University ESL Research Articles

Theory and practice in content-based ESL reading instruction

Most college ESL students are placed in developmental reading programs. To experience success in the mainstream college curriculum, they must achieve an adequate level of reading proficiency as quickly and as easily as possible. This paper advocates content-based reading instruction as an effective way to facilitate this process. After providing a rationale for the content-based approach, the paper then offers student achievement, feedback, and retention data from a study of two variations of content-based ESL reading courses to support the practical efficacy of this approach to ESL reading instruction.

Student Reactions to Teacher Response in Multiple-Draft Composition Classrooms

Research in L1 and L2 student writing has suggested that teacher response to student compositions is most effective when it is given on preliminary rather than final drafts of student essays (Freedman, 1987; Krashen, 1984). One area of research in L1 and L2 composition is the assessment of student reactions to the feedback they receive from their teachers (Cohen & Cavalcanti, 1990; Hedgcock & Lefkowitz, 1994; Leki, 1991; McCurdy, 1992). However, most previous studies of ESL student response to their teachers' written comments on their essays have been undertaken in single-draft, rather than multiple-draft, contexts. In this study, 155 students in two levels of a university ESL composition program responded to a survey very similar to the ones utilized by Cohen (1987) and McCurdy (1992) in single-draft settings. The results of the survey indicated that students pay more attention to teacher feedback provided on preliminary drafts (vs. final drafts) of their essays; that they utilize a variety of strategies to respond to their teachers' comments; that they appreciate receiving comments of encouragement; and that, overall, they find their teachers' feedback useful in helping them to improve their writing. Responses also showed that students had a variety of problems in understanding their teachers' comments, suggesting that teachers should be more intentional in explaining their responding behaviors to their students.

Oral Skills Testing: A Rhetorical Task Approach

This paper discusses the development, implementation, and evaluation of a semi-direct test of oral proficiency: the Rhetorical Task Examination (RTE). Many of the commonly used speaking instruments assess oral proficiency in terms of either discrete linguistic components-fluency, grammar, pronunciation, and vocabulary-or in terms of a single, global ability rating. The RTE proposes a compromise approach to rating oral skills by having two scales: one which ascertains the functional ability to accomplish a variety of rhetorical tasks, the other to address the linguistic competence (Canale & Swain, 1980) displayed in the performance. On audiotape in a language laboratory setting, 52 students representing three levels of a university ESL program performed six tasks related to the rhetorical modes covered in their coursework: short questions and answers, description, narration, process (giving directions), opinion, and comparison- contrast. The construction and justification of both the instrument and the rating scales are explained; data obtained from administering the RTE across classes as well as before and after instruction are presented; and the relevant measurement characteristics of the test are discussed. Results of this study indicate that the Rhetorical Task Examination is promising as a measure of oral proficiency in terms of practicality, reliability, and validity.

An Analysis of Summary Protocols of University ESL Students

An Analysis of Summary Protocols of University ESL Students

Do We Need to Teach Spelling? The Relationship between Spelling and Voluntary Reading among Community College ESL Students

U It has been suggested that reading contributes to spelling competence (Ehri, 1986; Krashen, 1985; Smith, 1982b; see also Goodman, Smith, Meredith, & Goodman, 1987). Experimental studies indicate that readers can improve their spelling by exposure to words in texts (Gilbert, 1934, 1935). In addition, consistent correlations have been found between performance on tests of reading comprehension and tests of spelling ability (Hammill & McNutt, 1980). Although this relationship can be interpreted as showing the relevance of spelling ability to reading, it is also consistent with the hypothesis that reading experience causes improvement in both reading and spelling ability. The three studies described here were an attempt to determine whether a relationship exists between spelling competence and voluntary reading for ESL students at the community college level. If such a relationship could be demonstrated, it would provide additional support for the hypothesis that reading contributes to spelling ability.

Demographic Trends and Student Progress in the San Jose City College ESL Program, 1982-1987

Demographic Trends and Student Progress in the San Jose City College ESL Program, 1982-1987

A CATEGORICAL INSTRUMENT FOR SCORING SECOND LANGUAGE WRITING SKILLS

This paper first reviews recent research on evaluating second language learners’writing skills. It then discusses research on a categorical instrument for evaluating compositions written by upper intermediate university ESL students. The form of the instrument used in this study included five equally weighted criteria for scoring: (1) Organization, (2) Logical Development of Ideas, (3) Grammar, (4) Mechanics, and (5) Style. An experiment was conducted under controlled conditions in which ten raters scored fifty randomly selected compositions. Regression analysis and generalizability theory were used for investigating the reliability of the instrument. In addition, information was obtained from the raters as to their reactions to the instrument. The results indicate that the scoring instrument is moderately reliable. More useful, perhaps, is the demonstration provided of the effects on reliability of changing the number of raters and/or criteria. The paper concludes with a discussion of the issues involved (both with this particular instrument and with analytic scoring systems in general) and of possible future research on the evaluation of nonnative speakers’writing.

