It has been documented that language users’ listening and reading comprehension relies heavily on the process of prediction. However, the specific features and purposes of individual prediction, as well as the relationship between prediction and language processing and learning, remain unclear. Prediction in Second Language Processing and Learning provides a comprehensive overview of the current status of research on prediction in second language (L2) processing and learning, and offers insights into future directions in this field. The book is organized into ten chapters, which explore individual differences in predictive processing within and across L2 learners.
Chapter 1, titled Prediction in second language processing and learning: Advances and directions, serves as an introduction to the book. The chapter begins by presenting various perspectives on the role of prediction in language processing and learning. It then provides an overview of research trends related to predictive processing in both first language (LI) and L2 contexts. Kaan and Grüter emphasize that the effectiveness and efficiency of prediction in language processing can be influenced by multiple factors, and therefore argue that the utility of prediction should be considered. The chapter concludes by briefly introducing the subsequent chapters in the book, and proposing directions for future research.
Chapter 2, titled Automaticity and prediction in non-native language comprehension, presents a theoretical framework for investigating prediction in L2 processing within production-based models of prediction. The authors first introduce a graded view of automaticity, which suggests that predictive processing is largely non-automatic, and they apply this framework to a language prediction model. The chapter then provides an overview of relevant research on prediction and comprehension in both L1 and L2 contexts.
Both Chapter 3 and Chapter 4 present studies that investigate the factors that influence prediction using visual-world eye-tracking experiments. Chapter 3, titled Second language prediction ability across different linguistic domains: Evidence from German, focuses on how L2 learners use lexical semantics and morphosyntax information to generate predictions during sentence processing. Schlenter and Felser conducted two eye-tracking experiments using the visual-world paradigm with Russian learners of German to examine the extent to which morphosyntactic prediction is limited in L2 compared to L1, and whether there is a greater difference between semantic and morphosyntactic predictions in L2. The results revealed subtle differences in predictive processing between LI and L2 speakers via lexical-semantic and morphosyntactic cues, and that lower proficiency speakers had difficulty integrating competing cues during sentence processing.
Chapter 4, titled Influence of syntactic complexity on second language prediction, investigates how syntactic complexity affects prediction in L2 processing. Chun, Chen, Liu, and Chan compared L2 listeners’ predictions when comprehending syntactically simple and complex sentences by conducting a visual-world eye-tracking experiment. The results showed that compared to prediction generation during syntactically simple sentence processing, L2 speakers took longer to generate predictions during syntactically complex sentence processing, indicating that syntactic complexity increased the cognitive load of L2 learners during sentence processing.
Both Chapters 5 and Chapters 6 explore the role of cross-linguistic influence (CLI) in prediction, with Chapter 5 taking a macroscopic perspective and Chapter 6 focusing on a specific population of bilingual children. Chapter 5, titled Language prediction in second language: Does language similarity matter, emphasizes the importance of CLI in L2 predictive processing. After providing a general overview of CLI’s impact on language processing, Foucart offers a detailed examination of CLI’s potential role in L2 prediction and proposes how CLI could be incorporated into existing predictive models, such as the error-based implicit learning model and prediction-by-production model.
Chapter 6, titled Prediction in bilingual children: The missing piece of the puzzle, compares the prediction abilities of bilingual children to those of monolingual children and adults who speak a L2. Karaca, Brouwer, Unsworth, and Huettig argue that exploring the complex relationships between prediction, language proficiency, and language experience requires in-depth investigation of bilingual children. These children receive different amounts and types of input in each language, which can impact their language proficiency and ability to generate predictions during language processing. The authors suggest that studying bilingual children can shed light on the developmental trajectory of predictive processing abilities in language learners.
Chapter 7, titled Code-switching: A processing burden, or valuable resource for prediction, explores the effect of code-switching on bilingual prediction. Tomié and Valdés Kroff conducted two eye-tracking experiments involving Spanish-English bilinguals who were exposed to monolingual or code-switched sentences containing target words with varying frequencies and emotional valence. The findings suggest that while code-switching may involve some integration costs, it can also serve as a cue for prediction, thus enhancing subsequent language processing.
