scholarly journals Improving English as a Second Language Learners’ Attitudes to Pronunciation through Motivation

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. p56
Author(s):  
Ameen Akeem ◽  
Noor Zainab Bt. Abdul Rasak
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Communicative Competence ◽  
English Learning ◽  
Motivational Strategies ◽  
Perceived Difficulty ◽  
Language Classroom ◽  
The Subject

Pronunciation is an important aspect of English learning. It is however one of the most abandoned or half taught. This is usually due to perceived difficulty in its teaching and learning. Hence, unfavorable attitudes set in, especially in English as a second language situation. In most cases, due to poor technique and methodology employed by the teachers of English, the students are not encouraged to learn pronunciation like other aspects of the subject. This attitude goes a very long way in determining their communicative competence as poor pronunciation could lead a breakdown in communication. It is thus the responsibility of the teachers to help the students learn. This paper thus advocates and presents some motivational strategies that could be employed by the teachers of English to improve the learners’ attitude to learning pronunciation in English as a second language classroom.

Teaching Adult Second Language Learners Who Are Emergent Readers

2011 ◽  
Vol 31 ◽  
pp. 120-136 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martha Bigelow ◽  
Patsy Vinogradov
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Learning Needs ◽  
Formal Schooling ◽  
Emergent Readers ◽  
Print Literacy ◽  
Historical Issues

Some second language (L2) learners are unique in that they bring low print literacy and limited formal schooling to the language learning enterprise. A range of personal, economic, historical, and political circumstances bring them to highly literate, industrialized societies where print literacy becomes not only desirable but necessary to earn a living and participate in a range of everyday activities. This article is a review of current research related to this population of learners for the purpose of informing educators about their particular teaching and learning needs. While the emphasis is on scholarship focused on adult L2 emergent readers, attention is also given to related research with bi- and multilingual children and monolingual adults who are not print literate. Finally, sociopolitical and historical issues are touched upon with regard to broader policy matters that may have contributed to or perpetuate low print literacy.

scholarly journals Agreement attraction in native and nonnative speakers of German

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 619-647 ◽  
Author(s):  
SOL LAGO ◽  
CLAUDIA FELSER
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Nonnative Speakers ◽  
Verb Agreement ◽  
Russian Speakers ◽  
Second Language Speakers ◽  
Linear Distance ◽  
The Subject

ABSTRACTSecond language speakers often struggle to apply grammatical constraints such as subject–verb agreement. One hypothesis for this difficulty is that it results from problems suppressing syntactically unlicensed constituents in working memory. We investigated which properties of these constituents make them more likely to elicit errors: their grammatical distance to the subject head or their linear distance to the verb. We used double modifier constructions (e.g., the smell of the stables of the farmers), where the errors of native speakers are modulated by the linguistic relationships between the nouns in the subject phrase: second plural nouns, which are syntactically and semantically closer to the subject head, elicit more errors than third plural nouns, which are linearly closer to the verb (2nd-3rd-noun asymmetry). In order to dissociate between grammatical and linear distance, we compared embedded and coordinated modifiers, which were linearly identical but differed in grammatical distance. Using an attraction paradigm, we showed that German native speakers and proficient Russian speakers of German exhibited similar attraction rates and that their errors displayed a 2nd-3rd-noun asymmetry, which was more pronounced in embedded than in coordinated constructions. We suggest that both native and second language learners prioritize linguistic structure over linear distance in their agreement computations.

scholarly journals Math and English for Academic Purposes

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-12
Author(s):  
Melissa Stamer-Peterson
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Classroom Interaction ◽  
English For Academic Purposes ◽  
Asking Questions ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Math Class

Even though math is thought to be mostly numbers, there is a significant amount of language involved. Students do not have to know only the discipline-specific vocabulary, or jargon, associated with math, but they also have to understand other forms of language in and out of the classroom. For example, instructors will work problems out on the board while discussing the steps orally to go from one part of the problem to the next which may not align with what the teacher is writing on the board, so there is potentially a loss of comprehension on the student’s part. Additionally, instructors will give instructions in class or give information on specific dates for exams, quizzes and homework which is sometimes given orally or written on the board. Asking questions during class and following transitions between activities can be another challenge for second language learners who struggle with language in a math class. Another aspect of language present in a math course is in the textbook. Students will often be assigned chapters or sections to read in order to prepare for an upcoming class. The textbook is written using the disciplinary language of math, which makes it difficult to follow especially because definitions of math words are often defined with other math jargon. With such rich language and classroom interaction, it is imperative to not overlook the subject of math when discussing English for Academic Purposes.

Literature Review of Second Language Learners’ Acquisition of Chinese Resultative Construction

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (10) ◽  
pp. 907
Author(s):  
Yanmei Lu
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
Second Language Teaching ◽  
Research Results ◽  
Semantics And Pragmatics ◽  
Resultative Construction

Chinese resultative construction was the hotspot of grammar researches and also the difficult point of second language teaching and learning. From the aspects of syntax, semantics and pragmatics, this paper analyzed the ontology researches of Chinese resultative construction, reviewed the research results of second language learners’ acquisition of Chinese resultative construction and also provided some references and directions of related researches.

scholarly journals Second-Language Learners from Collectivistic Societies own Self-Efficacy Effects on Performance and Self Perception of Career Success.

