Understanding text in a second language: a psychological approach to an SLA problem

1993 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 118-139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heather Jenkin ◽  
Suzanne Prior ◽  
Richard Rinaldo ◽  
Ann Wainwright-Sharp ◽  
Ellen Bialystok
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Mental Representations ◽  
First Language ◽  
Recognition Task ◽  
Visual Display ◽  
Psychological Approach ◽  
Second Languages ◽  
The Way

The study is an attempt to assess the way in which second language learners form mental representations of information they read. Subjects were asked to read passages in their first and second languages and to demonstrate comprehension of the information by using it to make a judgement of a visual display of the same information. Following this there was a surprise recognition task to determine whether or not they still had access to verbatim representations of the passages. The results showed that information read in a second language is represented differently from the same information read in subjects' first language.

When Russians learn English: How the semantics of causation may change

2009 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 153-176 ◽  
Author(s):  
PHILLIP WOLFF ◽  
TATYANA VENTURA
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
First Language ◽  
Dynamics Model ◽  
Primary Interest ◽  
L1 Transfer ◽  
State Of Affairs ◽  
Inherent Tendency ◽  
The Way

We examined how the semantics of causal expressions in Russian and English might differ and how these differences might lead to changes in the way second language learners understand causal expressions in their first language. According to the dynamics model of causation (Wolff, 2007), expressions of causation based on CAUSE verbs (make, force) differ from expressions based on ENABLE verbs (let, help, allow) primarily in terms of the causee's inherent tendency toward an endstate, that is, the causee's physical or intentional inclination for a particular state of affairs. In Russian, the tendency appears to be based on internally derived forces, whereas in English, the tendency may be based on either internally or externally derived forces. In two experiments, English and Russian monolinguals and bilinguals described animations in which the causee's tendency was systematically varied. When the causee's tendency was ambiguous, English and Russian monolinguals’ descriptions differed, suggesting that the causal expressions differ in meaning across languages. Of primary interest, Russian–English and English–Russian bilinguals’ causal descriptions differed from those of monolingual speakers of their first language, and in the direction of the second language, even though they performed the task in the first language. This L2 → L1 transfer is explained in terms of the memory phenomenon of retrieval-induced reconsolidation.

The neural timecourse of American English vowel discrimination by Japanese, Russian and Spanish second-language learners of English

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Valerie L. Shafer ◽  
Sarah Kresh ◽  
Kikuyo Ito ◽  
Miwako Hisagi ◽  
Nancy Vidal ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Adult Learners ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
American English ◽  
First Language ◽  
Perceptual Task ◽  
Temporal Contrast ◽  
Asymmetrical Pattern ◽  
Significant Difference

Abstract This study investigated the influence of first language (L1) phoneme features and phonetic salience on discrimination of second language (L2) American English (AE) vowels. On a perceptual task, L2 adult learners of English with Spanish, Japanese or Russian as an L1 showed poorer discrimination of the spectral-only difference between /æ:/ as the oddball (deviant) among frequent /ɑ:/ stimuli compared to AE controls. The Spanish listeners showed a significant difference from the controls for the spectral-temporal contrast between /ɑ:/ and /ʌ/ for both perception and the neural Mismatch Negativity (MMN), but only for deviant /ɑ:/ versus /ʌ/ (duration decrement). For deviant /ʌ/ versus /ɑ:/, and for deviant /æ:/ versus /ʌ/ or /ɑ:/, all participants showed equivalent MMN amplitude. The asymmetrical pattern for /ɑ:/ and /ʌ/ suggested that L2 phonetic detail was maintained only for the deviant. These findings indicated that discrimination was more strongly influenced by L1 phonology than phonetic salience.

Do second language learners acquire restrictive relative clauses on the basis of relational or configurational information? The acquisition of French subject, direct object and genitive restrictive relative clauses by second language learners

1989 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 156-188 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roger Hawkins
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Relative Clauses ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Linguistic Knowledge ◽  
Linear Ordering ◽  
Restrictive Relative Clauses ◽  
The Way

Much of the work on the second language acquisition of restrictive relative clauses has made reference to the similarities between learners' order of diffi culty and Keenan and Comrie's (1977) typologically determined noun phrase accessibility hierarchy for relativisation (AH). There has been little considera tion, however, of whether this 'theory of markedness' (for that is the implica tion of citing the AH in the context of second language learning) actually determines the way that second language learners develop rules for restrictive relative clauses. The present study examines the way that learners of L2 French construct rules for French relativiser morphology from this perspective. It is found that there is no evidence to support the view that learners make use of a theory of markedness like the AH in constructing such rules. Rather, learners appear to construct rules on the basis of the linear ordering of the constituents of restrictive relative clauses in surface configurations. From the evidence it is suggested that 'markedness' in the development of L2 restrictive relative clauses is not a feature of the grammatical component of learners' linguistic knowledge, but is a feature of their L2 processing capacity.

