Groups Of Second Language Learners Research Articles

To Correct or Not to Correct: The Impact of Written Corrective Feedback on Improving Students’ Writing about Literature

This study examines the impact of direct and indirect written corrective feedback (WCF) on Omani English literature students’ use of tenses. The study took place over a period of two months at a university in the Sultanate of Oman. Data was collected from pre- and post-tests of 45 students who represented three groups: control group (N=15), direct group (n=15), and indirect group (n=15). The control group received no feedback, the direct group received feedback on their pre-test, intervention 1, and intervention 2. Their feedback was given directly; i.e., errors were underlined and corrections were given immediately. Indirect group also received feedback on their pre-test, intervention 1, and intervention 2, but their feedback was given indirectly; i.e., errors were underlined but corrections were not given. Students were encouraged to explore why these words were mistakes and were encouraged to correct them. The study’s findings were consistent with previous research that has found mixed results regarding the effectiveness of WCF on second language learners’ language accuracy. However, the study provides new insights by suggesting that direct feedback is more effective than indirect feedback since only direct group posttests were found to be significantly (p=0.02) better than their pretests. The findings are not claimed to be generalizable to other populations or contexts. They lead to recommendations for further research to determine the effectiveness of written corrective feedback on other groups of second language learners in different contexts and for different student populations, especially in the Middle East.

“You Know, the World is Pretty Unfair” – Meaning Perspectives in Teaching Social Studies to Migrant Language Learners

ABSTRACT This contribution explores how subject positions and perspectives are negotiated in the discursive practices of teaching social studies. The study involved a teacher and a group of second-language learners in Grade 6, the data being gathered by observations, voice recordings, and collection of teaching materials throughout seven weeks. The analysis, drawing upon discourse theory and sociological theories of education, is conducted from the perspective of Critical Discourse Analysis. The result, highlighting a curriculum area about living conditions, shows how Western-centric beliefs about a divided world were perpetuated both during introductory activities and in the searching for information about different countries. This mainstream meaning perspective was also sustained when the teacher modelled ways of using language for expressing content knowledge. Throughout, the migrant language learners were positioned as privileged Swedish citizens. Implications for shaping discursive practices of teaching in ways which builds on students’ diverse knowledges and experiences are discussed.

Language transfer and positional bias in English stress

This article shows that first language (L1) transfer may not be effectively maintained in the interlanguage due to confounding factors in the second language (L2). When two factors, [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], are correlated in the L2, second language learners may only acquire [Formula: see text], even if [Formula: see text] is present in the L1. Transfer may not be effective because [Formula: see text], being more robust in the input, conceals [Formula: see text]. Native speakers, on the other hand, generalize [Formula: see text] in spite of [Formula: see text]. The variables in question are weight-sensitivity ([Formula: see text]) and positional bias ([Formula: see text]) in English, both of which can predict the location of stress in the language. I show that two seemingly target-like groups of second language learners of English (speakers of Mandarin and speakers Portuguese) fail to accurately generalize weight-sensitivity in the language, and instead display response patterns which are predictable given the existing positional bias in English stress.

Using the Genre-based Approach in Teaching Chinese Written Composition to South Asian Ethnic Minority Students in Hong Kong

This paper aims to investigate the effectiveness of Halliday’s Sydney School genrebased approach in teaching Chinese written composition to South Asian ethnic minority students in Hong Kong. Chinese language, with its heightened status in Hong Kong, holds a key for South Asians with low socio-economic status to obtain upward mobility (Shum, Gao, Tsung, and Ki, 2011). However, South Asian ethnic minority students, as a disadvantaged group of second language learners, lack sufficient parental and institutional support in Chinese language learning. The genrebased pedagogy derived from Halliday’s Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) was applied in this study to improve Chinese language performance of South Asian ethnic minority students for a better chance to participate in mainstream society. The SFL approach is primarily concerned with language choice in social situations and has been widely applied in sociolinguistics (Hyland, 2007, 2012). Its latest model in language teaching methodology, the ’Reading to Learn, Learning to Write’ (R2L) pedagogy, is a genre-based teaching strategy which is designed to guide students to experience different levels of language through extensive classroom reading and writing activities with selected texts. The current study is intended to extend the approach to teaching and learning Chinese as a second language. The employment of genre-based pedagogy aims to support South Asian students with their learning of Chinese written composition in the senior secondary curriculum. The Chinese teachers involved were first provided with appropriate training in the genre-based approach to language teaching focusing on the genres of Narration and Explanation. Research data were collected while the teachers began to use theand Explanation. Research data were collected while the teachers began to use the and Explanation. Research data were collected while the teachers began to use the genre-based teaching approach, by means of pre- and post-tests after and before genre instruction. Text analysis based on SFL was then employed to analyze the students’ written composition in both pre- and post-tests in order to understand the effectiveness of the genre-based pedagogy in teaching Chinese as a second language. The finding shows that the students at the high, medium, and low levels improved both in the construction of schematic structure and the variation of lexicogrammatical choices from the whole-text, sentence and word levels respectively in their writing performance. Hopefully, the findings will help curriculum development and teacher education for teaching Chinese as a second language to non-Chinese speaking students in Hong Kong and beyond.

