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PURPOSE: To date, research on effects of prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) has focused on a broad range of cognitive impairments, but relatively few studies have examined effects of PAE on development of reading skills. Although PAE has been linked to poorer reading comprehension, it remains unclear whether this impairment is attributable to deficits in phonological processing, word reading, oral language skills, and/or executive functioning. METHODS: A comprehensive reading battery was administered to 10 adolescents with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS); 16 with partial FAS; 30 nonsyndromal heavily-exposed; 49 controls. RESULTS: PAE was related to poorer reading comprehension but not to single word reading or phonological processing, suggesting that the mechanics of reading are intact in adolescents with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders at this age. PAE-related impairment in reading comprehension was mediated, in part, by deficits in mastery of oral language skills, including vocabulary, language structure, and verbal fluency. CONCLUSIONS: These results are consistent with research showing that reading comprehension in adolescence relies increasingly on linguistic comprehension abilities, especially once word reading becomes automatic and text complexity increases. Our findings suggest that reading-impaired adolescents with PAE will benefit from intervention programs targeting vocabulary knowledge, language structure, verbal fluency, and reading comprehension skills.

Because of their global clinical utility, phonemic fluency tests are frequently incorporated into neuropsychological assessment batteries. However, in heterogeneous societies their use is complicated by the lack of careful attention to using letters of equivalent difficulty across languages, and the paucity of norms stratified by relevant sociodemographic variables. In accordance with the International Test Commission's guidelines for adaptation of test material in multilingual contexts, this study provides (1) an internationally replicable methodological template for selecting appropriate letter sets; (2) empirical evidence to substantiate the equivalence of a letter set across three languages; (3) a template for evaluating the relative impact of sociodemographic variables on phonemic fluency; and (4) appropriately stratified norms for the letter set SBL (English and Afrikaans) / IBL (Xhosa) in a sample (N = 512) of urban participants (7–25 years with 1–17 years of education) from the Cape Town region of...

The development of the subject English Additional Language (EAL) to serve as a strong support subject in explicitly teaching learners the grammar of English is suggested as an interim solution to the effects of the non-implementation of the 1997 South African Language in Education Policy. To identify specific grammatical features for explicit instruction, an initial step was taken in analysing the second language English free speech and grammatical intuitions of eight first language speakers of isiXhosa. Collectively, results revealed syntactic, semantic and morphological features of English, in that order, to prove most problematic to these speakers. More specifically, in terms of syntax, the omission of especially prepositions and articles was identified as a topic for explicit instruction, along with the syntactic positioning of adverbs and particles. In terms of semantics, incorrect lexical selection, especially of prepositions/prepositional phrases and pronouns, proved the most common non-native feature to be suggested for explicit teaching. Lastly, in terms of morphology, inflection proved most problematic, with the accurate formulation (especially in terms of tense and/or aspect forms) of past tense, progressive and irrealis structures being the features suggested for explicit instruction, along with the third person singular feature.Southern African Linguistics and Applied Language Studies 2013, 31(1): 111–127

This paper reports on an investigation into the possibility of first language (L1) transfer in the initial stages of the second language (L2) acquisition of isiXhosa by adolescent L1 speakers of Afrikaans and English, respectively. Four hypotheses about the initial state of L2 acquisition are (i) the Full Transfer hypothesis (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 the different predictions made by these hypotheses regarding verb placement by beginner learners of isiXhosa; data were collected by means of both a sentence completion and a grammaticality judgement task. 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 are also briefly discussed.Keywords: second language acquisition, transfer, isiXhosa, verb placement

The study reported in this paper aimed to investigate whether the grammatical errors made by schizophrenic bilinguals in their spontaneous second language (L2) use are typical L2 learner errors, as reported previously. Southwood et al. (2009) report on a case study of a schizophrenic patient who expressed a preference for his L2 when he started presenting with psychotic symptoms. Southwood et al. (2009) note that the majority of the grammatical errors made by this patient in his spontaneous L2 use are typical of L2 learner language use. To determine whether the grammatical errors made by schizophrenics are similar to or different from those made by typical L2 English speakers, we employed Morice and Ingram's (1982) assessment tool for the grammatical analysis of the spontaneous L2 speech of four schizophrenics and four (non-psychotic) controls who were matched to the schizophrenics in terms of age, gender and first language (L1) and L2 dialects. Following a comparison of the types and frequency o...

