Using iPads in Vocabulary Instruction for English Language Learners

The purpose of this study was to examine whether English language learners (ELLs) would increase their vocabulary scores in the areas of word recognition, word meaning, and word application when iPads were used during vocabulary instruction. Five third-grade ELLs, at risk of being diagnosed as having learning disabilities, participated in the study. All students demonstrated low test scores in learning vocabulary words during the baseline. During the intervention, 36 vocabulary words selected from the third-grade’s Dolch word list were taught and practiced using the iPad application Learning Touch, First Sight Words Pro. All students were assessed and their vocabulary scores increased in the areas of word recognition, word meaning, and word application. Using the iPad and iPad app appears to provide a potential avenue for ELLs in learning English vocabulary words.     

大学英语词汇学习策略教学的实证研究

为期八周的以英语课堂教学为基础、英语词汇学习策略训练为核心的准实验性研究,通过定量与定性相结合的研究方法,分别在策略训练的前后使用问卷调查、词汇测试等研究工具,对大学生的英语词汇学习策略的使用情况和词汇习得的效果进行了调查研究,以期揭示英语词汇学习策略教学对大学生词汇学习的有效性。     

Direct and Extended Vocabulary Instruction in Kindergarten: Investigating Transfer Effects

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy of an 18-week program of direct and extended vocabulary instruction with kindergarten students on both proximal measures of target word knowledge and transfer measures of generalized language and literacy. A second purpose was to examine whether treatment effects would be moderated by initial receptive vocabulary knowledge measured at pretest. In a quasi-experimental design, 80 kindergarten students from schools serving large at-risk populations were taught the meanings of 54 vocabulary words within interactive story read alouds over 36 half-hour instructional lessons (2 lessons per week over 18 weeks). An additional 44 students served as a no-treatment control. Findings indicated that students who received vocabulary instruction outperformed controls on a measure of target word knowledge as well as measures of generalized receptive vocabulary and listening comprehension. In addition, initial receptive vocabulary was strongly related to posttest performance on all measures. Implications are discussed in relation to supporting vocabulary development in the early grades within a multitier framework of instruction and intervention.     

Effects of an Online Mathematics Curriculum for English Language Learners

This study measured the effects of an online supplementary mathematics curriculum designed for middle school English language learners who speak Spanish as a first language. A randomized experiment measured the achievement differences between middle school English language learners who used the Web-based HELP Math (Help with English Language Proficiency) curriculum and students who used other technology-based programs. Three hundred and ninety-six students participated. Both groups made statistically significant gains from pretest to posttest within their respective curricula, but no main effect was found between the two groups. Post hoc analyses revealed that students with higher levels of English proficiency, who participated in the comparison condition, performed significantly better than students in the HELP Math condition, while students with lower levels of English proficiency performed better in the HELP Math program (although these differences were not statistically significant). Findings are interpreted with caution due to the truncated length of the intervention.     

从学生视角探析高职英语词汇课堂教学策略

词汇是构成语言的一个重要因素,从学生视角研究词汇学习策略有助于提高词汇教学的效果.本文从认知和情感两个维度分析了高职生的英语基础、认知心理和动机特点以及情感特征等,并结合高职英语教学实践特点,提出了高职英语的词汇教学策略.     

我国英语词汇记忆研究的现状与不足

近十多年来,中国学者关于英语词汇学习与记忆策略的研究有了较明显的进步,但总体来看仍不令人满意。通过对对国内研究现状的介绍与分析,提出今后应进一步加强以中国学习者为中心的实用研究。只有这样,才能在解决中国学习者的问题的同时,提高我国研究者在国际应用语言学界的学术地位。     

Peer-Based Supplemental Instruction in STEM: Differences in Effectiveness Across Transfer and Nontransfer Undergraduates

Although there is a large body of research on the effectiveness of supplemental instruction for college undergraduates, very little of it has focused on transfer students, who often confront additional sources of stress and historically perform more poorly than their native student counterparts. In this study, we investigated the effectiveness of a peer-based supplemental instructional program in general and organic chemistry at a large state university over a six-year period, while considering differences across transfer and nontransfer students. The results suggest that the supplemental instruction improved outcomes overall but that nontransfer students benefit to a greater degree than transfer students, in the form of higher grades and pass rates, from attending supplemental instruction. The results suggest that peer-based supplemental instruction is a useful method to improve undergraduate student performance in chemistry, but more research is needed on ways to enhance the effectiveness of interventions in improving the performance of transfer undergraduate students in STEM fields.     

