In two artificial grammar learning experiments, we tested the learnability of tonal phonotactics forbidding non-domain-final rising tones (*NonFinalR) against the phonotactics banning non-domain-final high-level tones (*NonFinalH). We propose that a firm phonetic ground drives a presumably innate inductive bias favoring *NonFinalR and against…

This study explored the effects of technology-mediated task-based language teaching (TMTBLT) in an English as a foreign language (EFL) writing course on students' descriptive writing performance. A quasi-experiment was conducted. Students in two writing courses were recruited and randomly assigned to an experimental or control group. The…

Differences exist between engineering and liberal arts students because of their educational backgrounds. Therefore, they solve problems differently. This study examined the brain activation of these two groups of students when they responded to 12 questions of verbal, numerical, or spatial intelligence. A total of 25 engineering and 25 liberal…

The present study aimed to examine the effect of proficiency on the pragmatic comprehension of speech acts, implicatures, and routines, as well as the way learners of different proficiency levels employ strategies when comprehending a pragmatic task. Thirty-three high-proficiency and forty-one low-proficiency Chinese learners of English completed…

An adequate supply of a high quality labor force is crucial for national economic and social well-being; consequently, nations worldwide have placed significant emphasis on university graduate employability. Nonetheless, in Taiwan, a mismatch between knowledge acquired in universities and competences required by the job market has dramatically…

Purpose: According to expectation--confirmation model (ECM) and task-technology fit (TTF) model, the purpose of this paper is to examine the role of TTF in students' cloud-based e-learning continuance and evaluate whether TTF affects students' perceived impact on learning of the cloud-based e-learning system within the educational institution.…

This study investigated the effect of formulaic language on L2 learners' ability to decode words in listening texts. One possibility was that formulas would facilitate listening by reducing the need to process every word of the sequences. However, a contrasting possibility was that the commonly reduced nature of formulaic words would hinder…

The purpose of the study was to explore undergraduate students' views about environmental futures that are preferred or desirable for them, and to further examine relationships between specific future-related views and general environmental attitudes. 96 students from one reputable public university in Taiwan participated in a survey that included…

This study examined the effect of the combination of task repetition and post-task transcribing (TRPT) on the complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF) of L2 oral performance and their subsequent development. Taiwanese university students (N = 39) were randomly assigned to one of the three groups: TRPT, task repetition (TR), and control group, and…

Back-interpreting practice refers to interpreting the translated version of a speech back to its source language. The learning opportunities provided by backinterpreting practice can be explained by Swain's (1985) comprehensible output hypothesis, Laufer and Hulstijn's (2001) involvement load hypothesis, and Schmidt's (1990) noticing hypothesis.…

The present study aimed to investigate (a) the extent to which Chinese-speaking learners of English in Taiwan use referential noun phrase (NP) information contained in discourse contexts to complete ambiguous noun/verb fragments in a sentence completion task, and (b) whether and when they use the contexts to disambiguate main verb versus reduced…

Despite the large amount of research that has taken place with mobile devices for language learning over the years, there are still limited conclusions that can be reached as to what contributes to sustained task engagement. A common problem that has long been seen in the CALL literature is that many tasks and activities that are reported are…

Students in South East Asia often struggle with English /l/ and /r/. This study therefore set out to examine how Taiwanese pupils' perception of these sounds is influenced by cross-language effects. Most Taiwanese students have Mandarin as L1 and Taiwanese as L2 or vice versa, and English as L3. A same-different discrimination experiment was…

To adult humans, the task of forming an impression of another social being seems effortless and even obligatory. In 2 experiments, we offer the first systematic cross-cultural examination of impression formation in European American and East Asian preschool children. Children across both cultures easily inferred basic personality traits, such as…

This study explored the relationships among language proficiency, two selected test-taker characteristics (i.e., topical knowledge and anxiety), and integrated speaking test performance. Data collection capitalized on three sets of instruments: three integrated tasks derived from TOEFL-iBT preparation materials, the state anxiety inventory created…