Metalinguistic Explanation Research Articles

Metalinguistic explanations and their impact on incidental grammar acquisition: An eye-movement study

Recent research highlights the value of metalinguistic explanations in facilitating second language (L2) grammar acquisition. Nevertheless, a notable research gap persists regarding how these explanations influence incidental grammar acquisition and their impact on overall reading processes and comprehension. Furthermore, whether the potentially positive effects of metalinguistic explanations transfer to the acquisition of subsequent constructions without explicit guidance is an unexplored domain. This study addresses these research gaps by recruiting 42 Korean undergraduate students and assigning them to the metalinguistic or baseline groups. The metalinguistic group read an English text supplemented with bottom-margin metalinguistic explanations, which elucidated the first half of the target grammar (without explanations for the second half), whereas the baseline group read the same text without explanations. This study used eye-tracking technology to register participants’ eye movements during reading, followed by an announced reading comprehension test and an unannounced error correction test. Statistical analyses using linear mixed-effects models (LMMs) and t-tests revealed that metalinguistic explanations significantly enhanced incidental grammar acquisition in L2 learners without compromising overall reading processes and comprehension. However, the benefits of metalinguistic explanations in the metalinguistic group failed to extend to the incidental learning of other unexplained constructions.

Task-specific writing anxiety and self-efficacy are separate from general L2 writing anxiety and self-efficacy and they have differential associations with the effects of written corrective feedback in pre-task and within-task planning

This study examines the validity of task-specific anxiety and self-efficacy and the joint effects of task-specific and general second language (L2) writing anxiety and self-efficacy on learning gains resulting from different task conditions formed based on two types of written corrective feedback and two types of task planning. 115 high school EFL learners in South Korea were divided into two groups and received either direct correction or metalinguistic feedback on their wrong use of English articles and past tense in their written narratives. After receiving feedback, each of the two large groups was further divided into three subgroups, each performing a second writing task under three conditions: pre-task planning, within-task planning, and no planning. The learners responded to questionnaires that aimed to measure task-specific and L2 general anxiety and self-efficacy. The results demonstrated that task-specific anxiety and self-efficacy were distinct from general L2 writing anxiety and self-efficacy and that they played different roles in L2 development under the different treatment conditions. Specifically, general L2 writing anxiety was a negative predictor of learning gains regardless of learning condition; task-specific anxiety showed a positive effect in metalinguistic explanation + within-task planning but a negative effect in all other task conditions; neither task-specific nor general L2 self-efficacy was a significant predictor of treatment effects. This study demonstrates the importance of investigating task-specific individual difference variables and shows the differential associations between general and task-specific individual difference variables on one hand and different types of task-based instruction on the other.

Can we train young EFL learners to ‘notice the gap’? Exploring the relationship between metalinguistic awareness, grammar learning and the use of metalinguistic explanations in a dictogloss task

Abstract In this pilot study we investigated whether metalinguistic explanations (ME) could help young learners (YL) boost their metalinguistic awareness (MA) and, in turn, improve their accuracy at the time of using two grammatical features. Although previous research has established a positive correlation between MA, metalinguistic knowledge (MK) and better learning outcomes in a foreign language (FL), few interventional studies have been conducted in this regard. Using a pretest/post-test design, an intact classroom (N = 20) of L1 Spanish 10-year-old students of English as a FL (EFL) was divided into an experimental and a control group. First, both groups completed an individual pen-and-paper MA test. Then, they were paired up according to their proficiency level and asked to carry out a dictogloss task, in which they had to negotiate their final written output. Before the post-test phase, the experimental group was asked to engage with a learning sequence of ME concerning two problematic English grammatical features: third person –s and his/her. These explanations also included the definitions of metalinguistic terminology. Additionally, an individual three-step verbal protocol was carried out after the post-tests to triangulate collaborative data. The results showed a moderate effect of the treatment in MA scores. Likewise, ME had a large effect on the use of third person –s during the interaction, as well as a moderate effect on the accurate use of his/her. Also, the treatment group dyads produced significantly more episodes of noticing during the post-test task and at a higher resolution rate than during the pretest stage. These findings support the use of explicit learning devices such as ME with YL of EFL, as they seem to promote MA and increase their accuracy even in input-limited learning conditions.

