Advanced Japanese Learners Research Articles

Refusals in Japanese and Spanish: Pragmatic Transfer in L2

The article presents a heuristic approach to studying the strategies of refusal employed by advanced Japanese learners of Spanish as a foreign language when compared with those of native speakers of Spanish and of Japanese. It examines responses of refusal to requests, invitations, offers, and suggestions while observing the linguistic phenomena of pragmatic transfer used by the speakers. We administered a discourse completion to elicit refusal strategies from participants. The data include 1101 strategies employed in 432 responses formulated by 54 participants comprising advanced Japanese learners of Spanish, native speakers of Spanish, and native speakers of Japanese We found that linguistic ability among Japanese learners correlated positively with pragmatic transfer. The findings demonstrate how cultural priming and the degree of freedom with which learners prompt their responses are interrelated within their mental pragmatic interface in given situations.

Enhancing Engagement and Autonomy in Advanced Japanese Learning as the Second Language through AI-Assisted Video Production

This study delves into the integration of generative AI in second language acquisition, particularly focusing on advanced Japanese learners' autonomy and motivation enhancement through video production. Drawing from Japan's educational guidelines and prior research, the investigation examines the roles of generative AI in language education, emphasizing ethical considerations and strategies for effective integration (Mollick Mollick, 2023). The course implemented a hybrid approach, combining language instruction with media production, where students created YouTube videos in Japanese. Their productions were supported by AI tools for language correction, narration, and content generation. Results indicate that while AI facilitated practical language learning, instructor guidance remained crucial for ensuring accuracy and contextual appropriateness. The study highlights challenges such as overreliance on AI-generated content and the need for nuanced communication in prompt engineering. Despite these challenges, students demonstrated cultural understanding and improved nonverbal communication skills through video production. Future research aims to analyze students' reflections on their experiences, shedding light on their insights and future applications of AI in language learning.

L2 Perception and Production of Japanese Lexical Pitch

Adults are known to have difficulties acquiring suprasegmental speech that involves pitch (f0) in a second language (L2) (Graham & Post, 2018; Hirata, 2015; Wang, Spence, Jongman & Sereno, 1999; Wong & Perrachione, 2007). Previous research has suggested that the perceived similarity between L1 and L2 phonology may influence how easily segmental speech is acquired, but this notion of ‘similarity’ may also apply to suprasegmental speech (So & Best, 2010; Wu, Munro & Wang, 2014). In this paper, the L2 acquisition of Japanese lexical pitch was assessed under a ‘Suprasegmental Similarity Account’, which is a theoretical framework inspired by previous models of segmental and suprasegmental speech (Best & Tyler, 2007; Flege, 1995; Mennen, 2015) to account for the L2 acquisition of word prosody. Eight adult native speakers of Japanese and eight adult English-native advanced learners of Japanese participated in a perception and production study of Japanese lexical pitch patterns. Both groups performed similarly in perception, but non-native speakers performed significantly worse in production, particularly for ‘unaccented’ Low–High–High patterns. These findings are discussed in light of the ‘Suprasegmental Similarity Account’.

Acquisition of aspect in L2: The computation of event completion by Japanese learners of English

AbstractPrevious studies on the acquisition of semantics in the aspectual domain have suggested that a difficult case for achieving a targetlike representation in a second language arises when learners need to preempt a first language (L1) option (Gabriele, 2009). This study investigates this issue by focusing on a learning scenario where predicate-level variability exists in the L1 input. We investigate whether Japanese learners of English can learn to invalidate event cancellation readings (Tsujimura, 2003) in English and how such knowledge develops with increasing English proficiency. We address these questions by examining how Japanese learners of English interpret accomplishment predicates that allow an event cancellation reading in Japanese but not in English. A truth-value judgment task was administered to 60 beginner, 96 intermediate, and 40 advanced Japanese learners of English as well as 20 L1 English and 20 L1 Japanese speakers. Our results showed that Japanese learners of English progressed toward a targetlike representation of aspectual entailment. We argue that such progress follows two parallel routes: a grammatical route rooted in the learners’ growing awareness of the English determiner and number morphology combined with a statistical route rooted in the learners’ inferences based on missing data.

일본어상급학습자의 복합어 운용 실태 연구-모어화자와의 비교를 통해-

일본어상급학습자의 복합어 운용 실태 연구-모어화자와의 비교를 통해-

일본어 상급 학습자의 접속사 운용 실태 연구 - 모어화자와 비교를 통하여 -

The role of the conjunction in the developing of the writings of arguments and opinions is vitally important. It is necessary for an advanced learner to be able to cope with such types of writing, because they are likely to be required to have the ability to write such statements and to write opinion essays. Therefore, this paper investigates the situational use of the conjunctions in the opinion essays of advanced learners and then compared and analyzed them with that of native speakers. There was no significant difference between both learners’ and native speakers’ use of conjunctions in numerical terms, but there were differences in some usage patterns. First of all, the use of high difficulty conjunctions was considered low for the advanced learner and the use of conversational conjunctions was noticeable. As we search the distinction according to a classified category, the learner had the highest number of ‘logical’ conjunctions. This is because the learner has actively used them, even if the native speaker omits the conjunction. Additionally, in this study, the learner did not use the conjunctions of ‘theorem’ and ‘understanding’ effectively. Most learners highly depend on initially learned conjunctions and may lack a full understanding of the various usages of these words. Lastly, the conjunction of ‘conversion’ was rarely used by learners and this could be viewed as a lack of understanding of the syntax that is used in opinion essays. Through these features, it was confirmed that advanced Japanese learners generally fell short in their ability to use conjunctions according to this genre of writing. Therefore when working with opinion essays , learning the proper way of operating with conjunctions is needed, separately from vocabulary learning.

