Search results for "Foreign Language"
showing 10 items of 414 documents
L2 English vocabulary breadth and knowledge of derivational morphology : One or two constructs?
2022
Derivational morphology (DM) and how it can be assessed have been investigated relatively rarely in language learning and testing research. The goal of this study is to add to the understanding of the nature of DM knowledge, exploring whether and how it is separable from vocabulary breadth. Eight L2 (second or foreign language) English DM knowledge measures and three measures of the size of the English vocabulary were administered to 120 learners. We conducted two confirmatory factor analyses, one with one underlying factor and the other treating vocabulary breadth and DM as separate. As neither model had a satisfactory fit without introducing a residual covariance to the two-factor model,…
The teaching of frozen expressions through the graphic novel Persépolis
2019
The constant search for suitable teaching materials to achieve the linguistic skills provided by a language teaching course, finds in authentic documents an important instrument for teaching foreign languages. The scientific literature attesting to the effectiveness of the authentic material is wide and consolidated; indeed, a text conceived by a native for a native, and, therefore, not developed for the sole purpose of teaching a foreign language, is intrinsically carrying a cultural richness and a linguistic variety, which are rarely present in any didactic artifact. The authentic material therefore represents an opportunity to meet the fixed expressions that are part of the communicative…
Characteristics of Weak and Strong Readers in a Foreign Language
2016
This study investigated the cognitive (first language [L1] and foreign language [FL]), linguistic (L1 and FL), and motivational characteristics of weak FL readers in contrast to strong readers in 3 groups of L1 Finnish-speaking learners of English, aged 10, 14, and 17 years. This cross-sectional study covered a wide range of potential correlates, and therefore predictors, of FL reading based on previous research on reading in first, second (L2), and foreign languages. The weakest and strongest FL readers (1 standard deviation below or above the mean reading score) in each age group were selected for the comparisons reported in this article. The FL (English) skills other than reading were fo…
That German Stuff : Negotiating linguistic legitimacy in a foreign language classroom
2018
This qualitative case study of one German suburban high school classroom in the Midwestern United States examines how learners of German negotiate their linguistic legitimacy, which is defined as discursively constructed acceptance or validation for their language use. Specifically, it investigates how the students negotiated legitimacy for using their target language German in their classroom. Based on the premise that linguistic legitimacy is crucial for the maintenance and development of speakers’ languages, data was collected and analyzed from classroom recordings, semi-structured interviews, and participant observations. Findings revealed that, while English dominated the lessons as th…
A review of recent research in EFL motivation: Research trends, emerging methodologies, and diversity of researched populations
2021
Abstract The increasing interest in English as a foreign language (EFL) across the globe has necessitated learning opportunities that engage and sustain students’ motivation to learn English. This paper aims to provide an analysis of trends in EFL motivation between 2016 and 2020. While examining 90 studies published during this time frame, we have focused on an overview of methodologies, theories, and backgrounds of researched populations. We have also aimed to summarize the key findings of the literature in order to discuss the emergent themes in current EFL motivation research. Hence, this paper offers a comprehensive analysis and synthesis of recent EFL motivation research trends. Altho…
Apreciaciones sobre la cuestión de la norma en el análisis de la interlengua
2015
La norma desempeña un papel fundamental en el ámbito de la adquisición de las segundas lenguas (ASL), tanto en el proceso de aprendizaje-enseñanza que se desarrolla en el aula como en la investigación sobre la lengua de los aprendientes. Una lengua solo puede ser descrita a partir de un referente que se erige como el estado de lengua meta para el aprendiente, por lo que determina la selección y el tratamiento de las muestras de lengua aportadas en el aula, y, asimismo, se constituye como modelo con el que se contrasta el output lingüístico del alumno. En este trabajo pretendemos determinar 'tanto desde una perspectiva teórica como aplicada' los aspectos que deben ser considerados a la hora …
Foreign Language Students’ Perceptions of Their Identity
2019
Foreign language learning innvolves cognitive, affective and social functioning of the persons involved in this experience. As a social practice, it is also related to the learners’ perceptions of their identity, specifically to their language identity which refers to the relationship between one’s sense of self and the language used to communicate. This implies that using a system of communication, the speaker develops a new sense of self that remains in a dynamic relation with other senses of self, based on (an)other language(s) the person knows.Language learners’ identity is no longer defined as fixed and stable but as “complex, contradictory and multifaceted” (Norton 1997, p. 419). It i…
Análisis de la satisfacción laboral del profesorado de español como lengua extranjera (ELE)
2020
En este artículo se presentan los resultados de una investigación cuantitativa de carácter exploratorio sobre el grado de satisfacción del profesorado de ELE sobre sus condiciones laborales y perspectivas profesionales. Se discuten críticamente los datos recogidos mediante un cuestionario distribuido en línea entre 673 docentes, que mide la satisfacción en ocho dimensiones: organizativa, económica, afectiva, motivacional, discriminación, ambiente laboral, realización profesional y beneficios sociales. Los resultados permiten obtener una primera panorámica de las condiciones temporales, organizativas, económicas, sociales y psicológicas de la profesión. A pesar de algunas limitaciones relaci…
The Prima Vista Line by Line Research Method
2012
In this article I argue for the justification of an experimental research method in poetry response in English as a foreign language. I claim that to exploit the resources of student readers in a better way, a method is needed to elicit uncensored primary responses that are often lost in the classroom. Unless student readers are allowed to encounter a poem personally and sincerely, and read it line by line, the primary reactions will be lost and language learning through poetry will be hampered. The primary reactions include the readers’ experiences in terms of knowledge of language and poetic devices, in addition to emotional and psychological reactions during the reading of a poem in Engl…
Activating Character Strengths Through Poetic Encounters in a Foreign Language—A Case Study
2016
The paper brings together two important issues related to effective functioning of foreign/second language learners, that is character strengths (one of the pillars of positive psychology) and the use of literary texts for language learning. The goals of using literary texts in a foreign/second language learning contexts and the goals of positive psychology converge. Both literature and positive psychology aim at enriching and expanding individual and social functioning and so they contribute to satisfaction and flourishing. The case study reported in the paper aimed at finding the participants’ opinions about the role of literary texts in foreign language learning and checking whether work…