Bachelorarbeit, 2021
41 Seiten, Note: 1,0
Didaktik für das Fach Deutsch - Deutsch als Fremdsprache, DaF
List of Abbreviations
List of Figures
List of Tables
1. Introduction
2. Theoretical Reference Framework
2.1 Important Terms
2.1.1 Mother tongue and first language, L1
2.1.2 Foreign language (FL) and second language, L2
2.2 Language characteristics of German with focus on relative clauses
2.2.1 The correct word order in German
2.2.2 The properties of the relative clause in German
2.2.3 The relative clause and the verb bracket
2.3 L1-acquisition of the relative clause structure
2.3.1 Acquisition of the structure of relative clauses
2.3.2 Acquisition of the relative clause
2.3.3 Studies relevant to relative clauses
2.4 L2-acquisition of the relative clause structure
2.4.1 The critical or sensitive period
2.4.2 (Early) child L2 learners
2.4.3 Youth and adult L2 learners
2.4.4 Differences between L1- and L2 learners
3. Practical Part: Empirical-qualitative corpus analysis
3.1 Presentation of the German learning corpus MERLIN and CEFR
3.2 Methodological approach
3.3 Quantitative corpus analysis of the subordinate clauses
3.4 Qualitative and quantitative analysis of relative clauses
3.4.1 Examples for correct subordinate clauses
3.4.2 Error in the subordinate clause bracket (sentence position error)
3.4.3 Correlation of reference word and relative pronoun
3.4.4 Conjunction „dass“ instead of relative pronouns der/die/das
3.4.5 Complexity of relative clauses
4. Conclusion and practical application
4.1 Possible applications in German lessons (all levels)
References
DaF German as a foreign language
DaM German as a mother language
DaZ German as a second language
HS main sentence
INF Infinitive
KM months of contact
L1 First language
L2 Second language
LSK left verb bracket
NS subordinate clause
NP Noun Phrase
O Object
OV Object-Verb
RSK Right verb bracket
SOV Subject-Object-Verb
SVO Subject-Verb-Object
V Verb
VE Verb final position
XVS An arbitrary position, followed by verb and subject
Figure 1: Test sentences (acquisition of relative clauses)
Figure 2: Stages of acquisition in different age groups
Figure 3: Quantitative distribution of subordinating conjunctions or relative pronouns
Figure 4: Realisation of the verb ending in the subordinate clause
Figure 5: Verb end position in relative clauses
Figure 6: Frequency of relative pronouns by function or complexity in the sentence
Figure 7: Presentation "Tiere im Winter"
Figure 8: Verb bracket from Schulz and Tracy
Table 1: Relative pronouns in German (Singular)
Table 2: Verb bracket in the German relative clause
Table 3: Acquisition of German relative sentence structure
Table 4: Progression of L1 acquisition related to verb position
Table 5: Acquisition of syntax
It seems as if children acquire language unconsciously without putting as much effort into it as adults do when learning a new language. The input comes from the surrounding without a targeted structure. For several decades, linguists argued that children imitate the input they are receiving. In the scientific world, this behavioristic approach is outdated.1 As we know now, children do much more than that. They are not only able to imitate but to use the learned words in different contexts and in other syntactical orders. Therefore, there must be factors that allow children to develop a system to store information and transfer it into a more systematic one. It is the basic idea of Chomsky and his theory of nativism, that children must therefore have innate, basic grammatical principles that work even though the input is fragmentary. Chomsky's nativist theory of universal grammar still plays a major role in current language research and is constantly being expanded to include new aspects in order to create a more holistic picture of mother tongue, second and foreign language acquisition.
The early first and second language acquisition of children differ in many aspects from the second language acquisition of adults. When adults learn a new language, they already have access to real-world knowledge, unlike young children. This can be beneficial and helpful but can be counterproductive if the analysis is too focused and the questioning of structures is at the expense of a more relaxed use of the new language.
The intention of this thesis is to show the differences between L1 and L2 acquisition. The focus here is on the acquisition of relative clauses, which is mastered comparatively late by both L1 and L2 learners due to its complexity.
