TASK / Journal on Task-Based Language Teaching and Learning
This study aims to investigate whether a short training, during which a group of native Italian u... more This study aims to investigate whether a short training, during which a group of native Italian university students used the scale for Functional Adequacy (FA) developed by Kuiken and Vedder (2017) to assess texts written by their peers and their own texts, lead them to improve their L1 writing skills. The participants were assigned to an experimental (N = 15) and a control group (N = 15). A pre-test / treatment / post-test design was adopted. Results showed that the participants in the experimental condition benefited from the instructional treatment, but the gains they had in comparison to the control group were not statistically significant.
Advances in educational technologies and instructional design book series, May 5, 2023
This study aims to triangulate the results of the pragmalinguistic analysis of L1/L2 English crit... more This study aims to triangulate the results of the pragmalinguistic analysis of L1/L2 English criticisms and suggestions carried out in a previous study (Del Bono & Nuzzo, 2021) with the ratings of speakers of US English. Five students from a Californian university were asked to rate the pragmatic appropriateness of three Italian learners’ and four L1 or highly proficient speakers’ use of English during the peer feedback discussion phases of e-tandem interactions. A pragmatic assessment questionnaire was purposely developed for the rating, and the raters were trained to focus on the pragmatic aspects of the speakers’ productions. The study did not confirm the evidence for incidental pragmatics learning emerged in Del Bono and Nuzzo. However, the triangulation of findings revealed that the raters focused on the same features addressed in the previous analysis.
Instant-message requests produced by intermediate learners (N ¼ 60) of Italian as a second langua... more Instant-message requests produced by intermediate learners (N ¼ 60) of Italian as a second language (L2) with Austrian German as their first language (L1) were quantitatively analyzed and compared with the same speech acts performed by L1 speakers of Italian (N ¼ 60). A cross-cultural comparison of requests in L1 Austrian German and L1 Italian was conducted firstly to verify whether any divergent trends in the two groups could be attributed to negative pragmatic transfer from the learners' L1. Cross-linguistic data were gathered through a multiple-choice questionnaire, L1 and L2 data through a discourse completion task. The analysis revealed minimal differences between L1 speakers of Italian and Austrian German in perceiving the most appropriate way to structure the request in terms of directness level and use of face-saving strategies. A substantial alignment of learners' realizations with those of L1 speakers was found in the overall structuring of the request, except that L1 speakers exhibited a stronger tendency to apologize. As for the use of modifiers, small differences were found in the total number as well as in the preference for some types over others. The findings suggest that any effects of transfer from L1 Austrian German to L2 Italian are generally positive.
S. Di Sarno-García, S. Montaner-Villalba, & A. Gimeno-Sanz (Eds.), Telecollaboration Applications in Foreign Language Classrooms, 2023
This study aims to triangulate the results of the pragmalinguistic analysis of L1/L2 English crit... more This study aims to triangulate the results of the pragmalinguistic analysis of L1/L2 English criticisms and suggestions carried out in a previous study (Del Bono & Nuzzo, 2021) with the ratings of speakers of US English. Five students from a Californian university were asked to rate the pragmatic appropriateness of three Italian learners’ and four L1 or highly proficient speakers’ use of English during the peer feedback discussion phases of e-tandem interactions. A pragmatic assessment questionnaire was purposely developed for the rating, and the raters were trained to focus on the pragmatic aspects of the speakers’ productions. The study did not confirm the evidence for incidental pragmatics learning emerged in Del Bono and Nuzzo. However, the triangulation of findings revealed that the raters focused on the same features addressed in the previous analysis.
The study compares how native speakers of German from the area of Innsbruck (Austria) and native ... more The study compares how native speakers of German from the area of Innsbruck (Austria) and native speakers of Italian from the area of Rome (Italy) perceive the communicative act of backing out of an invitation for dinner at the last minute, in a situation of low social distance. The purpose of the study is twofold: to shed light on the orientation of Austrian German and Italian languages/cultures in terms of linguistic politeness, and to expand empirical cross-cultural research to a less-commonly investigated speech act. Data collected by means of a discourse completion task (DCT) are triangulated with responses to an assessment question and metapragmatic comments, and analyzed following a quantitative approach. The analysis of the DCT findings shows some cross-group differences in the choice of speech act realization strategies and internal modifiers. However, the overall results reveal more similarities than differences between the two populations regarding the informants' perception of face threat in last-minute cancellations. This seems to disprove the idea that the two groups belong to different cultural frameworks in terms of politeness orientation, at least as far as it concerns the specific speech act under investigation.
