Second Language Research Articles

The Effects of Orthographies, Stress and Consonantal Manners on Syllabification and Acoustic Durations of Intervocalic Consonants with Singleton and Geminate Graphemes by Thai L2 Speakers of English

The Effects of Orthographies, Stress and Consonantal Manners on Syllabification and Acoustic Durations of Intervocalic Consonants with Singleton and Geminate Graphemes by Thai L2 Speakers of English

Examining the impact of flipped learning on second language development: A quasi-experiment in higher education

This article reports on a study that examined the impact of a flipped English as a Foreign Language (EFL) course on college students’ second language (L2) development. Specifically, an 18-week quasi-experiment was administered in a general English course at a Chinese university, with a total of 612 first-year students randomly assigned to the treatment (n = 137) and control (n = 475) groups. Using the propensity score matching and difference-in-differences (PSM-DID) model, we analyzed norm scores on high-stakes assessments administered on the entry and completion of the intervention. The results revealed a causal link between flipped learning (FL) and improved L2 language performance though the impact of FL had substantial heterogeneity as greater gains were found in reading than in writing and listening. Quantile regression analysis suggested the effectiveness of FL varied greatly by proficiency level in that students in the lowest quantiles achieved high improvement in reading and listening but moderate improvement in writing. We discuss the pedagogical implications of these findings to college L2 flipped instruction and recommend that future research be conducted in a more rigorous experimental design to obtain robust and accurate estimates of the effectiveness of FL.

Content and language integrated pedagogy and language learning motivation in a socioeconomically marginalized school context

AbstractWithin school contexts that are socioeconomically marginalized, complex factors often lead to languages learning being devalued in ways which adversely impact students' potential, particularly their motivation to learn an additional language (L2). This paper examines the role of Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) in shaping students' L2 learning motivation within a school setting that is socioeconomically marginalized, and how it may offer a solution to this challenge. Drawing on Dörnyei's (2005) theory of the L2 Motivational Self System, this study analyzes qualitative data from a Japanese/Science CLIL course taught in one such Australian secondary school setting. Although the findings confirm previous research on CLIL's generally positive influence on student motivation, it also identifies instances of a negative impact with a certain student group. The paper concludes with the implication of CLIL‐based approaches for languages provision in challenging school contexts.

Queerying the Queensland senior English prescribed text list

AbstractThis paper presents an analysis of the prescribed text list for senior school English (including English as an Additional Language or Dialect, EAL/D) in Queensland, Australia. Queer understandings about the normalization of cisgender and heterosexuality provide a framework to analyze prescribed texts for adolescent learners. Hetero‐cisgender norms are perpetuated through overrepresentation in endorsed texts. Representations of queer subjectivities or themes in the most highly promoted texts, those appearing on the examination list, are infrequent and minor. Reflexive justice thinking acknowledges the critique of merely identifying “who is missing” in the literature and extends the discussion to consider the complexities of the social, cultural, and political contexts that influence who gets to decide.

Functional TAKE as Inchoative and Mirative Marker in Bulgarian Multiple Agreement Constructions

This paper is an attempt to fill in a gap in the literature on the two-verb periphrases with the functional verb TAKE in Bulgarian. This goal is achieved by presenting the results of an online pilot study on the acceptability of verbal periphrases featuring functional vzemam ‘take’ in Bulgarian and by providing a first analysis of the syntax and semantics of such constructions. The study involved an acceptability judgment task of present and past sentences containing three periphrases of the type TAKE + connector + V2: two Multiple Agreement Constructions featuring either the connector da (labeled TAKE daMAC) or the connector če (TAKE čeMAC) and a Pseudo-Coordination with the connector i ‘and’ (iPseCo). This completely anonymous study was completed by 241 self-reported Bulgarian L1 speakers (167 F; 72 M) with an age ranging from 18 to 77 (M = 43.32; SD = 12.61), roughly from all parts of Bulgaria. The results show that TAKE daMAC and čeMAC are uniformly available to all the speakers, who mainly admit them in past contexts; iPseCo is instead less accepted overall, but surfaces in both present and past contexts. Moreover, the three constructions seem to be quite consistently admitted in all parts of Bulgaria, as no significant differences in the distribution of judgments were found. TAKE daMAC has an inchoative reading, while TAKE čeMAC is interpreted as mirative. No clear semantic specialization emerges for iPseCo. Structurally, TAKE MACs diverge from canonical MACs in that the former are monoclausal. However, the lexical V2 in TAKE daMAC always surfaces in the present tense, while TAKE čeMAC and iPseCo feature TAM sharing between V1 and V2.

