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- Creators: Cerron-Palomino, Alvaro
Description
This study investigates the effectiveness of the use of Concept-Based Instruction (CBI) to facilitate the acquisition of Spanish mood distinctions by second semester second language learners of Spanish. The study focuses on the development of Spanish mood choice and the types of explanations (Rule-of-Thumb vs. Concept-based) used by five students before and after being exposed to Concept-Based Instruction regarding the choice of Spanish mood following various modalities .The students in this study were presented with a pedagogical treatment on Spanish mood choice that included general theoretical concepts based on Gal'perin's (1969, 1992) didactic models and acts of verbalization, which form part of a Concept-Based pedagogical approach. In order to ascertain the effectiveness of the use of concept-based tools to promote the ability to use Spanish mood appropriately over time, a pre and post-test was administered to the group in which students were asked to respond to prompts containing modalities that elicit the indicative and subjunctive moods, indicate their level of confidence in their response, and verbalize in writing a reason for their choice. The development of these abilities in learners exposed to CBI was assessed by comparing pre and post-test scores examining both forms and explanations for the indicative and subjunctive modality prompts given. Results showed that students continued to rely on Rule-of-Thumb explanations of mood choice but they did expand their use of conceptually-based reasoning. Although the quantitative and qualitative analyses of the results indicate that most students did improve their ability to make appropriate mood choices (forms and explanations) after the CBI treatment, the increased use of conceptually-based explanations for their mood choices led to both correct and incorrect responses.
ContributorsBeus, Eric (Author) / Lafford, Barbara (Thesis advisor) / Beas, Omar (Committee member) / Cerron-Palomino, Alvaro (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
There have been various studies on the pronunciation of the /s/ in Latin American Spanish. Most studies have shown three variants of the /s/ in syllable-final context: [s] (sibilant), [h] (aspiration) and [ø] (deletion). Most studies focused on Caribbean Spanish, i.e. the Spanish spoken in Puerto Rico, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and the coasts of Colombia and Venezuela. In Caribbean Spanish, maintaining the /s/ is considered prestigious, aspiration is considered neutral, and deletion of the /s/ is stigmatized (Lafford 1982, 1989). Most people who maintain the /s/ are highly educated people, while people who received little to no education are more likely to delete the /s/ (Lafford 1982, 1989). Besides Caravedo (1990), there have been very few studies on the pronunciation of the /s/ in Peruvian Spanish. To find out more, I analyzed television interviews with Jaime Bayly, a well-known writer and journalist from Lima, Peru to determine when the /s/ is maintained and when it is aspirated or deleted. While watching eight interviews with people of different backgrounds, I recorded what Bayly said, focusing on how he pronounced final-syllable (s). After recording the occurrences of the /s/ and classifying and coding the variables, I used Goldvarb X to establish the probabilistic strength of the proposed factors. The results showed that the most significant linguistic factor was the position of the (s) and the most significant social factors were the gender and acquaintance of the interviewee.
