This thesis reports on a study, which investigated the process of early foreign language learning in a classroom context and the functions of multi-word units of language known as formulaic sequences in the oral language production of young foreign language learners. A classroom with 11 students in the age range 9 to 11 years was observed and video recorded for 16 sessions (90 minutes per session). The observations were accompanied by two elicitation tasks. 10 sessions out of the 16 sessions of the collected speech samples were transcribed chronologically. In the next step, formulaic sequences were identified based on pre-established criteria, which were further developed during the analysis. The data was analyzed in order to identify the functions of formulaic sequences in learners’ oral language production in addition to the inter-learner variations in the application of formulaic sequences for different functions. The results revealed evidence of incidental learning of formulaic sequences from input; the language input provided instances for the learners to learn multi-word units. In addition, formulaic sequences played different roles in the language production of the learners. These sequences helped young language learners to overcome their lack of knowledge, to improve their fluency, and to enjoy some language play. Formulaic sequences were used as a strategy to economize effort on processing and also to buy time for processing. The findings of the study suggested that language users might introduce dis-fluency in the production of their sequences in order to buy time for further processing. Moreover, the data provided examples illustrating communicative functions of formulaic sequences where the use of formulaic sequences was affected by the relationship between the speaker and listener. The analysis revealed that although all the learners applied formulaic sequences in their language production, there was a great variation among individual learners in their intention and the extent of the application of formulaic sequences. Some learners used these sequences to be able to extend their utterances and produce more of the language, whereas other learners used them to avoid further language production. In sum, it seemed that individual learners' different personalities, needs or limitations served as explanation for the application of formulaic sequences in different contexts.

Notre thèse s’intéresse à l’apprentissage de la lecture dans un contexte et avec un public particulier : des enfants anglophones scolarisés en école d’immersion française aux Etats-Unis (Minnesota). Ces enfants apprennent à lire en français langue étrangère à l’école alors qu’il incombe aux familles de les exposer à l’écrit de leur langue maternelle anglaise.Afin d’étudier comment s’effectuent ces apprentissages (en L1 et en L2) nous avons mené une étude longitudinale auprès de quatre enfants de 7,1 ans (âge moyen). Notre cadre théorique s’inscrit à la croisée de la linguistique, la psycholinguistique, la psychologie cognitive et la pédagogie. Notre démarche suit celle proposée par les recherches orientées en didactique cognitive.D’une part, les enregistrements des performances dans une tâche de lecture à voix haute de courts textes narratifs anglais /vs/ français nous permettent d’évaluer la prononciation, la réalisation de mots connus/inconnus, la fluence. D’autre part, des questions simples posées après la lecture nous renseignent sur le degré de compréhension. Enfin, l’environnement familial est pris en compte par le biais d’un questionnaire administré aux parents durant toute l’étude. Nos hypothèses concernent les apprentissages dans chacune des deux langues, les influences d’une langue sur l’autre et le transfert de compétence dans le décodage des graphèmes en phonèmes. / Our thesis focuses on learning how to read by a particular group of children in a particular setting: Anglophone children enrolled in a French immersion school in the United States (Minnesota). These children learn how to read in French as a foreign language at school while their families are responsible for exposing their children to written material in their mother tongue: English.In order to study how learning how to read occurs (in L1 and in L2), we carried out a longitudinal study among four children who were 7,1 years old (mean age). Our theoretical framework lies at a crossroads of linguistics, psycholinguistics, cognitive psychology and pedagogy. Our reasoning follows the kind of research that has been carried out in cognitive didactics On one hand, we recorded the children while they were reading aloud short narratives both in French and in English. These recordings enabled us to assess the children’s pronunciation, their performance in reading known and unknown words and their fluency. On the other hand, simple questions, asked after reading, give us information about how well the children understood what they had just read. Finally, the family background is taken into account through a questionnaire that was filled in by the parents throughout the study. Our hypotheses concern learning in each of the language, the influences of one language on the other and the transfer of skills regarding decoding graphemes into phonemes.

