Studies in third language acquisition (L3) add an exciting dimension to the field of language acquisition and present many interesting lines of research. One issue unique to L3 acquisition is the effect of second language (L2) experience on L3 acquisition. Because L3 learners have already experienced the process of language acquisition, it seems likely that the experiences, knowledge, and skills they may have gained while learning an L2 would transfer to, and even enhance, their ability to acquire an L3. It also seems reasonable to believe that the type of language previously studied would have an effect on learners' abilities to acquire additional languages of a similar type. Many research studies have affirmed these theories showing that L3 learners have an advantage in language learning which is absent in L2 learners. Other studies have shown L2 typology, level of proficiency, and extent of L2 experience to be contributing factors in adult L3 learners who had studied French or Spanish as an L2 for varying lengths of time, and were studying French, Spanish, Korean, Japanese, or Russian as an L3. Participants' L2 experience, including length of study and language type, was compared to their scores on an L3 speaking assessment consisting of pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, and fluency ratings. A linear stepwise multiple regression analysis showed a modest trend in which length of L2 experience did have an effect on L3 acquisition. Although this trend did not achieve statistical significance, a hypothetical analysis showed that the trend became significant with the omission of three outliers. An analysis of variance demonstrated that type of language experience did not significantly affect L3 acquisition since participants from all five L3 groups received comparable scores on the speaking assessment. Another analysis of variance, however, showed language type to be a highly significant factor in the acquisition of L3 pronunciation. The results of the study suggest that length of L2 exposure does seem to affect L3 acquisition to some extent, although the trend found from the data was modest. The study also concluded that language typology was not a significant contributing factor in L3 acquisition, with the exception of its effect on the acquisition of L3 pronunciation.

Sammandrag Studiens syfte är att undersöka hur lärare på högstadiet diagnosticerar L2-elevers språknivå i svenska (SvA) och lärarnas metodik för att vidareutveckla elevernas språkkunskaper. Upp­gifter från lärare samlas in genom semistrukturerade intervjuer med 3 lärare från 3 skolor. Teorier som används i den här studien är det sociokulturella perspektivet, Piagets teori om barns kog­ni­ti­va utveckling och det metakognitiva stadiet. Därefter analyseras materialet i en tematisk innehållsanalys, där resultatet delas in i två teman som svarar mot studiens två forskningsfrågor: Hur diagnosticerar lärarna SvA-elevernas språknivå vid övergången till högstadiet och hur hjälper lärarna eleverna till ett bättre språk? Resultatet visar på både likheter och skillnader i metoderna för att diagnosticera L2-elevernas språknivå. Alla använder ett slags textanalys, medan en av de tre lärarna även förlitar sig på information från de lärare som eleverna har haft tidigare. Alla tre lärarna använder Gibbons cirkelmodell. Formativ bedömning används som hjälpmedel, men hur det används beskrivs inte närmare. Ett annat resultat är att modersmålet är betydelsefullt i L2-inlärning, dock förekommer det inte i praktiken eftersom modersmålslärare inte är tillgängliga, vilket de tre lärarna ställer sig kritiska till.   Nyckelord: Svenska som andraspråk, L2-elever, språkkunskaper, språknivå, språkutveckling   Keywords: Swedish as a second language, L2-pupils, language knowledge, language level, language development   English title: Teachers’ work in Swedish as a second language. A study of how teachers study and develop pupils’ language skills

