Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-ttngx Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-30T11:41:05.029Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Article Use in Russian and Spanish Learner Writing at CEFR B1 and B2 Levels: Effects of Proficiency, Native Language, and Specificity

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 December 2020

By
Tania Ionin  and
María Belén Díez-Bedmar
Edited by
Bert Le Bruyn  and
Magali Paquot
Bert Le Bruyn
Affiliation:
UIL-OTS, Utrecht University
Magali Paquot
Affiliation:
FNRS – Centre for English Corpus Linguistics, UCLouvain
Get access

Summary

This paper investigates article use in learner corpora in order to (i) examine how both the native language and proficiency level influence the patterns of article use, misuse, and omission and (ii) examine whether patterns of the overuse of the with specific indefinites found in experimental studies are also present in learner corpora. To this end, 200 texts from the Cambridge Learner Corpus are examined: 100 texts from Spanish-speaking learners of English and 100 texts from Russian and Ukrainian-speaking learners of English. Each subcorpus has an even distribution between learners at CEFR B1 and B2 proficiency levels. The results confirm that the learners’ native language affects article use: speakers of Spanish, an article language, show an increase in correct article use with proficiency; in contrast, speakers of Russian, an article-less language, continue to make article errors. On the other hand, the particular patterns of article misuse found in prior experimental work are not found in learner corpora: while Russian-speaking learners do overuse the with indefinites in the corpora, this error type is not tied to specificity. This null finding could be due in part to the relatively low number of errors of the overuse in the learner corpus.

Keywords

articleslearner corporadefinitenessspecificitySpanishRussianCEFR levels
Type
Chapter
Information
Learner Corpus Research Meets Second Language Acquisition , pp. 10 - 38
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2021