O presente estudo teve como objetivo verificar o nível de consciência fonológica na Língua de Sinais Brasileira (Libras) em crianças, adolescentes e adultos surdos bilíngues, analisando os possíveis efeitos do início precoce ou tardio da aquisição da linguagem nas crianças e adolescentes surdos. Os participantes foram 34 crianças e adolescentes surdos, com idade entre 9 e 14 anos, com início da aquisição da primeira língua (L1), a Libras, entre 1-4 anos de idade (precoce) ou após 4 anos de idade (tardia), e 7 adultos surdos com início da aquisição da Libras como L1 entre 0-4 anos de idade. Nesta pesquisa de cunho psicolinguístico, foi desenvolvido um Teste de Consciência Fonológica na Libras (TCF-Libras), projetado no software E-Prime®, que mediu percentual de erro e tempo de resposta. O TCF-Libras contemplou os três principais parâmetros que formam os sinais, a saber: configuração de mão, locação/ponto de articulação e movimento. Na análise dos resultados, foi constatado que crianças e adolescentes surdos com aquisição precoce têm vantagens linguísticas quando comparados aos seus pares com aquisição tardia, e que efeitos nocivos do início da aquisição tardia da L1, reportados em estudos anteriores em diferentes níveis linguísticos, também foram constatados no presente estudo na consciência fonológica da Libras. Os participantes com início da aquisição tardia obtiveram maior percentual de erro e foram mais lentos na realização do TCF-Libras do que os participantes com início da aquisição precoce, ou seja, houve desvantagem tanto no nível de consciência fonológica como no tempo de processamento fonológico. Além disso, a comparação entre dois grupos de participantes com aquisição precoce da Libras como L1, adolescentes surdos (com maior tempo de exposição linguística) e adultos surdos, revelou que os grupos não diferiram estatisticamente, indicando que o TCF-Libras pode ser utilizado em futuras pesquisas com adultos surdos. Os resultados do presente estudo contribuem para os estudos sobre aquisição da linguagem por surdos, consciência fonológica, desenvolvimento de testes em línguas de sinais, e para informar e alertar profissionais da saúde, pais de crianças surdas e a população em geral sobre a importância de bebês surdos e crianças surdas iniciarem seu processo de aquisição da L1, na língua de sinais, o mais cedo possível. Ainda, reforçam a necessidade de que sejam promovidos programas de intervenção/estimulação linguística para bebês e crianças surdas que não possuem acesso completo aos sons, assim como com seus pais/cuidadores/familiares, para que iniciem a aquisição da língua de sinais logo após a perda auditiva ser diagnosticada. / The present study aimed to examine the level of phonological awareness in Brazilian Sign Language (Libras) in deaf bilingual children, adolescents and adults, analyzing the possible effects of language-onset in deaf bilingual children and adolescents. The participants were 34 deaf children and adolescents, aging between 9-14 years old, who acquired (L1) Libras between 1-4 years of age (early) or after 4 years of age (late), and 7 deaf adults, exposed to L1 Libras between 0-4 years of age (early). In this psycholinguistic study, a Phonological Awareness Test in Libras (PAT-Libras/ TCF-Libras) was developed and designed with the help of E-Prime®, and error percentage and response time were measured. The task includes items that test the three main parameters that form signs, namely: handshape, location/ place of articulation and movement. The analysis revealed linguistics advantages to deaf children and adolescents with early language-onset when compared to their peers with late language-onset. In addition, negative effects of delayed L1 acquisition, reported in previous studies in different linguistic levels, were also observed in the present study on phonological awareness in Libras. The participants with late language-onset scored higher percentage of errors and response time in the task than participants with early language-onset, that is, there was a disadvantage both in the phonological awareness level as well as in phonological processing time. The comparison between two groups of participants with early L1 Libras-onset deaf adolescents (with longer linguistic exposure) and deaf adults revealed that the scores did not differ statistically, showing that the task can be used in future research with deaf adults. The results of the present study contribute to the studies on language acquisition by deaf, phonological awareness, sign language test development, and to inform and to alert health professionals, deaf children‟s parents and the general population about the importance of giving deaf babies and deaf children opportunity to begin their first language acquisition, in sign language, the earliest possible. Furthermore, the results reinforce the need of intervention/stimulation programs directed to deaf babies and deaf children who not have complete access to sounds, as well to parents/caregivers/family, so that babies and children can begin sign language acquisition soon after the diagnosis of hearing loss.