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Learning kanji (i.e., the Chinese characters utilized in the Japanese writing system) is unique for learners of Japanese who speak Chinese as their first language (L1) due to their ability to transfer their knowledge of L1 hanzi (i.e., the Chinese characters utilized in the Chinese writing system). The present study is a longitudinal investigation into the effects of affective variables and kanji growth on kanji learning utilizing the self-determination theory (SDT; Deci & Ryan, 1985, 2002). L1 Chinese learners of Japanese as a second language (L2) responded to a questionnaire designed to measure eleven affective variables and took kanji tests three times over one academic semester (N = 229-340). In addition, interviews were conducted with 12 participants to further explore the affective variables influencing kanji learning. The data were analyzed using univariate and multivariate latent growth modeling, multiple regression analyses, and path modeling to answer six research questions. The results showed that: (a) there were no associations between the initial affective status and the initial kanji proficiency; (b) intrinsic motivation and introjected regulation exerted significant positive and negative influences on short-term kanji growth, respectively; (c) growth in kanji proficiency did not cultivate intrinsic motivation, nor did intrinsic motivation lead to growth in kanji proficiency; (d) perceived competence was significantly associated with both the initial status of intrinsic motivation and changes in intrinsic motivation; (e) perceived competence was not associated with either the initial level or the development of kanji proficiency; (f) perceived competence positively affected four variables, intrinsic motivation, identified regulation, external regulation, and mastery goals; (g) perceived autonomy led to lower amotivation and higher intrinsic motivation, but caused lower external regulation; (h) peers' positive influences positively affected all six variables, cultivating higher intrinsic motivation, identified regulation, introjected regulation, external regulation, and mastery goals, as well as causing lower amotivation; (i) peers' negative influences led to lower identified regulation and higher amotivation, and higher introjected regulation, and; (j) attitudes toward L2 community/speakers did not influence any of the SDT kanji learning motivation and mastery goals. The results of the interview study revealed that (a) the participants felt various types of enjoyment in kanji learning, including intrinsic motivation-knowledge, intrinsic motivation-stimulation, and intrinsic motivation-accomplishment; (b) ideal L2 self guided intrinsic motivation; (c) introjected regulation was channeled by ought-to L2 self and feared L2 self, and; (d) feared L2 self was uniquely formulated as a result of the complex interactions of various factors such as pride as L1 hanzi knowledge holders and normative pressure from Chinese peers. Evidence gathered in research targeting English learners is not necessarily applicable to the learning and motivation for learning other languages. The present study contributes to a better understanding of the universality as well as the individuality of the roles of motivation in L2 learning. / Applied Linguistics

[pt] Este estudo, destinado ao ensino de Português como Segunda Língua para Estrangeiros (PL2E), visa à descrição e à sistematização dos usos dos verbos ser e estar articulados a sintagma nominal, sintagma adjetival e sintagma preposicional com base no corpus que compreende 7 episódios da primeira temporada do programa Os Normais, exibida pela Rede Globo de Televisão, no ano de 2001. A análise, orientada por pressupostos funcionalistas, procura evidenciar as condições semântico-sintáticas e sociocognitivas (contextuais) que determinam a seleção entre ser e estar, assumindo como pressuposto básico o caráter significativo e multifuncional dessas formas. Assim, mostramos que os referidos verbos tomam parte na construção do significado das orações em que figuram e que desempenham funções discursivas. Nossa análise permite-nos concluir que são três as ordens de fatores nas quais se baseia a seleção entre ser e estar: a estruturação semântico-sintática da oração; o conjunto de pressupostos que constituem os contextos socicognitivos dos interlocutores; e as funções discursivas a que servem esses verbos. / [en] This study, to be used in the teaching of Portuguese as a Second Language for Foreigners (PSLF), aims at the description and systematization of the uses of the verbs ser and estar connected to a nominal syntagm, to an adjectival syntagm and to a prepositional syntagm. The corpus include 7 episodes of the first season of the sitcom Os Normais, exhibited by the Rede Globo TV Network, in 2001. The analysis, carried out based on funcionalist principles, sought to show the semantic-syntatic and sociocognitive conditions (contextual) that determine the selection between ser and estar, adopting as assumption the meaningful and multifunctional nature from these forms. Therefore, we show that the above-mentioned verbs take part in the construction of the meaning of clauses wherein they occur and that they perform discourse functions. Our analysis enable us to conclude that there are three the types of factors in which the choise between ser and estar is based: the semantic-syntatic structure of the clause; the set of assumptions that constitute the sociocognitve contexts of the speakers; and the discursive functions that these verbs serve.

