Cognitive Load and Learner Expertise: Split-Attention and Redundancy Effects in Reading with Explanatory Notes

Five experiments were conducted to examine the effects of cognitive load management using explanatory notes in reading passages for readers with different levels of expertise. Experiment 1 found that explanatory notes improved 5th-grade, first-language learners' comprehension (high-level processing) but not vocabulary learning (low-level processing). Experiment 2 found that vocabulary definitions integrated within a passage (integrated format) enhanced 5th graders' comprehension compared to a separate vocabulary list (separated format) but reduced vocabulary learning. Experiment 3, using adult readers, found that an integrated format reduced comprehension but enhanced vocabulary learning. Experiment 4 used low-ability 8th-grade learners of English as a second language (ESL) and found an effect similar to the 5th graders in Experiment 2. Experiment 5 showed that the effect for high-ability ESL learners was similar to the adults in Experiment 3. We argue that the efficiency of instruction depends on the extent to which it imposes an extraneous cognitive load. The same presentation format may facilitate performance or interfere with performance either through split-attention or redundancy effects, depending on learners' expertise.     

Cognitive and Social Factors Affecting Arab Students Learning English as a Third Language in Israel

This study investigated the relationship between attitudes, interest, and culture, on the one hand, and reading comprehension in English as a third language on the other. Participants were 70 native Arab students aged 15-16 who were sampled from three high schools in the Haifa area. They were administered an attitude questionnaire, culturally familiar and culturally unfamiliar stories, multiple-choice comprehension questions and an interest questionnaire. The results revealed that the Arab students' attitudes towards English were more instrumental than integrative; and their attitude towards the English learning situation was positive. Further, they were more interested in the familiar cultural story than in the unfamiliar one, and they performed accordingly. In other words, type of text (culturally familiar/unfamiliar) was the only significant predictor of reading comprehension in English. However, when reading scores were regressed on the independent variables controlling for text type, interest was the only significant predictor. Thus, in the Israeli-Arab situation, learner interest and type of text are powerful predictors of comprehension of English as a third language.     

Redundancy in foreign language reading comprehension instruction: Concurrent written and spoken presentations

In an example of the redundancy effect, learning is inhibited when written and spoken text containing the same information is presented simultaneously rather than in written or spoken form alone. The current research was designed to investigate whether the redundancy effect applied to reading comprehension in English as a foreign language (EFL) by comparing two instructional formats, written presentation only and written presentation concurrent with verbatim spoken presentation. Participants were in their first year of tertiary education. Examination of translation scores, subjective mental load ratings, and free recall performance indicated that simultaneous presentations rendered text comprehension less effective both at a lexical level and at the level of text comprehension compared with written presentation only.     

Using the known to chart the unknown: A review of first-language influence on the development of English-as-a-second-language spelling skill

Currently, there is a practical demand and necessity for research on how English-as-a-second language (ESL) learners acquire literacy skills, such as spelling. One important issue of this research agenda is how ESL learners apply first-language knowledge to learning to spell in English. Twenty-seven studies were reviewed that investigated the influence of the first language on ESL learners’ development of English spelling skill. Evidence was found for both positive and negative transfer of first-language knowledge and processes to ESL learners’ English spelling. These results are in agreement with theoretical propositions about the interdependence between first- and second-language academic skills [e.g., Cummins, J. (1981). In California State Department of Education (Ed.), Schooling and language minority students: A theoretical framework (pp. 3–49). Los Angeles: Evaluation, Dissemination, and Assessment Center, California State University, Los Angeles]. The findings are discussed in relation to the ESL learner’s first-language proficiency level and distance between first language and English. Comparisons are drawn between ESL learners’ and English monolinguals’ spelling development and suggestions for future research are provided.     

Cross-language transfer in English immersion programs in Germany: Reading comprehension and reading fluency

Cross-language effects on reading skills are of particular interest in the context of foreign language immersion programs. Although there is an extensive literature on cross-language effects on reading in general, research focusing on immersion students and including different dimensions of reading acquisition such as reading fluency and reading comprehension is scarce. This study therefore investigated cross-language transfer between first-language (L1) and second-language (L2) reading fluency and reading comprehension in a group of 220 German elementary school students who were enrolled in English partial immersion programs. Students were tested in grades 3 and 4. Structural equation modeling was used to examine cross-language transfer in a cross-lagged panel design. Results showed moderate cross-language paths when controlling for autoregressive effects. These findings are in line with previous results showing reciprocal transfer effects between L1 and L2 reading comprehension and reading fluency. In addition, the overall dominance of paths from L2 to L1 over paths from L1 to L2 suggests immersion-specific relations that may be attributable to the plentiful opportunities for academic reading in the L2 at school. Hence, skills necessary for successful reading can evidently be acquired in an L2 context and transferred to the L1. These findings underline the importance of cross-language transfer between reading skills in immersion programs.     