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Abu-Melhim, A.-R. (2014). The presence or absence of definiteness in the native language and its impact on ESL Learning. English Language Teaching 7(1), 50–56.Google Scholar
Bickerton, D. (1981). Roots of Language. Ann Arbor, MI: Karoma Press.Google Scholar
Butler, Y. (2002). Second language learners’ theories on the use of English articles: An analysis of the metalinguistic knowledge used by Japanese students in acquiring the English article system. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 24(3), 451–480. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263102003042Google Scholar
Cho, J. (2017). The acquisition of different types of definite noun phrases in L2-English. International Journal of Bilingualism 21(3), 367–382.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chrabaszcz, A. & Jiang, N. (2014). The role of native language in the use of the English nongeneric definite article by L2 learners: A cross-linguistic comparison. Second Language Research 30, 351–379.Google Scholar
Chuang, F.-Y. & Nesi, H. (2008). An analysis of formal errors in a corpus of L2 English produced by Chinese students. Corpora 1(2), 251–271. https://doi.org/10.3366/cor.2006.1.2.251Google Scholar
Cohen, J. (1988). Statistical Power Analysis for the Behavioral Sciences, 2nd Edn. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Council of Europe (2001). Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Crosthwaite, P. (2016). L2 English article use by L1 speakers of article-less languages: A learner corpus study. International Journal of Learner Corpus Research 2(1), 68–100.Google Scholar
Dagneaux, E., Denness, S., & Granger, S. (1998). Computer-aided error analysis. System 26(2), 163–174. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0346-251X(98)00001-3Google Scholar
Díez-Bedmar, M. B. (2005). Struggling with English at University level: Error patterns and problematic areas of first-year students’ interlanguage. In Danielsson, P. & Wagenmakers, M. (eds.), Proceedings of Corpus Linguistics 2005, retrieved from www.corpus.bham.ac.uk/PCLC/ (accessed June 13, 2020).Google Scholar
Díez-Bedmar, M. (2010a). Analysis of the Written Expression in English in the University Entrance Examination at the University of Jaén. Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, University of Jaén.Google Scholar
Díez-Bedmar, M. (2010b). From secondary school to university: The use of the English article system by Spanish learners. In Belles-Fortuno, B., Campoy, M. C., & Gea-Valor, L. (eds.), Exploring Corpus Linguistics in English Language Teaching, 45–55. Castellón: Publicacions de la Universitat Jaume I.Google Scholar
Díez-Bedmar, M. (2011a). Detecting learning disorders in students’ written production in the foreign language: Are learner corpora of any help? Porta Linguarum 15, 35–54.Google Scholar
Díez-Bedmar, M. (2011b). Spanish pre-university students’ use of English: CEA results from the University Entrance Examination. International Journal of English Studies 11(2), 141–158.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Díez-Bedmar, M. (2015a). Article use and criterial features in Spanish EFL writing: A pilot study from CEFR A2 to B2 levels. In Callies, M. & Götz, S. (eds.), Learner Corpora in Language Testing and Assessment, 163–190. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.Google Scholar
Díez-Bedmar, M. (2015b). The use of learner corpora to describe, teach and assess EFL writing: Focus on the article system. In Castello, E., Ackerley, K., & Coccetta, F. (eds.), Studies in Learner Corpus Linguistics: Research and Applications for Foreign Language Teaching and Assessment, 37–69. Bern: Peter Lang.Google Scholar
Díez-Bedmar, M. B. & Papp, Sz. (2008). The use of the English article system by Chinese and Spanish learners. In Gilquin, G., Papp, S., & Díez-Bedmar, M. B. (eds.), Linking Up Contrastive and Learner Corpus Research, 147–175. Amsterdam: Rodopi.Google Scholar
Díez-Bedmar, M. B. & Pérez-Paredes, P. (2012). A cross-sectional analysis of the use of the English articles in Spanish learner writing. In Tono, Y., Kawaguchi, Y., & Minegishi, M. (eds.), Developmental and Crosslinguistic Perspectives in Learner Corpus Research, 139–157. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.Google Scholar
Ellis, R. (2005). Measuring implicit and explicit knowledge of a second language: A psychometric study. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 27(2), 141–172. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263105050096Google Scholar
Fodor, J. & Sag, I. (1982). Referential and quantificational indefinites. Linguistics and Philosophy 5, 355–398.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
García-Mayo, M. & Hawkins, R. (2009). Second Language Acquisition of Articles: Empirical Findings and Theoretical Implications. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.Google Scholar
Gilquin, G. (2000/2001). The integrated contrastive model: Spicing up your data. Languages in Contrast 3(1), 95–123.Google Scholar
Goad, H. & White, L. (2009). Prosodic transfer and the representation of determiners in Turkish–English interlanguage. In Snape, N., Leung, Y.-k. I., & Smith, M. Sharwood (eds.), Representational Deficits in SLA: Studies in Honor of Roger Hawkins, 1–26. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.Google Scholar
Granger, S. (1996). From CA to CIA and back: An integrated contrastive approach to computerized bilingual and learner corpora. In Aijmer, K., Altenberg, B., & Johansson, M. (eds.), Languages in Contrast: Text-Based Cross-Linguistic Studies, 37–51. Lund: Lund University Press.Google Scholar
Granger, S. (2008). Learner corpora. In Lüdeling, A. & Kytö, M. (eds.), Corpus Linguistics. An International Handbook, 259–275. Berlin and New York, NY: Mouton de Gruyter.Google Scholar
Granger, S. (2015). Contrastive interlanguage analysis: A reappraisal. International Journal of Learner Corpus Research 1(1), 7–24.Google Scholar
Hasbún, L. H. (2007). Fossilization and acquisition: A study of learner language. Filología y Lingüística 33(1), 113–129.Google Scholar
Hawkins, R., Saleh Al-Eid, I., Almahboob, P., Athanasopoulos, R., Chaengchenkit, J., Rezai, M., … Velasco-Zárate, K. (2006). Accounting for English article interpretation by L2 speakers. In Foster-Cohen, S., Krajnovic, M. M., & Djigunović, J. M. (eds.), EuroSLA Yearbook 6, 7–25. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.Google Scholar
Huebner, T. (1983). A Longitudinal Analysis of the Acquisition of English. Ann Arbor, MI: Karoma Press.Google Scholar
