scholarly journals “Wait, How Do I Say that in English?” Communication Strategies for English as a Foreign Language Learners

2018 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 149
Author(s):  
Zulfadli Aziz ◽  
Ika Apriani Fata ◽  
Syarifah Balqis
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Communication Strategies ◽  
The Other ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Topic Avoidance ◽  
Literal Translation ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Successful Group ◽  
Speaking Skill

This research aimed to investigate communication speaking skill strategies applied by two groups of English foreign language learners in two boarding senior high schools in Aceh, Indonesia. Of the successful group, there were 52 learners and of the less successful group 24 learners. To collect the data, this study employed the observation sheet adapted by Tarone(1978), which determined nine categories of communication strategies; approximation, word coinage, circumlocution, literal translation, language switch, mime, appeal for assistance, topic avoidance, and message abandonment. The students were observed during their speaking class. The result of this research is the literal translation, approximation, and language switchbecome the most frequent strategies used by the less successful learners. It implies that the students have had difficulties communicating in the target language. On the other hand, successful learners prefer to use approximation, literal translation, and appeal for assistance strategies. It implies that the students tend to speak and communicate well, if not yet fluently. Based on the findings, it is suggested that English teachers should introduce several communication strategies for both groups of learners to improve their effective communication.

scholarly journals Dunkin’ the Donut: A Study on Students’ Patterns of Language Use through Technology Applications in Independent Language Learning

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 125-132
Author(s):  
Norizul Azida Darus ◽  
Norhajawati Abdul Halim
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
The Other ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Foreign Language Teachers ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Language Classroom ◽  
Technology Applications

Any language can be acquired at any time, but to acquire the language, one needs to learn the language. Learning a second or foreign language is not a favourite among second or foreign language learners. This is because learning a language is a very intense time-consuming activity. Learning is often unsuccessful because learners receive impoverished or insufficient input and lack of motivation. To this, second language or foreign language teachers play the most significant role to help and motivate the students to acquire the said language. The preferred method is to be immersed into the actual ecosystem of the target language and become part of the language ecosystem. The other way is to dunk the learners into the artificial ecosystem of the language classroom. In dunking, the learners are immersed temporarily and repeatedly into the simulated ecosystem language. As can be seen now, technology remains the only viable option to get enough interactive contact with the target language. Using interesting software is one of the methods in making learning more interesting. Furthermore, the students are able to practice the language not only during class time, but on their own free time outside of class hours, that is during students’ independent time of learning. The findings revealed that most students found using the applications has improved their language learning. The role of teachers on the other hand is to provide instructions and assist whenever necessary and needed by the students.

Approximations in impromptu interlanguage

2002 ◽  
Vol 137-138 ◽  
pp. 301-312 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lengo M. Nsakala ◽  
Lusala D. Matondo
Keyword(s):  
Language Development ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Communication Strategies ◽  
Vocabulary Instruction ◽  
Negative Attitude ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Advanced Students

Abstract This paper deals with approximations in the impromptu speech of Congolese students of English. The paucity of vocabulary knowledge prompts foreign language learners to fall back on readily accessible resources in spontaneous speech, such as approximations. The latter are characteristic of an elementary stage in target language development, their frequency relatively decreasing with advanced students. Approximations can be accounted for in terms of communication strategies and in the light of semantic findings. In respect of semantics, three categories of approximations are distinguished : superordinate terms, hyponyms, and cohyponyms. Approximations in a foreign language setting may stem from teachers' negative attitude to vocabulary instruction and from learners' inadequate input. Another source is passive vocabulary, which causes retrieval problems. To minimize this situation, teachers must pay particular attention to vocabulary instruction by teaching vocabulary systematically, rather than leaving it to develop independently.

scholarly journals Communicative Techniques Used by EFL Learners to Accomplish Strategic Proficiency

2018 ◽  
pp. 35-56
Author(s):  
Omran Abushama
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Pearson Correlation ◽  
Communication Strategies ◽  
Primary Objective ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Literal Translation ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Communication Ability ◽  
Learning English

Effective communication is of paramount importance in all aspects of life. To achieve this, verbal and nonverbal techniques may be utilized. These techniques are called Communication Strategies (CSs). The primary objective of this study was to investigate the verbal and nonverbal communication strategies used by EFL (English Foreign Language) learners in the classroom to enhance their communication ability and to achieve strategic proficiency in their communication. It also explored which strategies are more effective or successful for accomplishing strategic proficiency in communication and for compensating the limited knowledge. Data came from two sources: questionnaires which were accomplished by the 20 student participants and 2 teacher participants and an observation administered by the researcher. The results showed that the most common communication strategies used are repetition and paraphrasing, while the less used strategies are literal translation and nonverbal strategies. The findings also confirmed that paraphrasing, repetition and replacing words are more effective than literal translation and nonverbal strategies. In addition, the correlation analysis revealed that the greater experience students have in learning English, the more strategies they use and the Pearson correlation approved that paraphrasing clearly correlated with years of learning English, r = .44, p = .05. Therefore, the communicative technique paraphrasing is used by the students who have greater experience in learning English confirming that using it is dependent on the years or the experience of learning the language.