The first part of the thesis is theoretical and will provide an overview of how children acquire relative clauses in German as their mother tongue, and how that differs from young children and adults learning relative constructions in German as a second language. In the second part an empirical-qualitative corpus analysis will be carried out. For this purpose, test examples from the MERLIN corpus were used with focus on the production of relative clause sentences written by L2 learners.
The results of the corpus analysis will be compared with the theories found in relevant literature. In addition, the MERLIN corpus is intended to provide insights into the written application of relative clause structures in L2 learners.
These considerations therefore give rise to these research-related questions:
(1) How and when are relative clause constructions in German acquired by L1 learners and L2 learners respectively?
(2) How does the acquisition of relative clauses in mother tongue and second language differ?
(3) What insights can be gained from the empirical-qualitative analysis of the MERLIN corpus?
In the theoretical part of this thesis, terms relevant to research questions will first be clarified and important characteristics of the German language with regard to subordinate clause grammar will be pointed out. Subsequently, first the mother tongue and then the second language acquisition of the German language in relation to relative clauses will be examined. Finally, both approaches are compared with each other.
The following section explains important terms such as mother tongue and first language. It is not always possible to make an exact distinction, as these terms in colloquial language are used synonymously.
The designation mother tongue refers to "a language from which another language is descended; parent language"2. This definition covers two aspects - firstly, the fact that languages seem to "descend" from mother tongue - or, in other words, are based on it. Secondly, mother tongue in general means the language that not only the mother but both parents speak to the child from birth.
The concept of mother tongue also refers to the language in which parents communicate with their child: “Sprache, die ein Mensch als Kind (von den Eltern) erlernt [und primär im Sprachgebrauch] hat.3 In this definition the aspect of primary language use is added. The mother tongue is apparently the language which, in terms of time, is at the beginning of a child's life and is the determining language in the life of a child.
The first language is generally considered to be "a person's native language"4 and the terms native language and mother tongue are often used synonymously. First language also means native language and includes the above-mentioned definitions. The first language is understood to be the first language a person learns and (in the case of multilingualism) the most characteristic language of a person.5 Obviously, in contrast to the term mother tongue, the term first language is used when more than one language in the sense of multilingualism is spoken by one individual. In contrast to the term mother tongue, the term first language implicates a hierarchy.
The abbreviation L1 (first language acquisition), which is used in both German and English literature stands for "first language; native language"6. Accordingly, the terms mother tongue, mother language, first language, native language and L1 will be used synonymously in this paper.
Unlike mother tongue and first language, the terms foreign language and second language cannot be used synonymously and must be strictly distinguished in the course of a discussion on language acquisition, as explained below.
Under the heading foreign language the Duden dictionary explains: "Fremde Sprache, die sich jemand nur durch bewusstes Lernen aneignet; Sprache, die nicht jemandes Muttersprache ist".7 The Cambridge Dictionary provides a similar definition for the English term foreign language: "English as taught to people whose main language is not English and who live in a country where English is not the official or main language.“8
The definitions are based on three aspects: Firstly, it is obvious that one does not acquire a foreign language along the way, but that one can learn it with full intention - usually in a course and the (classical) methods associated with it. Secondly, the foreign language is acquired in opposition to the concept of the mother tongue. One learns the foreign language not from one's parents and not from birth, but from other (teaching) persons and later in life. Thirdly, the foreign language is not necessarily related to the immediate geographical environment in which the learners are located and is not part of the learners' primary language use. Foreign language therefore means what is understood in terms of classical foreign language teaching in schools or other educational institutions.
The online Duden defines a second language as "Sprache, die ein Mensch zusätzlich zur Muttersprache, jedoch zu einem späteren Zeitpunkt, erlernt, weil er sie zur Teilnahme am sozialen, ökonomischen, politischen und kulturellen Leben benötigt"9. The English definition reads quite similar and describes the second language as "a language learned by a person after his or her native language, especially as a resident of an area where it is in general use"10. While the mother tongue is of great importance for communication within the family, the second language enables communication in the wider social environment. without it, an exclusion from the social and cultural society would be risked: "a language widely used, especially in educational and governmental functions in a region where all or most of its speakers are non-native, as English in India or Nigeria."11 The second language is thus of essential importance for the everyday life of its speakers, while the mother tongue plays a role in their private lives. This is not the case with foreign languages. Foreign languages often play a less important role in the reality of learners' lives than their mother tongue and second language, since in order to actually use them in practice they first have to change countries.
