One of my biggest character flaws is definitely impatience. One way I’ve discovered this flaw is through my drive to complete other people’s sentences. I’ve noticed I usually do this when I want to speed up a conversation or help the person I’m conversing with get to the point. It is not a good way to be. Anyways, to get to the point: today I read an article about the connection between the ability to complete other people’s sentences and the understanding of a language. The article was titled: "New Research Findings in Linguistics."
The article termed the ability to complete someone else’s sentences as “linguistic probability.” This ability is increased as one gains more experience and exposure to a language. The research from the article has found the ability to predict someone else’s point is 'remarkably' accurate. Not only does the ability produce accurate predictions in the basic meaning of what someone is going to say, but it also provides accurate predictions for word choice and phrasing.
In terms of English Language Learners (ELL) this ability is helpful as they are trying to grasp and learn to read the English language. The ability to predict what someone is going to say can be correlated to the ability to predict what is being said on paper, thus enhancing reading abilities. Increasing the amount of exposure ELL students have to the English language will enhance this ability and help them learn the language. As this ability is increased in ELL students, they can use it when they get stuck on a word they are reading by looking back at the context of a sentence and trying to predict what should come next to complete the sentence.
The recent research discussed in the article confirmed that increasing the ability to use "linguistic probability" increases language comprehension. Of course it is also important for ELL students to know how to decode and sound words out when they get stuck on a word. As my March Madness bracket has proven- I am rarely correct with all of my predictions. Language learners need a lot of exposure to the language they are learning and as they do it will help them predict the meaning of complicated words and phrases, but they still need decoding strategies to assist inaccurate predictions. A student should not abandon decoding skills for predictions, but should use predictions to increase reading comprehension and reading fluency.
P.S.
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