scholarly journals Development of English among Older Chinese Migrants in Australia: A Case of Tense and Aspect

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 18
Author(s):  
Satomi Kawaguchi ◽  
Jenny Lu
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Development ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Aspect Hypothesis ◽  
Tense And Aspect ◽  
Older Migrants ◽  
Chinese Migrants ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Older Chinese

Language barrier among older migrants affects various areas of their life such as physical and mental well-being and participation in the community. However, little is known about their actual language attainment. This study investigates the development of tense and aspect (TA) in English through focused instructions among older Chinese migrants in Australia. TA is expressed through morphological and syntactic means in English, while in Chinese, tense is expressed lexically, and aspect via contextual cues and aspect markers. These typological contrasts create learning difficulties among Chinese learners in acquiring English TA. The Aspect Hypothesis (Andersen & Shirai, 1994) claims that the acquisition of aspect is related to verb semantics and, for instance, acquisition of progressive starts with action verbs then extends to Accomplishment and Achievement (Sugya & Shirai, 2007). From a morphosyntactic viewpoint Processability Theory (PT, Pinemann 1998) hypothesises a universal sequence of second language development where V-ing and V-ed are acquired at the category-procedure stage, followed by verb phrase agreement between auxiliary and lexical verb and finally subject-verb agreement on the verb at sentence procedure stage. We broach whether the older migrant learners would be able to learn TA in English. Seven Chinese migrants aged 60-69 who arrived in Australia at the age of between 35 and 60 participated in this study. They received four-week focused instruction on TA following the stages described in PT, and their speech production data were collected before and after the instruction. Analyses indicated that the participants improved their markings of TA after the instruction, and their PT developmental stage was a crucial factor in acquiring TA. The study emphasises the importance of continuous language training for older migrants to encourage their language development, especially for those learning a typologically different language from their first language. Thus, this paper addresses a research gap in older migrants’ second language learning and highlights the importance of research with adult migrants to gain insight into their bilingualism.

scholarly journals Finding the key to successful L2 learning in groups and individuals

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 127-148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wander Lowie ◽  
Marijn Van Dijk ◽  
Huiping Chan ◽  
Marjolijn Verspoor
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Language Development ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Second Language Learning ◽  
Large Body ◽  
Individual Characteristics ◽  
Learner Characteristics ◽  
Complex Dynamic ◽  
Over Time

A large body studies into individual differences in second language learning has shown that success in second language learning is strongly affected by a set of relevant learner characteristics ranging from the age of onset to motivation, aptitude, and personality. Most studies have concentrated on a limited number of learner characteristics and have argued for the relative importance of some of these factors. Clearly, some learners are more successful than others, and it is tempting to try to find the factor or combination of factors that can crack the code to success. However, isolating one or several global individual characteristics can only give a partial explanation of success in second language learning. The limitation of this approach is that it only reflects on rather general personality characteristics of learners at one point in time, while both language development and the factors affecting it are instances of complex dynamic processes that develop over time. Factors that have been labelled as “individual differences” as well as the development of proficiency are characterized by nonlinear relationships in the time domain, due to which the rate of success cannot be simply deduced from a combination of factors. Moreover, in complex dynamic systems theory (CDST) literature it has been argued that a generalization about the interaction of variables across individuals is not warranted when we acknowledge that language development is essentially an individual process (Molenaar, 2015). In this paper, the viability of these generalizations is investigated by exploring the L2 development over time for two identical twins in Taiwan who can be expected to be highly similar in all respects, from their environment to their level of English proficiency, to their exposure to English, and to their individual differences. In spite of the striking similarities between these learners, the development of their L2 English over time was very different. Developmental patterns for spoken and written language even showed opposite tendencies. These observations underline the individual nature of the process of second language development.

A critical review of research relating to the learning, use and effects of additional and multiple languages in later life

2019 ◽  
Vol 52 (4) ◽  
pp. 419-449 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simone E. Pfenninger ◽  
David Singleton
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Active Ageing ◽  
Older Individuals ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Mature Adults ◽  
L2 Learning

AbstractWhile there is a growing body of research on second language acquisition (SLA) in children, adolescents, young and more mature adults, much remains to be explored about how adults in later life learn a new language and how good additional language learning is for them. Our goal in this article is to survey and evaluate what is known about the linguistic, socio-affective, neurobiological and cognitive underpinnings of the second language (L2) learning process in older individuals, the extent to which L2 acquisition may be seen as contributing to healthy and active ageing, and how these phenomena are to be approached scientifically, methodologically and pedagogically. Our view is that a developmental enterprise as complex as L2 learning in senior adulthood and its effects in later life cannot be explained by a single theory or set of principles. Furthermore, we take it that L2 acquisition in the third age needs to be regarded not just as a goal in itself but as a means of promoting social interaction and integration, and that it is partly through the stimulation of social well-being that its cognitive effects may potentially be observed.

