Second Language Acquisition

Coventry University Institution Wide Language Programme (IWLP) offers beginners language learning modules to approximately 3,000 students. Each module is taught over 11 weeks for a total of one hour and 40 minutes and two of the weeks are used for in class tests, so tutors generally agree that students need to practise their skills outside the classroom in order to pass the module. One way of doing this was to use the language learning app, Duolingo, which helps students to gradually broaden their linguistic, professional competence, and digital fluency through increased learner autonomy. How effective this approach is, however, has never been measured. The project ran from January to April 2018 and explored whether a correlation exists between regular use of the app by IWLP learners at Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) level A1 of French, German, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish, and achieving a high formal coursework assessment mark. The views of both learners and tutors of their experiences of using the software, and the tutor tools provided by Duolingo Schools, will also be canvassed. A virtual classroom was set up within Duolingo Schools for each participating cohort of students and they were encouraged to use the app on a regular basis. The tutor tools allowed the monitoring of how many days learners were active, how many lessons they completed, how many courses they completed, and how many points they were awarded while using Duolingo. These statistics were compared with

While research on language immersion education has highlighted a multitude of benefits such as cognitive skills, academic achievement and language and literacy development, some studies have also identified challenges to its effective implementation, particularly as they relate to language acquisition. It has been suggested that the less than optimal levels of students' immersion language " persist in part because immersion teachers lack systematic approaches for integrating language into their content instruction " (Tedick, Christian, & Fortune, 2011, p. 7). Students' interlanguage has aspects that are borrowed, transferred and generalised from the mother tongue and differs from both the immersion language and the mother tongue. After a period of sustained development, interlanguage appears to stabilise and certain non-target like features tend to fossilise. Research has long suggested that effective immersion pedagogy needs to counterbalance both form-oriented and meaning-oriented approaches. This paper reviews the literature in relation to the linguistic deficiencies in immersion students' L2 proficiency and form-focused instruction is examined as a viable solution to this pedagogic puzzle. Key instructional elements of form-focused instruction are unpacked and some pedagogical possibilities are considered in an attempt to identify and discuss strategies that will enable immersion learners to refine their grammatical and lexical systems as they proceed. 1. Language Immersion Education International research literature consistently identifies immersion education as one form of bilingual education. We can see why this is the case if we take the following classic definition of bilingual education, posited by Andersson and Boyer (1970, p. 12):

This present article seeks to provide a mixed methodological model for the development and implementation of a Teaching Module for Spanish as a Foreign Language in the face to face environment. The primary objective is to portray how methodological principles from different language teaching approaches (such as task based language teaching and cooperative learning) can be combined effectively in designing activities for face to face contexts. In this regard, empirical evidence is analysed in order to determine the effectiveness of the mixed methodology in the teaching-learning of Spanish as a Foreign Language in the said settings, in a study based on a longitudinal experimental design with pre-test and post-test, but without control group. The findings will help to provide researchers, educators and language teachers with valid guidelines as it relates to the development of Teaching Modules and Units for Foreign Language Learning. The results show an increase in the acquisition of specific knowledge in Spanish as a Foreign Language, thus improving the students’ linguistic and communicative competence. It is therefore proposed that mixed methodological models be integrated and implemented when designing Teaching Modules for Language Learning, since they are the most suited for Second and Foreign Language Acquisition.

Key words: task-based language teaching and learning, task-based approach, cooperative approach, cooperative learning, mixed methodological model, mixed methodology, face to face method, teaching module, linguistic and communicative competence.

The debates on accessibility of UG in second language acquisition have not been resolved yet, and the linguists who investigate different aspects of SLA have different views on the accessibility of UG in L2 acquisition. This situation reveals that there is a need for further studies on this issue. Hence, in this study, the acquisition of English constituent order structures by Turkish learners has been investigated to assess the accessibility of UG in second language acquisition.

Two tests have been administered to sixty subjects; a proficiency test, and a structure test consisting of three tasks: a 30-item grammaticality judgment task, a translation task, and a task of ordering the given constituents in the target language. After the statistical analysis of the obtained data, it has been found that UG is directly accessible in the acquisition of constituent order structures of English by native speakers of Turkish. First language interference has been noticed in the responses of a few subjects in the first levels of proficiency, but fairly more subjects used the parameter values of the target language in these levels, and this situation can be considered as a sign for the accessibility of UG in second language acquisition.. Besides, in the highest level of proficiency (C2), almost all subjects used the parameter values of the target language successfully which can also be viewed as an indication for the UG access in L2 acquisition.

Key Words: Universal Grammar, Second Language Acquisition, Constituent Order Parameter, First Language Interference.

La Fonética contrastiva, como parte de la Lingüística contrastiva, tiene por objetivo la comparación de los sistemas de la lengua materna del alumno (L1) y de la lengua meta (L2/LE), en este caso, en el ámbito fonético y fonológico. Dicha comparación permite anticiparse a los errores que mas probablemente cometerá el alumno, y lo que es más importante: conocer sus causas e idear soluciones eficaces.
Este trabajo presenta una serie de aportaciones de la Fonética contrastiva y enumera algunos de los aspectos que deben ser abordados a la hora de realizar un análisis contrastivo, tanto en el ámbito de lo segmental como de lo suprasegmental. Tras dicha exposición, se plantean algunas lineas de actuación recomendadas para sacar el mayor provecho posible de esas contribuciones potenciales.

