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Open research questions in Second Language Acquisition and Learning

794 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 6,239 Second Language Acquisition and Learning papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.

What the literature leaves open

  • Limited classroom time and high student numbers in EFL classes. The potential influence of EFL students' first language on their writing performance. Providing timely and personalized feedback to students.

    Online EFL business writing with GenAI-generated templates: Students’ performance and perceptions · 2025 · DOI

  • Few studies have investigated the use of GenAI-generated templates in EFL business writing. Little empirical research has evaluated the quality of GenAI-generated templates. The study aims to address these gaps by investigating the effectiveness of the GenAI-GETF approach.

    Online EFL business writing with GenAI-generated templates: Students’ performance and perceptions · 2025 · DOI

  • Conflicting findings have also been reported in terms of the relationship between comprehension and attention to pictures as measured by eye tracking.

    The effect of multimodal input on L2 learners' reading comprehension: A preregistered eye‐tracking study · 2026 · DOI

  • While previous studies have demonstrated the benefits of GT in language learning, limited research has explored how learners actively use it in their learning processes.

    Cognitive Activities in Google Translate–Assisted Language Learning: An Exploratory Study · 2026 · DOI

  • Vocabulary plays a central role in second and foreign language learning, yet relatively little is known about how mainstream textbooks address the full spectrum of lexical knowledge, including both single-word knowledge aspects and the formulaic dimension.

    Single-word and formulaic vocabulary in second and foreign language textbooks · 2026 · DOI

  • The results of this study can benefit both researchers and practitioners focused on adult language and literacy learners, for whom evidence‐based research is scarce, but also to L2 researchers, who are encouraged to expand research beyond the traditional Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic (WEIRD) populations.

    The use of input‐based tasks to initiate adult learners to the expression of temporality in French literacy and language instruction · 2025 · DOI

  • Despite the focus of many studies on NMET reforms, content validity, and washback effects, there remains a notable gap in research regarding the genre of reading texts in NMET.

    Genres of Reading Comprehension Passages in Chinese Mainland National Matriculation English Test (NMET): A Systematic Analysis of the Last Twenty Years (2004–2023) · 2025 · DOI

  • While there is ample evidence that engaging in word-focused activities after reading facilitates vocabulary learning, the mechanisms underlying this remain unclear.

    Effects of post-reading word-focused activities on L2 learners’ reading behavior and vocabulary learning: an eye-tracking study · 2025 · DOI

  • However, there is limited research on the longitudinal relationships between them, particularly the reciprocal relations between vocabulary breadth, vocabulary depth, and reading comprehension.

    Reciprocal effects of vocabulary breadth, vocabulary depth, and reading comprehension: a cross-lagged panel analysis in Chinese-speaking EFL learners · 2025 · DOI

  • These results highlight the need for further investigation into the attitudes of the participants.

    Empowering autonomy in language learning: the sustainable impact of data-driven learning on noun collocation acquisition · 2024 · DOI

  • Enough information can be gleaned from this content analysis to warrant several recommendations for vocabulary development at the postsecondary level. 1. Materials should encourage students to independently develop their vocabularies. Regardless of whether the materials used with students are additive or generative, they should encourage and support the life-long habit of vocabulary acquisition. Students, especially remedial or developmental readers, must realize that there is no quick fix for a deficient vocabulary. Yet, when college students are encouraged to select their own words of study, they not only can make significant gains on standardized measures (Gnewuch, 1974), but they also can increase their interest in vocabulary acquisition (Haggard, 1984). Hence, a case for independent and long-term vocabulary development needs to Downloaded by [University of Auckland Library] at 12:14 13 February 2015 213 be stated not only in the preface of every text, but in every chapter as well. In addition to rhetoric exhorting the students to independently expand word knowledge, texts should also provide specific practical methods for students to collect and organize their own words. Based on the content analysis it would seem that only a few authors consider self-development of word knowledge a worthy topic. In fact, only two authors suggest that students maintain a vocabulary notebook, while another nine recommend the collection of word cards similar to the Frontier System of vocabulary development (Pauk, 1984). In another four vocabulary books, the readers are asked to find and to list on cards 10 words they wish to master from their own college textbooks. In spite of these few attempts to develop independence in expanding vocabularies, most authors of vocabulary texts prefer traditional workbook-type activities that can be completed and corrected easily by many students at once. Until authors realize the importance of incorporating strategies that would encourage and reward students for learning words that are meaningful to them, college reading specialists should consider employing such strategies as Haggard's (1982) Self-Collection Strategy. 2. Materials should stimulate students'deeper levels of understanding about each word of study. In most of the 55 analyzed books, students demonstrate their understanding of words by matching or choosing definitions. Dixon and Jenkins (1984) believe that when learners pair word labels to definitions, they are demonstrating a verbal association level of vocabulary knowledge which, at • best, will produce a negligible impact on subsequent reading comprehension. Hence, authors and teachers should provide exercises that stimulate the generation of novel contexts or definitions for the words under study (S. Stahl, 1983). These exercises should ask students to: (a) put definitions in

    Developing college vocabulary: A content analysis of instructional materials · 1987 · DOI

  • Students frequently lack scientific and systematic strategies for vocabulary learning. Vocabulary instruction often remains insufficient in equipping students with the necessary lexical competence.

