Konstruktionen in der kommunikativen Praxis. Zur Notwendigkeit einer interaktionalen Anreicherung konstruktionsgrammatischer Ansätze

2009 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Susanne Günthner
Keyword(s):  
Language Use ◽  
Time Pressure ◽  
Oral Communication ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Everyday Language ◽  
Communicative Practice ◽  
Important Means ◽  
Context Dependent ◽  
Grammatical Structures

AbstractThe following contribution is dedicated to questions about the interface between interactionally based studies on the grammar of everyday language use and “usage-based” approaches from Construction Grammar.Studies of grammatical structures in interactional use make it clear that concepts of grammar which assume homogeneous, static categories are only partly suitable for the description of spoken language, since grammatical structures in communicative practice are more heterogeneous, open and context dependent than postulated. At the same time, these analyses show that prefabricated patterns form an important means of solving communicative tasks precisely in oral communication, which takes place under time pressure. These factors make usage-based approaches from Construction Grammar attractive as a framework for a practically oriented examination of grammar, though many divergences exist all the same.On the basis of empirical analyses of pseudo-clefts and

Do we teach the real language?

2013 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 224-241
Author(s):  
Yevgen Matusevych ◽  
Ad Backus ◽  
Martin Reynaert
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Corpus Linguistics ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Oral Communication ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Frequency Of Occurrence ◽  
Real Language ◽  
Recurrent Patterns

This article is about the type of language that is offered to learners in textbooks, using the example of Russian. Many modern textbooks of Russian as a foreign language aim at efficient development of oral communication skills. However, some expressions used in the textbooks are not typical for everyday language. We claim that textbooks’ content should be reassessed based on actual language use, following theoretical and methodological models of cognitive and corpus linguistics. We extracted language patterns from three textbooks, and compared them with alternative patterns that carry similar meaning by (1) calculating the frequency of occurrence of each pattern in a corpus of spoken language, and (2) using Russian native speakers’ intuitions about what is more common. The results demonstrated that for 39 to 53 percent of all the recurrent patterns in the textbooks better alternatives could be found. We further investigated the typical shortcomings of the extracted patterns.

The Effects of Language Barriers and Time Constraints on Online Learning Performance: An Eye-Tracking Study

2021 ◽  
pp. 001872082110109
Author(s):  
Auður Anna Jónsdóttir ◽  
Ziho Kang ◽  
Tianchen Sun ◽  
Saptarshi Mandal ◽  
Ji-Eun Kim
Keyword(s):  
Online Learning ◽  
Eye Movement ◽  
Completion Time ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Time Pressure ◽  
Time Constraints ◽  
Task Completion ◽  
Esl Students ◽  
Task Completion Time ◽  
Eye Fixation

Objective The goal of this study is to model the effect of language use and time pressure on English as a first language (EFL) and English as a second language (ESL) students by measuring their eye movements in an on-screen, self-directed learning environment. Background Online learning is becoming integrated into learners’ daily lives due to the flexibility in scheduling and location that it offers. However, in many cases, the online learners often have no interaction with one another or their instructors, making it difficult to determine how the learners are reading the materials and whether they are learning effectively. Furthermore, online learning may pose challenges to those who face language barriers or are under time pressure. Method The effects of two factors, language use (EFL vs. ESL) and time constraints (high vs. low time pressure), were investigated during the presentation of online materials. The effects were analyzed based on eye movement measures (eye fixation rate—the total number of eye fixations divided by the task duration and gaze entropy) and behavioral measures (correct rate and task completion time). Results The results show that the ESL students had higher eye fixation rates and longer task completion times than the EFL students. Moreover, high time pressure resulted in high fixation rates, short task completion time, low correct rates, and high gaze entropy. Conclusion and Application The results suggest the possibility of using unobtrusive eye movement measures to develop ways to better assist those who struggle with learning in the online environment.

scholarly journals Reviving the genitive. Prescription and practice in the Netherlands (1770–1840)

2020 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Krogull ◽  
Gijsbert Rutten
Keyword(s):  
Language Use ◽  
Extreme Case ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Interesting Case ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
National Language ◽  
Prepositional Phrases ◽  
Historical Sociolinguistics ◽  
The One ◽  
Genitive Case

