Chinese L2 Research Articles

Code-mixing of Chinese Language Learners in Second Language Acquisition

During the process of second language acquisition, language learners tend to use code-mixing as a learning strategy or a form of language transition. Among Chinese language learners, Chinese-English code-mixing is very common among language learners in classrooms and daily communication and many studies have been focused on this topic. By reviewing previous researches on Chinese peoples code-mixing in different situations, this paper attempts to find out the influence of code-mixing on Chinese language learners second language acquisition. It is found that code-mixing in the classroom is beneficial to both teachers and students, as code-mixing helps improve teaching efficiency and makes it comfortable for beginners to express themselves in class. In addition, code-mixing, not only in class, but also in other situations, facilitates second languages acquisition. Moreover, code-mixing does not have negative influence on Chinese peoples cultural identity and L1 ability. In conclusion, code-mixing is generally beneficial for Chinese language learners second language acquisition.

The effects of using L1 Chinese or L2 English in planning on speaking performance among high- and low-proficient EFL learners

Speaking constitutes one of the main goals of learning a second language (L2). Despite the increasing attention on the role of planning and language transfer in L2 learning, the combined effect of using different languages and pre-task planning on language production remains unclear. This study investigated whether the use of different languages in planning affects speaking performance and whether the effect differs by language proficiency. A total of 84 students in Chinese universities learning English as a foreign language participated in several speaking tasks after planning using their first language (L1) Chinese or L2 English. Findings showed that using L1 in planning results in significantly higher syntactic complexity, accuracy, and fluency in speaking performance than using L2 in planning, while the difference in lexical diversity were not statistically significant. Further analysis shows that for speech accuracy, the facilitative effect of L1 was stronger among low-proficient than high-proficient learners. Findings from this study support the use of L2 learners’ entire linguistic repertoire in speaking activities and provides implications on speech production theories as well as translanguaging pedagogies.

The roles of prosody in Chinese-English reading comprehension

BackgroundDespite being an essential component of children's oral reading fluency, prosodic reading, which involves expressive changes in pitch patterns and pause durations, has not been explored in Cantonese-English bilingual children, whose first language (L1) is tonal, non-alphabetic, and whose second language (L2) is non-tonal, alphabetic. AimsThis study examined the development of prosodic reading and its within- and cross-language associations with reading comprehension among Cantonese-English bilingual children from second to third grade. SampleOne hundred and twenty-one 7-to 8-year-old Cantonese-English bilingual children completed initial testing in grade 2, with 52 tested in grade 3. MethodsProsodic reading was assessed using one Chinese and one English passage, each comprising six types of syntactic structures: declaratives, clause-final commas, yes-no questions, wh-questions, complex adjectival phrases, and quotatives. Word-reading efficiency, oral passage-reading fluency, and reading comprehension in Chinese and English were also measured. ResultsSpectrographic analyses revealed that these children were aware of language-independent functions and language-specific manifestations of pitch and pause cues within and across their L1 Chinese and L2 English. Wh question pitch contours emerged as the most robust link to reading comprehension across both languages, while a crossover effect occurred from Cantonese pitch to English reading comprehension. Shorter pauses for English declarative quotative sentences and phrase-final commas were concurrently associated with greater English reading comprehension. ConclusionsThese findings are interpreted within a new reading framework, the Prosodic Catalysing Hypothesis (PCH), which proposes that pitch and pause production can bridge prosody and syntax to facilitate reading comprehension.

Factors affecting voice onset time in English stops

Abstract This study investigates the voice onset time (VOT) of L2 English stops produced by native speakers of Chinese at different L2 proficiency levels. Four factors were examined: English proficiency, gender, place of articulation, and vowel context. High and low achievers of English were recruited as the experimental groups and native speakers of English as the control group. Each group consisted of 16 participants, 8 males and 8 females. Each participant took part in a read-aloud task, in which the target words were presented in an embedded sentence. The results showed that the effects of L2 proficiency were significant in that high achievers outperformed low achievers who were affected by L1 negative transfer more seriously when producing native-like English stops. Additionally, when producing English stops, velar stops had significantly greater VOT values than either bilabial or alveolar ones. However, no significant gender differences were found. Male and female participants produced similar VOT values in English stops. Last, the vowel context was also a significant factor. The VOT lengths differed according to the context of a following vowels. More specifically, the VOT of a stop is significantly longer when followed by a tense vowel.

