This research examines the interaction effect and main effects of time, tasks, and annotations on annotation-supported vocabulary learning using multimedia. Three task types (reading comprehension, ...cloze exercises, and sentence writing) and four annotation types (text, picture, graphics interchange format (GIF), and video annotations) were investigated. A total of 360 working adults in Hong Kong participated in the project and were randomly assigned to 12 groups with different vocabulary learning activities to learn 10 target words. Participants’ target vocabulary knowledge was measured by an immediate posttest after the treatment and a delayed posttest one week later. The results showed statistically significant interaction effects between time, tasks, and annotations. Time has a significant effect on the vocabulary learning outcome. Regarding the main effects of the task type, sentence writing exercises were significantly more effective than cloze tasks, which in turn were significantly more effective than reading comprehension exercises. As for the main effects of the annotation type, pictures, GIFs were significantly more effective than video annotations, while text annotations were the least effective. Picture annotations were similarly effective to GIF annotations. Most participants displayed positive attitudes towards multimedia annotation-supported vocabulary learning finding it interesting and effective. Suggestions for teachers, teaching material developers, and learners are proposed based on the results.
This study investigates the effects of three word-focused exercise conditions on vocabulary learning. The exercises were developed based on the involvement load hypothesis. This study also explores ...how individual differences (e.g. second-language English proficiency level and working memory) affect vocabulary learning outcomes. A total of 180 Chinese students were equally and randomly assigned to 3 exercise conditions (reading comprehension plus marginal glosses, reading plus gap-fill and reading plus sentence writing). The Vocabulary Knowledge Scale was adapted to measure pre- and post-test vocabulary gains. An n-back task was developed to assess learners’ working memory capacity. Results showed that the sentence-writing group yielded the best performance in vocabulary learning, followed by the gap-fill group and finally the reading-comprehension group. General linear model results revealed that learners’ English proficiency level and working memory significantly predicted their vocabulary gains. This study expands on prior research by exploring learner-related factors in vocabulary learning. Relevant implications are discussed based on the findings.
The involvement load hypothesis (ILH) was designed to predict the effectiveness of instructional tasks for incidental L2 vocabulary learning. In this meta‐analysis we examined 398 effect sizes from ...42 empirical studies (N = 4,628) to explore (a) the overall predictive ability of the ILH, (b) the relative effects of different components of the ILH (need, search, and evaluation), and (c) the influence of potential factors moderating learning (e.g., time on task, frequency of encounters or use, and test format). Results showed that the ILH was significantly predictive of learning and explained 15.0% and 5.1% of the variance in effect sizes on immediate and delayed posttests, respectively. We found that the evaluation component contributed to the greatest amount of learning, followed by need, whereas search did not contribute to learning. Moderator analyses revealed that (a) test format and frequency moderated learning gains and (b) involvement load had a greater impact on learning than time on task.
The current study investigated the interaction between task-induced involvement load and the languages used in vocabulary glosses on incidental second language (L2) word learning in low proficiency ...learners of English as a foreign language (EFL). Using computer-based tasks, the study also probed whether a task with a higher level of involvement load promoted a greater learner engagement with unfamiliar words, as measured by their hypertext gloss lookup frequencies. A total of 160 Thai EFL learners were equally divided into five task conditions based on the relative level of involvement load (low, high) and type of target word gloss (no glosses, L1 glosses, L2 glosses). The findings suggest that a task with a higher level of involvement load and first language (L1) glosses is most conducive to L2 word learning and that gloss language can mediate the effect of involvement load. Moreover, a task with a higher level of involvement load prompted learners to be more engaged with unfamiliar L2 words, irrespective of gloss language. The study provides partial support for the Involvement Load Hypothesis and reveals the differential effects of L1 and L2 glosses on L2 learning, which were not taken into account in the hypothesis. Pedagogical implications are also discussed.
This study investigates the impact of task-induced involvement and time on task on incidental second language (L2) vocabulary acquisition. Utilizing a 3 (task-induced involvement) × 2 (time on task) ...× 2 (post-test time) research design, three task-induced involvement conditions were employed based on the Involvement Load Hypothesis (ILH): reading and gap-fill task, reading and sentence-making task, and reading and translation task, with corresponding involvement load (IL) indices of 2, 3, and 4, respectively. Two time-on-task conditions were implemented: uncontrolled time on task, where participants in different groups completed tasks with varied durations, and controlled time on task, where participants in different groups completed tasks with roughly equal durations. Five intact classes comprising 256 Chinese middle school students participated and were randomly assigned to one of five designed tasks aimed at learning 10 carefully selected target words. The results of a three-way repeated measures ANOVA indicate a significant three-way interaction effect among task-induced involvement, time on task, and post-test time, as well as a significant two-way interaction effect between task-induced involvement and time on task. These findings demonstrate that task-induced involvement and time on task interact to significantly influence both initial acquisition and retention of incidental L2 vocabulary. Specifically, under uncontrolled time conditions, tasks with higher ILs and longer durations yield better initial vocabulary gains and retention, partially supporting the ILH. Conversely, under controlled time conditions, tasks with lower ILs exhibit superior initial vocabulary gains and retention, contradicting the predictions of the ILH. Relevant implications are also discussed.
