scholarly journals L1–L2 convergence in clausal packaging in Japanese and English

2012 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 477-494 ◽  
Author(s):  
AMANDA BROWN ◽  
MARIANNE GULLBERG
Keyword(s):  
L2 Proficiency ◽  
Linguistic Differences ◽  
Japanese Speakers ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
Linguistic Influences

This study investigates L1–L2 convergence among bilinguals at an intermediate (CEFR-B2) level of L2 proficiency, focusing on the clausal packaging of Manner and Path of motion. Previous research has shown cross-linguistic differences between English and Japanese in this domain (Allen et al., 2003; Kita & Özyürek, 2003, though note Brown & Gullberg, 2012). We compared descriptions of motion from monolingual English and Japanese speakers to L1 and L2 descriptions from Japanese users of English as a second (ESL) and foreign (EFL) language. Results showed no significant difference between the monolinguals, who predominately used single-clause constructions packaging Manner and Path. However, bilinguals, both ESL and EFL speakers, used significantly more multi-clause constructions in both their L1 and L2. Following Pavlenko (2011a), findings are interpreted as evidence for L1–L2 convergence. We discuss potential bi-directional cross-linguistic influences underpinning the L1–L2 convergence and implications for the restructuring of bilingual systems.

EFFECTS OF TASK TYPE AND L2 PROFICIENCY ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN L1 AND L2 IN READING AND WRITING

2017 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-90 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tae-Il Pae
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Complexity ◽  
Task Type ◽  
Moderating Effects ◽  
L2 Proficiency ◽  
L2 Reading ◽  
Reading And Writing ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Different Levels

This study systematically examines the moderating effects of task type and L2 proficiency on the relationship between L1 and L2 simultaneously across reading and writing tasks with different levels of cognitive complexity. Main and moderating effects were evaluated through structural equation modeling analyses. First, both L1 skills and L2 proficiency were significant independent predictors of L2 reading and writing performance across tasks with different levels of cognitive complexity. Second, L2 proficiency had a much greater effect on L2 reading and writing performance across tasks with different cognitive loads than L1 skills. Third, the strength of the relationship between less cognitively demanding L1 and L2 reading tasks showed no significant difference between the low- and high-L2-proficiency groups. Fourth, the strength of the relationship between more cognitively demanding L1 and L2 reading tasks showed a significant difference between the low- and high-L2-proficiency groups. Fifth, the strength of the relationship between L1 and L2 writing tasks with different levels of cognitive complexity varied significantly depending on the level of L2 proficiency. These results are discussed theoretically and pedagogically.

SOURCES OF VARIATION IN SECOND AND NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKING PROFICIENCY AMONG COLLEGE-AGED SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNERS

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-26
Author(s):  
Mona Roxana Botezatu ◽  
Taomei Guo ◽  
Judith F. Kroll ◽  
Sarah Peterson ◽  
Dalia L. Garcia
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Second Language ◽  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Native Language ◽  
L2 Proficiency ◽  
Speaking Proficiency ◽  
Sources Of Variation ◽  
Internal Sources ◽  
L1 And L2

Abstract We evaluated external and internal sources of variation in second language (L2) and native language (L1) proficiency among college students. One hundred and twelve native-English L2 learners completed measures of L1 and L2 speaking proficiency, working memory, and cognitive control and provided self-ratings of language exposure and use. When considering learner-external variation, we found that more frequent L2 exposure predicted higher L2 and L1 proficiency, while earlier L2 exposure predicted higher L2 proficiency, but poorer L1 maintenance. L1–L2 distance limited crosslinguistic transfer of print-to-sound mappings. When considering learner-internal variation, we found that L1 and L2 proficiency were highly correlated and that better working memory, but not cognitive control, accounted for additional variance in L2 and L1 proficiency. More frequent L2 exposure was associated with better cognitive control.

Understanding CLIL from an ELF perspective: language in Taiwanese primary bilingual education

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 209-233
Author(s):  
Inmaculada Pineda ◽  
Wenli Tsou
Keyword(s):  
Bilingual Education ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
L2 Proficiency ◽  
Related Language ◽  
Class Management ◽  
Academic Communication ◽  
Teachers Training ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
Linguistic Backgrounds ◽  
Language Content

