Native Spanish language acquisition: the effect of age, schooling and context on responses to ‘dile’ and ‘pregúntale’

1977 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 453-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carole Edelsky ◽  
Virginia Muiña
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Spanish Language ◽  
Spanish Speakers ◽  
Native Spanish Speakers ◽  
Language Performance ◽  
Relative Difficulty ◽  
Spanish Language Acquisition ◽  
Second Language Performance ◽  
Effect Of Age

ABSTRACTThe ability to distinguish ask and tell in Spanish was studied with five groups of native Spanish speakers: adults, 7- and 10-year-olds in a full-bilingual-programme school (BISO), and 7- and 10-year-olds in a non-total BISO school. The interviews included context-present and context-absent items. Differences in these subjects' responses and those elicited by Chomsky (1969) among children acquiring English are explored. Increased age, bilingual schooling, and presence of contextual clues enhanced performance. Relative difficulty of dile and pregúntale, stages in distinguishing these in three types of constructions, and comparisons of first and second language performance are discussed.

Identity Markers and L2 Pronunciation

1988 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane Zuengler
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
American English ◽  
Spanish Speakers ◽  
American Identity ◽  
Native Spanish Speakers ◽  
Sociolinguistic Variation ◽  
English Pronunciation ◽  
Identity Markers ◽  
Social Markers ◽  
Social Marking

This is a report of a study of social marking in second language pronunciation. In particular, it tested out Trudgill's (1981) suggestion that sounds that are most likely to undergo sociolinguistic variation, that is, that may become social markers, are those that Labov (1972a, 1972b), calls stereotypes. This study sought to determine whether there were certain aspects of English pronunciation that native Spanish speakers would, at some level of awareness, associate with American English/American identity. The speakers were asked to perform several tasks, including a mimic of an American speaking Spanish with an American accent (following Flege & Hammond, 1982). Among the results, speakers displayed a tacit awareness of English-Spanish sound distinctions (in particular, allophonic differences) in performing the mimic (supporting Flege & Hammond, 1982). Additionally, some of the alterations they were very conscious of held as stereotypes of American English. Support was found for Trudgill's (1981) suggestion.

scholarly journals Circadian rhythms and second language performance

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-60
Author(s):  
Kees De Bot ◽  
Fang Fang
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Lexical Access ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Language Performance ◽  
Intraindividual Variation ◽  
The Hours ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Second Language Performance

Human behavior is not constant over the hours of the day, and there are considerable individual differences. Some people raise early and go to bed early and have their peek performance early in the day (“larks”) while others tend to go to bed late and get up late and have their best performance later in the day (“owls”). In this contribution we report on three projects on the role of chronotype (CT) in language processing and learning. The first study (de Bot, 2013) reports on the impact of CT on language learning aptitude and word learning. The second project was reported in Fang (2015) and looks at CT and executive functions, in particular inhibition as measured by variants of the Stroop test. The third project aimed at assessing lexical access in L1 and L2 at preferred and non-preferred times of the day. The data suggest that there are effects of CT on language learning and processing. There is a small effect of CT on language aptitude and a stronger effect of CT on lexical access in the first and second language. The lack of significance for other tasks is mainly caused by the large interindividual and intraindividual variation.

Developing rating scales for the assessment of second language performance

1996 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 55-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolyn E. Turner ◽  
John A. Upshur
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Rating Scales ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Reliability And Validity ◽  
Sixth Grade ◽  
Language Performance ◽  
Specific Test ◽  
Binary Choices ◽  
Time Required ◽  
Second Language Performance

Abstract The two most common approaches to rating second language performance pose problems of reliability and validity. An alternative method utilizes rating scales that are empirically derived from samples of learner performance; these scales define boundaries between adjacent score levels rather than provide normative descriptions of ideal performances; the rating process requires making two or three binary choices about a language performance being rated. A procedure, that consists of a series of five explicit tasks, is used to construct a rating scale. The scale is designed for use with a specific population and a specific test task. A group of primary school ESL teachers used this procedure to make two speaking tests, including elicitation tasks and rating scales, for use in their school district. The tests were administered to 255 sixth grade learners. The scales were found to be highly accurate for scoring short speech samples, and were quite efficient in time required for scale development and rater training. Scales exhibit content relevance in the instructional setting. Development of this type of scale is recommended for use in high-stakes assessment.

