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Part of
Processability and Language Acquisition in the Asia-Pacific Region
Edited by Satomi Kawaguchi, Bruno Di Biase and Yumiko Yamaguchi
[Processability Approaches to Language Acquisition Research & Teaching 9] 2023
► pp. 233–259

Chapter 9
Developmentally moderated focus on form in an Indonesian kindergarten EFL programme

| K.H. Abdurrahman Wahid State Islamic University of Pekalongan | Western Sydney University
| Western Sydney University
| Western Sydney University
| Western Sydney University

This study investigates the effect of Developmentally Moderated Focus on Form (DMFonF) focusing on plural marking in English L2 in Indonesian kindergarten children. Before the study, these children learned English through a communicative programme. The study, designed within the Processability Theory framework, included a pre-test, DMFonF intervention, and post-test. Two kindergarten classes, K1 (first-year, n = 10) and K2 (second-year, n = 10), participated in the study. At pre-test, all children were at the single-word stage. That was after K1 children learned English for one semester and K2 for three semesters. After the one semester-DMFonF intervention, all children acquired lexical plural marking, and most of them also acquired phrasal plural agreement. This finding suggests that DMFonF is effective in promoting early L2 grammatical development.

Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Expressions of plurality in Indonesian and English
  • 3.Studies on the acquisition of plural marking in English as a second language (ESL)
  • 4.Theoretical frameworks
    • 4.1Processability Theory and Teachability Hypothesis
    • 4.2Focus on Form
    • 4.3Developmentally moderated focus on form (DMFonF)
  • 5.Research design
  • 6.Results
    • 6.1Lexical development at pre-test and post-test
    • 6.2Grammatical development at pre-test and post-test
      • 6.2.1The baseline from the meaning-based programme
      • 6.2.2The Post-test results after DMFonF intervention
  • 7.Discussion
  • 8.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 2 February 2023
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/palart.9.09har
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