32.2290, Review: Applied Linguistics: Jones (2020)

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LINGUIST List: Vol-32-2290. Tue Jul 06 2021. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 32.2290, Review: Applied Linguistics: Jones (2020)

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Date: Tue, 06 Jul 2021 17:50:25
From: Iman Ahmed [e_alnajjar0 at yahoo.com]
Subject: Practice in Second Language Learning

 
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Book announced at http://linguistlist.org/issues/31/31-3917.html

EDITOR: Christian  Jones
TITLE: Practice in Second Language Learning
PUBLISHER: Cambridge University Press
YEAR: 2020

REVIEWER: Iman Kamal Ahmed, Birkbeck College, University of London

SUMMARY

The volume “Practice in Second Language Learning”, edited by Christian Jones,
brings together contributors to explore the role of practice in second
language learning (SLL) and to further investigate the implication of using
practice in acquiring skills in order to learn a language. This volume is an
extension of “Practice in a Second Language”, edited by Robert DeKeyser in
2007. Jones in his volume sheds light on the research that has been conducted
since DeKeyser’s volume. There has been a longstanding debate about the role
of practice in SLL. Based on skill acquisition theory, DeKeyser (2007) defines
practice as “specific activities in the second language, engaged in
systematically, deliberately, with the goal of developing knowledge of and
skills in the second language” (DeKeyser, 2007, p.1). Practice has received
little attention from researchers despite the fact that it plays an important
role in learning a second or foreign language (DeKeyser, 2007). The volume
addresses these gaps in the literature and provides ample theoretical and
empirical evidence. It includes research ideas that will help researchers to
further explore practice in second language learning. 

Practice is a significant element in Second Language Acquisition (SLA) and,
based on the aforementioned definition of practice, one might wonder what kind
of activities should be used in a specific learning context, at what time and
for how long, and how many activities should be conducted at a time. Moreover,
we still do not know what practices are most successful. One important and
under- researched aspect of practice in SLA is the types of practice used in
SLL. Receptive (input-based) and productive (output-based) practice are the
two types of practice that have been under-researched despite the important
role that they have in learning a skill. Even though researchers previously
assumed that output-based practice only influences constructive skills
(speaking and writing), and input-based practice only influences receptive
skills (reading and listening), it seems that both have an effect on learning,
especially lexical chunks (Golebiewska & Jones, 2020). However, further
(qualitative) research is needed to gain a fuller understanding. As a result,
until now, the findings from previous research remain insufficient to develop
clear pedagogical implications for practice in SLA (Suzuki & Sunada, 2020;
DeKeyser & Botana, 2015). It remains unclear which type is most effective to
acquire and improve a skill and boost language learning. Language skills need
constant practice in order to be fully mastered and properly used. Therefore,
not having more research on practice is a real surprise, as it is a very
common concept in everyday life and in SLA. This lapse could be linked to the
fact that practice has been associated with other variables in SLA research or
embedded in other concepts.

This volume is divided into three parts. Part One serves as an introduction to
practice and how it has been used up until now in SLA. It also offers a
detailed theoretical background of practice, with methodological suggestions
towards the end of the chapters. Part Two deals with receptive practice and
makes methodological suggestions, while Part Three examines productive
practice as well as methodological suggestions. It also includes the editor’s
conclusion, in which he points out implications for both teachers and
researchers. 

Part I: Theoretical Perspective
Chapter One: Now You are Talking! Practicing Conversation in Second Language
Learning (Michael McCarthy and Jeanne McCarten)

McCarthy and McCarten provide detailed theoretical background about practice
in speaking skill in SLL and the role of practising in order to learn a
language. They also offer a thorough examination of the role of speaking
practice and conversation in SLL and how each of them functions differently in
the SLL context. They argue that conversation is a social act and a creative
production of speech, while speaking practice is merely chunks of grammatical
and lexical features without any sense of creativity or social elements
(MacCarthy & MacCarten, 2020). According to MacCarthy and MacCarten, educators
must help students smoothly transition from speaking practice to freer
speaking (i.e., conversation). They conclude that controlled and consistent
practice can lead to better opportunities of optimal learning in SLL. 