ContributorsPress, Laura (Author) / Cerron-Palomino, Alvaro (Thesis advisor) / García Fernandez, Carmen (Committee member) / Elorrieta, Jabier (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
ABSTRACT This thesis analyzes the Spanish (SPA) and English (ENG) code-switching (CS) at Latino Vibe (LV), a bilingual radio station in Phoenix; Arizona from a sociolinguistic perspective. Using Gumperz's (1982) Conversational Functions of CS, Myers-Scotton's (1993) Markedness Model, and Bell's (1984) Audience Design model, this thesis intends to evaluate which one of these sociolinguistic models is the most accurate to explain the SPA-ENG CS at LV. In January 2009, the data were collected in a two week period of programming of the show "José y Tina en la mañana" (José and Tina in the morning), and then transcribed. This qualitative study consisted in analyzing the same subset of the data, corresponding to ten days. The model with the greater predictably of the types of CS and their causes would be considered the most appropriate for the data studied. The results show that CS is common and that codeswitched utterances are the most representative at LV. The conclusion also states that out of the three models, Gumperz's accounts better for the data than the other two. It explains more clearly the reasons why LV announcers code-switch in particular social contexts, and the important role of these switches during their interaction in this bilingual radio station. KEYWORDS: Code-switching, bilingual radio, Spanish-English
ContributorsBocanegra, Olga Lucía (Author) / Cerron-Palomino, Alvaro (Thesis advisor) / García, Carmen (Committee member) / Lafford, Barbara (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Although pragmatic analyses based on empirical data have been conducted throughout most of the Spanish-speaking world, Central America remains the most underrepresented region. This study examines the pragmatic strategies used by female Spanish speakers of Nicaragua and Panama in an advice-giving context. The data consists of eighteen role-plays recorded in Masaya, Nicaragua and Panama City, Panama in June and July of 2011. In the role-play situation, the interlocutor (fixed-role) requests advice from the participant, her best friend, regarding a serious issue in her marriage. The participant's advice-giving strategies are classified according to a categorization adapted from Blum-Kulka's request strategy taxonomy. This allows for a statistical analysis of how these strategies correspond to the three elements of Spencer Oatey's rapport management approach: behavioral expectations, face sensitivities and interactional wants. The results indicate strong similarities between participants from Nicaragua and Panama, both electing to respect all components of the association principle and to violate the equity principle, especially its autonomy control component. These results suggest that, at least in this advice-giving context between intimates, both Nicaraguan and Panamanian Spanish speakers prefer to impose their opinions and suggestions rather than respect the person's right to be treated fairly (i.e. equity principle) as well as to maintain a rapport-enhancing orientation rather than preserve their right to associate with others (i.e. association principle). The results of the pragmatic analysis show similarities with other research on directives in the Spanish-speaking world, including empirical studies in the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Venezuela and Spain. Specifically, these cultures are all associated with direct strategies and less mitigation, positive politeness, conventional indirectness and high involvement.
ContributorsPlatz, Ryan (Author) / García, Carmen (Thesis advisor) / Cerron-Palomino, Alvaro (Committee member) / Lafford, Barbara (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Advertisements intend to persuade the reader to invest money or time in a product or service. Newspapers contain advertisements that are space-limited, thus necessitating a concise and convincing message that will influence readers. Nord (2008) analyzed conative function (Jakobson 1960) as a persuasive tool in a corpus of Spanish, English, and German advertising texts. A portion of Nord's study focused on sender attitude indicators directed at addressees as a key element of conative function, and analyzed address forms among several attitude indicators found in print advertisements. The current study analyzed 604 Spanish newspaper advertisements in Arizona and Florida, focusing on possible independent factors related to the probability of the occurrence of various address forms. These factors included: the type of product being advertized and its cost, the nature of the advertisement, the location of the advertisement in the newspaper (main section, sports, etc.), intended audience (including age and sex), geographic region of the newspaper, and each newspaper as compared to others. These variables were categorized and statistically analyzed using a quantitative design. The study provided results indicating a strong statistical relationship between the presence of address forms and product type, a moderate relationship with audience age, and a mild relationship with product cost. Various similarities and differences were also found when comparing the data geographically.
ContributorsBorba, Andrew (Author) / Cerron-Palomino, Alvaro (Thesis advisor) / Lafford, Barbara (Committee member) / Shepherd, Michael (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
This study examined the development and acquisition of second language (L2) sounds by adult students enrolled in a communicative language program. The investigation explored the acquisition of L2 phones by analyzing the voice onset time (VOT) of word-initial voiceless stops in Spanish by native English speakers. A total of 40 subjects participated in the study and were divided into three groups; one group of students enrolled in a first semester course, another group of students enrolled in a third semester course, and the last group enrolled in a fifth semester course. The duration of VOT was compared between groups reading from a word list consisting of 60 words during the 13th to 15th weeks of the semester. Significant differences in VOT were found between the first and fifth semester groups, as well as the third and fifth semester groups suggesting that accurate acquisition of L2 phones and the formation of new phonetic categories are possible for late L2 learners in accordance with the Speech Learning Model.
