scholarly journals Grammar and vocabulary testing scores in L2 reading

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-21
Author(s):  
Anna Mouti ◽  
George S. Ypsilandis

In language testing bibliography, it has been suggested that L2 grammar and vocabulary scores strongly and positively correlate with L2 reading comprehension. Jeon and Yamashita (2014), conducting a large-scale meta-analysis study, found strong correlations among these two variables: r=.85 for grammar and r=.79 for vocabulary in different tasks. Following this paradigm, the current study examines this relationship (performance on reading skills and language use – grammar and vocabulary) integrated into a single testlet/paper. The hypothesis is tested by examining scores in reading skills and language use (in which grammar an..d vocabulary items are included) extracted from a large authentic sample in Greece with Italian as the target language. Further, any correlation between the acquisition or learning of these sub-skills is assessed. It was found that the two variables do indeed correlate statistically, although the strength of the correlation is not very high. In that respect, this work confirms findings of earlier studies reported in the literature review. This analysis results in several hypotheses which relate to the possible interpretations of the results. This study wishes to contribute to the discussion by adding results from a Greek context using Italian as the target L2.

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
pp. 873-900
Author(s):  
Jihye Shin

AbstractDespite the increasing attention paid to the role of working memory in reading, findings and measurement of working memory have been inconsistent. The current meta-analysis aims to provide a quantitative description of the overall relationship between second language (L2) reading comprehension and working memory measured through reading span task and identify methodological features that moderate this relationship. Following a comprehensive search, 25 primary studies (23 peer-reviewed studies and 2 dissertations) were included comprising 37 unique samples (N = 2,682), all of which were coded for substantive and methodological features. The results showed that (a) there is a moderate relationship between L2 reading comprehension and working memory (r = .30), (b) reading span task features such as the scoring procedure, task language, and final word recall order moderate this relationship, and (c) the degree to which working memory’s involvement in L2 reading comprehension may vary depending on the type of reading tasks at hand. Implications are discussed in terms of conceptualization and measurement of working memory. Future directions are also offered in relation to measurement practices to encourage consistency and to improve our understanding of the link between working memory and L2 reading comprehension.


2014 ◽  
Vol 64 (1) ◽  
pp. 160-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eun Hee Jeon ◽  
Junko Yamashita

1986 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 201-211 ◽  
Author(s):  
James F. Lee

The free written recall task is used in much current L2 reading research (Bernhardt, 1983; Carrell, 1983, 1984a, 1984b; Connor, 1984; Lee & Ballman, in press). An examination of the work using this task as a measure of comprehension reveals variation in design and findings: measurement of quantity recalled, method of textual analysis, the language used to recall, the level of the learners, and pre-reading instructions given. The purpose of this paper is: (1) to elaborate the differences between studies using a free written recall task to measure L2 reading comprehension; and (2) to report the results of experimentation that attempts to test the significance of the language of recall (native versus target) and the effect of knowing, prior to reading, that the subjects would be required to recall the passage. Results showed that passage recall is significantly better when done in the subjects' native language than in the target language. Also, a significant interaction was found for prereading instructions and level of the learner. Implications for research design are discussed.


2020 ◽  
pp. 136216882091399 ◽  
Author(s):  
Songshan Zhang ◽  
Xian Zhang

This study set out to investigate the relationship between L2 vocabulary knowledge (VK) and second-language (L2) reading/listening comprehension. More than 100 individual studies were included in this meta-analysis, which generated 276 effect sizes from a sample of almost 21,000 learners. The current meta-analysis had several major findings. First, the overall correlation between VK and L2 reading comprehension was .57 ( p < .01) and that between VK and L2 listening was .56 ( p < .01). If the attenuation effect due to reliability of measures was taken into consideration, the ‘true’ correlation between VK and L2 reading/listening comprehension may likely fall within the range of .56–.67, accounting for 31%–45% variance in L2 comprehension. Second, all three mastery levels of form–meaning knowledge (meaning recognition, meaning recall, form recall) had moderate to high correlations with L2 reading and L2 listening. However, meaning recall knowledge had the strongest correlation with L2 reading comprehension and form recall had the strongest correlation with L2 listening comprehension, suggesting that different mastery levels of VK may contribute differently to L2 comprehension in different modalities. Third, both word association knowledge and morphological awareness (two aspects of vocabulary depth knowledge) had significant correlations with L2 reading and L2 listening. Fourth, the modality of VK measure was found to have a significant moderating effect on the correlation between VK and L2 text comprehension: orthographical VK measures had stronger correlations with L2 reading comprehension as compared to auditory VK measures. Auditory VK measures, however, were better predictors of L2 listening comprehension. Fifth, studies with a shorter script distance between L1 and L2 yielded higher correlations between VK and L2 reading. Sixth, the number of items in vocabulary depth measures had a positive predictive power on the correlation between VK and L2 comprehension. Finally, correlations between VK and L2 reading/listening comprehension was found to be associated with two types of publication factors: year-of-publication and publication type. Implications of the findings were discussed.


VASA ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Hanji Zhang ◽  
Dexin Yin ◽  
Yue Zhao ◽  
Yezhou Li ◽  
Dejiang Yao ◽  
...  

Summary: Our meta-analysis focused on the relationship between homocysteine (Hcy) level and the incidence of aneurysms and looked at the relationship between smoking, hypertension and aneurysms. A systematic literature search of Pubmed, Web of Science, and Embase databases (up to March 31, 2020) resulted in the identification of 19 studies, including 2,629 aneurysm patients and 6,497 healthy participants. Combined analysis of the included studies showed that number of smoking, hypertension and hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy) in aneurysm patients was higher than that in the control groups, and the total plasma Hcy level in aneurysm patients was also higher. These findings suggest that smoking, hypertension and HHcy may be risk factors for the development and progression of aneurysms. Although the heterogeneity of meta-analysis was significant, it was found that the heterogeneity might come from the difference between race and disease species through subgroup analysis. Large-scale randomized controlled studies of single species and single disease species are needed in the future to supplement the accuracy of the results.


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