Abstract : In the contemporary world, English has become the international language in which most intercultural communication is conducted (Seidlhofer, 2011). The number of speakers using English as a foreign or second language (L2) outnumbers the number of native speakers of the language six times (Crystal, 2003) and, accordingly, English is used more commonly as a Lingua Franca in the international context than to communicate with its native speakers (Jenkins, 2007). Because of the global spread of English, there are more people who speak English with a non-native accent. Such accents often trigger a set of stereotypes insofar as it could have negative consequences for the speaker in terms of academic success and employability (Lippi-Green, 1994). From decades of research in social psychology and sociolinguistics, it has been established that accent plays a significant role in how native speakers perceive non-native speakers of English (Garrett, 2010). However, little has been done in exploring how non-native speakers of English view their own accent and judge acceptability of other non-native English accents. Therefore, this study addressed the need for further research focusing on non-native students’ attitudes towards Arabic- and Chinese-accented English in an English Intensive Program at an English-speaking university in Montreal. This study employed the verbal guise technique from the field of social psychology to elicit spontaneous reactions to L2 accented speech with two levels of first language (L1) influence. Unlike other verbal guise studies, this study did not include a native speaker sample for comparison. We believed our participants’ potential negative attitudes to L2-accented speech would be attenuated by the reference frame effect. To explain and clarify verbal guise test results, we also conducted semi-structured interviews. The results show that the respondents displayed a relatively low level of solidarity with Chinese and Arabic accents in English. Notwithstanding relatively low solidarity ratings given to the accented voices, they were still higher than the evaluations documented in the literature. In addition, high status ratings were found for non-native speakers despite the fact that they were recognized as such. This suggests that in addition to the positive effect triggered by the lack of inclusion of native speaker accents, there might be some contextual factors at play. We found that the participants were harsher in their ratings when the voices represented the more formal domain of higher education but more lenient when they referred to informal settings. From our data, it is also evident that non-segmentals play an important role in language attitudes. The female speakers who approximated their rhythm patterns and intonation contours to those of a native speaker received higher ratings on all the traits in our data. We believe that, if we want them to serve the needs of international students, these often ambivalent attitudes should be considered in the choice of a classroom pronunciation model, and in the development of pronunciation materials. / Résumé : Dans le monde contemporain, l’anglais est devenu la langue internationale utilisée pour la plupart des communications interculturelles (Seidlhofer, 2011). Le nombre de locuteurs utilisant l’anglais comme langue étrangère ou langue seconde est six fois plus important que le nombre de locuteurs natifs (Crystal, 2003). L’anglais est plus souvent utilisé comme Lingua Franca dans un contexte international que pour communiquer avec des locuteurs natifs (Jenkins, 2007). A cause de cette diffusion globale de l’anglais, la plupart des gens qui parlent anglais ont un accent non-natif. Ces accents déclenchent souvent une panoplie de stéréotypes qui peuvent avoir des conséquences négatives sur l’employabilité ou la réussite professionnelle des locuteurs (Lippi-Green, 1994). Des décennies de recherche en psychologie sociale et sociolinguistique ont reconnu que l’accent joue un rôle significatif sur la perception des locuteurs non-natifs par les locuteurs natifs (Garrett, 2010). Cependant, peu d’études se sont penchées sur la façon dont les locuteurs non-natifs perçoivent leur propre accent et jugent l’acceptabilité des autres accents non-natifs. Par conséquent, la présente étude se concentre sur les attitudes des étudiants internationaux du programme d’anglais intensif d’une université anglophone montréalaise envers les accents arabes et chinois en anglais. Cette étude utilise la technique de locuteur masqué employée dans le domaine de la psychologie sociale pour déclencher des réactions spontanées à un discours de langue seconde accentué par deux niveaux d’influence de la langue maternelle. Contrairement aux autres études utilisant la technique de locuteur masqué, cette étude n’inclus pas de discours de locuteurs natifs à des fins de comparaison. Nous pensons que les attitudes négatives potentielles pourraient être atténuées par l’effet de cadre de référence. Pour expliquer et clarifier les résultats de la technique de locuteur masqué, nous avons également mené des entrevues semi-dirigées. Les résultats montrent que les participants expriment un niveau de solidarité relativement faible envers les accents arabes et chinois en anglais. Pourtant, ce niveau de solidarité est tout de même plus haut que les études reportées dans la littérature. D’autre part, le statut social des locuteurs non-natifs a été évalué positivement malgré que les locuteurs aient été reconnus comme non-natifs. Ceci suggère qu’en plus d’un effet positif déclenché par l’exclusion des accents natifs, certains facteurs contextuels peuvent avoir influencé les résultats. Nous avons trouvé que les personnes interrogées notaient plus sévèrement les voix suggérant un niveau d’éducation élevé, mais étaient plus clémentes envers les voix faisant référence à un contexte informel. De l’analyse des données, il apparait que les non-segmentals jouent un rôle important dans les attitudes langagières. De plus, les locutrices se rapprochant du rythme et de l’intonation des natifs ont reçu des évaluations supérieures sur tous les traits. Nous pensons que ces attitudes souvent ambivalentes devraient être considérées dans le choix du modèle d’enseignement et dans le développement de nouveaux supports d’apprentissage de la prononciation pour les étudiants internationaux.

