Does fluid intelligence facilitate the learning of English as a foreign language?—A longitudinal latent growth curve analysis

Publication date: February 2019Source: Learning and Individual Differences, Volume 70Author(s): Tobias Debatin, Bettina Harder, Albert ZieglerAbstractThe relationship between intelligence and learning is still a controversial topic. The study at hand examined, via growth curve analysis, if fluid intelligence predicts long-term learning rates of foreign language acquisition in English. From the beginning of grade 5 to the middle of grade 7, N = 521 students were tested four times with Rasch-scaled English achievement tests. Intrinsic motivation was measured as a control variable. Fluid intelligence and intrinsic motivation were found to be related to the initial level of English achievement. However, neither fluid intelligence nor intrinsic motivation predicted the rate of change concerning the English scores. These findings extend the growing body of evidence that the relation between intelligence and rate of academic long-term learning may not be as strong as traditionally expected.
Source: Learning and Individual Differences - Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Source Type: research