SECOND LANGUAGE ASSESSMENT AND MORPHOSYNTACTIC DEVELOPMENT

2011 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 529-561 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patti Spinner
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
First Language ◽  
Theoretical Work ◽  
Multiple Choice Questions ◽  
Grammatical Development ◽  
Assessment Measure ◽  
Morphosyntactic Development ◽  
The One

The purpose of this study is to begin work toward a grammatical assessment measure that could bridge the gap between theoretical work on grammatical development, on the one hand, and tools such as the Michigan Test (which uses multiple-choice questions on vocabulary and grammar) or the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages scale (which uses holistic descriptions of grammar use), on the other hand. Such a measure would need to be practical to administer with large groups. Two proposals of grammatical development (processability theory, Pienemann, 1998, 2005; and organic grammar, Vainikka & Young-Scholten, 2006) were applied to short samples of spontaneous production data from 48 adult second-language learners of English from mixed first-language backgrounds. The rapid profile scale successfully accounted for the learners’ development but is of somewhat limited use with short samples of data. The organic grammar placement scale may need to be further refined, but it includes important indicators of grammatical development. A preliminary proposal for using a combined measure with a rubric is presented.

World Englishes, Second Language Acquisition, and Language Contact

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rajend Mesthrie
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Language Contact ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
World Englishes ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Political Dimension ◽  
Second Languages

Although areas of potential overlap between the fields of Second Language Acquisition (SLA) and World Englishes (WE) may seem obvious, they developed historically in isolation from each other. SLA had a psycholinguistic emphasis, studying the ways in which individuals progressed towards acquisition of a target language. WE studies initially developed a sociolinguistic focus, describing varieties that arose as second languages in former British colonies. This chapter explores the way in which each field could benefit from the other. The SLA emphasis on routes of development, overgeneralization, universals of SLA, and transfer in the interlanguage has relevance to characterizing sub-varieties of WEs. Conversely, the socio-political dimension of early WE studies and the notion of macro- or group acquisition fills a gap in SLA studies which sometimes failed to acknowledge that the goal of second language learners was to become bilingual in ways that were socially meaningful within their societies.

Reading strategy training in second language contexts

1993 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Cotterall
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learning ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
First Language ◽  
Learning Difficulties ◽  
Reading Strategy ◽  
Strategy Training ◽  
Learning Context

Strategy training appears to be a promising means of assisting second language learners. However, strategy training operates within a context. If factors in that context are not considered, the training will not be successful. This paper discusses a number of insights highlighted by a reading strategy training study conducted in a second language (L2) setting. It cautions against the uncritical adoption of strategy training as a panacea for learning difficulties, and stresses the importance of recognising and taking account of factors in the second language learning context which may suggest modifications to procedures carried out successfully in first language (L1) settings.

The influence of first language polysemy and first language and second language lexical frequencies on second language learners’ use of false cognates

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 530-541
Author(s):  
Carl Cañizares-Álvarez ◽  
Virginia C Mueller Gathercole
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
First Language ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Complex Interaction ◽  
Word Choice ◽  
Relative Transparency ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
L1 English

Aims and objectives: This study examines second language (L2) bilinguals’ use of words that have the same or similar forms in their two languages but whose meaning extensions differ – that is, false cognates. We examine the conditions under which L2 speakers inappropriately use false cognates in the L2. How do frequency of the relevant words in each language and polysemy of the word in the first language (L1) affect L2 learners’ use of such words? Design: Fifty Spanish L1–English L2 adults translated 80 words in context from Spanish (S) to English (E). The words involved polysemous Spanish words that had several translations in English, one of which was a cognate form. Words were strictly balanced for L1 polysemy (high versus low), frequency of the S word, frequency of the E cognate form, and frequency of the E non-cognate translation. The words were presented in unambiguous contextual frames that pushed for the non-cognate translation in English. Data and analysis: Analyses of variance were used to analyze participants’ translations relative to the variables of Spanish polysemy and the frequencies of the forms in question. Findings: The findings show that the relative transparency or opacity of the mapping between the L1 and L2 influences word choice: the use of a false cognate instead of a competing correct lexical item depends on the complex interaction of L1 polysemy and the lexical frequencies of the L1 and L2 forms in the bilingual’s two languages. Originality: This study strictly controls for several factors crucial to L2 users’ choice of a word in the L2: polysemy in the L1, frequency of the L1 word, and frequencies of the L2 words involved. Significance: When these variables are viewed together, the data reveal a complex interaction showing factors that contribute to the transparency or opacity of the L1–L2 lexical semantic linkages.

