High Proficiency Group Research Articles

How do L1 glosses affect EFL learners’ reading comprehension performance? An eye-tracking study

Abstract This study employed eye-tracking technology to examine how English as a foreign language learners at different proficiency levels process L1-glossed words and how this processing relates to L2 reading comprehension. Forty-seven university students were divided into a higher-proficiency group (n = 23) and a lower-proficiency group (n = 24) based on their L2 proficiency. Both groups were asked to read an English passage with L1 (Chinese) glosses. Their eye movements were recorded with an eye-tracker as they read. After reading, they were immediately given a reading comprehension test. Analyses of the eye-tracking data showed that the higher-proficiency L2 learners spent more time on unfamiliar words than the lower-proficiency L2 learners. Furthermore, lower-proficiency L2 learners’ longer processing time on glossed unfamiliar words was related to their higher reading comprehension scores, whereas this relationship was not found in the higher-proficiency group. These results revealed that the contribution of L1 glosses to L2 reading comprehension performance varied across L2 learners’ proficiency levels. Our findings have important implications for second language instruction.

An Investigation into Iranian English Language Learners’ Investment in Imagined Communities

Unlike communities of practice, previous studies on imagined communities of practice are scarce, yet enlightening. The present research was conducted in an English as a foreign language (EFL) context in order to provide more insight into how language learners perceive their imagined communities (ICs). It was based on Norton’s (2000; 2001) conceptualization of ICs which connected the notions of imagination and imagined community to second language (L2) learning and classroom practice. To this end, 945 male and female EFL learners from different cities in Iran belonging to different age groups and language proficiency levels were recruited for this study. The instrument for data collection was a validated 57-item questionnaire. The findings of the study showed that the participants possessed a moderate level of investment in their ICs. Moreover, t-test results indicated that there was a significant difference between male and female learners in the extent of investment in their ICs. Furthermore, the significant differences in the extent of investment in ICs were shown between teenagers and adults and between learners in low proficiency (LP) and high proficiency (HP) groups. These findings contribute to more in-depth understanding of language learners' ICs in an EFL context. Pedagogical implications of the study are discussed and some suggestions are made for future research.

The impact of language proficiency on neuro-cognitive mechanisms supporting second-language spoken word recognition: an ERP study on Chinese-English bilinguals

ABSTRACT The aim of the present study is to investigate the impact of proficiency in the second language (L2) on the neurocognitive processes that support the recognition of spoken words. Chinese native learners of English (N = 34) took part in the picture-word matching task and the AX Continuous Performance Test (AX-CPT). In the picture-word matching task, the component amplitudes for P50, N120, and P200 were found to be lower in the low proficiency group compared to the high proficiency group. Regarding the AX-CPT, the high-proficiency group exhibited a more balanced utilisation of proactive and reactive control, whereas the low-proficiency group displayed a greater reliance on proactive control. Additionally, a correlation was observed between various ERP components from the picture-word matching task and behavioural indicators obtained from the AX-CPT, suggesting different strategies of cognitive control may reflect the influence of language proficiency on neurocognitive mechanisms in spoken word recognition.

De-foreignizing English Outside Class: Junior-Secondary-Level English-as-a-Foreign-Language Learners’ Extramural English Engagements and Listening and Reading Proficiency

Being cognizant of the indispensable role of abundant language input, scholars have given more attention to learning beyond the foreign language classroom in recent decades. This is especially important because there is usually limited time and exposure to authentic input in class. Contexts in which English is regarded as a foreign language warrant scrutiny since English is now highly accessible to learners at virtually all ages, worldwide, at no/low cost, thanks mostly to technology. The present longitudinal study set out to examine 350 Hong Kong junior-secondary-school learners’ informal engagements with extramural English activities (e.g. watching videos; playing computer games). The relationship between their engagements and language proficiency was also investigated. The findings revealed that as many as 90% of the participants had informal extramural exposure to English. This exposure was classified into seven categories. Overall, the three most popular types of engagement were videos/movies, songs, and communication (e.g. face-to-face chats; text messages). Intriguingly, the overall levels of engagements were correlated significantly and positively with proficiency scores for the average- and high-proficiency groups, but no such relationship was found for the low-proficiency students. The article concludes with a brief discussion of the findings.

