Browsing by Author "Lombard, Shona"

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    L1 influence in the L2 acquisition of isiXhosa verb placement by English and Afrikaans adolescents
    (Department of General Linguistics, Stellenbosch University, 2009) Lombard, Shona; Conradie, Simone
    This paper reports on an investigation into the possibility of first language (L1) transfer in the initialstages of the second language (L2) acquisition of isiXhosa by adolescent L1 speakers of Afrikaans andEnglish, respectively. Four hypotheses about the initial state of L2 acquisition are (i) the Full Transferhypothesis (Schwartz and Sprouse 1994, 1996; White 1989, 2003), (ii) the Minimal Trees hypothesis(Vainikka and Young-Scholten 1994, 1996), (iii) the Initial Hypothesis of Syntax (Platzack 1996) and(iv) the No Transfer hypothesis (Clahsen and Muysken 1986). A study was conducted to test thedifferent predictions made by these hypotheses regarding verb placement by beginner learners ofisiXhosa; data were collected by means of both a sentence completion and a grammaticality judgementtask. It is argued that the results of the study are only compatible with the Full Transfer hypothesis.The implications of the results of this investigation for L2 teaching in a multilingual environment arealso briefly discussed.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Oordrag van sintaktiese aspekte van die eerstetaal in die tweedetaalverwerwing van Xhosa
    (Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2009-03) Lombard, Shona; Conradie, S.; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of General Linguistics.
    This thesis reports on an investigation into the possibility of first language (L1) transfer in the initial stages of the second language (L2) acquisition of Xhosa by adolescent beginner learners with, respectively, English and Afrikaans as their L1. Researchers in L2 acquisition are still debating about the possible transfer from learners’ L1s to their interlanguage grammars in the initial stages of L2 acquisition. Some researchers claim that L1 transfer does indeed occur (the Full Transfer hypothesis – see for example Schwartz & Sprouse 1996), while others claim that L1 transfer does not occur (the No Transfer hypothesis – see for example Clahsen & Muysken 1986). Against this background, two tasks were designed to determine whether or not beginner learners’ performance, specifically in terms of verb placement in Xhosa, indicates that L1 transfer occurs in the initial stages of L2 acquisition. It is argued that the results of this investigation provide evidence in support of the Full Transfer hypothesis. Finally, the implications of the results of this investigation for L2 teaching in a multilingual environment are discussed.