Did the Tone Marks group behave similarly or differently across Experiment 1 and 2? How? How do the authors explain this similarities or differences (why)?

LING2214/PSYU2238: ASSIGNMENT 1 CRITQUE

The introduction to a research report should contain information that relates directly to the chosen area of investigation. It should provide a clear and comprehensive background to the study’s aims; explaining what the research is about, why it is of interest/significance, and what has been found in previous studies (including both sides of any relevant arguments). Research questions or hypotheses must follow logically from the information presented.

Answer the following questions about the introduction to the paper. (4 marks in total)

1. What is the general theory/hypothesis that motivates the current empirical study? (0.5 marks)

2. What is the available evidence supporting or failing to support the idea that the availability of second language orthography facilitates L2 speech/phonology learning? Please cite the studies. (2 marks, one for supporting evidence, one for countersupporting evidence)

3. Did the authors explain why they expect learning L2 phonology would benefit from orthographic symbols that learners are unfamiliar with, despite the fact that the literature presented mixed findings for the orthographic facilitation effect in learning L2 phonology when learners were familiar with the orthographic symbols? (0.5 mark) What is the research question/purpose of Experiment 1 (0.5 mark)?

4. Mandarin Chinese differs from English in using different acoustic information to disambiguate lexical meanings. What type of information does Mandarin use for lexical contrasts (please give an example), which is not applied in English? (0.5 mark)

The main question to ask of the Method section of a report is: Could you replicate this study on the basis of information provided by the author? (Are participants described in sufficient detail? Are materials well-designed and/or well-chosen? Are variables defined appropriately? Are controls sufficient? Are confounding variables acknowledged? Are all important aspects of the procedure described?)

Answer the following questions about the method section of the paper. (5 marks in total)

5. Why were two conditions/groups selected? (Tone Marks group and No Tone Marks group)? (1 mark) Why were Mandarin non-words created/selected in the study? (0.5 mark)

6. How many tasks/phases were employed in Experiment 1? Please describe each task/phase and the purpose of each task/phase (1.5 marks).

7. What is the main difference between Experiment 1 and 2? What question does this experimental manipulation address? (1 mark)

8. Did the authors explicitly explain the necessary inclusion of the criterion test phase in the study? (0.5 mark) If not, please state the reason to include this phase (0.5 mark).

With regard to the analysis of data and presentation of results, some aspects to consider are: whether any data were omitted, and if so, why; whether data analyses seem appropriate; whether the results reported are directly relevant to the research questions posed in the introduction; and whether figures and tables are used effectively to supplement a verbal description of the findings.
Answer the following questions about the results section of the paper. (5 marks in total)

9. What do the results from Experiment 1 imply/support/indicate? Why and how? Please support your answer. (1 mark)

10. What do the results from Experiment 2 imply/support/indicate? Why and how? Please support your answer (1 mark)

11. In Experiment 1 and 2, did Tone Marks group and No Tone Marks group behave the same or differently in the matched and mismatched conditions during the final test phase? Please describe any similarities or differences in both experiments in detail in the final test. (2 marks)

12. Did the Tone Marks group behave similarly or differently across Experiment 1 and 2? How? How do the authors explain this similarities or differences (why)? (1 mark)

The Discussion section of a report should provide information on how to interpret the study’s findings, and how the findings resemble and/or differ from those obtained in previous research. This section should also include an acknowledgement of the study’s limitations, suggestions for improvement, and suggestions for future research.

Answer the following questions in regard to the Discussion section of the paper. (5 marks in total)

13. Does Experiment 2 address the authors’ initial research question adequately? Why? (1 mark)

14. How do the authors reconcile the research findings with the results from Simon et al. (2010)? (1 mark)

15. Please describe one aspect of this study that either resembles or differs from the initial stage of Second Language Acquisition in real life, in addition to what the authors discussed in their study already. (2 marks, one mark for resembling and one mark for differing)

16. What is the evidence showing that the unfamiliar orthography might be confusing and distracting to learners, despite the main hypothetical investigation that orthography could benefit learning L2 phonology? (0.5 mark)

17. Please think of one specific aspect to improve the current research/paper. Be specific (0.5 mark) In regard to the Title and Abstract, on should ask whether they provide a clear and accurate description of the study. (1 mark in total)

18. Does the abstract provide an accurate description of the assessments used and the results obtained? If not, which aspects are questionable? (1 mark)

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