Abstract
In an experimental design, we investigated how fifth-grade readers use morphological and contextual information to infer the meaning of unknown words, and to what extent this is related to their cognitive and linguistic skills. A group of 166 fifth-grade Dutch children (59 L1, 107 L2) performed a lexical inferencing task in which the availability of morphological and contextual information was manipulated. Readers used both morphological and contextual information in lexical inferencing. Good decoding skill was related to more use of morphological information. Reading comprehension skill was associated with the use of morphological and contextual cues. L1 and L2 readers did not differ with respect to the use of morphological information. L2 readers used contextual information less in their inferences than L1 readers did. This difference was driven by L2 readers with weak vocabulary. The use of contextual information was especially high in L1 readers with good reading comprehension skills, and especially low in L2 readers with low vocabulary. Results indicate that to access morphological information, decoding is crucial, whereas for contextual inferencing, a minimum of linguistic competence is needed, which makes it more challenging for L2 readers.
Highlights
As children progress through primary school, they increasingly read to learn about the world rather than to practice reading
The present study aims to investigate to what extent L1 and L2 readers differ in their use of morphological and contextual cues and how this is related to their linguistic skills in the target language
The present study aimed to examine to what extent L1 and L2 readers in fifth grade differ in their use of morphological and contextual cues when inferring the meaning of novel words and how this is related to their linguistic skills in the target language
Summary
As children progress through primary school, they increasingly read to learn about the world rather than to practice reading. Children will often have both types of cues at their disposal This raises the question, whether young readers make use of both of these cues simultaneously, and what cognitive and linguistic skills are needed to do this. Lexical inferencing might be aided by L2 readers’ relative strength in morphological knowledge (Shahar-Yames, Eviatar, & Prior, 2018) and metalinguistic awareness (Adesope, Lavin, Thompson, & Ungerleider, 2010) Their lower language proficiency might make it more challenging (Shahar-Yames & Prior, 2018). The present study aims to investigate to what extent L1 and L2 readers differ in their use of morphological and contextual cues and how this is related to their linguistic skills in the target language
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
