Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-g8jcs Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T09:58:40.510Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

6 - Testing Language Aptitude for Chinese Learners of Foreign Languages

FLAT-C vs. LLAMA

from Part II - Aptitude Testing of Diverse Groups

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 May 2023

By
Haiyong Zhao ,
Shaoqian (Sheila) Luo  and
Ailan Fu
Edited by
Zhisheng (Edward) Wen ,
Peter Skehan  and
Richard L. Sparks
Zhisheng (Edward) Wen
Affiliation:
Hong Kong Shue Yan University
Peter Skehan
Affiliation:
Institute of Education, University of London
Richard L. Sparks
Affiliation:
Mount St Joseph University
Get access

Summary

The current study explored the concurrent and criterion-related validity of the Foreign Language Aptitude Test for Chinese Learners of Foreign Languages (FLAT-C) with LLAMA as the aptitude test external criterion, and the final-term English test as the criterion regarding achievement. The results show that although the FLAT-C is related to LLAMA, the two language aptitude tests have clear differences; FLAT-C explained 8.5% of the variance in English achievement, which is higher than predictions using LLAMA. The current study provides empirical evidence for the validation of FLAT-C, which is helpful and meaningful to advancing the theory, tests, research, and practice of foreign language aptitude in China.

Keywords

Language aptitudeLLAMAFLAT-Cconcurrent validitylanguage aptitude testpredictive validity
Type
Chapter
Information
Language Aptitude Theory and Practice , pp. 119 - 149
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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

