The Aptitude Project is part of a PhD research project being conducted at the University of Amsterdam by Lani Freeborn, supervised by Dr Sible Andringa and Prof Judith Rispens. The aim of the research is to identify which factors best predict Dutch language learning. To do this, we are inviting people who are enrolled on Dutch language courses across the Netherlands to join the Aptitude Project.
Participation in this research project involves completing questionnaires about language learning history, motivation and attitude towards learning Dutch, and doing some short cognitive tests. There is also a Dutch language proficiency test to take at the start before and after the Dutch course. This way, we are able to measure how much students have learned, and analyse which factors can explain their language learning success.
The Aptitude Project is an online study. Anyone taking (or about to take) a Dutch language course can join. The course can be of any duration or intensity (e.g., a 2-week intensive course or 6-month long course) and can be online or face-to-face.
What is involved?
Completing your aptitude profile at the start of your Dutch course takes approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes. Your aptitude profile has 4 questionnaires, 4 cognitive tasks, and 1 Dutch language test.
Questionnaires:
Language background – In this questionnaire, we ask about your background and which languages you know.
Personality – By responding to 50 statements, this questionnaire assesses the ‘Big Five’ personality traits.
Attitudes – This questionnaire is about your attitudes towards learning Dutch and learning in general.
Motivation – In this questionnaire, we ask about your reasons for learning Dutch.
Cognitive abilities:
Memory – This test measures your memory capacity. You have to remember sequences of numbers that get longer.
Sound recognition – This test assesses your ability to recognise sounds in a new language.
Abstract reasoning – In this test, you match the missing piece of a puzzle. This measures your visual processing and perception.
Attention – In this test, you click to respond to images as fast and as accurately as you can.
Dutch language test
In the language test, you see some short paragraphs of text in Dutch where some of the words have letters missing. You complete the words by typing their missing letters. This takes approximately 30 minutes. We will send you an email reminder to do the Dutch test again when you finish your language course.
You receive your Dutch test score both times, so you can see how much progress you make!
You also receive feedback and your test scores for each section of your aptitude profile.
In addition, every 10th person to complete the Aptitude Project will receive a €20 Bol voucher via email!