A Study on the Cases of Overcoming Moments of Silence after First Conversation -Focusing on the Conversation Management of Korean Advanced Japanese Learners-

A Study on the Cases of Overcoming Moments of Silence after First Conversation -Focusing on the Conversation Management of Korean Advanced Japanese Learners-

ブログ学習活動における教師フィードバックの役割―上級日本語学習者の視点からー

ブログ学習活動における教師フィードバックの役割―上級日本語学習者の視点からー

韓国人上級日本語学習者の学習プロセス

韓国人上級日本語学習者の学習プロセス

上級日本語学習者による目的を表す「ために」と「ように」の習得

上級日本語学習者による目的を表す「ために」と「ように」の習得

The Misunderstandings of Advanced Japanese Learners While Reading Japanese Novels

The Misunderstandings of Advanced Japanese Learners While Reading Japanese Novels

上級日本語学習者への「LTD 話し合い学習法」の適用:―新聞記事を利用した読解授業―

上級日本語学習者への「LTD 話し合い学習法」の適用:―新聞記事を利用した読解授業―

A study on using vocabulary of Korean advanced Japanese learners on composition. - Focused on Word Type Comparison with Native Japanese -

A study on using vocabulary of Korean advanced Japanese learners on composition. - Focused on Word Type Comparison with Native Japanese -

Lexical Richness in Free Writing by Advanced Japanese Learners of English

Lexical Richness in Free Writing by Advanced Japanese Learners of English

Second language speech production: Investigating linguistic correlates of comprehensibility and accentedness for learners at different ability levels

ABSTRACTThe current project aimed to investigate the potentially different linguistic correlates of comprehensibility (i.e., ease of understanding) and accentedness (i.e., linguistic nativelikeness) in adult second language (L2) learners’ extemporaneous speech production. Timed picture descriptions from 120 beginner, intermediate, and advanced Japanese learners of English were analyzed using native speaker global judgments based on learners’ comprehensibility and accentedness, and then submitted to segmental, prosodic, temporal, lexical, and grammatical analyses. Results showed that comprehensibility was related to all linguistic domains, and accentedness was strongly tied with pronunciation (specifically segmentals) rather than lexical and grammatical domains. In particular, linguistic correlates of L2 comprehensibility and accentedness were found to vary by learners’ proficiency levels. In terms of comprehensibility, optimal rate of speech, appropriate and rich vocabulary use, and adequate and varied prosody were important for beginner to intermediate levels, whereas segmental accuracy, good prosody, and correct grammar featured strongly for intermediate to advanced levels. For accentedness, grammatical complexity was a feature of intermediate to high-level performance, whereas segmental and prosodic variables were essential to accentedness across all levels. These findings suggest that syllabi tailored to learners’ proficiency level (beginner, intermediate, or advanced) and learning goal (comprehensibility or nativelike accent) would be advantageous for the teaching of L2 speaking.

The Process of Transformation in Advanced Japanese Learners' Consciousness of their Reading Methods in a Reading Course Applying the ‘Three Dialogues’ Approach

The Process of Transformation in Advanced Japanese Learners' Consciousness of their Reading Methods in a Reading Course Applying the ‘Three Dialogues’ Approach

Think-aloud protocol on dictionary use by advanced learners of Japanese

Think-aloud protocol on dictionary use by advanced learners of Japanese

Learner Metalinguistic Reflections Following Output-oriented and Reflective Activities

Several researchers have found that the type of task and learners' level of L2 proficiency are major determinants of the type and amount of metatalk. This paper is the first attempt to investigate potential interactions among the type of metatalk, the type of task and learners' level of L2 proficiency. Intermediate and advanced Japanese learners of English were asked to write about how they solved one of two ‘output-oriented’ exercises (translation and scrambled sentence). Then both groups received explicit feedback in the form of correct solution. Following this, both groups wrote about their thinking processes when they had received the feedback. In the written reflections about how the participants solved the exercises, there was an interaction between the type of exercise and level of L2 proficiency for both intermediate and advanced groups. In contrast, the type of exercise was the major determinant of the type and amount of the written reflections on their reactions to the feedback. These findings provide empirical support for the Output Hypothesis, and have pedagogical implications for the choice of output-oriented grammar tasks.

Images of Japan: For Pre-Advanced and Advanced Learners of Japanese

Images of Japan: For Pre-Advanced and Advanced Learners of Japanese

Instructional Needs of College-Level Learners of Japanese as a Heritage Language: Performance-Based Analyses

This paper reports a study comparing the reading performances (i.e., comprehension and speed in reading Japanese texts) and oral skills of intermediate and advanced learners of Japanese at an American university. The study assessed the performance of 14 heritage learners, who spoke Japanese at home and/or went to a Japanese school in the U.S., against that of 11 Chinese learners with extensive knowledge of kanji (Chinese characters used to write Japanese) in their first language (L1), and 14 non- heritage learners without such knowledge in their L1s. As anticipated, the heritage learners were found to have high oral proficiency. Their weakness, however, was not underdeveloped reading proficiency, as anticipated, but insufficient knowledge of kanji. The paper discusses the importance of recognizing the instructional needs of heritage learners studying a language that uses kanji in writing, and suggests some pedagogical methods to satisfy their needs.