Chapter Two: The Role of Practice within Second Language Acquisition (Colin
Thompson)

Thompson offers a comprehensive theoretical and practical cognitive background
of practice within SLA. He starts with a historical examination of the role of
practice in SLA, covering theories from the eighteenth century until today. He
emphasizes that different forms of practice played an important role in
shaping the current picture of practice in SLA, which are input-based
(processing instruction) and output-based (production-based). He argues that
although the research results of production-based and processing instruction
models are dissimilar, both of them underline the important role of practice
in SLA. He also urges for more research combining both models to find out more
about their influence on the practice of acquiring language skills. This
chapter is ideal for young researchers who want to dive into the role of
practice in SLL, as it provides valuable theoretical background of the
concept, and it would be a good start to understand the current situation of
practice in SLL.

Part II: Receptive Practice

Chapter Three: Practice with Formulaic Sequences: Can it Promote the
Incidental Learning of Grammar? (Eve Zyzik and Laura Marques-Pascual)

The primary concern of this part is the investigation of the receptive
practice of the language skills. Zyzik and Marques-Pascual study the role of
formulaic sequences in promoting the incidental learning of grammar. Their
experiment involved learners carrying out receptive activities and asking them
to show how well they had understood the meaning of the given idioms. The
learners were divided into two groups. Group one was given the treatment of
incidental learning of meaning and usage of Spanish idioms. Group two’s
treatment was similar to that of group one but with a focus on Spanish copular
verbs to optimize incident learning. Their study showed the limited benefits
of incidental learning, and the authors suggested further research into how to
achieve incidental learning with copular verbs and other aspects of language.

Chapter Four: A Text-based Approach to Grammar Practice (Ivor Timmis)

Timmis emphasises the role of a text-based approach in learning grammar. He
claims that a text-based approach has positive results, as the learners can
learn grammar features and vocabulary at the same time, which plays a great
role in practicing receptive skills. 

Chapter Five: The Teaching and Learning of Lexical Chunks: A Comparison of
Receptive and Productive Practice (Patrycja Golebiewska and Christian Jones)

Golebiewska and Jones attempt to compare receptive and productive practice by
considering two teaching frameworks, the Presentation-Practice-Production
(PPP) and the Observe Hypothesis Experiment (OHE) for teaching vocabulary
chunks to two groups of EAP learners. The two frameworks were found to be very
effective on students’ productive knowledge of vocabulary in the short and
longer term. Even though both approaches had a positive result on learners’
receptive and productive skills, the authors stress the need for further
investigations.

Part III: Productive Practice

Chapter Six: Using Computer-assisted Language Learning (CALL) Tools to Enhance
Output Practice (Nicola Halenko)

The third part of the book deals with productive practice. Halenko presents
research on the effectiveness of Computer Animated Production Task (CAPT) on
speaking skills of Second Language (SL) learners studying in the UK. The
researcher had an experimental and a control group and used a pre-, post-, and
delayed post-test design to evaluate CAPT as a learning tool. The control
group received no instructions. The findings show a positive result for using
CAPT in improving the spoken language of the learners, as it provides a
semi-natural opportunity to practice the SL. 

Chapter Seven: Practising Online with Your Peers: The Role of Text Chat for
Second Language Development (Marije Michel)

Michel’s research concerns the role of Synchronous Computer-mediated
Communication (SCMC) or text chat to improve SL, as well as how motivation and
anxiety correlate with practice. The researcher explores the effectiveness of
text chat interaction in the classroom as a means to improve SL practice. Data
from analysing student chat logs reveal that students enjoy and engage with
online text chat in the classroom, thereby creating more opportunities for the
students to practice the SL. 

Chapter Eight: Language Practice and Study Abroad (Todd A. Hernandez)

Hernandez examines the influence of studying abroad on language learning. The
learners were informed of language use and context, pragmatic norms of the
foreign language, culture of the foreign language, and the five language
practice aspects highlighted by DeKeyser (2007), namely: input, output,
interaction, reflection, and feedback. Hernandez concludes that studying
abroad facilitates language learning, as the learners will have more
opportunity to be exposed to authentic SL input. Henandez adds that the effort
and the advantage of the opportunities to practice the SL abroad have a strong
effect on learning the SL.