维吾尔族学生英语听力学习障碍及应对措施

听力是英语学习中至关重要的一部分,听力水平的高低直接影响到学习的兴趣、热情和效果。因此,如何提高英语听力水平是学好英语的一项重要内容。论文指出了少数民族学生在英语听力学习中存在的问题之后,探讨了若干解决问题的途径。     

Focus-on-form instructional methods promote deaf college students' improvement in English grammar

Focus-on-form English teaching methods are designed to facilitate second-language learners' noticing of target language input, where "noticing" is an acquisitional prerequisite for the comprehension, processing, and eventual integration of new grammatical knowledge. While primarily designed for teaching hearing second-language learners, many focus-on-form methods lend themselves to visual presentation. This article reports the results of classroom research on the visually based implementation of focus-on-form methods with deaf college students learning English. Two of 3 groups of deaf students received focus-on-form instruction during a 10-week remedial grammar course; a third control group received grammatical instruction that did not involve focus-on-form methods. The 2 experimental groups exhibited significantly greater improvement in English grammatical knowledge relative to the control group. These results validate the efficacy of visually based focus-on-form English instruction for deaf students of English and set the stage for the continual search for innovative and effective English teaching methodologies.     

How word decoding, vocabulary and prior topic knowledge predict reading comprehension. A study of language-minority students in Norwegian fifth grade classrooms

This study examined the contribution of word decoding, first-language (L1) and second-language (L2) vocabulary and prior topic knowledge to L2 reading comprehension. For measuring reading comprehension we employed two different reading tasks: Woodcock Passage Comprehension and a researcher-developed content-area reading assignment (the Global Warming Test) consisting of multiple lengthy texts. The sample included 67 language-minority students (native Urdu or native Turkish speakers) from 21 different fifth grade classrooms in Norway. Multiple regression analyses revealed that word decoding and different facets of L2 vocabulary explained most of the variance in Woodcock Passage Comprehension, but a smaller proportion of variance in the Global Warming Test. For the Global Warming Test, prior topic knowledge was the most influential predictor. Furthermore, L2 vocabulary depth appeared to moderate the contribution of prior topic knowledge to the Global Warming Test in this sample of language minority students.     

一项影响中国EFL学生理解英语习语的实证研究

旨在调查语言水平与习语类型对中国EFL学生理解英语习语的影响。结论是：语言水平对学习者理解英语习语有显著影响,和中等水平学习者相比,高等水平学习者理解三种习语的总体表现都更好;习语类型对学习者理解英语习语结果也有影响,正式习语理解成功率最高,其次是非正式习语,最低是俚语。也有其他因素影响学习者理解英语习语的结果：如习语的字面意义和比喻意义之间的联系、与母语相关的文化背景知识、习语涉及到的心理意象等等。     

Literacy development in deaf students: case studies in bilingual teaching and learning

A bilingual model has been applied to educating deaf students who are learning American Sign Language (ASL) as their first language and written English as a second. Although Cummins's (1984) theory of second-language learning articulates how learners draw on one language to acquire another, implementing teaching practices based on this theory, particularly with deaf students, is a complex, confusing process. The purposes of the present study were to narrow the gap between theory and practice and to describe the teaching and learning strategies used by the teachers and parents of three elementary school children within a bilingual/bicultural learning environment for deaf students. The findings suggest that strategies such as using ASL as the language of instruction and making translation conceptual rather than literal contribute to literacy learning. Findings further indicate that some inconsistencies persist in applying a bilingual approach with deaf students.     

Relationships of general vocabulary, science vocabulary, and student questioning with science comprehension in students with varying levels of English proficiency

This study investigated the influence of general vocabulary knowledge, science vocabulary knowledge, and text based questioning on the science reading comprehension of three types of students who varied in their English language proficiency. Specifically, grade 5 English-Only speakers, English Language Learners in the United States, and students learning English as a Foreign Language in a Spanish-speaking country were compared across the aforementioned variables to examine their relationship to reading comprehension. Findings indicated that general vocabulary, science vocabulary, and questioning contributed significant variance to the explanation of science reading comprehension. However, no particular variable was found to interact with language proficiency in their contribution to science reading comprehension. Findings are discussed in terms of the roles that each variable could play in content area comprehension. Implications for content-area literacy instruction of second-language students are considered.     

Processing orthographic structure: associations between print and fingerspelling

Two lexical decision experiments are reported that investigate whether the same segmentation strategies are used for reading printed English words and fingerspelled words (in American Sign Language). Experiment 1 revealed that both deaf and hearing readers performed better when written words were segmented with respect to an orthographically defined syllable (the Basic Orthographic Syllable Structure [BOSS]) than with a phonologically defined syllable. Correlation analyses revealed that better deaf readers were more sensitive to orthographic syllable representations, whereas segmentation strategy did not differentiate the better hearing readers. In contrast to Experiment 1, Experiment 2 revealed better performance by deaf participants when fingerspelled words were segmented at the phonological syllable boundary. We suggest that English mouthings that often accompany fingerspelled words promote a phonological parsing preference for fingerspelled words. In addition, fingerspelling ability was significantly correlated with reading comprehension and vocabulary skills. This pattern of results indicates that the association between fingerspelling and print for adult deaf readers is not based on shared segmentation strategies. Rather, we suggest that both good readers and good fingerspellers have established strong representations of English and that fingerspelling may aid in the development and maintenance of English vocabulary.     

