Effects of task complexity on the oral production of Chinese learners of Portuguese as a foreign language

Sara Santos

doi:10.22599/jesla.40

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the effects of task complexity on the oral performance of Chinese learners of European Portuguese as a foreign language (PFL). In the current investigation, the cognitive task demands were manipulated along the resource-directing and resource-dispersing dimensions of the Triadic Componential Framework (Robinson, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2010, 2011, 2015). The variables chosen were respectively ±few elements and ±planning time. Using a 2 . 2 design, 39 university learners of PFL performed two monologic information-giving oral tasks: a simple task (two elements) and a complex task (six elements). Half of the learners (n = 19) were given pre-task planning time, but for the other half (n = 20) the planning time was removed. The order of the tasks was counterbalanced. The participants’ output was analysed by general and specific measures of syntactic complexity and accuracy, lexical diversity and fluency (CALF). Pre-task planning time had significant effects on accuracy. Increasing the number of elements of the task led to greater accuracy and lexical diversity and longer clause length. There were no significant effects on fluency. These findings partially support Robinson’s Cognition Hypothesis. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first CALF study to measure the oral performance of learners of PFL. These results provide new insights for research and learning in the field of instructed second language acquisition (ISLA).

Highlights

Cognitive task complexity and attentional resources In the last few decades, the use of tasks in L2 classrooms has been widely proposed as an optimal tool to promote language development and acquisition
This study aims to analyse the effects of manipulating the cognitive complexity of a task along the resourcedirecting factor [±few elements] and along the resourcedispersing variable [±planning time] on the oral production of Chinese learners of European Portuguese as a foreign language (PFL), an underresearched population in CALF literature
The level of proficiency was between A2 and B1, as the results of the standardised exam DEPLE for PFL for the B1 CEFR level of proficiency ranged between 44% and 74%

Summary

Introduction

Cognitive task complexity and attentional resources In the last few decades, the use of tasks in L2 classrooms has been widely proposed as an optimal tool to promote language development and acquisition. Several studies have investigated the impact of the cognitive complexity of a task on the way learners allocate their attention towards language while performing the task. There are two competing models of attention allocation: the Limited Attention Capacity (LAC) approach (Skehan, 1998, 2009, 2014, 2015) and the Cognition Hypothesis (CH) (Robinson, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2011, 2015) The former framework claims that different performance areas (complexity, accuracy, lexis and fluency) might compete for resources when a task’s cognitive complexity increases, due to limited attentional capacity.

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