Challenges in Language Acquisition
Discurisive Properties of Null and Overt Subjects in Spanish L2 Grammar: Spanish Postverbal Lexical Subjects and Intra-sentential Anaphors
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Maurizio Santoro
The present study has investigated whether the late L2 acquisition of discursive features of Spanish null and lexical subjects is due to an underlying pragmatic impairment on learners’ part, or derives from their inability to cope with the demanding processing task. Adult English speakers learning Spanish were examined in their use of Spanish lexical subjects in focused contexts, and their interpretation of intra-sentential null and overt pronouns. Results have shown that participants encountered a lot of difficulty placing subjects in postverbal position and identifying the appropriate antecedents of anaphoric expressions. The problem, however, does not result from their failure to activate the required cognitive processes. These inconsistencies are attributable to learners’ incomplete pragmatic competence. The syntactically encoded discursive properties of Spanish subjects have been particularly complicated to account for. In any event, contrary to previous L2 studies, no visible L1 transfer effects have been observed in their L2 advanced grammar.
Adult International Students’ Motivation to Read in English and in Their First Language
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Reiko Komiyama
This paper presents a study on English as a second language students’ motivation to read in English and in their first language (L1). The study used self-determination theory (Ryan & Deci, 2017) as its theoretical foundation, with a particular focus on three types of motivation – intrinsic motivation, identified regulation, and controlled regulation. A survey was developed and administered to measure the three types of motivation of 41 adult international students studying at an intensive English program in the U.S. The results indicate that these students demonstrated a higher level of identified regulation and intrinsic motivation, compared to controlled motivation. That is, they were more strongly motivated to read in English because of its usefulness and the enjoyable experience it brings, compared to external rewards, such as doing well on a test. When asked to compare their reading motivation for English and for their L1, however, the responses were split. Some considered it to be the same. Many, however, reported that if they wished to read for enjoyment (intrinsic motivation), they would turn to their L1, not English. Research with children often highlights the importance of intrinsic motivation for their reading development. This study, however, showed that when working with adults learning to read in a new language, nurturing intrinsic motivation can be challenging because of their existing literacy in L1. The study’s outcomes help researchers and practitioners explore the role of intrinsic motivation in second language reading development and how we could nurture it in the classroom.
Predictors of Spelling Mistakes in Expository Texts in Hebrew-speaking Elementary School Children
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Sara Zadunaisky Ehrlich, Anat Stavans, Batia Seroussi
Spelling is one of the predominant measures that establish text quality from a scholastic perspective, and is particularly relevant at elementary school when children acquire the correct spelling conventions. Spelling depends on the typology of the language and may vary in the process of text generation according to the genre demands. Hence, the present study aimed to reveal the general profile of spelling errors in expository texts – argumentative and descriptive texts - written by 293 Hebrew speaking children from 2nd to 5th grades, and to evaluate which variables were found to correlate with correct spelling in Hebrew. For that purposes, each participant produced 3 expository texts, and completed different cognitive, linguistic and transcription-oriented tasks. Spelling errors were identified and grade-level effects were analyzed, revealing significant developmental differences in terms of spelling accuracy. Genre effects indicated that more spelling errors were found in argumentative texts than in descriptive ones. Linguistic tasks - as reading comprehension, reading fluency and lexical depth – were correlated with spelling in all grade levels, but decreased in 5th grades. Regressions that were used to determine the relative weight of the different predictors indicated reading accuracy as a predictor of spelling errors. In light of these findings, educational implications concerning literacy development in elementary school will be discussed.
Attending to the Pain and Poison: Trigger Words as a Point of Engagement
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Anita Bright
Language can carry power in unambiguous but nuanced ways and can serve to establish, maintain, defend, and modify hierarchies. This holds true in the field of education in general, and in teacher preparation in particular, all of which is heightened in a language-contact setting. Because each educator brings a complex history and identity, nested in temporal, and spatial, historical, and individual contexts, working in a multilingual and multicultural environment invites deep introspection as a means to identify areas of opportunity, limit, strength, and potential for growth. As such, this research explores specifically identified “trigger words” (those words or terms identified by participants as carrying pain or poison, in particular, contexts) as they emerge in teacher preparation, language contact context. In this descriptive case study set in a graduate school of education in the Northwestern US, I explore the ways groups of multi-lingual and multi-cultural teacher candidates navigated the issues surrounding the use of particular terms or trigger words. Each of these trigger words, generated by members of the classroom community, carried a connotation of oppression, marginalization, power, or privilege, frequently in ways that were coded and known to some members of the community, while being either unfamiliar to or seen as neutral by other members of the community. This study explored this collaboratively-generated list of “trigger words” identified by teacher candidates during course meetings.