scholarly journals INVESTIGATING SEVERAL SIMILAR QUESTIONS TYPES IN TURKISH, KURDISH, ENGLISH, RUSSIAN AND GERMAN

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 52-59
Author(s):  
Mehmet Veysi BABAYİĞİT
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Key Words ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
The Other ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
The World ◽  
Multiple Question ◽  
Alternative Questions ◽  
Topic Issue

Language is used as a tool of communication in all over the world, and each society or country may adopt a different language leading various dialects or language usages. In order to interrogate different aspects, multiple question types are utilized in a language. Also, questions are globally used to get information about a topic / issue, ask for confirmation, request something or clarify some controversial aspects almost in all languages. In addition, some questions are directed to speakers via question words such as what, where or how; on the other hand, some questions are conducted via helping verbs, adjuncts or question tags. Foreign language learners first learn affirmative, then negative and finally questions forms in the target language that is why it may be inferred that using questions in a language requires improvement and experience. The current study aims to find out some similar questions types in Turkish, English,Kurdish, Russian and German; hence, an analysis has been conducted on question samples obtained descriptively in those languages. The results of the analysis indicated that there are some similar types of questions such as general questions, special questions, tag questions and alternative questions in both languages. Key Words: Types, question, Kurdish, English, Turkish, Russian, German

Grammatical Competence within L2 Communication: Language Production, Monitor Hypothesis, and Focus on Forms Instruction

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Moh. Rofid Fikroni
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Language Production ◽  
Communicative Competence ◽  
Focus On Form ◽  
Grammatical Competence ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Speaking Skill ◽  
Focus On Forms ◽  
Learning Language

Bearing in mind that the learners’ speaking skill had become the main goal in learning language, grammatical competence is believed to have a big role within foreign language learners’ language production, especially in spoken form. Moreover, the learners’ grammatical competence is also closely related to the Monitor Hypothesis proposed by Krashen (1982) in which it says that the acquired system will function as monitor or editor to the language production. The students’ monitor performance will vary based on how they make use of their acquired system. They may use it optimally (monitor optimal user), overly (monitor over-user), or they may not use it at all (monitor under-user). Therefore, learners’ grammatical competence has its own role, which is very crucial, within learners’ language production, which is not only to produce the language, but also to monitor the language production itself. Because of this reason, focus on form instruction will give a great impact for students’ grammatical competence within their communicative competence. This paper aims to present ideas about the how crucial the role grammatical competence within learners’ L2 communication.

scholarly journals Teaching Sociolinguistics: A Medium for Cultural Awareness of Indonesian University Foreign Language Learners

Humaniora ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 192
Author(s):  
Agnes Herawati
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Cultural Awareness ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Language Usage ◽  
Research Results ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Language Classrooms

This paper tries to show the evidences that indicate how teaching Sociolinguistics can result in a number of valuable outcomes, including helping students understand and appreciate other cultures different from theirs. Sociolinguistics provides useful examples of language usage in different genres, including how culture influences people in using a language. The opportunities of learning other cultures through language will take the students to the higher level of appreciation of the culture of the target language. To determine how this outcome can be achieved in the language classrooms, this paper provides a review of closely connected literature about how to bridge the gap between cultures in particular. However, to increase its completeness and relevance, this paper also provides some research results that reveal how teaching Sociolinguistics has taken its new applicability and importance, and furthermore adds the effects on how students become more proficient and enthusiastic about their learning. 

scholarly journals Alternative Techniques for Teaching Writing

2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 163
Author(s):  
Sihindun Arumi
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Writing Skills ◽  
Teaching Writing ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Writing Class ◽  
Alternative Techniques ◽  
Readable Text

Writing as one of language skill is often considered very difficult. It is due to the fact that writing needs to produce and organize ideas using appropriate vocabulary, language use, paragraph organization, and mechanism. It also needs to turn the ideas into a readable text and for foreign language learners, they should also transfer ideas from their native language into target language (foreign language). It raises any problems for them to create a good text. Moreover, the situation in the class does not always supportthem in which the techniques of the teacher in teaching writing is boring and monotonous, do not give enough attention to help students explore their writing skills. So that they attend the writing class only for procedural formality.Thus, it is considered important to elaborate various techniques to build nice classroom atmosphere as well as to improve students’ writing skills.  

scholarly journals Do not give up! The importance of mistakes in the process of teaching and learning foreign languages

