Elke Peters

KU Leuven | ku leuven · Department of Linguistics

Research has begun to demonstrate that L2 words can be learned incidentally through watching audio-visual materials. Although there are a large number of studies that have investigated incidental vocabulary learning through reading a single text, there are no studies that have explored incidental vocabulary learning through viewing a single full-le...

The aim of this study is to investigate (1) how often Flemish English-as-a-foreign language learners are exposed to English language media outside of the classroom, (2) whether current out-of-class exposure to English language media is related to learners’ vocabulary knowledge, and (3) whether length of instruction (three or six years), gender, and...

The present study investigates the impact of meaningful input on L2 learners’ vocabulary use and their fluency in oral performance (immediate and repeat tasks), as well as whether the effects are mediated by learners’ prior vocabulary knowledge and working memory. Ninety university students learning English as a foreign language were randomly assig...

INTRODUCTION Collocations have been of considerable interest to applied linguistics and SLA researchers, due to their pervasiveness in language. In corpus research, collocations are broadly defined as pairs of content words like nouns and adjectives that appear more frequently in language than the occurrence frequency of the individual words would...

This paper reports on a longitudinal study on the impact of reading mode on incidental collocation learning and predictors of learning gains. The experiment lasted 11 weeks and involved 118 Vietnamese EFL learners who were assigned to an experimental group and a no treatment control group. The experimental group encountered 32 target collocations i...

Although a number of previous studies have shown that TV viewing can lead to incidental vocabulary learning, most of them focused on single words. Little research has examined the effect of captioned TV viewing on incidental collocation learning compared with other modes of input. In addition, research on the factors that affect incidental collocat...

Despite empirical evidence from research showing that the use of text-picture combination is beneficial for second language (L2) learning, little is known about the effectiveness of reading comic books for incidental vocabulary acquisition. This study investigated the effects of engaging with comic books on incidental learning of L2 Italian vocabul...

This longitudinal study investigates the effect of mode of reading on the incidental learning of collo-cations and factors that affect learning. One hundred Vietnamese pre-intermediate learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) were assigned to either an experimental group or a control group (no treatment). In nine weeks, the experimental grou...

This paper reports the results of two experiments which compared the effects of reading-only, reading while listening , and reading with textual input enhancement (i.e. underlining) on Vietnamese English as a foreign language (EFL) learners' learning of three aspects of vocabulary knowledge: form recognition, form recall, and meaning recall. Sixty...

This chapter provides an overview of contemporary research into formulaic sequences (FSs) in L2 speech. We start with a working definition of FSs with examples, followed by a discussion on the history of research and teaching FSs, and descriptions of both early and recent publications to shed light on different stages of development of these areas....

This review paper aims to provide an overview of vocabulary in English language learning, teaching, and testing in Vietnam. First, we review studies on the vocabulary knowledge of Vietnamese EFL learners. Recent research evaluating different aspects of vocabulary knowledge shows that Vietnamese EFL learners generally have limited knowledge of both...

This study examines the effect of textual enhancement on learners' attention to and learning of multiword units from captioned audiovisual input. We adopted a within-participants design in which 28 EFL learners watched a captioned video containing enhanced (underlined) and unenhanced multiword units. Using eye-tracking, we measured learners' online...

The present study examined the effects of input, input repetition and individual differences (i.e., prior vocabulary knowledge and working memory) on L2 learners’ incidental lexical mining in an immediate and a repeat oral task. Ninety participants were allocated to three groups: input (n=32), input repetition (n=29), and no input (n=29). The input...

Bevordering van woordenschatkennis in het Engels. De rol van ondertiteling en beeldondersteuning in audiovisuele input. 1 Eerder onderzoek heeft aangetoond dat taalleerders nieuwe Engelse woorden kunnen oppikken terwijl ze aan audiovisuele input worden blootgesteld. Een mogelijke verklaring hiervoor werd soms gezocht in de aanwezigheid van beeldond...

This experimental study explores the differential effects of spoken input-based and output-based tasks on vocabulary knowledge. The study also investigates whether such tasks result in more learning gains than exposure to input-only (no subsequent task). The study employed a pretest-posttest design with two groups: an experimental group (n=32) who...

Als je Nederlands als vreemde taal leert, hoeveel verschillende woorden moet je dan eigenlijk kennen om Nederlandse nieuwsberichten te begrijpen? En welke? Deze hoeveelheid hangt natuurlijk af van de doelgroep voor wie bepaalde teksten of tv-programma's bedoeld zijn. Kan je als vreemdetaalleerder best beginnen met het jeugdjournaal, of met kranten...

