Paper Title
Multiple Routes to Successful Reading Development in Japanese
Author's Name, Institution and E-mail Address
Dan P. Dewey, University of Pittsburgh, ddewey@pitt.edu
Abstract
This presentation is based on a study reading acquisition of sixty learners of
Japanese as a second language with between two and three years of Japanese
language learning experience. Over the course of this research, learners
studied Japanese for a semester or summer in one of three contexts: study
abroad, summer intensive domestic immersion, or at home in the formal
academic-year classroom. From these three groups of learners
(approximately twenty learners per group), the top four learners (those who
made the greatest gains on three measures of reading during the study
period) were selected. In order to determine factors that might have helped
these learners be successful in terms of reading acquisition, data from the
following sources were analyzed: pre- and post-study questionnaires and
interviews, learner diaries, and interviews with instructors. In this
presentation, I will describe the study and the results of the qualitative
analysis of learner variables contributing to successful reading acquisition.
While some common variables appeared across and within individual contexts
(motivation, time spent studying, first language reading habits and skills,
metacognitive awareness, etc.), the theme of individual differences was
strongest. Each of the successful students in each context had unique habits
and beliefs. This theme of individual differences will also be addressed and
examples of student behavior will be given.
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