scholarly journals The processing of ambiguous sentences by first and second language learners of English

2003 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 453-489 ◽  
Author(s):  
CLAUDIA FELSER ◽  
LEAH ROBERTS ◽  
THEODORE MARINIS ◽  
REBECCA GROSS
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
First Language ◽  
Phrase Structure ◽  
Lexical Semantic ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
On Line ◽  
Native Speakers Of English

This study investigates the way adult second language (L2) learners of English resolve relative clause attachment ambiguities in sentences such as The dean liked the secretary of the professor who was reading a letter. Two groups of advanced L2 learners of English with Greek or German as their first language participated in a set of off-line and on-line tasks. The results indicate that the L2 learners do not process ambiguous sentences of this type in the same way as adult native speakers of English do. Although the learners' disambiguation preferences were influenced by lexical–semantic properties of the preposition linking the two potential antecedent noun phrases (of vs. with), there was no evidence that they applied any phrase structure–based ambiguity resolution strategies of the kind that have been claimed to influence sentence processing in monolingual adults. The L2 learners' performance also differs markedly from the results obtained from 6- to 7-year-old monolingual English children in a parallel auditory study, in that the children's attachment preferences were not affected by the type of preposition at all. We argue that children, monolingual adults, and adult L2 learners differ in the extent to which they are guided by phrase structure and lexical–semantic information during sentence processing.

scholarly journals The receptive–expressive gap in the vocabulary of young second-language learners: Robustness and possible mechanisms

2011 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 102-116 ◽  
Author(s):  
TODD A. GIBSON ◽  
D. KIMBROUGH OLLER ◽  
LINDA JARMULOWICZ ◽  
CORINNA A. ETHINGTON
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Standardized Tests ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
First Language ◽  
Demographic Variables ◽  
Expressive Vocabulary ◽  
Adults And Children ◽  
Low Levels ◽  
L1 English

Adults and children learning a second language show difficulty accessing expressive vocabulary that appears accessible receptively in their first language (L1). We call this discrepancy the receptive–expressive gap. Kindergarten Spanish (L1) – English (L2) sequential bilinguals were given standardized tests of receptive and expressive vocabulary in both Spanish and English. We found a small receptive–expressive gap in English but a large receptive–expressive gap in Spanish. We categorized children as having had high or low levels of English exposure based on demographic variables and found that the receptive–expressive gap persisted across both levels of English exposure. Regression analyses revealed that variables predicting both receptive and expressive vocabulary scores failed to predict the receptive–expressive gap. The results suggest that the onset of the receptive–expressive gap in L1 may have been abrupt. We discuss possible mechanisms underlying the phenomenon.

scholarly journals Linking learner corpus and experimental data in studying second language learners’ knowledge of verb-argument constructions

ICAME Journal ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-135 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ute Römer ◽  
Audrey Roberson ◽  
Matthew B. O’Donnell ◽  
Nick C. Ellis
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Data ◽  
Second Language ◽  
Experimental Evidence ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
First Language ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Advanced Learners ◽  
Learner Corpus ◽  
Learner Corpora

Abstract This paper combines data from learner corpora and psycholinguistic experiments in an attempt to find out what advanced learners of English (first language backgrounds German and Spanish) know about a range of common verbargument constructions (VACs), such as the ‘V about n’ construction (e.g. she thinks about chocolate a lot). Learners’ dominant verb-VAC associations are examined based on evidence retrieved from the German and Spanish subcomponents of ICLE and LINDSEI and collected in lexical production tasks in which participants complete VAC frames (e.g. ‘he ___ about the...’) with verbs that may fill the blank (e.g. talked, thought, wondered). The paper compares findings from the different data sets and highlights the value of linking corpus and experimental evidence in studying linguistic phenomena

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