Lasting effects of pre‐university language exposure on undergraduate proficiency

Abstract

The present study analyzes the effects of two variables on the proficiency development of 907 university students of Spanish and French: years of high school experience; and level of initial placement into university language study. A 3‐year grant‐funded project administered ACTFL proficiency tests in reading, listening, and speaking to students enrolled at the fourth‐, sixth‐, and eighth‐semester curricular levels. Results showed that both of these aspects of pre‐university experience exert an important influence on proficiency ratings throughout the curriculum and that this effect is especially acute in the case of initial language placement. The findings reveal the lasting importance of pre‐university language learning experience, for students completing required coursework as well as for language majors, and are discussed in terms of their implications for university language curricula.

Perspectives of Indonesian Undergraduate Students on Reading Proficiency and Communicative Competence

“…As a result, this research indicates that students could find a cultural context discussion or topic of the reading. This finding shares similar ideas with Strawbridge et al (2019) and Tuomainen (2021). In the research, Strawbridge et al (2019) revealed that students in the lower semester (semesters two and four) perceived better reading proficiency than other skills.…”

“…This finding shares similar ideas with Strawbridge et al (2019) and Tuomainen (2021). In the research, Strawbridge et al (2019) revealed that students in the lower semester (semesters two and four) perceived better reading proficiency than other skills. Moreover, they found that at the end of the semester, students' reading proficiency reached intermediate mid due to the curriculum learning.…”

Evaluating the reading and listening outcomes of beginning‐level Duolingo courses

“…In sum, among the five studies reviewed in this section, Tschirner (2016), Hacking (2019), andWinke et al (2020) demonstrated that students at the end of the fourth semester of Spanish and French courses reached IL in reading proficiency and between NM and IL in listening proficiency, while Soneson and Tarone (2019) and Strawbridge et al (2019) reported results of one ACTFL sublevel higher. The higher proficiency reported in these two studies seemed to be based on one language program which offers an enhanced curriculum.…”

“…The discrepancy between Soneson and Tarone (2019), on one hand, and the findings of other studies in the Flagship Proficiency Initiative, on the other, might be due to differences in instruction/exposure. According to Strawbridge et al (2019), the PACE project was based on an enhanced curriculum that required five credit hours per semester, which was very likely more than language programs in other institutions that offer three or four credit hours per semester.…”

“…Similar to the studies described in this section thus far, Strawbridge et al (2019) sought to track learners' speaking, listening, and reading proficiency ratings in French and Spanish in postsecondary programs. The researchers found that second-and fourth-semester students of both languages scored significantly lower in listening than in reading and speaking.…”