Language Teaching Research最新文献

{"title":"Early-Start Effects in EFL Settings: A Critical Review of Long-Term Evidence Beyond the Primary School Years","authors":"Kholoud A. Al-Thubaiti","doi":"10.1177/13621688261485475","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688261485475","url":null,"abstract":"This paper critically reviews long-term evidence on early English instruction in foreign language settings beyond the primary school years. It examines how early-start effects change across the transition to lower-secondary education, later school years, and college-level contexts, and which conditions are associated with their persistence, weakening, or re-emergence. Using a timeline approach, the review synthesizes school-based and post-school evidence across these stages. The findings indicate that early-start advantages are unstable, context-dependent, and often domain-specific rather than automatic or cumulative. Although cumulative exposure matters, the evidence does not support a consistent exposure threshold at which durable advantages emerge. Cross-study comparisons are also constrained by differences in assessment constructs and their alignment with program aims. Lowering the starting age alone is therefore unlikely to produce lasting benefits unless early instruction is supported by sustained, high-quality input, coherent curricular progression, careful transition planning, and meaningful opportunities to use English across educational stages.","PeriodicalId":47852,"journal":{"name":"Language Teaching Research","volume":"16 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149123163","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"“Teaching Was Changing Me”: EFL Teacher Identity Trajectories as Dynamic Systems—An Arts-Based Narrative Inquiry","authors":"Dilara Somuncu, Fadime Yalcin Arslan","doi":"10.1177/13621688261485476","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688261485476","url":null,"abstract":"This study investigates how English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers’ role identity trajectories develop over time and how such processes are rendered visible through arts-based narrative practices. Drawing on the Dynamic Systems Model of Role Identity (DSMRI), the study adopts an arts-based narrative inquiry design with two in-service teachers in the Turkish EFL context. Data were generated through multimodal artifacts (self-portrait collages, soundtracks, literary reflections), written narratives, and post-curation meetings across a three-phase process. The analysis traced the dynamic alignment and misalignment among identity components, including beliefs, goals, self-perceptions, and perceived action possibilities. Findings revealed two predominant trajectory patterns that differed in the degree to which coherence among identity components was disrupted, maintained, and consolidated over time. The first, a perturbation-driven reorganization, was characterized by initial misalignment, contextual disruption, and subsequent cycles of reconfiguration and expansion. The second, a value-anchored consolidation, reflected a comparatively stable trajectory in which early coherence across identity components was progressively strengthened and deepened over time. These patterns demonstrate that identity development is not uniformly driven by tension or instability but may also emerge through the consolidation of internally coherent value structures. The study contributes to DSMRI-informed language teacher identity (LTI) research by illustrating predominant modes of system organization and reconceptualizes LTI as a complex system whose developmental pathways are differentially structured by configurations of coherence across components. Methodologically, it highlights the value of arts-based narrative practices as mediational affordances for externalizing and articulating retrospectively reconstructed identity trajectories.","PeriodicalId":47852,"journal":{"name":"Language Teaching Research","volume":"199 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149123985","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Large Language Models for L2 Italian Writing Assessment: Effects of Prompt, Fine-Tuning, and Data Balance","authors":"Wenqian Huang, Pengzhan Yang, Guangyuan Yao","doi":"10.1177/13621688261483334","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688261483334","url":null,"abstract":"This study systematically evaluates generative pre-trained transformer (GPT)-based large language models for the automated writing evaluation of Italian as a second language (L2). Drawing on 1,832 learner texts, we compare six GPT-based experimental conditions: zero-shot and few-shot prompting with GPT-4.1 and GPT-5, and two fine-tuned GPT-4.1 models trained on either class-balanced or proportionally distributed datasets. Model performance against human common European framework of reference for languages (CEFR)-based ratings is examined using exact agreement, correlation coefficients, Quadratic Weighted Kappa, precision, recall, and F1-scores. Results reveal a clear hierarchy: the balanced fine-tuned GPT-4.1 model achieves near-operational reliability, whereas all prompting-based methods, including GPT-5, remain substantially weaker. Training data balance emerges as critical, as class-imbalanced fine-tuning was associated with weaker performance on high- and low-level texts. The findings highlight the need for balanced, language-specific corpora and task-aligned fine-tuning in L2 Italian automated writing assessment.","PeriodicalId":47852,"journal":{"name":"Language Teaching Research","volume":"11 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149124181","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Attentional Resources in Bilingual Reading: Effects of Continuous Versus Discontinuous Images on Word Memory","authors":"Di Chao Liang, Yen Na Yum, Neil Cohn","doi":"10.1177/13621688261483804","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688261483804","url":null,"abstract":"Studies have generally found benefits of multimodal presentation for comprehension and memory. However, although learner-related and design-related factors have received increasing attention in bilingual and L2 research, the role of visual continuity in naturalistic reading and its interaction with attentional control remains less well understood. This study investigated how the presence and continuity of visual inputs affect word recognition memory in bilingual Chinese-English university students. We also examined whether components of the attention network moderate word recognition performance. Participants read short passages in either their first language (L1) Chinese or second language (L2) English under three conditions: plain text, discontinuous images, or continuous images. Recognition memory was tested for previously seen words and semantically