ZhaoHong Han

Error resistance: towards an empirical pedagogy

A serious empirical pedagogy would have interlanguage analysis central to pedagogical decision-making.We look here at error resistance in light of interlanguage theory, specifically the Multiple Effects Principle (MEP henceforth; Selinker and Lakshmanan, 1992), which predicts that when language transfer works in tandem with one or more second language acquisition processes, there is a greater tendency for interlanguage structures to stabilize, leading to possible fossilization in spite of repeated pedagogical intervention. There is also an important pedagogical corollary attached to the MEP, which is described below. In this article we focus on one particular instance of a persistent interlanguage structure that emerges from a longitudinal case study of Thai-Norwegian interlanguage, an interlanguage which, to our knowledge, has not been discussed in the literature before. Such a study is important in that most SLA results relate to English as source or target language, and the resulting conclusions are thus highly limited in both theoretical and practical terms. We present findings from several different empirical perspectives including the subject’s introspective account as ‘secondary data’, which serve to confirm the pedagogical usefulness of the MEP insofar as two processes dominated by L1 typological influence can be seen to underlie the persistence and resistance of the structure in question, with ‘transfer-of-training’ conspiring with language transfer to stabilize the structure. Thus, evidence from the study suggests that, in terms of implications for teaching, an MEP-inspired analysis of multiple factors could be significant in the elaboration of pedagogical strategies which may prevent or delay fossilization in cases where explicit negative evidence by the teacher seems to have had no effect.

Task Content Familiarity, Task Type and Efficacy of Recasts

The role of recasts has been the subject of an increasing number of second language acquisition (SLA) studies in recent years, as has been the role of tasks. Few studies, nevertheless, exist that investigate the interaction between the two. The present study makes a preliminary excursion into this unexplored domain by examining the impact of two task variables, task content familiarity and task type, on the efficacy of recasts. A total of 36 adult ESL learners participated in the study, and were randomly assigned to one of the four experimental groups: the Same Video group, the Different Video Group, the Same Notes group, or the Different Notes group. A pre-test/post-test/ delayed-post-test design was employed to detect any improvement in participants’ ability to use the past progressive form – the linguistic target. Results from analyses of variance show significant main effects for task content familiarity and task type.

Input Processing: A Study of Ab Initio Learners with Multilingual Backgrounds

Research on input processing in the acquisition of a non-primary language has rested largely on the assumption that learners use a meaning-based approach as the ‘default’ when processing input (VanPatten, 1996). The study reported here poses a challenge to this assumption: findings show that participants who were absolute beginners used a primarily form-based approach when processing Norwegian, a language they had not been exposed to previously. We argue that when positing principles of input processing, there is a need to differentiate between learners who have and who have not developed intermediate grammars of the target language, and that input which is linguistically incomprehensible, as well as devoid of extralinguistic clues, induces form-based processing. The paper concludes with two hypotheses: (1) learners who have acquired some knowledge of the target language will adopt a meaning-based approach to input processing; and (2) learners who have no existing knowledge of the target language will adopt a form-based approach.

Forty years later: Updating the Fossilization Hypothesis

A founding concept in second language acquisition (SLA) research, fossilization has been fundamental to understanding second language (L2) development. The Fossilization Hypothesis, introduced in Selinkers seminal text (1972), has thus been one of the most influential theories, guiding a significant bulk of SLA research for four decades; 2012 marks its fortieth anniversary. This article revisits the Fossilization Hypothesis, starting with the earliest set of questions (still the most comprehensive) (Selinker & Lamendella 1978) and using them as a basis for updating the Hypothesis. The current understanding of fossilization is presented by introducing an alternative hypothesis, the Selective Fossilization Hypothesis (Han 2009) and, in the light of that alternative, reviewing a selection of fossilizable structures documented in the recent literature.

