Potential test-learning effects of an oral elicited imitation test: Methodological considerations for form-focused instruction studies

Abstract

In this methodological study, 60 Japanese university students took an Oral Elicited Imitation Test (OEIT) three times over the course of three weeks to investigate the potential test-learning effect of the OEIT in relation to two moderating factors: the number of test items (more or fewer), and the types of grammatical features targeted in the test (syntactic or morphological). The study was conducted because a strong test-learning effect of the OEIT has been potentially problematic for the internal validity of previous form-focused instruction studies. Results revealed that engaging in the OEIT three times led to improvement in participants’ test performance from Time 1 to Times 2 and 3, on both the syntactic and morphological forms. Furthermore, conducting the OEIT with more test items had stronger test-learning effects than with fewer test items. A careful examination of the participants’ reconstructions in the tests indicated somewhat different tendencies between the syntactic and the morphological forms.