related foils. Results showed that the presence of images did not significantly improve recognition accuracy for previously seen words, but multimodal presentation increased susceptibility to semantic interference, regardless of language. Attentional control, particularly conflict resolution, moderated the effects of visual input, with stronger effects emerging in conditions that required more strategic allocation of cognitive resources. These findings highlight the complex, context-dependent effects of multimodal input and attentional resources on bilingual memory, suggesting that optimal visual support in language learning should consider individual cognitive profiles and task demands.","PeriodicalId":47852,"journal":{"name":"Language Teaching Research","volume":"46 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148993699","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The Online Effects of Processing Instruction and Structured Input on the Acquisition of the English Passive Constructions: The Role of Input Modality in Testing","authors":"Amin Pouresmaeil, Xin Wang, Alessandro Benati","doi":"10.1177/13621688261480080","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688261480080","url":null,"abstract":"This research examined both the short-term and long-term effects of processing instruction (PI) and its main element, structured input (SI), on learners’ acquisition of English passive forms. A total of 70 English as a second language (ESL) learners participated in the study and were randomly divided into three groups: a PI group ( <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">n</jats:italic> = 24), an SI group ( <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">n</jats:italic> = 25), and a control group ( <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">n</jats:italic> = 21). Participants in the PI and SI groups completed 1 hr of computer-based instructional activities, whereas the control group received no instructional treatment. Learners’ performance was evaluated using self-paced reading (SPR) and self-paced listening (SPL) tasks, which assessed response accuracy, picture selection response time, and reading or listening time at three points: before instruction, immediately after instruction, and after a delay. Findings showed that both the PI and SI groups achieved significant gains in accuracy on the SPR and SPL tasks at the immediate and delayed post-tests, while no improvement was observed in the control group. However, none of the groups demonstrated significant improvement in response time or reading time on the SPR task. In contrast, results from the SPL task indicated that the PI group showed significant reductions in both response time and listening time at both post-tests, whereas the SI group showed improvement in response time only at the immediate post-test. Despite these differences, no statistically significant differences were found between the PI and SI groups overall.","PeriodicalId":47852,"journal":{"name":"Language Teaching Research","volume":"76 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148993702","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"When Scripts Matter: Writing-System Effects on Metacognitive Calibration in Inferential Word Learning","authors":"Mikhail Ordin, Leona Polyanskaya","doi":"10.1177/13621688261485406","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688261485406","url":null,"abstract":"Inferential vocabulary learning—deriving word meanings from context—plays a central role in vocabulary expansion, yet little is known about how writing systems shape learning outcomes and learners’ confidence in this process. This study investigated the effects of writing system on inferential vocabulary learning in learners whose first language uses the Latin alphabet. Forty-eight native Portuguese speakers learned pseudowords though incidental contextual inference. The pseudowords were presented in four scripts: Latin alphabetic, Cyrillic alphabetic, Arabic abjad, and Chinese logographic. Learning took place in either visual or auditory modality. After learning, we administered a recognition test with trial-by-trial confidence ratings. Performance was highest for Latin-based pseudowords, intermediate for Cyrillic, and lowest for Arabic and Chinese scripts, with a higher accuracy rate in the visual than auditory modality observed only for the Latin script. Difference in confidence on correct and wrong responses reflected metacognitive sensitivity, or learner’s faculty to detect those words that were less reliably learnt, and adapt confidence ratings accordingly. The results demonstrated robust metacognitive sensitivity across all conditions, with higher confidence for correct than incorrect responses. However, confidence on correct responses was selectively lower in the visual modality for abjad and logographic scripts, suggesting reduced processing fluency if the script is unfamiliar to the learner. Learning efficiency was positively correlated with confidence on correct responses. These findings show that script familiarity facilitates early lexical learning, while unfamiliar scripts increase processing demands and reduce learners’ confidence, without eliminating metacognitive sensitivity. The results highlight the importance of early orthographic support and metacognitive awareness in L2 vocabulary instruction. We discuss implications of these results for theories of lexical learning and for instructional practices for target languages with nonalphabetical writing systems.","PeriodicalId":47852,"journal":{"name":"Language Teaching Research","volume":"59 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148993704","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effects of L1 Versus L2 Audio and Textual Glosses on L2 Vocabulary Learning","authors":"Ehsan Rassaei, Peter Mitchell","doi":"10.1177/13621688261481475","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688261481475","url":null,"abstract":"Although a number of studies investigated the effects of different gloss types on L2 vocabulary learning, the interaction between the language and modality of glosses remains underexplored. The present study thus examined the effects of the modality and language of glossing on L2 vocabulary learning. To this end, the study employed a within-subjects design to test the impacts of four combinations of L1 versus L2 and audio-based versus text-based glosses on L2 lexical development. The participants were 49 EFL learners who read two texts, each including 28 unfamiliar words that were the same in both texts over two sessions. They were instructed to read the texts with their smartphones and touch the target words, which were underlined to see or hear the glosses, depending on the allocation of the target words to each treatment condition. The glosses associated with the target words in the texts