Constructing a Second Language Sociolinguistic Repertoire: A Sociocultural Usage-based Perspective

2018 ◽  
Vol 40 (6) ◽  
pp. 871-893 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rémi A Van Compernolle
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Study Abroad ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Developmental Trajectories ◽  
Stylistic Variation ◽  
Sociolinguistic Competence ◽  
Future Work ◽  
Metalinguistic Knowledge

Abstract This article discusses a sociocultural usage-based perspective on the development of sociolinguistic competence. Previous research has focused on learners’ acquisition and use of alternative ways of ‘saying the same thing’ (i.e. native-like variation) in relation to study abroad, contact with native speakers, and pedagogy. Missing from the literature are studies examining the developmental trajectories of individual learners from a qualitative perspective. This article takes a first step in this direction by documenting the specific lexicogrammatical constructions deployed by one learner of French, Leon, over the course of a 6-week stylistic variation intervention. The findings show that his sociolinguistic repertoire emerged from a single multiword expression, which in combination with Leon’s application of new metalinguistic knowledge and mediation from a teacher expanded to become a more productive schematic template. The research suggests that future work on L2 sociolinguistic development would do well to focus on qualitative accounts of individual developmental trajectories, emphasizing the specific lexicogrammatical constructions learners appropriate, to understand how L2 sociolinguistic repertoires are constructed across time.

Fixed-choice word-association tasks as second-language lexical tests: What native-speaker performance reveals about their potential weaknesses

2012 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 193-221 ◽  
Author(s):  
VEDRAN DRONJIC ◽  
RENA HELMS-PARK
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Word Association ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Test Validity ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Knowledge Test ◽  
Lower Accuracy ◽  
Metalinguistic Knowledge

ABSTRACTQian and Schedl's Depth of Vocabulary Knowledge Test was administered to 31 native-speaker undergraduates under an “unconstrained” condition, in which the number of responses to headwords was unfixed, whereas a corresponding group (n = 36) completed the test under the original “constrained” condition. Results revealed lower accuracy in the unconstrained condition and in paradigmatic versus syntagmatic responses. Native speakers failed to reach the 90% criterion on most unconstrained and many constrained items. Although certain modifications could improve such a test (e.g., eliminating psycholinguistically anomalous headwords, such as adjectives, or presenting responses to headwords discontinuously), two intransigent problems impede test validity. First, collocates in the mental lexicon differ in tightness and vary across dialects, sociolects, and age groups. Second, it is more serious that second-language Depth of Vocabulary Knowledge Tests are likely spot checks of metalinguistic knowledge rather than depth tests that reflect what learners would actually produce in spontaneous utterances.

Language Learners' Social Interaction during Study Abroad

2016 ◽  
pp. 722-754
Author(s):  
Rikki Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Social Interaction ◽  
Study Abroad ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Common Belief ◽  
Study Abroad Programs ◽  
Native Japanese Speakers ◽  
Depth Interviews

There is a common belief that one of the best methods for learning a foreign or second language is to develop social relationships with native speakers and to communicate with them using that language. In order to increase such interactional opportunities, participation in study abroad programs where the target language is spoken is frequently recommended. However, language learners often report disappointment in their degree of interaction and friendship development with native speakers while abroad. With a focus on learners of Japanese, the study reported in this chapter examines the contexts in which study abroad students in Japan find opportunities to interact and establish friendships with native Japanese speakers, and discusses the participants' satisfaction with and benefits of such interaction and friendships. The results draw upon 36 questionnaire responses, as well as in-depth interviews with four focal informants, all of who experienced a study abroad in Japan between 2010-2013.

scholarly journals Sociolinguistics and Language Learning in a Study Abroad Context

1998 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-90 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vera Regan
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Study Abroad ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Sociolinguistic Competence ◽  
Principal Factors

This article will focus on the acquisition of sociolinguistic competence by second language learners during a period of study abroad. Various aspects of sociolinguistic competence will be discussed and some of the principal factors which affect it will be described.

Learner beliefs about sociolinguistic competence: A qualitative case study of four university second language learners

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinsuk Yang ◽  
Katherine Rehner
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Study Abroad ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Classroom Environment ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Learner Beliefs ◽  
The Social ◽  
Sociolinguistic Competence ◽  
The University

AbstractThis article explores the beliefs about second language (L2) sociolinguistic competence of four university-level advanced L2 learners. It places particular emphasis on 1) how these university learners conceptualized L2 sociolinguistic competence; 2) how they thought about two different language learning contexts (viz., the L2 classroom versus study abroad) for their development of sociolinguistic competence; and 3) the L2 strategies they employed to develop their L2 sociolinguistic knowledge. The study found, first, that the university learners conceived of sociolinguistic competence as the ability to adjust their language to reflect the social distance between themselves and other speakers. Second, it demonstrates that the university learners believed that the classroom environment might provide them with insufficient opportunities to utilize those L2 registers that are most sensitive to context. Nevertheless, their beliefs about the necessity of having sociolinguistic competence played a pivotal role in helping most of them to find meaningful L2 learning opportunities in the classroom, as well as in study-abroad contexts. Finally, while immersive experiences can help learners sustain L2 motivational strategies according to their ultimate L2-related goals, the present study lends support to the observation that contexts

Acquisition, study abroad and individual differences

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 243-274 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bret Linford ◽  
Sara Zahler ◽  
Melissa Whatley
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Study Abroad ◽  
Language Contact ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Variable Structure ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Contact Hours

