Showing papers in "Language Learning in 2015"
TL;DR: This paper provided an overview of the benefits of mixed-effects models and a practical example of how mixed effects analyses can be conducted in the field of second language acquisition, and used mixed effects in the analysis of a variety of different types of data.
Abstract: Second language acquisition researchers often face particular challenges when attempting to generalize study findings to the wider learner population. For example, language learners constitute a heterogeneous group, and it is not always clear how a study’s findings may generalize to other individuals who may differ in terms of language background and proficiency, among many other factors. In this paper, we provide an overview of how mixed-effects models can be used to help overcome these and other issues in the field of second language acquisition. We provide an overview of the benefits of mixed-effects models and a practical example of how mixed-effects analyses can be conducted. Mixed-effects models provide second language researchers with a powerful statistical tool in the analysis of a variety of different types of data.
177 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors studied the impact of learner variables and the degree to which they might predict success in L2 listening comprehension in the first year of a French immersion program.
Abstract: Listening comprehension plays a key role in language acquisition, yet little is known about the variables that contribute to the development of second language (L2) listening ability. This study sought to obtain empirical evidence for the impact of some of the learner variables and the degree to which they might predict success in L2 listening. The learner variables of interest included: first language (L1) listening ability, L1 vocabulary knowledge, L2 vocabulary knowledge, auditory discrimination ability, metacognitive awareness of listening, and working memory capacity. Data from 157 Grade Seven students in the first year of a French immersion program indicated a significant relationship among most of the variables and L2 listening ability. A number of path analyses were then conducted, based on hypothetical relationships suggested by current theory and research, in order to uncover relationships between the variables in determining L2 listening comprehension ability. The best fit to the data supported a model in which general skills (auditory discrimination and working memory) are initially important, leading to more specific language skills (L1 and L2 vocabulary) in determining L2 listening comprehension. In positing a provisional model, this study opens up useful avenues for further research on model building in L2 listening.
155 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a set of guidelines for reporting on five types of quantitative data issues: (1) Descriptive statistics, (2) Effect sizes and confidence intervals, (3) Instrument reliability, (4) Visual displays of data, and (5) Raw data.
Abstract: This paper presents a set of guidelines for reporting on five types of quantitative data issues: (1) Descriptive statistics, (2) Effect sizes and confidence intervals, (3) Instrument reliability, (4) Visual displays of data, and (5) Raw data. Our recommendations are derived mainly from various professional sources related to L2 research but motivated by results from investigations into how well the field as a whole is following these guidelines for best methodological practices, and illustrated by L2 examples. Although recent surveys of L2 reporting practices have found that more researchers are including important data such as effect sizes, confidence intervals, reliability coefficients, research questions, a priori alpha levels, graphics, and so forth in their research reports, we call for further improvement so that research findings may build upon each other and lend themselves to meta-analyses and a mindset that sees each research project in the context of a coherent whole.
144 citations
TL;DR: This paper surveys a range of psycholinguistic notions that are becoming ever more important in theoretical and cognitive linguistics and current corpus-linguistic approaches toward exploring these notions and their roles for linguistic cognition.
Abstract: The advent of usage-/exemplar-based approaches has resulted in a major change in the theoretical landscape of linguistics, but also in the range of methodologies that are brought to bear on the study of
language acquisition/learning, structure, and use. In particular, methods from corpus linguistics are now frequently used to study distributional characteristics of linguistics units and what they reveal about cognitive and psycholinguistic processes. This paper surveys a range of psycholinguistic notions that are becoming ever more important in theoretical and cognitive linguistics—for example, frequency, entrenchment, dispersion, contingency, surprisal, Zipfian distributions—and current corpus-linguistic approaches toward exploring these notions and their roles for linguistic cognition.
120 citations
TL;DR: This article investigated the validity of elicited imitation (EI) as a measure for implicit knowledge, investigating to what extent online error detection and subsequent sentence repetition draw on implicit knowledge and found that EI scores were correlated positively with metalinguistic knowledge, but they were not related to the SRT scores.