大学英语不善学者词汇记忆策略培训的实验研究

研究采用专题讲座与课堂渗透相结合、显性培训与隐性培养相结合、课内培训与课外实践相结合的方式,以化整为零法、谐音记忆法、词根记忆法、字母调整法、情境记忆法等五种词汇记忆方法为主要培训内容,对89名大学英语不善学者实施了为期16周的词汇记忆策略培训的实验研究。结果表明：1.策略培训有效地提高了实验班学生词汇记忆策略的使用水平;2.策略培训使实验班学生的词汇记忆策略使用水平及词汇记忆能力都远高于对照班学生。     

Examining Effectiveness and Validity of Accommodations for English Language Learners in Mathematics: An Evidence-Based Computer Accommodation Decision System

Research indicates that the performance-gap between English Language Learners (ELLs) and their non-ELL peers is partly due to ELLs' difficulty in understanding assessment language. Accommodations have been shown to narrow this performance-gap, but many accommodations studies have not used a randomized design and are based on relatively small sample sizes. Addressing such issues, we administered a standard-based mathematics assessment to approximately 3,000 Grade 9 ELL and non-ELL students under five different language-based accommodations. Results indicate that many of these accommodations did not produce significant gains for the recipients. Some even had a negative impact. We believe several factors may explain these findings. First, newer assessments, including those developed for this study, may have been linguistically modified to the point that further modification has only a limited effect. Second, the language of instruction may have not adequately prepared students for the assessment. If the language of instruction (textbook, etc.) contains unnecessary linguistic complexity, then students may not have had the opportunity to learn the assessed content. A third factor is students’ unfamiliarity with these accommodations because they are seldom used in classroom instruction and teacher assessments. We discuss our findings and implications for policymakers, assessment developers, practitioners, and researchers.     

Long-Term Follow-Up of Spanish and English Interventions for First-Grade English Language Learners at Risk for Reading Problems

Abstract

We provide data 3 to 4 years postintervention for four samples of English language learners from two sequential Grade 1 cohorts who received supplemental Grade 1 reading interventions in Spanish or English and for whom the language of instruction for intervention was matched with language of core reading instruction. Participants were 300 students at risk for reading difficulties who were randomly assigned to intervention or comparison groups; there were 186 students from the four samples assessed in both languages (Spanish, English) 3 or 4 years after intervention completion (Spring Grade 4 or 5). Findings from the Spanish study revealed few statistically significant differences in favor of intervention students on Spanish measures, although effect sizes generally favored this group (median d = +0.33). Findings from the English study also revealed few statistically significant differences in favor of intervention students, though again, effect sizes were positive (median d = +0.23). Transfer effects were generally small, though nearly all were positive. Although the effects were small, receipt of intervention in Grade 1 was associated with clinically significant gains in a variety of literacy-related domains 3 to 4 years after the termination of supplemental instruction.     

差生的英语学习成就归因——中国大学生与中学生的对比分析

本研究考查了中国大、中学两个层次英语差生的归因方式之间的异同,以及同一层次内部归因方式的异同。首先,通过开放性调查,获得了中国大、中学生归因方式的几种主要倾向。在此基础上,设计并实施了一个半封闭式的问卷调查,考查了大、中学差生的归因方式。研究发现中国英语学习者对英语学习成败有着一些新的归因方式,大、中学差生在归因方式的倾向性方面没有差异,但各层次内部差生的归因方式之间有着显著差异。     

大学英语学习者隐喻能力发展实证研究

隐喻能力是理解隐喻、解释隐喻有效性、在特定的语境中生成恰当的隐喻以及评价隐喻表达是否恰当的能力.隐喻能力的发展水平是决定大学英语学习者能否地道使用英语的重要因素之一.在大学英语课堂环境中,学习者能否发展起较高的隐喻能力被称作隐喻能力的可学性问题.通过对高、低两水平组大学英语学习者在理解和产出英语隐喻的情况进行调查,然后对获得的统计数据进行分组对比研究,得出两点初步的结论：（1）在隐喻理解方面,两水平组之间的隐喻能力存在差异,高水平组的隐喻能力高于低水平组;（2）在隐喻产出方面,无论高水平组还是低水平组,他们的隐喻能力都相对发展不足,低水平组隐喻的产出能力更为不足.     