This paper reports on a study investigating the pragmatic skills and deficits of schizophrenic bilinguals in their spontaneous first language (L1) and second language (L2) speech. Smit (2009) (see also Smit et al., this volume) argues that the locus of deficits in schizophrenic speech is semantics and suggests that a next step would be to investigate the pragmatic skills of schizophrenic bilinguals, given the close relationship between semantics and pragmatics. The study reported here followed up on Smit's suggestion and employed Prutting and Kirchner's (1987) Pragmatic Protocol to pragmatically assess the spontaneous L1 Afrikaans and L2 English use of four schizophrenic bilinguals who exhibited differential symptomatology, that is presented with different symptoms, as well as a difference in the severity thereof, when assessed in their L1 than when assessed in their L2. On the basis of the results of the assessment we conclude that such pragmatic assessment (i) provides insight into the nature o...

Two construction types that are allowed in Afrikaans but not in French are transitive expletive constructions and full-NP object shift constructions. The study reported here tested whether Afrikaansspeaking advanced adult learners had knowledge of the ungrammaticality of these two construction types in the target L2 French, given that they had not been instructed about this ungrammaticality. The results of this study show that a large number of the L2 learners had indeed acquired knowledge of this ungrammaticality, despite the absence of (explicit) negative evidence to this effect, raising the question of which types of input or evidence learners make use of in L2 acquisition.Keywords: Adult L2 Acquisition, Afrikaans, French, Different Types of Input, Unlearning Construction Types

A lack of English proficiency and failure to use standard phraseology played a role in the world’s largest aviation disaster which occurred in Tenerife in 1977 (Tenerife Information Center 2009). As a result, the crucial role of effective communication between pilots and airtraffic controllers (ATCs) came under scrutiny (Cushing 1997), with the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) implementing English language proficiency standards and compulsory language testing of pilots and ATCs (Tiewtrakul and Fletcher 2010). Consequently, the use of so-called “Aviation English” (AE) was enforced which consists of a range of operationally-relevant language functions and dialogue management as well as formulaic standard phraseology (Shawcross 2008). The study reported on in this paper has two aims: (i) to investigate pilots’ and ATCs’ perceptions of the role of language in air-traffic communication, and (ii) to investigate the use of AE in authentic pilot-ATC communication in South African airspace. In order to address the first aim, an online questionnaire was designed to investigate issues surrounding the role of language in air-traffic communication. A total of 197 pilots and 66 ATCs completed the questionnaire. To address the second aim, approximately 10 hours’ worth of recordings were obtained of on-site air-traffic communication at two airport towers in Gauteng. These were then transcribed and carefully analysed within the framework of Van Es’s (2004) SHELL model and with the aid of a taxonomy compiled on the basis of two previous studies by Cardosi, Brett and Han (1997) and Van Es (2004). The results of the questionnaire indicated that the majority of the respondents support ICAO’s English language proficiency standards and testing. Although the respondents believe that language-related communication problems can cause serious and sometimes fatal incidents, they are confident that the problems are resolved quickly and successfully, thereby avoiding potentially hazardous situations. The results of the analysis of the voice recordings correlated with the results of the questionnaire. Only a small number of transmissions were identified with read-back errors as well as a small number of transmissions containing deviations from AE and standard phraseology. When miscommunications did occur, pilots and ATCs resolved these problems quickly and effectively using AE as well as plain English to successfully negotiate understanding. After discussing in more detail the results of the analyses of the two data sets, a conclusion is provided with some suggestions for further, specifically linguistic, investigations into AE and pilot-ATC communication in South Africa. A brief illustration is also given of the potential value of research, such as that reported here, for benchmarking speech systems for unmanned aircraft (cf. Burger, Barnard and Jones 2011).Keywords: Aviation English, English as lingua franca, Miscommunication, Communication in Aviation, Aviation Safety

Researchers who assume that Universal Grammar (UG) plays a role in second language (L2) acquisition are still debating whether L2 learners have access to UG in its entirety (the Full Access hypothesis; e.g. Schwartz and Sprouse, 1994; 1996; White, 1989; 2003) or only to those aspects of UG that are instantiated in their first language (L1) grammar (the No Parameter Resetting hypothesis; e.g. Hawkins and Chan, 1997). The Full Access hypothesis predicts that parameter resetting will be possible where the L1 and L2 differ in parameter values, whereas the No Parameter Resetting hypothesis predicts that parameter resetting will not be possible. These hypotheses are tested in a study examining whether English-speaking learners of Afrikaans can reset the Split-IP parameter (SIP) (Thráinsson, 1996) and the V2 parameter from their L1 ([-SIP], [-V2]) to their L2 ([+SIP], [+V2]) values. 15 advanced English learners of Afrikaans and 10 native speakers of Afrikaans completed three tasks: a sentence manipulation task, a grammaticality judgement task and a truth-value judgement task. Results suggest that the interlanguage grammars of the L2 learners are [+SIP] and [+V2] (unlike the L1), providing evidence for the Full Access hypothesis.