INFLUENCE OF TASK-TYPE AND PROFICIENCY ON COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES USED BY OMANI EFL LEARNERS

Communication strategies (CSs), an important component of strategic competence in foreign language learning, are techniques used by language learners to overcome the gap between their knowledge of the language and what they intend to communicate. An in-depth investigation into the factors that affect strategy use has clear implications for foreign language learning and teaching.This quantitative study examines the influence of proficiency and task-type on 27 CSs under three major strategy categories: Communication Flow Maintenance, Interactional, and Compensation. Participants are Omani EFL learners (n = 32) in the General Foundation Program (GFP). Participants performed three oral communication tasks in pairs (proficiency based) which were audio-video recorded and transcribed. The strategies used by each participant were quantified on an oral CSs checklist based on established taxonomies. The findings highlight that the overall use of CSs was more for the high proficiency group compared to the low proficiency group. Further, task characteristics had an influence on the use of CSs. Both proficiency groups used CSs least in the picture story task, more in the abstract art description task, and most in the information-gap task. Proficiency driven differences were noted in the use of individual strategies under each category, across tasks. The findings of this study have implications for designing communicative tasks as a tool to encourage the use of a wide gamut of communication strategies.

Impact of Metaverse-Based Speaking Activities for Second Language Learning

This study aimed to investigate whether metaverse-based speaking activities had an impact on enhancing speaking proficiency. 45 students who enrolled in College English during the 2022 spring semester were divided into high and low proficiency groups based on their mock TOEIC scores before the beginning of the semester. Students engaged in speaking activities via a metaverse environment twice a week. All students underwent speaking assessments, which included reading a text aloud, describing a picture, responding to questions, and expressing an opinion, both before and after the experiment. Additionally, a survey was conducted to gauge learner perceptions of metaverse-based speaking activities. The collected data were analyzed using paired sample <i>t</i>-tests and ANCOVA to examine differences within and between groups. The results indicated significant improvements in both groups from pre- to post-experiment assessments. However, it was observed that there existed no discernible disparity in speaking performance by varying degrees of English proficiency. This implies that English proficiency did not yield a statistically significant influence on the overall outcomes. In terms of learner perceptions, both groups exhibited positive attitudes, with no significant differences between them. In conclusion, this study suggests diverse approaches for incorporating metaverse-based speaking activities into L2 courses.

사고 구술 기법을 활용한 한국 대학생들의 독해전략 사용 양상

The purpose of this study is to examine six Korean university students’ reading strategies by proficiency levels and item types. A think-aloud protocol, interviews, and observations were employed and all qualitative data were analyzed using NVivo 12. Fistly, it revealed that high proficieny groups preferred general strategies and meta cognitive strategeis, while intermediate/low proficiency groups preferred local strategies. Secondly, it indicated that it is effective to go back to the text and find the evidence in the text and make judgement based on their understanding of the text in both factual information items and inferencing items. In the case of insertion items, certain strategy use was observed, differing from other items. Also, it showed that there is a difference of all the strategies used in the study between high proficiency groups and other proficiency groups. Lastly, pedagogical implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Bilingualism but not bidialectalism influences cognitive control among young adult Chinese–English bilinguals

Aims and objectives/purpose/research questions: This study investigates whether bilingualism and bidialectalism influence cognitive control, and whether the two variables interact. Design/methodology/approach: The study compared two matched groups differing in second language (L2) proficiency through the Flanker and Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST). The two groups were further divided into four groups differing in dialect proficiency, so that the effects of L2 proficiency and dialect proficiency and the interactive effect were examined. Data and analysis: A mixed analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied to the Flanker task data, with the task condition as the within-subject variable and the participant group as the between-subject variable. Independent t-test and ANOVA analyses were used to compare the performance differences between groups on the WCST. Findings/conclusion: The high L2 proficiency group performed better than the low L2 proficiency group both in the Flanker task and the WCST, reflecting better monitoring and shifting ability. L2 proficiency effect on cognitive control was significant. However, no dialect effect was observed, and no interaction effect was found. Further multiple regression results confirmed the role of L2 proficiency but not dialect proficiency. Originality: This is one of the first bilingual studies to incorporate both bilingualism and bidialectalism simultaneously. Significance/implications: The current research provides robust evidence that bilingualism is related to the enhancement of cognitive control, but questions the effect of bidialectalism.

