First and Second Language Acquisition in German Children Attending a Kindergarten Immersion Program: A Combined Longitudinal and Cross-Sectional Study

2016 ◽  
Vol 66 (2) ◽  
pp. 386-418 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kirstin Bergström ◽  
Maria Klatte ◽  
Claudia Steinbrink ◽  
Thomas Lachmann
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Immersion Program ◽  
German Children

The variable development of English word-final stops by Brazilian Portuguese speakers: A stochastic optimality theoretic account

2007 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 219-248 ◽  
Author(s):  
Walcir Cardoso
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Classroom Environment ◽  
Optimality Theory ◽  
English Word ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Brazilian Portuguese ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Stochastic Version

AbstractOne of the core problems in second language acquisition theory is how to describe and explain the highly variable (yet rule-governed) speech of second language learners. Is such variation simply random and most likely due to the first language's interference, or is it governed (at least in part) by general rules that reflect language universals? Within a multidisciplinary approach to the analysis of variability in second language acquisition, this article addresses these questions in the context of a cross-sectional study involving the acquisition of word-final stops by Brazilian Portuguese speakers learning English in a classroom environment. The study follows a sociolinguistic approach for data collection and the analysis is couched within a stochastic version of Optimality Theory.

scholarly journals Perception of Newcomers Regarding Learning English and Culture in Canada

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 86
Author(s):  
Shahla Sattar Khan ◽  
Mehmet Takkac
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Demographic Characteristics ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Language Play ◽  
New Immigrants ◽  
The World ◽  
Points Of View ◽  
Learning English

There are some factors, which are motivational, and on the other hand, there are many challenges that may cause hindrance for learning English as a second language. Therefore, the main objective is to assess perception regarding factors for learning English as a second language, especially among new immigrants. This was a cross-sectional study conducted at a Polycultural center, Canada during the period of June-2017 to July-2017. The results of the study reinforced that new immigrants face challenges while learning English. Almost more than half the participants said that they find difficulty in understanding majority words. Regarding learning culture, two-thirds mentioned that the learning about culture gives them different points of view about the world and develops their critical thoughts. However, the socio-demographic characteristics like age, native language, play an important role in learning English.

The development of lexical complexity in second language acquisition

2015 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
pp. 69-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bastien De Clercq
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Lexical Diversity ◽  
French And English ◽  
Multilingual Corpus ◽  
Lexical Complexity ◽  
Four Levels ◽  
Linguistic Proficiency

The development of lexical complexity in second language acquisition has received a considerable amount of attention in applied linguistics research. Many studies have examined the role of lexical diversity, sophistication and density as indicators of L2 proficiency. Few studies, though, have considered the development of lexical complexity from an explicitly cross-linguistic perspective. This article reports on an explorative, cross-linguistic study on the development of lexical diversity, sophistication and density in L2 French and English at four levels of linguistic proficiency. Additionally, the study proposes a number of alternative measures tapping into collocational knowledge and lexical sophistication. The analyses were carried out on a cross-sectional, multilingual corpus of L2 French and English consisting of oral narrative data. The results show a similar development of lexical diversity in L2 French and English, but considerably different developmental tendencies in terms of sophistication and density. The concluding sections discuss possible explanations for these differences and consequences for the measurement of linguistic proficiency.

The relationship of form and meaning: A cross-sectional study of tense and aspect in the interlanguage of learners of English as a second language

1992 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 253-278 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen Bardovi-Harlig
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Appropriate Use ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Tense And Aspect ◽  
Lexical Aspect ◽  
Associate Form ◽  
Relationship Of

ABSTRACTThe task of all language learners is to match form and meaning. This study investigates the associations of form and meaning in the developing tense and aspect systems of adult learners of English as a second language. A cross-sectional study of 135 learners at six levels of proficiency was conducted using a cloze passage and compositions on the same topic. The interlanguage tense and aspect systems can be characterized as showing high formal accuracy, but relatively lower appropriate use across all levels. During the period when appropriate use lags behind formal accuracy, learners seem to associate form and meaning through alternative interim hypotheses related to lexical aspect and discourse function.