O presente estudo teve como objetivo verificar o nível de consciência fonológica na Língua de Sinais Brasileira (Libras) em crianças, adolescentes e adultos surdos bilíngues, analisando os possíveis efeitos do início precoce ou tardio da aquisição da linguagem nas crianças e adolescentes surdos. Os participantes foram 34 crianças e adolescentes surdos, com idade entre 9 e 14 anos, com início da aquisição da primeira língua (L1), a Libras, entre 1-4 anos de idade (precoce) ou após 4 anos de idade (tardia), e 7 adultos surdos com início da aquisição da Libras como L1 entre 0-4 anos de idade. Nesta pesquisa de cunho psicolinguístico, foi desenvolvido um Teste de Consciência Fonológica na Libras (TCF-Libras), projetado no software E-Prime®, que mediu percentual de erro e tempo de resposta. O TCF-Libras contemplou os três principais parâmetros que formam os sinais, a saber: configuração de mão, locação/ponto de articulação e movimento. Na análise dos resultados, foi constatado que crianças e adolescentes surdos com aquisição precoce têm vantagens linguísticas quando comparados aos seus pares com aquisição tardia, e que efeitos nocivos do início da aquisição tardia da L1, reportados em estudos anteriores em diferentes níveis linguísticos, também foram constatados no presente estudo na consciência fonológica da Libras. Os participantes com início da aquisição tardia obtiveram maior percentual de erro e foram mais lentos na realização do TCF-Libras do que os participantes com início da aquisição precoce, ou seja, houve desvantagem tanto no nível de consciência fonológica como no tempo de processamento fonológico. Além disso, a comparação entre dois grupos de participantes com aquisição precoce da Libras como L1, adolescentes surdos (com maior tempo de exposição linguística) e adultos surdos, revelou que os grupos não diferiram estatisticamente, indicando que o TCF-Libras pode ser utilizado em futuras pesquisas com adultos surdos. Os resultados do presente estudo contribuem para os estudos sobre aquisição da linguagem por surdos, consciência fonológica, desenvolvimento de testes em línguas de sinais, e para informar e alertar profissionais da saúde, pais de crianças surdas e a população em geral sobre a importância de bebês surdos e crianças surdas iniciarem seu processo de aquisição da L1, na língua de sinais, o mais cedo possível. Ainda, reforçam a necessidade de que sejam promovidos programas de intervenção/estimulação linguística para bebês e crianças surdas que não possuem acesso completo aos sons, assim como com seus pais/cuidadores/familiares, para que iniciem a aquisição da língua de sinais logo após a perda auditiva ser diagnosticada. / The present study aimed to examine the level of phonological awareness in Brazilian Sign Language (Libras) in deaf bilingual children, adolescents and adults, analyzing the possible effects of language-onset in deaf bilingual children and adolescents. The participants were 34 deaf children and adolescents, aging between 9-14 years old, who acquired (L1) Libras between 1-4 years of age (early) or after 4 years of age (late), and 7 deaf adults, exposed to L1 Libras between 0-4 years of age (early). In this psycholinguistic study, a Phonological Awareness Test in Libras (PAT-Libras/ TCF-Libras) was developed and designed with the help of E-Prime®, and error percentage and response time were measured. The task includes items that test the three main parameters that form signs, namely: handshape, location/ place of articulation and movement. The analysis revealed linguistics advantages to deaf children and adolescents with early language-onset when compared to their peers with late language-onset. In addition, negative effects of delayed L1 acquisition, reported in previous studies in different linguistic levels, were also observed in the present study on phonological awareness in Libras. The participants with late language-onset scored higher percentage of errors and response time in the task than participants with early language-onset, that is, there was a disadvantage both in the phonological awareness level as well as in phonological processing time. The comparison between two groups of participants with early L1 Libras-onset deaf adolescents (with longer linguistic exposure) and deaf adults revealed that the scores did not differ statistically, showing that the task can be used in future research with deaf adults. The results of the present study contribute to the studies on language acquisition by deaf, phonological awareness, sign language test development, and to inform and to alert health professionals, deaf children‟s parents and the general population about the importance of giving deaf babies and deaf children opportunity to begin their first language acquisition, in sign language, the earliest possible. Furthermore, the results reinforce the need of intervention/stimulation programs directed to deaf babies and deaf children who not have complete access to sounds, as well to parents/caregivers/family, so that babies and children can begin sign language acquisition soon after the diagnosis of hearing loss.