The use of project pedagogy in teletandem sessions

This article describes an online language learning context in which teletandem sessions (Telles, 2009) have been integrated into the syllabus of a Modern Languages Degree Course at the Universidade Federal de Goiás (UFG), Brazil, as an internationalization at home action. In the second semester of 2021, the subject “Aprendizaje de Portugués y Español en Teletandem” was offered with the participation of ten Brazilian students who were majoring in Spanish at the UFG, nine Argentine students from different undergraduate courses from the Universidad de Cuyo, and one undergraduate student from the Universidad de Buenos Aires. In this virtual learning context, the Brazilians could teach Portuguese to the Argentinians and improve their fluency in Spanish through interactions with them. They also had to develop a project about a chosen theme and work on it, considering the Brazilian and Argentine contexts. The data for this case study (Johnson, 1992) was obtained through video recordings of the interviews of two pairs of students. The results show that the participants could learn an additional language, improve their intercultural skills, and talk about real-world problems in Brazil and Argentina, like the lack of water in some cities, the devaluation of women’s work, etc. The students’ reflections on these topics made them more socially aware of living in a more harmonious world where diversity is highly valued.

Queerly Rural, Rurally Queer

Recently, the number of books featuring both queer and rural youth experiences has increased (Kedley et al., 2022), including Jamison’s (2021) Hillbilly Queer: A Memoir. The present study examined how this book functions as a memoir about young adult experiences and analyzed the possibilities it offers rural queer students as well as rural and/or queer educators. Through a queer autoethnographic literary analysis, the authors draw upon their experiences as once closeted rural queer youth and former openly queer secondary English language arts educators teaching in rural and rural-serving public schools. This study found important benefits for rural queer adolescents and significant implications for the English language arts classroom.

An Examination of the Use of Oral Communication Strategies by Second-Year University Undergraduate Students in Intensive Speaking Class

For many university-level EFL students, speaking in a second language can be quite a challenge. It often involves grappling with the complexities of the L2 language. To help tackle these hurdles and boost students' speaking confidence, Oral Communication Strategies can be quite beneficial. In this research, we used a mixed-method approach, which included surveys via questionnaires and in-depth interviews. We received responses from 110 completed questionnaires and gained further data by interviewing 10 students. The findings revealed that students tend to rely on Oral Communication Strategies when they face difficulties in communicating in a second language. They often resort to such strategies, such as using gestures, facial expressions, miming, or sound imitation, especially when they struggle to explain a vocabulary item. These results are anticipated to be a valuable resource for educators and practitioners, assisting them in tailoring the curriculum and providing a more enriching learning experience for students learning a second language. The study's findings can help language learners and educators in higher education by using oral communication strategies to create effective learning environments for improved communication.

A Novel Approach for the Analysis of Ship Pollution Accidents Using Knowledge Graph

Ship pollution accidents can cause serious harm to marine ecosystems and economic development. This study proposes a ship pollution accident analysis method based on a knowledge graph to solve the problem that complex accident information is challenging to present clearly. Based on the information of 411 ship pollution accidents along the coast of China, the Word2vec’s word vector models, BERT–BiLSTM–CRF model and BiLSTM–CRF model, were applied to extract entities and relations, and the Neo4j graph database was used for knowledge graph data storage and visualization. Furthermore, the case information retrieval and cause correlation of ship pollution accidents were analyzed by a knowledge graph. This method established 3928 valid entities and 5793 valid relationships, and the extraction accuracy of the entities and relationships was 79.45% and 82.47%, respectively. In addition, through visualization and Cypher language queries, we can clearly understand the logical relationship between accidents and causes and quickly retrieve relevant information. Using the centrality algorithm, we can analyze the degree of influence between accident causes and put forward targeted measures based on the relevant causes, which will help improve accident prevention and emergency response capabilities and strengthen marine environmental protection.