The study compares how native speakers of German from the area of Innsbruck (Austria) and native ... more The study compares how native speakers of German from the area of Innsbruck (Austria) and native speakers of Italian from the area of Rome (Italy) perceive the communicative act of backing out of an invitation for dinner at the last minute, in a situation of low social distance. The purpose of the study is twofold: to shed light on the orientation of Austrian German and Italian languages/cultures in terms of linguistic politeness, and to expand empirical cross-cultural research to a less-commonly investigated speech act. Data collected by means of a discourse completion task (DCT) are triangulated with responses to an assessment question and metapragmatic comments, and analyzed following a quantitative approach. The analysis of the DCT findings shows some cross-group differences in the choice of speech act realization strategies and internal modifiers. However, the overall results reveal more similarities than differences between the two populations regarding the informants' perception of face threat in last-minute cancellations. This seems to disprove the idea that the two groups belong to different cultural frameworks in terms of politeness orientation, at least as far as it concerns the specific speech act under investigation.
ASMOD 2018 : Proceedings of the Advanced Statistical Modelling for Ordinal Data Conference : Naples, 24-26 October 2018, 2018
A proposal of a procedure to measure interrater absolute agreement for ordinal scales is provided... more A proposal of a procedure to measure interrater absolute agreement for ordinal scales is provided capitalizing on the dispersion index for ordinal variables proposed by Giuseppe Leti. The procedure allows to avoid the problem of restriction of variance that sometimes affects traditional measures of interrater agreement in different fields of application. Rating data on a Likert scale regarding a study of assessment of language proficiency conducted at Roma Tre University are used for a comparison of the new procedure with some known measures of interrater absolute agreement.
In this paper we assess the effectiveness of a set of tasks specifically devised for elicitating ... more In this paper we assess the effectiveness of a set of tasks specifically devised for elicitating two Italian interlanguage structures, namely passive and object topicalisation. These structures occur rarely in natural conversations because they are highly dependent on discourse-pragmatic choices. Therefore, in order to ensure good data density we cannot rely on naturally occurring speech, and need an elicitation instrument that prevents learners from choosing options other than the targeted ones. After briefly presenting the structures and the task design, we discuss the results of the validation procedure showing the strengths and weaknesses of our elicitation instrument. On the basis of the results, we suggest how it could be improved
Ripensare l’insegnamento delle lingue straniere a partire dall’esperienza della didattica a distanza, 2021
EN This paper focuses on peer written corrective feedback (PWCF), a pedagogic device whose potent... more EN This paper focuses on peer written corrective feedback (PWCF), a pedagogic device whose potential appears still underexploited in second language teaching in Italian schools and universities. Specifically, we aim to contribute to the body of research on the benefits of PWCF as a learning activity for the development of metalinguistic reflection in peer-to-peer native/non-native online communication. Using a sample of tandem interactions between US learners of Italian and Italian learners of English, we conducted a qualitative analysis of the explanations of linguistic phenomena provided by native speakers when commenting on errors after giving corrective feedback on their non-native partners’ pieces of L2 writing. The data analysis confirmed that the feedback-discussing tasks pushed native/non-native peers to actively reflect on both source and target language, engaging in metalinguistic discussions and utilizing cross-linguistic knowledge. Key words: WRITTEN CORRECTIVE FEEDBACK,...
Il volume raccoglie il frutto di un lavoro condotto presso il Centro Linguistico di Ateneo dell&#... more Il volume raccoglie il frutto di un lavoro condotto presso il Centro Linguistico di Ateneo dell'Università Roma Tre dal marzo 2015, all'interno di un gruppo di ricerca sul Task-based Language Teaching. Si tratta di un percorso di ricerca-azione nel quale i membri del gruppo – docenti di lingua, ricercatori, studenti universitari – hanno esplorato questa prospettiva di insegnamento sia nei suoi principi teorici sia nelle sue applicazioni pratiche. Nei sei contributi che compongono il volume si cerca di proporre una visione critica e non prescrittiva, fermo restando che il nostro punto di riferimento essenziale – il task appunto – ha caratteristiche imprescindibili per essere definito tale nell'ambito dell'attività didattica. Il volume si rivolge prevalentemente a studenti universitari di discipline linguistiche e a insegnanti in servizio e in formazione.
