Browsing by Subject "Frequency"

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    Do English Language Teaching materials offer the vocabulary that students need? A content-based analysis of three textbooks
    (Kare Publishing, 2017) Criado, Raquel; Filología Inglesa
    The two-faceted nature of lexical frequency as the overarching factor in determining communicative usefulness and in contributing to vocabulary learning should be taken into account in language teaching textbooks. These constitute a basic tool of the teachers’ repertoire in Foreign Language Teaching (FLT) contexts. However, the number of textbooks’ lexical content analyses is not abundant and most of them yield non-positive results. The aim of the present study is to analyse the lexical profile of three wellknown English as a Foreign Language (EFL) textbooks which belong to the same series and which are targeted at adult learners. The analysis examines which words are presented and how frequently they are included to verify whether such textbooks comply with the aforementioned two-faceted nature of lexical frequency. For that purpose, the amount of the lemmas, types and tokens and the frequency levels of the types of each textbook were computed by means of the computer programme RANGE (Nation, Heatley & Coxhead, 2002). Afterwards, the number of the lemmas of the three textbooks was a) matched with the number of lemmas assumed by The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) (2001, 2017) in accordance with each textbook’s level and b) compared with the vocabulary growth rates (students’ lexical learning capacity) as determined by the specialised literature. Results showed that each textbook’s distribution of words per range was not entirely adequate in relation to their targeted levels of proficiency. Likewise, the textbooks exceeded the number of lemmas to be learnt from the perspective of both the quantitative requirements of the CEFR and learning rates. These results point to a certain authors’ pedagogical manipulation of the lexicon to comply with editorial space restrictions, which entails distorting the normal patterns of lexical distribution of texts.
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    English language teaching, lexical frequency and distribution: A materials-based analysis.
    (Edit.UM. Ediciones de la Universidad de Murcia, 2017) Criado, Raquel; Filología Inglesa
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    Lexical frequency, textbooks and learning from a cognitive perspective. A corpus-based sample analysis of ELT materials.
    (Asociación Española de Lingüística Aplicada (AESLA), 2012) Criado, Raquel; Sánchez Pérez, Aquilino; Filología Inglesa
    There is not full agreement among authors regarding the role of repetition in the learning process, but its positive effects have been emphasized in Cognitive Psychology, Psycholinguistics and SLA. We assume here that repetition is a key factor in language teaching/learning and focus our attention on the lexical component. We analyze the lexis in two well-known ELT textbooks in order to verify up to what point opportunities for lexical repetition are offered. Methodologically, 1) all the vocabulary was examined using Nation’s RANGE software to identify its distribution throughout the first three first ranges defined by Nation and to compute the standardised type/token ratio in both textbooks; 2) the repetitive practice vocabulary activities were identified and quantified. Results show that the two course books are similar in the amount of words included and their distribution throughout the ranges studied, but they differ in some other fields, such as the standardised type/token ratio and the emphasis on repetitive practice. Pedagogical and research implications are discussed.---------------
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    Postparturient Rise in the Excretion of Eimeria Spp. in Manchega Dairy Sheep
    (JSciMed Central, 2016-06-02) Carrau Garreta, Tessa; Pérez, David; Silva, L.M.; Macías, J.; Martínez Carrasco-Pleite, Carlos; Taubert, A.; Hermosilla, C.; Ruiz de Ybáñez Carnero, María del Rocío; Sanidad Animal
    The present study was carried out on the occurrence of a postparturient rise of Eimeria spp. in breeding ewes grazing in natural pastures. The research was performed in a dairy flock in the municipality of Sangonera, Murcia (Southeast Spain). A total of 216 faecal samples recovered from 20 ewes and 35 lambs of the Manchega breed were analyzed between December 2014 and March 2015. The analyses to quantify oocysts per gram of faeces (OPG) and to identify Eimeria species were conducted at the Veterinary Faculty of the University of Murcia. Nine species of Eimeria were identified: E. ovinoidalis (39.8%), E. parva (22.1%), E. weybridgensis (13.5%), E. crandallis (9.4%), E. ahsata (4.6%), E. pallida (3.6%), E. bakuensis (3.5%), E. granulosa (3.4%) and E. faurei (0.1%). Eimeria ovinoidalis, E. parva and E. weybridgensis were the most frequent species but only E. ovinoidalis showed highest oocyst shedding after parturition (P < 0.05). Significant differences in OPG counts were found between before and after lambing weeks (P < 0.05). The detection of several Eimeria species, in particular E. ovinoidalis, suggests that Eimeria spp. probably have an important pathogenic potential in dairy sheep in Murcia. Moreover, the presence of a postparturient rise in Eimeria oocyst shedding indicates that ewes may play an important epidemiologic role in the study area, and the design of control measures will reduce infection of lambs, lower mortality and increase the productivity of the flocks.
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    Provalis Research, software especializado para el análisis de textos en la investigación educativa. Aplicación operativa
    (Universidad de Murcia. Servicio de Publicaciones, 2012-05-30) Recamán Payo, Adriana; Nieto Martín, Santiago
    Las diversas alternativas que ofrecen las herramientas informáticas en el procesamiento de textos, posibilitan la descripción objetiva, sistemática y cuantitativa del contenido analizado. Y para ello ponemos a prueba el paquete Provalis Research aplicado a unas cartas que valoran los comportamientos personales de los maestros.A través de software especializado en el análisis de documentos, el presente trabajo estudia la relevancia de las palabras frecuentes en la población objeto de estudio. Tratamos de esclarecer las posibilidades que ofrece la jerarquía terminológica y su contribución a la descripción de los hechos, orientación de la acción investigadora y generación de nuevo conocimiento.