Speech Genre of Consolation in the Context of Foreign Language Learning at a Medical University

Empathy, which involves supporting the client, is a mandatory component of doctor-client communication. Sticking to the tactics of consolation in communication allows achieving greater effectiveness of the clinical activity of a medical worker. Since medical discourse as a sample of institutional discourse is characterized by a certain constant pattern, it has been proven that in the context of learning a foreign language it is appropriate to use a genre approach. The involvement of the genre approach in linguistic didactics is also explained by the dependence of the number of speech genres mastered by a foreigner and his level of formation of the secondary language personality. It is proved that consolation is a speech genre. The choice of film discourse for the study is justified by the specificity of the genre and the fact that it is a sample of authentic texts, the effectiveness of the auditory and visual channels of information perception. The "signals" of the use of the consolation genre, vocabulary and grammatical features are described. The verbal means of the main tactics within the secondary genre of consolation are listed. Methods of organizing the teaching of the Ukrainian language according to the genre approach are proposed.

A new look at language mindset, achievement goals and L2 emotions: the case of Chinese university students

ABSTRACT Drawing on the Language Mindset Meaning System (LMMS) framework, the study investigated how language mindsets (growth vs. fixed) influence the adoption of the four achievement goals, and how they subsequently shape second/foreign language (L2) learners’ emotions (i.e. enjoyment and anxiety) in the process of learning English as a foreign language (EFL) in China. A total of 413 Chinese university students participated in a questionnaire survey. Path analyses showed that a growth language mindset had a strong positive impact on enjoyment and a moderate negative impact on anxiety. Conversely, a fixed language mindset had a moderate positive effect on anxiety. Results also showed that mastery-approach, mastery-avoidance and performance-avoidance goals mediated the relationship between language mindsets and the two L2 emotions. These findings offer profound insights into the intricate web of relationships among language mindsets, achievement goals and L2 emotions, instantiating the LMMS framework in the specific EFL context. These insights hold practical implications for educational practitioners seeking to enhance learners’ emotional well-being.

Challenges and Strategies in Teaching Mandarin Chinese Tones

Tone instruction is an integral component of Chinese as an additional language (CAL) education. The present study aimed to explore the challenges and strategies of teaching of Mandarin Chinese tones in the multilingual and multicultural context of Macau SAR, China. Employing a qualitative methodology, this study drew on multiple data sources (e.g. classroom observations and interviews) of five participants. It revealed various challenges in teaching Mandarin Chinese tones, such as the backgrounds of CAL learners, the teaching context, and the sociocultural environment. At the same time, the teacher participants employed a range of strategies that included cognitive, emotional, and behavioural aspects to address these challenges. This study not only enriches our understanding of the complexities of Mandarin Chinese tones teaching but also provides practical implications for CAL teachers in teaching Mandarin Chinese tones within complex teaching contexts.

Insights into students’ experiences of social inclusion and exclusion during attending language pull-out classes

ABSTRACT A crucial aspect of the discourse of inclusion revolves around the concept of language pull-out classes and their potential to hinder inclusion. This paper addresses this issue by engaging with the voices of the addressees of German language support measures, namely multilingual students. Hence, the experiences of 49 primary school students (27 girls; 22 boys; age = 6–11) enrolled in segregated German language support classes (GLSC) were examined. Therefore, face-to-face interviews were conducted, employing a semi-structured interview guideline. Results indicated that the spatial and social segregation of students has negative effects on their social inclusion on several levels. E.g. it minimises opportunities for students to form stable friendships in mainstream classes. Additionally, findings revealed that students find strategies to cope with their placement in additive language support classes. To feel a sense of belonging students denied the presence of their further languages when interacting with friends or rationalised attending a GLSC as beneficial for them. However, these strategies reflect those inequities.