    The Application of Meaningful Learning Theory in Developing Vocabulary Depth and Breadth in Junior High School English Teaching · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a significant gap between the curricular goal of mastering 1600 topic-related words and current classroom practices. There is a gap in the application of Meaningful Learning Theory to vocabulary teaching in junior high school English teaching.

    The Application of Meaningful Learning Theory in Developing Vocabulary Depth and Breadth in Junior High School English Teaching · 2026 · DOI

  • Small sample size of 19 students. Limited to Levels 1-3 of the NGSL level check. No comparison to other teaching methods.

    A trial study of context-rich NGSL word cards for lower-proficiency learners · 2026 · DOI

  • Further studies can investigate the effectiveness of context-rich word cards in larger samples. Research can explore the application of retrieval practice and cultural relevance in other language learning contexts.

    A trial study of context-rich NGSL word cards for lower-proficiency learners · 2026 · DOI

  • Students' limited use of effective reading comprehension strategies. Students' reliance on less effective practices, such as underlining or highlighting rather than more elaborative note-taking strategies.

    Reading Comprehension Strategy Use and Related Difficulties among English-Majored Students at Thu Dau Mot University · 2026 · DOI

  • The study identifies a gap in the literature regarding the use of reading comprehension strategies and related difficulties among English-majored students at Thu Dau Mot University. There is a need for more research on the effective instruction of reading strategies for English-majored students.

    Reading Comprehension Strategy Use and Related Difficulties among English-Majored Students at Thu Dau Mot University · 2026 · DOI

  • Learners may struggle to focus their attention on what they need to learn. Learners may not know how to use the four strategies effectively. Teachers may need to adapt the course to suit the needs of their learners.

    A Course in Learning How to Learn · 2026 · DOI

  • The paper identifies a gap in the literature on how to learn. The paper aims to fill this gap by providing a course on training learners how to learn.

    A Course in Learning How to Learn · 2026 · DOI

  • Small sample sizes were identified as a methodological limitation. Short intervention durations were identified as a methodological limitation. Limited or insufficient reporting of randomization procedures were identified as a methodological limitation. Methodological variations across studies should be taken into account when interpreting the results.

    Artificial intelligence-assisted vocabulary teaching: a meta-analysis study · 2026 · DOI

  • Important gaps remain in the body of research on AI-supported vocabulary instruction. Findings vary across studies on the effects of AI-supported interventions on vocabulary learning performance.

    Artificial intelligence-assisted vocabulary teaching: a meta-analysis study · 2026 · DOI

  • The complex interplay of mental and linguistic variables in language learning. The influence of language anxiety on language learning outcomes. The challenge of developing instructional strategies that support learners' cognitive and affective needs.

    UNDERSTANDING ESL LEARNING THROUGH A PSYCHOLINGUISTIC LENS · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a lack of research on the effect of digital games on incidental second language vocabulary learning. There is a need to identify the factors predicting incidental word learning through digital gameplay.

    Incidental vocabulary learning from digital games: the predictive role of game playing time, foreign language motivation, and anxiety · 2026 · DOI

  • This study has some limitations. First, this research is limited to data collected only from middle school learners. Therefore, it is recommended that future studies collect data from multiple groups to generalize the results or identify differences between age groups. In particular, future research should investigate whether the relationships observed in this study hold similarly across different developmental stages, such as adolescents, university students, or adult learners.

    Incidental vocabulary learning from digital games: the predictive role of game playing time, foreign language motivation, and anxiety · 2026 · DOI

  • The paper suggests that future research should focus on the use of lexical availability in various disciplines. The study proposes that future research should explore the applications of lexical availability in linguistic research.

    La disponibilidad léxica como metodología al servicio de distintas disciplinas lingüísticas · 2026 · DOI

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794 open questions have been extracted from the limitations and future-work passages of 6,239 Second Language Acquisition and Learning papers in our library. Each one below links back to the study that raised it, so you can read the original claim in context.

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