scholarly journals The current use of the past imperfect tense in Albanian and Serbian – a case study

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lindita Sejdiu-Rugova ◽  
Merima Krijezi
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Transformation Process ◽  
Formal Grammar ◽  
The Past ◽  
Indirect Influence

The current use of the past imperfect tense in Albanian and Serbian – a case studyThe article deals with the indirect influence of Albanian grammar among the native speakers of Serbian who study Albanian as a foreign language as an awareness and transformation process when translating the past imperfect forms from Albanian as a foreign language into their mother tongue Serbian, more specifically the past imperfect of Albanian into Serbian as their mother tongue. The emphasize that while translating, the students are guided not by knowledge of formal grammar but by actual by real usage of this tense in Albanian and Serbian. Współczesne użycie imperfectum w języku serbskim i albańskim Artykuł dotyczy bezpośredniego wpływu gramatyki albańskiej na język serbski wśród Serbów uczących się języka albańskiego jako obcego. Przedmiotem opisu jest przekład albańskich form imperfektywnych w tłumaczeniu z albańskiego na serbski, w którym ta forma werbalna nie jest już używana. Autorki podkreślają, że studenci, tłumacząc, nie kierują się formalną wiedzą gramatyczną na temat funkcjonowania imperfectum w obu językach, ale realnymi zastosowaniami tej formy temporalnej.

A CASE STUDY OF NL INFLUENCE IN UNIS FKIP ENGLISH DEPARTMENT STUDENTS' INTERLANGUAGE

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 46-54
Author(s):  
Irmala Sukendra ◽  
Agus Mulyana ◽  
Imam Sudarmaji
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Communicative Competence ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Universal Grammar ◽  
Similar System ◽  
The One ◽  
L1 Acquisition

Regardless to the facts that English is being taught to Indonesian students starting from early age, many Indonesian thrive in learning English. They find it quite troublesome for some to acquire the language especially to the level of communicative competence. Although Krashen (1982:10) states that “language acquirers are not usually aware of the fact that they are acquiring language, but are only aware of the fact that they are using the language for communication”, second language acquisition has several obstacles for learners to face and yet the successfulness of mastering the language never surmounts to the one of the native speakers. Learners have never been able to acquire the language as any native speakers do. Mistakes are made and inter-language is unavoidable. McNeili in Ellis (1985, p. 44) mentions that “the mentalist views of L1 acquisition hypothesizes the process of acquisition consists of hypothesis-testing, by which means the grammar of the learner’s mother tongue is related to the principles of the ‘universal grammar’.” Thus this study intends to find out whether the students go through the phase of interlanguage in their attempt to acquire second language and whether their interlanguage forms similar system as postulated by linguists (Krashen).

Salvaging the Mother Tongue in Exile

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 187-204
Author(s):  
Tomás Espino Barrera
Keyword(s):  
Native Speakers ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
First Language ◽  
Language Attrition ◽  
The Past ◽  
Progressive Loss ◽  
First Language Attrition ◽  
Lost In Translation ◽  
Deliberate Effort ◽  
Deep Sense

The dramatic increase in the number of exiles and refugees in the past 100 years has generated a substantial amount of literature written in a second language as well as a heightened sensibility towards the progressive loss of fluency in the mother tongue. Confronted by what modern linguistics has termed ‘first-language attrition’, the writings of numerous exilic translingual authors exhibit a deep sense of trauma which is often expressed through metaphors of illness and death. At the same time, most of these writers make a deliberate effort to preserve what is left from the mother tongue by attempting to increase their exposure to poems, dictionaries or native speakers of the ‘dying’ language. The present paper examines a range of attitudes towards translingualism and first language attrition through the testimonies of several exilic authors and thinkers from different countries (Vladimir Nabokov's Speak, Memory, Hannah Arendt's interviews, Jorge Semprún's Quel beau dimanche! and Autobiografía de Federico Sánchez, and Eva Hoffman's Lost in Translation, among others). Special attention will be paid to the historical frameworks that encourage most of their salvaging operations by infusing the mother tongue with categories of affect and kinship.

scholarly journals Reading Accuracy in EFL Students with a Transparent L1 Background – a Case Study from Poland

