Main concern of my current work How can

Main concern of my current work How can we fruitfully use the multifarious findings of language acquisition research in the didactic praxis of classroom teaching? Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 2

Outline of the talk 1 Background German clause structure and L 1 transfer 2 Verb placement & finiteness in classroom curricula Textbook analysis and critical remarks 3 Verb placement & finiteness in naturalistic settings What unturored learners can teach us: Strategies and stepping stones 4 The intervention study Concept, design, and expected outcome Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 3

Background – German clause structure • German: V 2 language with SOV basic word order • Structural consequences for declaritive main clauses: • Vlex = V-final in clauses with compound verb forms (see 1 a) • Vlex = V 2 in clauses with simple verb forms (see 1 b) (1) a. Marco will Marco wants b. Marco issti Marco eats eine Pizza essen a pizza eat eine Pizza ti a pizza from a learner‘s perspective, German input data are highly ambigious with respect to the underlying position for the verb both evidence for SOV (1 a) and SVO (1 b) in surface structure Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 4

Background – L 1 transfer Mechanism of L 1 transfer • consequence of surface structure alternation: learners whose L 1 is SVO overgeneralize the SVO pattern of their native language in their early German interlanguage grammar (compare Alternation Hypothesis by Jansen et al. 1981) • N. B. : no „blind“ L 1 transfer, but structural transfer due to positive evidence for the L 1 SVO structure in the L 2 input data (Müller 1998) Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 5

Background – L 1 transfer Corpus data evidence for L 1 structural transfer in German L 2 • ZISA corpus (Clahsen et al. 1983) • untutored adult learners • L 1‘s: Italian, Spanish, Portuguese • ESF corpus (Perdue 1993) • untutored adult learners • L 1: Italian • Di. GS corpus (Diehl et al. 2000) • tutored child / adolescent learners • L 1: French • Pisa corpus (Ballestracci 2006) • tutored adult learners • L 1: Italian Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 6

Background – L 1 transfer Structures affected by L 1 transfer (wrt declarative main clauses only) (I) Root sentences (SVO) (2) a. ein mann hier in W. arrive (on-come) I bread ankomme b. ich brot buy a man kaufen (Manuel P. , ZISA) here in W. (Pascua S. , ZISA) (II) Periphrastic constructions (sentence bracket missing or incomplete) (3) a. ich habe warten have wait I b. ich I 3, 4 Stunden 3, 4 hours habe schon gemacht die Militär have already made the army kann spielen Federball can play (Anton, ZISA) badminton c. ich I Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam (Marcello, ESF) (Catherine, Di. GS) s. winkler@let. vu. nl 7

Background – L 1 transfer Structures affected by L 1 transfer (III) Inversion ( no inversion / no inversion + no sentence bracket) (4) a. ein klein buch habe gekauft I have bought wir haben nach Hause zurückgekommen we have to home returned ich a small book ich habe gesachte mein schäfte (Anton S. , ZISA) b. nach 2 Uhr after 2 o‘ clock (anonymous, Pisa) c. für die Urlaub for the leave I have said my boss (Marcello, ESF) Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 8

Background – L 1 transfer Negative influence of L 1 transfer on acquisition of German clause structure (Haberzettl 2005) • child L 2 acquisition: L 1 Russian (SVO) vs. L 1 Turkish (SOV) • Turkish children: initial SOV hypothesis structure building strategy, establishment of German clause structure / sentence bracket from right to left; successful acquisition process (3) pre-field left SB right SB pizza I middle field essen II (ich) will pizza III (ich) esse pizza N. B. : very similar patterns can be observed in child L 1 acquisition of German (Jordens 1990, Winkler in press) Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 9

Background – L 1 transfer Negative influence of L 1 transfer on acquisition of German clause structure (Haberzettl 2005) • Russian children: initial SVO hypothesis reorganization of the learner system in the acquisition process; acquisition problems can be observed • didactic implications (Haberzettl 2006): • early introduction of OV patterns as counterevidence to misleading SVO initial hypothesis BUT • children‘s textbook analysis: late introduction of OV structures Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 10

Research question I How is the phenomenon of word order and verb placement dealt with in German as a foreign language textbooks for adults? Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 11

Textbook analysis – Overview Berliner Platz Schritte International Tangram aktuell studio d • popular textbooks (based on a survey in adult education courses in Germany and Goethe Institutes worldwide) • level A 1 according to Common European Reference Frame (CERF), equals to 80 – 200 hours of instruction • present analysis based on an (assumed) mean of 140 hours of instruction Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 12

Textbook analysis – Legend SVO structures with lexical simple verbs SVO structures with lexical particle verbs SOV structures with modal verbs SOV structures with auxiliary verbs inverted structures Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 13