The associations between individual differences in language aptitude and working memory, and the effectiveness of input and output based instruction

Despite previous research having demonstrated the comparative effects of processing instruction and output-based instruction, further investigation is required to examine the relationships between individual differences in cognitive abilities and these instructional types. This study investigated the associations among three instructional approaches and learners’ language aptitude and working memory in acquiring four Chinese classifiers. Eighty-six second language (L2) Chinese learners from one Chinese university were divided into three experimental groups – processing instruction (PI), meaning-based output instruction (MOI), combined instruction (CI) – and a control group. Tests measuring treatment effects included an untimed grammatical judgment test and an oral elicited imitation test. The LLAMA test and a counting span task were employed to assess learners’ language aptitude and working memory respectively. Multiple regression analysis suggested that phonetic coding ability was significantly predictive of the effects of PI and CI groups. Language analytic ability and working memory were not predictive of the effects of any experimental groups. The findings suggest that providing metalinguistic explanations followed by output-based language activities may mitigate learners’ cognitive differences in language analytic ability and working memory.

Assessing the Impact of Written Corrective Feedback Strategies on the Writing Proficiency of Senior High School Students

Written corrective feedback (WCF) in enhancing writing proficiency has been the subject of numerous studies, but few studies have examined students' perceptions about the value of feedback on their written errors. This study aims to investigate the effects of direct WCF, indirect WCF, and metalinguistic explanation on the past simple tense acquisition of senior high school learners in Pakistan. Much research has been conducted involving adults, while little has been done to consider senior high school students in this regard. This study has been aimed to explore the effects of direct WCF, indirect WCF and metalinguistic explanation on the writing performance of senior high school students in Pakistan. Students were divided into four groups, each with one type of feedback, including group four as the control group with no feedback. All four groups had written narration on a given picture and were treated by mentioned feedback. After that, results were compared to look for effective feedback type. After writing task, a survey and interview were conducted to explore students’ perceptions about WCF and WCF strategies. The study found that learners want feedback from their teachers and prefer direct feedback and Metalinguistic explanation. This research has been planned to help learners in their early stage through WCF learn a second language and form a strong linguistic base that will help them construct grammatically correct sentences and compositions.

Choosing between Cyrillic and Latin for linguistic citizenship in contemporary Serbia

Abstract Both the Cyrillic and Latin scripts are routinely used for writing in Serbian. In existing ideological discourses, using Cyrillic is associated by some with Serbian ethnic authenticity and loyalty to nationhood, but by others with conservatism, Russian-leaning politics and dangerous ethnonationalism. For some, using Latin is associated with cosmopolitanism and a western-leaning internationalisation, but for others with an assault on Serbian heritage, values and tradition. In this context, with which script do Serbians today most closely affiliate and does established ideological discourse actually inform script choices? By seeing this affiliation as linguistic citizenship, the paper analyses survey data and metalinguistic explanations about which script Serbians choose to represent their own names as the most personal of identities. The data show that while some simply write their name in either script depending on habit, younger Serbians, and Serbians outside metropolitan areas, seemingly bias Cyrillic for ethnonationalist reasons as discourse predicts. However, especially revealing is that linguistic citizenship among older Serbians is sooner mediated by lingering notions of Yugoslavia and Serbo-Croatian as country and language that no longer exist but once indexed ideals of equality and harmony in the region.

Effectiveness of teachers' direct and indirect written corrective feedback provision strategies on enhancing students’ writing achievement: Ethiopian university entrants in focus

Written corrective feedback (hereafter WCF) has gained great emphasis from a considerable number of studies in second language (L2) writing history; however, an increasing number of previous studies have stressed its importance in helping learners develop their L2 writing abilities there are unresolved controversies regarding the significance and efficacy of various forms of written corrective feedback. Thus, this study was initiated to see the effects of teachers' written corrective feedback on university-entrant students' English language writing achievement. A quasi-experimental research design involving a test as a data-gathering tool was used. To that end, three intact freshman classes were selected and assigned into two experimental groups and one comparison group from a university in northwest Ethiopia. Test scores from self-descriptive paragraph writing were analyzed using a one-way ANCOVA, and the results showed that WCF has an influential role in improving university entrat learners' writing performance. Therefore, the findings from the study showed that both experimental groups performed better than the participants in the control group, indicating that both WCF provision strategies play vital roles in enhancing English language learners' writing performance as university entrants. Nevertheless, the study's findings revealed that statistically significant improvements in the writing proficiency of the study participants in both experimental groups were found the results confirmed that learners who received direct WCF along with metalinguistic explanations performed better than their peers in the indirect group who received indirect WCF. Consequently, it can be concluded that both direct and indirect WCF are crucial pedagogical strategies in improving learners' writing abilities, even though it was still found that direct WCF with a metalinguistic explanation was the most effective strategy in assisting EFL university entrants in improving their writing skills.