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 244
Author(s):  
Eduardo Dias da Silva ◽  
Romar Souza-Dias ◽  
Juscelino Francisco do Nascimento
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Communicative Competence ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Foreign Languages ◽  
Learning Needs ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Learning Programs

This paper aims to highlight the importance of errors and mistakes as an essential part in the process of teaching and learning foreign languages (FL). We understand that, while trying to produce meanings in the foreign language, learners, through some errors and mistakes, can develop the mental structures necessary for the consolidation of the target language. In this way, mistakes can e a strong tool indicator for teachers to assess and also to understand how far learners are in relation to the intended knowledge, according to objectives outlined in learning programs. The theoretical approach that orients our way of thinking is based on the point of view of some theorists, such as: Brito (2014); Corder (1967; 1985), Cavalari (2008); Richards and Rodgers (2004); Silva (2014); Simões (2007), among others. The results have demonstrated that the teacher, as a mediator of knowledge, must have a balanced attitude towards the students’ learning needs in order to help the learners to reach their best in the learning process. So, with this study, we expect that, in Teacher Education, mistakes could not be seen as something negative, but positive and necessary for the development of the student’s communicative competence.

An analysis of translation errors made by Brazilian students

1987 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 25
Author(s):  
Maria da Conceição Magalhães Vaz de Mello
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Communication Strategies ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Topic Avoidance ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Brazilian Students ◽  
Translation Errors

This paper presents an analysis of the errors which occurred in translations from Portuguese into English written by Brazilian students. This topic has been chosen because there are few studies of errors made by Brazilian students In the process of learning English and also because many language teachers still consider interference from the mother tongue the only source of errors in foreign language learning. Errors due to interference from the foreign language itself have often been disregarded. In order to explain the causes of the errors five categories were established: errors due to LI interference, errors due to L2 interference, errors due to LI and/or L2 interference, errors due to communication strategies and errors of Indeterminate origin. Errors due to communication strategies were classified according to three different types, proposed by Tarone (1977). The first is topic avoidance, the second is paraphrase and the third is conscious transfer. Errors of indeterminate origin are unsystematic and cannot be assigned to any of the other four categories. My claim In this paper is that since the speech of children learning their first language contains many errors, foreign language learners should be allowed to make errors. By making errors learners provide the teacher with information about what they haven't learned. Este artigo apresenta uma analise dos erros que ocorreram em versões do português para o inglês feitas por alunos brasileiros. Este tópico foi escolhido porque ha poucos estudos sobre erros feitos por alunos brasileiros durante o processo de aprendizagem do inglês e também porque muitos professores de línguas ainda consideram a interferência da língua materna como a única fonte de erros na aprendizagem de uma língua estrangeira. Erros de interferência da própria língua estrangeira freqüentemente não são considerados. Para explicar as causas dos erros cinco categorias foram estabelecidas: erros de interferência da LI, erros de interferência da L2, erros de interferência da LI e/ou da L2, erros de estratégias de comunicação e erros de origem indeterminada. Os erros de estratégia de comunicação foram classificados de acordo com três tipos diferentes sugeridos por Tarone (1977). O primeiro é abstenção de tópico, o segundo, paráfrase e o terceiro, transferência consciente. Erros de origem indeterminada não são sistemáticos e não podem ser classificados de acordo com nenhuma das outras quatro categorias. Um dos objetivos deste trabalho é provar que, do mesmo modo que a fala de crianças aprendendo sua língua materna apresenta muitos erros, alunos aprendendo uma língua estrangeira também deveriam poder fazer erros. Ê através dos erros de seus alunos que o professor consegue informação sobre aquilo que eles ainda não aprenderam.

Variable future-time reference in French: A comparison of learners in a study-abroad and a foreign-language context

2016 ◽  
Vol 61 (3) ◽  
pp. 259-285 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aarnes Gudmestad ◽  
Amanda Edmonds
Keyword(s):  
Study Abroad ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Developmental Trajectories ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Learning Context ◽  
Future Time ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Language Proficiency Test

AbstractThis study seeks to advance understanding of second-language (L2) acquisition of future-time reference in French, by comparing the developmental trajectories of learners living in and away from the target-language setting. Study-abroad learners in France (n= 45), foreign-language learners living in the US (n= 37), and native speakers of Hexagonal French (n= 30) participated in this study. They completed a written-contextualized task, a language-proficiency test and a background questionnaire. For each written-contextualized-task item, participants selected from among three responses that differed with respect to the form (inflectional future, periphrastic future, present). Items were designed to test for the influence of three factors on the form selected: presence/absence of a lexical temporal indicator, temporal distance, and (un)certainty. Additionally, two extra-linguistic factors were examined: learning context and proficiency level. The analyses of frequency and the multinomial logistic regressions suggest that, despite developmental similarities between learning contexts, acquisitional paths of study-abroad and foreign-language learners were not identical.

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