Speech perception and the learnability of languagesWode, Henning
doi: 10.1111/j.1473-4192.1994.tb00061.xpmid: N/A
To what extent can natural human languages as abstract systems be learned without any prior (innate?) knowledge of the abstract principles that universally constrain their structure, and why are natural human languages universally restricted as to the kinds of phonological contrasts that occur? This paper explores some aspects of this issue with respect to the contribution of phonology in first (L1) and, to a lesser extent, second language (L2) acquisition. The evidence derives from speech perception, babbling, early L1 and L2 phonemic development, and in particular from new production data on the L1 acquisition of German. It is argued that the evolution of the phonological systems of natural languages and the typology of distinctive features, even in production phonology, is based on the perceptual discontinuities of the auditory system of homo sapiens, that these innate sensitivities are also relied on by neonates for the acquisition of sound systems, and that certain kinds of phonological variation in very early child phonology result from the way mental representations of lexical items develop in children. It is suggested that this functional potential of speech perception provides for the biological basis of sound systems and, consequently, for phonological theory.
First language use in EFL writing: planning in Turkish vs. planning in EnglishAkyel, Ayşe
doi: 10.1111/j.1473-4192.1994.tb00062.xpmid: N/A
This study examined English compositions written from plans in English and Turkish. Seventy‐eight Turkish university students from two different proficiency levels (intermediate and advanced) wrote on three different assigned topics: a Turkish culture‐specific topic, a topic related to American/British culture, and a more general topic. The study investigated: 1) if there were differences between the plans written in Turkish and English and the resulting compositions which correlate with the topic and proficiency level; 2) If there were differences between higher‐ and lower‐proficiency writers in terms of plan and composition scores for the three topics and if so, whether these differences could be attributed not only to the proficiency level but also to the language used for the plan. In addition, student responses to a questionnaire about their writing experiences in Turkish and English and their attitudes towards planning in Turkish or in English were analyzed. The findings indicate that the language used for the plan did not make a significant difference in the quality of the plans written by higher‐proficiency students on the three topics but did have an effect on the plans written by lower‐proficiency students on the Turkish and American/British culture‐specific topics. Moreover, the language of the plan did not make a significant difference to the resulting compositions for either group on any of the three topics. Furthermore, as was expected, proficiency level affected the quality of plans and compositions, but the language used for the plan had no significant effect on the differences between higher‐ and lower‐proficiency writers in terms of plan and composition scores. Student questionnaire responses helped to explain the results of this study.
Directions in bilingual education: Finnish comprehensive schools in perspectiveHelle, Tuija
doi: 10.1111/j.1473-4192.1994.tb00063.xpmid: N/A
Bilingual education is starting to be regarded as a viable option in promoting language skills in the mainstream comprehensive‐school system in Finland. The current interest in education via a second language has created Canadian‐type immersion programs and numerous experimental projects in several languages. After a brief discussion about the immersion concept in the European context, the article focuses on illustrating this current trend in Finnish comprehensive schools, seeking to answer the question “What are these programs like?” The article concludes with a discussion about the inevitable problems and challenges related to the programs.
The learning of pronunciation by first and adult second language learners: a multifaceted schema approachPuppel, Stanislaw
doi: 10.1111/j.1473-4192.1994.tb00064.xpmid: N/A
The purpose of this paper is to argue for the relevance of the schema theoretic approach to the acquisition of first and second language phonology. It is proposed that the schema of a sound segment consists of five sub‐schemas: the goal of the segment, the path to be traversed in reaching the goal, the actual pattern of features (a feature template), the pattern of motor activation, and the endogenous motor command sub‐schema. It is further proposed that, while the operations of schema‐construction and schema‐updating are performed by first language acquirers, second language learners are confronted with the task of building a competing set of sound schemas.
Lexical teddy bears and advanced learners: a study into the ways Norwegian students cope with English vocabularyHasselgren, Angela
doi: 10.1111/j.1473-4192.1994.tb00065.xpmid: N/A
This article is based on a two‐part investigation into the ways Norwegian advanced learners – first year university students and upper sixth‐formers – cope with English vocabulary in their written language. The study looked at both ‘wrong words’ found in translation texts and ‘different words’ found by comparing the vocabulary elicited by Norwegian students and English native speaker sixth‐formers in response to specific test questions. The principle aims of the investigation were: 1) to establish how learners make wrong lexical choices and what effects these have on the discourse, and 2) to see to what extent Norwegian students use native speaker‐like collocations. The findings indicated that these learners depend heavily on the familiar, either by choosing words and phrases closely resembling their first language or those learnt early or widely used, or by dividing their English vocabulary structure along Norwegian lines, leading to one‐to‐one translation equivalents. This report highlights this learner dependence on ‘lexical teddy bears’ and suggests how it has come about, what effect it has, and how it may be overcome.