An Analysis on Chinese EFL Learners’ Understanding of “Direct Object/Subject” Garden Path Sentences

The current study probes into the comprehension of “DO/S” GP sentences by Chinese EFL learners with different language proficiencies. 70 questionnaires are obtained. The results show that 60% triggering condition is not reached in high language proficiency group and no GP ambiguity is found, whereas the GP ambiguity is found and eliminated by low-proficiency group. And the level of language proficiency influences the emergence of GD phenomenon (x2=12.570, p=.000<.05). The Q&A test reveals the residual of the initial misunderstanding among learners. Although the 60% triggering condition is not reached, we find that the comprehension ability differs significantly between the two groups based on the scores of their answers (p=.004<.05). It can be safely concluded that the L2 proficiency will affect learners’ comprehension of “DO/S” GP sentences. The higher L2 proficiency learners gain, the more likely they may eliminate the ambiguation of GP sentences and there will be less residual of misunderstanding.

Profiles of poor and good spellers in German noun capitalization

This study investigated how fourth graders with different proficiency levels (1st and 4th quartile, 192 and 195 pupils respectively) produce and detect German noun capitalization in relation to two factors, lexical-semantic characteristics of the noun and the structure of the noun phrase (NP). The first factor includes concrete and abstract nouns, and nominalized verbs and adjectives, the second factor the syntactic context of the NP (with or without determiner and/or adjective, including bare noun). The two proficiency groups showed different patterns in the production and detection of capitalization in relation to these two factors after three years of instruction in noun capitalization. The low-proficiency group performed on chance level only for concrete nouns in the context with precedent determiner, the context highlighted at school. The high-proficiency group seemed to make use systematically of the expanded NP in order to recognize and capitalize the noun but still had difficulties with most bare nouns. The paper discusses the type of information low- and high-achieving pupils seem to use in noun capitalization and detection.

The Effect of Proficiency on the Pronunciation Accuracy of Chinese Learners of FrenchA Case Study of //

Chinese learners experience various pronunciation challenges when learning French, such as the nasal vowel //, due to the negative transfer of their mother tongue. However, it has been noticed that there is an improvement in pronunciation as proficiency improves. This paper, therefore, explores whether there is a stable relationship between proficiency and pronunciation accuracy by acoustically analysing the pronunciation of // in four participants with different levels of French proficiency. The author uses PRAAT software to extract the values of the first and second formants for comparison with native speakers. The experimental results show that, in general, participants in the high proficiency group pronounce the words closer to native speakers and with greater accuracy. However, the degree to which proficiency affects pronunciation accuracy varies depending on the environment in which // is found.

Grammatical gender agreement in production: The case of heritage Russian

Aims and objectives/purpose/research questions: The primary goal of this study was to investigate the knowledge of Russian gender in young heritage speakers through different agreement constructions. Design/methodology/approach: Participants were 30 Russian–Spanish–Catalan multilinguals from Spain aged 7–11 years, divided into two proficiency groups, and a baseline group of 24 age-matched Russian monolinguals residing in Russia. All participants completed four experiments using an oral elicited production task addressing different linguistic conditions. Data and analysis: The accuracy scores were compared between the two proficiency groups and between the heritage and monolingual speakers to document any changes as a function of the type of agreement construction, gender value, noun form transparency, and crosslinguistic congruency. Findings/conclusions: The results demonstrated a hierarchy of gender values; masculine being the easiest gender value, neuter the most difficult, and feminine in between the two. The crosslinguistic influence was yelled under vulnerable conditions: when (1) the proficiency in heritage language is low, (2) in opaque and (or) incongruent nouns, and (3) in agreement construction which is absent in Spanish and Catalan. The results also suggest that the heritage language from the high-proficiency group can attain monolingual-like gender agreement knowledge. Originality: We documented gender agreement production in trilingual speakers, which is an under-explored topic. The study employs a new method of analysing gender in several constructions, including adjectival and verbal agreement at Noun Phrase and sentence levels. Significance/implications: The study provides insights into heritage language development during the early years of exposure to the two majority languages. The results may offer a greater understanding of the characteristics of heritage language/L2 development in trilingual children.