2021 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 130-158
Author(s):  
Parra Carlos ◽  
Geriguis-Mina Nanci
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Western Influence ◽  
Group Members ◽  
Perceptions And Expectations ◽  
Prior Experiences

In reference to cultural patterns in collectivistic societies, teaching and learning are greatly influenced by the teachers’ collectivistic or individualistic cultural orientation (Kaur & Noman, 2015). However, in dealing with both audiences and their teaching platforms, a chasm appears between methodologies and their applications since collectivistic societies are reluctant to accept methodologies perceived as mere Western innovations. In other words, a seemingly pedagogical incongruence arises where direct individualistic Western influence is perceived as unsuitable to a collectivistic mindset. One must keep in mind that family members in collectivist societies, who view themselves as part of a group rather than independent individuals, seem to feel more interdependent and mutually responsible for each other. In addition to Vygotski’s assertion that children’s cognitive development is enriched through social interaction with more skilled individuals (1978), Bandura (1982) emphasizes that the degree to which learners believe in their own self-efficacy influences their functioning cognitively, motivationally, emotionally, and their decision making process. Also, self-efficacy is perceived to accelerate the process of adapting to a new environment while learners adopt new cultural practices and consent to norms and expectations. In our exploration, second-language learners (SLLs) from collectivistic societies advance academically—English as a second language included—within the frame of sociocultural theory, since they seem to be motivated by their culturally-induced sense of obligation to honor their parents and other group members. These SLLs are positively influenced by their prior experiences with the group’s perceptions and expectations of their capability to learn an additional language (Bandura & Schunk, 1981; Schunk, 1991). Our research seems to indicate that this outcome is significantly affected by the self-efficacy and self-reliance produced by prior successes in challenging tasks that may have been mandated by the SLL’s elders. In addition, SLLs also seem to succeed in accomplishing more challenging goals as they observe their families’ values and traditions even when they are in a society that enforces individualistic values.

scholarly journals Attitudes towards English Medium Instruction Courses among Second Language Learners in Relation to Learning Anxiety and Learning Achievement

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 38-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nurul Farhani Binti Che Ghani
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Pearson Correlation ◽  
Learning Achievement ◽  
Learning Anxiety ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
English Medium Instruction ◽  
Students Attitudes

The purpose of this paper was to examine second language learners’ attitudes towards English Medium Instruction (EMI) courses at University of Selangor (UNISEL) in Malaysia affectively, behaviorally and cognitively. This study also investigated students’ learning anxiety and students’ learning achievement towards EMI courses. This study employed ABC Model of Attitudes (1998) as guidelines to investigate learners’ attitudes towards EMI courses. 100-degree students form Faculty of Science and Information Technology (FSIT) participated in the study by completing a questionnaire of English Medium Instruction courses. A quantitative method was employed to analyze the collected data, performing statistical procedures of descriptive statistic and Pearson correlation using SPSS. The major findings of the study were as follows: (1) most participants demonstrated positive attitudes towards English medium Instruction courses affectively, behaviorally and cognitively, (2) there was no significant relationship between students’ learning anxiety and students’ learning achievement towards EMI courses. It was due to the ways lecturers delivering EMI courses to the students. This situation happened when the way their lecturers conducted the lesson in English medium setting might help the students reduce their learning anxiety of the lesson. In other words, the level of their anxiousness in learning EMI courses depends on how their lecturers deliver the subject during teaching and learning process. Finally, some pedagogical implications that would help tap the students’ attitudes and achievement were demonstrated.Keywords: English Medium Instruction, attitudes, learning anxiety, learning achievement

Review on Motivation of Second Language Learners in Class

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
pp. 4229-4233
Author(s):  
Yi Xia
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Learning Style ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Classroom Environment ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Motivational Strategies ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Insight Into

This paper will provide insight into motivation through the lenses of learning style, interaction and feedback. If the relationship between motivation and three factors are well understood, then the learning of second foreign language can be facilitated in the classroom. Motivational strategies also will be presented after each lens. At the end of the paper, it concludes with the limitations of these researches and specific implications such as classroom environment for further teaching practice.

Communicative competence and personality dimensions in first and second language learners

2002 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 361-374 ◽  
Author(s):  
LUDO VERHOEVEN ◽  
ANNE VERMEER
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Communicative Competence ◽  
Openness To Experience ◽  
Pragmatic Competence ◽  
Personality Factors ◽  
Big Five Personality ◽  
Organizational Skills

The purpose of the present study was to examine the relations between communicative competence and five dimensions of personality in 241 first and second language–learning children in The Netherlands. To determine the underlying communicative competence of the first and second language learners of Dutch, a broad array of linguistic measures and teacher judgments were collected. Observational scales referring to the Big Five personality factors were used to characterize the children's personalities. The results showed that three basic components underlie both the monolingual and bilingual children's communicative competence: organizational competence, involving lexical, syntactic, discourse, and functional abilities; pragmatic competence, involving sociocultural routines and illocutionary force; and strategic competence, involving the planning and monitoring of communicative behavior. The relations between the different dimensions of personality and the components of communicative competence revealed the following patterns to characterize first language learners: conscientiousness and emotional stability correlated with basic organizational skills; openness to experience correlated with pragmatic competence; and a broad range of personality characteristics with the acquisition of communicative strategies. In contrast, primarily openness to experience and, to a lesser extent, conscientiousness and extraversion were found to be related to the buildup of basic organizational skills, the acquisition of pragmatic skills, and the development of monitoring strategies in second language learners.

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