Ionin, T. (2003). Article Semantics in Second Language Acquisition. Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.Google Scholar
Ionin, T. (2006). This is definitely specific: Specificity and definiteness in article systems. Natural Language Semantics 14(2), 175–234. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11050-005-5255-9Google Scholar
Ionin, T., Ko, H., & Wexler, K. (2004). Article semantics in L2 acquisition: The role of specificity. Language Acquisition 12(1), 3–69.Google Scholar
Ionin, T., Zubizarreta, M., & Bautista Maldonado, S. (2008). Sources of linguistic knowledge in the second language acquisition of English articles. Lingua 118(4), 554–576.Google Scholar
Ionin, T., Zubizarreta, M., & Philippov, V. (2009). Acquisition of article semantics by child and adult L2-English learners. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition 12(3), 337–361. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1366728909990149Google Scholar
Izumi, E., Uchimoto, K., Saiga, T., Supnithi, T., & Isahara, H. (2003). Automatic error detection in the Japanese learners’ English spoken data. In Proceedings of 41st Annual Meeting of the Association for Computational Linguistics, Sapporo (Japan), 145–148. East Stroudsburg, PA: Association for Computational Linguistics.Google Scholar
Jarvis, S. (2002). Topic continuity in L2 English article use. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 24(3), 387–418. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263102003029Google Scholar
Kaszubski, P. (2005). Typical errors of Polish advanced EFL learner writers, retrieved from http://ifa.amu.edu.pl/~kprzemek/concord2adv/errors/errors.htm (accessed June 13, 2020).Google Scholar
Kim, L. K. & Lakshmanan, U. (2009). The processing role of the article choice parameter: Evidence from L2 learners of English. In García-Mayo, M. d. P. & Hawkins, R. (eds.), Second Language Acquisition of Articles: Empirical Findings and Theoretical Implications, 87–113. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.Google Scholar
Lee, E.-H. (2007). English Article Usage in Online Graduate Forums by Non-Native EFL Teachers. Unpublished D.Phil. dissertation, Indiana University.Google Scholar
Lee, J. (2013). The effects of discourse types on the use of English articles by Korean learners of English: Oral vs. written narratives. English Language Teaching 6(8), 33–43.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Leńko-Szymańska, A. (2012). The role of conventionalized language in the acquisition and use of articles by EFL learners. In Tono, Y., Kawaguchi, Y., & Minegishi, M. (eds.), Developmental and Crosslinguistic Perspectives in Learner Corpus Research, 83–103. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.Google Scholar
MacDonald, P., García-Carbonell, A., & Carot-Siertta, J. 2013. Computer learner corpora: Analyzing interlanguage errors in synchronous and asynchronous communication. Language Learning and Technology 17(2), 36–56.Google Scholar
Master, P. (1987). A Cross-Linguistic Interlanguage Analysis of the Acquisition of the English Article System. Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, University of California Los Angeles.Google Scholar
Matthewson, L. (1998). Determiner Systems and Quantificational Strategies: Evidence from Salish. The Hague: Holland Academic Graphics.Google Scholar
Murphy, S. (1997). Knowledge and Production of English Articles by Advanced Second Language Learners. Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, University of Texas at Austin.Google Scholar
Narita, M. (2013). The use of articles in Japanese EFL learners’ essays. In Granger, S., Gilquin, G., & Meunier, F. (eds.), Twenty Years of Learner Corpus Research: Looking Back, Moving Ahead. Corpora and Language in Use - Proceedings 1, 357–366. Louvain-la-Neuve: Presses universitaires de Louvain.Google Scholar
Parrish, B. (1987). A new look at methodologies in the study of article acquisition for learners of ESL. Language Learning 37, 361–383.Google Scholar
Pica, T. (1983). Methods of morpheme quantification: Their effect on the interpretation of second language data. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 6(1), 69–78. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263100000309Google Scholar
Prat Zagrebelsky, M. (2005). I computer learner corpora: una risorsa per la costruzione di attività di consapevolezza e di recupero per apprendetti di inglese come lengua straniera. In Proceedings of the NAPLES Associazione Italiana Centri Linguistici Universitari (AICLU) Conference. AICLU.Google Scholar
Robertson, D. (2000). Variability in the use of the English article system by Chinese learners of English. Second Language Research 16(2), 135–172. https://doi.org/10.1191/026765800672262975CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sarker, B. & Baek, S. (2017). Revisiting fluctuations in L2 article choice in L1-Korean L2-English learners. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research 46(2), 367–393. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10936-016-9440-4Google Scholar
Thomas, M. (1989). The acquisition of English articles by first- and second-language learners. Applied Psycholinguistics 10, 335–355.Google Scholar
Trademan, J. (2002). The Acquisition of the English Article System by Native Speakers of Spanish and Japanese: A Cross-Linguistic Comparison. Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, University of New Mexico.Google Scholar
Trenkic, D. (2007). Variability in second language article production: Beyond the representational deficit vs. processing constraints debate. Second Language Research 23(3), 289–327. https://doi.org/10.1177/0267658307077643Google Scholar
Trenkic, D. (2008). The representation of English articles in second language grammars: Determiners or adjectives? Bilingualism: Language and Cognition 11(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1366728907003185Google Scholar
Trenkic, D., Mirkovic, J., & Altmann, G. (2013). Real-time grammar processing by native and non-native speakers: Constructions unique to the second language. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition 16, 1–21.Google Scholar
Trenkic, D. & Pongpairoj, N. (2013). Referent salience affects second language article use. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition 16, 152–166.Google Scholar
Yevhen, M. & Tomasz, M. (2017). Language differentiation of Ukraine’s population. Journal of Nationalism, Memory & Language Politics 11(2), 181–197. https://doi.org/10.1515/jnmlp-2017-0008Google Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×