Prediction of General ESL Proficiency Considering Learners’ Dictation Performance

Abstract

This study analyzes the extent to which dictation performance and linguistic features (linguistic difficulty of sentences during dictation) can predict general proficiency in English as a second language (ESL) learners. To this end, this study constructed a multiple linear and a non-linear regression models that predict general ESL proficiency (in which independent variables were the dictation performance scores and the linguistic features of sentences) and verified the correlation between the predicted and observed general ESL proficiencies. The results showed that general ESL proficiency could be predicted by dictation performance and linguistic features. Furthermore, the results indicated significant effects on dictation accuracy, sentence length, and mean word length.