Into The Wild: Input Spacing, Instructional Validity, and the Learning of L2 Vocabulary

Speaker: Dr John Rogers

A considerable body of research has investigated the effects of input spacing, that is the amount of time between learning episodes, on the learning of foreign language (L2) vocabulary. This body of research has overwhelmingly demonstrated that more distributed conditions lead to better learning and retention than when there is a short gap between learning episodes. This talk discusses a recent research project (Rogers & Cheung, in press) that set out to challenge these findings in examining the degree that these results necessarily generalize to authentic classroom contexts. The results of this study will be discussed in light of previous research into distributed practice effects and theories of bilingual development.