Evidence-Based Holistic Approach to Supporting International Students’ English Language Proficiency Needs and Wellbeing: The Impact of Personalized Autonomous Learning

Abstract This study was conducted to investigate more efficient ways to support international students at the authors’ university, where a significant proportion of students speak English as an Additional Language (EAL). Recognizing limited success in holistic language development, the study assessed the impacts of a self-directed learning English course called Personalized English Language Enhancement (PELE) built from a Personalized Autonomous model of learning. Building on prior research that demonstrated the pedagogical efficacy of PELE (Kim 2023), the current study compared results from EAL students who did and did not take the course and analysed the relationships between students’ English self-efficacy and well-being. Results showed PELE benefitted students in various areas, often significantly more than non-PELE students. Improvements extended beyond language proficiency to social and self-directed learning skills and overall well-being. This study emphasizes a shift from treating language proficiency as a singular challenge to equipping students with multifaceted tools for enriched English learning, autonomy, and resilience.

Predictive Effects of English Classroom Anxiety and Motivation on Chinese Undergraduate EFL Learners’ English Achievement

Background: Second language (L2) learning is complex, multifaceted, and greatly influenced by various factors, of which individual factors like anxiety and motivation are important ones. Though anxiety and motivation have been shown to be strongly correlated with each other and interact with other variables to collaboratively affect L2 learning, mixed findings have been revealed, demonstrating the complexity of the interrelationship between L2 anxiety and motivation and their interactive effects on L2 learning. Purpose: Guided by the self-determination theory, this study aimed to explore the levels of and the relationship between English classroom anxiety and motivation as well as their predictive effects on Chinese undergraduate EFL (English as a foreign language) learners’ English achievement. Method: The participants were 571 Chinese university students who answered an 8-item English Classroom Anxiety Scale, a 35-item English Learning Motivation Scale, and a 5-item Demographic Information Questionnaire. They also reported their scores in tests that they had recently taken and self-rated their overall English proficiency as indicators of their English achievement. Results: The study revealed the following major findings: (a) the participants had a small to moderate level of English classroom anxiety, and a medium level of intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, personal goals and expectancy/control in English learning, (b) English classroom anxiety was significantly negatively correlated with all motivation scales, (c) English classroom anxiety was not only significantly negatively related to but negatively predicted the students’ English achievement, and (d) significantly positive correlations existed between English learning motivation and English achievement. Of different motivation dimensions, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation positively predicted the latter. Conclusion: The findings of this study further demonstrate the importance of anxiety and motivation in L2 learning and the need to explore anxiety-reduction strategies, increase students’ intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, and strengthen their expectancy in L2 teaching and learning, thus contributing to the understanding of foreign language anxiety and L2 motivation and enriching the current literature on the two issues.

A Brief Analysis of the Cultural and Social Phenomenon of Internet Memes in the Context of Media Convergence

As a major branch of network buzzwords, "meme culture" refers to the cultural phenomenon that the majority of netizen groups in the network field repeatedly quote and use events that are commonly agreed upon and have a certain special meaning, so as to achieve the expected funny effect and cause certain social resonance. In the era of media convergence, the endless emergence of network buzzwords and "meme culture" social phenomenon is overwhelming, these secondary language expression has gradually integrated into the three-dimensional real life, the language and writing expression ability of modern people is being reshaped, so these network meme culture has become the cultural sign of the times. Therefore, this paper tries to analyze the rise and development of network terrier culture under the context of media integration, as well as the reasons for the emergence of the social phenomenon of network meme culture, its social impacts and social mentality, etc. The aim is to help people better deal with this linguistic phenomenon in their lives, to treat it rationally and to guide it with goodwill, to realize the benign development of network meme culture, and to put forward effective suggestions in line with the requirements of the development of the times.