Abstract: The present study challenges the validity of elicited imitation (EI) as a measure for implicit knowledge, investigating to what extent online error detection and subsequent sentence repetition draw on implicit knowledge. To assess online detection during listening, a word monitoring component was built into an EI task. Advanced-level Japanese L2 speakers with Chinese as their native language performed the EI task with the built-in word monitoring component, a metalinguistic knowledge test, and a probabilistic serial reaction time (SRT) task, which served as a measure of aptitude for implicit learning. Results showed that EI scores were correlated positively with metalinguistic knowledge, but they were not related to the SRT scores. Word monitoring performance, in contrast, was not related to metalinguistic knowledge but correlated positively with SRT scores only among L2 speakers with longer lengths of residence. These results suggest that online error detection can index implicit knowledge, whereas EI may measure automatized explicit knowledge.
101 citations
TL;DR: Research synthesis and meta-analysis provide a pathway to bring together findings in a given domain with greater systematicity, objectivity, and transparency than traditional reviews as mentioned in this paper, and the same techniques and corresponding benefits can be and have been applied to examine methodological practices in second language (L2) research.
Abstract: Research synthesis and meta-analysis provide a pathway to bring together findings in a given domain with greater systematicity, objectivity, and transparency than traditional reviews. The same techniques and corresponding benefits can be and have been applied to examine methodological practices in second language (L2) research (e.g., Plonsky, 2013). In the first half of this paper, we integrate findings, trends, and critiques from a number of syntheses to both illustrate the potential of this approach and to promote more methodologically informed research practices. Our emphasis here is on study designs and sampling practices. In the second half, we provide an example of a methodological synthesis that reviews the use of one particular statistical technique as applied in L2 research: exploratory factor analysis (EFA). Here and throughout the chapter, we provide specific recommendations for primary research as well as for future efforts to synthesize methodological practices in the field.
88 citations
TL;DR: The authors argue for a process-based, dynamic explanation of language acquisition, in which each developmental step is based on the dynamic interaction of all processes involved, and the developmental process cannot be predetermined and fixed.
Abstract: The traditional morpheme order studies in second language acquisition have tried to demonstrate the existence of a fixed order of acquisition of English morphemes, regardless of the second language learner's background. Such orders have been taken as evidence of the preprogrammed nature of language acquisition. This article argues for a process-based, dynamic explanation of development, in which each developmental step is based on the dynamic interaction of all processes involved. Due to the complexity of these interactions, the developmental process cannot be predetermined and fixed. Although stages of development like the acquisition order of morphemes are commonly observed as a grand sweep effect at the group level, these stages may be meaningless at the level of the individual language learner. This paradox shows we can only make the observations that our method allows us. If we are interested in grand sweep effects that may be generalizable to large populations of learners, we will have to carry out group studies with representative samples that can be analyzed using Gaussian statistics based on the normal distribution. But if we are interested in how an individual learner progresses over time as a result of changing variables in a changing context, we will have to conduct longitudinal studies and use nonlinear methods of analysis.
82 citations
TL;DR: This paper investigated the coupling of specific linguistic items with specific gestures in second language (L2) learning over time using conversation analysis and found that gestures accompany learning of new vocabularies.
Abstract: This study uses conversation analysis (CA) to investigate the coupling of specific linguistic items with specific gestures in second language (L2) learning over time. In particular, we are interested in how gestures accompany learning of new vocabulary. CA-informed studies of gesture have previously shown the importance of embodiment in L2 use and situated learning, substantiating the idea that gestures are ingrained in the ongoing work to achieve and maintain intersubjectivity. We investigate how the relation between talk and related embodied activities develops over time and indicates learning processes. Specifically, we show how gesture-talk combinations that the co-participants deploy at a certain point in time to display understanding are reused at later occasions. Examples investigated here are the prepositions under and across, and our data indicate that at least these specific linguistic constructions are deeply embodied in ways that change slowly over time around an iconic core, as the linguistic items are being learned, suggesting a strong link between L2 vocabulary learning and gestures.
81 citations
TL;DR: The authors outline the basic expectations for reporting of quantitative primary research with a specific focus on Method and Results sections, and present guidelines for the reporting of qualitative data in the context of language learning.
