Investigating L2 Learners Research Articles

How Is Vocabulary Learnt? An Acquisitional Sequence of L2 Word Knowledge

AbstractSecond language acquisition (SLA) researchers have long searched for patterning in the development of linguistic elements (e.g., grammar and morphology). However, little attention has been given to the examination of systematicity in vocabulary acquisition, limiting our understanding about how overall vocabulary is learnt. The current study investigates L2 learners' lexical knowledge to explore whether there exists a consistent sequence in the acquisition of vocabulary components in second languages. Written form/meaning‐recall and written form/meaning‐recognition knowledge of four word‐knowledge components (form–meaning, collocations, multiple‐meanings, and derivatives) was assessed on 314 EFL learners from two distinct L1 backgrounds (Chinese and Spanish). Implicational and Mokken scaling analyses revealed a reliable hierarchy of knowledge of vocabulary aspects where recognition knowledge preceded recall knowledge across all components. The scale remained constant across the learner groups when explored independently (using an 80% accuracy threshold) and collectively (under both 75% and 80% accuracy thresholds). This finding indicates that the various aspects of word knowledge seem to be learnt incrementally in a consistent order by EFL learners, regardless of their L1. The study offers an empirically supported framework of word‐knowledge acquisition that improves our current understanding of L2 lexical development and can serve as guidance to further systematize vocabulary instruction in the EFL classroom.

L2 Learners’ Perceptions of the Benefits of Authentic Material Use in Preparation for Academic IELTS Reading Comprehension Tests

Teaching materials hold a vital position in English language learning and teaching, and have gained a great deal of attention from many EFL teachers and material designers. It has been recognised that authentic materials (AMs) can be used as a potential source of material for language learning and teaching. However, there has been ongoing controversy when it comes to choosing them for reading comprehension. This study aims at investigating L2 learners’ perceptions of the benefits of AM use for reading comprehension in IELTS preparation courses at a Ho Chi Minh City-based language centre in Vietnam. Data were collected from 150 learners who completed a questionnaire. Ten of them participated in semi-structured interviews. The results indicated that L2 learners believed that the use of AMs was beneficial as it could enhance their English language, cultural awareness, learning motivation, and reading strategies. The finding-based implications are presented to teachers, learners, and material designers in an attempt to enhance the quality of English language teaching in general and the use of AMs specifically.

Exploring L2 learners’ processing of unknown words during subtitled viewing through self-reports

Abstract Studies have shown the benefits of subtitled viewing for incidental vocabulary learning, but the effects of different subtitling types varied across studies. The effectiveness of different types of subtitled viewing could be related to how unknown vocabulary is processed during viewing. However, no studies have investigated L2 learners’ processing of unknown words in viewing beyond exploring learners’ attention allocation. The present research followed a qualitative approach to explore L2 learners’ processing of unknown words during subtitled viewing under three conditions (i.e., captions, L1 subtitles, and bilingual subtitles) by tapping into learners’ reported awareness of the unknown words and the vocabulary processing strategies used to engage with unknown words. According to stimulated recall data (elicited by eye-tracking data) from 45 intermediate-to-advanced-level Chinese learners of English, captions led to increased awareness of the unknown words. Moreover, the types of strategies learners used to cope with unknown vocabulary were determined by subtitling type.

L2 learners’ pronunciation of English phonetic sounds

Pronouncing English sounds correctly is not an easy task for second language (L2) learners because of the influence of their mother tongue. Empirical studies, based on first language (L1) interference, have investigated L2 learners’ pronunciation problems. However, these studies rarely focused on students’ development in pronunciation, and their results lack validity and reliability because of their mere employment of L2 English teachers as pronunciation assessors. The present study, using the acoustic software Praat as the instrument and taking a native speaker as the comparison, investigated Chinese L2 English learners’ problems and improvement in pronouncing the English sounds that do not have exact counterparts in Chinese. Data analysis revealed that the participants manifested different degrees of pronunciation accuracy with the target English sounds; their mispronunciations of consonants were mainly due to lacking voicing, wrong manners, and wrong places of articulation, while their mispronunciations of vowels were attributed to their improper tongue position, mouth opening, and diphthongization; and that higher-proficiency students tended to have greater pronunciation accuracy. The findings were discussed with reference to the literature, and pedagogical implications were provided at the end.

L2 Investment and Techno‐Reflective Narrative Interviews

English medium instruction (EMI) can become pantomime in the context of higher education, and such non‐participation can be shaped and explained by learners' refusing to invest in the English learning practices while performing their learner/speaker/user identities. Taking a Bourdieusian stance on this issue, the study discusses techno‐reflective narrative interviews (TRNI) as a retrospective framing tool for investigating L2 learners' English investment by showcasing a tertiary TRNI exemplar and examining the extent to which TRNIs help to (1) investigate how students negotiate and perform multiple and constantly contradictory linguistic, cultural, and role identities; (2) provide a reflective account of students' critical genre and literacy awareness while finishing various tasks; and (3) empower the students by amplifying their voices and positioning and unfold their struggle with ideological notions of English ownership.

