge ◽  
Advanced Proficiency ◽  
Cloze Test

The purpose of this paper was to examine at shedding more light into the effectiveness of emotioncy on gender in assessing Persian EFL learners’ collocational competence. This study used quantitative methods and the learners were from both intermediate and advanced proficiency groups. The results indicated that male participants who received emotioncy levels performed more efficiently on C-test and open ended test in comparison with females who recorded better performance on cloze test. The study suggested important results for EFL instructors that teacher’s experiences showed Iranian EFL learners generally have inadequate knowledge of English collocations in particular of restricted collocations. Moreover, some participants in this study believed that collocations could not be regarded as something that EFL learners could acquire without any instruction; therefore, it was essential to incorporate collocation instruction into EFL reading classes. The findings could help teachers and curriculum designers to classify errors in a continuum ranging from the least to the most problematic ones.

Gestures by advanced Spanish-English second-language learners

Gesture ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 143-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jody Sherman ◽  
Elena Nicoladis
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
English Second Language ◽  
Symbolic Gestures ◽  
L1 English

We examined the role of deictic (i.e., point) and symbolic (i.e., imagistic) gestures in advanced Spanish-English second-language learners to determine whether the role of gestures is consistent with that of intermediate second-language learners (i.e., Gullberg, 1998). Participants (10 L1 Spanish and 10 L1 English) watched two short cartoons and re-told the stories in both of their languages to native-speaking listeners who had never seen the film. Gestures were coded and analyzed in relation to word types from the verbal narratives. We found that participants used more deictic gestures in their second language, similar to the trend noted in previous research. Contrary to research with low or intermediate proficiency participants, however, symbolic gestures did not appear related to proficiency. Possible reasons for the differences in gesture use by proficiency are discussed.

scholarly journals An Overview of the Persian EFL learners’ Spelling Difficulties

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 127
Author(s):  
Maryam Alipour ◽  
Khazriyati Salehuddin ◽  
Siti Hamin Stapa
Keyword(s):  
Language Learners ◽  
English Language ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
First Language ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Comprehensive Literature Review ◽  
Conceptual Paper ◽  
English Spelling

Spelling is considered a difficult skill for foreign and second language learners of English as the ability to spell in English language comes with a lot of effort, particularly when the English spelling system is known to be a complex system, even among native speakers. The difficulties could be linguistic and extra-linguistic. This conceptual paper reviews the differences and similarities between English and Persian spelling system, the sages of spelling difficulties among children, particularly the approach suggested by Tabrizi, Tabrizi, and Tabrizi (2013)in which the stages of learning spelling among Iranian learners are analyzed. The types of morphological, phonological, and orthographical spelling difficulties, factors contributing to the spelling difficulty, as well as a comprehensive literature review of EFL studies conducted on English spelling are provided in this paper. Finally, the mental processing and the role of memory are discussed briefly. It was concluded that examining the differences between the learners’ first language and English language may provide useful insights into the English spelling problems faced by EFL learners.

scholarly journals Litteraturarbete i ett svenska som andraspråksklassrum

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 9
Author(s):  
Catarina Economou
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Field Studies ◽  
Language Instruction ◽  
Second Language Instruction ◽  
Literature Teaching ◽  
Upper Secondary ◽  
Literature Pedagogy

AbstractThis article considers the role of reading fiction in Swedish as a second language instruction. The study examines how a group of advanced second language learners in a Swedish upper secondary school read, interpret and discuss a contemporary Swedish novel, how they interact with the text and with each other in relation to the text. Furthermore, it analyses which forms of reading the students use. It is a qualitative, empirical study based on field studies, transcriptions of tape recorded interaction and of written texts. The results indicate that second language learners in this context have a positive attitude towards reading and discussing what they read using several forms of reading. They often compare the content of the text to their own lives. One conclusion is that literature teaching and literature can be integrated into one Swedish subject in order to create even more meaningful interactions between students from different backgrounds. Another is that literature can be a means of language development as well as personal development.Keywords: Second language learners, literature pedagogy and didactics, forms of reading, democracy. SammandragDenna artikel handlar om skönlitteraturens roll i skolämnet svenska som andraspråk. Studien undersöker hur en grupp avancerade andraspråksinlärare i en svensk gymnasieskola läser, tolkar och diskuterar en modern svensk roman och hur de interagerar med texten och med varandra i relation till texten. Dessutom analyseras vilka läsarter som eleverna använde sig av. Den är en kvalitativ, empirisk studie som baseras på fältstudier, transkriptioner av inspelade boksamtal och elevtexter. Resultaten visar att andraspråkseleverna hade en positiv attityd till boksamtal och de använde sig av flera läsarter. De jämförde ofta texten till sina egna liv och erfarenheter.  En slutsats är att litteraturundervisning och litteraturarbete skulle kunna integreras i ett gemensamt ämne så att ännu mer meningsfulla samtal mellan elever från olika bakgrund. Dessutom kan litteratur bli ett medel för personlighetsutveckling liksom för språkutveckling.Nyckelord: Andraspråkselever, litteraturpedagogik och didaktik, läsarter, demokrati.  

scholarly journals The role of working memory in young second language learners’ written performances

2019 ◽  
Vol 45 ◽  
pp. 31-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marije Michel ◽  
Judit Kormos ◽  
Tineke Brunfaut ◽  
Michael Ratajczak
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners
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