Constructing Maching Texts in Two Languages: The Application of Propositional Analysis
Guadalupe Valdés, Rosalinda B. Barrera, Manuel Cardenas New · NABE Journal · 1984
Experiments which seek to compare reading achievement in two different languages by the same children, or reading achievement of two groups of children each reading in their first language must select or construct reading texts in each of the two languages which are comparable in both form and content. Valid comparisons across languages can only be made if experimenters have ascertained that the texts used actually do “match” in terms of the demands that both surface-level features and the total meaning of each passage make upon their readers. This paper discusses how the procedures currently in use for selecting/constructing equivalent texts may lead to error because of their specific limitations. It proposes the utilization of micro-propositional analysis coupled with the use of word-frequency lists and readability formulas for the construction of “matching” texts. A series of procedures are presented which can be used by researchers working in English and Spanish for the construction of parallel texts.