The Modern Language Journal 

 - New Jersey :  Wiley Subscription Services,  c2019. 
 - 551-713 pages :  illustrations ;  26 cm. 
 -  The Modern Language Journal, Volume 103, Issue 3, Fall 2019 .
<br/><br/>Includes bibliographical references. 
<br/><br/>Optimizing Second Language Practice in the Classroom: Perspectives from Cognitive Psychology -- Weighing Up Exercises on Phrasal Verbs: Retrieval Versus Trial-and-Error Practices -- Investigating Distribution of Practice Effects for the Learning of Foreign Language Verb Morphology in the Young Learner Classroom -- Distribution of Practice Effects in the Acquisition and Retention of L2 Mandarin Tonal Word Production -- Mixing Grammar Exercises Facilitates Long-Term Retention: Effects of Blocking, Interleaving, and Increasing Practice -- Should We Listen or Read? Modality Effects in Implicit and Explicit Knowledge -- Investigating Effects of Working Memory Training on Foreign Language Development -- Cognitive Individual Differences as Predictors of Improvement and Awareness Under Implicit and Explicit Feedback Conditions -- Perfecting Practice -- The Desirable Difficulty Framework as a Theoretical Foundation for Optimizing and Researching Second Language Practice. 
<br/><br/> [Article Title : Optimizing Second Language Practice in the Classroom: Perspectives from Cognitive Psychology / Yuichi Suzuki, Tatsuya Nakata, and Robert Dekeyser, p. 551-561]<br/><br/><br/>Abstract : This introduction to the special issue provides an overview of the role of practice in a second language (L2) from both pedagogical and theoretical perspectives. The following 5 areas of research are identified for studying L2 practice from cognitive psychology perspectives: (a) the type of practice (retrieval practice, corrective feedback, modality), (b) distribution of practice, (c) schedule of practice (blocking and interleaving effects), (d) individual difference factors (aptitude–treatment interaction), and (e) effects of practice on learning trajectories and outcomes. This special issue sets a research agenda toward better understanding the learning processes and resulting knowledge through practice. That research can inform teachers about how they can optimize L2 teaching and learning for a variety of learners across different classroom contexts.  https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12582  [Article Title : Weighing Up Exercises on Phrasal Verbs: Retrieval Versus Trial-and-Error Practices / Brian Strong and Frank Boers, p. 562-579]<br/><br/><br/>Abstract : English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) textbooks and internet resources exhibit various formats and implementations of exercises on phrasal verbs. The experimental study reported here examines whether some of these might be more effective than others. EFL learners at a university in Japan were randomly assigned to 4 treatment groups. Two groups were presented first with phrasal verbs and their meaning before they were prompted to retrieve the particles from memory. The difference between these 2 retrieval groups was that 1 group studied and then retrieved items 1 at a time, while the other group studied and retrieved them in sets. The 2 other groups received the exercises as trial-and-error events, where participants were prompted to guess the particles and were subsequently provided with the correct response. One group was given immediate feedback on each item, while the other group tackled sets of 14 items before receiving feedback. The effectiveness of these exercise implementations was compared through an immediate and a 1-week delayed posttest. The best test scores were obtained when the exercises had served the purpose of retrieval, although this advantage shrank in the delayed posttest (where scores were poor regardless of treatment condition). On average 70% of the posttest errors produced by the learners who had tackled the exercises by trial-and-error were duplicates of incorrect responses they had supplied at the exercise stage, which indicates that corrective feedback was often ineffective.  https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12579  [Article Title : Investigating Distribution of Practice Effects for the Learning of Foreign Language Verb Morphology in the Young Learner Classroom / Rowena E. Kasprowicz, Emma Marsden, and Nick Sephton, p. 580-606]<br/><br/><br/>Abstract : Within limited-input language classrooms, understanding the effect of distribution of practice (spacing between practice) on learning is critical, yet evidence is conflicting and of limited relevance for young learners. For second language (L2) grammar learning, some studies reveal advantages for spacing of 7 days or more, but others for shorter spacing. Further, little is known about the role of cognitive individual differences (e.g., language analytic ability; LAA) in mediating practice distribution effects for L2 grammatical knowledge development and retention. To address this gap, this classroom-based study investigated whether distribution of practice and LAA moderated the effectiveness of explicit, input-based grammar instruction for young first language (L1) English learners of French (aged 8 to 11). The study revealed minimal differences between longer (7-day) versus shorter (3.5-day) spacing of practice for learning a French verb inflection subsystem, at either posttest or delayed posttest. Minimal group-level gains and substantial within-group variation in performance at posttests were observed. Accuracy of practice during training and LAA were significantly associated with posttest performance under both practice schedules. These findings indicated that within an ecologically valid classroom context, differences in distribution of practice had limited impact on learner performance on our tests; rather, individual learner differences were more critical in moderating learning. This highlights the importance of considering individual learner differences in the development of resources and the potential of digital tools for dynamically adapting instruction to suit individuals.  