Validating English Language Proficiency Assessment Uses for English Learners: Academic Language Proficiency and Content Assessment Performance

States use standards‐based English language proficiency (ELP) assessments to inform relatively high‐stakes decisions for English learner (EL) students. Results from these assessments are one of the primary criteria used to determine EL students’ level of ELP and readiness for reclassification. The results are also used to evaluate the effectiveness of and funding allocation to district or school programs that serve EL students. In an effort to provide empirical validity evidence for such important uses of ELP assessments, this study focused on examining the constructs of ELP assessments as a fundamental validity issue. Particularly, the study examined the types of language proficiency measured in three sample states’ ELP assessments and the relationship between each type of language proficiency and content assessment performance. The results revealed notable variation in the presence of academic and social language in the three ELP assessments. A series of hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) analyses also revealed varied relationships among social language proficiency, academic language proficiency, and content assessment performance. The findings highlight the importance of examining the constructs of ELP assessments for making appropriate interpretations and decisions based on the assessment scores for EL students. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.     

对不同水平英语学习者语用能力的研究——以中国英语学习者的拒绝言语行为为例

语用能力和语言能力的关系一直备受关注。为了证实语言能力的水平是否会影响语用能力的发展,笔者以两组不同语言层次的中国英语学习者（高中二年级学生和英语专业大二学生）为例,调查了他们的语用能力。结果显示,大二学生在语用语言能力上更接近目标语;在社会语用能力上,两组学生在接近目标语上都存在一定差异,但大二学生取得的进步稍微大些。     

幼儿园专家教师和新手教师教学设计特征的研究

本研究根据目前有效教学研究的最新范式,选取2类幼儿园教师,共6人组成3组,运用半结构化访谈的研究方法获取言语数据,对其在幼儿园科学教育领域的集体教学活动设计时的思维特征进行了研究。发现幼儿园专家教师此问题情境中的思维活动在内容、组织、策略三方面表现出明显的差异特征。     

远程英语学习策略——电大英语专业本科生的调查分析

远程英语学习者是一个特殊群体,研究他们的学习策略有现实指导意义。问卷调查显示,电大英语专业本科生已经逐渐适应从以教师为中心的教学向自主掌握学习过程的转变,能根据远程学习的特点和规律以及社会环境的变化,发挥自身潜在的优势,较好运用情感、社交、认知、元认知和补偿等学习策略弥补远程学习的不足,有较强学习责任感。调查也表明,要把策略培训作为教学的有机组成部分,有效提高学生运用策略的意识和水平。     

A Contrastive Study of Two Approaches to Teach Grammar

There are many kinds of methods of teaching grammar, no matter what they are, these approaches can generally be classified into two approaches--deductive and inductive. What an appropriate grammar teaching approach is by examining the inductive and deductive approaches to grammar teaching and learning. It starts with the definitions of inductive and deductive approaches to grammar teaching, followed by a contrastive study of these two approaches in terms of both the bases and the application. Finally, it explores the inductive approach and outlines the benefits of this approach and suggests an alternative view of grammar teaching.     

英语词汇组块构建与词汇学习有效性研究

词汇是语言学习的重要环节。本文尝试把组块构建记忆策略运用到英语词汇学习过程中,指出如何根据单词的音、形、义、用构建词汇组块,帮助学习者从四个维度全方位地学习单词,以提高单词的掌握与运用能力。在此基础上,本文阐述了词汇组块对英语词汇教学产生的启示意义,以提高学生的词汇组块意识和组块构建记忆策略在单词学习中的运用能力。     

善学者与不善学者的词汇学习策略

本文通过文献法和问卷法分别对普通高校本科以上学生和高职学生的词汇学习策略进行了研究和对比分析。对前者的研究结果表明,在词汇学习策略上,善学者和不善学者存在着较大的差异：善学者比不善学者使用更多的词汇学习策略：他们更多地使用上下文策略、猜词策略和社会情感策略;他们善于计划、组织和管理自己的词汇学习。而对后者的研究表明,该类院校中善学者与不善学者的词汇学习观点和策略使用的差异较小,但与前者善学者和不善学者的差异较大。     

心理性学习模式对英语听说学习者的心理及实际效应

在英语听说教学中采用心理性学习模式,可以有效地调动学生积极的心理因素,激发其主动参与学习活动,从而有效获取英语听说语感能力和言语技能。文章从怡心、悟性和语感三个方面论述了情感教学是培养学生学习兴趣的有效方法;从感性到理性认识的认知学习,是提高学生英语听说技能的保证;通过知识与技能统一的综合性学习,是培养学生获得英语听说语感能力的有效措施。