Self‐praise on social media WeChat Moments in L1 and L2 Chinese

AbstractTo date, second language (L2) pragmatics research has predominantly focused on learners’ oral communication, with digital communication being much less examined. In addition, although L2 pragmatics has mainly investigated speech acts, self‐praise has not been examined from the L2 perspective. Therefore, this study investigates instances of self‐praise posted by learners of Chinese on social networking sites. Data were collected from 20 advanced learners of Chinese who were asked to share instances of self‐praise they posted on their WeChat Moments. Altogether, 61 learners’ self‐praise posts in L2 Chinese and 100 instances of self‐praise from 20 Chinese native speakers were collected. The learners’ Chinese self‐praise was analyzed in terms of different pragmatic strategies and emoji uses, with comparisons against the native speakers’ practices. Similarities and differences were analyzed between the two groups’ self‐praise strategies and their emoji use in self‐praise posts. The findings showed that the advanced learners were able to employ the three major types of self‐praise strategies in their self‐praise posts on WeChat Moments. However, their repertoires of individual self‐praise strategies and emojis were not as wide as those of native speakers. In addition, the learners showed divergences from the native speakers in terms of their preferred self‐praise strategies and culture‐relevant emojis.

Exploring the Influence of L1 Chinese on L2 English Acquisition

The impact of L1 Chinese on L2 English acquisition has received more attention as more Chinese students study English as a second language. This paper reviews previous research on Second Language Acquisition (SLA) and introduces some factors that can influence language transfer. The writers focus on three linguistic aspects, syntax, lexicon, and phonology, to explore how English as Second Language (ESL) learners L1 Chinese has influenced their English acquisitions. Results found that: 1) Syntax: The syntax structure includes many factors influencing Chinese learners English acquisition, such as subjects, verbs, and adverbs. English requires an issue while Chinese tend to omit the subject; English has a verb conjugation system while Chinese does not; and English adverbs can be placed in different positions according to the type while Chinese adverbs are mainly set in the middle; 2) Lexicon: Lexical errors may occur when ESL learners may make errors when they meet the differences in linguistic features such as polysemy, part of speech and word collocations between the two languages.; 3) Phonology: As Chinese is a tonal language and English is a non-tonal language, their tones of phonology are, to some extent, different, which might cause ESL learners confusion. These features of Chinese and English differ, and how these disparities have prevented positive language transfer from Chinese to English is explored. As a result, this study can inform second language instructors of the distinctions between the two languages and offer resources for future instruction of ESL students.

A Cross- Linguistic Study on the Production of English Lexical Stress: Reliance on Language Proficiency Cue

Stress is an important phonological feature that exists in many languages of the world (e.g., English, Spanish, Turkish and Classical Arabic, etc.). It increases the articulateness and intelligibility in speech and communication mainly English as a phonemic language (Kiriakos & O'Shaughnessy, 1989). This study examines the L2 learners‟ performance of typologically two unlike languages in the production of English lexical stress. Iraqi Arabic and Chinese Malaysian L2 learners are included in the production experiment to allocate lexical stress in real and nonce words. The results of the experiment presented that Chinese Malaysian group realized significantly better than the Iraqi Arabic group in producing lexical stress and Iraqi Arabic subjects had an additional difficulty in the production of mismatch syllabic patterns. After computing and controlling the language proficiency variable for both language groups, their subjects‟ mean percentage scores were equitably alike and statistically no significant difference in performance. Nevertheless, the Iraqi Arabic learners were better at allocating stress in match syllabic patterns than Chinese Malaysian L2 learners, but the difference was also not significant suggesting that the chief difficulty in which L2 learners come across in obtaining English lexical stress was concerning to L1 influence specifically stress patterns and tones. The study exhibited that lexical stress difference is inflexible for L2 learners irrespective of their native languages.

