Classes assigned weekly Word Engine online flashcard use gained significantly more on the VST than an extensive-reading control class over one academic year, in a quasi-experiment with acknowledged selection and time-on-task confounds¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · causal r1 · q2 · i3 large
Currency · newest study 2013 · checked against its sources 2026-11-02 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i3 In a quasi-experiment with intact classes, an ANCOVA on posttest VST scores with pretest as covariate was significant, with the word-card variable accounting for 55% of variance; the authors judge it plausible, not established, that Word Engine use caused much of the gain, because selection and time-on-task confounds were not controlled. → McLean 2013

Evidence¶

McLean 2013¶

McLean, S., Hogg, N., & Rush, T. W. (2013). Vocabulary learning through an online computerized flashcard site. The JALT CALL Journal, 9(1), 79-98. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1108008

q2 · i3 · causal · r1

Quasi-experimental ANCOVA across 12 intact, non-randomly assigned classes (control n = 57, vocabulary+ER n = 61, vocabulary n = 64), posttest VST as dependent variable and pretest as covariate. Pretest scores differed significantly between groups. The control classes were assigned one hour a week of extensive reading, while both Word Engine groups were assigned two hours of out-of-class work (one hour of Word Engine plus one graded reader, or two hours of Word Engine), and extensive reading was run differently in the control and vocabulary+ER groups. The article reports an effect size of η² = .55 (printed as ŋ²= .55) and states the relationship was "very strong". The authors acknowledge selection threats and uncontrolled time on task, and conclude only that "it is plausible that a significant portion of the increased gains in VST scores were due to the use of Word Engine", so the study does not establish that Word Engine use caused the difference.

"The ANCOVA was significant F (2, 178) = 108.77, MSE = 252270.28, p = < .001, ŋ²= .55. The strength of the relationship between the word-card variable and the dependent variable was very strong, accounting for 55% of the variance of the dependent variable, holding constant the vocabulary size before the word card treatment."

Discussion¶

Learner Variables¶

• Vocabulary — outcome: instruction changes it

Related Claims¶

• Adjusted posttest VST means were ordered by time spent using the word card program, with the two-hour group highest — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Raw VST gain scores did not support that two hours of weekly Word Engine use produced greater gains than one hour — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Number of correctly retrieved and acquired Word Engine items each correlated moderately with VST score gains — related
• Extensive reading of graded readers produced substantial vocabulary learning gains for EFL learners across proficiency levels — related
• Prior vocabulary knowledge moderates vocabulary learning gains in an extensive reading program, with high-level learners gaining more than intermediate and low-level learners — related
• Incorporating the extensive reading approach into vocabulary instruction significantly improves high-intermediate EFL learners' lexical depth — related