Bimodal bilingual language development of hearing children of deaf parents

Adopting a bimodal bilingual language acquisition model, this qualitative case study is the first in Germany to investigate the spoken and sign language development of hearing children of deaf adults (codas). The spoken language competence of six codas within the age range of 3;10 to 6;4 is assessed by a series of standardised tests (SETK 3-5, TROG-D, PDSS). Additionally, a language assessment tool designed specifically for hearing bilingual children named HAVAS 5 is employed to measure both the children’s spoken and sign language abilities. A heterogeneous picture emerges: all codas show abilities equal to those of monomodal monolingual children in their age range with regard to German sentence structure and verb inflection and an extensive receptive vocabulary, but deviations from the age norm are observed for the production of verbs and prepositions. Furthermore, three codas show below average T-values in some grammatical subtests. Overall, the findings suggest that at least some codas may acquire both of their languages (i.e. spoken and signed German) simultaneously. However, our study also indicates that the spoken language development of some codas as well as the acquisition context of this minority group strongly resembles a form of successive language acquisition that is known from children who acquire German as an early second language in a migration background.     

Sign language and the brain: a review

How are signed languages processed by the brain? This review briefly outlines some basic principles of brain structure and function and the methodological principles and techniques that have been used to investigate this question. We then summarize a number of different studies exploring brain activity associated with sign language processing especially as compared to speech processing. We focus on lateralization: is signed language lateralized to the left hemisphere (LH) of native signers, just as spoken language is lateralized to the LH of native speakers, or could sign processing involve the right hemisphere to a greater extent than speech processing? Experiments that have addressed this question are described, and some problems in obtaining a clear answer are outlined.     

It's All a Matter of Timing: Sign Visibility and Sign Reference in Deaf and Hearing Mothers of 18-Month-Old Children

The signed and spoken language produced by 14 mothers to their 18-month-old children during free play was analyzed. All the children had profound prelingual deafness. Seven of the mothers were profoundly deaf and fluent users of British Sign Language (BSL) or Auslan. The other seven were hearing and had enrolled in a signing program. Maternal signed utterances were classified according to whether they were made in the child's line of sight and whether they had a salient context; that is, they referred to an object or event at the child's current focus of attention. Spoken utterances were coded by word length. Comparisons between the two groups showed that both deaf and hearing mothers produced a majority of single-sign utterances (rather than utterances containing two or more signs). Deaf mothers also produced a majority of single-word spoken utterances, whereas the hearing mothers produced a significantly greater proportion of multiword utterances. As predicted, deaf mothers were more successful than hearing mothers in presenting signed utterances with a salient context that were visible to their children. Across the group as a whole, the total number of visible and salient signed utterances produced in 10 minutes was positively correlated with the total number of occasions on which mothers successfully redirected their child's attention or the child spontaneously turned to look at the mother. This suggests that deaf children who are visually attentive to their mothers receive a greater number of visible signed utterances with a salient context. I argue that this provides a more secure context for early language development.     

The acquisition of spatial constructions in American sign language and English

Spatial relations in American Sign Language (ASL) are often signed from the perspective of the signer and so involve a shift in perspective and mental rotation. This study examined developing knowledge of language used to refer to the spatial relations front, behind, left, right, towards, away, above, and below by children learning ASL and English. Because ASL is a classifier language in which noun referents are placed into groups, each spatial relation also appeared with person, animal, and vehicle classifiers. Twenty-three children and adults who learned ASL before the age of 5 years and 23 native English-speaking adults and children participated. Both language groups participated in a comprehension task in which they chose which of 2 pictures depicted a signed or spoken relation. Results showed that children learning ASL acquired the constructions for spatial relations that typically involve perspective shifts and mental rotation later than constructions that do not involve these abilities and later than English-speaking children. Children learning ASL did not differ from English-speaking children in learning constructions that did not involve these abilities. Results also suggest that users of ASL initially comprehend spatial relations more accurately with person and animal classifiers than with the classifier for vehicles. The results are relevant to understanding the acquisition of spatial relations in ASL.     

Comparing action gestures and classifier verbs of motion: evidence from Australian Sign Language, Taiwan Sign Language, and nonsigners' gestures without speech

Recent research into signed languages indicates that signs may share some properties with gesture, especially in the use of space in classifier constructions. A prediction of this proposal is that there will be similarities in the representation of motion events by sign-naive gesturers and by native signers of unrelated signed languages. This prediction is tested for deaf native signers of Australian Sign Language (Auslan), deaf signers of Taiwan Sign Language (TSL), and hearing nonsigners using the Verbs of Motion Production task from the Test Battery for American Sign Language (ASL) Morphology and Syntax. Results indicate that differences between the responses of nonsigners, Auslan signers, and TSL signers and the expected ASL responses are greatest with handshape units; movement and location units appear to be very similar. Although not definitive, these data are consistent with the claim that classifier constructions are blends of linguistic and gestural elements.     

