Waseda University Developing an Intelligent Reading System for Vocabulary Learning GLoCALL 2009 Glenn Stockwell, Ph.D. Professor & Assistant Dean (Academic Affairs) School of Law, Waseda University

Waseda University Vocabulary Acquisition  Importance of vocabulary in L2 learning indisputable (e.g., Zimmerman, 1997)  Vocabulary can be naturally acquired through extensive reading (Coady, 1997)  Significantly more effective when supplemented with targeted vocabulary activities (Paribakht & Wesche, 1997)  Wide range of books and articles about vocabulary (e.g., Nation, 2009)

Waseda University CALL and Vocabulary Learning  An area that has attracted interest since the early days of CALL  One of the most commonly researched areas in CALL (Stockwell, 2007)  Change from drill-type activities in 1980s to varied approaches (Varied Courseware, Online Activities, Dictionaries, Corpora & Concordancing, & CMC)  Three types of CALL programs for learning vocabulary: courseware with vocabulary, texts with glosses and dedicated software (Ma, 2004)

Waseda University CALL and Vocabulary Learning Examples of CALL vocabulary learning:  Annotations:  Written texts, with both textual (De Ridder, 2002) and non- textual (Yeh & Wang, 2003) annotations  Dedicated Software:  Deduction: learners deduct meaning from context  Usage: learners consolidate meaning through usage exercises  Examples: words are presented in authentic contexts  Retrieval: learners must type the correct word for a given sentence (Groot, 2000)

Waseda University CALL and Vocabulary Learning  Many of these studies are almost completely dictated by the teacher  The choice of vocabulary  Example sentences, activities, etc.  Little understanding of what learners actually know  Difficult to create targeted vocabulary activities for learners

Waseda University Method  Data Collection  Vocabulary pre-test  Access logs  Procedure  Vocabulary pre-test based on vocabulary items appearing in the readings  Explanation of online reading activities  Reading activities conducted in class  Vocabulary activities done outside of class

Waseda University Method  Subjects:  43 1 st year law major students at Waseda University, taking a compulsory English reading and writing course  Students met once a week for a 90 minute class  Some variation in English level (between 450 – 650 TOEIC, but generally at lower end)  Used computers in first semester for listening activities and practice (c.f., Stockwell, 2008)

Waseda University Method  Online System  Written in PHP/MySQL (integrated with Moodle)  Content and interface kept separate  Class time spent on how to use the system  Kept independent logs and Moodle logs  Reading Activities  Carried out during class time  Short reading passages provided with hypertext linked words (most content words linked)

Waseda University Method  Reading Activities  Links were not initially salient, but changed colour when the mouse was passed over them  A pop-up window provided details of the word  Records were kept regarding all words clicked and the time the window was open  Learner activity was recorded and organised

Waseda University Method  Reading Activities

Waseda University Method  Reading Activities

Waseda University Method  Vocabulary Activities  Choose appropriate word for sentence  Choose appropriate word for English definition  Choose appropriate word for Japanese meaning  Match list of words with their English definitions  Write a word for an English definition  Write the appropriate word for a sentence More Active

Waseda University Method: Vocabulary Activities

Waseda University Method: Vocabulary Activities

Waseda University Method: Vocabulary Activities

Waseda University Method: Intelligent Language Tutoring Systems

Waseda University Method  Research Questions  Do learners look up meanings of words that are deemed as “unknown” according to a pre-test?  How long to learners spend looking at word descriptions?  How much time do learners spend on vocabulary activities outside of class time?  Can vocabulary profiles be constructed through annotated reading activities?

Waseda University Results (thus far…)

Waseda University Results (thus far…)

Waseda University Results (thus far…) CategoryM (Seconds)SD Unknown Known  Time spent reading vocabulary descriptions

Waseda University Results (thus far…) CategoryM (Minutes)SD PC Mobile  Time spent on vocabulary activities/week

Waseda University Results (thus far…) CategoryM (Seconds)SD PC Mobile  Time spent on vocabulary activities/task

Waseda University Results (thus far…) JACET Level Known Vocabulary Other16.2  Sample vocabulary profile (Student 17)

Waseda University Results (thus far…)  Sample vocabulary profile (Student 17)

Waseda University Comments  Learners do not look up all words deemed as “unknown”  Possibly guess from context  Learnt elsewhere since pre-test  Pre-test not an accurate reflection  “Known” words looked up  Confirmation of meaning  Learners want to see examples or hear pronunciation

Waseda University Comments  Construction of basic profiles possible  BUT very early in the research  Need to see trends with larger vocabulary bank over longer period of time  Ex-post facto results  Mobile phone usage consistent with earlier studies (see Stockwell, 2007, 2008)  Activities took markedly longer on mobile phones compared with PCs

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