Plain Language Summary This study delves into the dynamics of second language (L2) vocabulary acquisition, scrutinizing the impact of task-induced involvement and time spent on the learning process. Three distinct tasks—reading and gap-fill, reading and sentence-making, and reading and translation—were administered, each representing different levels of involvement. Furthermore, two time-on-task conditions were explored: uncontrolled time, allowing varying task durations, and controlled time, with approximately equal durations. The study involved 256 Chinese middle school students randomly assigned to tasks focused on mastering 10 specific target words. Results uncovered a significant three-way interaction effect among task-induced involvement, time on task, and post-test time, alongside a noteworthy two-way interaction effect between task-induced involvement and time on task. These findings underscore the crucial interplay between task engagement and time investment in shaping the initial acquisition and retention of incidental L2 vocabulary. Particularly, in uncontrolled time conditions, tasks demanding higher involvement and extended durations proved more effective in vocabulary gains and retention, aligning with aspects of the Involvement Load Hypothesis. However, under controlled time conditions, tasks with lower involvement exhibited superior performance, challenging the predictions of the hypothesis. Nevertheless, certain limitations, including participant challenges with the sentence-making task and the exclusive focus on Chinese ESL learners, merit acknowledgment. To enhance the reliability of results, future replication studies should involve participants from diverse language backgrounds. Additionally, the transferability of these findings to various input tasks necessitates further exploration. The article not only delves into the theoretical and pedagogical implications of these results but also advocates for continued research to refine our understanding of effective language.
The study investigated the effects of task-induced involvement on academic vocabulary acquisition at both short- and long-term periods after treatment. Twenty-nine college students in Korea were ...randomly assigned to one of the three tasks: Read-without-glossary, Gap-fill-with-glossary, and Gap-fill-without-glossary. The ANCOVA statistics showed no significant differences among the three tasks, but the learning gains between pre-test and post-test was the most significant statistically in the input task (Read without glossary), compared with the output tasks (Gap-fill with glossary and Gap-fill without glossary). The finding could be due to the fact that academic vocabulary requires more intensive reading than general vocabulary, leading to more vocabulary learning gains. KCI Citation Count: 3
This research inspects the allocation of involvement load to the evaluation component of the involvement load hypothesis, examining how three typical approaches to evaluation (cloze-exercises, ...sentence-writing, and composition-writing) promote word learning. The results of this research were partially consistent with the predictions of the hypothesis: the two writing tasks with greater involvement load led to significantly better word learning than cloze-exercises with lower load, while composition-writing was significantly more effective than sentence-writing despite the same involvement load according to the matrix of the original model. Such results are explained from the perspectives of information organization and pre-task planning, based on which evaluation induced by cloze-exercises is suggested to be allocated with ‘moderate evaluation’ as it involves no use of chunking, hierarchical organization or pre-task planning, evaluation induced by sentence-writing with ‘strong evaluation’ as it involves chunking and pre-task planning at the sentence level, and evaluation induced by composition-writing with ‘very strong evaluation’ for it involves chunking, hierarchical organization and pre-task planning at the composition level.
The Involvement Load Hypothesis (ILH) has become a widely used framework for predicting second language (L2) vocabulary learning from task completion. The purpose of this systematic review was to ...analyze the predictive ability of the ILH in the acquisition of aspects of knowing a word, its application in different target populations, the effective vocabulary learning task types designed based on the ILH, and the occurrence rate of the ILH components in vocabulary learning tasks. We searched IEEE, ERIC, WOS, Scopus, and ProQuest databases for empirical studies published between 2001 and 2021, using a vocabulary-focused keyword string combined with an ILH-focused keyword string. A total of 78 studies were selected using a set of inclusion and exclusion criteria. The content analysis of these studies showed that researchers have used the ILH to investigate the acquisition of six aspects of knowing a word. Four types of tasks (i.e., fill-in-the-blanks, reading, composition writing, and meaning-inferring) provided more positive evidence for the validation of the ILH. The search component was least present in the vocabulary learning tasks. Researchers have supported the use of the ILH to predict the vocabulary learning potential of tasks completed mainly by adult learners. This systematic review provides direction for future reviews and empirical studies in L2 vocabulary teaching and learning framed by the ILH.
With the rise of computer-assisted online learning tools such as the Language Reactor, advanced captioning options such as dual subtitles (i.e. simultaneous display of on-screen texts in the first ...language and the second/foreign language) have gained much attention. However, little is known about how dual-subtitled viewing may be optimised to foster second/foreign language learning in multimedia learning environments. In this study, I extended Laufer and Hulstijn (Applied Linguistics, 22(1), 1-26, 2001) Involvement Load Hypothesis (ILH) to the context of audiovisual input and examined the effects of dual-subtitled viewing under multiple ILH-based interventions on vocabulary learning. University Chinese-speaking low-intermediate EFL learners (n = 72) were divided into four groups and exposed to dual-subtitled videos with varying ILH-based interventions. Using a counterbalanced 4 × 4 experimental design, I compared learners' immediate vocabulary gains and retention of target words under four different treatments across four experimental sessions, including interventions featuring an involvement load of 4 (moderate need + search + strong evaluation), an involvement load of 3 (moderate need + search + moderate evaluation), an involvement load of 2 (moderate need + search), and an involvement load of 0 (absence of need, search or evaluation). The approach to data analysis was twofold: between-groups and within-groups. ANOVA results revealed that vocabulary gains were the highest when learners viewed dual-subtitled videos under treatments with higher involvement loads. The article ends with a consideration of practical and theoretical implications for language learning through this form of audiovisual multimedia learning condition.