Learning challenging L2 sounds via computer‐assisted training: Audiovisual training with an airflow model

AbstractBackgroundTeaching Mandarin as a second language (L2) has become an important profession and an important research area. The acquisition of unaspirated and aspirated consonants in Mandarin has been reported to be rather challenging for L2 learners.ObjectivesIn the current study, a 3‐D airflow model was integrated into the virtual talking head for audiovisual pronunciation training in these Mandarin consonants.MethodsUsing the eye‐tracking technique, Experiment 1 investigated L2 learners' general acceptance and gauged attention distribution online while learning with the system. To further compare training efficacy, learning outcomes were evaluated by randomly dividing Japanese learners of Mandarin into different training groups using the 3‐D tutor with and without an airflow model, respectively, in Experiment 2.Results and ConclusionsEye‐tracking results showed that the talking head was well accepted, and was successful in directing L2 learners' attention to the visual modality of the airflow model marking the contrast in aspiration. Furthermore, the additional visual cue of the airflow model helped enhance their production of the aspirated Mandarin stops. Moreover, this computer‐assisted training approach was shown to be robust as the advantage of training with an airflow model can be generalized to novel syllables with a change of tones or rimes.

Saudi Students’ Attitudes to the Use of Subtitles to Improve Their Listening Skills

The role of subtitles in improving listening skills is a controversial issue in the literature of second language (L2) learning. This study attempted to investigate L2 learners’ attitudes to the use of subtitles when watching English audio-visual materials. Investigating L2 learners’ attitudes to the use of subtitles may have implications for designing listening courses in education organisations around the world. The study recruited 63 Saudi third-year students from an English department at a Saudi university. The data was collected by means of a closed-ended questionnaire containing 23 Likert-scale items. The results indicated that most participants: a) agreed that listening skills are important; b) had more positive attitudes to the use of English subtitles (captions) than to Arabic subtitles; c) expressed positive attitudes to people who use articles; and d) acknowledged that the use of captions had a greater positive impact on L2 learning than either Arabic subtitles or no subtitles at all.

Transfer of knowledge across genres and media: Investigating L2 learners’ multiple composing practices

Drawing upon adaptive transfer as a conceptual framework, this study aims to investigate adolescent second language (L2) learners' transfer of knowledge across different genres (narratives and arguments) and media (print-based writing and digital multimodal composition). Data were gathered from class observations, interviews, and student artifacts. The collected data were analyzed based on inductive and deductive approaches as well as adaptive transfer. This study demonstrated that adolescent L2 learners applied the prior knowledge learned in narrative writing to argumentative writing, both within and beyond the current program. Another finding in this study is that the participants' knowledge acquired from digital multimodal composition influenced their print-based writing, and vice versa. The current study's demonstration of the transfer across genres and media confirms the existence of adaptive transfer which supports the reshaping of prior knowledge from familiar to unfamiliar contexts. The paper concludes with suggestions for future research and pedagogical implications for L2 teaching and learning.

Second Language Learners' Competence of and Beliefs About Pragmatic Comprehension: Insights From the Chinese EFL Context.

It can be a great challenge for second language (L2) learners to comprehend meanings that are implied in utterances rather than the surface meaning of what was said. Moreover, L2 learners’ attitudes toward pragmatic learning are unknown. This mixed-methods study investigates L2 learners’ ability to comprehend conversational implicatures. It also explores their beliefs about and intentions to develop this ability using Ajzen’s theory of planned behavior (TPB). A total of 498 freshmen from a public university in China participated in the study. Data were collected using a web-based test, stimulated recall tasks and semi-structured interviews. Results show that the participants differed in recognizing the intended meanings. Complicated factors account for the variations. In addition to the types of implicature, learners’ beliefs about developing pragmatic comprehension also influence their learning intention, and subsequent performance. These beliefs include learners’ multi-layered, complex attitudes toward the outcomes of pragmatic learning, perceived self-efficacy beliefs regarding language proficiency and L2 cultural knowledge, actual behavioral control over opportunities and resources for pragmatic learning, and perceptions of less social pressure on pragmatic learning. The use of TPB may help language teachers and test designers to understand learners’ beliefs about L2 pragmatic learning in the English as a foreign language (EFL) context. Understanding the factors influencing learners’ intention will help design more effective teaching curricula that may integrate pragmatic instruction and testing in the future.