Precarious Relationships: Perceptions of culture and citizenship among teachers of German

Teachers of another language, many of whom are bilingual and bicultural, have had to think about relationships with and attitudes towards the country (ies) or communities where the other language is spoken. By constantly interacting with that language and culture they often think and act 'comparatively' without, in most instances, articulating their views in a formal manner. Such notions are particularly complex in the Anglo-German context. The research project described here aimed to find out if native speakers of German have different attitudes towards their own and the other culture than native speakers of English who teach German as a second language. To what extent do personal biographies influence language teaching in the classroom? What does the concept of citizenship mean to them in their personal and professional lives? These are some of the issues the paper sets out to explore.     

Modality of language shapes working memory: evidence from digit span and spatial span in ASL signers

Deaf children who are native users of American Sign Language (ASL) and hearing children who are native English speakers performed three working memory tasks. Results indicate that language modality shapes the architecture of working memory. Digit span with forward and backward report, performed by each group in their native language, suggests that the language rehearsal mechanisms for spoken language and for sign language differ in their processing constraints. Unlike hearing children, deaf children who are native signers of ASL were as good at backward recall of digits as at forward recall, suggesting that serial order information for ASL is stored in a form that does not have a preferred directionality. Data from a group of deaf children who were not native signers of ASL rule out explanations in terms of a floor effect or a nonlinguistic visual strategy. Further, deaf children who were native signers outperformed hearing children on a nonlinguistic spatial memory task, suggesting that language expertise in a particular modality exerts an influence on nonlinguistic working memory within that modality. Thus, language modality has consequences for the structure of working memory, both within and outside the linguistic domain.     

“Nobody Told Me They Didn’t Speak English!”: Teacher Language Views and Student Linguistic Repertoires in Hutterite Colony Schools in Canada

This article presents a qualitative study of five monolingual teachers’ understandings of the linguistic repertoires of their multilingual students. These teachers deliver the Saskatchewan provincial curricula in English to Hutterite colony students who are users of three languages: (a) spoken Hutterisch as a home and community language, (b) written High German as a language for religious worship, and (c) spoken and written English for school and for communication outside the colony. Findings from this study demonstrate that the teachers report having had limited or inaccurate understandings of their students’ linguistic repertoires prior to beginning their teaching positions. Secondly, the teacher participants’ awareness of the students’ language resources was, and is, an ongoing process. Finally, the willingness and ability to cultivate hybrid language use of Hutterisch and English varies from teacher to teacher. The article concludes with discussion of considerations for teacher education and in-service teachers working in Hutterite communities.     

The Development of Verb Concepts: Children''s Use of Verbs to Label Familiar and Novel Events

The importance of actions, results, and instruments in verb concepts was examined in four studies. Study 1 investigated how children label familiar events for which instrument, action, and result verbs were appropriate labels. In Study 2, subjects were taught novel verbs and were asked to use these verbs to label events in which the instrument, action, or result had been changed. Study 1 showed that 3-year-olds used action verbs more frequently than older children and adults, and that they preferred to use an action verb over a result verb when both verbs were appropriate labels. Instrument verbs were used most frequently as first responses to the events, and were most frequently used by older children and adults. In Study 2, subjects were least likely to use the novel verbs to label events in which the result had changed. This effect increased with age. Action changes had a moderate effect for all age groups, while instrument changes had the weakest effect. Studies 3 and 4 ruled out stimulus salience and a familiar word strategy as interpretations of these findings. The studies are discussed in terms of current theory and research on conceptual development, word-learning strategies, and the semantic organization of nouns and verbs.     

纳苏彝语的空间位移

动态空间主要指语言表达中焦点（F）的空间位移,常用位移动词、词缀、连动结构等表示。纳苏彝语的空间位移主要有表达人体空间、动物体空间,以及无生命物体的不同位移形式。纳苏彝语的不同位移,一是通过动词前加方向前缀构成,表示相对于说话者或地势来说行为所表示的是空间进行的方向。其次是连动结构表示位移,即在行为动词或位移动词后加方向动词“来”或“去”表示位移,表达空间位移的向心和离心。     

英语专业学生口语词汇特征分析及教学启示

运用中介语对比分析法。对比SECCL和BNC两个口语语料库中的词汇及词项。结果表明：中国英语专业学生在非词汇化动词、模糊词及模棱两可话语词等词项使用方面存在显著差异。并提出时英语口语教学的启示。     

英语"直引结构"中的"转述分句"初探

在英语小说和新闻语体中,"直引结构"是最能充分体现口语交际过程中一切与语言交际有关的语言或非语言特征的语言形式."直引结构"中的"转述分句"表现出语用功能丰富多变的结构特点.现代英语中能引介(直接)引语的动词多达数百个,根据这些转述动词的语义语用特征和逻辑关系可对其进行分类.     

