Language Aptitude and Grammatical Difficulty: An EFL Classroom-Based Study

Autor/inn/en	Yalçin, Sebnem; Spada, Nina
Titel	Language Aptitude and Grammatical Difficulty: An EFL Classroom-Based Study
Quelle	In: Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 38 (2016) 2, S.239-263 (25 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0272-2631
DOI	10.1017/S0272263115000509
Schlagwörter	English (Second Language); Second Language Learning; Second Language Instruction; Language Aptitude; Correlation; Quasiexperimental Design; Language Tests; Difficulty Level; Grammar; Oral Language; Secondary School Students; Associative Learning; Memory; Task Analysis + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? English as second language; English; Second Language; Englisch als Zweitsprache; Zweitsprachenerwerb; Fremdsprachenunterricht; Sprachbegabung; Spracheignung; Korrelation; Language test; Sprachtest; Schwierigkeitsgrad; Grammatik; Oral interpretation; Mündlicher Sprachgebrauch; Sekundarschüler; Gedächtnis; Aufgabenanalyse
Abstract	This study investigates the relationship between foreign language aptitude and the learning of two English structures defined as easy or difficult to learn. Using a quasiexperimental design, 66 secondary-level learners of English as a foreign language from three intact classes were provided with four hours of instruction on the "passive" (a difficult structure) and the "past progressive" (an easy structure). Language aptitude was measured using the LLAMA Aptitude Test (Meara, 2005). Language outcomes were measured with a written grammaticality judgment and an oral production task. The results revealed that one of the aptitude components, grammatical inferencing, contributed to learners' gains on the passive but not the "past progressive" on the written measure. Another component of aptitude, associative memory, contributed to learners' gains on the "past progressive" on the oral measure. The results provide support for the claim that different components of aptitude contribute to the learning of difficult and easy L2 structures in different ways. There is also support for the proposal that different components of aptitude may be involved at different stages of language acquisition (Skehan, 2002). (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01