Suppliance of Functional Morphology by L1 Chinese L2 English Speakers: The Prosodic Transfer Hypothesis and Pedagogical Implications

Abstract

AbstractIn the current study, L1 Chinese L2 (English as a foreign language = EFL) learners in China are compared with L1 Chinese L2 (English as a second language = ESL) learners in Canada on their productions of articles in an elicited picture description task. The aim of the study is to find out whether both groups of learners delete articles or they are able to supply them in obligatory contexts. There may be a difference between EFL and ESL learners’ productions due to ESL learners’ ongoing lengthy exposure to English unstressed articles. The goal is to then examine any suppliance of articles using phonetic analysis software Praat to see if suppliance is target-like, i.e. unstressed, by both the EFL and ESL learners. The analysis reveals that despite high suppliance of articles in obligatory contexts, suppliance is far from target-like. We argue that even though the findings show a pattern of suppliance unlike native speakers, the L2 learners may continue to have full access to Universal Grammar post-critical period as further restructuring of prosodic structures is still possible. We end with possible suggestions for classroom instruction which would help L2 learners become more target-like with articles.KeywordsProsodic transfer hypothesisProsodic structuresArticlesProduction