AbstractHistorical metalinguistic discourse is known to often prescribe linguistic variants that are not very frequent in actual language use, and to proscribe frequent variants. Infrequent variants that are promoted through prescription can be innovations, but they can also be conservative forms that have already largely vanished from the spoken language and are now also disappearing in writing. An extreme case in point is the genitive case in Dutch. This has been in decline in usage from at least the thirteenth century onwards, gradually giving way to analytical alternatives such as prepositional phrases. In the grammatical tradition, however, a preference for the genitive case was maintained for centuries. When ‘standard’ Dutch is officially codified in 1805 in the context of a national language policy, the genitive case is again strongly preferred, still aiming to ‘revive’ the synthetic forms. The striking discrepancy between metalinguistic discourse on the one hand, and developments in language use on the other, make the genitive case in Dutch an interesting case for historical sociolinguistics. In this paper, we tackle various issues raised by the research literature, such as the importance of genre differences as well as variation within particular genres, through a detailed corpus-based analysis of the influence of prescription on language practices in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Dutch.

scholarly journals Evidence for a bimodal bilingual disadvantage in letter fluency

2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
MARCEL R. GIEZEN ◽  
KAREN EMMOREY
Keyword(s):  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Early Age ◽  
Vocabulary Size ◽  
Dominant Language ◽  
Frequency Of Use ◽  
Fluency Task

Many bimodal bilinguals are immersed in a spoken language-dominant environment from an early age and, unlike unimodal bilinguals, do not necessarily divide their language use between languages. Nonetheless, early ASL–English bilinguals retrieved fewer words in a letter fluency task in their dominant language compared to monolingual English speakers with equal vocabulary level. This finding demonstrates that reduced vocabulary size and/or frequency of use cannot completely account for bilingual disadvantages in verbal fluency. Instead, retrieval difficulties likely reflect between-language interference. Furthermore, it suggests that the two languages of bilinguals compete for selection even when they are expressed with distinct articulators.

scholarly journals Język domostwem bycia — o funkcjonalnym nauczaniu polszczyzny w podręcznikach dla nauczycieli Tadeusza Czapczyńskiego

2018 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
pp. 9-28
Author(s):  
Małgorzata Gajak-Toczek
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Secondary School ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Everyday Language ◽  
Classroom Activities ◽  
Primary And Secondary School

The language as home — on the functional teaching of Polish in textbooks for teachers by Tadeusz Czapczyński The aim of this article is to discuss Tadeusz Czapczyński’s textbooks for teachers: Exercises in Speaking 1922 and Methodology of Stylistic Exercises in Primary and Secondary School. The Manual for Taught 1929. It grew out of the reform tendencies specific to the education in Galicia and the Kingdom of Poland and correlated with the innovative findings of the pedagogical and psychological sciences and the disciplines of motherhood. In an innovative way Czapczyński prevented nineteenth-century verbalism, placing the student in a new role: researcher and explorer. This Polish teacher was advocating for the training of correct and proficient skills in speech and writing, and thus subjected practical purposes to classroom activities. In place of memorizing the norms and rules he introduced exercises in everyday language use.

scholarly journals Optimalisasi Kecerdasan Bahasa Anak Usia Dini melalui Metode Bermain Peran

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 12-24
Author(s):  
Indah Fajrotuz Zahro ◽  
Nurul Azizah Ria Kusrini
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Early Childhood Development ◽  
Oral Communication ◽  
Role Playing ◽  
Childhood Development ◽  
Dramatic Play ◽  
Language Functions ◽  
Language Knowledge ◽  
Important Means

Language is one of the important aspects for early childhood development. Language functions as a means of communication as well as being an important means for the lives of children. It is dangerous to be a means for children to be able to interact with each other, share their experiences, and be able to improve intellectually, namely in order to develop their language knowledge and skills. For early childhood it is a period of development that must be fostered and developed so that they can make full use of their language skills. If the guidance, direction, and handling are not appropriate or even not obtained by the child causes language development that is not in accordance with what is expected by parents at home or by educators at school. The methods that can be done to stimulate and optimize children's language intelligence, including the method of question and answer, storytelling, tourist visits and play play (dramatic play). The role playing method consists of playing the role of macro and micro by going through the stages of playing an artificial role, playing with the object, pretending to be related to actions and circumstances, perseverance and oral communication. Based on data analysis and discussion, information can be obtained that the method of playing drama (play dramatically) / role playing is carried out in several stages, namely identifying figures, determining story settings, interpreting stories and values ​​contained, reflection and observation. The application of this technique is expected to provide optimization of early childhood language intelligence.

