Extensive Reading (ER) emerges as a promising approach for acquiring a foreign language, allowing for a large amount of language exposure. However, the influence of supplementary activities within ER programs has yet to be thoroughly investigated, despite previous studies suggesting their potential effectiveness. This research investigated the…

Data-driven platforms with rich data and learning analytics applications provide immense opportunities to support collaborative learning such as algorithmic group formation systems based on learning logs. However, teachers can still get overwhelmed since they have to manually set the parameters to create groups and it takes time to understand the…

Although proponents of extensive reading (ER) have recommended easy reading material, book difficulty has been poorly defined and operationalized in previous studies. The present study argues for the use of perceived text difficulty for operationalizing book difficulty based on empirical findings (Holster et al., 2017), reading purposes in ER, and…

The effects of extensive, timed, and repeated oral reading on 101 lower-intermediate Japanese university L2 English learners' reading rates and comprehension were investigated over one academic year. The participants were divided into four quasiexperimental groups: (a) Group 1 did extensive, timed, and repeated oral reading with prosody and…

This study explored the role of live transcripts in online synchronous academic English classrooms by focusing on how automatically generated live transcripts influence the learning outcomes of lower-proficiency and higher-proficiency learners and on their perceptions towards live transcripts. The study adopted a 2 × 2 factorial design, with the…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of a multimodal approach in which an additional camera was used to deliver online explicit reading strategy instruction. Targeting 20 Japanese beginner-level EFL college students taking online Zoom lessons during one academic semester, two research questions were investigated: (a) To what…

The purpose of this study is to examine whether a difference exists in TOEIC Bridge® Institutional Program scores between Japanese English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students at a technical college who did extensive reading (ER) for one year and those who did ER for two years. Furthermore, by dividing the students who experienced ER for two years…

This research investigates how foreign language learners learn vocabulary in an English as a Second Language (ESL) classroom. The participants are eleven foreign students from an advanced ESL Reading class in Edmonds Community College in Lynnwood, WA. A questionnaire was used as an instrument to inquire about the students' vocabulary learning…

This volume highlights unique features of L2 teachers' motivation, autonomy and career development in Far East counties (including Japan, South Korea and China), using diverse methodological research approaches incorporating both quantitative and qualitative paradigms. While much of current research focuses on students' psychology, this volume…

This quasi-experimental study traces a 12-week reading fluency training program for elementary-level English as a foreign language (EFL) learners at a Japanese university (N = 56). More specifically, this study examined whether a teaching intervention combining (a) extensive reading and practicing, (b) timed reading, and (c) repeated oral reading…

The benefits of extensive reading (ER) are well known, yet integrating ER into curricula has been problematic. One factor is the adherence to the principle that students should freely choose what to read, which complicates connecting out-of-class reading with in-class content. Class readers, however, can more easily tie in book content with…

Unlike conventional distance learning, the COVID-19-induced emergency online learning environment has resulted in students experiencing prolonged social isolation and anxiety, thereby creating additional barriers to their motivation to learn. Studying under these conditions influences students' motivation to complete and turn in course-related…

This mixed methods study investigates the effect of a multimodal reading intervention on EFL reading achievement and intercultural awareness of students (n = 20) at a Japanese university. A cross-culturally themed graphic novel was employed to overcome language barriers and cultural mores and promote higher-order literacy. Asynchronous discourse…

This paper presents findings from an approximate replication of Erten and Razi (2009), which investigated the effects of cultural familiarity and reading activities on comprehension. Two variables were modified in the replication: participants' first language (L1) and proficiency. Cultural referents were manipulated in a short story to make them…

This study compares two instructional methodologies: extensive reading plus output activity and intensive reading plus grammar-translation with regard to improvement of non-English major EFL learners' reading comprehension and fluency development in a Japanese junior college. It identifies the minimum number of words an individual should read for…