The abbreviation L2 (second language acquisition or SLA) is used confusingly in specialist literature for both the term second language and foreign language acquisition. In this thesis, however, a distinction is made between second and foreign language. The term L2 is therefore used exclusively for the term second language. If the foreign language is mentioned, this is explicitly mentioned.
At first the syntax of the German language will be explained in general terms, a distinction will be made between main and subordinate clauses and the characteristics of relative clauses will be mentioned. Afterwards, the verb parenthesis as the most important feature of the German language will be discussed.
The correct word order in German has its own challenges and is more complex than in many other languages. This is the case because, for example, the case marking means that the subject does not necessarily come first in the sentence or before the finite verb (dem Schüler, des Kindes etc.). This in turn means that verb inflection in particular has a special role to play, since sometimes it is only through explicit knowledge of verb inflections that agents and patients in the sentence can be assigned.
(cf.: Die Kinder sehen die Mutter im Garten spielen. / Die Kinder sieht die Mutter im Garten spielen.12 ). For a correct understanding of such examples, therefore, not only the German word order but also subject-verb congruence must be mastered.13
„[D]as Deutsche [weist] als […] Sprache mit V2-Eigenschaft die Strukturmuster SVO, XVS und SOV14 auf, wobei der Großteil der Sätze im Input von Deutschlernenden mit einer SVO-Analyse kompatibel ist.“15
This means that in the main sentence (HS) in German, variations are possible with regard to the subject position in the sentence, but in everyday language the use of the SVO structure is so overrepresented that L2 learners - especially those who speak an SVO mother tongue - initially incorrectly assumed that the subject is always the one who is predicated. This misunderstanding only becomes obvious when an attempt is made to maintain this structure despite the preceding time or place information. Thus, it happens that, especially in adult L2 acquisition, V3 sentences are often formed: “vielleicht ich sage” [und] ‚ dann ich arbeite”16.
The various stages of acquiring the correct sentence structure begin with simple main clauses in the SVO structure and end with the opening of the V final position, i.e. with the ability to correctly position the finite verb in subordinate clauses to the last clause position:17 “wenn noch 2 jahr vorbei geht”18.
The acquisition of relative clauses has been studied intensely since the 1970s and was mostly researched with generative grammar as a base.19 The relative clause is still a much-discussed phenomenon in syntactic linguistics and there is only a minimal consensus on what can pass as a relative clause.20 In the following paragraphs the canonical concept of the VE-relative clause will be discussed, towards the end the concept of the V2-relative clause will be briefly explained.
The relative clause is one of the subordinate clauses (NS), whose common characteristic is the verb-end position. According to canonical definition, the finite verb is in the relative clause at the last position of the clause:
„Da ist Michael, der mir gestern geholfen hat.“21
The example sentence consists of a HS (matrix set), namely „Da ist Michael, […]“ and the NS (constituent set) „[…] der mir gestern geholfen hat“. In addition to the final position of the finite verb, Eisenberg defines the following four characteristics of the German relative clause:
“In addition, the following features must be taken into account: (1) relative clauses provide information about a nominal referent in the previous clause; (2) they include a case-marked relative pronoun that indicates the syntactic function of the nominal referent in the relative clause; (3) the relative pronoun is generally the first word in the relative clause; and (4) the antecedent of the relative pronoun is the immediately preceding NP.”22
According to this definition, the relative clause refers to a (pro-)noun in the superordinate clause (this can be a HS or another NS). For this reason, relative clauses are also called attribute clauses, because they provide additional information and do not replace a sentence element. Eisenberg also states that relative clauses have a relative proposition in a particular case, which is usually at the beginning of a relative clause and provides information about the syntactic function attributed to the reference word in the subordinate clause. Eisenberg's point is that the nominal phrase in HS, to which the relative pronoun in NS refers, immediately precedes it.
Relative clauses are thus started either by relative pronouns (der, die, das, welcher, welches, welche etc.) „marked for gender, number, and case“23 (see Table 1) or initiated by relative adversity (wo, wohin, woher etc.).