2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 35-40
Author(s):  
Monika Łodej
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Reading Ability ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Regular Instruction ◽  
Language Competence ◽  
L2 Reading ◽  
Reading Accuracy ◽  
Efl Students ◽  
L1 And L2

Research indicates that L2 reading competence is influenced by L1 reading ability, L2 proficiency, and L2 decoding competence. The present study investigates the significance of two variables, regularity and frequency, in relation to English as a Foreign Language (EFL) reading accuracy in students with a transparent L1. Fifteen 6th grade students in their sixth year of regular instruction in English took part in this study. Their mother tongue is Polish whereas English is their foreign language; thus, their language competence in L1 and L2 differs substantially. The research design followed Glusko (1979), Plaut (1996), and Wang and Koda (2007). There are four sets of real words. Two features of real words are manipulated for regularity and frequency. The study reveals that both conditions of script, regularity and transparency, affect reading accuracy in EFL students. However, the dimension of regularity is a stronger predicator of accuracy than the frequency with which the students encounter a word. From the pedagogical perspective, the collected data supports the use of structured reading instructions in the EFL classroom in order to restrain negative transfer of L1 to L2 reading strategies.

scholarly journals Mother Tongue Use in Beginner EFL Grammar Classes in Saudi Arabia: A Case Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 349-365
Author(s):  
Khulud Ali Tubayqi ◽  
Mazeegha Ahmed Al Tale’
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Arabic Language ◽  
Microsoft Excel ◽  
Thematic Content Analysis ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
Actual Interaction

Using the mother tongue (MT) in English as a foreign or second language (EFL/ESL) classrooms is indispensable, especially in beginner classes. This paper aims to add to the present literature on this issue by highlighting the attitudes of both students and teachers towards MT use in English as a foreign language (EFL) classroom, the justifications for its use, and some of the actual interaction practices in grammar classes. It investigates the attitudes of 110 Saudi EFL female beginners and their two teachers toward using the Arabic language in EFL grammar classes at Jazan University. It also investigates the students’ reasons for using or avoiding their MT. Moreover, it presents some of the functions that MT serves in EFL grammar classes. To collect the data, the researchers used two questionnaires and classroom observations. For data analysis, they used Microsoft Excel and thematic content analysis. The results indicated that, although both students and teachers generally have positive attitudes toward using the MT in EFL classes, they are also aware of the adverse effects of its overuse. The results also revealed that the teachers and students use MT in EFL classes to serve different classroom functions that ease the teaching and learning processes. Based on these findings, the study provided recommendations for teachers, curriculum designers, and future researchers.

scholarly journals Teaching English in India —The Use of Technologically Enhanced Realia in the Classroom

2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 149
Author(s):  
Priya K. Nair
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
English Language ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Teaching English ◽  
Job Market ◽  
Native Speakers Of English ◽  
Listening And Speaking ◽  
Speaking Skills

In India acquisition of English language is imperative if one wants to sell oneself in the increasingly competitive job market. With a booming population the nation is filled with educated, technologically literate youth. English is not merely a foreign language in India. As India is separated by a plethora of languages knowledge of English is imperative. As the teachers in India are not native speakers of English the language they teach is not free from errors. The articulation is quite problematic as the mother tongue influence is quite pronounced. Technology helps to reduce these errors. Movies as a tool can enhance the listening and speaking skills of our students. It is quite boring to work with disembodied voices and the recorded conversations available in language labs do not sustain the learner’s interest. However learners are often forced to listen to recorded conversations of people they never see, the conversation is often stilted and contemporary idiom is hardly used. However, a completely new dimension to aural practice can be added in the classroom by using movies. <br /><p><strong> </strong></p>

scholarly journals Dialect Levelling: A Case Study of Ìkàr??-Àkókó Dialect

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 290-315
Author(s):  
Esther Olayinka Bamigbola ◽  
Fadekemi Rukayat Umar
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Indigenous Languages ◽  
Work Place ◽  
The People ◽  
Restricted Domains ◽  
The Status ◽  
Lack Of Commitment

