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"Fluency (Language learning)"
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Effects of mobile-supported task-based language teaching on EFL students’ linguistic achievement and conversational interaction
To address the challenges of limited language proficiency and provide necessary feedback in the implementation of task-based language teaching (TBLT), a mobile-supported TBLT application was developed to provide linguistic and task scaffolding. Sixty-six English as a foreign language (EFL) university learners participated in a three-week experiment as part of a general English course. They were assigned to either an experimental group (mobile-supported TBLT), which received TBLT with scaffolds built into the application, or a control group (traditional TBLT), which received traditional paper-based TBLT without the scaffolds. At the end of the experiment, an English achievement test of vocabulary, grammar, and conversation comprehension was administered to determine if the technological scaffolds enhanced the learning outcomes for the course. Students’ self-perceived use of oral communication strategies was also measured to explore how these scaffolds affected the conversational interaction essential for task performance. Results showed that the mobile-supported TBLT group outperformed the traditional TBLT group on the vocabulary and conversation comprehension tests but not so much on the grammar test. Also, the mobile-supported TBLT group reported greater awareness of fluency- and accuracy-oriented strategies for speaking than the traditional TBLT group. Implications for designing mobile learning to enhance TBLT in an EFL setting are drawn.
Journal Article
Engagement in the Use of English and Chinese as Foreign Languages: The Role of Learner-Generated Content in Instructional Task Design
This study investigates learner engagement in pedagogic task performance by triangulating multiple sources of data to gain insight into the cognitive and affective processes that take place on a range of tasks and how they engage learners of different target languages. The study provides a detailed analysis of 4 learners' second language (L2) performance (2 first language [L1] Japanese learners of English; 2 L1 Japanese learners of Chinese). All learners completed an identical set of 12 communication tasks in 3 discourse genres (instruction, narrative, and opinion) in a learner-generated (LGC) and teachergenerated content (TGC) condition. The performances were followed by immediate stimulated video recalls and questionnaires on perceived levels of anxiety and motivation during each task. Triangulation of these data sources revealed that both the English and Chinese learners were more socially and emotionally engaged in LGC tasks than in TGC tasks and that this engagement was associated with more fluent and accurate, but less complex, speech. The difference between the Chinese and English learners was in their self-reported preferences and levels of anxiety and motivation while performing the tasks in the respective conditions. Based on the learners' background profiles, this difference in subjective response to the tasks is attributed to previous experience with formal L2 instruction.
Journal Article
Developing fluent readers : teaching fluency as a foundational skill
\"Viewing fluency as a bridge between foundational skills and open-ended learning, this book guides teachers through effective instruction and assessment of fluent reading skills in the primary grades. Fluency's relationship to phonological awareness, phonics, and print concepts is explained, and practical methods are shared for integrating fluency instruction in a literacy curriculum grounded in the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Classroom examples, weekly lesson plans, and extensive lists of recommended texts add to the book's utility for teachers\"-- Provided by publisher.
Book
LEARNING ENGLISH IN TODAY’S GLOBAL WORLD
In comparative studies focusing on context of learning, the main contexts under investigation have been study abroad (SA), at-home formal instruction (AH), and domestic immersion (IM). With the global status of English and its burgeoning popularity as a medium of instruction in countries where English only holds the status of a lingua franca, a new SA context has emerged. This study compares the L2 learning of English in this new English as a lingua franca study abroad (ELFSA) context to Anglophone SA and AH in terms of oral and written complexity, accuracy, and fluency gains. Participants’ perceptions of contextual differences concerning the amount of language contact, use, development, and their views toward English are also explored qualitatively. Apart from indicating equal development on most CAF measures after a semester, the qualitative findings highlight ELFSA as providing a low-anxiety atmosphere that helps sojourners gain ownership of English. Thus, ELFSA emerges as an appealing study abroad context for future sojourners.
Journal Article
TASK REPETITION AND SECOND LANGUAGE SPEECH PROCESSING
This study examines the relationship between the repetition of oral monologue tasks and immediate gains in L2 fluency. It considers the effect of aural-oral task repetition on speech rate, frequency of clause-final and midclause filled pauses, and overt self-repairs across different task types and proficiency levels and relates these findings to specific stages of L2 speech production (conceptualization, formulation, and monitoring). Thirty-two Japanese learners of English sampled at three levels of proficiency completed three oral communication tasks (instruction, narration, and opinion) six times. Results revealed that immediate aural-oral same task repetition was related to gains in oral fluency regardless of proficiency level or task type. Overall gains in speech rate were the largest across the first three performances of each task type but continued until the fifth performance. More specifically, however, clause-final pauses decreased until the second performance, midclause pauses decreased up to the fourth, and self-repairs decreased only after the fourth performance, indicating that task repetition may have been differentially related to specific stages in the speech production process.
Journal Article
Exploring EFL fluency in Asia
\"While individual teachers interpret fluency differently, most working in EFL agree that it has a considerable influence on the success or failure of students' language learning. In EFL contexts, the absence of fluency-based practice opportunities can lead to low self-confidence, low language learning motivation, and limitations in learners' productive skills. This volume explores fluency in all fours skills (speaking, writing, reading and listening) and through a number of different perspectives to build upon existing research and to expand the fluency discussion to include consideration of classroom strategies for fluency development in EFL contexts. The definition of fluency as a trait of speaking is expanded to encompass all four language skills in an effort to illustrate its importance to all aspects of language learning. This volume includes a mixture of literature review chapters outlining the research paradigm for ongoing fluency research and empirical investigations into fluency development and measurement in the EFL classroom, making it relevant to both researchers and practitioners of EFL\"-- Provided by publisher.
Book
Review article: Instructed second language vocabulary learning
This article overviews current research on second language vocabulary learning. It concludes that a large vocabulary is necessary to function in English: 8000—9000 word families for reading, and perhaps as many as 5000—7000 families for oral discourse. In addition, a number of word knowledge aspects need to be learned about each lexical item. Taken together, this amounts to a substantial lexical learning challenge, one which many/most learners fail to meet. To facilitate adequate vocabulary learning, four vocabulary learning partners (students, teachers, materials writers, and researchers) need to contribute to the learning process. Vocabulary learning programs need to include both an explicit, intentional learning component and a component based around maximizing exposure and incidental learning. The four learning strands (meaning-focused input, meaning-focused output, language-focused learning, and fluency development) suggested by Nation (2001) provide a structure by which to integrate intentional and incidental vocabulary learning. The overriding principle for maximizing vocabulary learning is to increase the amount of engagement learners have with lexical items. All four learning partners need to acknowledge the incremental nature of vocabulary learning, and to develop learning programs which are principled, long-term, and which recognize the richness and scope of the lexical knowledge that needs to be mastered.
Journal Article