Abstract: Adequate reporting of quantitative research about language learning involves careful consideration of the logic, rationale, and actions underlying both study designs and the ways in which data are analyzed. These guidelines, commissioned and vetted by the board of directors of Language Learning, outline the basic expectations for reporting of quantitative primary research with a specific focus on Method and Results sections. The guidelines are based on issues raised in: Norris, J. M., Ross, S., & Schoonen, R. (Eds.). (2015). Improving and extending quantitative reasoning in second language research. Currents in Language Learning, volume 2. Oxford, UK.
80 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors outline the basic challenges of accurately calculating and interpreting statistical significance tests, explore common examples of incorrect interpretations in L2 research, and propose strategies for resolving these problems.
Abstract: Traditions of statistical significance testing in second language (L2) quantitative research are strongly entrenched in how researchers design studies, select analyses, and interpret results. However, statistical significance tests using p values are commonly misinterpreted by researchers, reviewers, readers, and others, leading to confusion regarding the actual findings of primary studies and critical challenges for the accumulation of meaningful knowledge about language learning research. This paper outlines the basic challenges of accurately calculating and interpreting statistical significance tests, explores common examples of incorrect interpretations in L2 research, and proposes strategies for resolving these problems.
73 citations
TL;DR: This article investigated the construct validity of elicited imitation (EI) as a measure of implicit second language (L2) grammatical knowledge and found that learners' EI scores loaded on the factor labeled implicit L2 knowledge, confirming previous findings.
Abstract: This study builds on research investigating the construct validity of elicited imitation (EI) as a measure of implicit second language (L2) grammatical knowledge. It differs from previous studies in that the EI task focuses on a single grammatical feature and time on task is strictly controlled. Seventy-three EFL learners and 20 native English speakers completed the EI and four other tests hypothesized as measures of implicit or explicit L2 knowledge. Factor analytic results indicated that learners’ EI scores loaded on the factor labeled implicit L2 knowledge, confirming previous findings. Results from other tests and methodological issues concerning EI design and use suggest that the construct validation of EI as a measure of implicit L2 grammatical knowledge awaits further investigation.
TL;DR: The authors make the point that there has been a continuous focus on second language development in second language acquisition research for over 40 years and that there is clear empirical evidence for generalizable developmental patterns.
Abstract: In this article I make the point that there has been a continuous focus on second language development in second language acquisition research for over 40 years and that there is clear empirical evidence for generalizable developmental patterns. I will both summarize some of the core assumptions of Processability Theory (PT) as an approach to explaining developmental patterns and learner variation and compare the position assumed by PT with the Dynamic Systems Theory approach proposed by de Bot, Lowie, and Verspoor and with O'Grady's processing-based approach to Emergentism. In addition, I will summarize the Teachability Hypothesis and describe its limited relationship to PT in order to respond briefly to the article on the same issue by Zhang and Lantolf in this Special Issue.
TL;DR: The authors examined evidence for the exemplar-based developmental sequences for yes/no interrogatives and WH interrogatives in English as a second language (L2) classroom interaction and found that they learned yes and no interrogatives pattern by pattern.
Abstract: Drawing on usage-based linguistics and its exemplar-based path of language learning, from recurring multiword expressions to increasingly abstract, schematized constructions, this article examines evidence for the exemplar-based developmental sequences for yes/no interrogatives and WH interrogatives in English as a second language (L2). The empirical point of departure is an audio-visual corpus of American English L2 classroom interaction. The longitudinal data come from two Spanish-speaking students from Mexico and show that they learned yes/no interrogatives and WH interrogatives pattern by pattern. The degree of schematization was found to differ between them. In both cases, however, their resources for asking questions were not found to emerge at once on the basis of acquired syntactic rules (e.g., inversion) to be deployed across diverse linguistic patterns in a broad-sweeping manner, but emerged as lexically specific, exemplar-based patterns at different points in time.
TL;DR: This article evaluated the effects of language experience on late second language learners' spontaneous speech production and found that LOR was generally predictive of improved L2 comprehensibility as a result of the continuous development of good prosody, optimal speech rate, and proper lexicogrammar usage.
