This article examines the third language (L3) developing morphology of 78 Basque-Spanish bilinguals following a Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) program and a mainstream English as a ...foreign language (non-CLIL) program. The analysis of cross-sectional and longitudinal oral data shows that (1) the omission of inflection in the L3 English interlanguage of these groups of learners is due to problems with the realization of surface morphology, (2) there is a dissociation in frequency of suppliance between suppletive inflection (copula and auxiliary be) and affixal inflection (the third person morpheme -s and the past tense morpheme -ed) already attested in L2 data, and (3) no significant differences were found between the two groups tested as far as the development of suppletive and affixal tense and agreement morphemes. The overall findings seem to support full-UG explanations for the variable use of morphology in the acquisition of non-native systems.
Studies on multi-stage writing tasks with adults and children have shown that model texts and task repetition aid language acquisition, especially when learners work in collaboration. However, these ...studies have not included measures of task motivation, which is vital in young learners (YLs) and could help develop a more comprehensive understanding of task effectiveness. The present study analyses task motivation in 24 EFL YLs writing in pairs during three sessions divided into a model group (MG) and a task repetition group (TRG). Results show that students' task motivation is high in general but declines in the MG while it is maintained in the TRG. As for the motives, working together is the main reason students give to justify their positive scores. These results complete previous knowledge about models and TR, reinforce the value of collaborative writing and encourage the inclusion of motivation measures in task-based research.
Investigaciones previas han concluido que las TIC se emplean escasamente en las aulas de Educación Infantil y Primaria debido en parte a una insuficiente formación en TIC. Este estudio explora su uso ...y la validez de una propuesta de formación basándose en una encuesta completada por dos grupos de estudiantes durante su periodo de prácticas. Los resultados indican un uso más frecuente de herramientas tradicionales que de colaborativas y sugieren que un curso específico de TIC dota al alumnado de un kit de herramientas más amplio, favorece una opinión crítica sobre su uso y genera voluntad de intervención.
One of the main aims of diverse education systems is the development of key competences to improve citizens' capacity for lifelong learning. However, some authors have signalled the challenge their ...measurement entails, among them the Learning to Learn (LtL) competence, which has also been shown to be complex to define and is under research. With a pre-post-test design and a variety of assessment instruments, this study compares the effect having an educational technology course and using telecollaboration has on the development of the LtL competence in a content and language integrated (CLIL) learning environment. Four groups of teacher trainees at two different universities took initial and after treatment surveys on LtL. Quantitative and qualitative data analysis indicated that technology boosts LtL but that telecollaboration helps develop LtL reflective concepts further in the form of processes by constructing or accomplishing learning goals in similar contexts.
La activación o acceso a conocimientos previos parece esencial para promover un aprendizaje significativo. Este estudio analiza los efectos de la activación de conocimientos previos en vocabulario y ...gramática en hablantes de ILE de secundaria. Con un diseño pre-post-prueba, se comparó el desempeño de un grupo experimental que había trabajado con actividades de activación del vocabulario y la gramática durante 10 sesiones con un grupo de control paralelo. Los datos analizados se obtuvieron de: (1) una pre y post-prueba de vocabulario y gramática; (2) un pre-post-examen de la unidad del libro de texto; (3) un cuestionario de satisfacción post tratamiento. Los análisis confirmaron los beneficios de la activación puesto que el alumnado experimental produjo más ítems léxicos y obtuvo mejor puntuación en todas las pruebas. Asimismo, los resultados de los ejercicios gramaticales sugieren beneficios para el aprendizaje gramatical. Además, el grupo experimental mostró una actitud positiva y expresaron sus deseos de continuar con las actividades.
Varios estudios han mostrado que repetir la misma tarea con diferente conteni-do, lo que se denomina repetición procedimental (RP), ayuda a prestar atención a la forma y al desarrollo sintáctico. ...Asimismo, la RP es común y apropiada para el aula. Este experimen-to investiga los efectos de la RP en la producción de 5 parejas de niños españoles (11 años) aprendiendo inglés como lengua extranjera en un colegio y con un nivel de principiante. Las parejas construyeron y narraron tres historias, una cada semana, siguiendo un procedimiento similar. El análisis de la complejidad, precisión y fluidez de sus narraciones muestra que la RP no tiene un impacto significativo en las narraciones de los estudiantes, excepto en el caso de la diversidad léxica, que mejora en la tercera narración. A la luz de los resultados, se discuten las posibilidades de la RP con niños.
It has been claimed that the repetition of the same task type with different content, known as procedural repetition (PR), seems to offer opportunities to focus on form and develop syntactic ...complexity. At the same time, PR is common and deemed appropriate for the language classroom. This quasi-experimental study explores the effects of PR on the overall production of 5 pairs of young Spanish EFL (age 11) learners in a school context with a beginner level of English. The pairs co-constructed and narrated three stories following the same procedure at three testing times over a three-week period. The analysis of the complex-ity, accuracy, and fluency of their narratives shows that, unlike previous studies, PR does not have any significant impact on the students’ performance, except for lexical density, which increases in the third attempt. In light of these results, the validity of PR for child populations is discussed.
Robot-assisted surgery overcomes some of the limitations of traditional laparoscopic surgery. We present our experience and lessons learned in two surgical units dedicated to gastro-esophageal ...surgery. From June 2009 to January 2013, we performed 130 robot-assisted gastroesophageal procedures, including Nissen fundoplication (29), paraesophageal hernia repair (18), redo for failed antireflux surgery (11), esophagectomy (19), subtotal (5) or wedge (4) gastrectomy, Heller myotomy for achalasia (22), gastric bypass for morbid obesity (12), thoracoscopic leiomyomectomy (4), Morgagni hernia repair (3), lower-third esophageal diverticulectomy (1) and two diagnostic procedures. There were 80 men and 50 women with a median age of 54 years (interquartile range: 46–65). Ten patients (7.7 %) had severe postoperative complications: eight after esophagectomy (three leaks—two cervical and one thoracic—managed conservatively), one stapler failure, one chylothorax, one case of gastric migration to the thorax, one case of biliary peritonitis, and one patient with a transient ventricular dyskinesia. One redo procedure needed reoperation because of port-site bleeding, and one patient died of pulmonary complications after a giant paraesophageal hernia repair; 30-day mortality was, therefore, 0.8 %. There were six elective and one forced conversions (hemorrhage), so total conversion was 5.4 %. Median length of stay was 4 days (IQ range 3–7). Robot-assisted gastroesophageal surgery is feasible and safe, and may be applied to most common procedures. It seems of particular value for Heller myotomy, large paraesophageal hernias, redo antireflux surgery, transhiatal dissection, and hand-sewn intrathoracic anastomosis.
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