Chapter 5
The role of late-acquired structures in advanced oral
proficiency
A consideration of complexity and variability as indicators of
development
The present chapter focuses on one aspect of
Byrnes & Ortega’s
(2008) description of advancedness; it considers the
notion of structural command, not merely in terms of accuracy, but
also the multifunctional use of late-acquired complex structures,
which we assert provides another window through which we should
observe interlanguage (IL) development and advanced oral production.
It defines late-acquired structures as those that consist of complex
(multiple) form-meaning associations and are only learned once IL
development has reached a stage in which L2 learners are able to
notice, process, and produce target language on a multifunctional
level involving multiple linguistic systems. This definition allows
us to problematize advanced grammar in terms of how we identify it
and how we understand advancedness.
Article outline
- Grammatical complexity, multifunctionality, and the
concept-oriented approach
- Concept-oriented advanced grammar
- Advanced tense and aspect: An exemplary study
- Advanced use of (in)direct objects: An exemplary study
- Variationist research and advancedness
- Advanced L2 mood selection: An exemplary study
- Advanced inflectional morphology
- The role of late-acquired structures: Problems, challenges, and possibilities
-
Notes
-
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