Gülcan Erçetin

Effects of topic interest and prior knowledge on text recall and annotation use in reading a hypermedia text in the l2

This study investigates the effects of topic interest and prior knowledge on text recall and annotation use of second language learners engaged in reading a hypermedia text. The participants were proficient learners of English enrolled in an undergraduate English Language Teaching programme. They were asked to read a hypermedia text that incorporated word-level and topic-level annotations, and complete an immediate recall task. Participants’ interaction with the text was recorded during the reading task. Data collection tools also included a topic interest questionnaire, a prior knowledge test, and semi-structured interviews. Results indicated no meaningful relationship between topic interest and prior knowledge. Moreover, topic interest had a significant main effect on text recall while prior knowledge did not. In other words, topic interest facilitated the number of propositions recalled. Finally, a significant interaction between topic interest and prior knowledge was found in terms of access to annotations. When topic interest was low, the participants with low prior knowledge utilized content-related annotations more frequently than those with high prior knowledge. On the other hand, when topic interest was high, the participants with high prior knowledge accessed content-related annotations more frequently than those with low prior knowledge.

Effects of interactive versus simultaneous display of multimedia glosses on L2 reading comprehension and incidental vocabulary learning

This study examines the effects of interactive versus simultaneous display of visual and verbal multimedia information on incidental vocabulary learning and reading comprehension of learners of English with lower proficiency levels. In the interactive display condition, learners were allowed to select the type of multimedia information whereas the simultaneous display condition presented the verbal (definitions) and visual (associated pictures) information in a single gloss. Eighty-two students were randomly assigned to the treatment conditions and were asked to read an annotated expository text. Reading comprehension was measured through a recall protocol and a multiple-choice test. Incidental vocabulary learning was measured through unannounced vocabulary tests of form recognition, meaning production, definition match, and bilingual synonym match. T-tests and ANOVA analyses indicated that the participants utilized glosses less frequently when they were given the control over access to the type of multimedia information. In addition, simultaneous display of multimedia information led to better performance on reading and vocabulary tests. The results are in line with the contiguity principle of Generative Theory of Multimedia Learning, which posits that presenting verbal and visual information simultaneously reduces cognitive load and results in better learning. The findings have implications for both the development of multimedia materials for L2 learners and training of learners to interact with multimedia materials.

The Explicit/Implicit Knowledge Distinction and Working Memory: Implications for Second-Language Reading Comprehension.

Following an extensive overview of the subject, this study explores the relationships between second-language (L2) explicit/implicit knowledge sources, embedded in the declarative/procedural memory systems, and L2 working memory (WM) capacity. It further examines the relationships between L2 reading comprehension and L2 WM capacity as well as those between L2 reading comprehension and L2 explicit/implicit knowledge sources. Participants were late adult learners of English as an L2, with a relatively advanced level of English proficiency. They completed tests measuring their WM capacity, explicit knowledge, implicit knowledge, and L2 reading comprehension. Correlation analysis revealed significant relationships between L2 WM capacity and both explicit and implicit L2 knowledge. Exploratory factor analysis showed that explicit knowledge, WM capacity, and L2 reading comprehension loaded on a single factor whereas implicit L2 knowledge formed an independent factor with no relationship to L2 reading. The results suggest that L2 WM is able to manipulate and store both explicit and implicit L2 input through controlled and automatic processes. They also suggest that L2 explicit knowledge, connected with the control processes of the declarative systems lexical/semantic features, and L2 WM, reflecting attentional resource capacity/allocation associated with control processes, play an important role in L2 reading comprehension.

The Relationship between Aptitude and Working Memory: An Instructed SLA Context.

ABSTRACT Working memory (WM) as a key component of language aptitude has become a topical issue, with some going so far as to argue that WM can replace language aptitude. Research that specifically investigates the relationship between WM and language aptitude is rather limited. This study explores the determinants of language aptitude, with a focus on WM capacity. A total of 72 Turkish university students with advanced English proficiency participated in the study. The instruments used to measure WM capacity included a reading span task in L1 (Turkish) and L2 (English) and an operation span task in L1. Language aptitude was measured with a computerised aptitude test: the LLAMA. A correlation analysis revealed that WM capacity correlated with the language aptitude total score rather than language aptitude subcomponents, with the exception of grammatical inferencing. A principal component analysis further showed WM and language aptitude as separate constructs. In addition, two distinct factors emerged under the aptitude construct, which can be attributed to the modality of the aptitude subtests. The results suggest that WM capacity still has a key role in the renewed aptitude construct, yet these two cognitive abilities are not interchangeable.