Baddeley, A. D. (1986). Working Memory. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google ScholarPubMed
Bokander, L., & Bylund, E. (2020). Probing the internal validity of the LLAMA language aptitude tests. Language Learning, 70(1), 11–47.Google Scholar
Carroll, J. B. (1965). The prediction of success in intensive foreign language training. In Glaser, R. (ed.), Training, Research and Education. New York: Wiley, pp. 87–136.Google Scholar
Carroll, J. B. (1966). A Parametric Study of Language Training in the Peace Corps. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.Google Scholar
Carroll, J. B. (1981). Twenty-five years of research on foreign language aptitude. In Diller, K. C. (ed.), Individual Differences and Universals in Language Learning Aptitude. Rowley, MA: Newbury House, pp. 83–118.Google Scholar
Carroll, J. B. (1993). Human Cognitive Abilities: A Survey of Factor-Analytic Studies. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carroll, J. B., & Sapon, S. M. (1959). Modern Language Aptitude Test Manual. New York, NY: The Psychological Corporation.Google Scholar
Cohen, J. (1988). Statistical Power Analysis for the Behavioral Sciences, 2nd ed. Hillsdale NJ: Erbaum.Google Scholar
DeKeyser, R. (2019). The future of language aptitude research. In Wen, Z., Skehan, P., Biedroń, A., Li, S., & Sparks, R. (eds.), Language Aptitude: Advancing Theory, Testing, Research and Practice. London: Routledge, pp. 317–329.Google Scholar
Dörnyei, Z., & Skehan, P. (2003). Individual differences in second language learning. In Doughty, C. J. & Long, M. H. (eds.), The Handbook of Second Language Acquisition. Oxford: Blackwell, pp. 589–630.Google Scholar
Doughty, C. J. (2019). Cognitive language aptitude. Language Learning, 69(Suppl S1), 101–126.Google Scholar
Ehrman, M., & Oxford, R. (1995). Cognition plus: Correlates of language learning success. Modern Language Journal, 79(1), 67–89.Google Scholar
Granena, G. (2013). Cognitive aptitudes for second language learning and the LLAMA Language Aptitude Test. In Granena, G. & Long, M. H. (eds.), Sensitive Periods, Language Aptitude, and Ultimate L2 Attainment. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, pp. 105–129.Google Scholar
Granena, G. (2016). Cognitive aptitudes for implicit and explicit learning and information-processing styles: An individual differences study. Applied Psycholinguistics, 37(3), 577–600.Google Scholar
Granena, G. (2019). Cognitive aptitudes and L2 speaking proficiency: Link between LLAMA and Hi-LAB. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 41(2), 313–336.Google Scholar
Grigorenko, E. L., Sternberg, R. J., & Ehrman, M. E. (2000). A theory-based approach to the measurement of foreign language learning ability: The Canal-F theory and test. The Modern Language Journal, 84(3), 390–405.Google Scholar
Harrington, M., & Sawyer, M.. (1992). L2 working memory capacity and L2 reading skill. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 14(1), 25–38.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hatcher, L. (1994). Step-by-Step Approach to Using the SAS System for Factor Analysis and Structural Equation Modeling. Cary, NC: SAS Institute.Google Scholar
Hummel, K. M. (2009). Aptitude, phonological memory, and second language proficiency in non-novice adult learners. Applied Psycholinguistics, 30(2), 225–249.Google Scholar
Li, L. R. (2014). Developing an instrument to measure foreign language aptitude of Chinese learners of foreign languages (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China.Google Scholar
Li, L. R., & Luo, S. Q. (2019). Development and preliminary validation of a foreign language aptitude test for Chinese learners of foreign languages. In Wen, Z., Skehan, P., Biedroń, A., Li, S., & Sparks, R. (eds.). Language aptitude: Advancing theory, testing, research and practice (pp. 59–90). London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Li, S. F. (2016). The construct validity of language aptitude: A meta-analysis. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 38(4), 801–842.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Li, S. F. (2019). Six decades of language aptitude research: A comprehensive and critical review. In Wen, Z., Skehan, P., Biedroń, A., Li, S., & Sparks, R. (eds.), Language Aptitude: Advancing Theory, Testing, Research and Practice. New York: Routledge, pp. 78–96.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Li, S. F., & Qian, J. C. (2021). Exploring syntactic priming as a measure of implicit language aptitude. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 1–32. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263120000698Google Scholar
Linck, J. A., Hughes, M. M., & Campbell, S. G. et al. (2013). Hi-LAB: A new measure of aptitude for high-level language proficiency. Language Learning, 63(3), 530–566.Google Scholar
Liu, J., & Jiang, N. (2006) A report on English language aptitude test among Chinese learners. Foreign Languages in China, 3(4), 63–68.Google Scholar
Liu, J. D, & Wu, S. (2019). The Research on China’s Standards of English Language Ability. Beijing: Higher Education Press.Google Scholar
Liu, T., Liu, L., & Deng, J. (2005). A study on correlation coefficients of grammar sensitivity. Journal of Southwest Minzu University (Humanities and Social Science), 26(10), 292–295.Google Scholar
McLaughlin, B. (1995). Aptitude from an information processing perspective. Language Testing, 12(3), 370–387.Google Scholar
Meara, P. M. (2005). Llama Language Aptitude Tests. Swansea: Lognostics.Google Scholar
Miyake, A., & Freidman, N. P. (1998). Individual differences in second language proficiency: Working memory as language aptitude. In Healy, A. & Bourne, L. (eds.), Foreign Language Learning: Psycholinguistic Studies on Training and Retention. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erbaum, pp. 339–364.Google Scholar
