Variability in the use of the English article system by Chinese learners of English

2000 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Robertson
Keyword(s):  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Noun Phrases ◽  
Referential Communication ◽  
Indefinite Article ◽  
Communication Task ◽  
Chinese Learners ◽  
Article System ◽  
Lexical Transfer ◽  
Chinese Learners Of English

It is well known that the Chinese language does not have functional equivalents of the English definite and indefinite article. Correspondingly, there is plenty of observational evidence that Chinese learners have difficulty with the article system in English. In particular, these learners have a marked tendency to omit the article where native speakers of English would use one. In this article we report the results of an experimental investigation of the variable use of the definite and indefinite articles by 18 Chinese learners of English. A referential communication task was used to elicit samples of the speech of these learners which was rich in referring noun phrases. From the resulting corpus 1884 noun phrases were coded, using a taxonomy based on Hawkins' (1978) description of the definite and indefinite articles and demonstratives in English. The analysis shows an overall rate of 78% suppliance of articles in contexts where a native speaker would use the definite or indefinite article. Of the remaining 22% of contexts where articles are not used, we found that many of the instances of nonsuppliance of articles could be explained by three principles: 1) a syntactic principle of ‘determiner drop’, whereby an NP with definite or indefinite reference need not be overtly marked for [± definiteness] if it is included in the scope of the determiner of a preceding NP; 2) a ‘recoverability’ principle, whereby an NP need not be marked for [± definiteness] if the information encoded in this feature is recoverable from the context; and 3) a ‘lexical transfer principle’, whereby some of these learners are using demonstratives (particularly this) and the numeral one as markers of definiteness and indefiniteness respectively. However, these principles do not account for all the instances of non-native-like usage in the corpus. There remains a residue of 206 noun phrases without articles in contexts where native speakers would use an article.There are identical contexts, moreover, where these learners use the articles. We suggest that this evidence of unsystematic variation in the use of the articles by these learners lends support to the hypothesis that the optionality in the use of articles is due to difficulty acquiring the correct mapping from the surface features of definiteness and referentiality ( the, a, and the zero article Ø) onto the abstract features of the DP.

Intensifier-Verb Collocations in Academic English by Chinese Learners Compared to Native-Speaker Students

2021 ◽  
Vol 44 (4) ◽  
pp. 470-487
Author(s):  
Junyu Wu ◽  
Heli Tissari
Keyword(s):  
English Learners ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Academic English ◽  
Chinese Learners ◽  
Upper Level ◽  
Esl Learners ◽  
Chinese Learner ◽  
Chinese Esl Learners ◽  
Chinese Learners Of English

Abstract It is difficult for L2 English learners in general, and especially Chinese learners of English, to form idiomatic collocations. This article presents a comparison of the use of intensifier-verb collocations in English by native speaker students and Chinese ESL learners, paying particular attention to verbs which collocate with intensifiers. The data consisted of written production from three corpora: two of these are native English corpora: the British Academic Written English (BAWE) Corpus and Michigan Corpus of Upper-Level Student Papers (MICUSP). The third one is a recently created Chinese Learner English corpus, Ten-thousand English Compositions of Chinese Learners (TECCL). Findings suggest that Chinese learners of English produce significantly more intensifier-verb collocations than native speaker students, but that their English attests a smaller variety of intensifier-verb collocations compared with the native speakers. Moreover, Chinese learners of English use the intensifier-verb collocation types just-verb, only-verb and really-verb very frequently compared with native speaker students. As regards verb collocates, the intensifiers hardly, clearly, well, strongly and deeply collocate with semantically different verbs in native and Chinese learner English. Compared with the patterns in Chinese learner English, the intensifiers in native speaker English collocate with a more stable and restricted set of verb collocates.

scholarly journals The Acquisition of Community Speech Norms by Asian Immigrants Learning English as a Second Language

