SELECTED ABSTRACTS & INDEXES
(2007) Sanz, C. The role of bilingual literacy in the acquisition
of a third language.
In Perez-Vidal, Bel, and Garau (Eds.) A Portrait of the Young
in the New Multilingual Spain, Clevedon (UK): Multilingual Matters
Careful inspection of data from studies comparing
bilinguals and monolinguals learning a foreign language shows clear differences
among participants in the bilingual groups (Swain, Lapkin, Rowen, & Hart,
1990; Cenoz & Valencia, 1994; Sanz, 2000). Neither did all bilinguals
perform equally well in foreign language tests, nor were they comparable
in terms of IQ, motivation, exposure, frequency of use, or command of
their two languages. Also, some scholars attribute the cognitive benefits
identified for bilingualism to literacy in two languages (Bialystok,
2004; Cook, 1997; Cummins, 1981, Swain et al., 1990). The study summarized
in the chapter seeks to identify and explain those variables that predict
bilinguals’ successful acquisition of a third language (L3). The
variables are of two types: variables associated with bilingualism (Baker
1993); and general factors identified in the SLA literature (Ellis 1994,
Skehan 1998). The study also aims at establishing a relationship between
literacy development in two languages and enhanced ability to learn a
third. The sample is a group of 120 Catalan/Spanish bilinguals learning
English as a foreign language in high school. The analyses have identified
the following significant predictors of success in L3 acquisition: motivation,
exposure to the L3, L1/L2 balance for written skills, attitudes towards
the L3, and frequency of use of the minority language. Neither order
(of L1/L2) nor age of L2 acquisition affects L3 acquisition, but significant
contrasts among groups that differed in degree of balance in their written
skills between the minority and majority language were identified, suggesting
the existence of a threshold. |
(forthcoming) Boix, E.J. & Sanz, C. Language & Identity
in Catalonia.
In Rothman, J. & Nino-Murica, M.M., Eds. Language & Identity. Pihladelphia
(PA): John Benjamins.
Catalonia is a bilingual region where Catalan and Spanish coexist. While there are virtually no Catalan monolinguals, the proportion of Spanish monolinguals and Catalan/Spanish bilinguals has varied within the last 100 years as a result of Franco’s repression, migration, and successful pro-minority language policy. Catalans have traditionally used language to identify themselves (ius linguae), but in the present day this stands in contradiction with the law (ius loci). Moreover, the presence of bilingual varieties of both Spanish and Catalan are making the use of language as criterion for identity more complex. Catalan characterized by heavy lexical and morphosyntactic Spanish transfers is growing with the number of L2 Catalan speakers. That this population may identify itself as bilingual and Catalan (both ius loci and ius linguae), but be perceived as ‘non-Catalan’ is a clear example of a conflict between self-constructed identity and perceived identity. |
(2007) Sanz, C. & Lado, B. Awareness and computer assisted instruction.
Encyclopedia of Language and Education (volume
4). Boston (MA): Kluwer Academic Publishers.
A concise, comprehensive and singular definition of language awareness
in second language acquisition (SLA) is not easily found, nor constructed. Given
the inclusive nature of the Encyclopedia, however, and for the purposes
of this article, we accept the broadest definition possible to incorporate
all knowledge of and about language. Language awareness is an internal
phenomenon that can be externally affected by consciousness-raising or
attention-focusing techniques. |
(2007) Sanz, C. & Lado, B. Research methodology in the study of
third language acquisition.
Encyclopedia of Language and Education (volume 9). Boston
(MA): Kluwer Academic Publishers.
