• Title/Summary/Keyword: Language Acquisition

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Promoting Learner Autonomy through the CALL Projects

  • Chong, Larry-Dwan
    • English Language & Literature Teaching
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    • v.9 no.1
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    • pp.1-21
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    • 2003
  • Learner-centered approach has been a recent research focus in the second language acquisition, but few studies have dealt with how to develop learner autonomy, particularly in a computer-assisted language learning environment. The paper first illustrates the importance of promoting learner autonomy in the EFL context and elaborates the three main factors contributing to its development. Then it focuses on how the CALL research project promotes autonomous learning through a small-scale study in Gyeongju University. Both quantitative and qualitative methods have been employed to examine whether in the CALL project learners exercise control over their own learning and evaluate the outcome. The results indicate that due to a flexible syllabus, highly motivating research topics and the network-assisted environment, learners do take responsibility for most aspects of learning and thus the CALL project proves to be a promising approach for autonomous learning.

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On Exploiting New Methods of Language Acquisition Offered by the Internet (인터넷이 제공하는 언어 습득의 새로운 방법 활용)

  • Choi, Mi-Hee Michelle
    • Journal of Digital Contents Society
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    • v.14 no.1
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    • pp.111-116
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    • 2013
  • Instructive lessons in the language classrooms are extremely constrictive to language learners in improving their English skills, thus, the use of technology in education plays an important role in a language classroom. Results of language proficiency improvement of the learners vary depending on the extent of supplementary materials offered by the internet delivered to the learners. The purpose of the present study is to explore and propose a new approach of language acquisition offered by the internet. This study presents effective methods of using the internet in carrying out the written work. In this paper, we show that the relationship between participation of the learners in the class activities and improvement of English writing skills are mutually proportional.

The Acquisition and Development of the Korean Adverbial Particle -ey by L1 English Learners of Korean (제2 외국어로 한국어를 배우는 영어권 학습자의 한국어 부사격 조사 '-에 의 습득과 발달에 관한 연구)

  • Turker, Ebru
    • Journal of Korean language education
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    • v.28 no.4
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    • pp.337-366
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    • 2017
  • This study examines the acquisition of the multiple semantic functions of the Korean adverbial particle -ey by L1 American English learners of Korean as a second language at U.S. institutions. Participants at beginning, intermediate, and advanced proficiency levels (N = 45) were tested on the ability to interpret and produce five of the meanings of -ey, which they had been taught in formal classroom settings in the first semester of their Korean language learning. The results show different developmental trajectories for the particle's different semantic functions. The findings of a statistical analysis indicate that the beginning and intermediate proficiency learners had largely acquired the time, goal, and stative location meanings, but not the contact and unit meanings; the advanced learners demonstrated acquisition of all except for the unit meaning. The study suggests that in addition to factors such as semantic complexity and cross-linguistic influence, several other factors including L2 frequency, the availability of linguistic input, and instructional method also contribute to the acquisition of -ey.

Teaching English Literature and Critical Thinking, beyond just Language Acquisition

  • Kim, Yeun-Kyong
    • English Language & Literature Teaching
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    • v.16 no.4
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    • pp.71-90
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    • 2010
  • This study suggests that English literature educators need to be eclectic and flexible in applying theories and methods, not simply adhering to one or two for all situations and occasions. They need to be available to go with the flow and particularly employ whatever is needed at any given moment of class time. There is a current trend emphasizing English literature as merely a language resource rather than the study of English literature as an end in itself. Without much attention given to literary analysis and criticism, students tend to lack creative and critical thinking abilities. Given the current imbalance, it would seem important to address the issue, and create English class programs that maintain a balance between teaching the study of English literature to improve students' critical thinking abilities, and its use as a language resource. To fulfill this goal, thorough preparation is required. Indeed, we can direct our intelligence more effectively when we are well prepared and we are familiar with the basic methods and mechanics of teaching our subject. The greatest achievement of the English literature class I taught was that the students showed unexpectedly remarkable creative and critical appreciation of the novel we studied, in addition to improving their English language skills.

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Retroalimentación Positiva de los Profesores Nativos de ELE

  • Choi, Hong-Joo
    • Iberoamérica
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    • v.23 no.2
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    • pp.135-178
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    • 2021
  • A teacher's talk does not make a simple delivery of information. It reflects the role of the teacher, since the language used by a teacher intervenes in a crucial way in the complex mechanisms that underlie teaching and learning of foreign languages. In this sense, the ways in which teachers give feedback have an impact on the process, not only of learning, but also of teaching. The important role of emotional factors in learning has resonated strongly in the intuition of many second and foreign language teachers. As a result, over the past three decades, research on foreign language acquisition has confirmed the hypothesis that language learning is enhanced by rapport between teacher and student. This study analyses the positive feedback given by native Spanish teachers in the context of university classes in Korea. The positive words from a language teacher are related to forming emotional factors such as motivation, attitude, interest, self-confidence, self-esteem, anxiety, and empathy, which directly influence in the acquisition of Spanish. 35 hours of oral practical classes taught by three native teachers of Colombian, Spanish and Mexican nationality were examined. According to the result, almost all the correct answers from students were corresponded with some type of positive feedback. The most frequent strategies are making a compliment, an approval, a repetition, and laughter or non-verbal cues. It is interesting to observe that teachers don't use only a single strategy to provide positive feedback, but instead combine multiple ways to enrich the positiveness of the feedback.