Bilingual effect: the influence of L2 reading proficiency on cognitive control differences among young adult Chinese-English bilinguals

ABSTRACT The study examines whether L2 reading proficiency exerts influence upon cognitive control among young-adult Chinese-English bilinguals. A low L2 reading proficiency group and a high L2 reading proficiency group were compared on two cognitive control tasks measuring inhibition, monitoring, and mental set shifting, i.e. Number Stroop task and Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), with other confounding variables strictly matched. The results showed that the high L2 reading proficiency group had bilingual effects on conflict monitoring in the Stroop task and mental set shifting in the WCST. Further regression analyses results confirmed the significant role of L2 reading in cognitive control. The overall results suggest that L2 reading experience has a significant influence on cognitive control on the aspects of conflict monitoring and mental set shifting, but not on inhibition, revealing the specific relationship between particular linguistic context demand (L2 reading) and its potential impact on cognitive control.

The interplay of task complexity (± Here-and-Now) and proficiency in shaping written narratives in Spanish as a foreign language

Research on task complexity focuses on the influence of different task features on language learners' production in terms of linguistic complexity, accuracy, fluency and lexis. Within this field, a line of investigation that has attracted much attention is the influence of resource-directing and resource-dispersing features of cognitive task complexity. Notwithstanding, the evidence assembled to date has yielded contradictory results that are not consistent across task type, proficiency level, and task modality. The study attempts to shed some light by examining the role of task complexity along the [± Here-and-Now] dimension in written production, and whether the effects of task complexity are the same at different proficiency levels. To this aim, data were elicited from Swedish high school learners of Spanish as a FL (n = 67) using two different versions of a narrative task. In turn, the participants' proficiency was assessed using a multiple-choice test. The results suggest that task complexity had a statistically significant effect on the four areas of language production. On the other hand, when splitting the sample into proficiency groups, differences across task conditions were found, but only in the higher proficiency group. These results are interpreted in light of Robinson's Cognition Hypothesis and Skehan's Trade-Off Model.

Bilingualism and creativity: Benefits from cognitive inhibition and cognitive flexibility.

Bilingualism has been shown to be associated with creativity, but the mechanisms of this association are not very well understood. One possibility is that the skills that bilinguals use in switching back and forth between languages also promote the cognitive processes associated with creativity. We hypothesized that high-proficient Chinese-English bilinguals would show higher convergent and divergent thinking than low-proficient bilinguals, with the differences being mediated by cognitive inhibition and cognitive flexibility, respectively. Chinese university students (N = 54) were classified as high-proficient (n = 27) and low-proficient (n = 27) bilinguals based on their performance on the National English Test for College Students. As expected, group comparisons showed that the high-proficient group had higher scores on the Remote Associates Test (RAT, convergent thinking) and the Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT, divergent thinking). Also as expected, the association between bilingualism and convergent thinking was mediated by scores on a Stroop task (cognitive inhibition), and the association between bilingualism and divergent thinking was mediated by scores on a More-odd shifting task (cognitive flexibility). These findings suggest that bilingual learning can promote the development of different components of creativity through stronger cognitive inhibition and cognitive flexibility. The results provide empirical evidence for the relationship and mechanism between bilingual learning and creativity.

