Factors in the path from native language to the acquisition of second language proficiency

2020 Fiscal Year Research-status Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K00609
• Research Institution: Future University-Hakodate
• Principal Investigator: MIYAMOTO EDSON・T 公立はこだて未来大学, システム情報科学部, 教授 (60335479)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: sentence / second language / reading / Chinese / English / Japanese / relative clauses / number agreement

Outline of Annual Research Achievements

Because of the ongoing pandemic, experiments on number agreement in English as a second language have been postponed. Trips to collect data abroad had to be cancelled. Data collection in Japan has also been halted.
Data analyses were conducted on previously collected data with non-native speakers reading English as a second language. The preliminary results suggest that regular exposure to English may be an important factor. Experiments are being designed to verify this possibility.
Data analyses were conducted on previously collected data with native Japanese speakers and native Chinese speakers reading sentences with relative clauses in their native languages. These experiments evaluate how memory load interacts with different types of relative clauses as predicted by previous work in languages such as English. One first goal of the analyses is to submit the results to journals. Two manuscripts are under preparation.
The second goal is to evaluate the possibility of conducting the same experiments with non-native speakers. These experiments with non-native speakers reading relative clauses were scheduled for a later stage in the project. The ongoing analyses are meant to evaluate the possibility of moving the schedule forward, so that the relative-clause experiments can be conducted in tandem with the agreement experiments.

Current Status of Research Progress

4: Progress in research has been delayed.

Reason

Because of the ongoing pandemic, experiments have been postponed. Trips to collect data abroad and in Japan had to be cancelled.

Strategy for Future Research Activity

Experiments will be prepared depending on the results of ongoing analyses. Trips to collect data will be schedule as soon as traveling is allowed, and the various institutions involved approve data collection.

Causes of Carryover

Because of the pandemic, trips abroad and in Japan had to be cancelled. The situation allowing, trips will be re-scheduled for the n2021 fiscal year.