How Derivational Prefix Instruction Impacts Incidental Vocabulary Acquisition and Reading Comprehension

  • Choi, Sung-Mook
    • English Language & Literature Teaching
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    • v.13 no.3
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    • pp.1-22
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    • 2007
  • The study examined the effects of explicit derivational morphology instruction (henceforth DMI) on the incidental vocabulary acquisition and reading comprehension of 132 Korean 1st-year high school students who responded to a battery of tests (two vocabulary tests and a reading comprehension test). Multiple statistical tools were used to analyze the data: Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA), Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Simple Regression Analysis, Tests of Simple Main Effects, and effect size computation using Cohen's d. The results indicated that (a) DMI enhanced students' ability to infer word meanings in context, (b) DMI promoted high proficiency students' reading comprehension, whereas it impeded intermediate proficiency students' reading comprehension, (c) vocabulary knowledge has a strong positive predictive value for reading comprehension, and (d) the gaps of vocabulary knowledge across proficiency levels were still substantial, despite the observation that DMI promoted students' vocabulary acquisition. These results have a bearing on English as Foreign Language (EFL) reading pedagogy.

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Parameter resetting in adult second language acquisition (성인의 제2 언어 습득에 있어서 매개변수 재고정)

  • Kim, Hak-Soo
    • English Language & Literature Teaching
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    • no.5
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    • pp.219-247
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    • 1999
  • The purpose of this paper is to examine how Korean learners of English reset the "prodrop" parameter of Korean into "non-prodrop" parameter of English in the process of English acquisition. An experiment was conducted to 45 Korean learners of English on the prodrop phenomenon, namely on the null referential or null nonreferential subject, and subject-verb agreement by way of grammatical judgment. The results of the experiment are as follows: First, L2 learners follow the parameter of L1, and then reset the parameter of L2 regardless of the parameter of L1 as their L2 abilities advance. Thus, this study provides further support for the hypothesis that universal grammar is available via L1. Second, the referential subject is, at first, easier to acquire than nonreferential subject, and the triggering fact for the switch from [+prodrop] to [-prodrop] was the use of nonreferential subjects. Third, 3rd person agreement has no connection with the acquisition of the prodrop parameter as a result of subject-verb agreement. Therefore, these results indicate that verb agreement is not a trigger for the recognition of the obligatory subject.

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Non-native Locus Equations and the Unit of Phonetic Acquisition

  • Oh, Eunjin
    • Korean Journal of English Language and Linguistics
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    • v.1 no.3
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    • pp.497-508
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    • 2001
  • This study tested whether non-native speakers approximated native-like locus equation slopes. Russian learners of English acquired native-like values of the locus equation slope for the English bilabial, and English learners of Russian made slight modifications to the locus equation slope of the Russian bilabial. The acquisition of the locus equations occurred gradually with experience. While English speakers, with limited experience with Russian, failed to approximate Russian-typical value of the locus equations slope, Russian speakers, with more extensive experience with English, succeeded in approximating the locus equation for English bilabial. The observation of locus equation transfer effect supports for the locus equation hypothesis as the unit of acquisition over CV-by-CV learning.

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The Acquisition of National Identity: A Comparison of In-country and Overseas(Chinese, Russia and Japan Residents) Korean Adolescents (청소년의 민족정체감 조사 비교 - 한국, 중국, 소련, 일본 거주 청소년을 중심으로 -)

  • Yi, Soon Hyung
    • Korean Journal of Child Studies
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    • v.15 no.1
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    • pp.55-69
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    • 1994
  • The purpose of this study was to investigate methodological and theoretical problems in measuring the acquisition of national identity of in-country and over-seas Korean adolescents. The subjects consisted of 574 incountry and overseas (Chinese, Russia and Japan) Korean adolescents (total 509), 15 to 25 years of age. Data were collected with the use of a questionaire, the Scale of National Identity. The results were that (1) the concept of national identity was organized on two dimensions (cognitive vs. sociocultural). The former consisted of 6 cognitive characteristics (uniqueness, sameness, continuity, acceptability, respectability and royalty). The sociocultural dimension consisted of the cognition of 7 sociocultural characteristics (history, norm, fraternity, symbol, consanguinity, Korean language and nationality). Except for consanguinity, there was a close relationship within each and between the 6 cognitive characteristics. Also there was a close relationship within each and between the 7 sociocultural characteristics of national identity. (2) Some demographic variables, such as age of respondents, place of birth and level of understanding of Korean language contributed to acquisition of national identity. (3) Among several demographic variables, nationality was the most explainable.

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