Classroom gesture instruction on second language learners' academic presentations: Evidence from Chinese intermediate English learners

Gesture has been recognized as an important aspect of second language (L2) acquisition, playing a vital role in L2 communication. Previous research has shown that L2 learners' communicative efficacy can be facilitated through gesture mediation. In particular, L2 learners may find gesture a useful tool to deliver their subject-related academic presentations. However, whether classroom gesture instruction could boost L2 learners' gesture use in academic speaking context and their overall presentation performance has rarely been explored. Drawing on activity theory, this study aims to investigate the potential role of gesture instruction in intermediate L2 English learners' gesture use and their academic presentation performance. Our study found that L2 learners who received classroom gesture instructions showed significant improvement in their use of gestures, and outperformed the control group in a post-test presentation session, showing improvement in all gesture types among which beats were significantly increased. These findings confirm the teachability of gesture to enhance Chinese L2 English learners' academic presentation skills, proving gesture as an indispensable instructional component in English for Academic Purposes (EAP) classroom.

Ensuring Sustainable Academic Development of L2 Postgraduate Students and MA Programs: Challenges and Support in Thesis Writing for L2 Chinese Postgraduate Students

This study, based on Activity Theory, investigated the challenges and support for L2 Chinese postgraduate students in their master’s degree (MA) thesis writing. The five participants, currently PhD candidates in applied linguistics, shared their experiences of MA thesis writing. The data include multiple drafts of theses and semi-structured interviews. Thematic analysis reveals that these participants went through four kinds of challenges: (1) selecting the research topic and theoretical basis; (2) meeting the high requirements of MA theses, using new research tools, and overcoming linguistic barriers; (3) writing the literature review; and (4) writing the discussion. The findings reveal the challenges were caused by four levels of inner contradictions in activity systems. The main support was provided by their supervisors, whose tailored help was more effective than the related courses they took. More sources of support came from their fellow students, the assessment panels of the research proposal, and the thesis defense. The analysis illustrated how these participants managed to receive support by interacting with the academic community. This study is expected to shed light on postgraduate education in general and the sustainable development of individual students and MA programs. Its implications may not only benefit Chinese L2 postgraduate students and their supervisors but also those in similar EFL contexts.

A Variationist Study of Quotative System in the Non-native Speech of French

Abstract: Based on sociolinguistic data collected with 40 Chinese L1 learners of French in Paris, this article examines the quotative markers used by nonnative speakers of French in their direct speech reporting. Our results confirm previous findings in other ethnic groups that both linguistic and extralinguistic factors influence the use of some socio-pragmatic variables in non-native speech. On the one hand, it provides new data on the acquisition of socio-pragmatic competence by a less studied learner group; on the other hand, it offers a further reflection on the influence of linguistic taboo on learners’ L1 and the impact of the critical period in the immigration process on their language acquisition.

Automatic phonological access among bilinguals with cross-script languages.

This study investigated the hypothesis of nonselective access to phonological representations in an integrated lexicon across logographic and alphabetic writing systems among Chinese L1 (first language)-English L2 (second language) bilinguals. We employed three experiments to test this hypothesis, including a lexical decision task (LDT) and a word naming task in Experiments 1 and 2 using the masked priming paradigm, and a self-paced sentence reading task in Experiment 3. Results from the LDT and the word naming task showed a significant homophone priming effect from L1 to L2, but not from L2 to L1. In the sentence reading task, we compared processing time between homophone error words and control words in the critical and spill-over regions. A slower processing effect in the homophone condition was observed in the spill-over region. Overall, these findings suggest that phonological priming occurs across a logographic and an alphabetic script in different tasks, whether reading isolated words or sentences. Bilingual reading involves an integrated bilingual lexicon that is independent of script similarity.

Acquisition of English liaison among Chinese EFL learners from the perspective of language transfer

This study aimed to investigate the acquisition of liaison in English by Chinese-speaking learners. Ten second-year postgraduate students of non-English majors in Tongji University, China, were invited to take part in an experiment. They were asked to prepare recordings of a set of English materials, including phrases, dialogues, and a talking topic, before and after a self-study training on liaison. To examine every type of liaison in their speech, the study analysed the recordings using the speech analysis software Praat. The results showed that before the training, the students negatively transferred the native language (L1) pattern to the target second language (L2). This kind of negative transfer of L1 Chinese to the acquisition of liaison in L2 English could be explained by the differences between English and Chinese syllables. After the training, the students showed substantial improvement in phrase and dialogue reading. The findings are expected to help both teachers and students gain a better understanding of liaison and the differences between English and Chinese syllables, thus contributing to English teaching and learning.

