Foreign accent, comprehensibility and intelligibility, redux

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 283-309
Author(s):  
Murray J. Munro ◽  
Tracey M. Derwing
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Original Data ◽  
Foreign Accent ◽  
Original Text ◽  
The Past ◽  
Pronunciation Instruction ◽  
Fresh Perspective ◽  
Assessment Techniques

Abstract We revisit Munro and Derwing (1995a), providing retrospective commentary on our original methods and findings. Using what are now well-established assessment techniques, the study examined the interrelationships among accentedness, comprehensibility, and intelligibility in the speech of second-language learners. The key finding was that the dimensions at issue are related, but partially independent. Of particular note was our observation that speech can be heavily accented but highly intelligible. To provide a fresh perspective on the original data we report a few new analyses, including more up-to-date statistical modeling. Throughout the original text we intersperse insights we have gained over the past 25 years. We conclude with retrospective interpretations, including thoughts on the relevance of the study to contemporary second language teaching and especially pronunciation instruction.

scholarly journals Effects of orthographic forms on pronunciation in experienced instructed second language learners

2015 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
BENE BASSETTI ◽  
NATHAN ATKINSON
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Word Reading ◽  
Past Tense ◽  
Vowel Duration ◽  
Writing System ◽  
The Past ◽  
Word Repetition ◽  
Repetition Task

ABSTRACTIn spite of burgeoning evidence that the orthographic forms (“spellings”) of second language (L2) words affect L2 learners’ pronunciation, little is known about the pronunciation of known words in experienced learners. In a series of four studies, we investigated various orthographic effects on the pronunciation of L2 English words in instructed learners with 10 years’ experience of learning English. Participants were native users of the phonologically transparent Italian writing system. Study 1 investigated the pronunciation of “silent letters,” using a word-reading task and a word-repetition task. Study 2 examined the effects of vowel spelling on vowel duration, namely, whether L2 speakers produce the same target vowel as longer when it is spelled with a vowel digraph than with a singleton letter. Study 3 explored the effects of the morphemic spelling of the past tense marker <ed> using a verb paradigm-production task. Study 4 tested whether L2 speakers produce homophonic words differently when they are spelled differently. Results confirmed that orthographic forms affect experienced instructed learners’ pronunciation of known words, albeit less so in immediate word repetition than in reading-aloud tasks.

scholarly journals A Case Study of How Visually Impaired Learners Acquire Language

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thi Minh Phuong Tran ◽  
Phuong Dzung Pho
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Visually Impaired ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
The Past ◽  
Depth Interviews

The field of second language acquisition has grown enormously in the past decades. Many studies have been done on how learners acquire English as a second language; however, research on how visually impaired learners acquire English as a second or foreign language has been relatively scarce. It is even more difficult to find such studies in Vietnam. Based mainly on in-depth interviews with two visually impaired Vietnamese adults who have been successful in acquiring English, the present study seeks to answer two main questions: (1) How Vietnamese visually impaired learners acquire English as a second language; (2) What difficulties they have in learning English, and how they overcome their difficulties. The findings of the present study can contribute to the theory of second language acquisition and language teaching. The study can also provide strategies for practicing and learning a language not only for visually impaired learners but also for second language learners in general.

scholarly journals Can the Dimensions of Identity, Investment and Empowerment Increase Social Inclusion for Second-language Learners? – Moving Towards the Creation of a Conceptual Framework

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 10
Author(s):  
Gaston Bacquet
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Identity Construction ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Social Research ◽  
Theoretical Background ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Impact

Much of social research in language learning in the past twenty years has been devoted to explore issues of identity construction and its sociological implications in terms of mobility and inclusiveness. There are a large number of studies on the areas of culture and identity, and how they relate to the investment and empowerment of language learners (Dörnyei, 2005; Dörnyei & Ushioda, 2011; Norton, 1997, 2000, 2013, 2015; Norton & Davin, 2015; Ushioda, 2011). Some of these have been pivotal in the development of identity research for the past two decades and have laid the foundation upon which further research has been done: Norton (1995) proposed her Classroom-Based Social Research, in which learners become ethnographers of sorts under the encouragement of teachers; Brunton and Jeffrey (2014) examined some of the factors that might lead to empowerment with foreign students in New Zealand (2013), Diaz, Cochran, and Karlin (2016) conducted a study in American classrooms to investigate the impact of teachers’ behavior and communication strategies on students’ achievement and feeling of empowerment, and more recently Howard (2018) investigated the impact of teachers’ attitudes in the construction of socio-cultural identities in African-American students. Such research has provided a wealth of insight and suggested practices, but in this researcher’s opinion they have come short in providing any definite answers as to how to implement them or the outcomes they might yield. The purpose of this paper is to shed new light on how the aforementioned dimensions of identity construction, empowerment and investment can result in greater social inclusion for second-language learners. The paper analyzes each dimension separately, provides a theoretical background that links them to language learning, and then discusses some possible implications for teachers and researchers on how to further recruit students’ investment and enhance their sense of empowerment and inclusion.

Foreign Accent in Adult Simultaneous Bilinguals

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 123-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tanja Kupisch ◽  
Dagmar Barton ◽  
Katja Hailer ◽  
Ewgenia Klaschik ◽  
Ilse Stangen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Heritage Language ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
First Language ◽  
Current Understanding ◽  
Foreign Accent ◽  
Heritage Speaker ◽  
L1 And L2

The study reported in this paper examines foreign accent (FA) in adult simultaneous bilinguals (2L1ers). Specifically, we investigate how accent is affected if a first language is acquired as a minority (heritage) language as compared to a majority (dominant) language. We compare the perceived FA in both languages of 38 adult 2L1ers (German-French and German-Italian) to that of monolingual native speakers (L1ers) and late second language learners (L2ers). Naturalistic speech samples are judged by 84 native speakers of the respective languages. Results indicate that the majority language is always spoken without an FA, while results for the heritage language fall between those of L1 and L2 speakers. For the heritage language, we further show that a native accent correlates with length of residence in the heritage country during childhood but not during adulthood. Furthermore, raters have comparatively more difficulties when judging the accent of a heritage speaker. The results of this study add to our current understanding of what factors shape the phonology of a heritage language system in adulthood.

A longitudinal ERP study of language effects in beginning second language learners

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine J. Midgley ◽  
Laura N. Soskey ◽  
Phillip J. Holcomb ◽  
Jonathan Grainger
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Language Effects
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