Studies such as Escudero’s (2005) indicate that the exposure to an increased amount of input on the second language (L2) allows the student to perceive and, therefore, develop a best categorization of the distinctive sounds of it. This research studies the perception and categorization of two Spanish-speaking children groups who are exposed to different amounts of L2 (British English) during elementary school. This exposure was analyzed applying a test, which allows observing and measuring the perception and categorization of acoustic stimuli. This investigation shows that the children from the school with largest amount of L2 input, achieve most optimally the perception and categorization of the acoustic stimuli, specifically the English phonemes /i:/ and /I / in comparison to children from the school with shortest amount of English input.
Keywords:
second language acquisition, phonological perception, phonological categories, amount of input, British English
Pinillos Chávez, P. (2016). The role of the amount of input in the learning process of English vocalic categories /i: / and /I/ by Spanish-speaking children. Lenguas Modernas, (45), Pág. 87 – 107. Retrieved from https://lenguasmodernas.uchile.cl/index.php/LM/article/view/42719
