Comprehension of a Non-Text: The Effect of the Title and Ambiguity Tolerance

Autor/in	Ahmadi, Alireza
Titel	Comprehension of a Non-Text: The Effect of the Title and Ambiguity Tolerance
Quelle	In: Journal of Pan-Pacific Association of Applied Linguistics, 15 (2011) 1, S.163-176 (14 Seiten) PDF als Volltext (1); PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei (2) Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1345-8353
Schlagwörter	Reading Comprehension; Sentences; Figurative Language; English (Second Language); Second Language Learning; Foreign Countries; Translation; Measures (Individuals); Iran + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Leseverstehen; Sentence analysis; Satzanalyse; English as second language; English; Second Language; Englisch als Zweitsprache; Zweitsprachenerwerb; Ausland; Messdaten
Abstract	This study investigated the effect of the title and ambiguity tolerance on the comprehensibility of a non-text. To this end, ten irrelevant sentences from different texts were put together to make two seemingly cohesive and coherent texts. The two texts were exactly the same except for the fact that one of them carried a title whereas the other had no title. The two texts were randomly given to two groups of intermediate EFL students. Students were expected to read the text and answer 10 reading comprehension questions. Eight questions asked for the reference of specific pronouns or words; one asked for the topic and one for the main idea of the text. Considerable difference was found between the performance of the students on the titled text and the untitled text. It indicated hat the title had made students construct a meaning regardless of the fact that the text was basically meaningless and that the title was not a real title. Further analysis of the results indicated that ambiguity tolerance could not provide enough justification for the results found and that the presence of the title was the best explanation provided for the performance on the non-text. (Contains 3 tables.) (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	Pan-Pacific Association of Applied Linguistics. Department of English, Namseoul University, 21 Maeju-ri, Seonghwan-eup, Cheonan-city, Choongnam, Korea 330-707. Tel: +82-2-3290-1995; e-mail: paalkorea@yahoo.co.kr; Web site: http://www.paal.kr/journal/journal.asp
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10