Online teacher written corrective feedback outside of class time: (In)effectiveness and task engagement

This study examines a common pedagogical approach whereby students view teacher feedback outside of class time. Facilitated through Moodle, it aimed to investigate not only the effect of written corrective feedback (WCF) on learning outcomes, but importantly, how frequently students review the feedback they receive. The study was conducted at a Japanese Women’s University in Tokyo (age: M = 19.6, SD = 0.6). Over a 15-week semester, students were required to write weekly homework assignments. These were then marked by the researcher and returned via Moodle, with students encouraged to read their feedback before attempting the next assignment. In line with existing research in the field, a no-WCF control group was compared against treatment groups that received indirect WCF with meta-linguistic explanations. Further to this, using an online system such as Moodle allowed the provision of linked grammar resource pages through basic HTML code embedded within the WCF itself. At the end of the semester student texts were analysed to measure improvement. When pre-test and post-tests were compared there were no significant differences within groups or between groups on measures of fluency and accuracy. However, what sets this study apart from others that have investigated student engagement, is the use of online activity logs which in combination with survey data allowed the investigation of actual study habits rather than merely those that are self-reported. The results of which give better insight and valid explanations for the outcomes of the study and call into question the efficacy of take-home feedback.

Exploring learner attention and processing in second language writing: The role of eye-tracking and written corrective feedback

This paper highlights the importance of the timing of feedback and distinguishing between instruction and feedback in the context of written corrective feedback (WCF) for second language (L2) learners. It proposes the integration of eye-tracking and qualitative data collection methods to assess learner attention and WCF processing. The reviewed eye-tracking studies demonstrate the potential of this approach, revealing correlations between learners’ noticing and subsequent writing improvements. However, the limited studies utilizing eye-tracking in this area calls for further research to explore the benefits of metalinguistic explanations provided before or after writing production. Additionally, the paper emphasizes the need to address the dominance of quantitative approaches in WCF literature and encourages the combination of eye-tracking with qualitative data sources to broaden our understanding of revision as negotiation. It suggests investigating the impact of different feedback modes and languages, especially in younger L2 writers and diverse writing systems. Moreover, the paper advocates for ecologically valid experiments that involve eye-tracking during revision with feedback present, considering the various types of feedback and their influence on learners’ noticing and subsequent writing improvements. Addressing these concerns will contribute to a comprehensive understanding of WCF, noticing and processing feedback, L2 writing production, and effective pedagogical practices.

Between Collocation and Colligation: An Experiment in Collaborative Lexicography

Abstract This paper describes a protocol for using dictionaries in classroom activities to support language learning and develop language awareness (Nied Curcio 2022). A group of undergraduate foreign language students was guided through the process of compiling a multilingual Covid-19 dictionary, which provides collocational data to support language production and improve fluency in an L2. The activities were an integral part of a BA course in Lexicology and Lexicography. Lexonomy was used as the project editing tool. The compilation process not only shed light on the students’ challenges in basic language skills, such as syntactic analysis, but also highlighted the importance of refining the proposed teaching programme to include more detailed metalinguistic explanation and an augmented dictionary microstructure. Besides, the skills that emerged from the experiments conducted also provide valuable insights for research into dictionary use and the design of effective dictionaries.

The Effects of Direct Written Corrective Feedback and Metalinguistic Explanation on EFL Students’ Acquisition of Articles across Proficiency Level

The Effects of Direct Written Corrective Feedback and Metalinguistic Explanation on EFL Students’ Acquisition of Articles across Proficiency Level

The effects of various combinations of form-focused instruction techniques on the acquisition of English articles by second language learners of English

The current study investigated the extent to which second language (L2) learners of English benefitted from various combinations of form-focused instruction (FFI) techniques on the acquisition of English articles. Forty-six participants were randomly assigned to four conditions: input enhancement only ( n = 12); input enhancement and metalinguistic explanations ( n = 11); input enhancement, metalinguistic explanations, and practice ( n = 11); and a control condition ( n = 12). They each received six hours of online instruction on English articles according to their condition. The participants’ knowledge of articles was measured by four tasks (i.e. grammaticality judgment task, metalinguistic knowledge task, elicited imitation task, and picture-description task) in a pretest, an immediate posttest, and a delayed posttest. Results showed that the group receiving input enhancement and metalinguistic explanations exhibited clear and durable gains in the metalinguistic knowledge task. Furthermore, a subset of participants who benefitted the most from the instructional treatment revealed two common factors: a first language (L1) without an article system and a high rate of engagement during the online instruction. The findings suggest that metalinguistic explanations clearly contribute to explicit knowledge of articles and that learners’ L1 backgrounds may affect the extent to which FFI on English articles benefits them. The present study contributes meaningfully to the current understanding of the effects of FFI as well as the L2 acquisition of English articles.

