Implications of Multi-sensory Approach for Child L2 Vocabulary Acquisitio

Teaching a foreign language to young learners requires of the teacher a special ability to involve them in a variety of activities explicitly accommodating their need for whole-person enjoyment and implicitly fostering their L2 knowledge. This complex pedagogic task is likely to be achieved with reliance on the multi-sensory approach which is recommended by the European Co-operation Programs as an alternative L2 teaching trend encompassing universal, proactive qualities and educational diversity. Consequently, the following paper highlights the multisensoiy approach as the driving force of the lexically oriented syllabus designed by the author for young children learning English as a foreign language. The said syllabus design is presented through the empirical filter of knowledge claims and value judgements about its efficiency

Another look at boredom in language instruction: The role of the predictable and the unexpected

Although recent years have seen a growing interest in positive emotions in second or foreign language learning and teaching, negative emotions are always present in the classroom and they deserve to be investigated in their own right. The article focuses on boredom, a construct that has been explored in educational psychology but has received only scant attention from second language acquisition researchers. It reports a study which examined the changes in the levels of boredom experienced by 13 English majors in four EFL classes and the factors accounting for such changes. Using data obtained from a few different sources (i.e., boredom grids, narratives, interviews, class evaluations and lesson plans), it was found that although boredom can be attributed to different constellations of factors, it was mainly traced to repetitiveness, monotony and predictability of what transpired during a particular class

Un análisis de los efectos predictivos de la tenacidad general y la tenacidad sobre la L2 en la motivación: El efecto mediador del conocimiento auto-percibido de la L2

Following a recent surge of interest in the role of personality traits in second language learning, this study focuses on L2 grit as an important individual difference factor that is gaining growing recognition among second language acquisition researchers. Adopting a mixed-methods approach, we examined the predictive effects of general grit and L2 grit on motivated behavior among 549 advanced Polish university students majoring in English and the extent to which these effects were mediated by self-perceived proficiency. Data were collected by means of the Grit Scale (Duckworth et al., 2007), the L2 Grit Scale (Teimouri et al., 2022), the motivated behavior scale (Taguchi et al., 2009), and semi-structured interviews. Quantitative analysis demonstrated that general grit and L2 grit significantly co-predicted motivated behavior, with the effect of L2 grit being more pronounced. However, differences were found for students representing different proficiency levels. The results were corroborated by qualitative analysis of interview data.Ante el reciente aumento en el interés por el papel que desempeñan los rasgos de personalidad en el aprendizaje de una segunda lengua (L2), el presente trabajo se centra en la tenacidad en la L2 (L2 grit), un factor importante de diferencias individuales cada vez más reconocido entre los investigadores de la adquisición de una L2. Adoptando un enfoque metodológico mixto, se examinaron los efectos predictivos de la tenacidad general y la tenacidad en la L2 sobre la motivación de 549 estudiantes universitarios polacos de Estudios Ingleses con nivel avanzado de conocimiento de la lengua, y se analizó el grado en que dichos efectos estaban mediados por su autopercepción del nivel de conocimiento de la L2. Los datos se recogieron mediante la Escala de Tenacidad (Duckworth et al., 2007), la Escala de Tenacidad en L2 (Teimouri et al., 2022), la Escala de Motivación (Taguchi et al., 2009) y entrevistas semiestructuradas. El análisis cuantitativo demostró que la tenacidad general y la tenacidad en la L2 predijeron de forma conjunta y de manera significativa la motivación de los aprendices, siendo más pronunciado el efecto de la tenacidad en la L2. Sin embargo, se encontraron diferencias entre los participantes dependiendo de su nivel de conocimiento de la L2. Estos resultados se corroboraron mediante el análisis cualitativo de los datos de las entrevistas

IMPLICATIONS OF MULT-SENSORY APPROACH FOR CHILD L2 VOCABULARY ACQUISITION

Teaching a foreign language to young learners requires of the teacher a special ability to involve them in a variety of activities explicitly accommodating their need for whole-person enjoyment and implicitly fostering their L2 knowledge. This complex pedagogic task is likely to be achieved with reliance on the multi-sensory approach which is recommended by the European Co-operation Programs as an alternative L2 teaching trend encompassing universal, proactive qualities and educational diversity. Consequently, the following paper highlights the multisensoiy approach as the driving force of the lexically oriented syllabus designed by the author for young children learning English as a foreign language. The said syllabus design is presented through the empirical filter of knowledge claims and value judgements about its efficiency

Informal talks about writing as a constructive way to develop young L2 learner print awareness

The article examines the possibilities of fostering young L2 learner print awareness via teaching for conversing about and reflecting on writing. In order to achieve this goal the present author conducted the qualitative research on a group of 2nd-graders engaged in the performance of a series of open-ended L2 written tasks accompanied by L1 cues. The analysis of collected data shows that drawing children’s conscious attention to writing might encourage the constructive transferability of linguistic skills from L1 to L2, thus being conducive to the development of logical thinking necessary for the enhancement of their print awareness

The impact of Second Life on changes in levels of L2 motivation, language anxiety and boredom among students of English philology

The first, theoretical, part of the present paper is devoted to the characteristics of the affective variables of motivation, language anxiety and boredom as situated within the framework of complex dynamic systems. The second part discusses results obtained from a six-month research project intended to examine the effect of Second Life on four English philology students’ changes in levels of motivation, language anxiety and boredom. The data, collected via a personal questionnaire, learner diary and evaluation questionnaire, underwent both quantitative and qualitative analysis

A handful of reflections on motivational changes among EFL senior high school students

The present paper aims to examine the patterns of motivational variability in a group of 11 EFL senior high school students. It consists of two, theoretical and empirical, parts, the first of which will concentrate on motivation as seen through the lens of D. Larsen-Freeman’s Complex Dynamic Systems Theory and on an overview of research into motivation conducted in light of the said theory. As regards the second part of the paper, it is meant to discuss the results obtained from a six-month-long quantitative study of changes in the subjects’ levels of motivation during the EFL lessons. Data gathering tools included a general questionnaire referring to motivation, motivational grids and evaluation sheets

Boredom in practical English language classes

Although boredom is among the most common academic emotions experienced by students at all possible levels of education, so far it has not received due attention from SLA theorists and researchers. Accordingly, the present paper aims to discuss the concept of boredom from the L2 classroom perspective with a special regard to the university students of English Philology. In the first part the authors provide a definition, present two basic typologies and highlight the causes of boredom followed by a brief overview of research into boredom in educational settings, whereas the second part is intended to approach a phenomenon of boredom on an empirical basis. The authors report on both quantitative and qualitative research findings concerning the intensity of boredom as felt by the subjects during the practical English language classes. First, the numerical results obtained from the Boredom Proneness Scale and correlated to boredom experienced in practical English language classes are referred to. Then the qualitative data gathered from the students’ descriptions of boredom-related situations during the said classes are commented on. Finally, the authors proceed to propose certain L2 classroom boredom-coping options