L2 Proficiency Effects on the Use of Verb Bias Information

This study investigated whether L2 proficiency affected how L2 learners used verb bias information in their written production. Two groups of high proficiency and low proficiency L2 learners participated in a sentence completion task with direct object (DO) bias verbs, equi (EQ) bias verbs and sentential complement (SC) bias verbs. The results showed a significant difference between the two L2 learner groups in the percentage of DO and SC sentence completions preferred for each verb type. The low proficiency group used more DO structures and fewer SC structures for all three types of verbs compared to the high proficiency group. However, despite the low proficiency group’s preference for the DO sentence structure, significant correlations between the verb bias strength index of each verb and number of DO/SC sentence completions were found for both the low and high proficiency groups. These results suggest that while low proficiency L2 learners generally prefer to use the structurally more minimal DO structure as opposed to the SC structure, they are sensitive to verb bias properties and are able to use this information in their written production.

The Effect of Automatic Text Simplification on L2 Readers’ Text Comprehension

Abstract Texts used in L2 classrooms have traditionally been simplified manually, but recent technological advances allow us to investigate whether automatic text simplification (ATS) software can help L2 learners comprehend texts in second and foreign languages. Participants were divided into low and high L2 reading proficiency groups and assigned to read either the authentic or automatically simplified version of a text and completed a free recall task and MC comprehension test. The results did not show any significant correlations among the variables of topic knowledge, topic interest, and MC comprehension, but there were correlations among L2 reading comprehension, MC comprehension, and free recall results. Results also showed that the automatically simplified text facilitated the comprehension of the more proficient readers but not the less proficient readers according to their performance on the free recall assessment. Implications are that L2 teachers cannot blindly use whatever text they want with ATS, and ATS software designers may need to reconsider the current conservative approach to simplification that many ATS tools use.

Linguistically based scales for assessment of young students’ writing

This study addresses the question of how different aspects of students’ writing achievement can be recognised and evaluated. We developed a linguistically based framework for criteria-based assessment, anchored in a functional view of language and language learning. The framework was used to determine what traits characterise texts at different Proficiency Groups based on comparative judgement and what traits characterise texts assessed differently. Altogether, 100 texts (written by students ages 6–9) representing four text genres were assessed and ranked using both comparative judgement (holistic assessment) and criteria-based analysis. The results indicate that texts generally are assessed as stronger (i.e., placed in a higher Proficiency Group) when comparative judgement is used than what the assessment of a specific language resource indicates. The results also indicate that assessment differences might be a result of different quality expectations for different genres. This points towards the need for genre- and subject-specific assessment criteria to scaffold students in their emergent disciplinary writing development.

The efficacy of direct feedback on accuracy and complexity in low and high proficiency writings

The present study investigated the effects of comprehensive direct feedback on learners’ grammatical accuracy in new writings for two proficiency levels. It also attempted to determine how the feedback affected syntactic complexity and whether there was a trade-off effect between accuracy and complexity. Participants were 17 low proficiency and 17 high proficiency foreign language university learners. All learners took a pre-test, wrote on five new topics and a post-test over a 15 week semester. Results showed that direct feedback helped the high proficiency group develop in accuracy while showing a decline in complexity indicating a trade-off effect, while the low proficiency learners showed a decline in both accuracy and complexity.

The role of working memory in unfamiliar word processing across proficiency levels: evidence from eye movements

ABSTRACT The present study examined how working memory (WM) affects unfamiliar word processing during L2 reading comprehension among L2 learners with different proficiency levels. Forty-four participants were divided into the higher proficiency group (n = 22) and the lower proficiency group (n = 22). All of them read an English text with 17 target unfamiliar words while their eye movements were tracked. After online reading, they subsequently completed an L2 reading comprehension test and a WM test respectively. The results showed that WM significantly correlated with L2 reading comprehension in the higher proficiency group. In addition, the effect of WM capacity on L2 reading comprehension performance was mediated by unfamiliar words’ first fixation duration in the higher proficiency group. Results of the study revealed the different mechanisms of unfamiliar word processing among learners with different proficiency levels from the cognitive dimension of WM.