A review of research on English-for- academic-purposes instruction: What learning transfers, and how far? Mark Andrew James Arizona State University

Background EAP educationEAP education aims to help learners participate in academic contexts (e.g., English- medium K-12 schools, colleges, universities). for EAP education to be considered successful, students must be able to apply (i.e., transfer) their EAP learning in other courses. Empirical research has provided evidence of transfer from EAP instruction to students’ other courses.Empirical research has provided evidence of transfer from EAP instruction to students’ other courses.... but, there is little detail regarding the circumstances of transfer (e.g., where and when it occurred, what kind of activities it involved).

The transfer taxonomy (Barnett & Ceci, 2002) 6 (of the 9) dimensions are related to transfer distance, i.e., whether transfer is near or far in terms of:6 (of the 9) dimensions are related to transfer distance, i.e., whether transfer is near or far in terms of: knowledge domain (i.e., topics); physical context (i.e., location, people); temporal context (i.e., time); functional context (i.e., purpose, e.g., get grades, make friends); social context (i.e., collaborative vs. individual); modality (i.e., format, e.g., multiple choice, essay).... the other 3 dimensions are related to the kind of learning that transfers:... the other 3 dimensions are related to the kind of learning that transfers: specificity/generality (e.g., narrow facts/procedures vs. general principles) performance change (i.e., quality/accuracy vs. speed vs. approach) memory demands (i.e., elicited recognition vs. spontaneous recall)

Applying the transfer taxonomy Research that has evidence of transfer from EAP instruction to students’ other courses lacks sufficient detail for the taxonomy.Research that has evidence of transfer from EAP instruction to students’ other courses lacks sufficient detail for the taxonomy.... but, research that has examined EAP student learning is suitable for the taxonomy because:... but, research that has examined EAP student learning is suitable for the taxonomy because: although the explicit focus is “learning”, the findings often demonstrate transfer (e.g., performance on a posttest is application of prior learning in a novel context, i.e., transfer); although this transfer does not occur across course boundaries, it does occur between contexts that differ in ways that courses differ (e.g., time, place, subject matter); experimental designs are often used, which means there is substantial detail about the circumstances of transfer (e.g., teaching and testing).

Procedure Research question: What, if anything, might be learned about transfer in EAP education through this analysis?Research question: What, if anything, might be learned about transfer in EAP education through this analysis? Collection of studies: Searched ERIC (i.e., thesaurus categories “English for academic purposes” and “Second language instruction”). Criteria for inclusion were:Collection of studies: Searched ERIC (i.e., thesaurus categories “English for academic purposes” and “Second language instruction”). Criteria for inclusion were: conducted in an EAP setting (elementary, secondary, post-secondary); used an experimental or quasi-experimental design, and findings showed that instruction had led to learning that students could demonstrate; were published in a book or peer-reviewed journal; provided enough detail that they could be analyzed with the taxonomy.

Interpretation Research question: What, if anything, might be learned about transfer in EAP education through this analysis?Research question: What, if anything, might be learned about transfer in EAP education through this analysis? Instruction can result in transfer with EAP students. Transfer can involve various learning outcomes (e.g., specific and general). Transfer can have a positive impact on the quality of students’ work; but, it’s uncertain if transfer can influence the speed of students’ work or the way students approach their work. Transfer can occur in situations that place minimal demands on students’ memories (i.e., recognition), but also situations that place greater demands on students’ memories (i.e., recall). Transfer can occur across varying distances.

Implications Future research might build on these findings by addressing questions such as:Future research might build on these findings by addressing questions such as: whether general knowledge (e.g., grammar rules, reading/writing strategies) transfers farther than specific knowledge (e.g., phonemes, words); whether learning transfers when the distance is far on most or all of the taxonomy’s dimensions. Educators might build on these findings by (a) designing EAP instruction to be similar to students’ other courses in as many ways as possible, and (b) being cautious about expecting transfer when EAP instruction differs from target contexts in numerous ways.Educators might build on these findings by (a) designing EAP instruction to be similar to students’ other courses in as many ways as possible, and (b) being cautious about expecting transfer when EAP instruction differs from target contexts in numerous ways.

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