TASK / Journal on Task-Based Language Teaching and Learning
This study aims to investigate whether a short training, during which a group of native Italian u... more This study aims to investigate whether a short training, during which a group of native Italian university students used the scale for Functional Adequacy (FA) developed by Kuiken and Vedder (2017) to assess texts written by their peers and their own texts, lead them to improve their L1 writing skills. The participants were assigned to an experimental (N = 15) and a control group (N = 15). A pre-test / treatment / post-test design was adopted. Results showed that the participants in the experimental condition benefited from the instructional treatment, but the gains they had in comparison to the control group were not statistically significant.
Advances in educational technologies and instructional design book series, May 5, 2023
This study aims to triangulate the results of the pragmalinguistic analysis of L1/L2 English crit... more This study aims to triangulate the results of the pragmalinguistic analysis of L1/L2 English criticisms and suggestions carried out in a previous study (Del Bono & Nuzzo, 2021) with the ratings of speakers of US English. Five students from a Californian university were asked to rate the pragmatic appropriateness of three Italian learners’ and four L1 or highly proficient speakers’ use of English during the peer feedback discussion phases of e-tandem interactions. A pragmatic assessment questionnaire was purposely developed for the rating, and the raters were trained to focus on the pragmatic aspects of the speakers’ productions. The study did not confirm the evidence for incidental pragmatics learning emerged in Del Bono and Nuzzo. However, the triangulation of findings revealed that the raters focused on the same features addressed in the previous analysis.
Instant-message requests produced by intermediate learners (N ¼ 60) of Italian as a second langua... more Instant-message requests produced by intermediate learners (N ¼ 60) of Italian as a second language (L2) with Austrian German as their first language (L1) were quantitatively analyzed and compared with the same speech acts performed by L1 speakers of Italian (N ¼ 60). A cross-cultural comparison of requests in L1 Austrian German and L1 Italian was conducted firstly to verify whether any divergent trends in the two groups could be attributed to negative pragmatic transfer from the learners' L1. Cross-linguistic data were gathered through a multiple-choice questionnaire, L1 and L2 data through a discourse completion task. The analysis revealed minimal differences between L1 speakers of Italian and Austrian German in perceiving the most appropriate way to structure the request in terms of directness level and use of face-saving strategies. A substantial alignment of learners' realizations with those of L1 speakers was found in the overall structuring of the request, except that L1 speakers exhibited a stronger tendency to apologize. As for the use of modifiers, small differences were found in the total number as well as in the preference for some types over others. The findings suggest that any effects of transfer from L1 Austrian German to L2 Italian are generally positive.
S. Di Sarno-García, S. Montaner-Villalba, & A. Gimeno-Sanz (Eds.), Telecollaboration Applications in Foreign Language Classrooms, 2023
This study aims to triangulate the results of the pragmalinguistic analysis of L1/L2 English crit... more This study aims to triangulate the results of the pragmalinguistic analysis of L1/L2 English criticisms and suggestions carried out in a previous study (Del Bono & Nuzzo, 2021) with the ratings of speakers of US English. Five students from a Californian university were asked to rate the pragmatic appropriateness of three Italian learners’ and four L1 or highly proficient speakers’ use of English during the peer feedback discussion phases of e-tandem interactions. A pragmatic assessment questionnaire was purposely developed for the rating, and the raters were trained to focus on the pragmatic aspects of the speakers’ productions. The study did not confirm the evidence for incidental pragmatics learning emerged in Del Bono and Nuzzo. However, the triangulation of findings revealed that the raters focused on the same features addressed in the previous analysis.
The study compares how native speakers of German from the area of Innsbruck (Austria) and native ... more The study compares how native speakers of German from the area of Innsbruck (Austria) and native speakers of Italian from the area of Rome (Italy) perceive the communicative act of backing out of an invitation for dinner at the last minute, in a situation of low social distance. The purpose of the study is twofold: to shed light on the orientation of Austrian German and Italian languages/cultures in terms of linguistic politeness, and to expand empirical cross-cultural research to a less-commonly investigated speech act. Data collected by means of a discourse completion task (DCT) are triangulated with responses to an assessment question and metapragmatic comments, and analyzed following a quantitative approach. The analysis of the DCT findings shows some cross-group differences in the choice of speech act realization strategies and internal modifiers. However, the overall results reveal more similarities than differences between the two populations regarding the informants' perception of face threat in last-minute cancellations. This seems to disprove the idea that the two groups belong to different cultural frameworks in terms of politeness orientation, at least as far as it concerns the specific speech act under investigation.
