This paper argues for the re-examination of the time-honoured view that the first language should be avoided in the classroom by teachers and students. The justifications for this rest on a doubtful analogy with first language acquisition, on a questionable compartmentalization of the two languages in the mind, and on the aim of maximizing students' exposure to the second language, laudable but not incompatible with use of the first language. The L1 has already been used in alternating language methods and in methods that actively create links between L1 and L2, such as the New Concurrent Method, Community Language Learning, and Dodson's Bilingual Method. Treating the L1 as a classroom resource opens up several ways to use it, such as for teachers to convey meaning, explain grammar, and organize the class, and for students to use as part of their collaborative learning and individual strategy use. The first language can be a useful element in creating authentic L2 users rather than something to be shunned...

Using the First Language in the Classroom

Acknowledgements Introduction PART ONE - BACKGROUND Introduction 1. Second language acquisition research: an overview PART TWO - THE DESCRIPTION OF LEARNER LANGUAGE Introduction 2. Learner errors and error analysis 3. Developmental patterns: order and sequence in second language acquisition 4. Variability in learner language 5. Pragmatic aspects of learner language PART THREE - EXPLAINING SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION: EXTERNAL FACTORS Introduction 6. Social factors and second language acquisition 7. Input and interaction and second language acquisition PART FOUR - EXPLAINING SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION: INTERNAL FACTORS Introduction 8. Language transfer 9. Cognitive accounts of second language acquisition 10. Linguistic universals and second language acquisition PART FIVE - EXPLAINING INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES IN SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION Introduction 11. Individual learner differences 12. Learning strategies PART SIX - CLASSROOM SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION Introduction 13. Classroom interaction and second language acquisition 14. Formal instruction and second language acquisition PART SEVEN - CONCLUSION Introduction 15. Data, theory, and applications in second language acquisition research Glossary Bibliography Author index Subject index

第二语言习得研究 = The study of second language acquisition

Collaborative writing: Product, process, and students’ reflections

A fully updated and expanded second edition of this flagship work, which introduces methodological techniques to carry out analyses of text varieties, and provides descriptions of the most important text varieties in English. Part I introduces an analytical framework for studying registers, genre conventions, and styles, while Part II provides more detailed corpus-based descriptions of text varieties in English, including spoken interpersonal varieties, general and professional written varieties and emerging electronic varieties. Part III introduces more advanced analytical approaches and deals with larger theoretical concerns, such as the relationship between register studies and other sub-disciplines of linguistics, and practical applications of register analysis. A new chapter on EAP and ESP has been added, with new sections on the important differences between academic writing in the humanities and sciences, and a case study on engineering reports as an ESP register and genre. Coverage of new electronic registers has been updated, and a new analysis of hybrid registers has been added.

/pdf/register-genre-and-style-5dgexc09y1.pdf

Register, Genre, and Style

Feedback is widely seen as crucial for encouraging and consolidating learning, and this significance has also been recognised by those working in the field of second language (L2) writing. Its importance is acknowledged in process-based classrooms, where it forms a key element of the students' growing control over composing skills, and by genre-oriented teachers employing scaffolded learning techniques. In fact, over the past twenty years, changes in writing pedagogy and research have transformed feedback practices, with teacher written comments often supplemented with peer feedback, writing workshops, conferences, and computer-delivered feedback. But while feedback is a central aspect of ESL/EFL writing programs across the world, the research literature has not been unequivocally positive about its role in writing development, and teachers often have a sense that they are not making use of its full potential. In this paper we examine recent research related to feedback on L2 students' writing, focusing on the role of feedback in writing instruction and discussing current issues relating to teacher written and oral feedback, collaborative peer feedback and computer-mediated feedback.

/pdf/feedback-on-second-language-students-writing-5akant3d1x.pdf

Feedback on second language students' writing

This paper studies the use of L1 in the collaborative interaction of adult learners of Spanish who are native speakers of English. Viewed as a psychological tool that mediates human mental activity...

Socio-cognitive Functions of L1 Collaborative Interaction in the L2 Classroom

This paper studies the use of L1 in the collaborative interaction of adult learners of Spanish who are native speakers of English. Viewed as a psychological tool that mediates human mental activity on the external (interpsychological) and the internal (intrapsychological) planes, L1 use is found to serve a critical function in students' attempts to mutually define various elements of their task, that is, to establish and maintain intersubjectivity (Rommetveit, 1985). Also, L1 is shown to be an indispensable device for students in providing each other with scaffolded help (Wood, Bruner, & Ross, 1976). Finally, this study provides evidence of the use of L1 for the purpose of externalizing one's inner speech (Vygotsky, 1986) throughout the task as a means of regulating one's own mental activity. The analysis of student interaction presented here not only highlights these critical functions of L1 in the second language learning process, but attempts to show how various communicative moves and linguistic forms achieve these functions.

