This paper attempts to compare the nativist approach on the contextualization of vocabulary with approaches by behaviorists, empiricists, and neofunctionalists. It considers such themes and issues as the following: cognition, comprehension, and communication; prior knowledge and content; the process of contextualization; the skill and process of…

Discusses techniques for helping English-as-a-Foreign-Language students activate their prior knowledge for effective top-down processing to facilitate reading comprehension. Three activities are discussed: the use of a semantic map, questioning, and previewing. (Author/VWL)

Discusses the "state of the art" of second language teacher education through a review of recent research and presents an overview of current perspectives on the field's knowledge base. Concludes with a proposal for a reflective approach to the preparation of second language teachers that draws from the literature review. (Author/VWL)

Reviews recent research on crosslinguistic influence, focusing on the part played by knowledge of one's first language in the acquisition of a second language (L2). It is also argued that there can be transfer that is not licensed by similarity to the L2, and where the way the L2 works may largely go unheeded. (86 references) (MDM)

With 104 advanced second language (L2) readers, this investigation seeks to construct a multicomponent model of interest and L2 reading. Sources of interest (SI) refer to variables that induce feelings of interest in a text. Perceived interest (PI) refers to the feeling of interest itself (Schraw, Bruning, & Svoboda, 1995). A factor analysis…

The authors argue that in classrooms with students from linguistically diverse backgrounds, instruction should explicitly activate prior knowledge. Teachers have the opportunity to create environments that affirm the identities of English language learners, thereby increasing the confidence with which these students engage in language and literacy…

This study examines the extent to which the communicative language teaching (CLT)-based English curriculum reform in South Korea is being experienced at the local level after a decade long effort of Ministry of Education. The study specifically focuses on the extent to which teachers understand the curriculum and implement it in their own…

A study investigated the effect of relevant background knowledge on the reading comprehension of students of Spanish. Students with limited knowledge of baseball took a comprehension test on a Spanish-language report of a baseball game. Results indicate that background knowledge is possibly more important than language level for comprehension.…

Focuses on the importance of background or schemata in learning to read and discusses how to help students use their background knowledge for reading. Suggests teachers need to activate students' prior knowledge of a topic before they begin to read. (VWL)

Examined the effects of text-based tasks and background knowledge on incidental vocabulary acquisition among adult English-as-a-Second-Language-learners who received treatments involving reading and retelling text with or without generative training. Pretesting and posttesting indicated that reading and retelling promoted incidental vocabulary…

Investigates textual coherence of popular psychology articles mediated through the theory of frames and identifies the linguistic evidence of factual frames. Inferencing is also discussed as a supplementary means to comprehension, with particular reference to the notion of bridging assumptions. Evidence for textual frames is discussed in relation…

Tested how domain-related knowledge, syntactic complexity, and reading topic influence inference generation in the written recalls of English-speaking participants after they read Spanish historical texts. Three types of inferences were examined: within-text inferences, elaborative inferences, and incorrect inferences. (Author/JL)

Examines the effect of knowledge about language on the learning of foreign language skills and grammar. Students (n=252) completed a questionnaire, metalinguistic awareness test, Raven's Progressive Matrices Test, a linguistic creativity test, and English tests. Hypothesized that students' knowledge about language would have a significant effect…

This study compared L2 listening comprehension with L2 reading comprehension in terms of the roles of linguistic knowledge, background knowledge, and question types among 168 university students learning English in Korea. The analyses of the data found that L2 listeners processed inferential information more easily than factual information, while…

The role of metalinguistic knowledge in learning a foreign/second language is the subject of continuing debate. In this paper we report on a study which explores this issue further with reference to undergraduate students of Chinese as a second/foreign language. The first part of the paper describes the process of developing and validating an…