This study investigates the factors that are responsible for the levelling of Ìkàr??-Àkókó dialect. Specifically, the paper examines the impacts of Nigerian indigenous languages, especially Yorùbá, on the dialect. The study aims at identifying the patterns of changes in the dialect and their impacts on the ethnic identities of the people. The work is based on the variationist approach pioneered by William Labov in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The tools used for data collection include questionnaire, oral interview and observation. The findings of the study reveal that the dialect manifests different stages of changes, vital domains like home, school and work place, which are supposed to be the strongholds of this dialect are being encroached upon by languages other than the mother tongue in the study area. It was found that the changes in the dialect are not due to the influence of English language only, but to indigenous Nigerian languages, mostly Yorùbá. It was concluded that the gradual levelling of Ìkàr??-Àkókó dialect is caused in part by restricted domains of use, increase in population; lack of commitment to indigenous language use by the native speakers; and suppressive language policy in the nation. The study recommends sensitization campaigns as a way of maintaining and sustaining the status of indigenous languages.

scholarly journals TEACHERS’ VIEW OF LANGUAGE(S) IN (CLIL) SCIENCE EDUCATION: A CASE STUDY IN PORTUGAL

2019 ◽  
Vol 77 (5) ◽  
pp. 636-649
Author(s):  
Valentina Piacentini ◽  
Ana Raquel Simões ◽  
Rui Marques Vieira
Keyword(s):  
Science Education ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Science Teachers ◽  
Science Studies ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Integrated Learning ◽  
Teacher Interviews ◽  
Verbal Language

The development of meaningful environments at school for the learning of Science as well as of foreign languages is an educational concern. CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning), aimed at the students’ acquisition of both the foreign Language and specific subject Content, is an approach that may promote the learning of English in use during subject classes and could result in the improvement of conditions and practices of Science education. Research, actually, reveals that teaching methodologies aware of language – such as CLIL – and other semiotic modes implied in Science are beneficial for the learning of Science. Studying a CLIL programme (“English Plus” project, EP), in which Science is taught/learnt with/in English, is thus relevant. A case study on the EP project and its participants (English and Science teachers, students involved in different school years) in one lower secondary state school in Portugal was carried out. In the present research, qualitative data collected through teacher interviews are presented and discussed, with the goal of understanding the role of Language(s) (verbal language in the mother tongue or English and other representation modalities) in the teaching of Science for EP teachers, both in conventional and project classes. A greater teacher awareness and use of Language(s), when an additional language (English, here) is also present for Science education, results from this work. This contributes to research on CLIL Science studies and teacher reflections on adopting a language-focused approach for Science education, also when the mother tongue is spoken. Keywords: CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning), EFL (English as a foreign language), language-focused science education, qualitative design, reflections on teaching.

The computer-mediated expression of surprise

2015 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 383-414
Author(s):  
Laura Ascone
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Systemic Approach ◽  
Verbal Expression ◽  
Computer Mediated ◽  
New Information

This paper investigates how Italian native speakers express surprise in English as their second language on Facebook. A qualitative study was conducted on a corpus of forty English utterances by Italian native speakers conveying surprise and two control corpora composed of forty Italian and forty English native speakers’ expressions. First, a systemic approach will be adopted: by analysing the order in which the speaker reacts to, comments on, and wonders about new information, the objective is to determine a pattern peculiar to the verbal expression of surprise, and to ascertain how the mother tongue and the language-learning background are influential when expressing an instinctive reaction such as surprise in a foreign language. Attention will then be paid to the lexical expression of surprise. In particular, the analysis will focus on the features specific to non-native speakers (i.e. use of verbs and code-switching), on the codes peculiar to CMC (i.e. smileys and punctuation), and on how these codes are employed to convey surprise disruption, valence and intensity. By examining all these aspects, this research examines how English non-native speakers express surprise in chats.

scholarly journals Schwerpunkte immer noch schwer? Einige Überlegungen über die deutsche Grammatik für slawische native speakers

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-51
Author(s):  
Olga Kostrova ◽  
Izabela Prokop
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
State University ◽  
Error Prevention ◽  
Grammatical Categories ◽  
Suitable Measure ◽  
Adam Mickiewicz

The aim of this article is to present the project of a contrastive Polish-German and Russian-German grammar, which arose as a result of the cooperation between Samara State University of Social Sciences and Education and Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznan. The idea of a unilateral grammar which is based on the categories of the mother tongue of the learner and is aimed at the foreign language to be learned, is designed as a suitable measure within the framework of error prevention. The grammar contains selected grammatical categories that are significant sources of errors for native Slavic speakers

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