LINGUIST List 21.896
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Tue Feb 23 2010
Diss: Applied Ling: Skoufaki: 'Investigating L2 Idiom Instruction...'
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1. Sophia
Skoufaki,
Investigating L2 Idiom Instruction Methods
Message 1: Investigating L2 Idiom Instruction Methods
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Date: 23-Feb-2010
From: Sophia Skoufaki <sophiaskoufaki ntu.edu.tw>
Subject: Investigating L2 Idiom Instruction Methods
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Institution: University of Cambridge
Program: PhD in English and Applied Linguistics
Dissertation Status: Completed
Degree Date: 2005
Author: Sophia Skoufaki
Dissertation Title: Investigating L2 Idiom Instruction Methods
Linguistic Field(s):
Applied Linguistics
Subject Language(s): English (eng)
Dissertation Director:
Richard Breheny
Gillian Brown
John Williams
Dissertation Abstract:
Despite the great difficulty idiom learning poses to foreign language learners and although idioms are considered necessary for near-native language attainment, idiom instruction proposals have not been tested experimentally. My PhD research uses psychological experiments to investigate the relative effectiveness of proposed L2 idiom presentation methods. Initially, my research examines the nature of idiom transparency, since views about its origins inform predictions about the effectiveness of different L2 idiom presentation methods. The rest of the experiments compare the form and meaning retention of English VP idioms by adult advanced-level Greek learners of English after they have been presented with them according to different methods. Factors affecting the effectiveness of each of these methods are also investigated. My research forms part of the current attempt in Applied Linguistics to offer practical solutions to language teaching instead of conducting theoretical work and then speculating on its possible applications to second language instruction and learning. My research results may, therefore, prove useful not only to the academia but to language pedagogists as well, since they lead to concrete proposals about idiom instruction. From a theoretical point of view, my research examines the cognitive basis of idiom transparency intuitions and assesses what Cognitive Linguistics can bring to L2 idiom instruction. As far as the area between Language Pedagogy and Linguistic Theory is involved, that is, Applied Linguistics, my research suggests, among other things, that each vocabulary instruction method should not be proposed wholesale, since specific kinds of figurative expressions may benefit from one instruction method but not others and that the exact way in which each proposal is implemented affects greatly the instructional outcome.
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