This paper reports on a quasi-experimental study that explored the differential effects of input- and output-based tasks on L2 vocabulary learning. The study adopted a pretest-posttest within-participants design, with sixty Vietnamese EFL university students. Participants in the experimental group participants completed four input and four output t...

The present study aims to explore French vocabulary use in L1 and low-intermediate L2 speakers’ output in semi-structured dialogic tasks. More specifically, the aim of this study was threefold. First, we focused on the relationship between low-intermediate L2 learners’ receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge and holistic lexical ratings of th...

The present study explores the incidental learning of formulaic sequences (FS) from audio-visual input and factors affecting the learning of FS. A pretest-posttest, within-participant design was adopted. English-as-a-foreign-language learners (L1 = Dutch; n = 42) watched a one-hour English-language documentary without subtitles. Learning gains were...

This paper reports the results of two longitudinal experiments which compared the effects of reading only, reading-while-listening and reading with textual input enhancement (i.e. underlining) on Vietnamese English as a foreign language (EFL) learners' learning of three aspects of vocabulary knowledge: form recognition, form recall, and meaning rec...

Television is considered an important source of comprehensible input for second language learners of English and there is some evidence that L2 words can be learned incidentally by watching television. Few studies have looked at the role of TV viewing for learning formulaic sequences, despite the ubiquity of formulaic sequences in spoken English, a...

In the past years, there has been a surge in the number of studies focusing on learning vocabulary from audiovisual input. These studies have shown that learners can pick up new words incidentally when watching TV (Peters & Webb, 2018; Rodgers & Webb, 2019). Research has also shown that the presence of on-screen text (L1 or L2 subtitles) might incr...

This study focused on the mechanisms underlying incidental second language (L2) vocabulary acquisition prior to formal instruction. We designed a cross‐sectional study to examine which learner‐related and word‐related variables affect young learners’ vocabulary knowledge at the level of meaning recognition and meaning recall. We collected data from...

This study investigates the mechanisms underlying incidental L2 vocabulary acquisition prior to formal instruction. A cross-sectional study was designed to examine which learner-related and word-related variables affect young learners' vocabulary knowledge at the level of meaning recognition and meaning recall. Data were collected from 616 Flemish...

This study describes the development of an English and French multiple choice vocabulary test – the VocabLab tests – that measure learners’ knowledge at four frequency levels up to the most frequent 5,000 words: the 2,000-level, 3,000-level, 4,000-level, and the 5,000-level. The two tests aimed to address some of the limitations of tests currently...

This chapter focuses on factors affecting the learning of single-word items. The chapter starts with a discussion of research into the effect of word-related factors (cognates, similarity in form or meaning, word length, part-of-speech, concreteness, polysemy) on the learning, processing, and use of single words. Next, the chapter zooms in on how c...

This cross‐sectional study investigated the impact of length of instruction, out‐of‐school exposure to foreign language input, and gender on learners’ receptive vocabulary knowledge in two foreign languages: French (first foreign language) and English (second foreign language). The findings suggest that, although length of instruction correlated po...

This study aims to look into the effect of L2 proficiency level on composing processes of L2 student writers in L2 writing. The research to date has produced conflicting evidence concerning the relationship between L2 proficiency and composing processes. A number of L2 studies found that L2 proficiency does not influence L2 writing performance and...

The present study aims to replicate Stæhr’s (2009) study on the relationship between vocabulary knowledge and listening comprehension. To explore the generalizability of Stæhr’s findings, two experiments were conducted. However, the study changed the population (Flemish learners) and proficiency level of the materials in the first experiment (inter...

While most studies on L2 vocabulary learning through input have addressed learners’ vocabulary uptake from written text, this study focuses on audio-visual input. In particular, we investigate the effects of enhancing video by (1) adding different types of L2 subtitling (i.e. no captioning, full captioning, keyword captioning, and glossed keyword c...

This study compares the results of three groups of participants on the writing component of a centralised L2 university entrance test at the B2 level in Flanders, Belgium. The study investigates whether all Flemish candidates have a B2-level in Dutch upon university entrance, and whether L1 test takers outperform L2 candidates who learned Dutch at...

This study investigates whether congruency (+/– literal translation equivalent), collocate–node relationship (adjective–noun, verb–noun, phrasal-verb–noun collocations), and word length influence the learning burden of EFL learners’ learning collocations at the initial stage of form–meaning mapping. Eighteen collocations were selected on the basis...

This paper reports on a classroom-based study that explored the effect of explicit, vocabulary-focused instruction on English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students’ recognition, cued output and spontaneous use of academic formulaic sequences (FS). In addition, the study aimed to shed some light on which type of classroom activity might be most benef...

