The study takes a close look at relationships between scores on a Mathematics standardized test in two different testing formats--Multiple-Choice (MC) and Constructed Response (CR). Many studies have been dedicated to finding correlations between item format characteristics with regards to race and gender. Few studies, however, have attempted to…

This study examines the effects of working memory capacity and content familiarity on literal and inferential comprehension in second language (L2) reading. Participants were 62 Turkish university students with an advanced English proficiency level. Working memory capacity was measured through a computerized version of a reading span test, whereas…

The present study examined the process and product effects of note-taking strategy training on Iranian EFL learners' comprehension and retention of written material, with gender as a moderating variable. Intermediate undergraduate EFL learners (N = 108) were assigned to experimental and control groups. The Experimental (intervention) Group…

The present study represented a preliminary effort to empirically examine the efficacy of subtitled movie on listening comprehension of intermediate English as a Foreign Language students. To achieve this purpose, out of a total of 200 intermediate students, 90 were picked based on a proficiency test. The material consisted of six episodes…

Multiple-choice tests such as the Vocabulary Levels Test (VLT) are often viewed as a preferable estimator of vocabulary knowledge when compared to yes/no checklists, because self-reporting tests introduce the possibility of students overreporting or underreporting scores. However, multiple-choice tests have their own unique disadvantages. It has…

The fact that visual aids such as pictures or graphs can lead to greater comprehension by language learners has been well established. Nonetheless, the order of presenting visuals to listeners is left unattended. This study examined listening comprehension from a strategy of introducing visual information, either prior to or during an audio…

In a developing nation like Turkey, the English language plays a significant role in educational and socioeconomic mobility. English is acquired and taught as a foreign language (EFL) primarily in the classrooms. However, the ways in which English language is represented in classroom instruction have been hardly examined and understood. With that,…

Reading skill has taken on an important role in most EFL teaching situations. While linguistic knowledge is only one aspect of this skill, background knowledge including culture can also play an important role (Alptekin, 2006; Johnson, 1981; Pritchard, 1990; Steffensen, Chitra, & Anderson, 1979). This study investigated the effect of cultural…

This study investigated the effect of dynamic assessment on learners' syntactic knowledge. The main concern of this study was significant difference between dynamic and static assessment and the possible role of these two forms of assessment on the syntactic development of Iranian EFL college preparatory learners. To fulfill the purpose of the…

This article investigates a version of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) listening test for evidence of differential item functioning (DIF) based on gender, nationality, age, and degree of previous exposure to the test. Overall, the listening construct was found to be underrepresented, which is probably an important cause…

This study explored the effect of employing two language teaching approaches, i.e., schema-based instruction (SBI) and translation-based instruction (TBI) on the structure and vocabulary knowledge as well as reading comprehension ability of sixty undergraduate students studying general English in a medical school in Mashhad, Iran. While the SBI…

For several decades, research in instructed second language acquisition (SLA) has focused on identifying the facilitative role that interaction plays in second language (L2) development (e.g., Gass, 1997; Long, 1996; Pica, 1996). Within this area of interest, a considerable amount of attention has been directed toward the feedback that learners…

With 97 advanced second language (L2) learners of Spanish, the present study utilized domain specific texts to examine the effects of embedded "what" questions and elaborative "why" questions on reading comprehension. Participants read two different vignettes, either with or without the adjuncts, from a social psychology textbook, and then…

Noting the widespread use of multiple-choice items in tests in English language education in Thailand, this study compared their effect against that of constructed-response items. One hundred and fifty-two university undergraduates took a test of English structure first in constructed-response format, and later in three, stem-equivalent…

Despite the fact that the benefits of pair and group work for those espousing an interactionist view of second language learning are well documented (Lightbown & Spada, 1999; Long, 1981; Pica, 1994, 1996; Van Lier, 1996), learning environments exist in which students have no option but to study alone. Of particular interest for this research are…