Acquisition of "be" by Cantonese ESL Learners in Hong Kong- and its Pedagogical Implications

This book reports the findings of a study concerning acquisition of be by Cantonese ESL learners in Hong Kong. It investigates the relationship between input, knowledge and performance through examining grammaticality judgment data, production data and acceptability judgment data.

The present study examines grammaticality judgment data, production data and acceptability judgment data from 243 Cantonese second language learners and a control group of 12 native English speakers. Research areas concern (a) the role of the first language in the acquisition of be by Cantonese second language learners; (b) the question if properties associated with be remain persistently problematic for Cantonese speakers; (c) developmental stages of the acquisition of be; (d) the relationship between morphology and syntax; and (e) pedagogical implications. No published L2 research has attempted an in-depth theoretical and empirical treatment of both acquisition and teaching subject matters in one single work. This work helps bridge the gap between acquisition theory and language pedagogy research, benefitting not just language learners but language teachers around the world, and all those who would like to witness a collaboration between second language acquisition theory and second language teaching practice in general.

Autorentext

Mable Chan is a lecturer in the Department of English, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. She obtained her B.A. (Hons) degree in English and Translation, MPhil in English (General/Applied Linguistics) and her PhD in Language and Linguistics from the University of Essex (UK). Her research interests are in the areas of second language acquisition, generative grammar and applied linguistics.

Inhalt

Contents: Introduction: Knowledge, Classroom Input and Performance in the Development of Second Languages - Linguistic Assumptions - Literature Review - Methodology - Results - Discussion and Conclusion.