La folta presenza in Europa di apprendenti adulti a bassa o nulla scolarizzazione costituisce una sfida che le realtà impegnate nella didattica dell’italiano a stranieri sono chiamate a raccogliere. Si tratta di un campo d’intervento nuovo, che ha però alle spalle un orizzonte teorico consistente: la Literacy Acquisition and Second Language Learning for
Adults (LESLLA). In questo settore di ricerca si ipotizza che l’assenza di scrittura condizioni l’acquisizione delle competenze orali, che sarebbe rallentata da una ridotta capacità di analizzare l’input linguistico, segmentando il continuum fonetico e marcando i confini
morfologici. Su questa base, l’intervento esplora la possibilità di tracciare specificità, quantitative e qualitative, nell’acquisizione della morfologia verbale nell’italiano L2 di analfabeti, rispetto al generale progredire delle interlingue descritto in letteratura. L’indagine si avvale di un corpus di italiano L2 costituito dalle trascrizioni del parlato di soggetti analfabeti che frequentano la Scuola di Lingua italiana per Stranieri dell’Università di Palermo.

Many second/foreign language (L2/FL) teachers do not see the relevance of research to their teaching. This article aims to help bridge this gap by addressing form-focused instruction (FFI), a current pedagogical and research issue of particular interest to both teachers and students. The article begins with background from second language acquisition research and outlines two main types of FFI. Next it addresses three main topics. First, it considers the role of FFI in communicative language teaching. Second, it reviews various influences that impact whether teachers should choose to use integrated or isolated FFI in their classes. Third, it discusses the connection between error correction and focus on form in FFI. In establishing these points, the article introduces literature that argues for clear connections between FFI and L2/FL learning. In essence, this article answers the question: how does focusing on form appear to help L2/FL learning, and how can teachers encourage ESL/EFL students? The article argues that form-focused instruction makes a positive difference. Research implications are summarized on grammar and vocabulary learning, and reference is made to key resources dealing with focusing on form. Teachers should thus think about how an understanding of FFI can improve their teaching and students’ learning.

Il Profilo della lingua italiana.Livelli del QCER A1, a2, B1 e B2 rappresenta uno strumento integrativo al Quadro comune europeo di riferimento per le lingue.È stato frutto, insieme ad altri referenziali per le lingue europee, di un progetto promosso dal Consiglio d’Europa allo scopo di indentificare gli strumenti linguistici in lingua italiana che consentono di perseguire gli obiettivi descritti dal QCER per i livelli da A1 a B2.
Tale strumento risulta di fondamentale utilità per tutti coloro che si occupano di pianificazione didattica, di verifica e valutazione e per gli autori di libri di testo finalizzati al raggiungimento dei livelli di competenza del QCER
nell’insegnamento/apprendimento della lingua italiana come lingua non materna.

Per ulteriori informazioni si veda il sito allegato nei "Files" sopra indicati.

In questo spazio, oltre il sito del progetto con i materiali linguistici ed esemplificazioni, sono caricati 4 documenti diversi (Prefazione  ed Indice del Profilo, Capitoli 3, 7 e 10  si veda "Files" sopra indicati, sotto il titolo del documento) che vengono scaricati con lo stesso nome. Si consiglia di cambiare il nome del file ad ogni download.

Morphological awareness is essential for the successful use of a language and morphological instruction may facilitate the acquisition of new words. This quasi-experimental research examines the effects of affix instruction on acquiring morphologically complex words. Two measures of receptive and productive affix knowledge were administered to 92 participants. Sixty participants in the treatment group were provided with an explicit instruction on English affixes based on Bauer and Nation's (1993) word families, whereas participants in the control group were not (n = 32). Performance on affix knowledge tasks was analysed using a repeated-measures ANOVA and related methods. The results demonstrate a positive effect of affix instruction in English language classrooms. Affix features, including linguistic and semantic transparency, improved participants' performance of affix reception and production. The explicit instruction of affixes may therefore help English learners to understand words and to facilitate vocabulary acquisition. However, learners may require more time to learn the meaning of the affixes and to practice affixations with the aid of systematic instruction. Other implications of these findings are discussed in light of current pedagogical practice and theory.

Many theories on how language is acquired has been introduced since 19th century and still being introduced today by many great thinkers. Like any other theories which arose from variety of disciplines, language acquisition theories generally derived from linguistics and psychological thinking. This paper concluded that the most important implication of language acquisition theories is obviously the fact that applied linguists, methodologist and language teachers should view the acquisition of a language not only as a matter of nurture but also an instance of nature. In addition, only when we distinguish between a general theory of learning and language learning can we ameliorate the conditions L2 education. To do so, applied linguists must be aware of the nature of both L1 and L2 acquisition and must consider the distinction proposed in this study. Furthermore, no longer should mind and innateness be treated as dirty words. This will most probably lead to innovative proposals for syllabus development and the design of instructional systems, practices, techniques, procedures in the language classroom, and finally a sound theory of L2 teaching and learning.

