The new Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (1996) announced that “the official languages of the Republic are Sepedi, Sesotho, Setswana, siSwati, Tshivenda, Xitsonga, Afrikaans, English, isiNdebele, isiXhosa and isiZulu” (Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, p. 4). However, only English and Afrikaans have continued to be used as languages of learning and teaching (LoLT) in higher education. The Language Policy for Higher Education (DoE, 2002) in South Africa has also made a call to all institutions of higher learning to develop African languages. The Bill of Rights (Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, p. 10) asserts “everyone has the right to receive education in the official language or languages of their choice...”. Up to now, there have not been practical plans to meet the aspirations of these language policies. Many African students face challenging linguistic contexts when they enter institutions of higher learning. The purpose of this project was to create a comfortable “safe space” where a group of ten first year Sepedi home language students discussed Education Studies concepts. These students used their first language, Sepedi to discuss these concepts, although English was the language of learning and teaching at the University of the Witwatersrand. I aim to identify, describe, analyze and reflect on the kinds of learning practices that emerge in these small groups. The research design was a qualitative case study. I collected data in two phases: a pilot study that I conducted in 2010 and a main study in 2011. Both phases took place on the premises of the School of Education of the University of the Witwatersrand. Interviews, observation of group discussions, students’ reflective reports and field notes were used for data collection. A thematic content analysis method was used to analyse the data. The results indicate that when students are afforded a comfortable “safe space” to discuss academic concepts using their first language, key learning practices emerge that lead to learning and thinking about content. Students experienced freedom, enjoyment and camaraderie during the group discussions. Their participation skills in formal lectures and tutorials improved after the group discussions. They participated in bilingual and multilingual practices, such as code-alternation processes: code-switching, code-mixing, code-borrowing and code translation. They engaged in exploratory talk, using assertions, explanations, questions, challenges and so on to deepen understanding of concepts. I also observed that students used culturally oriented habits that motivated and encouraged them to learn. They also began to respect their mother tongue as a language that could be used in academic contexts.

Using the first language (L1) in the English as a Second Language (ESL) or English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom has been the topic of debate for decades. What originated as a commonplace practice shifted dramatically in the late 1800s, when for political reasons, the L1 was banned from classroom use. Most second language methods since the 1960’s reflect this decision, by recommending against the inclusion of the L1 in the ESL or EFL classroom. More recently, both researchers and teachers in the field have reopened this previously unquestioned axiom, and now acknowledge the L1 may have numerous advantages for the language learner. This report delineates the support in the literature for the benefits of judiciously using the L1 in the ESL/EFL classroom. / text

In light of recent theoretical and methodological developments in the areas of French morphosyntax and child acquisition, the present dissertation reconsiders the asymmetry reported in previous studies of the acquisition of subject and object clitics in French-speaking children. Our reanalysis allows us to address two important questions in the domain of acquisition, namely optionality in the child’s grammar and the role of input in development. By means of an exhaustive analysis of child and adult production, our research illustrates that adults produce several subject/object asymmetries, and we propose that the asymmetry reported for children is attributable to properties of the target language and not to the acquisition process. Beyond these conclusions, our research reveals a significant asymmetry during the course of acquisition, namely that the subject clitic reaches the target grammar faster than the object clitic. This asymmetry, which we qualify as rhythmic, is caused by a prolonged optionality of the object clitic. However, our study shows that this optionality is not generalized. Until roughly 3 years of age, object and subject clitics show a parallel development in spontaneous speech: they are optional. After this period (around 3 years), their production reaches the levels observed in adults. In contrast, some studies in elicited production have shown that object clitics are still optional beyond 3 years. These contradictory results lead us to propose that there are two types of optionality: spontaneous and induced. We explore possible sources of these phenomena and propose that the status of pronouns as clitic elements plays a role in spontaneous optionality. As for the induced optionality, we propose that it is attributable to variation in the input and the child’s tendency to regularize it. Overall, our results allow us to redefine the asymmetry, to propose that optionality is a multifactorial phenomenon, and to illustrate the role of input in the optionality exhibited by French children for this domain.

In light of recent theoretical and methodological developments in the areas of French morphosyntax and child acquisition, the present dissertation reconsiders the asymmetry reported in previous studies of the acquisition of subject and object clitics in French-speaking children. Our reanalysis allows us to address two important questions in the domain of acquisition, namely optionality in the child’s grammar and the role of input in development. By means of an exhaustive analysis of child and adult production, our research illustrates that adults produce several subject/object asymmetries, and we propose that the asymmetry reported for children is attributable to properties of the target language and not to the acquisition process. Beyond these conclusions, our research reveals a significant asymmetry during the course of acquisition, namely that the subject clitic reaches the target grammar faster than the object clitic. This asymmetry, which we qualify as rhythmic, is caused by a prolonged optionality of the object clitic. However, our study shows that this optionality is not generalized. Until roughly 3 years of age, object and subject clitics show a parallel development in spontaneous speech: they are optional. After this period (around 3 years), their production reaches the levels observed in adults. In contrast, some studies in elicited production have shown that object clitics are still optional beyond 3 years. These contradictory results lead us to propose that there are two types of optionality: spontaneous and induced. We explore possible sources of these phenomena and propose that the status of pronouns as clitic elements plays a role in spontaneous optionality. As for the induced optionality, we propose that it is attributable to variation in the input and the child’s tendency to regularize it. Overall, our results allow us to redefine the asymmetry, to propose that optionality is a multifactorial phenomenon, and to illustrate the role of input in the optionality exhibited by French children for this domain.