This presents several challenges for both L1 and L2 learners: Firstly, for the masculine form in the singular there is a different relative pronoun for each function, secondly, the feminine and neutral forms are identical in nominative and accusative cases, which means that subject and object must be distinguished differently:24
„das Mädchen, das Peter kennt.“25
Abbildung in dieser Leseprobe nicht enthalten
Table 1: Relative pronouns in German (Singular)
Source: Diessel & Tomasello, 2005, p. 890
However, one can also find definitions in the literature that allow the use of the verb in second position: „V2-relatives are defined as constructions that differ from ordinary relative clauses only by the position of the finite verb.“26 According to this definition, the following example sentence can thus be regarded either as a main clause series (parataxis) or as a V2 relative clause:
“Da ist Michael, der hat mir gestern geholfen.“27
If this example sentence is to become a relative clause in the canonical sense, the syntax must be changed. By doing so the relative clause becomes subordinated. This is precisely the linguistic achievement that both L1 and L2 learners acquire at a late stage. In the following I will characterize which acquisition phases L1- and L2-learners go through to form relative clauses with verbs.
German is a verb second language, because the finite verb is usually placed at the second sentence member position (verb second position). If the predicate consists of a separable verb or if further verbs are added to the finite form, they move to the last clause position. Thus the so-called verb bracket is formed:28,29
“Im topologischen Satzmodell (auch Felderanalyse genannt) sind für das Deutsche zwei Verbpositionen vorgesehen, die den Satz wie eine Klammer zusammenhalten, nämlich die linke und die rechte Satz- oder Verbklammer […] Rund um diese beiden Verbpositionen lassen sich die anderen Konstituenten im Vor-, Mittel- und Nachfeld relativ frei anordnen, abhängig u.a. von der Informationsstruktur des Satzes.”30
The second position in the clause is referred to as the left bracket and the last position of the clause as the right bracket. The position before the left verb bracket, the first clause, is called the prefield, positions in between are called the middle field and after the right bracket follows the post field.31,32
Abbildung in dieser Leseprobe nicht enthalten
Table 2: Verb bracket in the German relative clause
According to Czinglar (2013:34) structures of sentences (main and subordinate clauses) are classified as follows:
"In der LSK steht das Element, das den Nebensatz einleitet (z.B. Subjunktion) und einen Bezug zum Hauptsatz (Matrixsatz) herstellt. Das finite Verb steht im Nebensatz nach optional auftretenden infiniten Verben in der RSK, finite Partikelverben bleiben hier erwartungsgemäß ungetrennt.“
This section describes mother tongue or first language acquisition in relation to relative sentences and presents some study results on this.
Generally speaking, L1 language acquisition is often non-linear and varies greatly from child to child. There are numerous studies on L1 language acquisition that explore commonalities in language development and describe the developmental steps in the form of milestones.
Rothweiler (1993:24ff) for example, identifies the following five phases in the acquisition of the subordinate clause structure:
Abbildung in dieser Leseprobe nicht enthalten
Table 3: Acquisition of German relative sentence structure
As can be seen from the table above, it is assumed that in German the recognition and creation of finite associations is closely linked to the word order in the subordinate clause. This phenomenon describes the morphosyntax: "Der Erwerb der Morphosyntax umfasst die Entwicklung der in der Erstsprache möglichen syntaktischen Strukturen und deren Interpretation sowie den Erwerb der Flexionsmorphologie.”33 34
After the one-word phase, children begin to inflect verbs that are not yet adapted to the subject. According to Rothweiler (1993:24), as soon as children can use the ending -st in verbs, the other verbs are also given the correct endings. In the further process this leads to the correct use of the verb branch. At the age of 2 or 2.5 years, children with a German mother tongue are thus able to form main clauses with the verb at the second position and correct subject-verb congruence.35 From this point on, children also begin to acquire sub -ordinate clauses: "The development of the syntax in the third year of life should [...] be the basis for the acquisition of the subordinate clause structure.”36 The first subordinate clauses appear at the age of two and a half to three and a half years, with great individual variation.37 Apparently, the appropriation of subordinate clause structures is strongly linked to the respective conjunction:
„Auch der Erwerb der Stellung des finiten Verbs im Nebensatz läuft […] lexemspezifisch ab, das heißt, er erfolgt für jede subordinierende Konjunktion einzeln. Insgesamt überwiegt ungefähr ab dem 23. Kontaktmonat (KM) die Verb-End-Stellung, je nach Lexem ist die Verbstellung jedoch unterschiedlich.“38
This means that children first use conjunctions such as weil and wenn,39 and gradually more conjunctions are introduced. Sometimes sentences are formed in which the conjunction is omitted, for example: „ ob” in “Ich weiß nicht __ der Affe blau ist oder grün. “40 This might be due to the fact that relative clauses do not have a uniform conjunction. This could be one reason why relative clauses are mastered rather late in the L2 group.