The last three chapters focus on the relationship between predictive processing and L2 learning. Chapter 8, titled Prediction and grammatical learning in second language sentence processing, explores the influence of prediction on L2 grammatical learning. After discussing models that link prediction to learning in L1 and L2 processing, Hopp examines differences in prediction generation between LI speakers and adult L2 learners. Hopp argues that effective utilization of prediction errors for learning in L2 learners is contingent on their ability to appropriately revise their predictions following error occurrences.
Chapter 9, titled The role of prediction in second language vocabulary learning, examines the relationship between learners’ prediction abilities and their vocabulary acquisition. Gambi illustrates how prediction, especially prediction errors, can serve as a catalyst for vocabulary learning and aid in the retention of lexical knowledge in the learners’ long-term memory. The chapter concludes with a discussion on how prediction-based mechanisms can stimulate and maintain learners’ motivation to continue learning a second language.
Chapter 10, titled Forcing prediction increases priming and adaptation in second language production, delves into the inquiry of whether mandating L2 learners to predict forthcoming information heightens the facilitation and adjustment of L2 production. Grüter, Zhu, and Jackson conducted a written production priming experiment with Korean L2 learners of English. The findings demonstrated that compared to the control group performing a standard repetition priming task, participants who were forced to make predictions showed a slight increase in priming and a significant growth in adaptation. The study suggests that L2 leaners are most likely to benefit from priming when they actively generate predictions about upcoming information.
This volume provides a comprehensive and in-depth overview of existing research on the relationship between prediction and L2 processing and learning, and offers directions for further investigations. On the one hand, the chapters in this book present various studies regarding prediction in L2 processing and learning, such as prediction in grammatical and lexical processing, with participants including both adult L2 learners and bilingual children. On the other hand, the authors suggest directions for future work to explore the relationship between prediction and L2 learning and processing, such as conducting longitudinal studies to examine the development of prediction abilities and their relationship with learning. Additionally, the use of more naturalistic experimental stimuli is recommended to probe the applicability, suitability, and comprehensiveness of current research findings. However, the body of empirical research examined in this book centers predominantly around experiments utilizing eye-tracking methodology. Other methods, such as event-related potential (ERP) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), may also provide invaluable insights into prediction and its relationship with language processing and learning. Including studies employing these techniques could enhance the book’s informativeness.
Taken together, this book would be highly beneficial for researchers interested in prediction, and language processing and learning. It provides valuable insights into individual differences in predictive processing and offers a useful reference for readers seeking to understand these differences both within and across individuals.
Lin Fan y Zilong Zhong
The present work raises a fundamental question concerning higher education: how can the contemporary university prepare the truly competent citizens that today's democratic society requires for its authentic development? What methods should be used to achieve specialized professionals, with a sense of personal and social responsibility, genuine critical thinking, and moral autonomy? This alludes to the challenge facing the contemporary university: How to educate professionals with a humanistic mindset?
In today´s socio-cultural environment marked by the exaltation of freedom, it could be thought that the author intends, with this title, a new provocation in line with current trends of social thought. However, it is not the case in that sense, but it does aim to capture the reader's attention to guide them to the understanding of the thesis being upheld and developed: it belongs to the identity of the university to combine humanistic education with professional training. So, what is the "liberal education" that the author proposes as a response to the initial question? It is one whose value does not lie in utility, but in the inherent dignity of the individual to whom it is directed.
Throughout the seven chapters that make up the text, the reader is invited to reflect on the humanist ideal and the genuinely educative mission that gave rise to the university institution in Bologna and how it has been called into question with the emergence of the new technocratic and scientific paradigm. Likewise, it argues how "liberal education" responds to the demands of today's democratic society regarding the mission of the modern university, in the context of authentic integral education.
Based on the author's own experience at the University of Chicago, where he experienced this educational style, he dedicated a few pages to exposing and assessing a specific methodology to carry out such a liberal education: the reflective reading of the fundamental texts of culture, the so-called "great books". The results obtained from its implementation in a Spanish university support the comprehensive explanation provided about the implementation of this initiative, aiming to generate interest in adapting it to any other university.
