First and Second Language Acquisition Commons^™

The Role Of Capital On Literacy And Second Language Acquisition: A Cross-National Comparative Study, Brenda Koumondji

INSPIRE Student Research and Engagement Conference

Key Context:

• Globalization has increased the demand for multilingual skills.
• Yet, language learning opportunities vary based on national education policies and socioeconomic factors.
• Language learning opportunities are shaped by social structures and vary based on economic,social, and cultural capital (ESC) (Bourdieu, 1986).

Second Language Benefits

• Economic (Brown & Lauder, 1991; Foreman-Peck & Wang, 2014)
• Cognitive and Psychological (Bialystok, 2011; Dewaele & Wei, 2012; Graham, 2017)
• Social and Cultural (Marboua et al., 2024)

Research Focus:

• Cross-national comparison of South Korea, Norway, Chile, and the U.S.

The Relationship Between Backgrounds And The Perception Of Tones In Mandarin, Abigail Franks

Honors Program Theses

No abstract provided.

Language Policy In Sudanese-Arabic Speaking Families, Marwa Ibrahim

Annual Graduate Student Symposium

In countries like the United States, where English is the dominant language, minority languages spoken in families and communities are at risk of being lost by the second and subsequent generations. This study thus examines the language maintenance and family language policies that exist in families of first-generation immigrant Sudanese residing in a Sudanese community in a Midwest university town of 74,000. The study aims to answer how family language policy, spoken or unspoken, affects the maintenance of the children's first language. The participants in this study were first generation immigrants, identified themselves as bilingual, resided in the United States …

Study Abroad: An Essential Part Of Language Acquisition, Emillie Kenne

Honors Program Theses

The present qualitative study will demonstrate and provide evidence from personal interviews that other students had similar invaluable experiences after studying abroad. Two direct quotes from these interviews portray the impact studying abroad had on them. Lisa, a participant in the present study, stated, “It is impossible to explain to someone the emotions of living in a strange place with strange people and learning to love them in such a short amount of time.” Another participant, Rachel, expressed that, “You have lived experiences nobody here can ever understand, and you made memories you can try to share with people, and …

Beliefs, Concerns, And Methods Of Parents Raising Children Bilingually: A Study Of Hispanic Iowa Mothers Attempting To Maintain Heritage Language In Their Children, Briana Vera

Honors Program Theses

The purpose of my thesis was to discover more about parents who are raising their children to be English-Spanish bilingual, particularly their beliefs, concerns, and methods regarding this issue. I focused specifically on mothers in Iowa whose native language was Spanish and who had at least one child in the household between the ages of four and sixteen. A point of interest I focused on were the beliefs, concerns, and methods these mothers have and use to maintain their children‟s heritage language (Spanish) as the community language (English) becomes more prominent in their children‟s lives. This information is important for …

Using Mathematics As A Gateway To Literacy For English Language Learners, Krista Hemphill

Honors Program Theses

One teaching approach that alleviates language barriers involves teachers using what students know and can do to develop students‟ understanding of and ability in another area. Thus, 2 teachers can promote ELLs‟ literacy development by integrating knowledge and skills ELLs have from another subject area into their literacy instruction. Specifically, teachers can integrate mathematics into literacy instruction because research suggests that ELLs often understand and successfully carry out mathematical tasks. For example, Gunning (2003) points out that ELLs tend to perform well on mathematical computations. The universality of mathematical symbols seems to promote ELLs‟ understanding of mathematics instruction although lessons …

The Perception And Production Of Spanish Pure Vowels By Native English Speakers, Lauren Erickson

Honors Program Theses

Quantitatively measuring a person’s fluency in a second language (L2) is difficult, but analysis of formant movements during vowel production may provide a more accurate way of measuring the accuracy of acquiring a native-like production of the L2. This study examined the accuracy with which two groups of native English speakers perceived and produced the Spanish vowel /e/ and diphthong /ei/, and compared their results with the results from a group of native Spanish speakers. For the perception portion of the study, participants were asked to correctly identify matching sounds, and the number and percentage of correct responses were compared …

Identity In Second Language Learning: Access To The Target Language Group, Stephanie J. Marra

Graduate Research Papers

In recent years the role of identity in SLA has emerged in the literature as the linguistic community develops an understanding of the significance of identity in language learning (McKay & Wong, 1996). Norton (2000) refers to identity as “how a person understands his or her relationship to the world, how that relationship is constructed across time and space, and how the person understands possibilities for the future” (p. 5). An understanding of identity in language learning and the relationship of the language learner to the learning environment helps to illuminate what previous theories about the role of affective variables …

Teaching Speaking In The Foreign Language Classroom, Amanda J. Smith

Presidential Scholars Theses (1990 – 2006)

One of the most necessary skills for living in the twenty-first century is gaining the ability to know and use another language. In many areas of life, from business transactions to broadcasting television weather warnings, the demand for proficiency in a foreign language is growing. One of the most important skills to have in a foreign language is the ability to speak the language with native or non-native speakers of that language. A great number of foreign language learners most likely consider one of their primary language goals to be the ability to speak the language at a high level …

Shared Reading For Teaching English As A Foreign Language To Young Learners In Russia, Inna V. Kuznetsova

Graduate Research Papers

Shared Reading has proven to be very effective in developing language and literacy skills of children in the West. This project introduces Shared Reading as a curriculum component of English as a foreign language for young children in Russia. Review of the literature regarding the effectiveness of Shared Reading is described. The project includes two units of four lessons each that illustrate implementation of Shared Reading, oral language and other literacy activities. The project concludes with specific recommendations for dissemination of this work.

Potential Technology Application In English Instruction In The People's Republic Of China, Ping Gao

Graduate Research Papers

The primary purpose of this paper is to present a vision of potential technology application as an effective teaching aid for English instruction in the People's Republic of China (hereafter referred to as China). In order to provide a clear picture of why technology should be applied in English teaching situations in China, major factors influencing the current English teaching methodologies – grammar translation and audiolingual method – have been analyzed. A theoretical analysis of modern Western teaching pedagogy, the communicative approach, has been explored to offer an in-depth understanding of foreign language learning and teaching processes. The close relationship …