https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12586  [Article Title : Distribution of Practice Effects in the Acquisition and Retention of L2 Mandarin Tonal Word Production / Man Li and Robert Dekeyser, p. 607-628]<br/><br/><br/>Abstract : This study investigated the effects of temporal distribution of practice on the learning and retention of Mandarin tonal word production. Eighty native English-speaking adults with no prior knowledge of a tonal language participated in this study. They were randomly assigned to four experimental conditions varying in intersession interval (ISI) and retention interval (RI): Condition A with a 1-day ISI and a 1-week RI, Condition B with a 1-day ISI and a 4-week RI, Condition C with a 1-week ISI and a 1-week RI, and Condition D with a 1-week ISI and a 4-week RI. Participants underwent 3 training sessions followed by a final retention test. Results showed that the effects of ISI and RI differed depending on the type of knowledge to be retained. For the retention of declarative knowledge, RI had a robust effect: the longer the RI, the worse the retention. Compared to shorter spaced practice (1-day ISI), longer spaced practice (1-week ISI) seemed to improve long-term retention (4-week RI) of declarative knowledge; however, this ISI effect was much weaker. For procedural knowledge retention, ISI played an important role, but not RI, and it was the shorter spaced practice schedule that had an advantage over the longer spaced practice schedule.  https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12580  [Article Title : Mixing Grammar Exercises Facilitates Long-Term Retention: Effects of Blocking, Interleaving, and Increasing Practice / Tatsuya Nakata and Yuichi Suzuki, p. 629-647]<br/><br/><br/>Abstract : Cognitive psychology research has shown that interleaving, wherein learners practice multiple skills or concepts at once, facilitates learning more than does blocking, wherein learners practice only one skill or concept at a time. Despite the advantage of interleaving over blocking observed across a number of domains, limited attention has been devoted to the effects of interleaving on second language (L2) learning. This study examined the effects of blocking and interleaving on L2 grammar learning. In this study, 115 Japanese learners studied 5 English grammatical structures under 1 of 3 conditions: blocking, interleaving, and increasing (i.e., blocking followed by interleaving). Learning was measured using a grammaticality judgment test administered immediately and 1 week after the treatment. Although interleaving led to the highest number of incorrect responses during training, it was more effective than blocking in the 1-week delayed posttest. These results indicate that the advantage of interleaving extends to L2 grammar learning. Furthermore, learners’ levels of prior knowledge were found to moderate the effects of interleaving. Specifically, participants with lower pretest scores benefited more from interleaving compared to those with higher pretest scores. Pedagogically, the findings suggest that grammar learning may be enhanced by incorporating interleaved practice.  https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12581  [Article Title : Should We Listen or Read? Modality Effects in Implicit and Explicit Knowledge / Kathy Minhye Kim and Aline Godfroid, p. 648-664]<br/><br/><br/>Abstract : We examined the role of modality in learning second language (L2) grammar and forming implicit (unconscious) and explicit (conscious) knowledge. To this end, we isolated the effects of the physical medium of input (i.e., aural or visual) from those of the presentation method (i.e., word-by-word or simultaneous). We also explored the role of test modality in L2 performance, by including L2 knowledge tests in both aural and visual modes. Native English speakers engaged in meaning-focused integrated practice of 3 German syntactic rules. In Experiment 1, learners were given aural or visual word-by-word (rapid serial visual presentation; RSVP) input and in Experiment 2, they were given aural or natural written input. We found evidence of learning across all 4 groups, but different types of resultant knowledge. In particular, learners gained explicit knowledge in all input modalities, yet only those trained with natural written input also developed robust implicit knowledge. We conclude that the permanence of visual input may be a critical advantage for beginning learners to develop implicit knowledge of word order rules. Support in the form of written materials can ease the cognitive burden on beginning learners, with better outcomes as a result.  