Research methods in third language (L3) acquisition are used to address questions about acquisition processes and products, their educational and social contexts, as well as the individual variables involved. The field only started in the late 1980s. Consequently, the methodology is innovative and highly eclectic, with designs borrowed both from linguistics and psychology by way of second language acquisition (SLA) research. Surprisingly for a young field, quantitative, hypothesis-testing studies outnumber qualitative, question-generating designs. Not uncommon are mixed designs combining description and interpretation with descriptive and even inferential statistics. Data are collected both longitudinally and cross-sectionally, often from large samples in tutored contexts, only occasionally following experimental intervention and most often elicited by means of questionnaires, tests, and interviews. The most popular quantitative procedures include Analyses of Variance (ANOVA), correlations and regressions. |
Adquisició de terceres llengües: Estat
de la qüestió (2004)
(Third Language Acquisition: A Review of the literature)
Caplletra, 36
The last ten years have witnessed a growing interest
on the acquisition of third languages (L3s). This is a recent phenomenon,
in part because the study of the acquisition of non-primary languages
(L2, L3, etc) is young, and it makes sense to start with second language
acquisition before moving on to study L3 acquisition. In this field, Catalonia
and the Basque Country are at the forefront in production of published
empirical research, the focus of this article. The studies presented are
interesting both for practical and for theoretical reasons. They can inform
decisions regarding appropriate timing and procedures to incorporate foreign
languages (L3s) in the bilingual curriculum, while throwing light on important
theoretical issues such as the role of experience in language processing
and the role of transfer in the acquisition of grammar. |
Cristina Sanz & Kara Morgan-Short (2004)
Positive Evidence vs. Explicit Rule Presentation and
Explicit Negative Feedback:
A Computer-Assisted Study
Language Learning, 54:1
Abstract
The facilitative role of explicit information about
how language works in SLA has been supported by a significant body of
research (Alanen, 1995; Carroll & Swain, 1993; de Graaff, 1997; DeKeyser,
1995; N. Ellis, 1993; Robinson, 1996, 1997), but counter-evidence is also
available in studies by Rosa & O’Neill (1999) and VanPatten &
Oikkenon (1996). This experimental study investigates the effects of exposure
to computer-delivered metalinguistic information on the acquisition of
Spanish word order by comparing four groups: [+ explanation] (i.e., explicit
information about the language and how to process it in the input) and
[+explicit feedback] (defined as information on the source of error);
[–explanation] and [–explicit feedback], (i.e., exposure to
positive evidence only); [+explanation] but [–explicit feedback];
and [–explanation] but [+explicit feedback]. Our results showed that
all groups improved significantly on both the interpretation and production
tests. Moreover, we found that no group was better than any other on any
test. These results suggest that exposing L2 learners to structured input
through carefully designed tasks is enough to promote acquisition. In
such a context, providing learners with explicit information on how the
language works, either through explanation, feedback, or both, does not
significantly add to the knowledge gained through practice. |
Working memory and L2 proficiency as predictors of
enhanced acquisition of an L3.
Second Language Research Forum, Tucson (AZ),
October 16, 2003
(With Bowden, H., Stafford, C.A.)
|
The present study investigates the interaction between amount of prior experience with the L2 (Spanish) and working memory (WM) capacity in relation to enhanced ability to acquire a third language, specifically Latin case and word order. Previous research on the acquisition of an L3 by novice and experienced learners, both in bilingual contexts (Cenoz, 1994; Sanz, 2000; Swain, Lapkin, Rowen, & Hart, 1990) as well as in laboratory studies (Nation & McLaughlin 1986; McLaughlin and Nayak, 1989; Nayak, Hansen, Krueger & McLaughlin, 1990) shows that experience facilitates language acquisition. Multilingual subjects were found to habitually exert more processing effort toward making sense of verbal stimuli; they had less difficulty in shifting strategies and generally used cognitive strategies that facilitated a more efficient use of processing resources in the construction of formal rules. These studies offer indirect evidence that prior linguistic
experience facilitates language processing leading to the acquisition
of a new language. We hypothesize that this efficiency is related to WM
capacity, a construct which, consistent with current literature (Miyake
& Shah, 1999), we operationalize as the ability to simultaneously
process and store linguistic information during on-line language processing.
Our operationalization of the construct is a sentence span test based
on Waters and Caplan (1996) and administered in the learners’ first
language. The design is experimental and involves 60 L2 learners of Spanish at three different levels of experience. The levels examined are basic (absolute beginners) and intermediate (+/-200 hours of formal exposure) students at a Northeastern university and native-like users of L2 Spanish. Participants interact with a computer-delivered lesson on Latin’s case system and word order that actively engages them in processing meaningful oral and written input, at no point requiring them to produce language.The lesson provides exposure to 56 instances as well as explicit feedback containing relevant grammatical information. Pre-, post- and delayed post-tests evaluate learners’ acquisition of Latin morphology and word order through four measures: sentence interpretation (both aural and written), sentence production, and grammaticality judgment. Both latency (in milliseconds) and accuracy are recorded for all four tests. Results from the WM test are analyzed in relation to linguistic data and learners’ language experience in order to elucidate the potential contribution of each factor. The study seeks to shed light on how individual differences affect input processing for acquisition to begin to explain the positive effects of bilingualism identified in the literature. |
Bilingual education enhances third language acquisition:
Evidence from Catalonia. (2000).
Applied Psycholinguistics, 21: 23-44
Studies on acquisition of a
third language (L3) in bilingual contexts carried out by Swain, Lapkin,
Rowen & Hart (1990) and Cenoz & Valencia (1994) on the Canadian
and Basque contexts, respectively, have shown that literacy in two
languages facilitates the acquisition of a third. The present study
seeks to contribute to this line of research by comparing the acquisition
of English as a third language (L3) by Catalan/Spanish bilingual high
school students in an immersion program with acquisition by Spanish
monolinguals. Data from 201 participants were submitted to a hierarchical
multiple regression analysis, rendering results that show that bilingualism
indeed has a positive effect on the acquisition of a third language.
