A self-paced reading study of language processing and retention comparing guided induction and deductive instruction

efficiency and depth of processing in computer-assisted learning

Authors

  • Paul A. Malovrh University of South Carolina
  • James F. Lee Texas Tech University
  • Stephen Doherty University of New South Wales-Sydney
  • Alecia Nichols J. L. Mann High School Academy of Mathematics, Science and Technology

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/isla.40636

Keywords:

self-paced reading, depth of processing, processing instruction, guided induction, Spanish passive, CALL

Abstract

The present study measured the effects of guided-inductive (GI) versus deductive computer-delivered instruction on the processing and retention of the Spanish true passive using a self-paced reading design. Fifty-four foreign language learners of Spanish participated in the study, which operationalised guided-inductive and deductive approaches using an adaptation of the PACE model and processing instruction (PI), respectively. Results revealed that each experimental group significantly improved after the pedagogical intervention, and that the GI group outperformed the PI group in terms of accuracy on an immediate post-test. Differences between the groups, however, were not durative; at the delayed post-test, each group performed the same. Additional analyses revealed that the GI group spent over twice as much time on task during instruction than the PI group, with no long-term advantages on processing, calling into question the pedagogical justification for implementing GI at a curricular level.

Author Biographies

  • Paul A. Malovrh, University of South Carolina

    Paul Malovrh specializes in SLA, applied Hispanic linguistics, and foreign language pedagogy. Working within a cognitive framework, he investigates interlanguage development and the underlying psycholinguistic strategies constraining it. His recent work focuses on advanced-level acquisition, specifically, and its relationship with curricular design and contemporary professional expectations. In addition, he investigates the relationship between instructional design and depth of processing in foreign-language classrooms using online measures.

  • James F. Lee, Texas Tech University

    James F. Lee conducts research on the second language processing of linguistic structures. His most recent research incorporates eye-tracking methodology in which he documents the similarities and differences between how, when and to what native and second language learners allocate visual attention during sentences processing. He earned his MA in Romance Linguistics and PhD in Hispanic Linguistics from the University of Texas at Austin. He previously worked at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, Indiana University, Bloomington, and most recently, the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. He has published 8 academic books on various aspects of second language processing with noted publishers: Mouton de Gruyter, McGraw-Hill, Continuum, and Bloomsbury Academic. He has published numerous chapters in books (John Benjamins, Erlbaum, Bloomsbury Academic, Routledge, Wiley) and his articles have appeared in the best ranked journals, among them, Studies in Second Language Acquisition and the Modern Language Journal.

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Published

2020-10-16

Issue

Vol. 4 No. 2 (2020): Special issue: Processing instruction: new methods and research trends

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Malovrh, P. A., Lee, J. F., Doherty, S., & Nichols, A. (2020). A self-paced reading study of language processing and retention comparing guided induction and deductive instruction: efficiency and depth of processing in computer-assisted learning. Instructed Second Language Acquisition, 4(2), 203–234. https://doi.org/10.1558/isla.40636