Abstract: The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of language experience—operationalized as length of residence—on late second language learners. Data collected from 65 participants consists of three groups of Japanese learners of English (n = 13 Short-, Mid-, Long-LOR Groups, respectively) and two groups of baseline speakers (n = 13 for inexperienced Japanese speakers and native English speakers, respectively). The global quality of their spontaneous speech production was initially judged by 10 native speaking raters of English based on accentedness (linguistic nativelikeness) and comprehensibility (ease of understanding), and then submitted to segmental, prosodic, temporal, lexical, and grammatical analyses. According to the results, LOR was generally predictive of improved L2 comprehensibility as a result of the continuous development of good prosody, optimal speech rate, and proper lexicogrammar usage, while a great amount of L2 experience was required to enhance accentedness, which entailed refined segmental accuracy, vocabulary richness, and grammatical complexity. These results, in turn, suggest L2 learners continue to improve L2 oral proficiency over an extensive period of L2 immersion (e.g., 6 years of LOR), and they do so by paying selective attention to certain linguistic domains closely linked to comprehensibility—but not necessarily relevant to accentedness—for the purpose of successful L2 communication.
TL;DR: This article argued that the sequence of acquisition should be seen as a minimal idealization that is of continuing value for the domains of both SLA and teacher education, and explored four studies of second language negation that investigated the same data set.
Abstract: Idealization plays a fundamental role in scientific inquiry. This article examines the case for maintaining the claim that the second language acquisition (SLA) of grammatical structures such as negation manifests identifiable stages of acquisition. It proposes that, while research has demonstrated the need for de-idealization, there is no need to abandon the idealization itself. Drawing on work on idealization in the philosophy of science, it argues that the sequence of acquisition should be seen as a minimal idealization that is of continuing value for the domains of both SLA and, in particular, teacher education. This thesis is explored by examining four studies of second language negation that investigated the same data set. These studies afford important insights about the variability evident in the different stages and, as such, identify the limitations of the idealization but do not justify its rejection. The article concludes with a discussion of other factors (e.g., the first language and the role of instruction), the investigation of which may reveal further limitations and thus contribute further to the de-idealization of the fundamental claim.
TL;DR: This paper focused on and reenvisions the affective variable of language anxiety while recognizing that second language acquisition has benefited much from earlier research insights and taking an interdisciplinary approach and drawing on the notion of the social imaginary, also seeking to expand the field's current theoretical horizon and respond to calls for epistemological diversity.
Abstract: The last three decades have witnessed a notable growth in research on affect. Among the various affective variables, foreign language anxiety has been heavily studied. This interest in foreign language anxiety is consistent with increased attention to emotions in the neurosciences, cognitive psychology, and the social sciences. Instead of attempting to establish a grand unified theory on affect, this article focuses on and reenvisions the affective variable of language anxiety while recognizing that second language acquisition has benefited much from earlier research insights. In taking an interdisciplinary approach and drawing on the notion of the social imaginary, this study also seeks to expand the field's current theoretical horizon and respond to calls for epistemological diversity in the field of second language acquisition.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors introduce a comprehensive framework for score interpretation and score use in empirical applied linguistics research, and provide guidance in addressing questions about validity and score usage, as well as a brief checklist for proper quantitative data collection and for adequate data treatment in subsequent analyses.
Abstract: In empirical applied linguistics research it is essential that the key variables are operationalized in a valid and reliable way, and that the scores are treated appropriately, allowing for a proper testing of the hypotheses under investigation. The current article addresses several theoretical and practical issues regarding the use of measurement instruments and scores. Starting from an elaborated treatment of validity and validation, it introduces a comprehensive framework for score interpretation and score use. Kane's framework serves as a rich context to raise the right questions about a measurement instruments’ validity, and it provides guidance in addressing questions about validity and score use. Application of the framework is illustrated with examples from a recent second language acquisition study about the effects of recasts (Revesz, 2012). The critical generalization inference from the framework, as it applies to measuring productive L2 performance, is then examined in greater detail, discussing the different facets of these kinds of measurements and the way reliability issues are and should be dealt with. The paper concludes with a series of common measurement mistakes in applied linguistics research and recommendations to avoid these. The paper offers a brief checklist for proper quantitative data collection and for adequate data treatment in subsequent analyses.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors assess the Teachability Hypothesis (TH), a corollary of general Processability Theory (PT), which predicts instruction cannot alter posited universal, hierarchically organized psycholinguistic constraints behind PT's developmental sequences.