included L1 and L2 text-based as well as L1 and L2 audio-based glosses, equally distributed among the target words. Two testing instruments, a meaning recall task and a cued production task, were used on two occasions after the treatment sessions as post-test and delayed post-test to measure the participants’ vocabulary growth. The results of mixed-effects linear regression modeling showed that L1 glosses were considerably more effective than L2 glosses, irrespective of modality. The findings also indicated a significant interaction between the language and modality of glossing. In particular, the audio-based L1 glosses proved significantly more effective than other glossing conditions, and the L2 audio-based glosses proved least effective among them. The results provide further insight into the role of the language and modality of glosses and have important implications for L2 vocabulary teaching.","PeriodicalId":47852,"journal":{"name":"Language Teaching Research","volume":"108 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148979506","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Cooperative Development as a Means for Supporting Ukrainian EFL Teachers During the War","authors":"Nataliia Krynska, William S. Pearson","doi":"10.1177/13621688261478919","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688261478919","url":null,"abstract":"Set against the profound precarity and disruption of Ukrainian higher education during Russia’s war against Ukraine, this study examines how 9 university English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers sustained their professional lives and wellbeing through participation in a Cooperative Development (CD) initiative within a language teacher association. The study encompasses a secondary thematic analysis of transcripts from a 9-month online CD project comprising 10 structured, non-evaluative peer-support sessions in which participants alternated Speaker, Understander, and Listener roles to reflect on their professional lives through narration and dialogue. The findings showed that CD offered substantial affordances for Ukrainian EFL teachers working during wartime (regardless of their location) by facilitating emotional expression, building connectedness, and providing a safe, non-judgmental space that supported their wellbeing and promoted reflection. Participation also contributed to the development of empathetic communication, reflective skills, and confidence/motivation, although teachers initially faced challenges adapting to unfamiliar CD roles and the non-advice-giving nature of the approach. The implications of the findings for teachers working in crisis- or conflict-affected settings are discussed.","PeriodicalId":47852,"journal":{"name":"Language Teaching Research","volume":"35 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148979507","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"State Self-Esteem, Personal Investment, and Initial L2 Lexical Acquisition","authors":"Taghreed Qahl, Craig Lambert","doi":"10.1177/13621688261479331","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688261479331","url":null,"abstract":"Self-esteem is critical to learning, but it is a multifaceted construct with complex effects. The present study investigates domain-specific self-esteem in memory for novel lexis and its interaction with self-reference effects. In total, 144 Saudi learners processed novel English trait adjectives in four conditions (referenced to themselves, an intimate other, a familiar other, or synonyms). They evaluated their self-esteem at the time each item was processed and later recalled the meaning of each item (item memory) and the conditions under which they processed it (source memory). Results revealed that self-esteem had a significant impact on both item and source memory and interacted significantly with self-referential processing conditions. Participants recalled little when self-esteem was low, regardless of processing condition, but they did significantly better when self-esteem was high. Additionally, when self-esteem was high, learners recalled items processed in the personal investment conditions (with reference to themselves or an intimate other) significantly better than in the non-personal investment conditions (with reference to a familiar other or a synonym). Personal investment and self-esteem thus had synergistic effects. These findings are discussed in terms of how self-esteem and personal investment may inform instructional design, particularly by tailoring content to align with personally meaningful and positive task content.","PeriodicalId":47852,"journal":{"name":"Language Teaching Research","volume":"28 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148979509","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Investigating the Emotional Experiences in Shadow Language Education: A Mixed-Methods Study of Secondary School Students’ Enjoyment and Boredom","authors":"Anas Hajar,Mehmet Karakus","doi":"10.1177/13621688261484527","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688261484527","url":null,"abstract":"English private tutoring (EPT) has expanded rapidly across post-Soviet contexts, but students’ emotional experiences within this sector remain underexplored. Drawing on Control-Value Theory and positive psychology in second language acquisition, this mixed-methods study examines enjoyment, boredom and behavioural engagement among Grade 11 students attending EPT in Kazakhstan. Quantitative data were collected from 640 students across 8 tutorial centres using validated measures of emotions, engagement, learner attitudes and tutor-related practices, complemented by focus group interviews with 32 students. Results reveal that students generally reported high enjoyment, moderate engagement and low boredom. Enjoyment was associated with engagement, positive attitudes towards English, perceived competence, and tutor enthusiasm and friendliness, whereas boredom was negatively associated with engagement and with less favourable attitudes towards English and the learning environment. Tutor type also mattered, with non-Kazakhstani and highly qualified tutors associated with higher enjoyment. Qualitative findings indicate that enjoyment stemmed from supportive relationships, meaningful use of English and future-oriented goals, while boredom emerged from repetitive, exam-driven practices. The study suggests that EPT functions as an affectively significant learning environment rather than a purely instrumental service, extending research on shadow language education and highlighting implications for student well-being, sector regulation and formal schooling improvement.","PeriodicalId":47852,"journal":{"name":"Language Teaching Research","volume":"6 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148933962","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}