Lenguas Modernas

La estructura sintáctica interna de los predicados de suficiencia

Antonio Fábregas — 2023-03-14

El objetivo de este trabajo es el de delimitar y examinar las condiciones empíricas que permiten a ciertos predicados estativos del español, como bastar o alcanzar, alternar entre un sujeto nominativo y la marca preposicional con para ese mismo argumento. Concluiremos que las estructuras marcadas por con son situaciones en que el contacto de una entidad con el intervalo de grado relevante, que caracteriza semánticamente a la suficiencia, se marca expresamente mediante una preposición de contacto terminal, lo cual delimita directamente la clase de predicados en los que puede darse este marcado.

EFL university students’ production of English words containing silent letters

William Charpentier-Jiménez — 2023-03-14

This article studies English as a foreign language (EFL) students’ production of English words that contain silent letters. The difficulties faced by Spanish native speakers when pronouncing words with silent letters in English have not been deeply studied. The study was conducted in a Costa Rican public university with 46 EFL students during one semester. Students were recorded while reading a set of given sentences that included silent letters. Then, three raters evaluated students’ pronunciation using a checklist. Data suggests that 1) around one-fourth of students have significant problems with the pronunciation of words with silent letters, 2) particular pronunciation rules prove more challenging for native Spanish speakers, 3) certain words negatively affect students’ performance. These results are consistent with the literature surveyed. Students’ scores suggest that the pronunciation of silent letters has not been adequately approached in pronunciation courses. These results should promote a curricular change where silent letter rules are progressively and systematically incorporated.

Relación entre género y niveles motivacionales en el aprendizaje de italiano como lengua extranjera

Chess Emmanuel Briceño Nuñez — 2023-03-14

Este escrito presenta una investigación sobre la relación entre el género y los niveles motivacionales en el aprendizaje de italiano como lengua extranjera en estudiantes ecuatorianos. La investigación se desarrolló en la Unidad Educativa “Giuseppe Garibaldi”, en el cantón Guayaquil, provincia de Guayas, República del Ecuador. La muestra estuvo conformada por 120 estudiantes del nivel de Educación General Básica. Tanto del Sub-nivel 3 de Básica Media, que corresponde a 5º, 6º, y 7º grados con edades comprendidas entre los 9 y 12 años, así como estudiantes cursantes del Sub-nivel 4 de Básica Superior que corresponde a 8º, 9º y 10º grados con edades entre los 12 y 15 años. El instrumento aplicado es una versión del Test de Actitud/Motivación (AMTB Attitude/Motivation Test Battery), diseñado por Gardner (1972) para evaluar el aprendizaje de inglés como una lengua extranjera. Esta versión presenta cada ítem con una serie Likert de cinco puntos, variando desde totalmente de acuerdo (TA) hasta totalmente en desacuerdo (TD), a fin de identificar el nivel de motivación por sub-nivel y género, en función de una escala para medir los niveles de motivación en los estudiantes.

L2 vocabulary learning strategies: analysing teaching materials and learners’ perspectives

Gema Alcaraz Mármol — 2023-03-14

The present study analyses the vocabulary learning strategies used by a group of undergraduates studying EFL as part of their university Primary and Pre-Primary teacher training degree, and those strategies contained in the two EFL coursebooks used by those students. Coursebooks were analyzed according to seven types of vocabulary learning strategies: metacognition, inference, dictionary use, note taking, practicing, codifying and activation. Likewise, participants were asked to rank these seven strategies from the most used to the least used in their L2 vocabulary learning process. The results reveal that only four of the seven strategies, namely, codifying, practicing, activation, and inference are promoted by the coursebooks. They show a very similar line opting particularly for the development of practice and codifying. This contrasts with the EFL learners, who tend to adopt inference in the first place, followed by dictionary use and note taking, the last two being absent in the coursebooks. Therefore, in the light of these results, we can suggest that the way students monitor their vocabulary learning significantly differs from the strategies promoted by the teaching materials they use.

In-service and pre-service teachers’ literacy and affective disposition towards English language assessment

Claudio Díaz Larenas — 2023-03-14

Assessment is an essential tool to measure students’ progress. It is paramount for teachers to understand their classroom assessment practices to make informed educational decisions. This study seeks to identify in-service and pre-service teachers’ understanding of knowledge and affective dispositions towards language assessment through two instruments: theEnglish Language Assessment Literacy Inventory (ELALI) and the Affective Disposition Scale (ADS). 78 in-service teachers and 132 pre-service teachers participated in the study. The findings revealed differences between in-service and pre-service teachers’ responses to the ELALI, yet overall both groups demonstrated deficiencies. The results of the ADS showed that both groups had a similar perception of language assessment. The analysis of the data obtained helped to identify that, although in-service and pre-service teachers have a weak understanding of English language assessments, they regard assessment positively and focus on students’ learning process rather than the grading of a final product.

Perceptions and attitudes towards the teaching of English pronunciation in efl teacher training programmes in Chile

Claudia Rodríguez Escobar — 2023-03-14

English teachers are usually asked which one is better whether British or American English. There seems to be a perceived idea that only those two varieties are representative of the English language given that they are traditionally the ones taught in schools and university programmes in Latin America. The purpose of this qualitative case study is to know and understand the attitudes and perceptions a group of 12 EFL university teachers from Chile have towards British and American dialects as models for teaching pronunciation. It also focuses on the perception and beliefs they have about including other less popular English dialects in their teaching practice, and the instructional approach used when teaching pronunciation in a remote classroom as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic. Results show that even though world Englishes are considered an important element to bear in mind, there is still a strong tendency to remain in the lane of British vs American English. The study also reveals that relying on technology as a forced methodology during the pandemic has had a positive impact as it has helped enhancing students’ autonomy and metacognition.

Teresa Moure. Lingüística se escribe con A: La perspectiva de género en las ideas sobre el lenguaje. Madrid: Catarata, 2021, 349 páginas ISNB: 978-84-1352-166-4

Melissa Toro — 2023-03-14

El libro de Moure, que se divide en tres partes, revisa las distintas contribuciones que mujeres invisibilizadas han hecho en el campo de la Lingüística. Además, propone que esta ciencia tenga un enfoque con perspectiva de género para que la mirada masculina (también eurocéntrica), que ha predominado hasta ahora, no sea la única manera de realizar los estudios.