Abstract: The current study was designed to assess the central claim of the Teachability Hypothesis (TH), a corollary of general Processability Theory (PT), which predicts instruction cannot alter posited universal, hierarchically organized psycholinguistic constraints behind PT's developmental sequences. We employed an interventional design, which adhered to instructional procedures of Systemic Theoretical Instruction, and we taught four university learners at Stage 2 (subject-verb-object) Chinese topicalization for Stage 4 (object-first, e.g., Pizza tā yě chī le, Pizza 他 也 吃了, ‘Pizza he also ate’). We believe the findings show that, under the instructional conditions utilized in the study, the predictions of TH do not hold. We conclude it is possible to artificially construct a developmental route different from the one predicted by natural developmental sequences, in agreement with the claims of Vygotsky's developmental education.
TL;DR: This article implemented a sign repetition task at two points in time to hearing adult learners of British Sign Language and explored how each phonological parameter, sign complexity, and iconicity affected sign production over an 11-week (22-hour) instructional period.
Abstract: The present study implemented a sign-repetition task at two points in time to hearing adult learners of British Sign Language and explored how each phonological parameter, sign complexity, and iconicity affected sign production over an 11-week (22-hour) instructional period. The results show that training improves articulation accuracy and that some sign components are produced more accurately than others: Handshape was the most difficult, followed by movement, then orientation, and finally location. Iconic signs were articulated less accurately than arbitrary signs because the direct sign-referent mappings and perhaps their similarity with iconic co-speech gestures prevented learners from focusing on the exact phonological structure of the sign. This study shows that multiple phonological features pose greater demand on the production of the parameters of signs and that iconicity interferes in the exact articulation of their constituents.
TL;DR: The authors compared the development of sentence complexity in speaking versus writing in two beginner Taiwanese learners of English (identical twins) in an extensive corpus consisting of 100 oral and 100 written texts of approximately 200 words produced by each twin over 8 months.
Abstract: Taking a dynamic usage-based perspective, this longitudinal case study compares the development of sentence complexity in speaking versus writing in two beginner Taiwanese learners of English (identical twins) in an extensive corpus consisting of 100 oral and 100 written texts of approximately 200 words produced by each twin over 8 months. Three syntactic complexity measures were calculated: mean length of T-unit, dependent clauses per T-unit, and coordinate phrases per T-unit. The working hypothesis was that (a) the learners’ oral texts would become more complex sooner than their written texts and that (b) the two learners would show similar developmental patterns. We found that these two learners initially demonstrated syntactic complexity in their oral language rather than in their written language, yet over time they were found to exhibit inverse trends of development. This observation was confirmed with dynamic modeling by means of a hidden Markov model, which allowed us to detect moments of self-organization in the learners’ spoken and written output (i.e., moments where the interaction among various measures changes and takes on a new configuration).
TL;DR: This article found that L1 and L2 learners were comparable to native speakers in their judgments of the four frequency bands, although some differences did emerge, such as high frequency, medium frequency, low frequency, and very low frequency.
Abstract: © 2015 Language Learning Research Club, University of Michigan. Research into frequency intuition has focused primarily on native (L1) and, to a lesser degree, nonnative (L2) speaker intuitions about single word frequency. What remains a largely unexplored area is L1 and L2 intuitions about collocation (i.e., phrasal) frequency. To bridge this gap, the present study aimed to answer the following question: How do L2 learners and native speakers compare against each other and corpora in their subjective judgments of collocation frequency? Native speakers and learners of Italian were asked to judge 80 noun-adjective pairings as one of the following: high frequency, medium frequency, low frequency, very low frequency. Both L1 and L2 intuitions of high frequency collocations correlated strongly with corpus frequency. Neither of the two groups of participants exhibited accurate intuitions of medium and low frequency collocations. With regard to very low frequency pairings, L1 but not L2 intuitions were found to correlate with corpora for the majority of the items. Further, mixed-effects modeling revealed that L2 learners were comparable to native speakers in their judgments of the four frequency bands, although some differences did emerge. Taken together, the study provides new insights into the nature of L1 and L2 intuitions about phrasal frequency.
