Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-jr42d Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-19T12:31:53.642Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Effects of distributed practice on the acquisition of second language English syntax

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 August 2010

STEVE BIRD
STEVE BIRD*
Affiliation:
United Arab Emirates University
*
ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDENCE Steve Bird, Department of Linguistics, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, P.O. Box 17771, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates. E-mail: sbird@uaeu.ac.ae
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

A longitudinal study compared the effects of distributed and massed practice schedules on the learning of second language English syntax. Participants were taught distinctions in the tense and aspect systems of English at short and long practice intervals. They were then tested at short and long intervals. The results showed that distributed practice led to superior test scores on the long-term tests, indicating that the learning of second language syntax can benefit from distributed practice in a manner very similar to that reported for other skills and information types in the experimental psychology literature. Implications for intensive language-leaning programs and syllabus design in general are discussed.

Type
Articles
Information
Applied Psycholinguistics , Volume 31 , Issue 4 , October 2010 , pp. 635 - 650
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Bahrick, H. P., Bahrick, L. E., Bahrick, A. S., & Bahrick, P. E. (1993). Maintenance of foreign language vocabulary and the spacing effect. Psychological Science, 4, 316–321.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bahrick, H. P., & Phelps, E. (1987). Retention of Spanish vocabulary over 8 years. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 13, 344–349.Google Scholar
Bardovi-Harlig, K. (2000). Tense and aspect in second language acquisition: Form, meaning, and use. Oxford: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Bloom, K. C., & Shuell, T. J. (1981). Effects of massed and distributed practice on the learning and retention of second-language vocabulary. Journal of Educational Research, 74, 245–248.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cepeda, N. J., Mozer, M. C., Coburn, N., Rohrer, D., Wixted, J. T., & Pashler, H. (in press). Optimizing distributed practice: Theoretical analysis and practical implications. Experimental Psychology.Google Scholar
Cepeda, N. J., Pashler, H., Vul, E., Wixted, J. T., & Rohrer, D. (2006). Distributed practice in verbal recall tasks: A review and quantitative synthesis. Psychological Bulletin, 132, 354–380.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cepeda, N. J., Vul, E., Rohrer, D., Wixted, J. T., & Pashler, H. (2008). Spacing effects in learning: A temporal ridgeline of optimal retention. Psychological Science, 11, 1095–1102.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Challis, B. H. (1993). Spacing effects on cued-memory tests depend on level of processing. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 19, 389–396.Google Scholar
Collins, L., Halter, R. H., Lightbown, P. M., & Spada, N. (1999). Time and the distribution of time in L2 instruction. TESOL Quarterly, 33, 655–668.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dempster, F. N. (1987). Effects of variable encoding and spaced presentations on vocabulary learning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 79, 162–170.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dempster, F. N. (1988). The spacing effect: A case study in the failure to apply the results of psychological research. American Psychologist, 43, 627–634.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dempster, F. N. (1996). Distributing and managing the conditions of encoding practice. In Bjork, E. L. & Bjork, R. A. (Eds.), Memory (pp. 318–339). New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Donovan, J. J., & Radosevich, D. J. (1999). A meta-analytic review of the distribution of practice effect: Now you see it, now you don't. Journal of Applied Psychology, 84, 795–805.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Freed, B. F., Segalowitz, N., & Dewey, D. P. (2004). Context of learning and second language fluency in French: Comparing regular classroom, study abroad, and intensive domestic immersion programs. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 26, 275–301.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Glenberg, A. M. (1979). Component-levels theory of the effects of spacing of repetitions on recall and recognition. Memory & Cognition, 7, 95–112.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Glenberg, A. M., & Lehmann, T. S. (1980). Spacing repetitions over 1 week. Memory & Cognition, 8, 528–538.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Greene, R. L. (1989). Spacing effects in memory: Evidence for a two-process account. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 15, 371–377.Google Scholar
Greene, R. L. (1990). Spacing effects on implicit memory tests. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 16, 1004–1011.Google Scholar
Greene, R. L. (1992). Human memory: Paradigms and paradoxes. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Hintzman, D. L. (1976). Repetition and memory. In Bower, G. (Ed.), The psychology of learning and memory (pp. 47–91). New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Landauer, T. K., & Bjork, R. A. (1978). Optimum rehearsal patterns and name learning. In Gruneberg, M. M., Morris, P. E., & Sykes, R. N. (Eds.), Practical aspects of memory (pp. 625–632). London: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Lapkin, S., Hart, D., & Harley, B. (1998). Case study of compact core French models: Attitudes and achievement. In Lapkin, S. (Ed.), French second language education in Canada: Empirical studies (pp. 3–31). Toronto: University of Toronto Press.Google Scholar
Lightbown, P. M., & Spada, N. (1994). An innovative program for primary ESL students in Quebec. TESOL Quarterly, 28, 563–579.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Netten, J., & Germain, C. (2004). Theoretical and research foundations of intensive French. Canadian Modern Language Review, 60, 275–294.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Peters, M. (2000). Le bain linguistique: Une innovation pour le programme de Français de base. Apprentissage et Socialisation, 20, 71–86.Google Scholar
Reder, L. M., & Anderson, J. R. (1982). Effects of spacing and embellishment on memory for the main points of a text. Memory & Cognition, 10, 97–102.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Reynolds, J. H., & Glaser, R. (1964). Effects of repetition and spaced review upon retention of a complex learning task. Journal of Educational Psychology, 55, 297–308.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rohrer, D., & Pashler, H. (2007). Increasing retention without increasing study time. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 16, 183–186.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rohrer, D., & Taylor, K. (2006). The effects of overlearning and distributed practice on the retention of mathematics knowledge. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 20, 1209–1224.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Seabrook, R., Brown, G. D. A., & Solity, J. E. (2005). Distributed and massed practice: From laboratory to classroom. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 19, 107–122.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Serrano, R., & Munoz, C. (2007). Same hours, different time distribution: Any difference in EFL? System, 35, 305–321.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Spada, N. (1997). Form-focussed instruction and second language acquisition: A review of classroom and laboratory research. Language Teaching, 30, 73–87.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Spada, N., & Lightbown, P. M. (1989). Intensive ESL programmes in Quebec primary schools. TESL Canada Journal, 7, 11–32.CrossRefGoogle Scholar