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    Psychiatric comorbidity in intellectual developmental disorders: a systematic review
    (MA Healthcare , 2025-07-04) Astilleros Martínez, Borja; Martín Chaparro, María del Pilar; Kotera, Yasuhiro ; Psiquiatría y Psicología Social; Facultad de Psicología y Logopedia
    Aims/Background Intellectual developmental disorders (IDD) are characterized by significant limita-tions in intellectual functioning and adaptive behavior, affecting conceptual, social, and practical skills. They impact 1% of the global population, with mild cases being more common. Major causes include prenatal, perinatal, and postnatal factors, although a clear cause is often not identified. This study aims to evaluate the comorbidity of psychological disorders in individuals diagnosed with IDD. Methods Following the “Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses” (PR-ISMA) statement, studies from 2014 to 2024 were considered using the databases Web of Science, PsycInfo, and PubMed. Articles focusing on psychopathology in individuals with IDD from birth were selected, excluding studies involving individuals under 16 years old and cases of severe and profound IDD. Results Of the 2895 articles retrieved, 11 were included. These studies showed heterogeneity in co-morbidities such as schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders, mood disorders, anxiety disorders, developmental disorders, personality disorders, substance use disorders, and adjustment and stress reaction disorders. Conclusion Individuals with IDD are more vulnerable to mental health conditions, underscoring the need for comprehensive assessments and multidisciplinary treatments to improve their quality of life and optimize public resources. Future research should develop validated diagnostic tools for IDD and conduct longitudinal studies on their impact on quality of life. It should also explore gender differences and address specific needs in disadvantaged contexts with tailored interventions.
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    Reading response latencies in Spanish: effects of lexicality and frequency
    (Asociación Española de Comprensión Lectora, 2018) Difalcis, Micaela; Ferreres, Aldo; Abusamra, Valeria
    The aim of this work was to design and apply a test of reading words and non-words (PaNoPa) to study the response latencies in Spanish-speaking subjects. A single previous study had reported such effects but the test used did not control lexical variables (number and frequency of orthographic neighbors) or sublexical variables (frequency of bigram and initial phonemes) that are important for the correct analysis of latencies. The study of effects of lexicality and frequency in control participants is relevant for the discussion on the universality of psycholinguistic reading models and also for the characterization of reading disorders due to brain lesions (acquired dyslexia) in Spanish-speaking subjects. With an exhaustively controlled test, reading latencies were obtained in a sample of Spanish-speaking readers and an ANOVA analysis was carried out by subject and by type of stimulus. The results showed significantly lower latencies for words with respect to non-words (lexicality effect) and for frequent words regarding infrequent words (frequency effect). A significant difference was also found between the latencies of the infrequent words and the non-words. These findings provide evidence in favor of the existence of a lexical reading route in a transparent language such as Spanish and provide a tool and data for the psycholinguistic study of the reading alterations of Spanish-speaking subjects with acquired dyslexia.
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    The Distribution of the Lexical Component in ELT Coursebooks and its Suitability for Vocabulary Acquisition from a Cognitive Perspective. A Case Study
    (Edit.um, 2009) Criado, Raquel; Filología Inglesa
    The psycholinguistic and neurolinguistic perspective of language acquisition requires some essential conditions in vocabulary acquisition: a) repetitive practice, which allows for data to reach long-term memory, and thus become proceduralised and automatised; b) how relevant the lexical items are regarding the communicative needs of the learners insofar as communicative relevance is linked to frequency in general linguistic usage; c) the potential in vocabulary acquisition, which will necessarily relate to the amount of new lexical items introduced in each one of the units in textbook; d) the way words are taught, i.e. whether aimed at explicit or incidental learning. In order to analyse and evaluate these issues, we will study the lexical items presented in a specific textbook from the point of view of frequency, distribution along the manual, opportunities for rehearsal and repetition (which will depend on frequency), and the nature of the activities centred on vocabulary. The results of this case study will allow us to check whether or not they may stand a comparison against the findings of psycholinguistic and neurolinguistic research on vocabulary acquisition
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    Vocabulary in EFL Textbooks. A Contrastive Analysis against Three Corpus-Based Word Ranges
    (AELINCO, 2009) Criado, Raquel; Sánchez Pérez, Aquilino; Filología Inglesa
    Vocabulary teaching and learning is one the most important components in textbooks. Vocabulary knowledge is also frequently associated to language fluency. It is therefore important to investigate how textbooks present vocabulary, and how they comply with the conditions necessary for vocabulary learning. We will take into consideration three perspectives here: the conditions derived from cognitive processes of knowledge acquisition, the role of frequency in language and vocabulary learning and the distribution of new words throughout textbooks. The analysis of a specific EFL textbook and the comparison of the results against the rationale supporting the three perspectives mentioned above will reveal whether the textbook is suitable for efficiently reaching the goals regarding vocabulary teaching/learning.