Investigating the effect of second language learning on the acquisition of a third language rhythm pattern

Language transfer helps in the acquisition of a second language (L2) when the target L2 shares similarities with the first language (L1). We ask: Does proficiency in an L2 facilitate the acquisition of a structurally similar L3? Or, does training in any L2 help with L3 acquisition? We investigated L2 learners’ ability to reproduce the rhythm of a novel L3, Indonesian, as a function of their exposure to a rhythm-similar language (French) or a rhythm-divergent language (German). Twelve English-speaking students with no college-level language served as control group; six 2nd-year French students served as the rhythm-similar group; and 6 2nd-year German students as the rhythm-divergent group. All produced French, German, and Indonesian sentences in a repetition task with native speaker prompts. Listeners then rated the similarity between their sentences and that of a native speaker. Interval-based rhythm metrics were also computed for the sentences. L2 groups were better at their L2 language than the control group based on the ratings and rhythm measures. They were also perceived as producing better L3 sentences than the control group. Overall, the results suggest that language learning may facilitate subsequent language learning; the effect is not limited to language transfer. [Work supported by NIH.]

Task Closings in L2 Text-Chat Interactions

Employing a CA-inspired methodological approach, this study investigates L2 learners' interactional competence for dyadic interaction via text chat. Fiftythree dyads of Japanese learners of English at three proficiency levels (high, mid, and low) participated in this study, where they worked on three discussion tasks in L2 English. The data were 97 participant-generated task closings, which were analyzed in terms of linguistic repertoire and sequence organizations of terminal exchanges between participants in a dyad, and summonsanswer sequences between participants and the researcher. The data showed that the participants recurrently implemented a sequence of soliciting and providing an agreement on the idea for task accomplishment to signal a forthcoming closing of task talk. The findings indicated that more proficient learners produced more extended sequences in conducting closing rituals. Some highproficiency learners explicitly mentioned, or interacted with, the researcher, a third party, to initiate task closing or reformulate crossed messages in closing the talk. These findings provide insights into online L2 interactional competence in text-based CMC media.

Technology-Mediated Writing: Exploring Incoming Graduate Students’ L2 Writing Strategies with Activity Theory

Abstract Despite the sizable body of research investigating L2 learners’ technology use and/or digital composition practices, scholars have noted that such studies have been predominately researcher-led intervention studies as opposed to descriptive, qualitative accounts that investigate learner-initiated technology use. To better understand existing learner practices surrounding digital composition, this study uses a case study design to explore two, Chinese L2 English writers as they compose assignments during their first semesters as doctoral students in an Applied Linguistics and Teacher Education program, respectively. An Activity Theory (Engestrom, 1987, 1999) framework is utilized to investigate students’ writing strategies in general, but particular emphasis is given to writers’ personal, artifact/tool-mediated uses of technology to assist in their writing. Data sources consist of: artifacts such as course syllabi and students’ writings; process logs; screen-recordings of students’ real-time writing; and also, semi-structured interviews and stimulated recalls. Findings show that students’ writing processes were influenced by numerous factors, which were rule-, community-, and artifact-mediated. The artifact-mediated strategies are discussed in relation to three categories that emerged from the data, including: (1) multimodal strategies; (2) tool-mediated strategies for content development; and (3) tool-mediated strategies for language development. Pedagogical implications of writerso artifact-mediated strategies involving technological tools are discussed.

Japanese Pronoun Acquisition by L1 English Adults: Further Evidence from a Coreference Judgment Task

This paper presents the results of a study investigating L2 learners’ interpretations of Japanese overt and empty pronouns in a coreference judgment task. The results show counterevidence to Kanno’s (1997, 1998) claim that learners at an early stage of language study obey the Overt Pronoun Constraint (Montalbetti, 1984), Furthermore, it supports evidence by Masumoto (2008), Pimentel and Nakayama (2012a) showing that learners at the early levels of Japanese learning do not show a knowledge of the constraint, but that this knowledge is acquired by the time they reach an advanced level of study.

The Effect of Narrow Reading on L2 Learners’ Perceptions

The study investigated L2 learners’ perceptions of narrow reading. Thirty-two students finished four sets of graded readers organized by the same author with the same genre and same title, or random texts. After finishing each set of three graded readers, the students answered an eight-item questionnaire and wrote their reading feedback. Linear mixed effect models were used to analyse the data gathered from the questionnaire, taking the participants as the random effect variable, and four forms of text organization, reading time order, language proficiency, and the reading text sequence as fixed effect variables. The two 10-week treatments revealed that text organization and language proficiency have significant effects on the students’ perceptions, while reading time order and text sequences do not. Students’ written feedback indicated that all texts were interesting except the texts of the same titles which were boring for having to be read three times. Students’ written feedback provided valuable information for selecting reading texts. Implications of the study are discussed.