The study compares how native speakers of German from the area of Innsbruck (Austria) and native ... more The study compares how native speakers of German from the area of Innsbruck (Austria) and native speakers of Italian from the area of Rome (Italy) perceive the communicative act of backing out of an invitation for dinner at the last minute, in a situation of low social distance. The purpose of the study is twofold: to shed light on the orientation of Austrian German and Italian languages/cultures in terms of linguistic politeness, and to expand empirical cross-cultural research to a less-commonly investigated speech act. Data collected by means of a discourse completion task (DCT) are triangulated with responses to an assessment question and metapragmatic comments, and analyzed following a quantitative approach. The analysis of the DCT findings shows some cross-group differences in the choice of speech act realization strategies and internal modifiers. However, the overall results reveal more similarities than differences between the two populations regarding the informants' perception of face threat in last-minute cancellations. This seems to disprove the idea that the two groups belong to different cultural frameworks in terms of politeness orientation, at least as far as it concerns the specific speech act under investigation.
ASMOD 2018 : Proceedings of the Advanced Statistical Modelling for Ordinal Data Conference : Naples, 24-26 October 2018, 2018
A proposal of a procedure to measure interrater absolute agreement for ordinal scales is provided... more A proposal of a procedure to measure interrater absolute agreement for ordinal scales is provided capitalizing on the dispersion index for ordinal variables proposed by Giuseppe Leti. The procedure allows to avoid the problem of restriction of variance that sometimes affects traditional measures of interrater agreement in different fields of application. Rating data on a Likert scale regarding a study of assessment of language proficiency conducted at Roma Tre University are used for a comparison of the new procedure with some known measures of interrater absolute agreement.
In this paper we assess the effectiveness of a set of tasks specifically devised for elicitating ... more In this paper we assess the effectiveness of a set of tasks specifically devised for elicitating two Italian interlanguage structures, namely passive and object topicalisation. These structures occur rarely in natural conversations because they are highly dependent on discourse-pragmatic choices. Therefore, in order to ensure good data density we cannot rely on naturally occurring speech, and need an elicitation instrument that prevents learners from choosing options other than the targeted ones. After briefly presenting the structures and the task design, we discuss the results of the validation procedure showing the strengths and weaknesses of our elicitation instrument. On the basis of the results, we suggest how it could be improved
Ripensare l’insegnamento delle lingue straniere a partire dall’esperienza della didattica a distanza, 2021
EN This paper focuses on peer written corrective feedback (PWCF), a pedagogic device whose potent... more EN This paper focuses on peer written corrective feedback (PWCF), a pedagogic device whose potential appears still underexploited in second language teaching in Italian schools and universities. Specifically, we aim to contribute to the body of research on the benefits of PWCF as a learning activity for the development of metalinguistic reflection in peer-to-peer native/non-native online communication. Using a sample of tandem interactions between US learners of Italian and Italian learners of English, we conducted a qualitative analysis of the explanations of linguistic phenomena provided by native speakers when commenting on errors after giving corrective feedback on their non-native partners’ pieces of L2 writing. The data analysis confirmed that the feedback-discussing tasks pushed native/non-native peers to actively reflect on both source and target language, engaging in metalinguistic discussions and utilizing cross-linguistic knowledge. Key words: WRITTEN CORRECTIVE FEEDBACK,...
Il volume raccoglie il frutto di un lavoro condotto presso il Centro Linguistico di Ateneo dell&#... more Il volume raccoglie il frutto di un lavoro condotto presso il Centro Linguistico di Ateneo dell'Università Roma Tre dal marzo 2015, all'interno di un gruppo di ricerca sul Task-based Language Teaching. Si tratta di un percorso di ricerca-azione nel quale i membri del gruppo – docenti di lingua, ricercatori, studenti universitari – hanno esplorato questa prospettiva di insegnamento sia nei suoi principi teorici sia nelle sue applicazioni pratiche. Nei sei contributi che compongono il volume si cerca di proporre una visione critica e non prescrittiva, fermo restando che il nostro punto di riferimento essenziale – il task appunto – ha caratteristiche imprescindibili per essere definito tale nell'ambito dell'attività didattica. Il volume si rivolge prevalentemente a studenti universitari di discipline linguistiche e a insegnanti in servizio e in formazione.
