scholarly journals A Lexical Network Approach to the Acquisition of English Verbs of Memory: The Case of Japanese Learners

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Shun Morimoto ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Average Length ◽  
Human Memory ◽  
Network Approach ◽  
Japanese University ◽  
Japanese Learners Of English ◽  
Average Length Of Stay ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Two Phases ◽  
Japanese Learners ◽  
Basic Level

The present study investigated the acquisition of L2 English memory verbs, memorize, remember, and recall, by Japanese learners within the framework of a lexical network. In the fields of psychology and cognitive science, the human memory has been conceptualized as consisting of three cognitive phases, namely input, retention, and output. In English, memorize and recall are used for the input and the output phases, respectively, while remember can be used across the three phases. In order to investigate the extent to which Japanese learners of English can appropriately make differential use of these verbs in relation to the above cognitive phases, a test called ‘‘the Memory Verb Acceptability Judgment Test’’ was administered on 173 Japanese university students grouped into three proficiency levels. The results showed that while they were able to accept memorize and recall with high accuracy for the input and the output phases, respectively, they tended to accept remember primarily for the retention phase, failing to fully accept it in the remaining two phases. This tendency was observed even among those learners whose average length of stay in English-speaking countries was 5 years. It was also revealed that basic-level learners tended to over-generalize memorize for the retention phase. Based on the overall results, theoretical and pedagogical implications of the lexical network approach are discussed.

An Exploratory Case Study of English Speaking Anxiety Faced by Successful and Less Successful Japanese Learners

Relay Journal ◽  
2019 ◽  
pp. 158-169
Author(s):  
Hung Nguyen-Xuan
Keyword(s):  
Structured Interview ◽  
English Learning ◽  
Speaking Anxiety ◽  
Exploratory Case Study ◽  
Japanese Learners Of English ◽  
Efl Students ◽  
High Motivation ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Japanese Learners

This article addresses the English speaking anxiety faced by successful and less successful Japanese learners of English. Two Japanese EFL students (one successful and one less successful) agreed to participate in the research. A survey and a semi-structured interview were used to gather the details of these two learners’ English learning experiences and frequency of dealing with English speaking anxiety. Results indicate that both learners felt speaking anxiety, but the less successful learner felt anxiety more frequently than the successful one. The successful learner also appeared to show high motivation and willingness to speak English, whereas the less successful one felt shy or tended to have fear of speaking English. The study is expected to provide some useful insights for further research of EFL students’ speaking anxiety.

Modeling Complexity, Accuracy, and Fluency of Japanese Learners of English: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach

2014 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 25
Author(s):  
Rie Koizumi ◽  
Yo In'nami
Keyword(s):  
High School Students ◽  
Structural Equation Modeling ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Strong Correlations ◽  
School Students ◽  
Japanese Learners Of English ◽  
Speaking Proficiency ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Japanese Learners

With this study, we aimed to obtain a better understanding of the factor structure of the complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF) of English speaking proficiency. For this purpose, 224 Japanese junior and senior high school students with an English level of elementary to lower intermediate took an English speaking test. We transcribed what they said, computed measures to assess CAF, and used structural equation modeling (SEM) to examine whether the model in which the CAF factors are related fit the data. We found that syntactic complexity (SC), accuracy, speed fluency, and repair fluency represent distinct factors and that there are weak, moderate, or strong correlations among these factors. This generally suggests that those who speak fluently by using more words per minute tend to repair their speech more, but they also produce more accurate utterances with more clauses. We suggest pedagogical implications of considering CAF separately in teaching and assessment and benefits of using SEM for analyzing CAF. 本研究では、スピーキング熟達度における複雑さ、正確さ、流暢さ (complexity, accuracy, and fluency: CAF) の因子構造を調べる。中学生・高校生（初級から中級下レベル）の日本人学習者224名に、スピーキングテストを受けてもらった。発話をCAFの指標で数値化し、CAF因子が関連しあうモデルを共分散構造分析を用いて分析した。その結果、統語的複雑さ、正確さ、スピードに関する流暢さ、修正に関する流暢さの4因子の相関モデルがデータに適合し、4因子は関連しあいながらも別個に捉えられることが分かった。因子間の関連は弱いものから強いものがあったが、全体的には、1分間あたりにより多くの語を使って話す学習者は、修正をより多く行うが、より正確な発話と、より多くの節を産出する傾向が見られた。指導や評価の際にCAFを別々に考慮することの重要性や、共分散構造分析でCAFを分析する利点が示された。

scholarly journals Which segmental features matter for successful L2 comprehensibility? Revisiting and generalizing the pedagogical value of the functional load principle

2019 ◽  
pp. 136216881985824 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yui Suzukida ◽  
Kazuya Saito
Keyword(s):  
Oral Proficiency ◽  
Functional Load ◽  
English As Foreign Language ◽  
Japanese Learners Of English ◽  
Immersion Experience ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Picture Description ◽  
Japanese Learners