The Second Language Processing of Passives, Object Pronouns and Null Subjects: Processing Instruction Compared to Language Experience

The present study compared the performance of two groups of second language learners processing three linguistic structures in Spanish. The linguistic targets were passives, object pronouns in OproVS sentences, and gender-cued null subjects in subordinate clauses. The primary differences between the two groups were language experience and an instructional treatment. The group with greater language experience was enrolled in the last course of their Spanish major, the other group in the middle of their major coursework. The group with less language experience received Processing Instruction on passives. The scores of the greater language experience group were compared to the pretest and then posttest scores of the Processing Instruction group. Results demonstrated that greater language experience gave learners an advantage in processing the linguistic targets when compared to the Processing Instruction group's pretest scores. Comparisons between the greater language experience group's scores with the Processing Instruction group's posttest scores showed that Processing Instruction provided a superior effect on passives, an equalizing effect on null subjects, and a non-effect on object pronouns. Experience counted more with object pronouns.

“I won’t talk about this here in America:” Sociocultural Context of Korean English Language Learners’ Emotion Speech in English

This article examines the relationship between language and emotion, especially drawing attention to the experiences and perspectives of second language (SL) learners. Informed by the sociocultural perspective on the construction of emotion and its representation, this study highlights the intertwined relationship among emotions, cultural contexts, perceived identities, and languages. Using a qualitative case study approach, we examined challenges and strategies of emotion speech in one group of second language learners: Korean adult English learners (ELs) in the United States. Analyses of two surveys with seventeen Korean ELs and interviews with four selected participants demonstrate: (1) A full communication of emotions across cultures and languages was challenging because of the lack of shared cultural contexts among speakers. (2) However, the acquisition of one’s second language included learning new cultural maps with which learners developed intercultural capacities to code switch across languages/emotions and, thus, to participate more fully in their second language community. (3) The code switching among SL learners often involved perceived personality change and identity negotiation in different languages since each language was associated with different cultural experiences and emotions/value orientations. Implications for the Second Language Acquisition field will be discussed.

Inter-word Space Effects on Saccadic Target Selection in Chinese Reading: Evidence from Second Language Learners

A series of studies have demonstrated that saccadic target selection within alphabetic writing systems is based on words. Specifically, there is plenty of evidence that the observation of the optimal viewing location effect, in which words are identified most quickly when they are fixated close to the word center, and the preferred viewing location effect, in which landing positions on words are most commonly observed to be just to the left of the word centre. If word spaces are removed, the preferred viewing location is transferred to the word beginning. There is a heated debate, however, concerning the basic unit of saccadic target selection innon-alphabetic writing systems, such as Chinese, which is printed as continuous strings of characters without spaces between the words. It is intriguing whether the saccadic targets are selected on the basis of characters or words during Chinese reading. In the present study, we selected readers with different native languages, with Chinese as a second language, to investigate the role of inter-word space on saccadic target selection during Chinese reading, especially to explore whether this effect was modulated by the familiarity of the presentation for their native languages. The eye movements of 80 participants with Chinese as a second language, whose native languages were Korean, American, Japanese, and Thai were recorded with a SR Research EyeLink 1000 eye tracker (sampling rate = 1000 Hz) that monitored the position of the right eye every millisecond. All of the participants were instructed to read 64 Chinese sentences with two different presentation conditions (normal, unspaced condition and word-spaced presentation). For each participant, half of the sentences were presented in the normal, unspaced condition, and the other half were presented with word-spaced condition. The results showed that there was a very similar pattern in the saccadic targeting selection for the four groups of second language learners, regardless of their native language: they showed a strong tendency to fixate the word center in single-fixation cases, and to fixate the word beginning in multiple-fixation cases. Furthermore, the proportion of the first fixation which located in the word center across the word-spaced condition is higher than that in the normal, unspaced condition, which indicated that the insertion of spaces between words partially guided the next saccadic target selection effectively. According to the theory of primary oculomotor control, we propose that readers with Chinese as a second language use "strategy-tactics" to guide their eye movements during Chinese reading.