Effects of Gloss Type on Text Recall and Incidental Vocabulary Learning in Mobile-Assisted L2 Listening.

This study investigates the effects of multimedia glosses on text recall and incidental vocabulary learning in a mobile-assisted L2 listening task. A total of 88 participants with a low level of proficiency in English were randomly assigned to one of four conditions that involved single channel (textual-only, pictorial-only) and dual-channel (textual-plus-pictorial) glosses as well as a control condition where no glosses were provided. The participants listened to a story through their mobile phones and were engaged in an immediate free recall task and unannounced vocabulary tests after listening. The findings indicated that access to glosses facilitated recognition and production of vocabulary with the type of gloss having no effect. On the other hand, glosses had no effect on text recall.

Training for Phonological Awareness in an Orthographically Transparent Language in Two Different Modalities

The main goal of this study was to investigate the effects of an experimental program designed to develop the phonological awareness (PA) skills of beginning readers in Turkish, an orthographically transparent language. We administered pre-, post-, and follow-up tests to assess the PA skills of 113 first graders and kindergartners in 2 experimental groups (software and in-class face-to-face training) and a control group. Analysis of variance results indicated that all 3 groups improved in terms of overall PA performance. In Grade 1, the children exposed to training, regardless of type, obtained significantly higher posttest means than those in the control group. In kindergarten, the software training group made more immediate progress than the other 2 groups. However, the immediate gains observed at posttest were not maintained at follow-up. We discuss the relevance to the research literature and implications for practice.

Interrelationships among L2 linguistic knowledge, working memory functions, and L2 reading

The main purpose of the current study is to investigate whether L2 reading comprehension is related to the processing and storage functions of working memory (WM) as well as explicit and implicit sources of knowledge in the L2. Byproducts of this question involve (a) whether the relationship between WM and reading comprehension is attributable to the linguistic nature of the complex span task; (b) whether WM is related to explicit and implicit types of linguistic knowledge in the L2. Participants were 84 late adult learners of English with a B2 level of proficiency. WM capacity was measured through reading span tasks (RST) administered in L1 and L2 and an operation span task (OST). An untimed grammaticality judgment test (GJT) and a metalinguistic knowledge test (MKT) were administered to measure explicit linguistic knowledge in the L2 while a timed GJT and an elicited oral imitation test (EOI) were used to measure implicit linguistic knowledge. Reading comprehension scores were obtained from a retired paper-based TOEFL. A principal component analysis (PCA) on the independent variables revealed a three-component model where processing and storage scores obtained from span tasks loaded on separate components reflecting a distinction between processing and storage functions of WM whereas explicit and implicit L2 knowledge measures loaded together on a single component. A regression analysis performed with factor scores from the PCA as independent variables and L2 reading comprehension scores as the dependent variable revealed significant contributions of WM’s processing function and L2 linguistic knowledge to reading comprehension in the L2. This suggests that the variance shared by WM capacity and L2 reading comprehension is not due to the linguistic nature of the span task but to the general processing efficiency of verbal WM capacity.

The Stages in Mobile-Assisted Language Learning Material Development

Mobile language learning is increasingly becoming an integral part of higher education with a wider availability of lightweight handheld devices, which allow ‘anywhere’ and ‘anytime’ learning. This popular medium also implies “complex” stages for the design of suitable and efficient foreign language learning activities [3], [19]. The current paper illustrates this multi-layered process through which MLARG (Mobile Learning in At-Risk Group) project materials were developed. First 81 tourism vocational high school students’ perceptions of English language learning needs, lacks and wants were scrutinized under the theoretical foundations laid by Dudley-Evans and St. John [9]. Then an appropriate and stimulating mobile language learning platform was constructed whereby learners’ positive attitudes, language proficiency and technological literacy would be boosted in lieu of the traditional time-and place-constrained learning practices.