TL;DR: This paper found that relative child language use and socioeconomic status moderated the relation between L1 vocabulary and L2 vocabulary growth in a sample of 104 5- and 6-year-old bilingual children with a Turkish background in the Netherlands.
Abstract: The linguistic interdependence hypothesis states that the development of skills in a second language (L2) partly depends on the skill level in the first language (L1). It has been suggested that the theory lacked attention for differential interdependence. In this study we test what we call the hypothesis of context-dependent linguistic interdependence. In order to do so, we examined child language use and socioeconomic status as two moderators in the relation between L1 vocabulary and L2 vocabulary growth in a sample of 104 5- and 6-year-old bilingual children with a Turkish background in the Netherlands. Relative child language use moderated the relation between L1 vocabulary and L2 vocabulary growth. Positive transfer was only present for children who used L1 more than L2. Socioeconomic status (SES) predicted growth in Dutch vocabulary but was not a moderator of linguistic interdependence, indicating that linguistic interdependence effects are similar across SES groups. The findings suggest the linguistic interdependence hypothesis is context-dependent and only valid under circumstances of more L1 use.
TL;DR: This article extended previous reactivity research on the cognitive effects of think-alouds to include eye-tracking methodology, and found that neither eye tracking nor thinking aloud affected text comprehension.
Abstract: This study extends previous reactivity research on the cognitive effects of think-alouds to include eye-tracking methodology. Unlike previous studies, we supplemented traditional superiority tests with equivalence tests, because only the latter are conceptually appropriate for demonstrating non-reactivity. Advanced learners of English read short English texts embedded with pseudo words in an eye-tracking (n = 28), a think-aloud (n = 28), or a silent control condition (n = 46). Results indicated that neither eye-tracking nor thinking aloud affected text comprehension. In terms of vocabulary recognition, thinking aloud had a small, positive effect, and the results for eye-tracking were mixed. We discuss challenges and opportunities of equivalence testing and explore ways to improve study quality more generally in second language acquisition research.
TL;DR: This article found that learning minimal pair words fosters phoneme awareness, in both first and second language preliterate children, and that for second language learners phonological overlap between the two languages positively affects training outcomes, likely due to linguistic transfer.
Abstract: Children who start formal education in a second language may experience slower vocabulary growth in that language and subsequently experience disadvantages in literacy acquisition. The current study asked whether lexical specificity training can stimulate bilingual children's phonological awareness, which is considered to be a precursor to literacy. Therefore, Dutch monolingual and Turkish-Dutch bilingual children were taught new Dutch words with only minimal acoustic-phonetic differences. As a result of this training, the monolingual and the bilingual children improved on phoneme blending, which can be seen as an early aspect of phonological awareness. During training, the bilingual children caught up with the monolingual children on words with phonological overlap between their first language Turkish and their second language Dutch. It is concluded that learning minimal pair words fosters phoneme awareness, in both first and second language preliterate children, and that for second language learners phonological overlap between the two languages positively affects training outcomes, likely due to linguistic transfer.
TL;DR: The authors unify multiple theories (i.e., orthographic depth hypothesis and linguistic grain size theory, simple view of reading, and the common underlying proficiency model) to explore differences in how 113 fourth-grade Spanish-speaking English learners (ELs) approached reading in their native language of Spanish, compared to their second language of English, which is more opaque.
Abstract: The current study unites multiple theories (i.e., the orthographic depth hypothesis and linguistic grain size theory, the simple view of reading, and the common underlying proficiency model) to explore differences in how 113 fourth-grade Spanish-speaking English learners (ELs) approached reading in their native language of Spanish, which is transparent, compared to their second language of English, which is more opaque. Contributions of different linguistic grain sizes (i.e., small grains assessed via phonological decoding and large grains assessed via morphological awareness), mediators (i.e., word reading, listening comprehension, and oral vocabulary), and transfer were explored. The results suggest that morphological awareness and phonological decoding contributed to reading comprehension in Spanish whereas only morphological awareness contributed to reading comprehension in English. For mediators, listening comprehension played a larger role than word reading in supporting reading comprehension in Spanish and English, but oral vocabulary only contributed in Spanish. No significant role of cross-language transfer was found. Theoretical and educational implications are discussed.