Using Internet for Learning Vocabulary among Second Language Learners in a Suburban School

Vocabulary learning is usually dealt with when learners come across new words while doing reading or listening tasks in class. Different techniques have been adopted by second language learners in order to learn vocabulary. This paper investigated whether the technique of using computer as a tool assist the learning of vocabulary among second language learners in a suburban secondary school in Malaysia. The method involved pre-test and post-test for both experimental and control group of second language learners. Findings suggested that the experimental group showed great result in learning vocabulary using computer.

Pair versus individual writing: Effects on fluency, complexity and accuracy

The assessment of oral language is now quite commonly done in pairs or groups, and there is a growing body of research which investigates the related issues (e.g. May, 2007). Writing generally tends to be thought of as an individual activity, although a small number of studies have documented the advantages of collaboration in writing in the second language classroom (e.g. DiCamilla & Anton, 1997; Storch, 2005; Swain & Lapkin, 1998). Particularly in university contexts, group or pair assignments are widely used in many disciplines. In addition, collaborative writing could be used in second language classroom assessment contexts as formative assessment. However, research which compares texts produced by learners collaboratively to texts produced individually, and the implications of this for assessment practices, is rare. This study is a first step in the investigation of using collaborative writing in second language contexts and comparing the performance of two groups of second language learners: one group worked individually, and the other group worked in pairs. When writing in pairs, each pair produced a single text. All participants completed one writing task: an argumentative essay. The performances of the individuals (N = 48) and the pairs (N = 48) were compared on detailed discourse analytic measures of fluency, complexity and accuracy. This comparison revealed that collaboration impacted positively on accuracy, but did not affect fluency and complexity. A detailed analysis of the pair transcripts recorded during the writing activity provides insights into the ways in which pairs work together, and the foci of their endeavour. The implications of these findings for in-class assessment of second language writing are discussed.

Routinizing Lexical Phrases on Spoken Discourse

This paper examines the effectiveness of routinizing lexical phrases to a group of second language learners. A group of proficiency class students were drilled or routinized with semi-fixed and fixed phrases which are commonly used in problem-solving group discussion. Basic frequency counts and interview were carried out to see improvement in learners’ communicative ability and how the lexical phrases benefit them. The learners can use a number of phrases appropriately in several group discussions. Thus, the practice of routinizing lexical phrases which is based on the lexical approach can be applied in second language learning.

THE ACQUISITION OF PROGRESSIVE AND RESULTATIVE MEANINGS OF THE IMPERFECTIVE ASPECT MARKER BY L2 LEARNERS OF JAPANESE: Transfer, Universals, or Multiple Factors?

It has been observed that there is a strong association between the inherent (lexical) aspect of verbs and the acquisition of tense-aspect morphology (the aspect hypothesis; Andersen & Shirai, 1994). To investigate why such an association is observed, this study examined the influence of inherent aspect and learners' first language (L1) on the acquisition of Japanese imperfective aspect by using two tasks—an acceptability judgment test and an oral picture description task—with two groups of second language learners of Japanese: 26 native speakers (NSs) of English, which has the obligatory progressive, and 35 NSs of languages that have no obligatory progressive marking (German and Slavic languages). The results from the acceptability judgment test support the aspect hypothesis in that, regardless of L1, the imperfective marker -te i-ru was strongly associated with activity verbs for lower proficiency learners. However, the results from the oral task did not support the prediction, in that lower proficiency L1 nonprogressive learners did not show any such preference. The results suggest that L1 plays a role in the formation of the acquisition pattern predicted by the aspect hypothesis, but that given the complex interaction with task types and proficiency, L1 transfer cannot be the sole reason for the predicted association in the acquisition of Japanese -te i-(ru). It is argued that multiple factors are at work when learners create the form-meaning associations predicted by the aspect hypothesis.This article is based on research conducted as part of Sugaya's doctoral dissertation submitted to Ochanomizu University. We would like to thank Kevin Gregg, Yoshinori Sasaki, and the anonymous SSLA reviewers for their insightful comments on an earlier version of this article. We also thank Manabu Kurosawa for his invaluable advice on statistical analysis. We are grateful to Chie Morizuka, Hiromi Ozeki, Masuyo Sugiyama, Orie Takahashi, Yoko Mukoyama, Yukari Hashimoto, and the other participants of the seminar on SLA at Ochanomizu University for their helpful discussions of this study. We also thank the participants in the study for their cooperation and those who kindly helped us recruit them. This research is partially supported by a grant from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (Developmental Index for Japanese L1 and L2 Acquisition and Comparative Research on the Acquisition of English and Japanese, grant No. 13410034, PI-Kiyoshi Otomo, Tokyo Gakugei University). A preliminary analysis of the acceptability judgment test appeared in Nihongo Kyooiku (Journal of Japanese Language Teaching; Sugaya, 2004).