Interpretation of neuropsychological tests may be hampered by confounding sociodemographic factors and by using inappropriate normative data. We investigated these factors in three tests endorsed by the World Health Organization: the Grooved Pegboard Test (GPT), the Children's Color Trails Test (CCTT), and the WHO/UCLA version of the Auditory Verbal Learning Test (AVLT). In a sample of 12-15-year-old, Afrikaans- and English-speaking adolescents from the Cape Town region of South Africa, analyses of covariance (ANCOVAs) demonstrated that quality of education was the sociodemographic factor with the biggest influence on test performance, and that age also significantly influenced GPT and CCTT performance. Based on those findings, we provide appropriately stratified normative data for the age group in question. Comparisons between diagnostic interpretations made using foreign normative data versus those using the current local data demonstrate that it is imperative to use appropriately stratified normative data to guard against misinterpreting performance.

In generative linguistics, many researchers agree that (something like) Universal Grammar (UG) must play some role in second language (L2) acquisition, since the logical problem of first language (L1) acquisition1 seems to hold for L2 acquisition, as well: in L2 acquisition, as in L1 acquisition, the complex, abstract system of knowledge that the learner ends up acquiring exceeds to a great extent the primary linguistic data that the learner receives as input (see White 1989 for more detailed arguments). However, these researchers are still debating the following two questions as to the exact role of UG in L2 acquisition: (i) what constitutes the initial state of L2 acquisition? and (ii) is parameter resetting possible in situations in which the value of a certain parameter differs for the learner's L1 and the target L2? A number of hypotheses have been proposed in response to either one or both of these questions (see, for example, Clahsen and Muysken 1986, 1989; Epstein, Flynn and Martohardjono 1996; Eubank 1993/1994, 1994, 1996; Hawkins and Chan 1997; Vainikka and Young-Scholten 1994, 1996; also White 2003 for an overview). One such hypothesis is the Full Transfer Full Access hypothesis (FTFA) (e.g. Schwartz and Sprouse 1994, 1996; White 1989, 2003) which proposes the following answers to the above questions: (i) the learner's L1 grammar (including L1 parameter settings) constitutes the initial state of L2 acquisition (= full transfer), and (ii) the L2 learner has access to UG in its entirety and, hence, parameter resetting is possible in L2 acquisition (= full access).

Bobaljik and Thrainsson (1998) showed how the Split-IP parameter (SIP) (Thrainsson 1996) could account for the cross-linguistic clustering of a number of superficially unrelated properties: multiple inflectional morphemes, transitive expletive constructions (TECs), object shift constructions (OSCs), and verb movement in non-V2 environments. This paper investigates the setting of the SIP in Afrikaans. It will be shown that the only two diagnostics that can be used to determine the setting of the SIP in Afrikaans are the presence/absence of TECs and the presence/absence of OSCs. Although it has been claimed that Afrikaans allows neither TECs nor OSCs (see, for example, Donaldson 1993; Bobaljik and Jonas 1996; Koeneman 2000), this paper provides arguments, as well as evidence from native speaker judgments, that show that both of these constructions are indeed allowed in Afrikaans. In so doing, the paper provides evidence for a [+SIP] setting in Afrikaans. The paper is organized as follows: section 2 provides a brief discussion of the SIP; section 3 provides evidence for the existence of TECs in Afrikaans; section 4 provides evidence for the existence of OSCs in Afrikaans; and section 5 provides a brief conclusion.

In recent years there has been an increase in research on the acquisition of morphological aspects of a second language (L2). Specifically, a number of studies have been conducted on the acquisition of grammatical gender in the L2. The study reported in this paper investigated the adult L2 acquisition of grammatical gender in German by first language (L1) speakers of Afrikaans, English and Italian, respectively. The aim of the study was to determine how similarities and differences between the L1 and L2 in terms of grammatical gender affect the acquisition of this aspect of the target L2. Two experimental tasks – a picture naming task and a sentence completion task – were designed to determine to what extent the grammatical gender of nouns is accurately reflected on determiners and adjectives. Throughout, the L1 Italian group outperformed the other two groups. Since Italian (like German) expresses grammatical gender on determiners and nouns, while neither English nor Afrikaans does, the results indicate that the acquisition of grammatical gender in an L2 is easier for learners whose L1 also expresses grammatical gender. Specifically, the results provide evidence for so-called "deep transfer" (transfer of abstract grammatical properties) from the L1 to the L2 in this area of L2 acquisition: since the grammatical gender systems of Italian and German are not congruent, the Italian speakers' advantage over the other two L1 groups cannot be the result of simple "surface transfer" (transferring knowledge of the grammatical gender of specific nouns in the L1 to the L2) and must be attributed to deep transfer.Keywords: adult second language acquisition; first language transfer; grammatical gender