Multimodal input can significantly support second language (L2) vocabulary learning and comprehension. However, very little research has examined how L2 learners, especially young learners, allocate attention when exposed to such input and whether learning from multimodal input can be explained by attention allocation. This study therefore…

This study explored the use of stealth assessments within a digital game to assess second language (L2) Chinese learners' reading comprehension. Log data tracking learners' in-game behaviors from a game designed for Chinese dual language immersion classrooms (Poole et al., 2022) were used to construct Bayesian Belief Networks to model reading…

With the fast-paced development of technology in today's society, there has been emerging a shift from paper-based reading to digital online reading. While the benefits of exposure to print have been well-established in previous studies, how online reading may impact individuals' literacy development is largely underexplored. The current study…

This article reports on a study that examined the effectiveness of an intervention using text messages to enhance the academic vocabulary acquisition of English language learners (ELLs). With a random control trial design, we compared students' learning gain of target vocabulary (direct effect) and its subsequent impact on academic vocabulary…

Since its inception, form-focused instruction (FFI) has been associated with grammar, with only a handful of studies examining its potential for vocabulary development (e.g., Laufer, 2006). Meanwhile, there has been an unresolved dispute between the two approaches of Focus on Form (FonF) and Focus on Forms (FonFs) in terms of their degree of…

This study examines how three captioning types (i.e., on-screen text in the same language as the video) can assist L2 learners in the incidental acquisition of target vocabulary words and in the comprehension of L2 video. A sample of 133 Flemish undergraduate students watched three French clips twice. The control group (n = 32) watched the clips…

This paper presents firstly a set of seven principles that lie behind the development of a vocabulary learning resource destined for French learners of English in higher education, and secondly an experiment investigating the use of narrative as a device to facilitate recall of target words. The seven principles can be combined in different ways,…

Cobb (2007) argues that free reading cannot provide L2 readers with sufficient opportunities for acquiring vocabulary in order to reach an adequate level of reading comprehension of English texts. In this paper, the authors argue that (1) Cobb severely underestimates the amount of reading even a very modest reading habit would afford L2 readers,…

The present study investigates the effects that different types of multimedia glosses, namely textual, pictorial, and textual + pictorial, have on text comprehension and vocabulary learning when the goal is exclusively comprehension of a computerized text. This study is based on the theoretical framework of attention, which maintains that…

This study explored the effect of two enhancement techniques on L2 learners' look-up behaviour during a reading task and word retention afterwards amongst Flemish learners of German: a Vocabulary Test Announcement and Task-induced Word Relevance. Eighty-four participants were recruited for this study. They were randomly assigned to one of two…

Examines which of the image modalities--dynamic video or still picture--is more effective in aiding vocabulary acquisition. Thirty English-as-a-Second-Language students were introduced to a hypermedia-learning program, designed for reading comprehension. Concludes that a video clip is more effective in teaching unknown vocabulary words than a…

Investigates how the signaling-mode of electronic glosses in online texts influences the user's reading process, incidental vocabulary learning, and text comprehension. Indicates that when reading a text with highlighted hyperlinks, readers are significantly more willing to consult the gloss. (Author/VWL)

Discusses how second-language reading research is focusing increasingly on the cognitive processes involved in reading--the interaction of lower-level, bottom-up processes such as vocabulary acquisition with high-level, top-down processes such as activating prior knowledge. This knowledge is combined with current research on learning with…