The evidence I discussed from a cognitive perspective. |
Greenslade, T., Bouden, L., and Sanz, C. (1999)
A conceptual replication study of VanPatten 1991. Spanish Applied Linguistics 3,
65-90,
In his study, "Attending to form and content
in the input" (1990), VanPatten demonstrated that L2 learners
have difficulty processing input for meaning while consciously attending
to morphological forms. This conceptual replication follows VanPatten’s
design while changing input mode from oral to written. Using VanPatten’s
original design, the experiment assesses input processing through
four tasks: processing for meaning; for meaning and a key lexical
item; for meaning and a bound morpheme (-n) and for meaning
and an unbound morpheme (la).Similar to VanPatten’s results,
statistical analyses showed that conscious attention to grammatical
forms negatively affects text comprehension, whereas conscious attention
to lexical items does not detract significantly from comprehension.
Results from this study also suggest that mode (i.e., written vs.
aural) is an important factor influencing how learners process forms.
The article includes a discussion of the implications for both pedagogy
and research on the effects of input enhancement. |
Cristina Sanz & Bill VanPatten (1998)
On Input Processing, Processing Instruction, and the nature of replication tasks:
A response to M. Rafael Salaberry.
The Canadian Modern Language Review 54, 263-73
This is a response to Salaberry's article "The
role of input and output practice in second language acquisition"
(CMLR 53:2), which his author claims to be a replication study of
VanPatten & Cadierno (1993), Sanz (1994), and VanPatten and Sanz
(1995). We contend that Salaberry's study is not a replication of
our work, and thus cannot speak to processing instruction as he claims.
Based on a close reading of his study, we have identified the two
factors that interfere with Salaberry'soriginal purpose, namely, a
lack of understanding of critical theoretical issues in input processing
and processing instruction, and substantial methodological limitations
that render his conclusions invalid. |
El papel del bilingüismo en el aprendizaje de una lengua
extranjera:
Contextos sociales / contextos mentales (1998)
LynX 21. València, Spain: Universitat de València.
El presente estudio ofrece una aproximación al fenómeno
del bilingüismo y su relación con la adquisición de lenguas terceras
desde una perspectiva cognitiva. Introduce el tema con una visión
histórica de la investigación norteamericana sobre el bilingüismo
y su influencia en las capacidades intelectuales del individuo en
general, para centrase en la segunda parte en los escasos estudios
empíricos sobre la influencia de la experiencia bilingüe en la adquisición
de otras lenguas, cuyos resultados pudieran parecer contradictorios
de no tener en cuenta el contexto social en el que se llevaron a cabo.
La tercera parte, que es la parte central, pretende explicar desde
un punto de vista cognitivo las posibles ventajas de la mente bilingüe
a la hora de aprender otras lenguas basándose en la relación entre
conciencia metalingüística, automatización de procesos, y memoria.
La finalidad del trabajo es explicar una de las ventajas del bilingüismo
y demostrar su interés práctico en un mundo donde el multilingüismo
es cada día más común y necesario para el progreso económico y cultural
de los estados. |
Experimental tasks in SLA research:
Amount of production, modality, memory, and production processes (1997)
In Glass, W.R. and A.T. Pérez-Lerroux (Eds.)
Contemporary perspectives on the acquisition of Spanish, vol. 2., pp. 41-56.
Somerville: Cascadilla Press.
The paper discusses the results from an experimental
study on Spanish SLA from a cognitive perspective. The study implemented
multiple assessment tasks created along pre-set criteria, namely,
mode of production and amount of production, which were used as means
of operationalizing the continuum between controlled and automatic
processes in production. The results show that producing in the oral
mode requires more time to access knowledge. The gradual increase
of the amount of content that needs to be stored in short-term memory
results in less space available for the use of controlled processes,
thus, it is likely that only knowledge that has been automatized can
be used for production. |
Cristina Sanz & María José González (1995)
Ser and estar in Tortosí catalan: Language Use, Language Variation, and
Language Change.
Sintagma 7, 5-25, Barcelona, Spain.
Studies considering the evolution of verbal copula
such as ser and estar in Los Angeles Spanish (e.g. Silva-Corvalán
1990) and être and avoir in Canadian French (e.g. Sankoff & Thibault
1977) point out that linguistic changes which are internally motivated
in the language develop faster in situations of language contact.
In these studies, the linguistic change involves the substitution
of ser by estar and être by avoir. The direction of this change, already
present in Late Latin, is found at a more advanced stage in the bilingual
varieties of Spanish and French. The study presented here focuses
on the use of ser and estar in the bilingual variety of Catalan spoken
in Villafranco del Delta (Catalonia), a village founded during General
Franco's regime. Consecutive bilinguals of Catalan (L1) and Spanish
(L2) were asked to perform three different tasks, which vary in modality
(perception vs. production) and degree of attention (controlled interview
vs.spontaneous conversation). The qualitative analysis of the bilingual
data provides additional evidence for the linguistic change favoring
the use of estar. In particular, the generalization of estar appears
to be favored by linguistic factors such as animacy of the discourse
topic and syntactic subject and by the use of adjectives denoting
physical description. In addition, it was found that the age of the
informant also helps predicting the use of estar over ser; i.e., the
younger the speaker, the higher the chance of finding estar in the
data. The paper concludes with a discussion of the pattern of the
change in the use of the copulas in Tortosí Catalan. |