1991 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. D. Adamson ◽  
Vera M. Regan
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Social Factors ◽  
Program Analysis ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Nonnative Speakers ◽  
Noun Phrases ◽  
Asian Immigrants ◽  
Anterior Segments ◽  
Cambodian Immigrants

We investigate Vietnamese and Cambodian immigrants' acquisition of the variable (ing), which occurs in progressive tenses, participles, noun phrases, etc., and which can be pronounced [iŋ] or [In]. A VARBRUL 2 program analysis of native speaker speech shows that the production of (ing) is constrained by phonological, grammatical, stylistic, and social factors. An analysis of the nonnative speakers' acquisition of these norms shows that [In] is more frequent before anterior segments (reflecting ease of articulation), and that males use [In] more frequently than females, especially in monitored speech (perhaps reflecting their desire to accommodate to a male native speaker norm rather than to an overall native speaker norm). The analysis also shows evidence of grammatical constraints which are different from those in the native speakers' speech. This difference may reflect the fact that it is easier to acquire the [In] variant in “frozen forms,” such as prepositions, than in productive rules.

Perspective and Proficiency in L2 Referential Communication

1987 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 171-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theo Bongaerts ◽  
Eric Kellerman ◽  
Andy Bentlage
Keyword(s):  
Native Speakers ◽  
First Language ◽  
Referential Communication ◽  
Experimental Setting ◽  
Comparable Group ◽  
Proficiency Level ◽  
Language Studies ◽  
Communication Task ◽  
Dyadic Communication ◽  
Repeated Use

In this paper we examine some aspects of second language referential communication in an experimental setting. The research method employed is an adapted version of a dyadic communication task originally devised by Krauss and Weinheimer (1964) and subsequently used in a long series of first language studies with anglophone children and adults. The task requires subjects, who are visually separated but allowed to converse freely, to reach agreement on the ordering of a set of abstract, non-conventional shapes over a number of trials. The learners appear to behave like native speakers in many ways: They can carry out the task successfully, they shorten references on repeated use, they need less time in subsequent trials, and most importantly, they tend to prefer to describe the shapes from an analogical perspective rather than from a literal one. The differences between learners and anglophone native speakers are mainly quantitative in nature. For instance, the learners need more time and more words for the task. Also, their final references tend to be longer and structurally more complex. However, the same was true for a comparable group of Dutch native speakers. Furthermore, one learner group showed behavior that was aberrant and could not be related to proficiency level.

scholarly journals Individual differences in the production of referential expressions: The effect of language proficiency, language exposure and executive function in bilingual and monolingual children

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 371-386 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ludovica Serratrice ◽  
Cécile De Cat
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Noun Phrases ◽  
Verbal Working Memory ◽  
Referential Communication ◽  
Cumulative Exposure ◽  
Visual Presence ◽  
Communication Task ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Referential Expressions

AbstractOne hundred and seventy-two English-speaking 5- to 7-year-olds participated in a referential communication task where we manipulated the linguistic mention and the visual presence of a competitor alongside a target referent. Eighty-seven of the children were additionally exposed to a language other than English (bilinguals). We measured children's language proficiency, verbal working memory (WM), cognitive control skills, family SES, and relative amount of cumulative exposure and use of the home language for the bilinguals. Children's use of full Noun Phrases (NPs) to identify a target referent was predicted by the visual presence of a competitor more than by its linguistic mention. Verbal WM and proficiency predicted NP use, while cognitive control skills predicted both the ability to use expressions signalling discourse integration and sensitivity to the presence of a discourse competitor, but not of a visual competitor. Bilingual children were as informative as monolingual children once proficiency was controlled for.