Le Cadre Européen Commun de Référence pour les Langues (CECR) : une approche favorable à la transmission de compétences interculturelles. Analyse critique et impact dans le contexte de l’enseignement du français langue de scolarisation, au Collège Paul Suitman de Camopi, village amérindien de Guyane Française.

The objective of the ICT for Language Learning conference is to promote the sharing of good practice and transnational cooperation in the field of the application of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) to Language Learning and Teaching. The ICT for Language Learning conference will also be an excellent opportunity for the presentation of previous and current language learning projects and innovative initiatives.

Teaching Vocabulary explores different approaches to teaching vocabulary in ESL/EFL classrooms. It provides an overview of the place and importance of vocabulary in English language learning and teaching in an easy-to-follow guide that language teachers will find very practical for their own contexts. Topics covered include understanding vocabulary, the importance of vocabulary, relevant research findings that impact vocabulary, knowing your students’ vocabulary levels, and how to teach vocabulary effectively. [Note: The attached file includes the Table of Contents, front matter, and a sample of Ch. 1.]

Current research exploits the orthographic design of Brahmi-derived scripts (also called Indic scripts), particularly the Devanagari script. Earlier works on orthographic nature of Brahmi-derived scripts fail to create a consensus among epigraphists, historians or linguists, and thus have been identified by various names, like semi-syllabic, subsyllabic, semi-alphabetic, alphasyllabary or abugida. On the contrary, this paper argues that Brahmi-derived scripts should not be categorized as scripts with overlapping features of alphabetic and syllabic properties as these scripts are neither alphabetic nor syllabic. Historical evolution and linguistic properties of Indic scripts, particularly of Devanagari, ascertain the need for a new categorization of its own and, thus preferably merit a unique descriptor. This paper investigates orthographic characteristics of the Brahmi-derived Devanagari script, current trends in research pertaining to the Devanagari script along with other Indic scripts and the implications of these findings for literacy development in Indic writing systems.
Keywords: orthography; Brahmi; Devanagari, akshara; alphasyllabary; alphabet

Propuesta de análisis de materiales y actividades didácticas ofrecidas por la página web videoele.com, centrada específicamente en el uso de la Internet como herramienta para la enseñanza y el aprendizaje del idioma español como lengua extranjera; destacando los recursos de mayor relevancia que le permiten a un estudiante lograr el dominio de una competencia comunicativa en nivel A2 (Plataforma).
Se busca entonces analizar cómo pueden usarse los recursos didácticos que ofrece ese sitio web para desarrollar las destrezas comunicativas de comprensión, tanto a nivel oral como escrito; así como los contenidos léxicos, gramaticales, nociofuncionales y socioculturales según los lineamientos del Marco Común Europeo de Referencia, desde los principios del enfoque comunicativo, específicamente desde el paradigma de la enseñanza comunicativa mediante tareas o enfoque por tareas.

How humans possess the language ability is a matter of long controversy among the linguists. Some of them believe that the ability of language is the result of innate knowledge. Unlike other species humans possess that innate ability which is genetically coded. To them language is the outcome of nature (genes). Conversely, others claim that the ability of language is learned through experience extracting all the linguistic information from the outside environment. It is the outcome of nurture (environmental factors/stimuli). At present, there is no clear winner regarding the debate as both genes and environmental factors/stimuli seem to play a vital and important role in language acquisition.

The study reported in this chapter focuses on the effect that a 2 to 4 week pre-sessional course at Aix-Marseille University had on Foreign Language Anxiety (FLA) and Willingness to Communicate (WTC) in the French as a foreign language of 93 learners of European and Asian origin, who ranged from beginners to intermediate learners. They were tested at the start and at the end of the course. Results showed a significant decrease in levels of FLA and a significant increase inWTC. Length of stay had no effect on FLA, but was positively linked to difference in WTC. Level of proficiency had no effect on difference in FLA but had a positive effect on difference in WTC, with lower-intermediate learners showing the biggest increase in WTC. Students’ cultural background had a significant effect on FLA and WTC at Time 1, with the Asian group reporting more FLA and less WTC.

The present chapter traces the development of language acquisition planning. It begins by considering the work of Robert L. Cooper, who placed language acquisition planning alongside corpus planning and status planning as a fundamental type of language planning. While corpus planning focuses on language form and status planning on language function, acquisition planning focuses on language users and how they acquire the communicative repertoires they need for access to opportunities in society. It is thus central to the management of language teaching and learning in both formal and informal settings. Contemporary issues in language planning and policy across contexts and levels of education are addressed. Language acquisition planning, it is argued, is multifaceted, involving a continuum of issues from the psychological to the societal. Research spanning this continuum is discussed, with attention to conceptual orientations and methodological approachess.