O presente estudo teve como objetivo verificar o nível de consciência fonológica na Língua de Sinais Brasileira (Libras) em crianças, adolescentes e adultos surdos bilíngues, analisando os possíveis efeitos do início precoce ou tardio da aquisição da linguagem nas crianças e adolescentes surdos. Os participantes foram 34 crianças e adolescentes surdos, com idade entre 9 e 14 anos, com início da aquisição da primeira língua (L1), a Libras, entre 1-4 anos de idade (precoce) ou após 4 anos de idade (tardia), e 7 adultos surdos com início da aquisição da Libras como L1 entre 0-4 anos de idade. Nesta pesquisa de cunho psicolinguístico, foi desenvolvido um Teste de Consciência Fonológica na Libras (TCF-Libras), projetado no software E-Prime®, que mediu percentual de erro e tempo de resposta. O TCF-Libras contemplou os três principais parâmetros que formam os sinais, a saber: configuração de mão, locação/ponto de articulação e movimento. Na análise dos resultados, foi constatado que crianças e adolescentes surdos com aquisição precoce têm vantagens linguísticas quando comparados aos seus pares com aquisição tardia, e que efeitos nocivos do início da aquisição tardia da L1, reportados em estudos anteriores em diferentes níveis linguísticos, também foram constatados no presente estudo na consciência fonológica da Libras. Os participantes com início da aquisição tardia obtiveram maior percentual de erro e foram mais lentos na realização do TCF-Libras do que os participantes com início da aquisição precoce, ou seja, houve desvantagem tanto no nível de consciência fonológica como no tempo de processamento fonológico. Além disso, a comparação entre dois grupos de participantes com aquisição precoce da Libras como L1, adolescentes surdos (com maior tempo de exposição linguística) e adultos surdos, revelou que os grupos não diferiram estatisticamente, indicando que o TCF-Libras pode ser utilizado em futuras pesquisas com adultos surdos. Os resultados do presente estudo contribuem para os estudos sobre aquisição da linguagem por surdos, consciência fonológica, desenvolvimento de testes em línguas de sinais, e para informar e alertar profissionais da saúde, pais de crianças surdas e a população em geral sobre a importância de bebês surdos e crianças surdas iniciarem seu processo de aquisição da L1, na língua de sinais, o mais cedo possível. Ainda, reforçam a necessidade de que sejam promovidos programas de intervenção/estimulação linguística para bebês e crianças surdas que não possuem acesso completo aos sons, assim como com seus pais/cuidadores/familiares, para que iniciem a aquisição da língua de sinais logo após a perda auditiva ser diagnosticada. / The present study aimed to examine the level of phonological awareness in Brazilian Sign Language (Libras) in deaf bilingual children, adolescents and adults, analyzing the possible effects of language-onset in deaf bilingual children and adolescents. The participants were 34 deaf children and adolescents, aging between 9-14 years old, who acquired (L1) Libras between 1-4 years of age (early) or after 4 years of age (late), and 7 deaf adults, exposed to L1 Libras between 0-4 years of age (early). In this psycholinguistic study, a Phonological Awareness Test in Libras (PAT-Libras/ TCF-Libras) was developed and designed with the help of E-Prime®, and error percentage and response time were measured. The task includes items that test the three main parameters that form signs, namely: handshape, location/ place of articulation and movement. The analysis revealed linguistics advantages to deaf children and adolescents with early language-onset when compared to their peers with late language-onset. In addition, negative effects of delayed L1 acquisition, reported in previous studies in different linguistic levels, were also observed in the present study on phonological awareness in Libras. The participants with late language-onset scored higher percentage of errors and response time in the task than participants with early language-onset, that is, there was a disadvantage both in the phonological awareness level as well as in phonological processing time. The comparison between two groups of participants with early L1 Libras-onset deaf adolescents (with longer linguistic exposure) and deaf adults revealed that the scores did not differ statistically, showing that the task can be used in future research with deaf adults. The results of the present study contribute to the studies on language acquisition by deaf, phonological awareness, sign language test development, and to inform and to alert health professionals, deaf children‟s parents and the general population about the importance of giving deaf babies and deaf children opportunity to begin their first language acquisition, in sign language, the earliest possible. Furthermore, the results reinforce the need of intervention/stimulation programs directed to deaf babies and deaf children who not have complete access to sounds, as well to parents/caregivers/family, so that babies and children can begin sign language acquisition soon after the diagnosis of hearing loss.