Spatial repertoire, translingual creativity, and identity in Chinese speakers’ online intercultural experience

ABSTRACT This paper uncovers L1 Chinese speakers' online intercultural communication where they deploy English as a lingua franca and other spatial repertoires to co-construct translanguaging practices with their interlocutors and present three-fold identities - translingual, L1 Chinese, and legitimate users of English, leading to the argument that non-native English speakers and spatial repertoires play agentive roles in shaping English in the trends of globalisation and digitalisation.

Growth mindset and emotions in tandem: Their effects on L2 writing performance based on writers’ proficiency levels

A growth mindset (GM), defined as an individual’s perception that their intellectual ability is malleable, has been the subject of extensive research attention, as it can facilitate learning in many contexts. GM has been found to have more pronounced positive effects on students with lower-level writing proficiency. Emotions have also been found to play a significant role in second language (L2) writing. We conducted an innovative investigation of the relationships between GM, emotions related to writing (enjoyment and anxiety), and writing performance. The results of our study involving 589 Chinese 12th-graders and L2 writing tasks showed that GM was positively associated with enjoyment and negatively associated with anxiety. When assessing students grouped according to their writing performance (high, middle, and low), we found an indirect positive path from GM to writing performance via anxiety in the middle-level group and via enjoyment in the low-level group. The findings suggest that GM can promote enjoyment and mitigate anxiety, therefore facilitating L2 writing performance. The pedagogical implications are that teachers should encourage students to develop a GM and foster their social–emotional learning.

Anxiety in L2 Chinese from different angles

Abstract The current study examines the influence of experience, reading and writing anxieties, and self-assessed proficiency on foreign language anxiety in the context of learning Chinese as a foreign language. Data were collected using questionnaires from 93 learners of Chinese and analyzed using correlational and multiple regression methods. Results indicated that learners at level 200 (i.e., intermediate low/mid) were more anxious compared to those at level 400 (i.e., advanced low/mid). Foreign language anxiety, foreign language reading anxiety, and foreign language writing anxiety were significantly correlated with each other. Foreign language reading anxiety, foreign language writing anxiety, and self-assessed proficiency (listening and reading) were shown to significantly predict foreign language anxiety in the context of L2 Chinese.

Learner Perezhivanie and Mutual Advisor-Advisee Development Through Advising: A Longitudinal Case Study of JSL Learner

This study analyzes the perezhivanie of one second-language learner (Chinese L1) who studied Japanese as a second language and engaged in her learning experience in a Japanese cultural setting through yearlong language advisory sessions. Perezhivanie, a Russian term, and a Vygotskian concept, is employed in the study to observe L2 learner development and to capture the bidirectional influences of the characteristics of agency and the environment. The data analyzed come from two sources: (a) our written correspondence, including email exchanges, from before the study was conducted and (b) audio-recorded data of six face-to-face/ online advisory sessions on a bimonthly basis with a particular focus on her perezhivanie. By applying perezhivanie as a unit of analysis that avoids the cognition-or-emotion and person-or-context dichotomies, the findings revealed the developmental processes of one L2 learner and focused on how both advisor and advisee mutually transform the specific social situation into a social situation of collectividual development through yearlong advisory sessions. Notably, the participant evaluated her original experience negatively at first, but eventually, she learned to value the failure and reinterpreted the initial experience. The significance of the study is to contribute to describing the detailed case of learner perezhivanie with a particular focus on entrance exams in East Asian sociocultural settings.