Textbook analysis – Results Textbook No. of lessons Berliner Platz Schritte International Tangram aktuell studio d SVO SVO 1 -20 21 -40 SVO 41 -60 SOV 121 -140 SOV SVO lex verbs Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam SOV SVO SOV SOV SVO part verbs SVO Inversion 101 -120 Inversion 81 -100 SOV Inversion SVO Inversion 61 -80 SOV modals SOV aux s. winkler@let. vu. nl 14

Textbook analysis – Summary Introduction order in textbook curricula • early dominance of SVO patterns • relatively late evidence for underlying SOV structure • introduction of inversion before modal and auxiliary verbs • sentence bracket is established from left to right (5) pre-field left SB middle field I Marco isst eine Pizza II Marco isst die Pizza III Morgen isst M. eine Pizza IV Marco will eine Pizza essen V Marco hat eine Pizza gegessen Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam right SB auf s. winkler@let. vu. nl 15

Textbook analysis – Critical remarks Two main points of criticism 1. Dominance of SVO patterns in early acquisition phases • support for learners‘ misleading SVO hypothesis 2. Divergence of classroom acquisition orders and natural acquisition sequences • establishment of sentence bracket from left to right • introduction of V 2 phenomena and inversion before modal and auxiliary verbs Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 16

Textbook analysis – Critical remarks Why should second language tuition respect natural acquisition sequences? • acquisition orders have shown to be robust also in classroom settings • reference study: ZISA project (Clahsen et al. 1983) • Ellis (1989) for L 1 English • Pienemann (1989) for L 1 English • Tschirner (1999) for L 1 English • Diehl et al. (2000) for L 1 French • Ballestracci (2006) for L 1 Italian Classroom tuition “can not change any of the inherent processes in SLA“ (van. Patten 2003: 88) Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 17

What untutored learners can teach us Finiteness and verb placement in untutored acquisition • Basic Variety approach (Klein & Perdue 1992, 1997) • Nominal Utterance Organization (NUO) Pre-Basic Variety • Infinite Utterance Organization (IUO) Basic Variety • Finite Utterance Organization (FUO) Post-Basic Variety I & II Step 1: The copula (Becker 2005) • copula form is: first verbal element for the expression of finiteness (7) mein mann my husband is in arbeite is (Angelina, ESF corpus) in work copula is : assertion marker (AST), establishment of a relation of validation between topic and predicate, thus serves the expression of semantic properties of finiteness (Klein 2006) Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 18

What untutored learners can teach us • copula form is as a „dummy auxiliary“ (van de Craats 2009) (8) frau is kauf brot woman is buy bread dann frau is geld an mann then woman is money to man (Manuel P. , ZISA corpus) • reported by • Haberzettl (2003) • van de Craats (2009) • Bernini (2003) for L 2 German for L 2 Dutch for L 2 Italian • (slightly) different interpretations, but copula form is: expression of finiteness-related functions copula form is: structural precursor for V 2 finiteness position Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 19

What untutored learners can teach us Finiteness and verb placement in untutored acquisition Step 2: Auxiliaries and modal verbs (Becker 2005) • finite forms of auxiliaries and modal verbs in utterance-second position (9) a. er hat nicht die zug gesehen he has not the train seen b. du you muss nich so mache have-to (Tino, ESF corpus) not like-this make Step 3: Lexical verbs and lexical particle verbs (Becker 2005) • finite forms of lexical (particle) verbs in utterance-second position (10) a. ich mache nicht auf I make not open b. ich sage nicht deine name say not your name I Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam (ESF corpus) s. winkler@let. vu. nl 20

What untutored learners can teach us Why are functional verbs (i. e. copula, modals, auxiliaries) and lexical verbs treated differently? Functional approaches (e. g. Becker 2005) • periphrastic construction allow the learner to separate out finiteness information (FIN) and lexical information (LEX) encoded in the verbal complex • information structural status / scope relations within the utterance can be expressed by means of surface linearization (11) a. Marco will [TOPIC] FIN b. Marco issti [TOPIC] LEX+FIN Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam eine Pizza < [PRED(Argument +LEX ] eine Pizza < essen ti [PRED(Argument +tlex ] s. winkler@let. vu. nl 21

What untutored learners can teach us Why are functional verbs (i. e. copula, modals, auxiliaries) and lexical verbs treated differently? Formal approaches (e. g. Parodi 2000) • athematic, i. e. functional verbs, are interpreted as carrier of agreement features by the learner • due to value [+Agr], these verbs appear in a raised position, i. e. in a structural position above VP / IP Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 22

What untutored learners can teach us The crucial role of auxiliaries Dimroth et al. (2003), Jordens & Dimroth (2006) • auiliaries function as a bootstrap into the target functional category system • only after the acquisition of auxiliaries, phenomena such as V 2 movement and inversion occur Schimke (2009), Verhagen (2009) • empirical evidence from production and comprehension for the crucial role of auxiliaries in untutored L 2 acquisition Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 23