“In Banmal I Can Just Let My Freak Flag Fly”: Authenticity and Second Language Identity in Korean (Non-)Honorifics

ABSTRACT Honorifics are one of the most difficult aspects of Korean as a foreign language (KFL). Part of this difficulty stems from their highly cultural and indexical nature. Previous studies have shown that while these forms are difficult to acquire, second language (L2) Korean speakers use them in intentional and individual ways. However, studies have not shown how L2 speakers’ use of honorific and non-honorific language is, or is not, authentic to them. This study sought to analyze the relationship between authenticity and L2 identity through L2 Korean speakers’ use of honorific and non-honorific language. Through semi-structured interviews with 10 intermediate and advanced L2 Korean speakers, the results of this study reveal that identity is a mediating factor in authentic (non-)honorific language use. Based on participants’ identities, honorific forms were at times authentic and inauthentic whereas non-honorific forms were only described as authentic.

Does it make a difference? COVID-19 and its effect on a factor structure of SRL in an EFL online context

Self-regulated learning (SRL) is considered an important skill for not only academic achievement, but also second language (L2) development. Proficient L2 speakers often display more developed SRL skills than novices, and it has been shown that SRL instruction can improve L2 learning results. In Japan, the context of this paper, little research had been done on SRL in online L2 learning environments prior to the emergency remote teaching (ERT) period during COVID-19, and the effects of that period are still forthcoming. This study aims to fill the gap by conducting a factor analysis of the SRL of 498 EFL learners across 12 Japanese universities at the end of the first year of ERT in 2021. The results from exploratory factor analysis (EFA) indicated that four factors (goal setting, task strategies, environmental structuring, and classmate communication) were important with classmate communication being a new combined factor of help seeking and self-evaluation. Additional analysis based on prior online learning experience indicated that experience played a role in SRL in online L2 learning contexts. These findings suggest that instruction of SRL and carefully cultivated classroom environments could be beneficial for online L2 learning success.

Colonial acts in Norwegian EAL textbooks – Relations between coloniser and colonised

This article discusses representations of colonial acts and the relationship between coloniser and colonised in EAL (English as an Additional Language) textbooks produced for grades 5–7 in Norwegian schools. Multimodal and critical discourse analyses are used to analyse the textbook series. We present five extracts from these textbooks that exemplify findings common to all the textbook series. Findings show that tokenism, exclusion and marginalisation are still common in textbooks. Implications for teachers are discussed, together with the need for them to gain greater critical awareness of teaching materials and to develop their own knowledge of colonialism, and its effects.

L1–L2 Influence in Intonation: A Case of Russophone Immigrants in Brazil

This paper is devoted to the features of sentence prosody (intonation) in Brazilian Portuguese spoken by immigrants whose first language is Russian, and explores the consequences that L1–L2 influence in intonation may have for communication. The study addressed four research questions: (1) Do Brazilian Portuguese L2 speakers with Russian L1 always succeed in producing the correct utterance type? (2) Can L1–L2 influence lead to misunderstanding of connotations? (3) Is it possible that sometimes L1–L2 influence leads to being perceived as too emotional or not emotional enough? (4) Can L1–L2 influence in intonation be a significant factor in the perception of accent? In a perceptual experiment, productions of four target utterances in Brazilian Portuguese by Russian L1 and Brazilian Portuguese L1 speakers were evaluated by 124 Brazilian listeners in terms of sentence type, possible connotations, accent and arousal. The target utterances included three questions of different types and an exclamation. The findings revealed that the speaker’s L1 influenced the perception of prosodic meanings by Brazilian listeners. In some cases, interference from Russian melodic contours caused the incorrect identification of the sentence type in Brazilian Portuguese. However, even when sentence type was perceived correctly, differences could be found regarding the perception of arousal or accent.