The new world of academic discourse is complex and necessitates that L1 and L2 graduate students learn a multiplicity of texts, master intertextuality, and actively participate in emerging literacies or genres of their disciplines (Molle & Prior, 2008; Swales, 2004; Warren, 2013). Challenges arise about how doctoral students produce, interpret, and learn texts and genres, and how they act and react around text production in particular multicultural institutional contexts (Hyland, 2000; Prior, 2004). Little is known about how students, particularly those in higher education, establish intertextual connections among different modes of texts (e.g., written, oral, visual) for actively engaging in literacy (Belcher & Hirvela, 2008; Seloni, 2012). The purpose of this study is to examine how L1 and L2 doctoral students use intertextual practices to create meaning and develop their academic literacies during the literacy events of Global Conversations and Literacy Research (GCLR) web seminars. Drawing upon microethnographic discourse analysis, more particularly the constructs of intertextuality (Bloome, & Carter, 2013), I investigate the following questions a) How are the L1 and L2 students engaged in intertextual practices in the literacy events of GCLR web seminars? b) How does the use of intertextuality contribute to L1 and L2 students’ academic literacies? The participants are two L1 and two L2 doctoral students, who are also multilinguals, had different first languages (i.e., Korean, English, Chinese), and actively engaged in the GCLR web seminars. Data drew upon interviews, chat transcriptions, video recordings of the web seminars, and visuals. Data collection and analyses began in September 2014, and continued through November 2015. Microethnographic discourse analysis showed how participants constructed intertextual connections during the literacy events of the GCLR web seminars. The findings show how L1 and L2 doctoral students used intertextuality to socialize into academic discourse, mediate discoursal identities, and develop cultural models. The study has implications for L1 and L2 pedagogy, multilingual’s learning, and research: Future research should investigate academic literacies with intertextual connections to oral, written, and online discourses. Educators and graduate students are encouraged to exploit the full potential of intertextuality through metacognition in emerging academic literacies and mediated discoursal identities.

This study analyses the textbook Veckans ord 5 by Britta Redin and Görel Hydén (2003), which is used as a teaching aid in Swedish as a second language. The aim is to examine the theories of vocabulary learning and the learning strategies revealed in the content and design of the textbook and thereby examine its functionality for Swedish L2 pupils. We use content analysis as a method and apply it to selected chapters in the book connected to vocabulary learning and how pupils are expected to consolidate the words they learn. The analysis also considers whether the exercises deal with the form of words (morphology, orthography, phonology) or their content (syntax, lexical field, synonyms, hyponyms, antonyms).   The result shows that the arrangement of the textbook agrees with some common theories and vocabulary learning strategies such as repeating words, linking them to synonyms and learning words through pictures. Another finding is that the exercises highlight the form of words more than their content and meaning.

The main focus of the thesis is to derive stability criteria for networked control system (NCS) models featuring imperfections such as time-varying and constant delays, quantization, packet dropouts, and non-uniform sampling intervals. The main method of proof is based on matrix algebra, as opposed to methods using Lyapunov functions or integral quadratic constraints (IQC). This work puts a particular focus on handling systems with a single integrator. This framework is elaborated in different specific directions as motivated by practical realizations of NCSs, as well as through numerical examples. A novel proof of the discrete time multivariate circle criterion and the Tsypkin criterion for systems including a single integrator is presented, as well as a stability criterion for linear systems with a single integrator subject to variable sampling periods and sector-bounded nonlinear feedback. Four stability criteria for different classes of systems subject to packet loss and time-varying delay are given. Stability criteria for a closed loop system switching between a set of linear time-invariant systems (LTIs) are proved. This result is applied to a single-link NCS with feedback subject to packet loss. Finally, necessary and sufficient conditions for delay-independent stability of an LTI system subject to nonlinear feedback are derived.