TL;DR: This article investigated English L2 speakers' detection and primed production of a novel transitive construction with morphological and structural features, and found that only those participants who detected the target construction were able to be primed.
Abstract: Situated within second language (L2) research about the acquisition of morphosyntax, this study investigated English L2 speakers’ detection and primed production of a novel construction with morphological and structural features. We report on two experiments with Thai (n = 69) and Farsi (n = 70) English L2 speakers, respectively, carried out an aural construction learning task that provided low type-frequency input with the transitive construction in Esperanto—which is marked by accusative case marking (–n) and flexible word order (subject-verb-object and object-verb-subject)—followed by aural comprehension tests and a priming activity (20 primes and 20 prompts). Results of the aural comprehension tests showed that 23% of the Thai participants (16/69) and 50% of the Farsi participants (35/70) detected the target construction in the input. Results of the primed production task revealed that only those participants who detected the target construction were able to be primed. The findings are discussed in relation to the role of speakers’ previously learned languages in the detection and primed production of novel constructions.
TL;DR: The authors provide a state-of-the-art overview of current perspectives on acquisition orders and sequences in second-language acquisition, including empirical studies, theoretical reflections of, and a dialogue between proponents of Dynamic Systems Theory, Learner Varieties, Processibility Theory, Processing Determinism, Sociocultural Theory, and Usage Based Linguistics.
Abstract: This Special Issue of Language Learning provides a state-of-the-art overview of current perspectives on acquisition orders and sequences in second language acquisition. It contains examples of empirical studies, theoretical reflections of, and a dialogue between proponents of Dynamic Systems Theory, Learner Varieties, Processibility Theory, Processing Determinism, Sociocultural Theory, and Usage-Based Linguistics. This introduction presents the context and rationale for the collection of contributions.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine some of the issues surrounding experimental L2 research and its relationships to causal inferences, and discuss the place of research questions and hypotheses, threats to internal and external validity, specific experimental designs, sample size, and the language used in discussing causal relationships.
Abstract: Explicit attention to research design issues is essential in experimental second language (L2) research. Too often, however, such careful attention is not paid. This article examines some of the issues surrounding experimental L2 research and its relationships to causal inferences. It discusses the place of research questions and hypotheses, threats to internal and external validity, specific experimental designs, sample size, and the language used in discussing causal relationships. It is hoped that this discussion will bring design issues to the forefront in experimental L2 research.
TL;DR: The authors discuss the strengths, limitations, and unresolved issues in the approaches to L2 development represented in the special issue of Language Learning on orders and sequences in second language (L2) development and conclude that, while it is completely legitimate to focus research and theory construction on the first few behavioral signs of acquisition of target structures (called emergence), there should also be room for research that looks at the entire developmental trajectory for a given set of related structures, from emergence to full mastery, to be examined in relevant target populations (differing in first language, differing in explicit knowledge), to
Abstract: In this article I discuss the contributions to this special issue of Language Learning on orders and sequences in second language (L2) development. Using a list of questions, I attempt to characterize what I see as the strengths, limitations, and unresolved issues in the approaches to L2 development represented in the special issue. I solicited and include in this Discussion short commentaries of the authors of the contributions, cited as personal communications and marked by means of a different font. I conclude by arguing that, while it is completely legitimate to focus research and theory construction on the first few behavioral signs of acquisition of target structures (called emergence), there should also be room for research that looks at the entire developmental trajectory for a given set of related structures, from emergence to full mastery, to be examined in relevant target populations (differing in first language, differing in explicit knowledge), using several elicitation tasks, to be administered many times over the period that it takes to reach full mastery of all structures under investigation. Arguably, if such studies are to yield non-trivial findings, second language acquisition researchers should do their best to construct theories explaining these findings.