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Second Language Writing Systems

Second Language Writing Systems

Prof. Vivian Cook | Benedetta Bassetti

(2005)

Abstract

Second Language Writing Systems looks at how people learn and use a second language writing system, arguing that they are affected by characteristics of the first and second writing systems, to a certain extent independently of the languages involved. This book presents for the first time the effects of writing systems on language reading and writing and on language awareness, and provides a new platform for discussing bilingualism, biliteracy and writing systems.

The approach is interdisciplinary, with contributions not only from applied linguists and psychologists but also corpus linguists, educators and phoneticians. A variety of topics are covered, from handwriting to spelling, word recognition to the mental lexicon, and language textbooks to metalinguistic awareness. Though most of the studies concern adult L2 learners and users, other populations covered include minority children, immersion students and bilingual children. While the emphasis is on English as the L2 writing system, many other writing systems are analysed as L1 or L2: Arabic, Chinese, Dutch, Gujarati, Indonesian, Irish, Italian and Japanese. Approaches that are represented include contrastive analysis, transfer, poststructuralism, connectionism and corpus analysis. The readership is SLA and bilingualism researchers, students and teachers around the world; language teachers will also find much food for thought.


Vivian Cook is Professor in Applied Linguistics at the University of Newcastle, previously having taught in London and Essex. After writing EFL course-books, he concentrated on linguistics and language learning in books such as Chomsky’s Universal Grammar and Second Language Learning and Language Teaching, and developed the concept of multi-competence through books such as Portraits of the L2 User.  He was founding President of the European Second Language Association (EUROSLA) . He has been exploring the English writing system through articles and books such as The English Writing System and Accomodating Brocolli in the Cemetary. 

Benedetta Bassetti holds a PhD from the University of Essex, where she wrote her thesis on Chinese as a Second Language Writing System. She previously has studied oriental languages and applied linguistics in Rome and London. She has presented her research at various international conferences.

Table of Contents

Section Title Page Action Price
Contents v
Acknowledgements vii
Contributors viii
Chapter 1 An Introduction to Researching Second Language Writing Systems 1
Part 1 Writing a Second LanguageWriting System 69
Chapter 2 L2 Japanese Kanji Memory and Retrieval: An Experiment on the Tip-of-the-pen (TOP) Phenomenon 71
Chapter 3 The Role of the Phonological Strategy in Learning to Spell in English as a Second Language 97
Chapter 4 Orthographic Knowledge and First Language Reading: Evidence from Single Word Dictation from Chinese and Malaysian Users of English as a Foreign Language 122
Chapter 5 Learner Corpora and Handwriting 147
Chapter 6 A Corpus-based Study of Spelling Errors of Japanese EFLWriters with Reference to Errors Occurring in Word-initial and Word-.nal Positions 164
Chapter 7 Spelling and Pronunciation in Migrant Children: The Case of Italian-Swiss German Bilinguals 184
Part 2 Reading a Second LanguageWriting System 213
Chapter 8 Are the L1 and L2 Word Reading Processes Affected More by Writing System or Instruction? 215
Chapter 9 Effects of Second Language Reading Pro.ciency and First Language Orthography on Second Language Word Recognition 238
Chapter 10 Bilingual Interactive Activation Models of Word Recognition in a Second Language 260
Chapter 11 The Effect of L1 Reading Processes on L2: A Crosslinguistic Comparison of Italian and Japanese Users of English 289
Part 3 Awareness of Language andSecond Language WritingSystems 309
Chapter 12 Learning to Read Across Writing Systems: Transfer, Metalinguistic Awareness, and Second-language Reading Development 311
Chapter 13 Effects of Writing Systems on Second Language Awareness: Word Awareness in English Learners of Chinese as a Foreign Language 335
Chapter 14 Phonological Awareness and Spelling Skill Development in Bilingual Biscriptal Children 357
Part 4 Teaching a Second LanguageWriting System 373
Chapter 15 Different and Differing Views on Conceptualising Writing System Research and Education 375
Chapter 16 Second Language Writing Systems: Minority Languages and Reluctant Readers 398
Chapter 17 Written Language and Foreign Language Teaching 424
Index 443