Marjorie Bingham Wesche

Second Language Vocabulary Acquisition: Vocabulary enhancement activities and reading for meaning in second language vocabulary acquisition

Introduction The long-neglected issue of vocabulary acquisition is currently receiving attention in second language pedagogy and research – reflecting the importance always accorded it by learners. But it is still far from clear how learners acquire vocabulary or how it can best be taught. Reading comprehension processes may offer some clues. There is considerable evidence from first language studies that extensive reading for meaning leads to vocabulary acquisition over time, and indeed that reading probably accounts for most L1 vocabulary expansion beyond the first few thousand words in common oral usage. Second language research on this issue is sparse, but what there is indicates that extensive reading programs are generally more effective than systematic vocabulary instruction using decontextualized exercises (see, for example, Elley and Mangubhai, 1983; Krashen, 1989). The process by which “incidental” acquisition through reading occurs is slow, however, and there is no way to predict which words will be learned, when, nor to what degree. The question remains as to whether instructional intervention could support the process and make it more directed and efficient. The classroom experiments reported here attempt to do this, using instructional procedures designed to increase the salience and cognitive processing of targeted words encountered by L2 students in reading texts. These experiments track the acquisition of these words using a recently developed instrument, the Vocabulary Knowledge Scale (Paribakht & Wesche, 1993; Wesche & Paribakht, forthcoming).

TOWARD A LEXICAL PROCESSING MODEL FOR THE STUDY OF SECOND LANGUAGE VOCABULARY ACQUISITION

A major requirement for theory development in L2 vocabulary acquisition is an adequate model of L2 lexical organization and processing. At present, there is no widely accepted model of this kind, but recent research has demonstrated the potential usefulness of Levelts (1989, 1993) L1 speech processing model (de Bot & Schreuder, 1993; Green, 1993; Poulisse, 1993). This paper explores the relevance of the model as adapted for L2 lexical processing of written texts, with particular attention to its mental lexicon components (concepts, lemmas, and lexemes) and organization. The model is first discussed in terms of its relevance to L2 lexical access, retrieval, and acquisition processes. Findings of an introspective L2 vocabulary study follow, detailing how university ESL learners reported dealing with unfamiliar words while carrying out L2 reading tasks. The information provided on their lexical inferencing strategy and varied knowledge sources used in the process provide support for the lexical components and organization proposed by Levelt. It is argued in this paper that the process of inferring the features of unknown words in a reading passage can be described in terms of lemma construction, as defined in the model.

Reading-based Exercises in Second Language Vocabulary Learning: An Introspective Study.

In this study, university English as a Second Language (ESL) learners’ responses to 5 different types of text-based vocabulary exercises were examined. The objective was to understand better how such exercises may promote different kinds of lexical processing and learning and to compare these outcomes with those from thematic reading for comprehension. The results support a view of vocabulary acquisition as an elaborative and iterative process and demonstrate the primary role of the tasks learners carry out with new words that they encounter. Tasks provide learners with varied and multiple encounters with given words that highlight different lexical features, promoting elaboration and strengthening of different aspects of word knowledge. The findings also provide insight into the nature of the advantages, found in previous research, of using text-based vocabulary exercises together with a reading text as opposed to using multiple reading texts for the learning of particular words and their lexical features.

Second language performance testing: the Ontario Test of ESL as an example

A recently developed post-admissions testing battery for Ontario colleges and universities is discussed in the light of the multiple issues raised by a performance-based approach to second language testing. In this battery, listening, speaking, reading and writing skills are tested through integrated texts and tasks which simulate academic language use. The test components include a general academic section plus a discipline-related thematic section, of which examinees take either the Social Sciences or Science and Technology module. The battery yields placement and diagnostic information about examinee readiness to undertake full time or part time academic studies in English.