Interlanguage : forty years later

自然界和人类社会中存在着大量的中间状态，人类的语言也是如此。大多数人在出生后首先习得和掌握的是他的母语（mother tongue），在以后的人生中，会有机会学习第二语言（secongd language）或目的语（target language）。所谓中介语是指第二语言学习者建构起来的介于母语和目的语之间的过渡性语言，它处于不断的发展变化过程中，并逐渐向目的语靠近。

Thirty-five years of ISLA on form-focused instruction: A meta-analysis

This meta-analysis offers a snapshot of thirty-five years (1980–2015) of research on instructed second language acquisition (ISLA). Fifty-four empirical studies involving a total of 5,051 second language learners – sampled from six applied linguistics journals, Applied Linguistics, Language Learning, Language Teaching Research, The Modern Language Journal, Studies in Second Language Acquisition, and TESOL Quarterly – were aggregated for the effects of second language (L2) instruction, yielding an overall large effect size, g = 1.06, 95 % CI = 0.84−1.29. Data were further analysed to identify factors that can modulate the efficacy of instruction. While a minor difference was detected between explicit and implicit instruction, statistically significant effects were found for modes of outcome measures, learners’ onset L2 proficiency, research settings, and intensity of instruction.

EFFECTS OF THE SECOND LANGUAGE ON THE FIRST

EFFECTS OF THE SECOND LANGUAGE ON THE FIRST. Vivian Cook (Ed.). Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters, 2003. Pp. viii + 268. 35.95 paper.This volume represents the first attempt to assemble studies of the effects of the second language (L2) on the first (L1). Underlying the design of the book is Cooks (1991) notion of multicompetence, which refers to knowledge of two or more languages in one mind. From various perspectives and to varying depths, the authors bring evidence to bear on the conceptualization that the L1 of an L2 user is not encapsulated but susceptible to the L2 influence.

Thirty-five years of ISLA on form-focused instruction: A methodological synthesis

This article offers a methodological synthesis spanning 35 years of instructed second language acquisition research on the efficacy of form-focused instruction. Eighty-eight (quasi-) experimental studies were sampled from six academic journals: Applied Linguistics, Language Learning, Language Teaching Research, Modern Language Journal, Studies in Second Language Acquisition, and TESOL Quarterly. The focus of analysis was on five sets of variables: (1) research design, (2) participants, (3) context in which the studies were conducted, (4) instructional treatment, and (5) outcome measures. Results revealed that since Norris and Ortega’s (2000) seminal study, the research domain has grown, not only with respect to the number of studies published, but also with regard to the addition of previously unexamined L1 groups, increase in the number of studies investigating implicit instruction, greater use of multiple measures of learning, and more pretesting and delayed posttesting. However, a number of methodological weaknesses have also persisted.

Introduction: A snapshot of thirty-five years of instructed second language acquisition

Over the last 35 years, the field of second language acquisition (SLA) has grown considerably. Although SLA has traditionally been viewed as a study of the cognitive processes in language learning, the field has expanded significantly. A multitude of theoretical models, frameworks, and orientations currently exist that attempt to explain not only the various cognitive but also the social processes of second language (L2) learning. The field has also begun to see increasing signs of greater concerns with reality (see Nassaji, 2016a). One notable movement has been the increasing push for SLA in response to realworld needs and attempts to fulfill its social responsibility. As of yet, the two cognitive and social strands of SLA have almost been on the opposite end of each other, with many researchers taking either a purely cognitive or a social perspective. This chasm seems to have become even more explicit by The Douglas Fir Group’s (2016) recent publication that viewed SLA out of touch with the real world, calling for a reset, and by Long’s (2017) assertion that ‘work on socialization, acculturation and identity formation makes up a significant and valuable segment of L2 [second language] and D2 [second dialect] classroom research today, but does not constitute research

Energy conservation: A theory of L2 ultimate attainment

Abstract The current theoretical landscape of second language acquisition (SLA) features abundance, disunity, and fragmentation. As early as 1993, Long counted 68 theories. That number, for sure, has only multiplied in the ensuing years, though what exactly counts as a theory has remained conceptually unsettled. Extant theories are diverse and disparate; they do not seem to gravitate toward a coherent understanding of SLA. In this article, we argue that a way to make theoretical headways is by engaging critical, well-established phenomena, a theoretical path that has long been noted but has remained intact. Using ultimate attainment, one of such phenomena, as an object of theorizing, we propose a new theory to both complement the theoretical spectrum in SLA and provide for a more holistic understanding of the phenomenon at hand.