educational technologyeducational technology n
1 the use of machines and educational equipment of different sorts (e.g. langu-
age laboratories, tape recorders, video, etc.) to assist teachers and learners
2 a system of instruction which contains (a) an analysis of what learners
need to know and be able to do (b) a description of these needs as
behavioural objectivesand (c) (1) above.
effect size n
a measure of the strength of one variable’s effect on another or the rela-
tionship between two or more variables. When a researcher rejects the null
hypothesis and concludes that an independent variable had an effect, an
effect size is calculated to determine how strong the independent variable’s
effect (e.g. presence or absence of a bilingual programme) was on the
dependent variable (e.g. academic performance). Effect size is often used as
a common metric to make research results comparable across studies as it
puts studies on the same scale.
see also meta-analysis
EFL n
an abbreviation for english as a foreign language
egocentric speech n
speech which is not addressed to other people. This is one of two types of
speech which the psychologist Piaget observed in the speech of children
learning a first language. Egocentric speech serves the purpose of giving
pleasure to the child and of expressing the child’s thoughts, and provides an
opportunity for the child to experiment or play with speech. It may be con-
trasted with socialized speech, or speech which is addressed to other people
and which is used for communication.
egocentric writing n
see reader-based prose
EGP n
an abbreviation for English for General Purposes
see english for special purposes
elaborated code n
see code^2
elaborative rehearsal n
see rehearsal