The influence of first language at the semantics–pragmatic interface

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lulu Zhang
Keyword(s):  
First Language ◽  
Forced Choice ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Advanced Learners ◽  
Chinese Learners ◽  
Semantics And Pragmatics ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Article System ◽  
Pragmatic Knowledge ◽  
Chinese Learners Of English

Abstract Definite and demonstrative determiners in English share the same central semantics of uniqueness (e.g., Hawkins, 1991; Ionin, Baek, Kim, Ko, & Wexler, 2012; Wolter, 2006), but the computation of the semantics is constrained by different discourse conditions and determined by pragmatic knowledge, which pertains to the interface between semantics and pragmatics. This paper investigates whether L2 learners may have persistent difficulty in acquiring properties involving the semantics-pragmatics interface, by exploring the acquisition of L2 English definite and demonstrative determiners by advanced and near-native L1 Chinese learners of English. It also examines whether acquisition results are influenced by the learners’ L1 Chinese, which lacks an article system but allows demonstrative determiners. The results from a forced-choice written task show that advanced learners were unable to distinguish between the two determiners in different discourse conditions; near-native-level L1 Chinese learners displayed a native-like preference for the definite determiner, but not for the demonstrative determiner. It is argued that convergence at the semantics-pragmatics interface is not impossible for L2 learners, but (un)acquirability may be constrained by asymmetries in the L1–L2 realizations of semantics-pragmatics mappings. The findings raise interesting questions for future research into factors that can influence the acquisition of external interfaces.

Using regressions to explore deviations between corpus data and a standard/target: two suggestions

Corpora ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-136 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan Th. Gries ◽  
Sandra C. Deshors
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Predictive Accuracy ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Full Potential ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Chinese Learners ◽  
Corpus Data ◽  
The One

The main goal of this study is to develop more appropriate ways to study variation between corpus data that instantiate a linguistic standard or target on the one hand, and corpus data that are compared to that standard, or that represent speakers that may aspire to approximate the target (such as second- or foreign-language learners). Using the example of SLA/FLA research, we first, briefly, discuss a highly influential model, Granger's (1996) Contrastive Interlanguage Analysis (CIA), and the extent to which much current research fails to exploit this model to its full potential. Then, we outline a few methodological suggestions that, if followed, can elevate corpus-based analysis in SLA/FLA to a new level of precision and predictive accuracy. Specifically, we propose that, and exemplify how, the inclusion of statistical interactions in regressions on corpus data can highlight important differences between native speakers (NS) and learners/non-native speakers (NNS) with different native linguistic (L1) backgrounds. Secondly, we develop a two-step regression procedure that answers one of the most important questions in SLA/FLA research – ‘What would a native speaker do?’ – and, thus, allows us to study systematic deviations between NS and NNS at an unprecedented degree of granularity. Both methods are explained and exemplified in detail on the basis of over 5,000 uses of may and can produced by NSs of English and French and Chinese learners of English.

scholarly journals Individual differences in the production of referential expressions: The effect of language proficiency, language exposure and executive function in bilingual and monolingual children

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ludovica Serratrice ◽  
Cecile De Cat
Keyword(s):  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Noun Phrases ◽  
Verbal Working Memory ◽  
Referential Communication ◽  
Cumulative Exposure ◽  
Visual Presence ◽  
Communication Task ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Language Exposure ◽  
Referential Expressions

One hundred and seventy-two English-speaking 5- to 7-year-olds participated in a referential communication task where we manipulated the linguistic mention and the visual presence of a competitor alongside a target referent. Eighty-seven of the children were additionally exposed to a language other than English (bilinguals). We measured children’s language proficiency, verbal working memory (WM), cognitivecontrol skills, family SES, and relative amount of cumulative exposure and use of the home language for the bilinguals. Children’s use of full Noun Phrases (NPs) to identify a target referent was predicted by the visual presence of a competitor more than by its linguistic mention. Verbal WM and proficiency predicted NP use, while cognitive control skills predicted both the ability to use expressions signallingdiscourse integration and sensitivity to the presence of a discourse competitor, but not of a visual competitor. Bilingual children were as informative as monolingual children once proficiency was controlled for.