Content-Based Second Language Instruction: Michigan Classics Edition

Content Based Second Language Instruction Michigan Classics Edition Michigan Classics S *FREE* content based second language instruction michigan classics edition michigan classics s In the Michigan Classics Edition of Content-Based Second Language Instruction, the authors provide updates on the field of CBI in second language acquisition since 1989.. While the core of the book remains the same, new features discuss important CBI-related research and modifications to the pedagogy in the past many years.Content Based Second Language Instruction In the Michigan Classics Edition of Content Based Second Language Instruction the authors provide updates on the field of CBI in second language acquisition since 1989 While the core of the book remains the same new features discuss important CBI related research and modifications to the pedagogy in the past many years Content Based Second Language Instruction Michigan In the Michigan Classics Edition of Content Based Second Language Instruction the authors provide updates on the field of CBI in second language acquisition since 1989 While the core of the book remains the same new features discuss important CBI related research and modifications to the pedagogy in the past many years Content Based Second Language Instruction Michigan content based second language instruction michigan classics edition michigan classics s Vantage Self Study Pack Students Book With Answers And Audio Cds 2 Examination Amazon com Customer reviews Content Based Second Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Content Based Second Language Instruction Michigan Classics Edition Michigan Classics S at Amazon com Read honest and unbiased product reviews from our users Content based Second Language Instruction Google Books In the Michigan Classics Edition of Content Based Second Language Instruction the authors provide updates on the field of CBI in second language acquisition since 1989 While the core of the book remains the same new features discuss important CBI related research and modifications to the pedagogy in the past many years Content based second language instruction Open Library Content based second language instruction by Donna Brinton Donna M Brinton Marjorie Wesche Marguerite Ann Snow 4 editions First published in 1989 Subjects In library Second language acquisition Study and teaching Higher Correlation with content subjects Language arts Protected DAISY Language arts Higher Language and languages ELT Learning Material amp Coursework Language Content Based Second Language Instruction goodreads com Content Based Second Language Instruction book Read reviews from world’s largest community for readers This text can serve as a resource guide to those The Content Based Classroom Second Edition Second Edition Michigan Teacher Training The long awaited new edition of the classic 1997 text by Snow and Brinton is now a complete revision that includes international settings and new models like CLIL and EMI Three chapters are updates of the original while the remaining 22 chapters are new content based instruction second Donna M Brinton Books List of books by author Donna M Looking for books by Donna M Brinton See all books authored by Donna M Brinton including Teaching Pronunciation A Reference for Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages and Pronunciation Myths Applying Second Language Research to Classroom Teaching and more on ThriftBooks com Donna Brinton used books rare books and new books Content Based Second Language Instruction Michigan Classics Edition Michigan Classics S by Donna Brinton Marjorie Wesche

Foreign language aptitude and intelligence

Notwithstanding the predictive value of foreign language aptitude measures, the underlying ability or abilities tapped by them and their relationship to measures of intelligence are not well understood. This study provides a partial characterization of the nature of language aptitude through correlations and factor analyses of the Modern Language Aptitude Test (MLAT) and the Primary Mental Abilities Test (PMA). The subjects of the study were 793 English-speaking Canadian public servants at various stages of intensive French language training. The results revealed substantial redundancy among the subtests of the MLAT and PMA batteries and a Kaisers Little Jiffy factor analysis yielded a one-factor solution at the second-order level. A principal factors solution, however, identified three interpretable second-order factors, characterized respectively as first language verbal knowledge, abstract reasoning ability, and ability to learn new language elements and associations. A unitary third-order factor was also identified, probably approximating Spearmans g . Taken together, the findings of the study are compatible with the conceptualization of language aptitude according to a hierarchical model which subsumes specific abilities of importance in the language classroom under a more encompassing general ability, or general intelligence.

Language lateralization in adult bilinguals

Recent experimental studies of bilinguals have provided evidence of less left lateralization (i.e. greater right hemisphere participation) for verbal tasks in the second language than in the first. Other clinical and experimental studies of adults suggest that the normal adult right hemisphere has certain residual language-related capacities and that it plays a role in the early stages of both child and adult language acquisition. These findings lead us to postulate a link between right hemisphere involvement in the early stages of first and second language acquisition. Two studies were designed to investigate this issue. The subjects of the studies were adult French-English bilinguals, with one group dominant in English and a second in French. A single word dichotic listening paradigm was employed in both studies. Following Obler (1981), the hypotheses were 1) that the second language dichotic task would show less left lateralization (greater right hemisphere involvement) than the first and 2) that greater proficiency in the second language would correlate with a higher degree of left lateralization (less right hemisphere involvement) on the dichotic test in that language. The studies provide some support for these hypotheses and thus, indirectly, for a unified theory of first and second language acquisition.