Eliciting child and adolescent data in second language research: Adapting for age and cultural differences. Rhonda Oliver

Participants Children and adolescents Second language/dialect learners Migrant, refugee and Indigenous backgrounds

Type of research Interactional studies, examining:  Negotiation for meaning  Negative/corrective feedback  Effect of task types  Age differences  Impact of context Attitudinal surveys  Bilingual children’s attitudes to L1/L2  Bi-dialectal attitudes to D1/D2 Needs Analysis (NA), including eliciting the perceptions of:  Learners/students  Teachers/lecturers and other school/university staff  Parents/family members/carers  Elders and other Indigenous community members  Employers  Training staff

Tasks for interactional research Examples of research: Negotiation for meaning Oliver, R. (2002). The patterns of negotiation for meaning in child interactions. Modern Language Journal. 86,1, Negative feedback Oliver, R. (1995). Negative feedback in child NS/NNS conversation. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 18(4), Effect of task types Mackey, A., Kanganas, A., & Oliver, R. (2007). Task familiarity and interactional feedback in child ESL classrooms. TESOL Quarterly, 41(2), Age differences Oliver, R. (2000). Age differences in negotiation and feedback in classroom and pair work. Language Learning. 50,1, Impact of context Mackey, A., Oliver, R., & Leeman, J. (2003). Interactional input and the incorporation of feedback: An exploration of NS-NNS and NNS-NNS adult and child dyads. Language Learning, 35(1),

Tasks

How many??

Grid activity

Spot the difference

Tasks: Challenges and innovations Challenges include finding/developing tasks that: Are ecologically valid Are sufficiently challenging to be motivating, but not too difficult for younger learners to complete Contain subject material that is interesting to younger age groups Are linguistically, but also cognitively appropriate (note – this is particularly challenging when making age comparisons) Are culturally inclusive Innovations: Adapting tasks from commercially- and teacher-produced material to use to collect data from younger learners

Attitudinal surveys Examples of research: Oliver, R. & Purdie, N (1998). The attitude of bilingual children to their languages. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 19(3), Oliver, R., Purdie, N., Collard, G. & Rochecouste, J. (2001). Attitudes of Primary School Australian Aboriginal Children to their Linguistic Codes.. SET, NZ. Have a look at these faces: 1 is really happy and feels really good, 2 is happy and feels good 3 is not happy, but not sad either and feels just OK 4 is sad and feels bad 5 is very sad and feels really bad

1.This is how I feel about ……..(L1) when I think about it. a)At home b)In class c)In the playground

2. This is how I feel when I'm using L1. 3.This is how I feel when I do school work in L1 4.This is how I think my friends feel when I use L1. Remember it's how you think your friends feel, not how you feel. 5.This is how I think other kids in my class feel when I use L1 - not your good friends, just other kids 6.This is how I think my teacher feels when I use L1. 8. This is how I think my parents feel when I use L1. If you think your mother and father feel differently put a circle and write M for mother and then put another circle and put F for father - but only do this if the answers are different. 9. This is how I feel about English when I think about it.

Surveys: Challenges and innovations Developing surveys (and procedures) that ensure: The language/concepts are understandable to second language/dialect speakers The language/concepts are understandable to younger learners, especially with regard to their level of metalinguistic awareness Making sure the survey, its content and the way it implemented is culturally appropriate - (e.g., gender, mother vs father) Innovations: Opening up “two way” communication in research (e.g., This is how I feel when I'm using English: In class and at school – not at home!) Using different procedures (i.e., yarning)

NA: Instruments and procedures Examples of research: Oliver, R., Grote, E., Rochecouste, J. & Exell, M. (2012). Addressing the Language and Literacy Needs of Aboriginal High School VET Students who Speak SAE as an Additional Language. Australian Journal of Indigenous Education, 41(2), doi /jie Oliver, R., Grote, E., Rochecouste, J. & Exell, M. (2013). Needs analysis for task-based language teaching: A case study of Indigenous vocational education and training students who speak EAL/EAD. TESOL in Context, 22(2), Oliver, R., Haig, Y., & Grote, E. (2009). Addressing the educational needs of African refugee background students: Perceptions of Western Australian stakeholders. TESOL in Context, 19, 1,

NA: Challenges and innovations Challenges: Building relationships Working in schools Funding Publishing Innovations: Applying research in real situations Tapping into student interests (and ‘when it all comes together’ story)

Tapping into student interests

Thank you

Acknowledgements