Investigating L2 Learners and Native Speakers’ Intuition of Word Frequency

The study attempted to examine the usefulness of non-native learners’(NNS) subjective frequency estimates as a measure of part of second language...

Investigating L2 Learners’ Writing Self-efficacy as a Complex Dynamic System

There has been a growing interest in SLA in studying second language (L2) writing development and change from a complex perspective, taking into consideration the full combination of learning processes, learners and contexts of learning. Thus, the research reported here applies a Dynamic Systems Theory (DST) approach to investigate L2 writers’ sense of self-efficacy. Although self-efficacy is usually viewed as task-specific, and therefore measured in relation to specific situations, such an approach tends to lead to the production of cross-sectional research looking at one time and one context only. This study moves instead to consider L2 writing self-efficacy as a complex dynamic system that evolves in response to the environment as well as internal re-organisation. Changes in L2 learners’ writing self-efficacy were traced over a six-week period through the use of writing self-efficacy questionnaires and introspective journals. Results suggest that L2 writing self-efficacy is best perceived as a dynamic, rather than a fixed, construct, and as complex rather than one-dimensional. Students’ perception of their abilities to write is changeable, decentralised, open to influences from the environment and from other external factors, displays non-linear development and tends to settle down in attractor states.

Can learners use morphosyntactic cues to facilitate processing? Evidence from a study of gender agreement in Hindi

ABSTRACTThis study investigates L2 learners’ ability to use morphosyntactic gender as a predictive cue during the processing of Hindi agreement dependencies. Nine L2 learners of low-intermediate proficiency and nine highly proficient multilingual speakers who consider Hindi one of their dominant languages were tested using a speeded picture-selection task. Results indicate that both L2 learners and multilingual speakers of Hindi used gender information to rapidly facilitate access to a target noun during processing, although because the facilitative effects were at the target noun, rather than preceding it, these facilitative effects do not provide unambiguous evidence for prediction. Participants’ processing speed in a control condition was also correlated with sensitivity to the gender cue, which is in line with accounts that posit that the ability to use linguistic cues during processing is modulated by individual differences.

Picking up polysemous phrasal verbs: How many do learners know and what facilitates this knowledge?

Abstract This study investigates L2 learners' knowledge of highly frequent polysemous phrasal verbs in English, and the effect of a number of factors on this knowledge. 128 students on BA English/TEFL courses were recruited to take a productive test in the form of a gap-fill task. The results show that only 40% of phrasal verb meaning senses were known on average, with the chances of knowing all the different meaning senses of each phrasal verb tested being quite low at only around 20%. The factors of semantic opacity, previous L2 instruction, immersion in L2 environment, and year of BA study did not have any effect on knowledge. Conversely, corpus frequency was found to predict knowledge, along with time spent reading per week, and time spent social networking per week. No relationship was found between phrasal verb knowledge and the hours spent listening to music and watching films in English. The study confirms that phrasal verbs are a problematic feature of English vocabulary for many learners, and consequently deserve more attention – either via instructed contexts or outside the classroom in L2 language engagement.

Learners’ Self-evaluation of their ESL Writing Skill after an Intensive English Program in a Malaysian University

The study investigated L2 learners’ self-evaluation of their writing skill, having completed an Intensive English Program (IEP), which was offered by a private university in Malaysia. The focus was on three different aspects of the students’ writing skill, including lexicon, morphology and syntax. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were used. The data were collected through interviews and a questionnaire. To find out their areas of L2 writing difficulty a group of undergraduate international students (n = 30) in a private university in Malaysia responded to the questionnaire while 4 students were interviewed. The qualitative results indicated that the majority of the students perceived themselves as able to produce correct sentence structures in English language. Overall, the qualitative results illustrated the challenges faced by these students regarding L2 writing skill after completing the course. Additionally, based on the quantitative results, on average the students were at a moderate level regarding the three aspects of their L2 writing skill. Further in-depth research is required before findings of the study can be generalized. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n5s1p22

The role of input flood and input enhancement in EFL learners' acquisition of collocations

The study investigated L2 learners' acquisition of verb‐noun and adjective‐noun collocations following two kinds of instruction: input flood only and input flood plus input enhancement (in the form of underlining). L1 Polish learners of English as a foreign language were exposed to infrequent collocations embedded in stories that were read during three consecutive weeks. Their collocational competence was subsequently assessed in a battery of delayed tests tapping into productive and receptive levels of collocational mastery. Input flood plus input enhancement resulted in the acquisition of collocations but only at the level of form recall and form recognition. The findings are discussed with reference to the complexity of acquiring and measuring L2 collocational knowledge. The article concludes with implications for instructed second language acquisition.