THE ASPECT HYPOTHESIS AND THE ACQUISITION OF L2 PAST MORPHOLOGY IN THE LAST 20 YEARS

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (5) ◽  
pp. 1137-1167
Author(s):  
Kathleen Bardovi-Harlig ◽  
Llorenç Comajoan-Colomé
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Coming Of Age ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Aspect Hypothesis ◽  
Tense And Aspect ◽  
The Third

AbstractTwenty years ago, a state-of-the-art review in SSLA marked the coming of age of the study of temporality in second language acquisition. This was followed by three monographs on tense and aspect the next year. This article presents a state-of-the-scholarship review of the last 20 years of research addressing the aspect hypothesis (AH) (Andersen, 1991, 2002; Andersen & Shirai, 1994, 1996), the most tested hypothesis in L2 temporality research. The first section of the article gives an overview of the AH and examines its central tenets, and then explores the results of empirical studies that test the hypothesis. The second section considers studies that have investigated four crucial variables in the acquisition of temporality and the testing of the AH. The third section discusses theoretically motivated areas of future research within the framework of the hypothesis.

Taking Technology to Task: Technology-Mediated TBLT, Performance, and Production

2016 ◽  
Vol 36 ◽  
pp. 136-163 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole Ziegler
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Development ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Reciprocal Relationship ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Technology In The Classroom ◽  
Second Language Development ◽  
Integration Of Technology ◽  
And Performance

ABSTRACTOver the last few decades, task-based language teaching (TBLT) has garnered increasing attention from researchers and educators alike. With a strong and growing body of research demonstrating the efficacy of tasks to support and facilitate second language development and performance (e.g., Keck, Iberri-Shea, Tracy-Ventura, & Wa-Mbaleka, 2006), TBLT has become a leading pedagogical approach. Similarly, computer-assisted language learning (CALL) has also grown as a field, with the use and integration of technology in the classroom continuing to increase (Petersen & Sachs, 2015). As these fields have matured, a reciprocal relationship has developed (Lai & Li, 2011), with the literature on tasks and technology seeking to not only examine how technology might support and facilitate language learning, but how TBLT might serve as a framework to more thoroughly investigate CALL. In light of the expanding research on tasks and technology, this review article aims not only to provide a current state of the art of how technology-mediated TBLT facilitates and supports second language development and performance, but also to describe how technology can contribute to our understanding of how features of TBLT, such as task design features and task implementation, influence the success of second language acquisition. Suggestions for possible research agendas in technology-mediated TBLT are also made.

scholarly journals Children’s perspectives on the use of robotics for second language learning in the early years of primary education: a pilot study

2019 ◽  
pp. 321-326
Author(s):  
Susan Nic Réamoinn ◽  
Ann Devitt
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Second Language Learning ◽  
Early Years ◽  
Children’S Perspectives ◽  
Play Activity ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Language Data ◽  
Age Range

This paper explores how floor programmable robotics can be used during play to promote language development. This paper describes a two-day pilot in two early years classrooms and presents data collected on children’s perception of the Irish language and using robotics. A sample of 48 children (age range six to seven years) took part in a robotics activity using a bee-shaped robot, called Beebot. The activity was orientated around the children’s second language, Irish. The children took part in a questionnaire before and after the activity about the language and the use of the robot in promoting their use of the language. Data was also collected through video, photos, a focus group, and the teacher’s observations. The main finding of the pilot study was an increase in children’s positive responses towards using the language when integrated into a robotics play activity.

INPUT, INTERACTION, AND THE SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNER.Susan M. Gass. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum, 1997. Pp. xi + 189. $45.00 cloth, $22.50 paper.

2000 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 114-115
Author(s):  
James F. Lee
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Development ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Second Language Learning ◽  
Language Learner ◽  
Second Language Learner ◽  
Second Language Development ◽  
Readable Book ◽  
The Relationship

Input, interaction, and the second language learner is, as the title suggests, a view of the relationship among input, interaction, and second language development. Susan M. Gass has written an extremely readable book that explicates many of the most discussed issues in second language learning in the 1990s. Her intention, successfully achieved, is to demonstrate where theories and frameworks coincide, not just collide.

The Cambridge Guide to Learning English as a Second Language

2018 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Development ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Second Language Learning ◽  
Learning Context ◽  
Different Dimensions ◽  
Comprehensive Coverage ◽  
Learning English

This volume provides an up-to-date and comprehensive coverage of second language learning. The focus throughout the book is primarily on language learning, but each chapter also discusses the implications for teaching and assessment, thus informing both understanding and practice. The book contains nine sections, which aim to organise and reflect different dimensions of the diverse and complex scope of learning English as a second or additional language. Four themes which permeate the chapters are: learning and learners; learning and language; learning and language development; learning and learning context. The 36 chapters are up-to-date and authoritative, written by experts in the field. The content is accessibly written, with questions for discussion and follow-up reading suggestions provided.

Initial acquisition of tense-aspect morphology in an artificial language

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 517-538 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles M Mueller
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Past Tense ◽  
Artificial Language ◽  
Aspect Hypothesis ◽  
Tense And Aspect ◽  
Lexical Aspect ◽  
Initial Acquisition ◽  
Early Acquisition

Various explanations have been put forth for the asymmetrical acquisition of tense and aspect morphology across categories of lexical aspect. This experiment tested the adequacy of a subset of such accounts by examining English native speakers’ ( n = 40) use of progressive and past tense morphology within activity and accomplishment verb frames during their early acquisition of a miniature artificial language. Participants completed a lesson in which types and tokens of lexical aspect and past and present morphology were balanced. Although significant effects at p < .05 were found for lexical aspect and morphological marking, the interaction between these factors, expected by the aspect hypothesis, was non-significant. The experiment suggests that the effects of lexical aspect may be absent during the earliest phases of second language acquisition or may be due to factors methodologically excluded in this study such as distributional biases in second language input.

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