Assessment standards, Van Hiele levels, and grade seven learners’ understandings of geometry

A number of researchers in mathematical education assert that the instruction in geometry offered in South African schools is inadequate and that traditional teaching strategies do little to promote teachers understandings of their learners’ levels of mathematical thought. Van Hiele specifically states that the inability of many teachers to match instruction with their learners’ levels of geometrical understanding is a contributing factor to their failure to promote meaningful understandings in this topic. This study investigated whether a sample of grade seven learners in previously disadvantaged primary schools met both the assessment criteria for geometry as stated by the South African Revised National Curriculum Statement and the implied Van Hiele thinking levels. The data generated suggest that none of the 30 learners who participated in this study had attained these requirements and that language competency in general is a barrier to the attainment of higher levels of understanding amongst this group of second-language learners. It is suggested that not only Van Hiele Levels and Assessment Standards, but also learners’ cultural background and their specific use of words in the vernacular context, need to be taken into consideration by teachers when developing learning programmes. Possible strategies to meet these requirements are suggested.

The influence of second language teaching on undergraduate mathematics performance

Understanding abstract concepts and ideas in mathematics, if instruction takes place in the first language of the student, is difficult. Yet worldwide students often have to master mathematics via a second or third language. The majority of students in South Africa — a country with eleven official languages — has to face this difficulty. In a quantitative study of first year calculus students, we investigated two groups of students. For one group tuition took place in their home language; for the second group, tuition was in English, a second or even a third language. Performance data on their secondary mathematics and first year tertiary calculus were analysed. The study showed that there was no significant difference between the adjusted means of the entire group of first language learners and the entire group of second language learners. Neither was there any statistically significant difference between the performances of the two groups of second language learners (based on the adjusted means). Yet, there did seem to be a significant difference between the achievement of Afrikaans students attending Afrikaans lectures and Afrikaans students attending English lectures.

De Waarneming van Klemtoon bij NT2-Studenten

Recently several research groups that are concerned with language acquisition have claimed, that suprasegmental information contributes to the learnability of natural languages. Specifically, it is claimed, that suprasegmentals enable the language learner to perceive and distinguish linguistic patterns in the stream of speech (Morgan et al, 1987; Mehler et al, 1988; Hirsch-PAsek, 1987). It has been shown, that suprasegmentals are immediately accessable to babies and require no learning process. This finding is compatible with psychological research that has shown, that the sensoric system of babies structures perception immediately after birth (see Van Geert, 1983 for an overview). The present study deals with the use of suprasegmentals in adult second language learners. For several reasons it may be wondered whether adults have the same benefit from suprasegmentals like newborns. Therefore an experiment is conducted in order to investigate the ability of adult second language learners to distinguish several stress-patterns in Dutch. Several stress-patterns in two- and three syllabic words were investigated. The results indicate, that both groups of second language learners use a lexical and a perceptual strategy, that in the case of Level 1 students leads to a confusion of perceptual and lexical strategies, whereas Level Π students appear to seperate these strategies in a more appropriate way. The results are discussed in the perspective of language teaching. It is concluded, that the development of perceptual strategies need more attention in the classroom, since they might enable the student more effectively to explore a second language in communicative situations.

Vooruitgang in Nederlandse Taalvaardigheid van Turkse Kinderen na Twee Jaar Lagere School

In this article some results are presented of a twofold study into the Dutch language proficiency of Turkish children who were born and bred in the Netherlands. The oral Dutch language 'profi-ciency of eighteen Turkish and fifteen Dutch children was studied in September 1981, at the moment all children entered primary school, and in March 1984, when they had reached third grade. A number of morphological, syntactic and lexical features were studied. The results can be summarized as follows: (1) in the first grade, at the very start of their (primary-) school career, the Turkish group is significantly less proficient in oral Dutch than their Dutch peer group in all but one of the grammatical features. (2) In the third grade, after two and a half years of primary school education, the Turkish group is still significantly less proficient in oral Dutch than the Dutch group in most of the features. (3) As for several morphological aspects of oral Dutch language proficiency, most of the individual Turkish children progress faster in two years of education than the Dutch group: that is, many of the Turkish children are morphologically less behind after two years of primary school than at the beginning of their school career. (4) As for a number of syntactic aspects and one aspect of lexical diversity of speech, most of the individual Turkish children do not progress faster in two years than the Dutch children: syntactically they are equally behind after two years of primary school. (5) In none of the features that were studied did the differences in language proficiency between the Dutch and the Turkish groups increase during two years of schooling: thus, no evidence is found for a possible cumulative difference between this specific group of second language learners and native children.