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L2 Reading (l2 + reading)

Distribution by Scientific Domains
Humanities and Social Sciences100%

Selected Abstracts

English L2 Reading: Getting to the Bottom.

MODERN LANGUAGE JOURNAL, Issue 4 2008
2nd ed by BIRCH, BARBARA M
No abstract is available for this article. [source]

Some Hypotheses on the Nature of Difficulty and Ease in Second Language Reading: An Application of Schema Theory

FOREIGN LANGUAGE ANNALS, Issue 6 2000
Philip C. Hauptman
A traditional view of difficulty/ease is explained as consisting of two factors: (1) Language (grammar and vocabulary) and (2) Text Length. A modern view of difficulty/ease is then proposed via four hypotheses: (1) The first Primary Ease Factor in L2 reading is background knowledge; (2) Signalling becomes the Primary Ease Factor in L2 reading when background knowledge is not useful for accessing content schemata; (3) Other factors being equal, the degree of signalling determines the degree of accessibility of a text for the L2 reader; and (4) Other factors being equal, Language, Discourse, and Length are of secondary importance , after Background Knowledge and Signalling , for accessing a text by L2 readers. [source]

The Effects of First Language Orthographic Features on Second Language Reading in Text

LANGUAGE LEARNING, Issue 2 2003
Nobuhiko Akamatsu
This study investigated the effects of first language (L1) orthographic features on second language (L2) reading. Three groups of fluent L2 readers with a variety of L1 backgrounds (i.e., Chinese, Japanese, and Persian) were provided with English passages printed in either alternated case or a normal manner and asked to read them for comprehension. Results showed that the Chinese and the Japanese (nonalphabetic L1 groups) were more adversely affected by case alternation than was the Persian group (an alphabetic L1 group), in terms of reading speed. This suggests that, because of L1 effects on basic processing in L2 reading, L2 readers with a nonalphabetic L1 background were less efficient in processing English words than those with an alphabetic L1 background. [source]

Second Language Listening: Listening Ability or Language Proficiency?

MODERN LANGUAGE JOURNAL, Issue 1 2006
LARRY VANDERGRIFT
This article reports on a study exploring the respective contributions of first language (L1) listening comprehension ability and second language (L2) proficiency to L2 listening comprehension ability. The participants were 75 Grade 8 English-speaking students learning French. The students completed tests in French and in English that required them to listen to authentic dialogues and to complete a number of multiple choice comprehension questions. Multiple regression analysis indicated that both L1 listening comprehension ability and L2 proficiency contributed significantly to L2 listening comprehension ability, with L2 proficiency having about twice as much common variance. A further analysis by question type indicated that, although the relative contribution of L2 proficiency to the combined variance continued to be higher for both question types, the relative contribution of L1 listening comprehension ability to answering literal questions was greater than for answering inferencing questions. The results are discussed in light of the linguistic threshold and the linguistic interdependence hypotheses and similar research on this same question for L2 reading. This article initiates an exploration of the ability/proficiency debate as it relates to L2 listening comprehension ability, discusses implications for L2 pedagogy, and suggests important avenues for further research. [source]