La popolazione dei parlanti non nativi per i quali si rende necessario misurare la competenza lin... more La popolazione dei parlanti non nativi per i quali si rende necessario misurare la competenza linguistica in italiano come lingua seconda (L2) è significativamente cresciuta, dentro e fuori l’Italia. È quindi essenziale riflettere sulla valutazione con un’attenta definizione degli aspetti da misurare, anche tenendo conto delle importanti ricadute che i suoi esiti possono avere non solo sul tipo di apprendimento, ma anche sulla vita degli individui coinvolti. Nasce da queste considerazioni l’esigenza di raccogliere in un volume contributi di studiosi che portano avanti ricerche sul tema per riflettere su diversi aspetti della valutazione, focalizzandosi sulla competenza morfosintattica e pragmatico-comunicativa, ma anche sulla misurazione più globale della competenza linguistica in italiano L2. Il volume si propone di favorire l’incontro tra ricerca e pratica didattica e di stimolare l’osservazione e la problematizzazione sia di ciò che si valuta che del modo in cui lo si fa.
Il volume riporta i risultati di un esperimento didattico finalizzato
a esplorare le possibili ap... more Il volume riporta i risultati di un esperimento didattico finalizzato a esplorare le possibili applicazioni dell’insegnamento della L2 secondo la prospettiva del focus on form nella realtà multilingue della scuola primaria. La sperimentazione ha coinvolto tre classi intere di seconda elementare, anche se i destinatari principali erano soltanto alcuni dei bambini cui è stato somministrato il trattamento didattico: un gruppo di apprendenti cinesi che, dopo due anni di scolarizzazione in Italia, manifestavano ancora una scarsa competenza grammaticale a fronte di una buona capacità di comunicare con i pari e con gli insegnanti. I risultati positivi della sperimentazione suggeriscono che brevi e regolari sessioni di italiano L2 basate sul focus on form sono benefiche per lo sviluppo dell’interlingua di bambini migranti e possono efficacemente essere applicate alla classe multilingue.
This volume is the result of the work carried out by the research group on Task-based Language Te... more This volume is the result of the work carried out by the research group on Task-based Language Teaching (TBLT) since March 2015 at the Language Center of Roma Tre University. From the action research perspective, the members of the group –language teachers, researchers, university students– have explored TBLT both in its theoretical principles and in its practical applications. The six contributions collected in the book take a critical and non-prescriptive view of teaching, provided that our essential point of reference –the task– has peculiarities that make it unique and distinguishable in second language instruction. The volume is mainly addressed to university students of languages, as well as to prospective and in-service teachers.
Instructed Second Language Acquisition welcomes the submission of papers for Issue 4(1), to be pu... more Instructed Second Language Acquisition welcomes the submission of papers for Issue 4(1), to be published in May 2020. Researchers are invited to submit their manuscripts by June 30, 2019. Please follow the submission guidelines on ISLA website (https://journals.equinoxpub.com/index.php/ISLA/index) and do not hesitate to contact us for any questions.
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purposely developed for the rating, and the raters were trained to focus on the pragmatic aspects of the speakers’ productions. The study did not confirm the evidence for incidental pragmatics learning emerged in Del Bono and Nuzzo. However, the triangulation of findings revealed that the raters focused on the same features addressed in the previous analysis.
purposely developed for the rating, and the raters were trained to focus on the pragmatic aspects of the speakers’ productions. The study did not confirm the evidence for incidental pragmatics learning emerged in Del Bono and Nuzzo. However, the triangulation of findings revealed that the raters focused on the same features addressed in the previous analysis.
a esplorare le possibili applicazioni dell’insegnamento della L2 secondo la prospettiva del focus on form nella realtà multilingue della scuola primaria. La sperimentazione ha coinvolto tre classi intere di seconda elementare, anche se i destinatari principali erano soltanto alcuni dei bambini cui è stato somministrato il trattamento didattico: un gruppo di apprendenti cinesi che, dopo due anni di scolarizzazione in Italia, manifestavano ancora una scarsa competenza grammaticale a fronte di
una buona capacità di comunicare con i pari e con gli insegnanti.
I risultati positivi della sperimentazione suggeriscono che brevi e regolari sessioni di italiano L2 basate sul focus on form sono benefiche per lo sviluppo dell’interlingua di bambini migranti e possono efficacemente essere applicate alla classe multilingue.