But how do children begin to acquire subordinate structures? „Eine Möglichkeit wäre beispielsweise, daß Kinder vor den ersten Nebensätzen über eine Basisstruktur verfügen, aus der sie Hauptsätze mit Verbzweitstellung durch Bewegung ableiten.“41 This is what Brandt et al. (2008:327) suppose as well: „Vermutlich entstehen im Deutschen Nebensatzstrukturen aus Hauptsatzstrukturen.“ This assumption is also pursued by relative clause research, as explained in the next section.
The milestone tables of Tracy, Tracy and Thoma42 as well as Tracy43 clearly show that sub-ordinate clause structures and, above all, relative clauses with VE position are mastered only late in the course of language acquisition. Many cognitive activities are required to achieve the VE position (see Table 4 and 5).
Abbildung in dieser Leseprobe nicht enthalten
Table 4: Progression of L1 acquisition related to verb position
Source: Tracy (2007) and Tracy & Thoma (2009) cited in Czinglar, 2013, p. 85
[...]
1 Schulz, Grimm, 2012, p.156.
2 Dictionary, 2020a, n. pag.
3 Duden, 2020a, n. pag.
4 Dictionary, 2020b, n. pag.
5 Duden, 2020b, n. pag.
6 Dictionary, 2020c, n. pag.
7 Duden, 2020c, n. pag.
8 Cambridge Dictionary, 2020, n. pag.
9 Duden, 2020d, n. pag.
10 Dictionary, 2020d, n. pag.
11 Dictionary, 2020d, n. pag.
12 note.: own examples.
13 Ulrich, 2008, 76f.
14 note.: in relative clauses.
15 Czinglar, 2013, p. 49.
16 Czinglar, 2013, p. 50.
17 Cf. Czinglar, 2013, p. 50.
18 Czinglar, 2013, p. 51.
19 Cf. Brandt et al., 2008, p. 325 f.
20 Cf. Haberland, 2017, p. 4.
21 example taken from Brandt et. al., 2008, p. 328.
22 Eisenberg, 2004 cited in Brandt et al., 2008, p. 327.
23 Diessel & Tomasello, 2005, p. 890.
24 Vgl. Diessel & Tomasello, 2005, p. 890.
25 Diessel & Tomasello, 2005, p. 891.
26 Brandt et al., 2008, p. 330.
27 Example taken from Brandt et. al., 2008, p. 328.
28 Dal, Eroms, 2014, p. 202f.
29 Variantengrammatik des Standarddeutschen, 2018.
30 Czinglar, 2013, p. 32.
31 Variantengrammatik des Standarddeutschen, 2018.
32 Dal, Eroms, 2014, p. 203.
33 Example taken from Brandt et. al., 2008, p. 328.
34 Schulz, 2007, p. 72.
35 Schulz et al., 2017, p. 195.
36 Rothweiler, 1993, p. 24.
37 Vgl. Rothweiler, 1993, p. 23.
38 Czinglar, 2013, p. 79.
39 Grimm & Geist, 2012a, p. 43.
40 Tracy, 2011, p. 413.
41 Rothweiler, 1993, p. 8 f.
42 Cf. Tracy (2007) and Tracy & Thoma (2009), cited in Czinglar, 2013, p. 85.
43 Cf. Tracy (2011) cited in Czinglar, 2013, p. 85.
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