What is the educational value of such a methodological strategy? It can be summarized in the five educational virtues of the great books outlined in the work: 1) the participants are existentially involved; 2) you learn directly from the best authors of the tradition; 3) facilitates the development of critical capacity; 4) provides the experience of a high-level intellectual conversation; 5) It helps to educate the gaze to formulate relevant questions. Each of these virtues is argued and illustrated with examples and anecdotes from the author's own experience.
Liberal education, then, offers the coordinates for students to harmoniously develop their virtues, enabling them to outline a project of fully personal life sustained by a coherent existential meaning. However, it would be pretentious to think that this type of education makes, by itself, the whole person. On the contrary, patient cultivation and care are required to achieve the formation of one's own character.
An ethical education is needed because the crux of the matter is not in the head, but in the heart, in the will. Conversation with the greatest minds in history have the ability to move people's inner springs toward noble ideals. This justifies the invitation for universities to value and strengthen the humanistic education of students, summarized in ten principles at the end of the text. This illustrates the idea that the university is the breeding ground for citizens who will lead society and not just an institution that dispenses degrees to ensure a skilled qualified workforce. It is not only possible, but necessary and consistent with the essence of the university, to offer a humanistic education in the university institution, in order to prepare an authentic democratic citizenship and overcome the reductionism of strict professionalization.
In conclusion, there is no insurmountable opposition, as is often claimed, between the ideals of liberal education and the contemporary university oriented towards research and professional preparation.
Ana Risco Lázaro
Early Childhood Education is recognised as a crucial stage in the integral development of individuals. Moreover, its importance has undergone a remarkable evolution over time, especially in recent decades. This is why it is now widely recognised as a fundamental period in which the foundations for learning are laid and essential aspects of early childhood cognitive, emotional, social and motor development are shaped.
In a society marked by technological evolution and changing social demands, teaching and learning have undergone a remarkable metamorphosis, requiring innovative and effective pedagogical approaches. Recognising the importance of Early Childhood Education and early childhood, this book proposes a transformative approach centred on Learning Projects. This methodology not only promotes the acquisition of knowledge and skills, but also fosters the curiosity, creativity and autonomy of students, making them active protagonists of their own process.
Learning Projects (LP) are based on students' intrinsic desire to discover the world around them. In this paradigm, children become the main actors in their learning process, while educators take on the roles of mediators, facilitators and guides. The essence of the LP lies in their ability to foster curricular globalisation, integrating diverse areas of knowledge around a shared axis of interest.
The structure of the book is composed of two main parts. First, it explores the theoretical and practical foundations of LP, from their conceptualisation to their implementation in the classroom. Key aspects such as the importance of listening to and understanding students' motivations, strategies for self-regulation of learning and the need for innovation in early childhood education are addressed. In this way, this section of the book explains in detail how to integrate curricular content and key competences into the project itself, which is a challenge for most teachers today. Therefore, the methodology used for the development of a project is addressed, considering its structural axis and the corresponding diagram of contents.
The book not only presents Learning Projects as an educational alternative, but also addresses a series of urgent questions that often arise in this environment: Can Learning Projects be developed in Early Childhood Education? How can an educational process be established based on the interests and motivations of the students? Why is it important to innovate in Early Childhood Education?
This is followed by concrete examples of projects developed by teaching teams, accompanied by a reflective analysis of the experience, implementation and evaluation of these projects. As explained in the text itself, in order to carry out a truly reflective practice, it is essential to adopt a constant analytical character throughout the project (Perrenoud, 2017). Moreover, it is even more enriching when this reflection is carried out as a team, incorporating diverse educational perspectives in a collaborative action-research process.
The book stands out for its rigorous approach and its ability to articulate theory and practice, offering educators a detailed guide to design, implement and evaluate LP focused on Early Childhood Education. In addition, it underlines the need for a continuous process of training and pedagogical innovation and, therefore, proposes tools for training in this active methodology.
In this sense, the project-based learning approach is presented as a powerful tool to nurture critical thinking, problem solving and collaboration, preparing students at this stage to be active and competent citizens in a society in constant transformation.
In summary, Working on Learning Projects in Early Childhood Education is an essential resource for education professionals seeking to enhance the holistic development of their students, promoting meaningful, collaborative and contextualised learning in the world around them. Its in-depth content and practical approach make it a valuable tool for transforming educational practice and responding to the challenges of the 21st century.
Paula Martínez Enríquez