ContributorsRussell, Nathan (Author) / Beaudrie, Sara (Thesis advisor) / Cerron-Palomino, Alvaro (Committee member) / Gradoville, Michael (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
Description
This thesis covers second language acquisition in regards to age, examining the difference between elementary and high school students. The primary language of all the students tested was English. The second language being tested in this study is German. The general age range in the elementary students observed was 7-12 years old. The high school students' ages were between 14-18 years old. The environment consisted of a physical education atmosphere, which includes: gyms, outside recreational areas, fitness equipment, fields, etc. Methods used to conduct this study were visual and auditory/verbal approaches. No direct instruction was provided to the students, they were assessed based on their ability to absorb the information when provided to them indirectly in a traditional classroom atmosphere. In addition, direct instruction is also not conducive to a physical education setting as it has the potential to detract from the necessary lesson content.
ContributorsMarch, Ashley Taylor (Author) / Pangrazi, Connie (Thesis director) / Gilfillan, Daniel (Committee member) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / College of Health Solutions (Contributor) / Division of Teacher Preparation (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
Description
This study examined and compared language ideologies and attitudes among dual language program (Spanish-English) graduates regarding their use of Spanish and perceptions of their bilingual education experience through surveys and semi-structured interviews. Drawing from the theory of ideology, data was analyzed using both quantitative and qualitative methods. Surveys were divided into two sections and contained 30 Likert-style items related to participants’ attitudes regarding Spanish, English, bilingualism and their experiences in the dual language program. Interviews, which were 40-60 minutes in length, were coded in two cycles based on general themes related to dual language graduates’ experiences in the dual language program and language attitudes and ideologies. Patterns among codes were identified, analyzed and compared with quantitative findings to create major themes. Findings reveal that graduates generally consider themselves bilingual and had both positive and negative experiences in the program. Additionally, dual language graduates exhibit conflicting attitudes and ideologies regarding monolingualism, standardization and the value of bilingualism. Finally, results indicate a difference in the experiences of the Latinx and non-Latinx students, which have implications regarding the equity of the dual language program. Findings from this study give insight into the experiences of dual language graduates, an area that has received little attention, and provides insight into the issues regarding educational and attitudinal outcomes in bilingual contexts, specifically in dual language programs. Pedagogical implications are discussed as related to the most salient themes identified in this research.
ContributorsLenz, Ashley (Author) / Beaudrie, Sara (Thesis advisor) / Cerron-Palomino, Alvaro (Thesis advisor) / Gradoville, Michael (Committee member) / Kaveh, Yalda (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2022
Description
The field of Heritage Language has experienced a great deal of advancement in the past few decades. Much research effort has been dedicated to analyzing and understanding different aspects of heritage language speakers, but less work has been done in the topic of pedagogical approaches. The few recent studies on pedagogical approaches have focused on the “how” of instruction of grammatical points in the heritage language classroom but dedicated less research efforts to an overall and comprehensive approach to classroom teaching and learning at the higher education level. Heritage language learners require teaching methodologies that differ from those used with second language students given their unique characteristics and needs. Having a curriculum and class materials that align to the needs of the students is essential in aiding the development and maintenance of the heritage language of the students. This study explores whether the implementation of a Project-Based Learning (PBL) curriculum can result in measurable gains in the development of written and oral skills in intermediate Spanish heritage language students, when compared to a control group that follows a traditional non-project-based methodology. Fluency, complexity, and accuracy in the written and oral samples were analyzed through a variety of indicators. The data collection consisted of a pre, and post writing and oral sample obtained at the beginning and end of the semester. The results showed that the students in the PBL curriculum achieved greater gains in their written skills when compared to the control group but had no effect on oral skills. The PBL group made significant gains in written fluency and complexity, and moderate gains in accuracy. The control group showed moderate gains in written fluency and complexity, and no improvement in accuracy. Neither group achieved statistically significant gains in oral fluency, complexity, or accuracy after one semester of instruction. The results offer implications for the impact that a PBL curriculum can have on heritage language learner’s linguistic development.
