Language teachingLesson 5 of 5 in the course Second language acquisition

Language Transfer: Bilingual Learning, Literacy, and Comprehension

5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 5 match pairs · 5 fill-in sentences · English

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Summary

Language transfer, also called linguistic interference or crosslinguistic influence, is the application of linguistic features from one language to another. It may happen when a mature speaker learns a second language (L2), when a bilingual child develops two languages, or when a speaker transfers patterns from an L2 back to an L1. It can also affect translation into a language in which the translator is not fully proficient.

All flashcards

Positive transfer
Cross-language influence that supports an acceptable form in the target language.
Negative transfer
Cross-language influence that produces an unsuitable form in the target language.
Conscious transfer
Deliberately using a known language pattern to make a guess in another language.
Unconscious transfer
Carrying over a language pattern without realizing that the languages differ.
False friends
Words that look similar across languages but have different meanings.

Quiz questions

  1. What does Kellerman's transfer-to-nowhere principle emphasize?Answer: Learners may carry first-language conceptual perspectives into a new language.
  2. According to Andersen's transfer-to-somewhere principle, when is a structure susceptible to transfer?Answer: When it fits natural acquisition processes or learners perceive a similar counterpart.
  3. In bilingual child development, what does acceleration describe?Answer: Knowledge from one language helps speed up acquisition of another.
  4. What does the linguistic interdependence hypothesis propose about literacy?Answer: Transfer of literacy skills from L1 to L2 depends on some L1 literacy proficiency.
  5. When an English speaker interprets an ambiguous German noun-noun-verb relative clause, what preference may transfer?Answer: A preference for an object-relative interpretation.

Based on the Wikipedia article Language transfer, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.

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