This two-part dissertation investigated the home language experiences and language development of 35 toddler-aged children from low-income Mexican immigrant families. These children represent a rapidly growing demographic in the United States. Because early language abilities are closely linked to later academic success, understanding the characteristics of the early language learning experiences provided in the homes of Mexican immigrant children is a foundational step to supporting their strengths and needs prior to formal school entry. In the first study of this dissertation, semi-structured interviews were conducted with the children’s mothers regarding the everyday activity settings of their young children. Degree of maternal acculturation was also assessed. Commonalities and variations in mothers’ values, beliefs, and practices regarding language teaching and learning were revealed. The commonalities included attention towards children’s early behavior and social skills, collective child-rearing practices, emphasis on the family unit and Mexican identity, and support for Spanish-English language learning and educational success, among others. A limited number of variations were also found to be associated with mothers’ affiliation with Anglo-American culture. In the second study, naturalistic recordings of the toddlers' language input in the home were analyzed in-depth to describe features of the quantity and quality of the input to which children were exposed. A wide range of variability in children’s quantity and quality was found. In addition, the relative amount of Spanish and English spoken to children was determined. Spanish was the primary language used with children, although English was also used in most homes. Children’s productive vocabulary in both languages was further measured contemporaneously; total vocabulary size ranged widely across children. There were no associations revealed between the characteristics of children’s language input quantity and quality and their productive vocabulary, although quantity and quality were related to one another. Implications of both studies to early childhood researchers and practitioners focused on early language development, including speech-language pathologists, are discussed. / Communication Sciences

Objectif: Explorer les perspectives des fournisseurs de soins sur les besoins des familles migrantes en matière de développement du langage et les stratégies qui sont utilisées ou qui pourraient être utilisées pour promouvoir le développement du langage d'une manière culturellement sécuritaire. Méthodes : L'étude s'est déroulée à La Maison Bleue (LMB), un centre offrant des services sociaux et de périnatalité aux familles vulnérables à Montréal pendant la grossesse et jusqu'à l'âge de cinq ans de l'enfant. Les données ont été recueillies par le biais d'entretiens semi-structurés avec 8 membres du personnel et analysées thématiquement. Résultats: Les problèmes de langage sont une préoccupation à LMB, et les facteurs liés à la migration (l’isolement, la santé mentale, le manque d’accès aux ressources) sont considérés comme pouvant contribuer à ces problèmes. La compréhension qu’ont les parents du développement du langage de l’enfant ajoute parfois à ce contexte difficile. Des interventions ciblées ainsi que des stratégies plus globales axées sur le renforcement de la confiance et de la réceptivité des familles aux soins en général, sont utilisées pour favoriser le développement du langage. Les participants ont recommandé d'accorder plus de temps individuel aux familles pour améliorer leur compréhension du développement de l'enfant et pour favoriser leur implication dans des activités visant à stimuler le développement langagier. Ils ont également suggéré d’avoir accès à des spécialistes sur place et plus de ressources communautaires pour mieux soutenir le développement précoce du langage dans les familles migrantes. Conclusion: À LMB, une approche interdisciplinaire et holistique, qui tient compte du contexte de migration/vulnérabilité, est utilisée pour promouvoir le développement du langage d'une manière culturellement sécuritaire. Une mise en oeuvre plus large de cette approche dans différents contextes de soins primaires pourrait être bénéfique pour aider davantage des familles migrantes ayant besoin d'un soutien au développement précoce du langage. / Objective: To explore care-providers’ perspectives on the needs of migrant families regarding early language development and the strategies that are used, or that could be used, to promote language development in a culturally safe manner among this population. Methods: This was a qualitative descriptive study conducted at La Maison Bleue (LMB). Data were collected via semi-structured interviews from eight LMB care providers and support/administrative staff and thematically analyzed. Results: Language development problems among