abstract: This study explores the acquisition of the determiner phrase (DP) in monolingual (L1) and bilingual (2L1) French. I investigate the acquisition of DP structures and features in the speech of two monolingual French and two bilingual French-English subjects from the CHILDES (Child Language Data Exchange System) corpus. I perform a thorough, longitudinal examination of the children's data, from the ages of 1;10 to 4;00, focusing on the description and analysis of their development of DP elements, words, and structures such as the definite and indefinite articles, demonstratives, and numerals, as well as the DP features of gender, number, and definiteness. I also consider the Adjective Phrase (AP) and its interaction with the DP. This study complicates the traditional view of discrete, simplified stages of DP acquisition, arguing instead for an ongoing and complex process. Application of the Minimalist model of syntactic analysis provides essential insights into the underlying processes of child grammar, and suggests a number of previously unaddressed characteristics and patterns in French DP development. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation English 2015

Previous research about the acquisition of the case-marking systems of ergative languages suggests that children acquire ergative and accusative languages equally easily (Van Valin 1992), depending on the degree to which the case morphology is consistently ergative or accusative and the degree to which adults use the morphology (Pye 1990). However, split-ergative languages incorporate both accusative and ergative systems, some in the midst of a shift away from ergativity, thus providing variable and inconsistent input for children. Yet previous research suggests that children can acquire variable linguistic forms at early stages, reflecting frequencies in which the forms occur in caregiver input (Henry 1998, 2002, Miller 2006, 2007, Westergaard 2009). This study examines the acquisition of split-ergativity in Kurmanji Kurdish, where the direct case is used with both present-tense agents and past-tense patients and the oblique case is used with past-tense agents and present-tense patients. However, recent research suggests the weakening of ergativity in Kurmanji (Dorleijn 1996), resulting in variable use of case-marking. This study examines the acquisition of split-ergativity in Kurmanji when considering the split systems and inconsistent adult input. Data from children (n=12) and caretakers (n=24) include spontaneous speech samples and results from a modified Agent-Patient test (Slobin 1985). Four children from three age groups, 1;6, 2;6, and 3;6, were recorded interacting with caretakers every three months for one hour over a 12-month period. Statistical analyses were conducted focusing on adult patterns (input for children) and children’s production at different ages. Results suggest that Kurmanji may be shifting away from a split-ergative system, with the past tense extending to a double oblique pattern and nouns gradually losing oblique case-marking altogether, resulting in variable case-marking. Data show that children first use ergative case as early as 2;0 and show evidence of repeated use of split-ergative case-marking by 2;6. Even at these early ages, children use similar variability and frequency in case-marking as their caretakers, closer to usage of younger adults versus older adults. Thus children seem to use ergative case-marking early, and when faced with inconsistent input, they ultimately conform to the patterns modeled by the adult community. / text

This literature review investigates what previous research has found regarding target language use in the Elementary EFL classroom, and what different views there might be on communicating in English during English lessons. The study is conducted with Stephen Krashen’s (1982) Second Language Acquisition Theory as theoretical perspective. Findings show that one important reason for target language use in the EFL classroom is increasing the target language exposure to provide opportunities for the pupils to develop their language proficiency, while first language is used to instruct, translate, scaffold, explain, and facilitate and confirm learning, to discipline and criticise, and to give feedback and positive reinforcement. The results from the five reviewed studies in this thesis imply that both target language and first language have their place in the EFL classroom, and that the teachers’ choice of which language to use is highly individual. They also indicate that vocabulary acquisition and communicative skills call for different language approaches, and that different language theories apply to different teaching situations. Another conclusion from this review is that further research on teachers’ choices of instructional language is needed, as are further investigations of pupils’ preferences and in what situations they benefit from target language and first language respectively.

Thesis (M. A. (English Studies)) -- University of Limpopo, 2003 / Refer to the document

It is generally believed that when learning another language, students most commonly use their first language as the source of language influence. In the Basque region of Spain people are either Spanish monolinguals or Basque bilinguals and in this case study I set out to see whether students use Spanish or Basque as a reference when learning English. The three most common written errors of Spanish monolinguals and Basque bilinguals were analyzed by using Error Analysis as an analytical tool. The errors were not only described but also reasons were put forward as to why these errors were made. Even though Basque was the first language of half of the students, the results show that Spanish was the main source of influence when writing in English.

The purpose of my study is to examine how four teachers in a pre school believe they relates to and reasons about bilingualism. To be able to realize thisstudy, i proposed three issue following: How do the teachers in kindergarten relate to bilingualism? How do teachers in preschool reason around the work of bilingual children? What do teachers think about the educational environment in relation to language development?