Hearing Aid Amplification Reduces Communication Effort of People With Hearing Impairment and Their Conversation Partners

2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (4) ◽  
pp. 1299-1311 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy Beechey ◽  
Jörg M. Buchholz ◽  
Gitte Keidser
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Impairment ◽  
Hearing Aid ◽  
Normal Hearing ◽  
Referential Communication ◽  
Hearing Impaired ◽  
Directional Hearing ◽  
Acoustic Environment ◽  
Communication Task ◽  
Acoustic Environments ◽  
The Impact

Objectives This study investigates the hypothesis that hearing aid amplification reduces effort within conversation for both hearing aid wearers and their communication partners. Levels of effort, in the form of speech production modifications, required to maintain successful spoken communication in a range of acoustic environments are compared to earlier reported results measured in unaided conversation conditions. Design Fifteen young adult normal-hearing participants and 15 older adult hearing-impaired participants were tested in pairs. Each pair consisted of one young normal-hearing participant and one older hearing-impaired participant. Hearing-impaired participants received directional hearing aid amplification, according to their audiogram, via a master hearing aid with gain provided according to the NAL-NL2 fitting formula. Pairs of participants were required to take part in naturalistic conversations through the use of a referential communication task. Each pair took part in five conversations, each of 5-min duration. During each conversation, participants were exposed to one of five different realistic acoustic environments presented through highly open headphones. The ordering of acoustic environments across experimental blocks was pseudorandomized. Resulting recordings of conversational speech were analyzed to determine the magnitude of speech modifications, in terms of vocal level and spectrum, produced by normal-hearing talkers as a function of both acoustic environment and the degree of high-frequency average hearing impairment of their conversation partner. Results The magnitude of spectral modifications of speech produced by normal-hearing talkers during conversations with aided hearing-impaired interlocutors was smaller than the speech modifications observed during conversations between the same pairs of participants in the absence of hearing aid amplification. Conclusions The provision of hearing aid amplification reduces the effort required to maintain communication in adverse conditions. This reduction in effort provides benefit to hearing-impaired individuals and also to the conversation partners of hearing-impaired individuals. By considering the impact of amplification on both sides of dyadic conversations, this approach contributes to an increased understanding of the likely impact of hearing impairment on everyday communication.

Partner-Specific Communication Deficits in Individuals With Alzheimer's Disease

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Eun Jin Paek ◽  
Si On Yoon
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Referential Communication ◽  
Sorting Task ◽  
Audience Design ◽  
Healthy Older Adults ◽  
Communication Task ◽  
Design Skills ◽  
Referential Expressions

Purpose Speakers adjust referential expressions to the listeners' knowledge while communicating, a phenomenon called “audience design.” While individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD) show difficulties in discourse production, it is unclear whether they exhibit preserved partner-specific audience design. The current study examined if individuals with AD demonstrate partner-specific audience design skills. Method Ten adults with mild-to-moderate AD and 12 healthy older adults performed a referential communication task with two experimenters (E1 and E2). At first, E1 and participants completed an image-sorting task, allowing them to establish shared labels. Then, during testing, both experimenters were present in the room, and participants described images to either E1 or E2 (randomly alternating). Analyses focused on the number of words participants used to describe each image and whether they reused shared labels. Results During testing, participants in both groups produced shorter descriptions when describing familiar images versus new images, demonstrating their ability to learn novel knowledge. When they described familiar images, healthy older adults modified their expressions depending on the current partner's knowledge, producing shorter expressions and more established labels for the knowledgeable partner (E1) versus the naïve partner (E2), but individuals with AD were less likely to do so. Conclusions The current study revealed that both individuals with AD and the control participants were able to acquire novel knowledge, but individuals with AD tended not to flexibly adjust expressions depending on the partner's knowledge state. Conversational inefficiency and difficulties observed in AD may, in part, stem from disrupted audience design skills.

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