Abstract The current study examines the combined effect of type and quantity of contact with the target language on the second language development of a variable structure, ‘subject pronoun expression’ in L2 Spanish. A written contextualized task and a language contact questionnaire were given to 26 second language learners of Spanish before and after a six-week study abroad in Valencia, Spain. Their selection of overt and null subject pronouns was compared to native speakers from the study abroad region as well as to learners and native speakers in previous research in a US university context. Results suggest that learners with higher rates of self-reported contact with native speakers while abroad approximate the Valencian native speaker norms more at the end of study abroad than those who report fewer contact hours. However, differences between the groups at the beginning of study abroad indicate that characteristics other than contact hours also differentiate the two learner groups.

scholarly journals The relationship between L2 instruction, exposure, and the L2 acquisition of a syntax–discourse property in L2 Spanish

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 237-258 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tania Leal ◽  
Roumyana Slabakova
Keyword(s):  
Study Abroad ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
Time Study ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Proficiency Levels ◽  
Study Results ◽  
L2 Spanish ◽  
Metalinguistic Knowledge ◽  
The Relationship

This article uses the clitic left dislocation (CLLD) construction in L2 Spanish to investigate whether generative SLA has valuable insights to contribute to language teaching. Although CLLD is a structure that is commonly used by native speakers, as reported anecdotally and in at least one corpus, we found that native-Spanish and native-English teachers of Spanish have little metalinguistic knowledge of it. Crucially, we also found that CLLD does not appear consistently in Spanish textbooks. Additionally, it appears to be infrequent in the classroom input that learners receive, as we found in three lectures we recorded and tallied for CLLD usage rates. At the same time, study results show that the construction is learnable. Study abroad, that is, exposure to naturalistic input, appears to be a significant factor. Based on these collective findings, we suggest that learners at intermediate proficiency levels should be exposed to CLLD and that generative SLA is valuable to teachers in identifying such gaps in instruction.

Opportunities for Corrective Feedback During Study Abroad: A Mixed Methods Approach

2018 ◽  
Vol 38 ◽  
pp. 1-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lara Bryfonski ◽  
Cristina Sanz
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Study Abroad ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Corrective Feedback ◽  
Essential Element ◽  
Successful Recall ◽  
Study Abroad Students

ABSTRACTThe provision of corrective feedback during oral interaction has been deemed an essential element for successful second language acquisition (Gass & Mackey, 2015a). However, corrective feedback—especially corrective feedback provided by peer interlocutors—remains understudied in naturalistic settings. The present mixed methods study aimed to identify the target and type of corrective feedback provided by both native-speaker and peer interlocutors during conversation groups while abroad. U.S. study abroad students (N= 19) recorded group conversations with native speakers (N= 10) at the beginning, middle, and end of a 6-week stay in Barcelona, Spain. Results indicate a significant decrease in the provision of corrective feedback by both native speakers and peer learners over the course of the program. Qualitative analyses revealed that both learners and natives alike engage in negotiations for meaning throughout the program, which for learners resulted in successful recall on tailor-made quizzes. The use of the first language by both the study abroad students and the native speakers promoted these opportunities in some instances. Results are discussed in terms of their contribution to the study abroad literature as well as to research into the effects of feedback on second language development.

A CASE STUDY OF NL INFLUENCE IN UNIS FKIP ENGLISH DEPARTMENT STUDENTS' INTERLANGUAGE

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 46-54
Author(s):  
Irmala Sukendra ◽  
Agus Mulyana ◽  
Imam Sudarmaji
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Communicative Competence ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Universal Grammar ◽  
Similar System ◽  
The One ◽  
L1 Acquisition

Regardless to the facts that English is being taught to Indonesian students starting from early age, many Indonesian thrive in learning English. They find it quite troublesome for some to acquire the language especially to the level of communicative competence. Although Krashen (1982:10) states that “language acquirers are not usually aware of the fact that they are acquiring language, but are only aware of the fact that they are using the language for communication”, second language acquisition has several obstacles for learners to face and yet the successfulness of mastering the language never surmounts to the one of the native speakers. Learners have never been able to acquire the language as any native speakers do. Mistakes are made and inter-language is unavoidable. McNeili in Ellis (1985, p. 44) mentions that “the mentalist views of L1 acquisition hypothesizes the process of acquisition consists of hypothesis-testing, by which means the grammar of the learner’s mother tongue is related to the principles of the ‘universal grammar’.” Thus this study intends to find out whether the students go through the phase of interlanguage in their attempt to acquire second language and whether their interlanguage forms similar system as postulated by linguists (Krashen).

The role of cross-linguistic stress pattern frequency and word similarity on the acquisition of English stress pattern by native speakers of Brazilian Portuguese

2012 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Post Silveira
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
American English ◽  
Brazilian Portuguese ◽  
Stress Pattern ◽  
Target Language ◽  
English As Second Language ◽  
Word Similarity ◽  
L1 Transfer

This is a preliminary study in which we investigate the acquisition of English as second language (L2[1]) word stress by native speakers of Brazilian Portuguese (BP, L1[2]). In this paper, we show results of a multiple choice forced choice perception test in which native speakers of American English and native speakers of Dutch judged the production of English words bearing pre-final stress that were both cognates and non-cognates with BP words. The tokens were produced by native speakers of American English and by Brazilians that speak English as a second language. The results have shown that American and Dutch listeners were consistent in their judgments on native and non-native stress productions and both speakers' groups produced variation in stress in relation to the canonical pattern. However, the variability found in American English points to the prosodic patterns of English and the variability found in Brazilian English points to the stress patterns of Portuguese. It occurs especially in words whose forms activate neighboring similar words in the L1. Transfer from the L1 appears both at segmental and prosodic levels in BP English. [1] L2 stands for second language, foreign language, target language. [2] L1 stands for first language, mother tongue, source language.

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