Effects of Teachers’ Written Corrective Feedback on the Writing Achievement of First-Year Ethiopian University Students

An increasing number of studies have confirmed that written corrective feedback (hereafter WCF) is vital for improving learners’ L2 writing. However, many scholars could not agree whether this improvement was due to direct, indirect, or both forms of WCF. Thus, this study first investigated the role of WCF students’ writing achievement; it then investigated if there was a statistically significant difference in writing achievement between groups that received direct and indirect WCF forms. To this end, a quasi-experimental research design involving three intact first-year classes from a university found in northwest Ethiopia was used. Two experimental groups and one comparison group of learners were participants in this study. Test scores analyzed by analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) revealed that WCF has an influential role in enhancing learners’ writing performance. Moreover, this study showed that learners in the direct WCF accompanied by a metalinguistic explanation group outperformed their counterparts in the indirect WCF group in writing paragraphs. Based on the study’s findings, it is possible to conclude that the provision of WCF is vital in the Ethiopian context; moreover, learners could benefit more from using linguistic structures correctly if metalinguistic explanations accompany the provision of direct WCF.

한국어 교재에 나타난 높임법 연구: 경희대, 성균관대 고급 교재 담화 지문 분석을 중심으로

The purpose of this study is to examine the honorifics based on the discourse of Korean language textbooks. First, the explanation of hearer honorifics is exhaustively studied in Korean language textbooks. We have classified the honorific expression of speech level and examined the characteristics of the metalinguistic explanation about hearer honorifics in each textbook as well as find the grammatical mistakes. Second, the classification of discourse genres has been accomplished, such as conversation, colloquy, news, lecture, speech, narration, etc., and each has been divided into the speech level of hearer honorifics. Third, the shifts of speech level in hearer honorifics have been examined from the various points, such as the diverse existence case of ‘speaker and hearer

The Influence of Indirect Corrective Feedback on the Linguistic Accuracy of Adjectival Clauses in an EFL Context

The goal of this research was to find out which corrective feedback technique would be most effective in some EFL context. Concisely, we wanted to find out whether the feedback techniques commonly used in this context (namely indirect feedback and oral meta-linguistic explanation) were structure-, learner-, and task-dependent. We chose to experiment with all the functional uses of one linguistic structure, namely adjective clauses. Whereas the experimental group received two types of feedback (indirect coded written corrective feedback and oral meta-linguistic feedback), the control group received no corrective feedback at all on the targeted features. Findings showed that the experimental group’s linguistic accuracy in using adjectival clauses improved far better than that of the control group. However, this improvement, quite expectedly, declined gradually over the course of time; hence the experimental group’s linguistic accuracy was a little better on the immediate posttest than on the delayed post-test. Our argument was that a combination of indirect feedback and meta-linguistic explanation would be rewarding for adult learners with low-proficiency levels probably because such feedback techniques require them to exert maximum cognitive, especially when getting engaged in a problem-solving process.

A pontuação como janela para a consciência sintática

More than developing a study on punctuation, this paper intends to explore the uses of punctuation as a window to syntactic awareness or metasyntactic abilities. Different theoretical models identify several degrees of conscious access to linguistic knowledge and types of metalinguistic verbalizations. The analysis of canonical and deviant punctuation in adult academic writing contributes to the characterization of different degrees of syntactic awareness, corroborating some theoretical hypotheses under discussion in section 2. A case study is the methodological approach adopted to study undergraduate students’ punctuation. The analysis included four tasks: (i) written production, (ii) error correction task, (iii) metalinguistic explanation, and (iv) verbalized conceptions in a focus group. Results, presented in section 4, show a general dissociation between explicit knowledge of the punctuation rules and general success in its uses. Conclusions point to some clues for an academic writing pedagogy and a more complex concept of “syntactic awareness”, in which different degrees of controlled access and verbalization abilities must be considered.

Cognitive and contextual factors modulating grammar learning at older ages.

