ITL - International Journal of Applied Linguistics - Volume 172, Issue 2, 2021

Abstract

Although most research into grit – an individual difference that encompasses perseverance and passion for achieving long-term goals – has taken a domain-general perspective (e.g., Duckworth et al., 2007), emerging interest in a domain-specific approach to grit (e.g., Clark & Malecki, 2019) provides the groundwork for research into language learning grit. Expanding upon this nascent line of research (e.g., Teimouri, Plonsky, & Tabandeh, in press), this exploratory study supports a two-dimensional factor structure of language learning grit and, given the superior criterion validity of the perseverance of effort (PE) grit subscale comparable to foreign language anxiety with regard to second (L2) and third (L3) language achievement and self-rated proficiency among 153 Russian undergraduates, a reconceptualization of – and further research into – grit as a language-domain-specific construct in second language acquisition (SLA).

Abstract

This study aimed to compare second-language (L2) students’ ratings of their peers’ essays on multiple criteria with those of their teachers’ under different assessment conditions. Forty EFL teachers and 40 EFL students took part in the study. They each rated one essay on five criteria twice, under high-stakes and low-stakes assessment conditions. Multifaceted Rasch Analysis and correlation analyses were conducted to compare rater severity and consistency across rater groups, rating criteria and assessment conditions. The results revealed that there was more variation in students’ ratings than the teachers’ across assessment conditions. Additionally, both rater groups had different degrees of severity in assessing different criteria. In general, students were significantly more severe on language use than were teachers; whereas teachers were significantly more severe than were peers on organization. Student and teacher severity also varied across rating criteria and assessment conditions. The findings of this study have implications for planning and implementing peer assessment in the L2 writing classroom as well as for future research.

Abstract

The study investigates derivational knowledge of second language (L2) learners as a function of four variables: learner proficiency, word family frequency, derived word frequency, and affix type as suggested by two affix difficulty hierarchies. Seventy-nine EFL learners at two proficiency levels received two tests, the VST – Vocabulary Size Test (Nation & Beglar, 2007) and a custom-made ‘Derivatives Test’, which included derived forms of VST base words. We performed the following within-participant comparisons: knowledge of base words and knowledge of their derived forms, knowledge of derived forms from high-, medium, and low-frequency word families and knowledge of derivatives at different affix difficulty levels. Knowledge of basewords and their derivatives was statistically equivalent for advanced learners. However, a difference was found between the categories for less advanced learners. The findings also revealed learner proficiency and base word frequency effects, partial support for the two affix difficulty hierarchies, and no support for the effect of derivative frequency.

Abstract

Research has shown that several intralexical factors affect the learning burden of foreign language vocabulary (e.g., Laufer, 1997) and that some accrued lexical knowledge is forgotten. It is often assumed that the lexical items most difficult to acquire are those easiest to forget. However, few studies have provided empirical evidence to support this claim. This study examined the effect of two intralexical factors, part of speech and word length, on the learning burden and decay of intentionally learned foreign language lexical knowledge, as well as the role that learning burden played in the decay process. Forty-eight learners of English studied words of various parts of speech and lengths using flashcard software. Knowledge (form recall and recognition) of target items was assessed immediately after learning and four weeks later. Results of mixed-effects models showed that part of speech and word length have differential impacts on learning burden and decay and that increased burden mitigated loss of form recognition knowledge.

Abstract

Linguistic complexity measures are used to describe second language (L2) performance and assess levels of proficiency and development. Although morphology is considered crucial in L2 acquisition, morphological complexity has been relatively neglected, hindering comprehensive views of grammatical complexity in L2. This article presents an application of a recently proposed metric of morphological diversity, the Morphological Complexity Index (MCI), in an L2 Spanish corpus of 113 essays classified into four proficiency levels by expert evaluators. The aim of the study is to investigate the relationships of MCI with subjectively rated proficiency and with other four quantitative measures of L2 complexity. Results indicate that morphological complexity, as measured by MCI, does not vary significantly across proficiency levels in this corpus. The MCI shows significant correlations with lexical but not with syntactic complexity measures. Findings are interpreted in the light of the characteristics of the corpus and the acquisition of the Spanish verbal system.

This article reviews Interaction, Feedback and Task Research in Second Language Learning: Methods and Design9781108731027GBP 26,99