children in migrant families are of concern at LMB, and factors related to the migration context (isolation, mental health, lack of access to resources) are believed to contribute to these problems. Parents’ understanding about children’s language development sometimes add to this challenging context. Targeted interventions as well as more global strategies that focus on building trust and increasing the family’s overall receptivity to care, are used to promote language development. Participants recommended more individual time with families to enhance understanding of child development, and to further promote parents’ engagement in language stimulating activities. On site access to specialists and more resources in the community were also suggested to further support early language development among migrant families. Conclusion: At LMB, an interdisciplinary, holistic approach, that considers the migration/vulnerability context, is used to promote early-language development in migrant families in a culturally safe manner. Broader application of this approach across different primary care settings may be beneficial for helping more migrant families in need of early-language development support.

As the English language holds the status of a Lingua Franca, being able to master it has become necessary in our globalised society. In Sweden, the English subject has been assigned a place along with Swedish and Mathematics as a core subject. However, of these three subjects, only English does not have specified knowledge requirements at the end of third grade. This has led to the start of English instruction varying around the nation. This thesis investigates the factors involved in the decision-making processes regarding the start of English instruction and what attitudes lower primary school teachers have regarding the age at which the English instruction should start. An empirical study was carried out by interviewing a few stakeholders in the context of schools and sending out questionnaires to lower primary school teachers. The results indicate that a large majority of the participants were in favour for early English instruction, as according to many of them, an early start results almost exclusively in advantages for the young children. However, the results also imply that the English subject, in some cases, might be less prioritised, due to the lack of specified knowledge requirements. Based on these results, further research on how different schools interpret these non-specified knowledge requirements is suggested. / <p>Engelska</p>

This thesis is a study of language use in English language classrooms in primary schools in Hungary. The focus of the study is on the use of the target language (English) and the mother tongue (Hungarian) by the teachers and the learners. The teachers are all Hungarian native speakers, with varying levels of competence and previous experience in communicative language teaching, and this presents a challenge to the adoption of a communicative approach to the teaching of English. The National Core Curriculum endorses the communicative approach, with the expectation that the target language will be used as much as possible. However, in practice, the mother tongue is widely used in these classrooms, both by the teachers and by the students. There is therefore a conflict between policy and practice: the policy is that the target language should be used wherever possible, whereas the practice is that the use of the target language is limited to predictable and routine contexts. It is this conflict which constitutes the central question which is addressed in this thesis: how do teachers resolve the conflict between what they are expected to do, and what they feel capable of doing. Data from classrooms and interviews were collected and analysed, using both quantitative and qualitative techniques. The focus of the analysis was on the amount and function of the use of the mother tongue by the teachers. Comparisons were drawn between teachers of Grade 4 pupils who started to learn English in Grade 1 and those who started in Grade 4. This analysis is complemented by evidence concerning the teachers‘ beliefs and understandings about the pressures and constraints which affect their teaching of English to young learners. The results suggest that the possibility of communicative language teaching in these classrooms is constrained by various factors, including the limitations in the children‘s cognitive capabilities and the proficiency level of the children, and the teachers‘ preference for using their previous methods which included grammar, translation and memorisation; also by curriculum requirements such as the use of the textbook, and the necessity to prepare the children for examinations. The implications of these findings for curriculum development in foreign language teaching in other comparable contexts are discussed.