The effect of extraversion on oral L2 proficiency

2006 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 213-236 ◽  
Author(s):  
Siska van Daele ◽  
Alex Housen ◽  
Michel Pierrard ◽  
Luc De Bruyn
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Speech Production ◽  
Potential Effect ◽  
School Students ◽  
Personality Variable ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
L2 Production ◽  
Target Languages

This study investigates the commonly-held belief in the SLA community that second language acquisition is somehow influenced by the learner’s personality. It builds on previous research on the relation between one personality variable, extraversion, and second language acquisition but is innovative in three ways. First, it examines L2 learners’ speech production in two rather than one L2 and thus puts to the test the hypothesis that the effect of extraversion is stable across different target languages (Dewaele and Furnham 2000). Secondly, whereas most previous studies have investigated the effect of extraversion on fluency (e.g. Rossier 1976, Tapasak, Roodin and Vaught 1978, Busch 1982, Dewaele 1998) this study also looks at the potential effect of this variable on the linguistic accuracy and complexity of learners’ L2 speech production. Thirdly, whereas previous studies were mostly cross-sectional in design, this study adds a longitudinal perspective by considering to what extent the effect of the extraversion–introversion dimension on the fluency, complexity and accuracy of learners’ L2 production remains stable over time. Participants were 25 Dutch-speaking secondary school students learning both English and French as foreign languages in Flanders, Belgium.

scholarly journals Acquisition of German Noun Plurals in Typically Developing Children and Children with Specific Language Impairment

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina Kauschke ◽  
Anna Kurth ◽  
Ulrike Domahs
Keyword(s):  
Language Impairment ◽  
Specific Language Impairment ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Error Patterns ◽  
German Children ◽  
Prosodic Structures

The present study investigates the acquisition of plural markers in German children with and without language impairments using an elicitation task. In the first cross-sectional study, 60 monolingual children between three and six years of age were tested. The results show significant improvements starting at the age of five. Plural forms which require a vowel change (umlaut) but no overt suffix were most challenging for all children. With regard to their error patterns, the typically developing children preferably overapplied the suffix -e to monosyllabic stems and added -s to stems ending in a trochee. Though the children made errors in plural markings, the prosodic structures of pluralized nouns were kept legitimate. In the second study, the production of plural markers in eight children with SLI was compared to age-matched and MLU-matched controls. Children with SLI performed at the level of the MLU-matched controls, showing subtle differences with regard to their error patterns, and their preferences in addition and substitution errors: In contrast to their typically developing peers, children with SLI preferred the frequent suffix -n in their overapplications, suggesting that they strongly rely on frequency-based cues. The findings are discussed from a morphophonological perspective.

scholarly journals How to study second language acquisition: a cross-sectional method

2015 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Jogilė Teresa Ramonaitė
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Production ◽  
Language Attitudes ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Language Data ◽  
Conducting Research

This paper describes a cross-sectional method, which is employed when conducting research on acquisition of Lithuanian as a second language. This is one of the most optimal methods to study the process of language acquisition in adults, since it does not demand a long-term commitment on the part of the studied subjects. On the basis of the method, a specific research protocol has been designed in the framework of various second language acquisition research projects conducted in Europe. One of its advantages is that language data can be collected in a fairly small group (10-30 people) of learners of different acquisition levels. The data collected in this way is later analysed and compared between learners in order to determine the acquisitional sequence and other aspects of interest. The main corpus for this study is constituted by language data collected during a semi- structured (socio)linguistic interview, which is a free talk with a participant, who is encouraged to talk. The talk includes some specific questions. During the interview, not only the language data but also some important information about other relevant sociolinguistic factors is collected, such as age, period of stay in the country, language attitudes and motivation. To be able to better compare the participants and to study specific linguistic aspects that might fail to appear in spontaneous speech, all the participants are given the same additional tasks. The tasks described in this paper are of different types: film retelling, storytelling according to a sequence of pictures, describing two similar pictures and indicating differences between them, giving a recipe and repeating sentences. Different competences are required in these tasks but most attention is given to language production. The paper also offers some practical advice and observations based on the study. The specific study where the method was applied for Lithuanian aims at researching the development of acquisition of Lithuanian with the focus on the development of the verb system. The data collected in this manner could be used to study other aspects of language acquisition as well.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document