Global ETD Search

1	Investigating and developing beginner learners' decoding proficiency in second language French : an evaluation of two programmes of instruction Woore, Robert January 2011 (has links) Second language (L2) decoding – the sub-lexical process of mapping the graphemes of an alphabetic writing system onto the phonemes they represent – is argued to underpin various aspects of L2 learning, particularly vocabulary acquisition. Recently, second language acquisition research has shown increased interest in decoding, consistently finding evidence for L1-to-L2 transfer effects on learners’ processing mechanisms and outcomes. Correspondingly, studies conducted in Modern Foreign Language (MFL) classrooms in English secondary schools – an under-researched context – have found that beginner learners of French tend to (a) pronounce L2 words according to English decoding conventions and (b) make poor progress in this aspect of L2 learning. Recent official guidance for MFL teachers has addressed this problem by advocating an explicit focus on decoding, but there is a lack of convincing evidence (both in the MFL context and more widely) that explicit L2 decoding instruction can be effective. The current study therefore trialled two programmes of French decoding instruction for beginner MFL learners, delivered in ten- to fifteen-minute segments over around thirty lessons. Three intact secondary school classes followed a phonics-based approach; three classes from another school followed a programme in which learners were encouraged to derive the pronunciations of French graphemes from ‘source words’ in a memorized poem; and six classes in two other schools received no explicit decoding instruction. Participants (N=186) completed pre- and post-tests of French decoding; a sub-sample (N=15) also completed task-based self-report interviews. The two intervention groups made significantly more progress than the comparison group in terms of the number of graphemes pronounced ‘acceptably’, although the magnitude of the difference between the groups was small. Compared to the comparison group, the two intervention groups also appeared to show different and more extensive patterns of change in their realizations of individual graphemes, even where their pronunciations were still not ‘acceptable’. Finally, self-report data generally revealed little change in participants’ strategic reasoning, either in the intervention or comparison group. Together, these findings suggest that explicit instruction can improve beginner learners’ proficiency in decoding L2 French, but that their progress may follow a longer and more complex trajectory than simply moving directly from ‘incorrect’ to ‘correct’ forms. Further research is required to assess the effects (if any) of a given improvement in decoding proficiency on other language-learning outcomes; and to design and evaluate alternative programmes of instruction. 448
2	Charlie likes sherry and chips, Shirley likes cherries and ships : New sounds in a new language Jevring, Cecilia January 2015 (has links) This study aims at investigating the suitability of the Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis and the Speech Learning Model in describing young Swedish learners’ L2 phonology difficulties. It also explores what L1 sounds they replace L2 sounds with, and whether spelling has any influence on pronunciation. 15 Swedish students aged 9-10 were interviewed and recorded reading a word list containing minimal pairs, a text passage, and free speech. The focus was on initial and final / ʃ / and / tʃ /, initial and medial / s / and / z /, and initial / ð / and / θ /. The recordings were analysed with spectrograms and compared to a native speaker. The results were that the SLM has an advantage over the CAH. The results show that / z / was replaced by / s / 100% of the time, / tʃ / was mostly replaced by / ʃ /, but also by / k /; and that / θ / and / ð / were replaced by many different sounds that were not anticipated. The results also showed that orthography affects pronunciation for / θ /, / ð / and / tʃ /, but not for / z /. Some students had nearly established new categories for some of the new sounds, but their daily encounters with English through TV, music, and school does not seem to have had a significant part in this. Second language acquisition second language phonology Speech Learning Model Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis phoneme English Swedish Phonology General Language Studies and Linguistics
3	Examination of the (si) and (ʃi) confusion by Japanese ESL learners Nogita, Akitsugu 30 August 2010 (has links) It is a general belief in Japan that the English /s/ and /ʃ/ before high front vowels (as in "see" and "she") are problematic for Japanese ESL (English-as-a-second-language) learners. Some research has also reported the /s/ and /ʃ/ confusion by Japanese ESL learners. Their pronunciation errors are often explained based on phonetics, but there are reasons to believe that the learners’ knowledge of the phonemes of the target words is at fault. This study examines 1) whether monolingual Japanese speakers distinguish the [si] and [ʃi] syllables in both perception and production in the Japanese contexts and 2) what would be the sources of Japanese speakers’ challenges in mastering the distinction between [si] and [ʃi] in their English production if Japanese speakers can produce and perceive the difference between these syllables. This study conducted two experiments. In the first experiment, 93 monolingual Japanese speakers between the ages of 17 and 89 in and around Tôkyô read aloud the written stimuli that had [si] and [ʃi] in the Japanese contexts, repeated the sound stimuli that had [si] and [ʃi] in the Japanese contexts, and listened to the [si:] and [ʃi:] syllables in isolation recorded by a native speaker of Canadian English. The results showed that the participants all distinguished [si] and [ʃi] in both perception and production regardless of their ages. Based on these results, I hypothesized that the [s] and [ʃ] confusion by Japanese ESL learners is caused by misunderstanding, rather than an inability to articulate these sounds. In the second experiment, 27 Japanese ESL students were recorded reading an English passage. The passage contains /s/ (7 times) and /ʃ/ (11 times) before high front vowels. After the reading, the participants were taught the basic English phonological system and the symbol-sound correspondence rules such as “s”-/s/ and “sh”-/ʃ/. The lesson lasted 40 minutes during which the participants were also interviewed to find out their awareness of the symbol-sound correspondence. No articulation explanations were given during the lesson. After the lesson, the participants read the same passage. The results showed that /s/ and /ʃ/ were mispronounced 39 and 67 times respectively in total by the 27 participants before the lesson, but only 7 and 19 times after the lesson. These changes are statistically significant. Moreover, the interview during the lesson revealed that the participants lacked phonological awareness in English as well as the knowledge of the symbol-sound correspondence rules. This study concluded that many of the mispronunciations by Japanese ESL learners, including /s/ and /ʃ/, can be solved by teaching the English phonics rules and some basic phonological rules without teaching the articulation of these sounds. Japanese EFL post alveolar fricative palato alveolar fricative alveo palatal fricative [ʃ] s and sh s vs sh [s] and [ʃ] confusion distinction between [s] and [ʃ] L2 phonology second language phonology pronunciation problem ESL pronunciation orthography spelling rule phonics 42 sounds katakana English phoneme awareness Japanese pronunciation English pronunciation s vs ʃ before i orthographic interference loanword interference palatalization depalatalization hyper correction phonological awareness hypercorrection overgeneralization pronunciation rule orthographic s and ʃ s-sh s-ʃ spelling acquisition phonics for adult

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