Building up on Munro and Derwing, the current study set out to re-examine and generalize the Functional Load (FL) principle (Brown, 1988) as a tool to identify a set of relatively crucial segmental features for successful understanding in L2 communication. In Experiment 1, 40 Japanese learners of English in English-as-Foreign-Language settings engaged in a semi-structured task (i.e. timed picture description). Their speech was assessed by native speaking raters for overall comprehensibility (ease of understanding); and then coded for the number of high vs. low FL segmental substitution errors according to the FL principle. The results showed that it was only high FL consonant substitutions (e.g. mispronunciation of /l/ as /r/ or /v/ as /b/) that negatively impacted on native listeners’ comprehensibility judgments. In Experiment 2, 40 Japanese learners of English with a wide range of immersion experience in English-speaking countries participated. The results replicated the significant impact of high FL consonant substitutions as observed in Experiment 1. Taken together, this study suggests that the FL principle may greatly help teachers and students prioritize communicatively important segmental features, a crucial step towards improving L2 oral proficiency in an effective and efficient way.

scholarly journals THE ROLE OF AGE OF ACQUISITION IN LATE SECOND LANGUAGE ORAL PROFICIENCY ATTAINMENT

2015 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 713-743 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazuya Saito
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Speech Production ◽  
Speech Rate ◽  
Oral Proficiency ◽  
Age Of Acquisition ◽  
Age Effects ◽  
Japanese Learners Of English ◽  
Global Quality ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Japanese Learners

The current project examined whether and to what degree age of acquisition (AOA), defined as the first intensive exposure to a second language (L2) environment, can be predictive of the end state of postpubertal L2 oral proficiency attainment. Data were collected from 88 experienced Japanese learners of English and two groups of 20 baseline speakers (inexperienced Japanese speakers and native English speakers). The global quality of their spontaneous speech production was first judged by 10 native English-speaking raters based on accentedness (linguistic nativelikeness) and comprehensibility (ease of understanding) and was then submitted to segmental, prosodic, temporal, lexical, and grammatical analyses. According to the results, AOA was negatively correlated with the accentedness and comprehensibility components of L2 speech production, owing to relatively strong age effects on segmental and prosodic attainment. Yet significant age effects were not observed in the case of fluency and lexicogrammar attainment. The results suggest that AOA plays a key role in determining the extent to which learners can attain advanced-level L2 oral abilities via improving the phonological domain of language (e.g., correct consonant and vowel pronunciation and adequate and varied prosody) and that the temporal and lexicogrammatical domains of language (e.g., optimal speech rate and proper vocabulary and grammar usage) may be enhanced with increased L2 experience, regardless of age.

Japanese University Students’ Experiences from Participating in an Unsupervised Google Classroom Debate Forum

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-32
Author(s):  
Stachus Tu
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Teaching Tool ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Japanese University ◽  
Japanese Learners Of English ◽  
Japanese Learners ◽  
Online Debate

A question of interest to language teachers who plan on utilizing an online debate forum as a research or teaching tool is “What do students who have participated in an online debate forum think of the activity?” This paper describes a study that focused on an online debate forum accessed through Google Classroom and reports the experiences of Japanese learners of English who used this unsupervised platform to practice their debate skills. The paper also reports improvements to the activity suggested by the participants for future studies.

Teaching Critical Thinking and Academic Writing Skills to Japanese University EFL Learners

2015 ◽  
pp. 131-147
Author(s):  
Neil Heffernan
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Academic Writing ◽  
Writing Skills ◽  
Satisfaction Survey ◽  
Self Assessment ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Japanese University ◽  
Japanese Learners Of English ◽  
Japanese Learners

This chapter looks at a critical thinking and academic writing skills course designed for Japanese learners of English. The study presents two sets of data from the 87 participants who have taken part in the course since its inception in 2008. The first data set is concerned with actual writing samples from multiple drafts of a medium-sized research project carried out by the student participants. The second data set results from a self-assessment survey given to the learners both at the beginning and end of the 15-week course described in this chapter. Further, results from a satisfaction survey given to learners at the end of the course are presented. The chapter concludes with some pedagogical implications for both Japanese and other Asian EFL learners and how the methods used in the course described within can be replicated elsewhere.

scholarly journals Adapting a Checklist of Materials Evaluation for a Self-access Learning Center in Japan

2019 ◽  
pp. 339-355
Author(s):  
Atsumi Yamaguchi ◽  
Erin Okamoto ◽  
Neil Curry ◽  
Katsuyuki Konno
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Methods ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Learning Center ◽  
Mixed Methods Approach ◽  
Japanese University ◽  
Japanese Learners Of English ◽  
Japanese Learners

