Under the premise that vocabulary learning in a Spanish as a second language in-class environment may be affected by the instructional approach adopted by the instructors or the materials followed, this study explores the influence of rather distant teaching styles, such as implicit and explicit approaches, on the learning outcome of Spanish…

Adolescents may struggle with text for a number of reasons, including problems with a) vocabulary knowledge, b) general knowledge of topics and text structures, c) knowing of what to do when comprehension breaks down, or d) proficiency in monitoring their own reading comprehension. Most recent literacy initiatives target younger readers and…

Although there exists a number of studies that have shown the benefits of applying the cognitive linguistics notion of motivation to foster comprehension and retention of conventional English metaphors, relatively little attention has been paid to EFL learners' productive use of metaphor in speech and writing. Using data gathered in a…

In the field of vocabulary acquisition, there have been many studies on the efficacy of word lists. However, very few of these were based on research in a classroom setting, and therefore, their results may not be applicable to standard classroom situations. This study investigated which of the five types of word lists (synonyms, antonyms,…

The present study was carried out to determine the effect of general vocabulary knowledge and gaining familiarity with the specific vocabulary content of a reading or listening comprehension test on a group of Iranian EFL learners' reading and listening comprehension ability. Two groups of male and female English majors (N = 58) participated in…

This paper investigates role-play activities and how they can be used within learning for English as an Additional Language (EAL) pupils in a Key Stage 2 setting in England. Through observations, results showed effective role-play activities can be beneficial to EAL pupils, allowing them to practice words and phrases in a relaxed atmosphere…

While formal research into the effect various technologies have on vocabulary acquisition is still in its infancy, it is clear that--intentionally or incidentally--students have used various electronic media to learn new words for some time now. Moreover, although it is still far from clear exactly how one acquires vocabulary in a second language…

Video games are potential sources of second language input; however, the medium's fundamental characteristic, interactivity, has not been thoroughly examined in terms of its effect on learning outcomes. This experimental study investigated to what degree, if at all, video game interactivity would help or hinder the noticing and recall of second…

Many students arrive at middle school without the academic language skills they need to read sophisticated texts with comprehension. In particular, English language learners and students from low-income backgrounds attending underresourced, urban middle schools lack opportunities to learn the thousands of academic words they need to succeed. To…

The goal of this paper was to examine promising effects of a bilingual family literacy program: to track the changes of families' literacy activities through a bilingual family literacy intervention, and to examine the children literacy gains in both Chinese and English across socioeconomic sub-groups. The intervention was an eight-week, two hours…

In two experiments we examined how children's nonword pronunciations are influenced by learning words. In Experiment 1, children pronounced nonwords before and after learning words sharing orthographic rimes with the nonwords. These rimes varied in spelling-to-sound consistency and regularity. Children's nonword pronunciations were more sensitive…

The present longitudinal study examines the role of caregiver speech in language development, especially syntactic development, using 47 parent-child pairs of diverse SES background from 14 to 46 months. We assess the diversity (variety) of words and syntactic structures produced by caregivers and children. We use lagged correlations to examine…

Although learning objectives are a hallmark of lesson planning, it is rare for these to be shared with learners, even though best practices suggest doing so. This article examines the practice of establishing purpose for English language learners as a means for developing conceptual schemas. Participants in this study were 332 southern California…

The goal of this study was to examine the mechanisms underlying associations between neighborhood socioeconomic advantage and children's achievement trajectories between ages 54 months and 15 years. Results of hierarchical linear growth models based on a diverse sample of 1,364 children indicate that neighborhood socioeconomic advantage was…

The study investigated how second language (L2) learners self-assessed word knowledge on a page of text taken from a graded reader. The case study subjects were five Thai high school learners of English. They were asked to assess their word knowledge using a page of continuous text. Data gained through observation, interviews, self-assessment and…