Abstract Recent global developments have intensified the use of English as a lingua franca (ELF), the principal means of communication employed among speakers of different linguistic backgrounds to interact worldwide. Consequently, there has been a growing interest in the pedagogical implications and applications of ELF in language teaching and learning. Few works, though, have investigated the influence of ELF in bilingual education such as in Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL). The current paper describes the design and implementation of a CLIL + ELF observation tool that was used to study a pilot CLIL program in Taiwan and to anticipate CLIL teachers’ training needs. The data collected from the rubric were contrasted with several unstructured interviews. The rubric contains 10 criteria developed from previous CLIL and ELF studies including: learners’ L1 and L2 proficiency; teachers’ L2 proficiency; teachers’ ability to reflect upon their practice; their familiarity with CLIL and ELF methodologies; and the school’s commitment to bilingual education and language policy considerations. Using these criteria, the researchers identified many positive results such as teachers’ growing familiarity with CLIL and their use of class management language, content-related language, and academic communication. The study also suggests areas for improvement such as the need for teacher training regarding ELF.

scholarly journals El papel del lenguaje en la construcción de explicaciones en la clase de ciencias en contextos bilingües a través del enfoque CLIL

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (21) ◽  
pp. 105-122
Author(s):  
Mauricio Mancipe Triviño ◽  
Cynthia Marcela Ramírez Valenzuela
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Language ◽  
Natural Phenomena ◽  
L2 Proficiency ◽  
Close Link ◽  
Cognitive Linguistic ◽  
Science Classes ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
L1 English ◽  
Do So

This paper covers the issue with respect to elaborating explanations about natural phenomena in the Science class in bilingual contexts (Spanish (L1) – English (L2)), in which the role of the language is analysed from two perspectives: communicative and explanatory. To do so, this article focuses on the categorisation of cognitive-linguistic abilities exhibited by the students throughout the implementation of the designed unit, as well as analysing the expressions used by them from the communicative perspective; this analysis is born from the upcoming and growing concern of bilingualism implementation in Colombia and Latin America. The methodology used follows an interpretative-qualitative analysis with an inductive analysis approach, analysing the collected information during the didactic implementation in recordings, products developed by students and class diaries from a sample of 25 and 19 students belonging to two private secondary schools located in Cajicá and Bogotá, Colombia. The document presents the reflections arisen from the analysis categories built to assess the collected information: socio-linguistic abilities, communication of ideas in both L1 and L2, the conceptual, social, epistemological and didactic aspects of knowledge. It was found a close link between the L2 proficiency and the depth of the explanations elaborated by the students, enabling the more competent students in L2 to communicate better using the scientific language and getting to more complex explanations. Moreover, the implementation re-dimensioned the content perspective applied by some teachers when using the CLIL approach, placing bilingualism in the Science classes in a dimension distant from transmitting information, being a medium that fosters communicative and explanatory processes by nurturing different cognitive-linguistic abilities.

Reception Thresholds for Sentences in Quiet and Noise for Monolingual English and Bilingual Mandarin-English Listeners

2010 ◽  
Vol 21 (04) ◽  
pp. 239-248 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Stuart ◽  
Jianliang Zhang ◽  
Shannon Swink
Keyword(s):  
Masking Effect ◽  
Group Differences ◽  
Hearing In Noise ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Continuous Noise ◽  
Noise Test ◽  
Release From Masking ◽  
L1 And L2

Background: Bilingual (BL) listeners' difficulties in adverse noise conditions are exacerbated when perceiving their second language (L2) relative to their first language (L1). Perception of L2 is also significantly poorer by BL listeners compared to native monolingual (ML) listeners. Purpose: The purpose of the study was to examine the effect of stationary and nonstationary energetic noise maskers on L1 and L2 speech perception in native and nonnative listeners. Research Design: A mixed multivariate quasi-experimental design was employed. Study Sample: Two groups of 12 ML English-speaking and BL Mandarin-English-speaking normal-hearing young adult female volunteers participated. Data Collection and Analysis: An adaptive technique was employed to determine reception thresholds for sentences (RTSs) in quiet and in backgrounds of competing continuous and interrupted noise. The noises differed only in their temporal continuity. The sentence stimuli employed consisted of the Hearing in Noise Test (HINT) and the Mandarin Hearing in Noise Test (MHINT). ML participants received the HINT stimuli while the BL participants received both HINT and MHINT stimuli. Between-group differences in RTSs were examined for the same stimuli (i.e., HINT) and for L1 stimuli (i.e., HINT vs. MHINT). Within-group differences in RTSs were examined with the BL participants' perception of L1 and L2 stimuli (i.e., MHINT vs. HINT). The amount of “release from masking” (i.e., the difference of RTS signal-to-noise ratios [SNRs] in interrupted and continuous noise) was also examined between and within groups. Results: In quiet there was no significant difference in mean RTSs between the BL and ML participants with their respective L1 stimuli; MLs had significantly lower mean RTSs in English compared to the BLs; and mean RTSs for the BLs were significantly lower for L1 versus L2 stimulus. In noise, a significantly higher RTS SNR was found for the MLs in continuous noise but not interrupted noise for L1 stimuli compared to the BLs; BLs had a significantly higher mean RTSs in English compared to the MLs; and BLs had significantly higher mean RTSs for L2 versus L1 stimuli. The release from masking was significantly greater for MLs compared to BLs with their respective L1 stimuli and with the same English stimuli. There was no significant difference for the BLs' release from masking with L1 versus L2 stimulus. Conclusion: BL listeners display significantly poorer performance when perceiving nonnative L2 sentences in quiet and in continuous and interrupted noise relative ML listeners. When listening to their respective native L1 sentences, only a difference in continuous noise was found. This difference was attributed to differential masking effect on the English stimuli. Similar performance in the interrupted noise between the ML and BL participants with L1 stimuli and the equivalent release from masking with the BL participants for both L1 and L2 stimuli suggest comparable basic auditory temporal resolving capacities between these ethnic groups.

