CONTEXTUAL WORD LEARNING DURING READING IN A SECOND LANGUAGE

By Irina Elgort, Marc Brysbaert, Michaël A. Stevens, Eva Van Assche. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 2017

131 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Abstract Reading affords opportunities for L2 vocabulary acquisition. Empirical research into the pace and trajectory of this acquisition has both theoretical and applied value. Charting the development of different aspects of word knowledge can verify and inform theoretical frameworks of word learning and reading comprehension. It can also inform practical decisions about using L2 readings in academic study. Monitoring readers’ eye movements provides real-time data on word learning, under the conditions that closely approximate adult L2 vocabulary acquisition from reading. In this study, Dutch-speaking university students read an English expository text, while their eye movements were recorded. Of interest were patterns of change in the eye movements on the target low-frequency words that occurred multiple times in the text, and whether differences in the processing of target and control (known) words decreased overtime. Target word reading outside of the familiar text was examined in a posttest using semantically neutral sentences. The findings show that orthographic processing develops relatively quickly and reliably. However, online retrieval of meaning remains insufficient for fluent word-to-text integration even after multiple contextual encounters.

Subfields: Developmental and Educational Psychology, Language and Linguistics

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/45e6ea4402f2a722f88189fb0ada627a9cf437ca

How researchers see this paper

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In Developmental and Educational Psychology

1. Takumi Uchihara
2. Akifumi Yanagisawa
3. Stuart Webb
4. N. Schmitt
5. E. Peters
6. A. Pellicer‐Sánchez
7. Irina Elgort
8. A. Chang

In Language and Linguistics

1. Takumi Uchihara
2. Akifumi Yanagisawa
3. Stuart Webb
4. N. Schmitt
5. E. Peters
6. A. Pellicer‐Sánchez
7. Irina Elgort
8. Yanxue Feng

Citations in the corpus

• The Effects of Repetition on Incidental Vocabulary Learning: A Meta‐Analysis of Correlational Studies (2019, background): “Thus, the general view that more is better for learning may not always be true (Elgort et al., 2018; Pellicer-Sánchez, 2016).”