Patterns in the Use of the Present Tense Third Person Singular -s by University-Level ESL Speakers

Krashen's distinction between acquisition and learning has been discussed widely in the recent ESL literature. Reported here are two studies of oral performance by university ESL students which show patterns of use of the present tense third person singular morpheme (-s) that are interpreted in terms of this distinction. In the first study, speech taken to represent the acquired language system was elicited by asking subjects to talk about several pictures. Analysis of correctly and incorrectly formed third person singular verbs showed that subjects tended to cluster the s's on a few verbs rather than randomly distributing them over all verbs. This pattern suggests that the morpheme may be acquired, not in isolation, but attached to particular verbs. The second study investigated this pattern further by looking at seven third person singular verbs in imitated sentences. Here, just under half of the subjects produced the non-random cluster pattern. The remaining subjects attached the s more randomly to all verbs in a pattern that most likely represents application of a learned rule (monitoring). A difficulty index constructed for the verbs used in the non-random pattern suggests that phonetic environment and perhaps frequency of use influence the order in which verbs attract s. Implications for the classroom are discussed.

Using T-unit Measures to Assess Writing Proficiency of University ESL Students

A few studies' to date have used T-unit measures in the assess ment of writing proficiency of ESL students, particularly in the assessment of free writing and rewriting output of ESL students. In this study the investigator used T-unit measures to assess both free writing and rewriting abilities of ESL students pursuing undergraduate level work. The findings demonstrate that measures used in evalua ting writing will have to be error-free if they are to discriminate among compositions written by ESL students.

The Development of Syntax in the Writing of University ESL Students

Overall alpha levels before deletion of these eight items were as follows: self = .63, countrymen = .60, Americans = .67. These findings may be surprising in that Acton's pilot studies revealed that these items were culturally loaded. This characteristic does not seem to contribute to the reliability of the PDAQ. The reliabilities of the three scales were increased some with the deletion of the eight items noted. New alpha coefficients were .72 for self, .69 for countrymen, and .71 for Americans. One could interpret these findings to suggest that the shortened PDAQ, with deletion of those eight items, is measuring a construct of attitude toward self, countrymen, and Americans in a somewhat consistent way on this administration of the test. Other tests have measured attitude as consistently, no doubt, but these findings are rarely reported.

Relationships Between Use of the Strategy of Monitoring and the Cognitive Style

This study addresses the question of whether observed differences in the use of the strategy of monitoring (as defined by Krashen) is related to four rather stable cognitive styles. Subjects were 40 Spanish-speaking adults in a university ESL program. Each subject's use of monitoring was assessed by comparing the degree of correctness s/he demonstrated with respect to one morpheme, third-person-singular s, in elicited speech, taken to represent his/her acquired knowledge of the morpheme, and on three writing tasks—fill-in-the-blank, proofreading, and composition—taken to represent acquired knowledge modified by conscious application of the third-person-singular rule. It was hypothesized that the most monitoring would occur on the fill-in-the-blank test, and the least on the composition. The cognitive styles hypothesized to be related to monitor use were field independence, reflection, flexible control, and preference for processing information by written word.No significant differences in the amount of monitoring on the three written tasks were noted. Field independence was positively related to the amount of monitoring on all written tasks, and reflection weakly but positively related to the amount of monitoring on the proofreading task. Implications for further research are discussed.

Vocabulary Development for College ESL Students

Vocabulary Development for College ESL Students

Oral Reports in the Intermediate ESL Classroom

Students are frequently required to present oral reports in ESL classes, but little has been written to guide the instructor in helping the students to prepare these reports or to aid the instructor in evaluating them. This article first discusses the value of oral reports and their place in the ESL curriculum, then presents materials developed for use in intermediate level ESL courses and tested over a three-year period in George Washington University's ESL program. These materials include guidelines for choosing a topic, preparing the report, recording the rough draft on cassette tape, presenting the report in class, and leading a discussion afterwards. Finally, two evaluation forms are discussed: one by the instructor, and one by the students.

Micro self-pacing in the university ESL composition course

Micro self-pacing in the university ESL composition course

An ESL Index of Development

This paper is a report on the progress we are making in an attempt to establish a second language acquisition index of development. Such an index would be a developmental yardstick by which researchers could expediently and reliably gauge a learner's proficiency in a second language. Encouraged by the findings of an earlier pilot study, a more ambitious project involving the analysis of 212 compositions was undertaken. These compositions, written by university ESL students, were analyzed using several measures based on Kellogg Hunt's T-unit performance variable. Two measures applied in the analysis, the percentage of error-free T-units and the average length of error-free T-units, proved to be the best discriminators among the five levels of ESL proficiency represented in this population. In addition to a discussion of these results, included in this paper is a survey of L2 acquisition studies which have also employed T-unit length as a proficiency measure. Finally, an outline is offered of the studies currently being conducted in an attempt to further refine these measures.

A Student-Led-Tutorial Approach in Sri Lanka

An experimental university ESL program at Vidyodaya campus of the University of Sri T anka features small, student-led tutorial groups for the development of conversational skill and college reading skill. Circles of six students meeting daily tutor each other with only occasional guidance from professional ESL teachers, who manage several such groups working simultaneously in the same classroom. This approach may be useful in other university programs where a reasonable number of students on campus already have advanced English proficiency, and where the scarcity of funds for professional ESL teachers makes small-group instruction economically prohibitive.