TOWARD A DYNAMIC VIEW OF SECOND LANGUAGE COMPREHENSIBILITY

2019 ◽  
Vol 41 (04) ◽  
pp. 647-672 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Nagle ◽  
Pavel Trofimovich ◽  
Annie Bergeron
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Spanish Speakers ◽  
Native Spanish Speakers ◽  
Stimulated Recall ◽  
Dynamic View ◽  
Audio Clip ◽  
Global Ratings ◽  
University Level ◽  
L2 Spanish ◽  
Listening Task

AbstractThis study took a dynamic approach to second language (L2) comprehensibility, examining how listeners construct comprehensibility profiles for L2 Spanish speakers during the listening task and what features enhance or diminish comprehensibility. Listeners were 24 native Spanish speakers who evaluated 2–5 minute audio clips recorded by three university-level L2 Spanish speakers responding to two prompts. Listeners rated comprehensibility dynamically, using Idiodynamic Software to upgrade or downgrade comprehensibility over the course of the listening task. Dynamic ratings for one audio clip were video-captured for stimulated recall, and listeners were interviewed to understand which aspects of L2 speech were associated with enhanced versus diminished comprehensibility. Results indicated that clips that were downgraded more often received lower global ratings but upgrading was not associated with higher ratings. Certain problematic features and individual episodes caused listeners’ impressions to converge, though substantial individual variation among listeners was evident.

THE EFFECTS OF DIFFERENT LENGTHS OF TIME FOR PLANNING ON SECOND LANGUAGE PERFORMANCE

1998 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Uta Mehnert
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Time Complexity ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Language Performance ◽  
Planning Time ◽  
Speech Performance ◽  
Planning Condition ◽  
Lexical Density ◽  
Time Accuracy ◽  
Second Language Performance

This article reports on a study that investigated the effect of different amounts of planning time on the speech performance of L2 speakers. Subjects were 4 groups of learners of German (31 in total) performing 2 tasks each. The tasks varied in the degree of structure they contained and the familiarity of information they tapped. The control group had no planning time available; the 3 experimental groups had 1, 5, and 10 minutes of planning time, respectively, before they started speaking. Results show fluency and lexical density of speech increase as a function of planning time. Accuracy of speech improved with only 1 minute planning but did not increase with more planning time. Complexity of speech was significantly higher for the 10-minute planning condition only. No significant differences were found for the effect of planning on the different tasks. This study employed various general and specific constructs for measuring fluency, complexity, and accuracy of speech. The interrelationships and qualities of these measures are also investigated and discussed.

scholarly journals Effect of Age in Second Language Acquisition: A Critical Review from the Perspective of Critical Period Hypothesis and Ultimate Attainment

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Mosiur Rahman ◽  
Ambigapathy Pandian ◽  
Abdul Karim ◽  
Faheem Hasan Shahed
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Critical Period ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Critical Period Hypothesis ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Ultimate Attainment ◽  
Effect Of Age

This article addresses the effect of age in Second Language Acquisition (SLA), posing the relative question that whether the Critical Period hypothesis (CPH) exists in Second Language (SL), and if existing, how it is associated duly with SLA. The justification of comparing the achievement of L1 and L2 learners on the basis of Ultimate Attainment (UA) in the establishment of Critical Period Hypothesis, is also discussed. In the methodology, secondary data analysis was used to answer of research questions. To achieve a reliable result from the wide range of secondary data primarily from journal articles, a systemic search has been adopted. In conclusion, compare and contrast was made with earlier studies to show the findings of the study and to scope future research. 

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