Second Language Vocabulary Acquisition Through Storybook Reading For Chinese Children Ting Lyu

Contents 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Research Questions and Significance Key Findings from Literature Reviewed 2 3 Participants, Instrumentation and Procedure Data Analysis 4 Findings 5 Implications for Practice 6 Suggestions for Further Research and Limitations 7

Research Questions Significance RQ1 Does English storybook reading help children learn English vocabulary? RQ2 Is prior English vocabulary level a significant predictor of post-intervention vocabulary level? RQ3 Does method of instruction impact post-intervention vocabulary level, after controlling for prior English vocabulary level? RQ4 Does the impact of method of instruction on post-intervention vocabulary level depend upon the student's initial English vocabulary level? Significance It expands the knowledge base regarding the use of storybook reading for second language learning in China.

Key Findings from Literature Reviewed For Monolinguals For ELLs Research Gap 1. Children learn more words by more exposures to the same storybooks. 2. Children’s initial vocabulary knowledge has an impact on the vocabulary learning 3. Readers should choose different reading styles based on children's language level. 4. Detailed explanation help children learn more words. 1. Storybook reading helps ELLs learn English vocabulary. 2. Explanation of words or content before, during and after reading is effective in facilitating vocabulary acquisition. 1. insufficient studies on the storybook reading supported with primary language in the classroom setting. 2. Conflicting results as to the influence of initial vocabulary level. 3. Scarce studies conducted in the non-English enviroment for young children

Participants Procedure Instrumentation The subjects were 5-6 year old Chinese children in a bilingual kindergarten, from Shanghai, China. Preparation: selection of books & words Pilot Study: test intrument Main Study: Instrumentation Preview-review concurrent Pre-test 24 words Intervention 20 minutes *3 times* 3 stories 20 minutes*3 times * 3 stories Post-test 8 words * 3 stories Researcher-developed Target Vocabulary Test (TVT), which includes items from three stories. The test for each story contains six target words and two general words in the story. 24 items in the test

Data Analysis Main Analyses 单击添加段落文字 单击添加段落文字 Preliminary Analyses Participants Age (t test) p=.93 Prior Vocab. Level （t test） p=.91 Gender （χ2 ） p= .78 Instrument Reliability (Pearson) r=.73 Validity p<.01 Statistical assumptions influence, distance, and leverage 单击添加段落文字 单击添加段落文字 RQ1 Two separate dependent-samples t-tests RQ2 Two simple linear regressions of posttest scores on pretest scores for each group RQ3 Sequential multiple linear regression RQ4

Findings RQ1 There is evidence to suggest that English storybook reading does help children learn English vocabulary RQ2 Prior English vocabulary is a significant predictor of post-intervention vocabulary level for both groups RQ3 The method of instruction had a large effect on the post intervention vocabulary. Children in the concurrent translation condition score higher on the posttest than those in the preview-review condition, after controlling for the pretest performance RQ4 There is insufficient evidence to suggest that the impact of method of instruction on post-intervention vocabulary level depends on the students’ initial English vocabulary level

Implications for Practice Researchers Teachers & Parents Policymakers This study provides some of the first empirical evidence of using storybook reading to teach young ELLs in China. The concurrent translation method is more effective than the preview-review method Rich explanations of words. use English and Chinese interchangeably in reading development of children's primary language adjust the kindergarten curriculum to incorporate English storybook reading into the classroom teaching

Suggestions for Further Research and Limitations A larger sample size and more kindergartens measure additional elements of English knowledge examine whether the level of primary language affects the outcomes randomized experimental study or gather data on children's backgrounds and initial language proficiency levels train classroom teachers to provide the intervention the long-term effects of storybook readings construct validity mono-method bias The selection of words in the instrument was not based on precise empirical data internal validity experimenter effect independent replications external validity only one kindergarten was studied