Chapter Nine: How does Collaborative Practice Facilitate Learning? Processes
Involved in a Wiki-mediated Collaborative Writing Task (Richard Cullen and
Carol Wild)

Cullen and Wild investigate the role of online collaborative practice in
improving language learning. By analysing students’ wiki postings, they found
that collaborative writing enhances the students’ sense of collaborative
learning, with students helping each other to improve their writing and being
able to correct their own mistakes based on the peer feedback given
previously. 

Chapter Ten: Conclusion: Implications for Pedagogy and Research (Christian
Jones)

In the final chapter, the editor provides a comprehensive conclusion to all
the chapters in the volume and lists the implications for teachers and
researchers.

EVALUATION 

The volume offers a diverse variety of perspectives and reveals some
challenges in the literature of practice in SLL, as well as providing detailed
theoretical and empirical data from different studies. As a result, this
volume succeeds in establishing a comprehensive and effective relationship
between research and pedagogy in the field of SLL.

This volume is an excellent contribution to the literature of practice in SLA;
however, there is still some way to go. The editor suggests that more research
is needed to compare different teaching formats such as III
(Illustration-Interaction-Induction) and PPP. Also, the editor highlights the
fact that students’ perspective of practice on their language learning has
been neglected despite its crucial role in the effectiveness of practice in
SLL. It is also necessary to investigate the relationship between student
emotions and practice and the potential repercussions on the success of
practice. Furthermore, with the current pandemic, online learning came to the
rescue of the education system employed around the world. As teaching
institutions had to close their physical doors, online learning allowed a
continuation of teaching and learning. The editor emphasises the important
role of online practice even though this volume was written before the
pandemic. Therefore, there is a need for more research to be conducted on the
role and impact of online practice on language learning  (Resnik & Dewaele,
2021). The editor and the contributors have offered suggestions to overcome
gaps with regard to researching practice in SLA and also formulated excellent
ideas for further research.

Overall, the volume is a valuable contribution to the field of SLA. It is
well-written and well-structured, and all the contributors refer to each
others’ chapters. It is successful in attaining its goal of addressing the
gaps in the literature to improve teaching and research in SLL and SLA. The
contributors provide detailed reference lists and detailed appendices, with
research tools and materials at the end of each chapter, which will serve as a
valuable resource for current and future researchers. 

In addition, another strong point of this volume is that the authors provide
and analyse data using different mixed method approaches and different
methodological tools, including experiments, questionnaires, focus group
interview, structured and semi-structured interviews, narrative analysis, and
other data gathering methods. Also, some studies in this volume conducted a
longitudinal study design along with mixed methods methodology, an approach
which allows for a more thorough examination of the role of practice in SLL.
This volume marks the start of an exciting new era of SLA research .

REFERENCES

DeKeyser, R. (Ed.). (2007). Practice in a second language: Perspectives from
applied linguistics and cognitive psychology. Cambridge University Press.

DeKeyser, R., & Prieto Botana, G. (2015). The effectiveness of processing
instruction in L2 grammar acquisition: A narrative review. Applied
Linguistics, 36(3), 290-305.

Resnik, P., & Dewaele, J.-M. (2021). Learner emotions, autonomy and trait
emotional intelligence in 'in-person' versus emergency remote English foreign
language teaching in Europe. Applied Linguistics Review
https://doi.org/doi:10.1515applirev-2020-0096

Suzuki, Y., & Sunada, M. (2020). Dynamic interplay between practice type and
practice schedule in a second language: The potential and limits of skill
transfer and practice schedule. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 42(1),
169-197.


ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Iman Ahmed holds BA in English Language and MA in Applied Linguistics from
Salahddin University. She is a first-year PhD student at the Department of
Applied Linguistics and Communication at Birkbeck, University of London.
Currently, she is an instructor at the University of Kurdistan Hewler at the
Foundation Program. She teaches the English language to various levels in the
program.





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