Second language learning has been shown more difficult for older than younger adults, however, the research trying to identify the sources of difficulty and possible modulating factors is scarce. Extrinsic (learning condition and complexity) and intrinsic factors (executive control) have been related to L2-grammar learning in younger adults. In the present study, we aim to assess whether extrinsic and intrinsic factors are also modulating grammar learning in older adults. We compared the learning performance of younger and older adults in a L2 learning task. 162 Spanish native-speakers (81 young) learnt Japañol (Japanese syntaxis and Spanish lexicon) in either an intentional (metalinguistic explanation) or an incidental (comprehension of sentences) context. The complexity of the sentences was also manipulated by introducing (or not) a subordinate clause. Individual differences in proactivity were measured with the AX-CPT task. After the learning phase, participants performed a Grammatical Judgment Task where they answered if the presented sentences were grammatically correct. No differences between older and younger adults were found. Overall, better results were found for the intentional-condition than for the incidental-condition. A significant interaction between learning context and the proactivity index in the AX-CPT task showed that more proactive participants were better when learning in the incidental-condition. These results suggest that both extrinsic and intrinsic factors are important during language learning and that they equally affect younger and older adults.

Effects of Written Corrective Feedback on College EFL Students’ Writing Accuracy and Linguistic Knowledge Acquisition

AbstractSet at the interface between second language acquisition and second language writing, this study examines how different types of written corrective feedback (WCF) influence the writing accuracy of Chinese college students learning English as a Foreign Language (EFL) and whether WCF facilitates the students’ grasp of the focused linguistic knowledge. The participants (n = 60) were divided into direct correction group (n = 20), indirect error-coding group (n = 20) and metalinguistic explanation group (n = 20). The three groups wrote four essays in two months and received WCF for the first three essays on the five targeted error types, namely tense errors, confusion of different forms of a word, word (articles, prepositions, etc.) missing, errors in subject-verb agreement and inappropriate verb-noun collocations. The results show that all three types of WCF improved students’ writing accuracy but none of them had any statistical advantage, and the metalinguistic WCF was more effective than the other two forms in facilitating the acquisition of the targeted linguistic features. These results shed some light on teaching and consolidation of language points through writing in EFL contexts.

Written corrective feedback strategies: A systematic review

In the last few decades, written corrective feedback (WCF) in Second language acquisition(SLA) has held great importance for L2 researchers. Technically, WCF consists of different forms, scopes, and tones compared to oral feedback and types and strategies. Truscott’s claim (1996) about the practicality of grammatical corrections became the reason for many researchers to investigate the matter more in detail. As WCF is directly related to teachers and students, it is equally significant to consider the psychology of learners who adopt feedback that when, where, and how much feedback they can process according to their capability. All these aspects assisted researchers in broadening their range of research to plan vibrant research designs to cover all mechanisms involved in the feedback process. Not only the question of debate is teachers’ and students’ perception about WCF but also the effects of different WCF strategies. The present paper aims to bring forth the rational, systematic review of the recent studies from 2018 till 2022 conducted on written corrective feedback strategies, specifically direct and indirect feedback type followed by a metalinguistic explanation as to the most frequent way of providing feedback by teachers. The data displayed the learners’ inclination towards direct written corrective feedback as the preferred type over indirect WCF. This paper will assist new researchers planning to explore this varied domain to understand what learners perceive, prefer, and how any WCF type influences them.

THE EFFECT OF EXPLICIT FORM-FOCUSED INSTRUCTION ON THE IMPLICIT KNOWLEDGE OF MALAYSIAN ENGLISH AS SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNERS

Background and Purpose: Explicit form-focused instruction has significantly contributed to second language learners’ explicit knowledge. However, the effect of explicit form-focus instruction (FFI) on second language learners’ implicit knowledge of grammatical forms has been argued by scholars. This study examined the effectiveness of explicit FFI on implicit knowledge of ESL learners.
 
 Methodology: This quasi-experimental research was conducted at a selected international school in the Klang Valley, Malaysia. The collected data were analysed through the application of ANCOVA and Scheffe’s test.
 
 Findings: The findings showed that when explicit FFI was implemented in the form of metalinguistic information and metalinguistic explanation of the target form, the implicit knowledge of students would not increase. This suggested that the role of explicit FFI as the most effective and reliable tool to enhance implicit knowledge of learners should be doubted.
 
 Contributions: The theoretical implication of this study indicates that explicit FFI does not contribute to development of the second language implicit knowledge. Pedagogically, this study’s findings could be beneficial either for teachers looking for an effective method of teaching or for researchers to utilise it in their studies.
 Keywords: Form-focused instruction (FFI), explicit FFI, implicit knowledge, explicit knowledge
 
 Cite as: Hojjat, M., & Hasim, Z. (2022). The effect of explicit form-focused instruction on the implicit knowledge of Malaysian English as second language learners. Journal of Nusantara Studies, 7(2), 61-80. http://dx.doi.org/10.24200/jonus.vol7iss2pp61-80