German light verb constructions are especially challenging for advanced L2 learners because of the abstract meaning of the different verbs and the high degree of lexico-grammatical variety. Acknowledging that language is a symbolic system representing humans’ perception of the world and is thus strongly linked to embodied experiences, this study explores the potential of bodily engagement in the form of multimedia animations for leveraging the learning of embodied concepts related to light verb constructions. To this end, thirty-nine French-speaking learners of German were divided into two groups: The first group worked with animations illustrating the embodied nature of light verb constructions and performed specific tasks that set out to trigger mental simulation of relevant embodied concepts; the second group was presented with form-based explanations and completed tasks focusing on the different categories of light verb constructions. The results show that the use of bodily engagement in the form of multimedia animations led to significantly better performance and contributed to some extent to changing students’ attitudes about how grammar can best be learned.

In order to test the efficacy of using cooperation scripts in combination with animations to teach the passive in an advanced language classroom, we designed an intervention study with two groups. The first group received instruction with animations on the grammatical structure of the passive and the second group received the same instruction and animations as the first group, but in addition they were given a cooperation script to use in their small group work. The study uses a quasi-experimental design with a post-test and delayed post-test. The learners were university students in advanced German who had received classroom instruction and spent time in a German-speaking country. Therefore, they had explicit instruction on the morphology and function of the passive as is customary in first- and second-year textbooks for English-speaking learners. This study shows that students with the cooperation script perform better on open-ended tasks than students who worked independently.

The present study investigates to what extent the effect of cross-linguistic differences on L2 idiom comprehension is modulated by the presence of a context. Sixty students of German as a foreign language (L1 French) completed a comprehension test consisting of metaphorical idioms in the L2 that differed from their L1 equivalents conceptually and formally and were presented with or without context. The results show that an increasing degree of conceptual and formal distance as well as the absence of context are generally associated with lower performance in the idiom comprehension test. However, the analysis of interactions shows that the presence of the context was especially supportive for conceptually different items, whereas the facilitative effect of formal similarity considerably diminished with increasing conceptual distance.

This article explores to what extent a stay-abroad experience of L2 learners leads to more productive use of contextual clues and better benefits from frequency effects in L2 idiom comprehension. To this end, seventy-two learners of German (L1 French) were presented with a test on idiom comprehension that contained items both with and without a context and differing degrees of frequency. Furthermore, the participants completed a questionnaire on their stay-abroad experience (length of stay, country, etc.) as well as providing other data from their linguistic biography (language proficiency level, other languages, etc.). The results show that participants with a stay-abroad experience neither outperformed those without such an experience nor benefited from frequency effects and the presence of context. However, frequency was found to positively affect performance for items presented in context.

Despite the need for transparency and efficiency in explaining grammatical features to learners of a foreign language only very few systematic attempts have been undertaken to demonstrate the pedagogical added value of concept-based approaches to grammar instruction. The purpose of the paper is (1) to discuss the theoretical underpinnings of such an approach, to (2) present relevant theories of multimedia learning and (3) to summarize some empirical evidence on the efficiency of such an approach to language teaching and learning. The concept-based animated grammar, developed for German, uses a broad range of cognitive linguistic principles for foreign language learning in such areas as, for example, modal verbs or the passive voice.