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Article published In:
Spelling Acquisition in Cross-linguistic Settings
Edited by Susie Russak and Elena Zaretsky
[Written Language & Literacy 25:1] 2022
► pp. 67–98

How can a fine-grained analysis of spelling errors inform our understanding of the development of spelling in EFL?

ORCID logo | Beit Berl College

Becoming a proficient speller in English is a challenging task requiring integration of knowledge from multiple linguistic and cognitive sources. Spelling in English as a foreign language (EFL) is more complex when the distance between the different languages of the speller is great. Whereas binary scoring practices are prevalent, they are not as informative as analyses of errors based on linguistic characteristics. The present longitudinal study examined the development of spelling in EFL among speakers of Semitic L1, Arabic and Hebrew (N = 354). A dictation task on a one-word level assessed spelling from 4th–6th grades. Spellings were first scored for accuracy and then analyzed based primarily on phonological and orthographic characteristics. Errors were then grouped according to four predominant developmental trends. While similarities with L1 spelling development were noted, some of the error types could be attributed to unique characteristics of linguistic distance between Semitic languages and English. Both theoretical and practical implications are considered.

Keywords: spelling development, EFL, fine-grained, qualitative error analysis, levels of orthography, spelling stages, Semitic languages
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
    • 1.1The development of spelling skills
    • 1.2The cross-linguistic development of spelling skills
    • 1.3Assessing spelling
    • 1.4The linguistic setting and EFL instruction in Israel
    • 1.5Current study
  • 2.Methods
    • 2.1Participants
    • 2.2Spelling measure
    • 2.3Procedure
    • 2.4Data analysis
      • 2.4.1Quantitative data analysis
      • 2.4.2Qualitative data analysis
  • 3.Results
  • 4.Discussion
    • 4.1The development of EFL spelling skills across the beginning years of literacy instruction
    • 4.2Analysis of spelling errors according to linguistic categories
    • 4.3Errors by developmental trends
  • 5.Limitations of the present study
  • 6.Conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 7 June 2022
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/wll.00061.rus
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