Task Repetition and Second Language Speech Processing

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between the repetition of oral monologue tasks and immediate gains in L2 fluency. It considers the effect of aural-oral task repetition on speech rate, frequency of clause-final and midclause filled pauses, and overt self-repairs across different task types and proficiency levels and relates these findings to specific stages of L2 speech production (conceptualization, formulation, and monitoring). Thirty-two Japanese learners of English sampled at three levels of proficiency completed three oral communication tasks (instruction, narration, and opinion) six times. Results revealed that immediate aural-oral same task repetition was related to gains in oral fluency regardless of proficiency level or task type. Overall gains in speech rate were the largest across the first three performances of each task type but continued until the fifth performance. More specifically, however, clause-final pauses decreased until the second performance, midclause pauses decreased up to the fourth, and self-repairs decreased only after the fourth performance, indicating that task repetition may have been differentially related to specific stages in the speech production process.

Proficiency‐related variation in syntactic complexity: A study of English L1 and L2 oral descriptive discourse

“…The study thus provides group‐level support that is consistent with previous longitudinal findings by Schmid et al () of L2 learning at the individual level. These results thus contribute to recent research aimed at identifying more developmentally‐based measures of L2 performance (e.g., Lambert et al ; Lambert & Kormos, ; Norris & Ortega, ; Schmid et al ).…”

“…Since the publication of these articles, more specific measures have begun to emerge. In the area of L2 fluency, for example, Lambert, Kormos and Minn ( see also Wang, ) have established more specific measures of fluency which are argued to be related to specific stages of L2 speech processing, thus providing a means of measuring how fluctuations in different aspects of fluency are related to the development of learners' speech processing capacity.…”

Engagement in the Use of English and Chinese as Foreign Languages: The Role of Learner‐Generated Content in Instructional Task Design

“…Finally, three aspects of fluency were calculated: (a) speed fluency (syllables per second in pruned discourse), (b) break‐down fluency (filled and unfilled pauses), and (c) repair fluency (self‐repairs and reformations). Furthermore, filled and unfilled pauses within clauses and between clauses were calculated separately to gain insight into learners’ speech processing during performance (Lambert, Kormos, & Minn, ; Wang, ).…”

“…Initial empirical work on the role of personal investment in the form of LGC with L2 English learners provides support for the hypothesis that LGC will result in increased ELU at the group level (e.g., Aubrey, ; Lambert, ; Lambert, Kormos, & Minn, ; Lambert & Minn, ; Lambert, Philp, et al, ; Phung, ; Stroud, ). Lambert, Philp, and Nakamura (), for example, asked 32 Japanese learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) to relate stories of problems that they (a) actually experienced in the past, (b) wanted to share because they thought they were either funny or interesting, and (c) thought that the partner they were working with would enjoy hearing. Their performances on these narratives were compared to their performances on pre‐planned narratives based on picture‐strip stories depicting relevant problems in the learners’ cultural milieu (i.e., graffiti, voting) and ways in which their compatriots had solved these problems.…”

“…24–27). If learners are completing a generic picture‐strip narration task in which shop owners are discussing how to solve a graffiti problem (see Lambert et al., ), their primary goal is to let their partner tell the story rather than to understand the details and circumstances surrounding the fictitious events she is describing. Consequently, they generally tend to simply state the facts rather than add additional information or inquire about details.…”