Assessing the dimensionality of Chinese as a second language reading: a confirmatory factor analysis approach

Abstract Second language (L2) reading is a complex construct, and there is no consensus about its dimensionality. The investigation of the dimensionality of L2 reading ability is of great significance since it can provide important implications for teaching and testing. Understanding of the factor structure, subskills, and sub-knowledge of L2 reading is the starting point for language teachers and test developers to plan a syllabus, describe students’ reading proficiency, and develop reading assessments. This study investigated the factor structure of Chinese L2 reading, which has been less commonly studied compared to alphabetic languages. Three hypotheses derived from the literature review have been tested: 1) L2 reading is a unitary skill; 2) L2 reading is bi-divisible; 3) L2 reading is tri-divisible. A series of confirmatory factor analyses shows that the correlated three-factor model is the most appropriate for explaining the factor structure. L2 Chinese reading comprehension can be conceptualized as consisting of three inter-correlated components: lower-level decoding, interim-level textbase construction, and higher-level situation-model building. This study also explores subcomponents of each factor, highlighting Chinese-specific linguistic features and corresponding cognitive processes. Implications for future research, teaching, and testing are provided.

What looks native-like may not necessarily be native-like

Abstract A substantial body of research has investigated null arguments in L2 Chinese, showing that they can be native-like. However, recent linguistic research has demonstrated convincingly that some ‘missing’ arguments in Chinese should be viewed not as ‘null’ arguments but as a result of movement and ellipsis. These advances necessitate a revaluation of the issue of ‘null’ arguments in previous L2 studies which largely overlooked the role of ellipsis in accounting for missing arguments in L2 Chinese. To fill the lacuna, this study recognises the above recent advances and examines whether missing objects in English speakers’ L2 Chinese parallel sentences are a result of verb raising and VP ellipsis and are genuinely native-like. Results of a picture-description task and an acceptability judgement task suggest that although L2ers, like native Chinese speakers, can accept and produce missing objects in Chinese, their native-like performance is driven by mechanisms different from those of native Chinese speakers (i.e., the missing objects are erroneously used as null objects in L2 Chinese). The findings advance our understanding of L1 vs. L2 different mechanisms for phonetically unrealised objects in Chinese, suggesting that what looks native-like in L2 may not necessarily be native-like.

Shared and distinct neural correlates of first and second language morphological processing in bilingual brain

While morphology constitutes a crucial component of the human language system, the neural bases of morphological processing in the human brain remains to be elucidated. The current study aims at exploring the extent to which the second language (L2) morphological processing would resemble or differ from that of their first language (L1) in adult Chinese-English bilinguals. Bilingual participants were asked to complete a morphological priming lexical decision task drawing on derivational morphology, which is present for both Chinese and English, when their electrophysiological and optical responses were recorded concurrently. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) revealed a neural dissociation between morphological and semantic priming effects in the left fronto-temporal network, while L1 Chinese engaged enhanced activation in the left prefrontal cortex for morphological parsing relative to L2 English. In the early stage of lexical processing, cross-language morphological processing manifested a difference in degree, not in kind, as revealed by the early left anterior negativity (ELAN) effect. In addition, L1 and L2 shared both early and late structural parsing processes (P250 and 300 ~ 500 ms negativity, respectively). Therefore, the current results support a unified competition model for bilingual development, where bilinguals would primarily employ L1 neural resources for L2 morphological representation and processing.

Acquisition of kind-reference by Arabic, Chinese, and Turkish L2 learners of English

AbstractThis study examines the acquisition of kind-referring expressions such as The dodo is extinct. The objective is to investigate whether second language (L2) learners’ acquisition of nominal number marking and articles expressing kind-reference in English is affected by their first language (L1), their L2 proficiency in English, or the syntactic position of the kind-referring noun phrase (NP). L2 learners of English with Arabic, Chinese, and Turkish L1 backgrounds and a control group of native English speakers (NSs) participated in the study. The results from a Fill in the Gaps Task (FGT) and an Acceptability Judgment Task (AJT) demonstrated that L2 learners were more successful in their production and acceptability judgments when the expression of kind-reference in the target language was similar to that in their L1. The results also showed non-facilitative L1 transfer in the domain of bare singulars, as well as a positive effect of higher L2 proficiency on kind-referring NPs. Finally, the study revealed a subject/object asymmetry in the acquisition of kind-referring NPs in L2 English.