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Boston University. University Professors Program Senior theses. / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / 2999-01-01

The purpose of this thesis is to determine whether the setting of the verb movement parameter in L2 is dependent on agreement acquisition. The Optionality hypothesis (Eubank, 1994) is tested by examining the L2 grammar of Chinese learners of English. To test this hypothesis, the sentence matching procedure originally described in Freedman and Forster (1985) is used. It is found that no current theory truly accounts for the results that are obtained.

Previous research in Second Language Acquisition (SLA) has shown that some of the systematic errors of second language (L2) learners can be attributed to the influence of the native language (L1). In fact, many hypotheses in generative SLA have focused on the role of L1 transfer ranging the spectrum from No Transfer to Full Transfer. The goal of this dissertation was to investigate L1 transfer by focusing on L1-L2 differences in terms of linguistic features; specifically, how differences in the featural and morpholexical organization of L1 and L2 pronominal paradigms affect SLA. In this work I operationalize L1 transfer in terms of the Feature Reassembly Hypothesis (FRH; Lardiere, 2009). The hypothesis pioneers conceptualization of L1 transfer as an initial attempt by L2 learners to establish a direct mapping between L1 and L2 forms. The FRH is particularly suitable to the study of L2 development because it predicts that when a one-to-one initial mapping is unsuccessful, L2 learners will gradually reorganize the L1 grammatical system until they attain (possibly complete) convergence. Empirical testing of the hypothesis is critical since determining when and why transfer occurs opens numerous possibilities to predict transfer errors and to develop pedagogical approaches to tackle negative transfer. In the current study I focus on the L2 acquisition of four 3rd person singular French object pronouns in the interlanguage of native speakers of English. Difficulties in the acquisition of Romance object pronouns have been amply documented in L2 research. However, most of the previous studies of the topic have focused on L2 acquisition of clitic pronouns and their syntactic properties. The present study takes a novel approach investigating the acquisition of strong as well as clitic pronouns. In my dissertation I test different kinds of knowledge including learners' comprehension of different kinds of pronouns. Going beyond production data, my experimental tasks include a grammaticality judgment task with correction, a picture selection task, and a self-paced reading task. The experimental tasks were administered to a group of native speakers (n=43) and L2 learners of French (n=87). The overall picture that emerges from the current study allows unveiling the initial mapping and subsequent reassembly of the semantic and morphosyntactic features implicated in the acquisition process of the four forms under investigation.

<p>The aim of this study was to investigate how the target language is used in the foreign language classroom and how different teachers combine the target language and the first language in their teaching. The study was conducted in three different Swedish schools at different levels: one at the intermediate level; one at the secondary level; and two at the upper secondary level. The teachers were observed during class and interviewed. In addition to this, the students answered a questionnaire about their own and their teacher's use of the target language.</p><p>The results showed that the teachers used the target language as the most common language in their teaching, although the first language was also used. The intermediate teacher used the first language when she did not have enough language herself, when she explained grammar or went through important information. The secondary teacher used the first language when she explained grammar as well as the upper secondary teacher, who also used the first language when she had important information. The results showed that the teacher's choice of language in the classroom had an impact on the students since more teacher target language use encouraged more student target language use in the classroom, and that it is important to start the lesson in the target language to encourage more target language use by the students. Both the teachers and the students thought that the target language was important during language teaching.</p>

The aim of this study was to investigate how the target language is used in the foreign language classroom and how different teachers combine the target language and the first language in their teaching. The study was conducted in three different Swedish schools at different levels: one at the intermediate level; one at the secondary level; and two at the upper secondary level. The teachers were observed during class and interviewed. In addition to this, the students answered a questionnaire about their own and their teacher's use of the target language. The results showed that the teachers used the target language as the most common language in their teaching, although the first language was also used. The intermediate teacher used the first language when she did not have enough language herself, when she explained grammar or went through important information. The secondary teacher used the first language when she explained grammar as well as the upper secondary teacher, who also used the first language when she had important information. The results showed that the teacher's choice of language in the classroom had an impact on the students since more teacher target language use encouraged more student target language use in the classroom, and that it is important to start the lesson in the target language to encourage more target language use by the students. Both the teachers and the students thought that the target language was important during language teaching.

Learning words have shown to be a very crucial part of learning a second language and the one most important factor to make pupils with Swedish as a second language succeed in school. To make sure that all pupils get the right conditions to learn from all subjects and their entire content a wide vocabulary is necessary. Even so it is found that there are shortcomings regarding this kind of teaching in Swedish schools. Through interviews and observations of two teachers that teach pupils with Swedish as a second language, and also with a short reading test for the pupils, the possible strategies that these teachers use for learning words have been studied. The result shows that the teachers are using several strategies and that they are actively working with transmitting these to the pupils, but there are some areas that need developing.

This Report explores the importance of including extensive reading (ER) program in English as a second language (ESL) or English as a foreign language (EFL) context. To find benefits and implications of L2 extensive reading, the Report reviews comprehensive literature on L2 extensive reading. Research has found that extensive reading enables L2 learners to achieve both cognitive and affective gains. Based on these findings, the report provides some pedagogical implications for an L2 program in ESL/EFL contexts. The suggestions include practical tips such as materials, useful ER activities, and a discussion of teacher roles in an extensive reading program. / text

The purpose of my dissertation was to explore whether a virtual world could be a suitable platform for second language assessment. It specifically looked at the validity evidence of a virtual-world group oral test compared to that of a face-to-face group oral test by means of test-retest reliability, concurrent validity, face validity, and discourse features in the two testing modes. A total of 64 ESL students who were enrolled in a large language institution in the southwestern part of the United States participated in the study. Thirty students served as a control group and took two sets of face-to-face and virtual-world tests. Thirty-four students served as an experimental group and took two sets of face-to-face and virtual-world tests after receiving familiarity training in the virtual-world setting. Data were drawn from the students’ group oral test scores, a survey asking for their perceptions on the two testing modes, interviews, and speech samples from their group oral tests. The findings showed that students produced similar scores when tested again in the virtual world, confirming the test-retest validity. The results also revealed that the students’ group oral test scores in the virtual world were comparable to their face-to-face group oral scores, providing concurrent validity of the virtual-world testing mode. It is noteworthy that students produced comparable scores in the virtual world only after they experienced the virtual world. Students’ perceptions on the virtual-world testing mode were promising in terms of anxiety, ease of the testing mode, and ease of turn-taking. Qualitative analyses of interviews showed that virtual worlds have some benefits, including interesting, relaxing testing conditions as well as a feeling of co-presence in the virtual world. Conversation analysis of the students’ interactions revealed four interactional features unique to the two testing modes: 1) different strategies to start the conversation in each testing mode, 2) more scaffolding in face-to-face, 3) more successful instances of showing agreement and disagreement in face-to-face mode, and 4) different turn-taking patterns in each testing mode. / text