Influence of L2 proficiency on speech movement variability: Production of prosodic contrasts by Bengali–English speakers

2011 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 489-505 ◽  
Author(s):  
RAHUL CHAKRABORTY
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Stress Pattern ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Movement Variability ◽  
L2 Proficiency ◽  
Motor Systems ◽  
Lip Movement ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
Speech Motor ◽  
Novel Words

This paper examines the influence of age of immersion and proficiency in a second language on speech movement consistency in both a first and a second language. Ten monolingual speakers of English and 20 Bengali–English bilinguals (10 with low L2 proficiency and 10 with high L2 proficiency) participated. Lip movement variability was assessed based on bilingual participants’ production of four real and four novel words embedded in Bengali (L1) and English (L2) sentences. Lip movement variability was evaluated across L1 and L2 contexts for the production of real and novel words with trochaic and iambic stress pattern. Adult bilinguals produced equally consistent speech movement patterns in their production of L1 and L2 targets. Overall, speakers’ L2 proficiency did not influence their movement variability. Unlike children, the speech motor systems of adult L2 speakers exhibit a lack of flexibility which could contribute to their increased difficulties in acquiring native-like pronunciation in L2.

scholarly journals Cerebral lateralisation of first and second languages in bilinguals assessed using functional transcranial Doppler ultrasound

2016 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clara R. Grabitz ◽  
Kate E. Watkins ◽  
Dorothy V. M. Bishop
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Transcranial Doppler ◽  
Cerebral Arteries ◽  
Transcranial Doppler Sonography ◽  
Transcranial Doppler Ultrasound ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Second Languages ◽  
Language History ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
L1 And L2

Background: Lateralised representation of language in monolinguals is a well-established finding, but the situation is much less clear when there is more than one language. Studies to date have identified a number of factors that might influence the brain organisation of language in bilinguals. These include proficiency, age of acquisition and exposure to the second language. The question as to whether the cerebral lateralisation of first and second languages are the same or different is as yet unresolved. Methods: We used functional transcranial Doppler sonography (FTCD) to measure cerebral lateralisation in the first and second languages in 26 high proficiency bilinguals with German or French as their first language (L1) and English as their second language (L2). FTCD was used to measure task-dependent blood flow velocity changes in the left and right middle cerebral arteries during word generation cued by single letters. Language history measures and handedness were assessed through self-report questionnaires. Results:The majority of participants were significantly left lateralised for both L1 and L2, with no significant difference in the size of asymmetry indices between L1 and L2. Asymmetry indices for L1 and L2 were not related to language history, such as proficiency of the L2. Conclusion: In highly proficient bilinguals, there is strong concordance for cerebral lateralisation of first and second languages.

scholarly journals The impact of L2 proficiency on cross-language influence during L2 word processing

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesca Branzi ◽  
Ya-Ning Chang ◽  
Claudia Gaele ◽  
Theodora Alexopoulou
Keyword(s):  
Word Processing ◽  
Control Strategies ◽  
Proactive Inhibition ◽  
Target Language ◽  
L2 Proficiency ◽  
Main Hypothesis ◽  
Phonological Representations ◽  
Cross Language ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
The Impact

We investigated the relationship between L2 proficiency and the language control strategies employed during L2 word-processing to cope with cross-language interference. Our main hypothesis is that proactive inhibition of the non-target language (L1) is the best cognitive strategy to optimise L2 performance when L1 and L2 lexical/phonological representations do not overlap. This strategy should be especially implemented by L2 high proficient individuals. We tested a group of native speakers of Chinese (L1) with various levels of proficiency in L2 English in a task that required to decide whether English words presented in pairs were related in meaning or not. Crucially, L2 learners were unaware of the fact that half of the words concealed a character repetition when translated into Chinese which allowed us to measure the activation of L1 phonological representations. Contrary to our predictions, we found that higher proficiency correlated with higher L1 activation.

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