ESCUELA DE DOCTORADO

 
Tesis Doctorales de la Universidad de Alcalá
COUNTERACTING REVERSE TRANSFER AND MISTAKES IN WRITTEN IDENTIFICATION AND WRITTEN PRODUCTION CONTEXTS IN L1 IN NATIVE SPANISH STUDENTS FOLLOWING THE ENGLISH NATIONAL CURRICULUM IN SPAIN
Autor/aCano Fernandez, Eva
DepartamentoFilología Moderna
Director/aMegías Rosa, Manuel
Codirector/aTejedor Martínez, Cristina
Fecha de defensa05/09/2019
CalificaciónSobresaliente Cum Laude
ProgramaLenguas Modernas: Investig. en Lingüística, Literat., Cultura y Traducción (RD 99/2011)
Mención internacionalNo
ResumenThe presence of lexical and grammatical interferences in the L1 from the L2 is a generalised phenomenon in bilingual educational contexts in Spain. The purpose of this study is the creation and validation of a `Method¿ of exercises aimed at raising students¿ self-awareness regarding reverse transfer and mistake identification and production in their L1. This research study has been carried out in two different educational contexts. On the one hand, in a private British school in the Region of Madrid which follows the English National Curriculum, and, on the other, in a state school following the Region of Madrid English-Spanish Bilingual Program. The results arising from this empirical study address the four main objectives pursued in this work. Firstly, the attitudes and perceptions towards the L1 and L2 of native Spanish students from the two educational systems subject of this study are compared. Secondly, the level of self-awareness regarding reverse transfer and mistake identification in texts written in the students¿ L1 is measured. Thirdly, the written production in terms of reverse transfer in lexis and grammar, and mistakes in L1, is compared and contrasted between the students from both educational systems. Finally, the effectiveness of the `Method¿ to counteract interferences and mistakes present in identification and production exercises in the British school students¿ L1 is measured. The students selected to take part in this study belong to the same/equivalent key stage and year in both educational systems: the British school students are in Year 8 (Key Stage 3), and their state school counterparts in First of E.S.O. (Secondary Education). In the British school the students were divided into two groups: on the one hand, the target group and, on the other, the internal control group. The state school students constituted a single group known as the external control group. All the students took the `Diagnostic test¿ to measure the starting point in terms of reverse transfer and mistake identification in L1, as well as the presence of such transfers and mistakes in their L1 written production. The `Method¿ was applied only on the target group. During the application of the `Method¿, both the target group and the internal control group took `Progress test 1¿ and `Progress test 2¿ in order to draw comparisons between students in the same educational context and start analysing the impact the `Method¿ was having on the target group. Finally, the `Final test¿ was done by the same students who had taken the `Diagnostic test¿ a year and a half before, the only difference being that the British school students were at this point divided into two groups: the target group and the internal control group. The application of the `Method¿ in the target group presents two main conclusions which corroborate the hypotheses set forth in this research study and confirm the attainment of the objectives pursued. Firstly, the `Method¿ has raised the target group¿s metalinguistic awareness regarding the identification of reverse transfers and mistakes in texts written in their native language. Secondly, the `Method¿ has reduced the presence of these transfers and mistakes in the target group¿s written production in Spanish. All in all, the `Method¿ has fostered the development of metalinguistic skills in the target group regarding the written identification and written production of reverse transfers and mistakes in Spanish. Similarly, this remedial work has contributed to avoiding the fossilisation of the transfers and mistakes it addresses. The results derived from this research reveal that the students take longer to eliminate reverse transfer from their writing than to identify it in writing when reading a text. In this sense, the `Method¿ should be extended to include more written production exercises and be prolonged in time