Description
Book SynopsisModern languages are offered to young learners at an increasingly early age in many countries; yet few publications have focused on what is available to children in different contexts. This volume fills this gap by documenting the state-of-the-art in researching young language learners using a variety of research methods. It demonstrates how young children progress and benefit from an early exposure to modern languages in different educational contexts, and how affective, cognitive, social, linguistic and classroom-related factors interact in the processes. A special strength is the range of languages: although English is the most widely learnt language, chapters focus on various target languages: Croatian, French, English, German, Italian, Spanish and Ukrainian and the contexts include China, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Norway, Poland, the Ukraine, and the United Kingdom.
Trade ReviewTeaching foreign languages to young learners is currently one of the most exciting challenges for the profession. This volume gathers sixteen papers which span a wide range of topics, including the learners’ cognitive and affective characteristics, their learning processes and outcomes, and the learning conditions inside and outside the classroom. Reporting on a variety of settings and concerns, the papers in this volume will broaden perspectives and give new insights to researchers and teachers in early foreign language programmes.
-- Professor Carmen Muñoz, University of Barcelona, Spain.
Table of ContentsA Third Language at Primary Level in Ireland: An Independent Evaluation of the Modern Languages in Primary Schools Initiative - John Harris and Denise O Leary
Can Today’s Early Language Learners in England Become Tomorrow’s Plurilingual European Citizens? - Janet Enever
Young Learners of Croatian as a Second Language: Minority Language Speakers and their Croatian Competence - Zrinka Jelaska and Lidija Cvikić
Cognitive Skills in Young Learners and their Implications for Foreign Language Learning - Thomaï Alexiou
An Investigation into the Relationship of L2 Motivation and Cross-Cultural Contact Among Elementary-School Students - Kata Csizér and Judit Kormos
The Impact of Learning Conditions on Young FL Learners’ Motivation - Jelena Mihaljević Djigunović
Early Modern Foreign Language Programmes and Outcomes: Factors Contributing to Hungarian Learners’ Proficiency - Marianne Nikolov
Using the Early Years Literacy Programme in Primary EFL Norwegian Classrooms - Ion Drew
The Age Factor and L2 Reading Strategies - Renata Šamo
A Study of FL Composing Process and Writing Strategies Employed by Young Learners - Eleni Griva, Helen Tsakiridou and Ioanna Nihoritou
How do 9-11-Year-Old Croatians Perceive Sounds and Read Aloud in French? - Vanda Marijanović, Nathalie Panissal and Michel Billières
Differences Between the Processes and Outcomes in 3rd Graders’ Learning English and Ukrainian in Hungarian Schools in Beregszász - Ilona Huszti, Márta Fábián and Erzsébet Bárányné Komári
The Growth of Young Learners’ English Vocabulary Size - Andrea Orosz
Factors Influencing Young Learners’ Vocabulary Acquisition - Magdalena Szpotowicz
An Eye on Target Language Use in Elementary English Classrooms in China - Jing Peng and Lily Zhang
What Primary-School Pupils Think About Learning English - Krisztina Nagy