What untutored learners can teach us Naturalistic vs. classroom acquisition – Critical summary of Section 2 and 3 With respect to L 1 structural transfer, the early dominance of SVO patterns provides support for learners‘ misleading SVO initial hypothesis. From a developmental point of view, classroom progression runs counter to acquisition sequences observed in naturalistic settings. Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 24

What untutored learners can teach us Naturalistic acquisition I [+finite] copula Classroom progression I [+finite] lexical verbs [+finite] copula II [+finite] auxiliary verbs [+finite] modal verbs II [+finite] particle verbs Inversion III [+finite] lexical verbs [+finite] particle verbs Inversion III [+finite] modal verbs [+finite] auxiliary verbs Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 25

Research question II Following Dimroth (2009): Against the background of these findings, how should a didactic concept for the classroom acquisition of German verb placement look like? Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 26

Intervention study – Concept Two main foci 1. Provision of counter-evidence to an underlying SVO structure in German 2. Orientation on strategies and „stepping stones“ employed by successful untutored learners Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 27

Intervention study – Concept Guidelines for early input structuring 1. Dominance of (S)OV patterns 2. Minimization of lexical verbs in V 2 position 3. Focus on the copula as early finiteness marker in V 2 4. Early introduction of modals and auxiliary verbs Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 28

Intervention study – Input design Step 1: OV patterns establishment of V-final slot Copula in V 2 establishment of finiteness position Copula constructions OV structures Was kann man abends machen? What can one do in the evening? Bier trinken Steffi beer drink ist 41 J. alt. Freunde treffen My boyfriend is 41 y. old friends meet Das Sofa ist rot. ein Buch lesen The sofa is red a book read Die Stühle sind zu teuer. ins Kino gehen The chairs are too expensive to the cinema go Ich bin Steffi. I am Mein Freund Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 29

Intervention study – Input design Step 2: Relation between V 2 finiteness and V-final position Copula [-finite], modal verbs wollen (want), können (can) Copula constructions OV structures Was ist wichtig in Deutschland? Was willst du abends machen? What is important in Germany? fleißig diligent sein punctually bin be pünktlich Ich sein What do you want to do in the evening? sentence bracket be Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam lesen I read want a book sentence bracket Ich will ins Kino gehen I pünktlich Ich will ein Buch go want to the cinema sein s. winkler@let. vu. nl 30

Intervention study – Input design Step 3: Further consolidation of sentence bracket • Perfect auxiliary haben (to have) + regular past participles Ich habe Deutsch gelernt I have German studied Ich habe Essen gekocht I have food prepared • Modal verbs müssen (have to), sollen (shall), dürfen (to be allowed to) Ich muss Obst einkaufen I have to fruits buy Ich soll meine Freundin anrufen I am supposed to my friend Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam call s. winkler@let. vu. nl 31

Intervention study – Input design Step 4: Sentence bracket with particle verbs Ich muss Obst einkaufen Ich kaufe Obst ein Step 5: Present Perfect with auxiliaries haben and sein Irregular past participles Ich kaufe Obst ein Ich habe Obst eingekauft Ich stehe um 9 Uhr auf I get at 9 o‘clock up Ich bin um 9 Uhr aufgestanden I am at 9 o‘clock up-got Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 32

Intervention study – Input design Step 6: Lexical verbs as carrier of finiteness in V 2 Ich mache jeden Tag 2 Stunden Sport I do every day 2 hours of athletics Step 7: Inversion with all verb / word order types Nächsten Sommer will ich an die Ostsee fahren next summer want I to the baltic see go Am liebsten kaufe ich auf dem Markt ein preferably buy I at the market Manchmal esse ich auch Fisch sometimes eat I also fish Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam [particle] s. winkler@let. vu. nl 33

Intervention study – Input design Other aspects to be considered in input design • introduction of sentential negation • (information structural) interaction with finiteness • introduction of possessive haben (to have) • possessive haben is a precursor to auxiliary haben, both in language acquisition and in historical development (van de Craats 2009, Kotin 1999, respectively) • (early) chunk-like introduction of inversion, SVO vs. OVS • (Ich habe ein Fahrrad, aber eine Auto habe ich nicht) I have a bike but a car have I not • variable constituents are allowed in the pre-field • focus on semantic function of finiteness, i. e. the linking of the topic element in pre-field with the focus constituent of the utterance Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 34

Intervention study – Procedure Participants • university students with SVO native language • novice learners of German, no SOV language as L 2, L 3. . . • test group and control group Input / Instruction • 80 hours of instruction (equals to level A 1 in academic settings) • test group: modified input sequence • control group: traditional input sequence Testing • production and comprehension / processing of structures with sentence bracket and inverted structures • immediately after the course, 2 -4 weeks later Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 35

Intervention study – Expected outcome Learners of the test group will do better wrt • mastering of the sentence bracket • acquisition of inversion Thank you Steffi Winkler, VU Amsterdam s. winkler@let. vu. nl 36

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