Second language acquisition and out-of-school exposure: a case study

Hendrih, Mateja. (2017). Second language acquisition and out-of-school exposure: a case study. Diploma Thesis. Filozofski fakultet u Zagrebu, Department of English Language and Literature
Department of Pedagogy. [mentor Letica Krevelj, Stela and Car, Sandra].

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Abstract

This study deals with the case of a 9-year-old Croatian girl who acquired English language without previous formal instruction. Her exposure to English included frequent viewing of television programmes in English and several short trips abroad, including the United states of America, where she had some contact with native speakers of English. A series of unstructured interviews were conducted with the participant of the study in her home in order to get insight into her language output, attitudes toward language, and her own perception of the way acquisition took place. Special attention was given to establishing the amount of interaction with other speakers in English as well as the amount of correctional feedback. Additional attention was directed to the possibility that features of television as a medium might have influenced her acquisition of English and the way she still perceives and uses this language. The results show that parental support and contact with the second language community enhance motivation for language learning, the former being necessary to acquire second language successfully. Furthermore, the frequent exposure to television does not have to reflect negatively on the school outcome and formal educational context can seamlessly build up on the learner’s previously acquired knowledge. In addition, television as a medium can greatly influence the process of second language acquisition since it provides the learner with exposure to broad vocabulary, contextualized language, and a combination of visual and aural stimuli. Therefore, proper parental support, positive experience of the second language community and frequent exposure to age-appropriate television programme in second language provide an opportunity to develop substantial language proficiency.

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