scholarly journals Words That Go Together: Teaching Collocations in the EFL Classroom

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 103-118
Author(s):  
Tünde Nagy
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Learning Materials ◽  
Everyday Language ◽  
Special Regard ◽  
Similarities And Differences ◽  
Materials Used ◽  
The Right ◽  
Constituent Elements

Abstract Using the right collocations in a foreign language is often a challenge for language learners who may not be familiar with their use and characteristics. After presenting the types of collocations and the importance they have in the acquisition of a foreign language, the paper draws attention to the necessity of raising students’ awareness of collocations, and at the same time it reflects on possible ways of teaching them. Focusing especially on verb-noun collocations, the paper examines the learning materials used in the EFL classes at Sapientia Hungarian University of Transylvania, Miercurea Ciuc, with special regard to the exercises on these constructions. In line with construction grammar theories (Goldberg 1995, 1997, 2006), it is assumed that collocations are to be treated as constructions, pairings of form and meaning, including patterns with different degrees of predictability. Collocations, consisting of both predictable (e. g. read a book, blue sky) and non-predictable forms (e. g. run a program, safe and sound) can be more easily remembered if regarded as constructions where all the constituent elements contribute to the meaning of the construction as a whole (but whose meaning is more than the sum of the constituent elements). In order to gain a better understanding of collocations, the use of electronic corpora and electronic databases as well as additional materials on collocations that would complement the language materials used in class is highly encouraged. By making use of these resources, students can see examples of everyday language use and become more aware of the use of collocations as well as the similarities and differences between them in different languages.

Georg Pilder’s Arabisches Lexicon of 1772 – The Oldest Known Comprehensive Arabic-German Dictionary Rediscovered

Der Islam ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 95 (2) ◽  
pp. 524-548
Author(s):  
Christian Mauder
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Language Use ◽  
18Th Century ◽  
Everyday Language ◽  
Linguistic Research ◽  
History Of ◽  
Scholarly Attention ◽  
Manuscript Copy

Abstract In 1772, the Moravian Protestant Georg Pilder (1716‒1793) finished his work on an Arabic-German-Italian dictionary with the title Arabisches Lexicon. This dictionary, which has so far escaped scholarly attention and survives in a single manuscript copy, represents the earliest comprehensive Arabic-German lexicographic work known to scholarship. Based primarily on Pilder’s experiences as a missionary in Cairo, it includes valuable material on diglossia and everyday language use in 18th-century Cairo. The article discusses Pilder’s biography against the background of Moravian activities in the Middle East, sheds light on when, why and based on which materials he composed his dictionary and studies how Pilder’s authorial intentions are reflected in the work’s content and structure. It moreover addresses the question of the dictionary’s relevancy in the contexts of missionary history, the history of Arabic Studies and contemporary linguistic research.

Beyond the sentence

2010 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 185-207 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerstin Fischer
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Cognitive Linguistics ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Frame Semantics ◽  
Cognitive Perspective ◽  
Pragmatic Markers ◽  
Grammatical Mood ◽  
Spoken Interaction ◽  
Interactive Experience ◽  
Grammatical Structures

Construction grammarians are still quite reluctant to extend their descriptions to units beyond the sentence. However, the theoretical premises of construction grammar and frame semantics are particularly suited to cover spoken interaction from a cognitive perspective. Furthermore, as construction grammar is anchored in the cognitive linguistics paradigm and as such subscribes to meaning being grounded in experience, it needs to consider interaction since grammatical structures may be grounded not only in sensory-motor, but also in social-interactive experience. The example of grounded language learning experiments demonstrates the anchoring of grammatical mood in interaction. Finally, phenomena peculiar to spoken dialogue, such as pragmatic markers, may be best accounted for as constructions, drawing on frame semantics. The two cognitive linguistic notions, frames and constructions, are therefore particularly useful to account for generalisation in spoken interaction.

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