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Allocation Of Attention To Second Language Form And Meaning

Issues of Think-Alouds and Depth of Processing

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 November 2012

Kara Morgan-Short ,
Jeanne Heil ,
Andrea Botero-Moriarty  and
Shane Ebert
Kara Morgan-Short*
Affiliation:
University of Illinois at Chicago
Jeanne Heil
Affiliation:
University of Illinois at Chicago
Andrea Botero-Moriarty
Affiliation:
University of Illinois at Chicago
Shane Ebert
Affiliation:
University of Illinois at Chicago
*
*Address correspondence to: Kara Morgan-Short, Department of Hispanic and Italian Studies, The University of Illinois at Chicago, 1706 UH, MC-315, 601 S. Morgan St., Chicago, IL 60607; e-mail: karams@uic.edu.
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Abstract

The aims of the present study were twofold. The study addressed the issues of simultaneous attention to form and meaning in second language (L2) written input and reactivity of think-alouds. Specifically, the study examined the comprehension of L2 learners of Spanish who either attended to lexical or grammatical forms while reading for meaning or read for meaning alone. Learners completed these tasks while either thinking aloud or not. Results indicated only a minimal effect for thinking aloud that did not appear to compromise the internal validity of the study. Additionally, results showed that attending to grammatical or lexical form while reading for meaning did not affect comprehension. Indeed, learners who processed these forms more deeply evidenced greater comprehension. These findings are considered in light of methodological issues and the larger issue of simultaneous attention to form and meaning in a L2.

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Type
Articles
Information
Studies in Second Language Acquisition , Volume 34 , Issue 4 , December 2012 , pp. 659 - 685
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2012

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