Tipo: artículo

Metodología: estudio empírico

Temas: enseñanza/aprendizaje de vocabulario

Resumen:

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Vocabulary card learning stands out as one of the most efficient methods for memorizing a large number of words in a short period of time. Multilinguals have the possibility to use their multilingual repertoire to their advantage when learning new words, for example in the acquisition of formally overlapping words. This study aims to answer the as-yet unexplored question of whether the use of bilingual translations in vocabulary cards can provide advantages for multilinguals when learning vocabulary even in a linguistically distant language. Furthermore, predictions based on the ‘type of processing – resource allocation’ (TOPRA) model regarding trade-offs through semantic processing are taken...

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Tipo: artículo

Metodología: estudio empírico

Temas: feedback/retroalimentación

Resumen:

The present study examines how learners’ language mindsets (beliefs about the malleability of language intelligence) and achievement goals predict learners’ preferences for different types of corrective feedback (CF). Questionnaire data were collected from 537 learners of Spanish as a foreign language at two North-American universities. Factor analytic and multiple regression results showed two clear patterns. A growth language mindset (the belief that language learning ability is malleable) predicted preferences for all types of CF whereas a fixed language mindset predicted a preference for conversational recast and absence of CF. A development-approach goal (concerned with improving one’s language competence) positively predicted learners’ preference for the explicit types of CF whereas a development-avoidance goal (concerned with...

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Tipo: artículo

Metodología: estudio empírico

Temas: factores afectivos

Resumen:

This study explores what young Danish learners found anxiety-provoking or difficult in their English as a foreign language (EFL) classes. Participants (n = 32) were early and later starters (ages 8 years vs. 10 years) at two primary schools where children were not assessed in English. The qualitative inquiry aimed to examine what differences characterized 8- and 10-year-old children’s views and how their foreign language classroom anxiety (FLCA) changed over time. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with each child in one-on-one settings and the answers were analysed by thematic analysis. The emerging themes revealed three main categories of situations that made children anxious. The first one concerned being afraid of making mistakes. The second category comprised social situations in which children were asked to speak in...

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Tipo: artículo

Metodología: revisión bibliográfica

Temas: identidad

Resumen:

The resolution of identity tensions has become an important theme in language teacher identity development, but an identity tension approach to language teacher researcher identity is missing from the literature. This systematic literature review examines the inherent tensions and conflicts in teacher researcher identity development. A search across multiple academic databases yielded studies that problematize identity conflicts and tensions. We reviewed a total of 25 studies published between 2008 and 2024 and analysed how challenges related to teachers’ engagement in research shape the experiences of teachers who engage in various forms of research. After compiling a list of tensions across studies, the authors used thematic analysis to determine three categories of tensions: those relating to the research itself, teacher...

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Tipo: artículo

Metodología: estudio empírico

Temas: aula invertida/flipped learning

Resumen:

This study investigates the effects of the flipped classroom approach on five aspects of written communicative competence of learners of English as a foreign language (EFL): lexis, syntax, cohesion, pragmatics, and discourse. It experimented on two groups of Chinese undergraduates in a regular college English course, using a flipped learning approach on one group and a traditional lecture approach on the other. The results from a pre-test and post-test revealed that the flipped approach had differential effects on the aforementioned five sub-competencies. More specifically, the flipped group’s overall performance was better than the control group in the post-test, indicating an overall positive role of the flipped approach on EFL learners’ development of communicative competence. However, significant group differences were found only...

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Tipo: artículo

Metodología: estudio empírico

Temas: español como lengua extranjera

Resumen:

In Spanish linguistics today, it is widely recognized that Spanish corresponds to the image of a pluricentric language. Different normative centers coexist, which are perceived as such by the speakers. However, the degree of recognition, status, and prestige of these linguistic norms varies greatly. This article examines the extent to which the pluricentrism of Spanish is represented in textbooks for Spanish as a foreign language. As a case study, three textbooks – Puente Nuevo , ¡Adelante! , and A_tope.com – used in high schools in Basel, Switzerland, are analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively in terms of their pluricentric character. The study examines the textbooks as a whole (thematic priorities, topics of units, maps) and selected linguistic phenomena, namely: the forms of address (morphosyntax), seseo (pronunciation),...

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Tipo: artículo

Metodología: estudio empírico

Temas: motivación

Resumen:

This study attempts to empirically examine the predictive power of learner anxiety and motivation and their causality in explaining proficiency in English as a foreign language (EFL) and other interrelated affective variables, including attitudes, self-confidence, and grit via a treatment-based causal model. To achieve this, the study carried out a 12-week experimental intervention employed by 8 EFL teachers with 282 EFL learners divided into four groups: in group 1, learners were exposed to anxiety-regulating strategies, those in group 2 were exposed to motivational strategies, those in group 3 were exposed to both anxiety-controlling and motivational strategies, and those in group 4 were not exposed to specific anxiety or motivation strategies. Data was gathered using questionnaires, classroom observations, and proficiency tests....

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Tipo: artículo

Metodología: estudio empírico

Temas: comprensión oral

Resumen:

This study examined the influence of formulaic language on second language (L2) listeners’ lower-level processing, in terms of their ability to accurately identify the words in texts. On the one hand, there were reasons for expecting the presence of the formulas to advantage the learners, because the learners would process these formulaic words more holistically than the surrounding non-formulaic words. On the other hand, though, because formulas are commonly uttered in more reduced fashion than their surrounding non-formulaic words – and L2 learners commonly face challenges understanding reduced speech – it was possible that the formulas would negatively impact the learners’ processing. The participants listened to four texts, which were paused intermittently for them to transcribe the final stretch of words they had heard prior to...

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Tipo: artículo

Metodología: estudio empírico

Temas: feedback/retroalimentación

Resumen:

While student feedback literacy has garnered increasing attention in second language education, there is a paucity of research on the relationship between second language (L2) student writing feedback literacy and L2 student writing performance, especially in secondary school contexts. Based on two independent samples of 600 (54.3% female) and 727 (46.2% female) secondary students, the present study validated the L2-Student Writing Feedback Literacy Scale (L2-SWFLS) for secondary students in the Chinese context of English as a foreign language (EFL) and probed into the association between L2 secondary student writing feedback literacy and L2 writing performance. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were carried out to examine the factorial structure of the L2-SWFLS for secondary students. Structural...

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Tipo: artículo

Metodología: estudio empírico

Temas: adquisición de segundas lenguas

Resumen:

As a personality trait, ‘grit’ has been defined as a combination of perseverance and passion for long-term goals. Past research in social psychology has found grit as an important predictor of success across different populations in various academic and non-academic areas. Since successful mastery of a second language (L2) is highly dependent on learners’ sustained effort, the notion of grit and its relationship to language achievement gains immediate relevance in second language acquisition (SLA). The present study introduces the notion of grit and examines its relationship with motivational behaviors and language achievement in a sample of English as a foreign language learners (n = 191). Toward these ends, a language-specific grit scale was developed and validated to measure L2 learners’ grit. L2 grit was found to be positively...

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