Socio-Cognitive Functions of L1 Collaborative Interaction in the L2 Classroom

This study investigates learner-centered and teacher-centered discourse in interactive exchanges between teachers and learners in the second language (L2) classroom. The analysis of interaction shows that learner-centered discourse provides opportunities for negotiation (of form, content, and classroom rules of behavior), which creates an environment favorable to L2 learning. In contrast, teacher-centered discourse is shown to provide rare opportunities for negotiation. Placing the analysis within the context of the role of discourse in the mediation of cognitive development, a central point in sociocultural theory, this study demonstrates that when learners are engaged in negotiation, language is used to serve the functions of scaffolding (Wood, Bruner, & Ross, 1976) and to provide effective assistance as learners progress in the zone of proximal development (Vygotsky, 1978). The analysis presented here attempts to show how various communicative moves and linguistic forms are deployed to achieve these functions.

The Discourse of a Learner-Centered Classroom: Sociocultural Perspectives on Teacher-Learner Interaction in the Second-Language Classroom

This study investigates the role of repetition in the discourse of students of Spanish as a second language working on a writing assignment in collaborative dyads. Data were taken from audio tapes ...

Repetition in the Collaborative Discourse of L2 Learners: A Vygotskian Perspective

This article reports on the implementation of diagnostic assessment in an advanced Spanish language program at the university level. Particular attention is given to the use of dynamic assessment practices as a way to assess language abilities, intervene in learning, and document learners' growth. Dynamic assessment is conceptually based on sociocultural theory, specifically on Vygotsky's notion of Zone of Proximal Development (Lantolf & Thorne, 2006; Minick, 1987). Assessment procedures conducted with third-year Spanish language majors are described with the purpose of illustrating the potential of dynamic assessment for second language learning contexts. Students took a five-part diagnostic test. Two parts of the test, the writing and speaking sections, were conducted following dynamic assessment procedures. A qualitative analysis of the results shows that dynamic assessment allows for a deeper and richer description of learners' actual and emergent abilities, which enables programs to devise individualized instructional plans attuned to learners' needs. Key words: advanced language learners, dynamic assessment, language assessment, language acquisition, program evaluation Language: Spanish Introduction University second and foreign language programs have been increasingly concerned with the assessment of their language majors. While language proficiency assessment of first- and second-year university students has been the focus of many studies over some decades now, studies on the language abilities of advanced language learners have been limited. This article reports on the implementation of diagnostic assessment to beginning Spanish language majors (third-year).1 The specific focus here is on the use of dynamic assessment (DA) practices as a way to measure language abilities, intervene in learning, and document learners' growth. DA has been used as an alternative means of assessment in educational settings for several decades. Its conceptual basis is rooted in sociocultural theory, specifically in Vygotsky's notion of Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD). A fundamental difference with nondynamic types of assessment is the active role taken by the examiner during the testing situation. Discussions and applications of DA to second/foreign language contexts are yet scarce, but promising (Lantolf & Thorne, 2006; Poehner, 2007). This study frames the use of DA procedures into the larger context of language program evaluation through learners' outcomes. First, the study presents previous models of assessment of language majors. Then the principles and procedures of DA are discussed, followed by a review of studies that have applied DA to second language (L2) contexts. Finally, the study describes and proposes a comprehensive plan for assessment in an advanced Spanish language program as a model to diagnose language ability. The introduction of dynamic procedures during the writing and speaking sections of the assessment receives special attention. In particular, the analysis shows that DA allows for a deeper and richer assessment of learners' actual and emergent abilities, which enables programs to devise individualized instructional plans in accordance with learners' needs. Assessment of L2 Majors, Why and How? There have been several reports on the assessment of the language proficiency of undergraduates, mostly concerning beginning- and intermediate-level learners completing general university language requirements (Chalhoub-Deville, 1999; Freed, 1984; Teschner, 1991). Studies of assessment of L2 majors within university programs have been rare. Liskin-Gasparro (1995) reported on plans for assessment of language majors at two institutions, as follows. A plan designed by the University of Iowa (the Iowa Model) proposed to conduct an oral proficiency test, to carry out a writing assessment based on two compositions, to hold exit interviews with graduating seniors, and to collect information by means of questionnaires to majors and alumni. …

Marta Antón

Papers

Socio-cognitive Functions of L1 Collaborative Interaction in the L2 Classroom

Socio-Cognitive Functions of L1 Collaborative Interaction in the L2 Classroom

The Discourse of a Learner-Centered Classroom: Sociocultural Perspectives on Teacher-Learner Interaction in the Second-Language Classroom

Repetition in the Collaborative Discourse of L2 Learners: A Vygotskian Perspective

Dynamic Assessment of Advanced Second Language Learners