https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12583  [Article Title : Investigating Effects of Working Memory Training on Foreign Language Development / Yuko Hayas, p. 665-685]<br/><br/><br/>Abstract : The current 2-part study investigated the relative contributions of English language training (ELT) and computerized Cogmed working memory training (WMT) to improvements in English-as-a-foreign language (EFL) proficiency and working memory capacity. In Study 1, Japanese undergraduate EFL learners were randomly allocated to 1 of 3 experimental groups (ELT only, WMT only, and both WMT and ELT) and a control group. The dual intervention (WMT + ELT) group, who received 5 weeks of both WMT and ELT, retained the training effects on verbal short-term memory and working memory at 6 months post-training. No significant gains were made, however, in a standardized EFL test of vocabulary, grammar, reading, and listening comprehension abilities. Addressing the absence of a measure of more productive skills in Study 1, Study 2 was carried out on a new cohort of Japanese undergraduate EFL learners comprising a WMT group and a control group. No significant far-transfer effects (on the language-based measures) were identified. Descriptive and correlational analyses revealed that the higher general oral proficiency scores tended to be associated with larger improvements in a verbal working memory task (involving storage and manipulation of letter sequences) completed during the Cogmed WMT program. These analyses indicate the possibility of more specialized WMT programs translating into more tangible gains in second or foreign language performance. Further insights into the limited far-transfer effects of WMT could be gleaned by exploring a modular approach to studying working memory.  https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12584  [Article Title : Cognitive Individual Differences as Predictors of Improvement and Awareness Under Implicit and Explicit Feedback Conditions / Yucel Yilmaz and Gisela Granena, p. 686-702]<br/><br/><br/>Abstract : The present study investigated a group of cognitive individual differences considered advantageous in second language learning and their role in language learning under implicit and explicit feedback conditions using both language awareness and language development measures. The study further investigated whether different types of awareness are related to language development. One hundred and twelve intermediate English learners of Spanish at a U.S. university were administered tests from 2 language aptitude test batteries (Hi-LAB and LLAMA) and were randomly assigned to an implicit feedback (recast), explicit feedback (explicit correction), or control group. The 2 feedback groups received feedback on the target linguistic form (i.e., Spanish noun–adjective gender agreement) according to their group assignment in 2 treatment sessions. Learners’ knowledge of the linguistic target was measured using a grammaticality judgment test and an oral production task immediately before and after the treatment. Learners’ ability to notice the corrective function and linguistic target of the feedback was measured by means of a posttask debriefing questionnaire. Implicit sequence learning ability and error awareness predicted the implicit group's pretest–posttest improvement, whereas phonological short-term memory predicted the explicit group's pretest–posttest improvement. Phonemic coding ability, attention control, and processing speed further predicted learners’ awareness in the implicit feedback group.  https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12587  [Article Title : Perfecting Practice / Patsy Martin Lightbown, p. 703-712]<br/><br/><br/>Abstract : This special issue contains reports of research on a variety of variables that are hypothesized to have an impact on how practice affects language learning. This includes spacing of practice opportunities, the provision of feedback, training working memory, and oral versus written input. Each study is complex and clearly contextualized within the research on the multiple roles of practice for second language learning. Teachers (especially those who teach younger learners) would not find it easy to access these articles because of their complexity and sophistication. However, it is important for researchers and teacher educators to find ways to share the findings of such studies and the ideas behind them so that teachers can assess their relevance for their own instruction.  https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12588  [Article Title : The Desirable Difficulty Framework as a Theoretical Foundation for Optimizing and Researching Second Language Practice / Yuichi Suzuki, Tatsuya Nakata, and Robert Dekeyser, p. 713-720]<br/><br/><br/>Abstract : This coda article offers unified theoretical accounts of the major findings of the empirical studies in this special issue of Optimizing Second Language Practice in the Classroom: Perspectives from Cognitive Psychology. We present a theoretical framework from cognitive psychology (desirable difficulty framework) and link it to the ideas of second language (L2) difficulty. We argue that practice condition, linguistic difficulty, and individual differences need to be taken into account for creating optimal, deliberate, and systematic L2 practice. The desirable difficulty framework may serve as a theoretical foundation to better understand the role of practice on L2 acquisition, as well as to gain insights into effective L2 teaching. Future directions for research are presented to further develop this emerging field of L2 practice.  https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12585 
<br/><br/><label>ISSN: </label>0026-7902 
<br/><br/><label>Subjects--Topical Terms: </label><br/>SKILL ACQUISITION THEORY<br/>COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY<br/>INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES<br/>ERRORLESS LEARNING<br/>FOREIGN LANGUAGE LEARNING<br/>GAME-BASED LEARNING