Skip to main content
eScholarship
Open Access Publications from the University of California

Scholarly Works (3 results)

  • Thesis
  • Peer Reviewed
UC Davis Electronic Theses and Dissertations (2024)

Learner corpus research has expanded from focusing primarily on English as a second language (L2) to include languages such as L2 Spanish, reflecting the growing importance of corpus linguistics in second language acquisition (SLA) research. In this context, and because prompts are the means by which learner corpora gather their texts, it has become necessary to consider the impact of prompt characteristics on text features. This dissertation examines how prompts, genre, and narrative voice affect the lexical and syntactic features of L2 Spanish learner writing, using the COWS-L2H corpus (Davidson et al., 2020; Yamada et al., 2020).The research explores the influence of different prompts and narrative voices on the Measure of Textual Lexical Diversity (MTLD) and the rate of subject pronoun presence (SPP) errors across various proficiency levels. Mixed-effects regression models reveal that first-person texts, particularly self-descriptions, tend to have higher MTLD scores and fewer SPP errors compared to third-person descriptions of special or famous individuals. A similar pattern emerges in narrative texts, where first-person narratives exhibit greater MTLD scores than third-person narratives, demonstrating the impact of personal connection and emotional resonance in learner writing. Contrary to expectations, no significant differences in MTLD are found between descriptions of a close person and a famous person, suggesting that emotional closeness alone does not drive lexical diversity in learner texts. Additionally, while descriptive texts show significant effects of narrative voice and course level on SPP errors, narrative texts do not, emphasizing the key role of genre in determining linguistic accuracy. This dissertation contributes to the understanding of how corpus design choices impact the study of L2 language and offers insights into the broader implications for SLA research, including areas such as language testing and pedagogy. By examining the relationships between prompts, genre, and narrative voice, it offers practical guidance for corpus developers and researchers, aiming to enhance the validity and reliability of learner corpora and inform future research directions in SLA.

    Cover page: The Role of Prompt Characteristics in Shaping L2 Spanish Writing: Lexical Diversity and Pronoun Use in a Learner Corpus
    • Article
    • Peer Reviewed
    UC Davis Previously Published Works (2022)
    – While research on second language (L2) tense-aspect acquisition has flourished, most studies have focused on lexical aspect as an explanatory variable (Bardovi-Harlig and Comajoan-Colomé 2020). However, the role of the features of first language (L1) production in L2 Spanish preterit-imperfect acquisition has never been tested before. Prior research has found that the frequency and distinctiveness of verb forms in corpora of L1 English production predict L2 English learners’ tense-aspect production (Wulff et al. 2009). The present study aims to replicate these findings and test the predictions of hypotheses of L2 tense-aspect acquisition in another group of learners: English-dominant, instructed Spanish learners. Analyses were performed on longitudinal data from the Corpus of Written Spanish of L2 and Heritage Speakers (COWS-L2H; Yamada et al. 2020) and cross-sectional data from the Corpus Escrito del Español L2 (CEDEL2; Lozano 2021). Results indicate that L1 verb frequency and distinctiveness predict learners’ emergent use of the preterit and the imperfect.
      Creative Commons 'BY' version 4.0 license
      • Article
      • Peer Reviewed
      UC Davis Previously Published Works (2022)
      This study documents students' experiences during the Emergency Online Transition of Spring 2020 in a Spanish language program at a large public university in the United States. Data from students' mid-term and end-of-term questionnaires, as well as teachers' journals, were collected in the Spring, and follow-up teacher interviews were carried out in Fall 2020. Results indicate that students' overall stress levels diminished from beginning to end of the academic term but that individual experiences were extremely varied. While some students enjoyed the increased autonomy and self-paced learning opportunities of the online format, others felt distressed in this less directed modality and emphasized the negative effect of reduced social interactions on their levels of engagement. Only few students mentioned technological difficulties as a central challenge in their learning process, but many believed that they had learned less than in traditional face-to-face courses. Instructors’ views differed in this respect, as they considered that the reduced group-size of synchronous Zoom sessions allowed them to hear more of each student, which they saw as evidence of increased student talk as compared to the usual whole-class face-to-face sessions. This more intimate virtual set-up also increased a sense of proximity between teachers and students.
        Creative Commons 'BY' version 4.0 license
        Top