南阳方言中的特殊否定词

南阳方言中有三个特殊的否定词"白"、"嫑"、"侯",加词缀后构成三组否定词。它们多与动词或形容词组合,表示不同程度的否定,一般表示劝诫或禁止,口语性较强。     

贵州绥阳方言的“得”

绥阳方言"得"[tε21]字的意义和用法十分丰富。可以是构词语素、构形成分;可放在动词前也可放在动词形容词后表示"可以、能够、得到、许可"等;疑问式和否定式也和普通话有差别。     

贵州绥阳方言的“得”

绥阳方言＂得＂[tε21]字的意义和用法十分丰富。可以是构词语素、构形成分;可放在动词前也可放在动词形容词后表示＂可以、能够、得到、许可＂等;疑问式和否定式也和普通话有差别。     

How does dissociation between written and oral forms affect reading: evidence from auxiliary verbs in Arabic

In Arabic, auxiliary verbs are necessary in the written language, but absent from the oral language. This is contrary to languages such as English and French in which auxiliary verbs are mandatory in both written and oral languages. This fact was exploited to examine if dissociation between written and oral forms affects reading measures like letter detection task and therefore to validate the phenomenon of the missing‐letter effect (MLE) and to replicate previous studies. In addition, the study examined whether auxiliary verbs in Arabic are considered as functional elements that constitute part of the structural frame. Sixty native Arabic speakers read a passage while looking for a target letter that was embedded in a preposition, an auxiliary verb or a content word. Results showed the typical MLE with more omissions for the preposition than for the content words. However, the results with the auxiliary verb are less clear. The functional and the syntactic roles of auxiliary verbs in Arabic are discussed.     

Evaluation of a training program using visible speech in German schools for the deaf

The present study provides insight into several technical and computer-aided procedures that can be used with deaf students to improve their speech. A visible speech device combined with a training program was developed and evaluated in six German schools for the deaf. The teachers were initially given special instructions about the work with their students in accordance with our technical and training concept. The students were able to build up a knowledge of visible patterns of spoken sounds, syllables, and words. They used this knowledge to recognize speech errors and to improve their pronunciation. Teachers' experiences were mostly positive. As they said, this device made their work much easier. The results show that visible speech can be used effectively; however, it has to be embedded in a training program that systematically builds up phonological knowledge and considers symbolic meanings from signed and written language.     

近义复合动［～始めち］［～さす］的范畴体系构建

复合动词具有的表达细腻、表述合体、表意严谨的特点使之在使用时所产生的表达效果比单体基础动词更具优势,在日语语言交际中起着至关重要的作用。但由于复合动词的教学目标、讲授方法、评价标准、教材开发,及学习指导系统构建等方面存在的问题,长久以来广大日语学习者一直为复合动词学习项目所困扰。研究以中国中高级日语学习者和日语母语者为调查对象,通过问卷调查和访谈的形式,运用卡方检验和比较分析的方法,明确了日语学习者关于出现频率最高的近义复合动词［～始めち］［～さす］的使用状况,考察了日语学习者与日语母语者关于［～始めち］［～さす］范畴体系的异同,并分析了产生异同的原因,以期对日语教学提供有益的参考。     

英汉“切断”事件动词的语义特征与句法行为对比研究

＂切断＂事件指使构成物体的完整材料被分离或破坏且不可还原的日常事件。作为人类社会重要而普遍的日常活动,＂切断＂事件对人类语言与认知具有重要的影响。依据词典释义和语料库语料对比分析英汉＂切断＂事件动词的语义特征、词化模式、论元转换和体特征之异同。结果显示两种语言的＂切断＂事件动词具有共享的范畴化特征和主要义素,但在次范畴化、语义场结构和词化模式方面存在差异。同时,两种语言间这些动词在论元转换和体特征方面的相似性和差异表明此类动词的句法行为对其语义具有敏感性,丰富了跨语言的动词语义与其句法行为关系方面的研究,并为动词语义决定其句法行为的理论提供了进一步的支持。