ContributorsAzzad, Nayibe (Author) / Beaudrie, Sara (Thesis advisor) / Gradoville, Michael (Committee member) / Cerron-Palomino, Alvaro (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2024
Description
This qualitative study follows an instructor and four Spanish Heritage Language (SHL) learners in an elementary-level, mixed Spanish course at a community college over the course of 11 class visits. In studying how language ideologies shape oral corrective feedback (oral CF) practices, data were collected through ethnographic observations (field notes, researcher memos), classroom audio recordings, and semi-structured interviews (student, teacher). Specifically, this study analyzes (1) language ideologies prevalent in the classroom context in relation to the conceptualization of errors, (2) the instructor’s goals for oral CF, (3) how the instructor provides oral CF and in what contexts, and (4) how the mixed class environment relates to oral CF.
To do so, the data were analyzed via a bifocal approach in coding interview and classroom discourse (Razfar, 2003) and engaging in Critical Discourse Analysis (van Dijk, 2016) informed by frameworks in Linguistic Anthropology (Irvine, 1989; Kroskrity, 2004, 2010; Leeman, 2012) and Second Language Acquisition (Ellis, 2009; Li, 2017; Lyster & Ranta, 1997). The findings demonstrate how oral CF becomes ideologically charged in a classroom context primarily designed to impart foreign language instruction. Under the guise that SHL learners’ varieties represent negative characteristics (e.g., low socioeconomic strata, Mexicaness, immigration), oral CF is used to eradicate their Spanish varieties. Findings also illustrate the (in)congruency of the instructor and learners’ perceptions of oral CF and what takes place in the classroom. In some cases, SHL learners demonstrated language pride and resisted the imposition of a foreign variety but reported hegemonic beliefs about their own varieties.
Exemplifying how the instructor and SHL learners contribute to the complex dynamics of ideologization of oral CF, this study advocates for the adoption of Critical Language Awareness frameworks (Martínez, 2003; Leeman, 2005) in mixed language classrooms that encompasses this practice (e.g., focus-on-form instruction). Additionally, in acknowledging that teachers and educational institutions play a key role in the (re)production of dominant language norms, this study calls for the creation of instructional guidelines for oral CF as a pedagogical practice. Such guidelines must include critical discussions with students about the relationship between “correct,” “correcting,” and “being corrected” and asymmetrical power relationships.
To do so, the data were analyzed via a bifocal approach in coding interview and classroom discourse (Razfar, 2003) and engaging in Critical Discourse Analysis (van Dijk, 2016) informed by frameworks in Linguistic Anthropology (Irvine, 1989; Kroskrity, 2004, 2010; Leeman, 2012) and Second Language Acquisition (Ellis, 2009; Li, 2017; Lyster & Ranta, 1997). The findings demonstrate how oral CF becomes ideologically charged in a classroom context primarily designed to impart foreign language instruction. Under the guise that SHL learners’ varieties represent negative characteristics (e.g., low socioeconomic strata, Mexicaness, immigration), oral CF is used to eradicate their Spanish varieties. Findings also illustrate the (in)congruency of the instructor and learners’ perceptions of oral CF and what takes place in the classroom. In some cases, SHL learners demonstrated language pride and resisted the imposition of a foreign variety but reported hegemonic beliefs about their own varieties.
Exemplifying how the instructor and SHL learners contribute to the complex dynamics of ideologization of oral CF, this study advocates for the adoption of Critical Language Awareness frameworks (Martínez, 2003; Leeman, 2005) in mixed language classrooms that encompasses this practice (e.g., focus-on-form instruction). Additionally, in acknowledging that teachers and educational institutions play a key role in the (re)production of dominant language norms, this study calls for the creation of instructional guidelines for oral CF as a pedagogical practice. Such guidelines must include critical discussions with students about the relationship between “correct,” “correcting,” and “being corrected” and asymmetrical power relationships.
ContributorsLoza, Sergio (Author) / Beaudrie, Sara (Thesis advisor) / Adams, Karen (Committee member) / Cerron-Palomino, Alvaro (Committee member) / Lowther Pereira, Kelly (Committee member) / Gradoville, Michael (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019