Materials evaluation calls for a systematic and principled approach. In reality, however, materials evaluation in language-learning self-access centers (SACs) is significantly lacking in good models. This paper reports on a project undertaken by SAC facilitators in Japan to investigate whether/how a pre-evaluation checklist developed a decade ago at a SAC in New Zealand (c.f. Reinders & Lewis, 2006) could be adapted to their target context. A mixed methods approach was employed where data was obtained via a Likert-scale questionnaire and follow-up interviews. The survey was adapted from Reinders and Lewis and enrolled 103 Japanese university students. The interviews were conducted to eight randomly selected survey respondents. Results show that the modeled checklist can be used as a basis with modifications allowing for contextual differences. The results suggest that Japanese learners of English value visually stimulating materials and require more guided support for them to effectively use materials beyond the classroom. The article provides an adapted checklist designed for Japanese learners of English as well as suggestions for future research.

scholarly journals Examining Katakana Synform Errors Made by Japanese University Students

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 62-72
Author(s):  
Raymond Stubbe ◽  
◽  
Kosuke Nakashima ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
University Students ◽  
English Word ◽  
Japanese University ◽  
Frequent Word ◽  
Japanese Learners Of English ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Japanese Learners ◽  
Vocabulary Assessment ◽  
English Students

Laufer (1988) introduced the concept of synform errors, where second language (L2) learners confuse a word for a different but similar looking or sounding L2 word. Stubbe and Cochrane (2016) reported that of 1,187 commonly repeated errors on a Japanese to English non-contextual translation test, 461 were synform errors (39%). This study introduces the concept of katakana consonant pairing synform errors, where Japanese learners of English can confuse one English word for another because some English consonants have no Japanese equivalent, for example, l and v. Words containing these consonants can be transcribed into katakana using the closest Japanese consonant sound: r, b, respectively. This can result in katakana pairings (l-r, v-b), which may lead to confusion for the Japanese learners. “Vest” may be interpreted as “best,” for instance. In the present study, English students at one Japanese university (N = 235) were given a Japanese to English non-contextual translation test containing the lower frequency member of 30 such katakana pairs (“vest” being a much less frequent word than its pair “best,” for instance). Thirty words not having a katakana partner (e.g., shade) from the same JACET8000 frequency levels were also tested. The study results suggest that katakana consonant pairing synform errors are problematic for these Japanese university students. Implications for the classroom and vocabulary assessment are presented.

Development of the L2 Motivational Self System: English at a University in Japan

2014 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Aubrey
Keyword(s):  
Structural Equation ◽  
English Language ◽  
Structural Equation Models ◽  
Japanese Learners Of English ◽  
L2 Motivation ◽  
L2 Motivational Self System ◽  
Motivational Structure ◽  
International Posture ◽  
Japanese Learners ◽  
Self System

This paper reports on a study investigating changes in L2 motivation for Japanese learners of English as they completed their first communicative English language course at university. I aim to describe the strength and structure of students’ motivation and the degree to which these changed over one semester. A 36-item questionnaire was used to measure components of the L2 Motivational Self System and International Posture. The questionnaire was administered twice to 202 second-year university students in Japan: during the first week of the semester and 11 weeks later. Structural equation models were created to describe the causal relationships between motivational variables for the two time periods. Paired t tests revealed that both motivated learning behavior and ought-to L2 self significantly increased over the semester. A comparison of the two models indicated that there was a change in the motivational structure from Week 1 to Week 12. 本研究は、英語学習者の動機づけの強さと構造、及びその変化に焦点をあて、日本人大学生の外国語（L2）に対する動機づけの変化を調査した。大学で最初に履修するコミュニケーション英語の授業を対象に、第2言語習得を動機づける自己システム（L2 Motivational Self System）と国際志向性の2側面を測定する36項目からなる質問紙を作成し、2年生202名に対して授業第1週目とその11週間後に調査を実施した。分析は、まず構造方程式モデリングで2回の調査間の動機づけの変化を分析し、それに基づき対応のあるt検定を実施した。分析の結果、動機づけの高い学習行動と義務自己ought-to selfに関する数値が1学期を通して向上したことが明らかになった。

The Generalization of Instruction on Genitive Relative Clause in the Acquisition of English as a Foreign Language

2006 ◽  
Vol 151 ◽  
pp. 99-113
Author(s):  
Akihiro Ito
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Relative Clause ◽  
Relative Clauses ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Test Results ◽  
Japanese Learners Of English ◽  
Special Instruction ◽  
Japanese Learners

This study examines the generalization of instruction in foreign language learning. A group of Japanese learners of English served as participants and received special instruction in the structure of genitive relative clauses. The participants were given a pre-test on combining two sentences into one containing a genitive relative clause wherein the relativized noun phrase following the genitive marker "whose" is either the subject, direct object, or object of preposition. Based on the TOEFL and the pre-test results, four equal groups were formed; three of these served as experimental groups, and one as the control group. Each experimental group was given instruction on the formation of only one type of genitive relative clause. The participants were then given two post-tests. The results indicated that the generalization of learning begins from structures that are typologically more marked genitive relative clauses to those structures that are typologically less marked, and not vice versa.

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