Effects of picture-word integration on reading visual narratives in L1 and L2

Multimodal education materials are pervasive in language learning. This study investigated the causal mechanisms of multimodal reading effects in first language (L1) and second language (L2). Seventy-five adult bilingual readers in Hong Kong read Chinese and English passages with different degrees of picture-word integration in a within-subject design. Results showed that tight text-picture integration facilitated better comprehension than independent text-picture presentation in L2, but not L1. Perceived ease and interest differentially mediated multimodal reading performance for L1 and L2 passages. Importantly, separate images in L2 passages led to poorer comprehension accuracy relative to plain text, but tended to have higher ratings of ease and interest, indicating that readers may be overconfident in their multimodal reading performance. In general, results support the notion that integration of text and pictures can moderate the process of meaning making, and these may differ depending on the language presented to a bilingual reader.     

Assessing the cognitive abilities of culturally and linguistically diverse students: Predictive validity of verbal,quantitative, and nonverbal tests

Verbal and quantitative reasoning tests provide valuable information about cognitive abilities that are important to academic success. Information about these abilities may be particularly valuable to teachers of students who are English‐language learners (ELL), because leveraging reasoning skills to support comprehension is a critical aptitude for their academic success. However, due to concerns about cultural bias, many researchers advise exclusive use of nonverbal tests with ELL students despite a lack of evidence that nonverbal tests provide greater validity for these students. In this study, a test measuring verbal, quantitative, and nonverbal reasoning was administered to a culturally and linguistically diverse sample of students. The two‐year predictive relationship between ability and achievement scores revealed that nonverbal scores had weaker correlations with future achievement than did quantitative and verbal reasoning ability scores for ELL and non‐ELL students. Results do not indicate differential prediction and do not support the exclusive use of nonverbal tests for ELL students. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Using Primary Language Support via Computer to Improve Reading Comprehension Skills of First-Grade English Language Learners

Through this exploratory study the authors investigated the effects of primary language support delivered via computer on the English reading comprehension skills of English language learners. Participants were 28 First-grade students identified as Limited English Proficient. The primary language of all participants was Spanish. Students were assigned to two groups for an 8-week intervention period. Treatment Group 1 used a computer-based literacy program with English oral language instructions. Treatment Group 2 used a computer-based literacy program with Spanish oral language instructions. Data indicated that all participants experienced significant growth in fluency, word reading, and passage comprehension. Results revealed no significant difference between the two groups in the areas of fluency or word reading. However, the students who received Spanish language support via the computer had significantly higher scores in the area of reading comprehension.     

Macrostructure construction and organization in the processing of multiple text passages

This paper addresses the issue of macrostructural processing of multiple text passages. Two levels of macrostructural processing, macrostructural construction (extracting important information) and organization (structuring selected information) may be at work during complex text comprehension. Three experiments examined the effects of various textual and situational factors on macrostructural construction and organization. College students were asked to read small sets of documents presented in hypertext format. The students' reading strategies as well as their written reports were analyzed. Experiment 1 showed that headings and presentation format influence macrostructural organization. Experiment 2 showed that task requirements tend to influence macrostructure construction and organization, whereas presentation conditions, such as the marking of important information and the presentation order, can affect both levels of macrostructural processing. Finally, experiment 3 indicated that there is an interaction between global and local headings and the construction and organization of macrostructure. The three experiments also suggested that subjects can be characterized based on how well they deal with macrostructural construction and organization. It is concluded that the comprehension of hypertext involves higher levels of cognitive processing which ensure the structuring of multiple text information.     

背景知识与英语阅读理解

英语阅读理解并非书面语言信息向读者大脑的单向转移,而是读物的文字内容和读者的背景知识相互作用的结果。背景知识不仅指文化背景,还指人们掌握的各种知识,包括语言知识本身及读者已有的各种生活经验、经历等。本文旨在揭示背景知识在英语阅读理解中的重要性,以期提高英语阅读的教学。     

语境·文本·文化·文体——语境与典籍翻译的三重关注

作为一种深层次的文化交流,典籍翻译关涉依照优先次序传递源文本的字面意义、文化内涵和文体特征,而语境在典籍翻译的这种三重关注中起着举足轻重的作用。从《坛经》的英译中,探讨理解和传达过程中的语境问题,着重传达语境信息的若干原则和方法,包括把语境信息直接融入译文,通过增译、插入、注释提供必要的文化背景,揉合异化的内容和倾向归化的语言和形式,利用译语的文学资源等。     

外语阅读焦虑与阅读成绩的关系

为了研究外语阅读焦虑与阅读成绩的关系,利用外语阅读焦虑量表,对随机抽查的150名英语专业的大学生进行测试,并就阅读焦虑与阅读课程成绩和阅读理解成绩进行研究。结果表明：同非英语专业学生一样,英语专业学生普遍存在英语阅读焦虑;英语阅读焦虑与英语阅读学业成绩及阅读理解回顾成绩之间存在显著性负相关,阅读焦虑与阅读理解多项选择成绩之间没有显著性负相关关系。