Orthographic Representation and Its Development in Second Language Mental Lexicon

2014 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 24720258
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Foreign language education
• Research Institution: Hiroshima University
• Principal Investigator: KIDA Shusaku 広島大学, 外国語教育研究センター, 特任講師 (00611807)
• Project Period (FY): 2012-04-01 – 2015-03-31
• Keywords: 語彙習得 / 視覚的単語認知

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The present study investigated second language (L2) learners' developmental levels of L2 orthographic representation in the mental lexicon, and examined if pedagogical interventions help them develop accurate lexical representations. Experiment 1 replicated a previous study which investigated L1 English speaking children's orthographic development by Japanese learners of English. Results showed that the developmental levels of their orthographic representation were similar to those of L1 English speaking Grade 3 children. Experiment 2 examined if the Japanese English learners’ orthographic representations develop after a 12-week in-class extensive reading activity. The results showed that their orthographic representations did not change over time. These results suggest that orthographic development is difficult to achieve for Japanese learners of English.

Free Research Field

英語教育学