This study investigates the effect of two attention-enhancing techniques on L2 students’ learning and processing of novel French words (i.e., target words) through video with L2 subtitles or captions. A combination of eye-movement data and vocabulary tests was gathered to study the effect of Type of Captioning (full or keyword captioning), and Test...

This study examines how three captioning types (i.e., on-screen text in the same language as the video) can assist L2 learners in the incidental acquisition of target vocabulary words and in the comprehension of L2 video. A sample of 133 Flemish undergraduate students watched three French clips twice. The control group (n = 32) watched the clips wi...

This article examines how form recall of target lexical items by learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) is affected (1) by repetition (1, 3 or 5 number of occurrences), (2) by the type of target item (single words versus collocations), and (3) by the time of post-test administration (immediately or one week after the learning session). The...

This study examines how three captioning types (i.e., on-screen text in the same language as the video) can assist L2 learners in the incidental acquisition of target vocabulary words and in the comprehension of L2 video. A sample of 133 Flemish undergraduate students watched three French clips twice. The control group (n = 32) watched the clips wi...

In recent years, the student population enrolling in Flemish higher education has become increasingly diverse. Whereas teacher training institutes used to attract mainly students with a diploma of general secondary education, the proportion of students with a technical or vocational educational background has grown substantially over the past ten y...

The aim of this study was twofold: we investigated (a) the effect of two types of captioned video (i.e., on-screen text in the same language as the video) on listening comprehension; (b) L2 learners’ perception of the usefulness of captions while watching L2 video. The participants, 226 university-level students from a Flemish university, watched t...

Foreign-language (FL) learners are faced with the challenge of acquiring a large vocabulary.Research has shown that the acquisition of formulaic sequences (FS) and collocationsis one of the biggest lexical challenges for foreign language learners. Researchersand teachers alike acknowledge the importance of learning FS in the FL classroombecause FS...

This article reports a small-scale study that investigated the effect of (1) an instructional method, viz. directing learners' attention to formulaic sequences (FS) in a text, and (2) typographic salience, i.e. bold typeface and underlined, on foreign-language (FL) learners' recall of FS and single words (SW). Twenty-eight FL learners read a glosse...

This study examines the effect of two vocabulary instruction treatments on word retention by 56 EFL learners. In particular, it focuses on the differential effects of a message-oriented treatment (reading text and answering comprehension questions) and a vocabulary-oriented treatment (reading text and performing two vocabulary tasks) on learners' r...

Taalbeleid inzake Nederlands staat al een tijd op de agenda in het hoger onderwijs en in de politiek. Veel hogeronderwijsinstellingen zijn intussen op verschillende manieren aan de slag gegaan. Vaak werd gestart met aparte bijspijkercursussen en/of taaltoetsen maar geleidelijk aan evolueren veel instellingen naar een taalbeleid dat in de opleiding...

De taalprestaties van leerlingen zijn al langere tijd onderwerp van gesprek en onderzoek in Nederland en in Vlaanderen. In de gesprekken zijn die prestaties al snel volstrekt onder de maat. Onderzoek nuanceert dat beeld wel, maar geeft ook aan dat er serieuze problemen zijn met de lees- en schrijfvaardigheid van studenten. In dit Vlaamse exploratie...

This study investigated three techniques designed to increase the chances that second language (L2) readers look up and learn unfamiliar words during and after reading an L2 text. Participants in the study, 137 college students in Belgium (L1 = Dutch, L2 = German), were randomly assigned to one of four conditions, forming combinations of two betwee...

When second language (L2) learners read an L2 text, they tend to prioritize text comprehension and text meaning over specific language forms (Peters, 2007a), as a consequence of which many grammatical as well as lexical language features in the input remain unnoticed. Although recent research (Laufer, 2005; Peters, 2007b; Peters et al., 2009) has d...

This study explored the effect of two enhancement techniques on L2 learners' look-up behaviour during a reading task and word retention afterwards amongst Flemish learners of German: a Vocabulary Test Announcement and Task-induced Word Relevance. Eighty-four participants were recruited for this study. They were randomly assigned to one of two group...

It has been argued that tasks constitute a valid alternative unit to sequence the language learning process, as opposed to linguistically defined syllabuses. Implementing this claim presupposes that it is possible to assess the cognitive and linguistic demands of tasks, so that they can be sequenced in such a way that they optimally support and pro...

The paper presents the results of a comparative investigation of course developers’ and teacher trainees’ views regarding the usefulness and effectiveness of a multimedia self-tuition course designed to introduce foreign language teacher trainees to tools and methods for organising computer-assisted language learning. The paper first provides a...