Abstract
To develop adequate levels of automaticity in second language (L2) word recognition learners need to engage with a large amount of meaningful spoken target language input. Unfortunately, there is often not enough in-class time available for this. Thus, using technology to facilitate out-of-class development of L2 word recognition holds strong potential. This study explores and compares the use of a mobile language learning application (app) by Azerbaijani and Japanese learners of English. The app was designed to improve second language (L2) learners’ recognition of the spoken form of high-frequency vocabulary by giving learners repeated and self-paced opportunities to listen to and transcribe target words presented in fluently articulated, contextual sentences. First, a quasi-experimental approach was applied in both contexts to compare improvements in word recognition among those who used the app and those in a control group that did not. Next, learner interaction data collected in the app’s database were used to investigate links between learner engagement and improvements in word recognition. Further, the most challenging words for learners to recognize and transcribe were identified and compared between treatment group members from each context. Finally, stimulated recall protocols in the learners’ respective first languages (L1) were conducted among a subgroup from each context to investigate the origins of their difficulty with aurally recognizing their most challenging words. Suggestions are provided for the development of word recognition from speech that may be useful both within and beyond the classroom.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Benson, P. (2011). Language learning and teaching beyond the classroom: An introduction to the field. In P. Benson & H. Reinders (Eds.), Beyond the language classroom (pp. 7–16). Palgrave Macmillan.
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101.
Carney, N. (2021). Diagnosing L2 listeners’ difficulty comprehending known lexis. TESOL Quarterly, 55(2), 536–567. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.3000
Cheng, J., & Matthews, J. (2018). The relationship between three measures of L2 vocabulary knowledge and L2 listening and reading. Language Testing, 35(1), 3–25. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265532216676851
Cheng, J., Matthews, J., Lange, K., & McLean, S. (2022). Aural single-word and aural phrasal verb knowledge and their relationships to L2 listening comprehension. TESOL Quarterly. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.3137
Cutler, A. (2012). Native listening: Language experience and the recognition of spoken words. MIT Press.
Educational Testing Service (2019). Mapping the TOEIC test on the CEFR. https://www.ets.org/s/toeic/pdf/toeic-cefr-flyer.pdf
Ellis, N. C. (2002). Frequency effects in language processing: A review with implications for theories of implicit and explicit language acquisition. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 24(2), 143–188. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263102002024
Field, J. (2008a). Revising segmentation hypotheses in first and second language listening. System, 36(1), 35–51. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2007.10.003
Field, J. (2008b). Listening in the language classroom. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511575945
Flowerdew, J., & Miller, L. (2005). Second language listening: Theory and practice. Cambridge University Press.
Gass, S. M., & Mackey, A. (2017). Stimulated recall methodology in applied linguistics and L2 research. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315813349
Goh, C. C. (2000). A cognitive perspective on language learners’ listening comprehension problems. System, 28(1), 55–75. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0346-251X(99)00060-3
Graham, S., Santos, D., & Vanderplank, R. (2010). Strategy clusters and sources of knowledge in French L2 listening comprehension. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 4(1), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/17501220802385866
Hulstijn, J. (2002). Towards a unified account of the representation, processing and acquisition of second language knowledge. Second Language Research, 18(3), 193–223. https://doi.org/10.1191/0267658302sr207oa
Hulstijn, J. H. (2003). Connectionist models of language processing and the training of listening skills with the aid of multimedia software. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 16(5), 413–425. https://doi.org/10.1076/call.16.5.413.29488
Jia, C., & Hew, K. F. (2021a). Meeting the challenges of decoding training in English as a foreign/second language listening education: Current status and opportunities for technology-assisted decoding training. Computer assisted language learning, 1–30,. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2021.1974051
Jia, C., & Hew, K. F. (2021b). Toward a set of design principles for decoding training: A systematic review of studies of english as a foreign/second language listening education. Educational Research Review, 33, 100392. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2021.100392
Lai, Y., Saab, N., & Admiraal, W. (2022). University students’ use of mobile technology in self-directed language learning: Using the integrative model of behavior prediction. Computers & Education, 179, 104413. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2021.104413
Lange, K., & Matthews, J. (2020). Exploring the relationships between L2 vocabulary knowledge, lexical segmentation, and L2 listening comprehension. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching. 10(4). 723–749. https://doi.org/10.14746/ssllt.2020.10.4.4
Lange, K., & Matthews, J. (2021). Analyzing trends in the aural decoding errors of Japanese EFL learners. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching. https://doi.org/10.1515/iral-2020-0050
Masrai, A. (2020). Exploring the impact of individual differences in aural vocabulary knowledge, written vocabulary knowledge and working memory capacity on explaining L2 learners’ listening comprehension. Applied Linguistics Review., 11(3), 423–447. https://doi.org/10.1515/applirev-2018-0106
Matthews, J., & Cheng, J. (2015). Recognition of high frequency words from speech as a predictor of L2 listening comprehension. System, 52, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2015.04.015
Matthews, J., Cheng, J., & O’Toole, J. M. (2015). Computer-mediated input, output and feedback in the development of L2 word recognition from speech. ReCALL, 27(3), 321–339. http://doi:https://doi.org/10.1017/S0958344014000421
Matthews, J., Masrai, A. Lange, K., McLean, S., Alghamdi, E. A., Kim, Y. A., Shinhara, Y., Tada, S. (2023). Exploring Links Between Aural Lexical Knowledge and L2 Listening in Arabic and Japanese Speakers: A Close Replication of Cheng, Matthews, Lange and McLean (2022). TESOL Quarterly, https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.3212
Matthews, J., & O’Toole, J. M. (2015). Investigating an innovative computer application to improve L2 word recognition from speech. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 28(4), 364–382. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2013.864315
Matthews, J., O’Toole, J. M., & Chen, S. (2017). The impact of word recognition from speech (WRS) proficiency level on interaction, task success and word learning: Design implications for CALL to develop L2 WRS. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 30(1–2), 22–43. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2015.1129348
Plonsky, L., & Oswald, F. L. (2014). How big is “big”? Interpreting effect sizes in L2 research. Language Learning, 64(4), 878–912. https://doi.org/10.1111/lang.12079
Schmitt, N., Dunn, K., O’Sullivan, B., Anthony, & L., Kremmel, B. (2022). Knowledge-based vocabulary lists user manual: A supplementary resource. British Council. https://www.britishcouncil.org/sites/default/files/kvl_user_manual_final.pdf
Vafaee, P., & Suzuki, Y. (2019). The relative significance of syntactic knowledge and vocabulary knowledge in second language listening ability. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 42(2), 383–410. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263119000676
Wallace, M. P. (2022). Individual differences in second language listening: Examining the role of knowledge, metacognitive awareness, memory, and attention. Language Learning, 72, 5–44. https://doi.org/10.1111/lang.12424
Yeldham, M. (2016). Second language listening instruction: Comparing a strategies-based approach with an interactive, strategies/bottom-up skills approach. TESOL Quarterly, 50(2), 394–420. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.233
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Matthews, J., Lange, K., Wiest, G.M. (2023). Spoken Word Form Recognition with a Mobile Application: Comparing Azerbaijani and Japanese Learners. In: Reynolds, B.L. (eds) Vocabulary Learning in the Wild. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-1490-6_13
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-1490-6_13
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-99-1489-0
Online ISBN: 978-981-99-1490-6
eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)