Petersen, C. R., & Al-Haik, A. R. (1976). The development of the defense language aptitude battery (DLAB). Educational and Psychological Measurement, 36(2), 369–380.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pimsleur, P. (1966). Pimsleur Language Aptitude Battery. New York, NY: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.Google Scholar
Robinson, P. (2005). Cognitive abilities, chunk-strength, and frequency effects in implicit artificial grammar and incidental L2 learning: Replications of Reber, Walkenfield, and Hernstatd (1991) and Knowlton and Squire (1996) and their relevance for SLA. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 27(2), 235–268.Google Scholar
Robinson, P. (2007). Aptitudes, abilities, contexts, and practice. In DeKeyser, R. M. (ed.), Practice in a Second Language: Perspectives from Applied Linguistics and Cognitive Psychology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 256–286.Google Scholar
Rogers, V., Meara, P., Barnett-Legh, T., Curry, C., & Davie, E. (2017). Examining the LLAMA aptitude tests. Journal of the European Second Language Association, 1(1), 49–60.Google Scholar
Safar, A., & Kormos, J. (2008). Revisiting problems with foreign language aptitude. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 46(2), 113–136.Google Scholar
Sagarra, N. (2007). Working memory and L2 processing of redundant grammatical forms. In Han, Z. & Park, E. S. (eds.), Understanding Second Language. Bristol, UK: Multilingual Matters, pp. 133–147.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sagarra, N., & Herschensohn, J. (2010). The role of proficiency and working memory in gender and number agreement processing in L1 and L2 Spanish. Lingua, 120(8), 2002–2039.Google Scholar
Sawyer, M., & Ranta, L. (2001). Aptitude, individual differences, and instructional design. In Robinson, P. (ed.), Cognition and Second Language Instruction. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, pp. 319–353.Google Scholar
Skehan, P. (1998). A Cognitive Approach to Language Learning. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Skehan, P. (2002). Theorizing and updating aptitude. In Robinson, P. (ed.), Individual Differences and Instructed Language Learning. Amsterdam, the Netherlands: John Benjamins Publishing Company, pp. 69–94.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Skehan, P. (2012). Language aptitude. In Gass, S. & Mackey, A. (eds.), Handbook of Second Language Acquisition. New York, NY: Routledge, pp. 381–395.Google Scholar
Skehan, P. (2015). Foreign language aptitude and its relationship with grammar: A critical overview. Applied Linguistics, 36(3), 367–384.Google Scholar
Sparks, R., Ganschow, L., & Patton, J. (1995). Prediction of performance in first-year foreign language courses: Connections between native and foreign language learning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 87(4), 638–655.Google Scholar
Sparks, R., Patton, J., Ganschow, L., & Humbach, N. (2011). Subcomponents of second language aptitude and second language proficiency. The Modern Language Journal, 95(2), 253–273.Google Scholar
Suzuki, Y. (2021). Probing the construct validity of LLAMA_D as a measure of implicit learning aptitude: Incidental instructions, confidence ratings, and reaction time. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263120000704Google Scholar
Suzuki, Y., & DeKeyser, R. (2017). The interface of explicit and implicit knowledge in a second language: Insights from individual differences in cognitive aptitudes. Language Learning, 67(4), 747–790.Google Scholar
Walter, C. (2004). Transfer of reading comprehension skills to L2 is linked to mental representation of text and to L2 working memory. Applied Linguistics, 25(3), 315–339.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wen, Z. S. (2019). Working memory as language aptitude: The Phonological/Executive model. In Wen, Z., Skehan, P., Biedroń, A., Li, S., & Sparks, R., Language Aptitude: Advancing Theory, Testing, Research and Practice. London: Routledge, pp.187–214.Google Scholar
Wen, Z. S., Biedroń, A., & Skehan, P. (2017). Foreign language aptitude theory: Yesterday, today and tomorrow. Language Teaching, 50(1), 1–31.Google Scholar
Wen, Z. S., & Skehan, P. (2011). A new perspective on foreign language aptitude research: Building and supporting a case for “working memory as language aptitude.” Ilha do Desterro, 60, 15–43.Google Scholar
Weir, C. J. (2005). Language Testing and Validation: An Evidence-Based Approach. New York: Palgrave McMillan.Google Scholar
Winke, P. (2013). An investigation into second language aptitude for advanced Chinese language learning. The Modern Language Journal, 97(1), 109–130.Google Scholar
Wu, Y. A., Liu, R, Q., & Jeffrey, P. (1993). Learner factors and language learning achievement: A survey. Foreign Language Teaching and Research, 93(1), 36–46.Google Scholar
Xia, H. Y. (2011). A language aptitude test for native Chinese: Development and validation. Shandong Foreign Languages Teaching Journal, 32(5), 52–55.Google Scholar
Yalçın, S., Cecen, S., & Erçetin, G. (2016). The relationship between aptitude and working memory: An instructed SLA context. Language Awareness, 25(1–2), 144–158.Google Scholar
Yalçın, S., & Erçetin, G. (2019). Relationships among working memory, language aptitude, and listening comprehension in an instructed foreign language setting. Zhuhai International Roundtable on Language Aptitude. November 2019.Google Scholar
Yoshimura, Y. (2001). The role of working memory in language aptitude. In Bonch-Bruevich, X., Crawford, W. J., Hellermann, J., Higgins, C., & Nguyen, H. (eds.), The Past, Present, and Future of Second Language Research. Sommerville, MA: Cascadilla Press, pp. 144–163.Google Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×