Fostering Language Teaching Efficiency Through Cognitive Linguistics

In contexts of instructed second language acquisition there is a need for teaching methods that are optimally efficient, i.e. teaching interventions that generate a maximal return on learners' and teachers' investment of time and effort. In the past couple of decades, many researchers have argued that insights from Cognitive Linguistics (CL) - when suitably translated for pedagogical purposes - can make a major contribution to fostering such language teaching efficiency. This collective volume assesses and supplements those CL proposals. The first part of the book positions CL-inspired language pedagogy vis-à-vis recent trends in mainstream applied linguistics and illustrates through several case studies that language-focused instruction (including CL-inspired instruction) is a useful - if not indispensable - complement to learner-autonomous, incidental acquisition. The second part demonstrates how CL research can help pedagogues identify hitherto neglected language elements that merit explicit targeting in second language instruction. The third part consists of contributions that put the pedagogical efficiency of several CL-inspired interventions to the test in classroom experiments. Additions to the currently available armoury of teaching methods are proposed. The kinds of target language items under examination in the book range from single words over multiword units to grammar patterns. Throughout, the volume illustrates how much pedagogy-oriented Cognitive Linguistics has matured in recent years.

Cognitive Linguistics takes an experientialist approach towards language, emphasizing the centrality of (physical) experience for cognitive development. That is, cognition is regarded as embodied, and language - as part of the human cognitive system - is shaped by how human beings interact with their physical and social environment. Thus, language is usage-based and form-meaning mappings can be explained and systematized on the basis of their conceptual motivation. Despite the pedagogical potential of this theory, Cognitive Linguistic applications in foreign language teaching and learning are still in their initial stages and empirical research testing the effect of Cognitive-Linguistic teaching approaches in real classroom settings is rather scarce. The aim of this monograph is to provide insight into key tenets of the Cognitive Linguistic framework under the premise of their relevance for foreign language pedagogy. Empirical studies are presented focusing on how phrasal verbs can be taught from a Cognitive Linguistic perspective via awareness-raising methods. Based on statistical analyses and considering individual learner variables such as language aptitude, cognitive load and how students evaluated their own learning outcome, the author discusses the merits of a Cognitive Linguistic approach to phrasal verbs.

This volume, grounded on usage-based models of language, is an edited collection of empirical research examining how cognitive linguistics can advance Japanese pedagogy. Each chapter presents an acquisition or classroom study which focuses on challenging features and leads instructors and researchers into new realms of analysis by showing innovative views and practices resulting in better understanding and improved L2 learning of Japanese.

This book argues that Second language teaching has not been well served by recent approaches to the description of language content. The book explores how Cognitive Linguistics offers teachers a description of language that can translate into practical classroom activities.

In recent years, Cognitive Linguistics (CL) has established itself not only as a solid theoretical approach but also as an important source from which different applications to other fields have emerged. In this volume we identify some of the current, most relevant topics in applied CL-oriented studies – analyses of figurative language (both metaphor and metonymy) in use, constructions and typology –, and present high-quality research papers that illustrate best practices in the research foci identified and their application to different fields including intercultural communication, the psychology of emotions, second and first language acquisition, discourse analysis and translation studies. It is also shown how different methodologies –the use of linguistic corpora, psycholinguistic experiments or discourse analytic procedures– can shed some light on the basic premises of CL as well as providing insights into how CL can be applied in real world contexts. Finally, all the studies included in the volume are based on empirical data and there are some analyses of languages other than English (Japanese, Russian, Spanish, Danish, German and Polish), thus overcoming the contentions that CL-theoretically-based research is often based on linguistic intuition and focused only on the English language. We hope that the present volume will not only contribute to a better understanding of how CL can be applied but that it will also help to encourage, even further, more robust empirical research in this field. Originally published as a special issue of Review of Cognitive Linguistics 14:1 (2016).

The Routledge Handbook of Korean as a Second Language aims to define the field and to present the latest research in Korean as a second language (KSL). It comprises a detailed overview of the field of KSL teaching and learning, discusses its development, and captures critical cutting-edge research within its major subfields. As the first handbook of KSL published in English, this book will be of particular interest to advanced undergraduates, graduate students, language teachers, curriculum developers, and researchers in the fields of KSL and applied linguistics. While each chapter will be authored by internationally renowned scholars in its major subfields, the handbook aims to maintain accessibility so that it can also be of value to non-specialists.

Lingüística cognitiva y español LE/L2 constituye una valiosa aportación al estudio de la adquisición y la enseñanza del español LE/L2 desde la perspectiva teórica de la lingüística cognitiva. Se trata de la primera obra escrita en español en la que se ofrece una introducción a la lingüística cognitiva y su aplicación didáctica a la enseñanza del español LE/L2 desde una óptica internacional. Combina una orientación teórico-práctica que incluye diferentes estudios empíricos con pautas para ayudar a los profesores de español a integrar la lingüística cognitiva en la enseñanza de la lengua. Características principales: Una estructura homogénea y facilitadora de la lectura de los distintos capítulos que sirve para integrar contenidos lingüísticos y gramaticales desde un punto de vista cognitivo; Cuestiones clave en la enseñanza del español LE/L2 desde la óptica de la lingüística cognitiva: aspectos controvertidos de gramática, el desarrollo de la competencia metafórica, el aprendizaje del léxico, la influencia de la lengua materna, el foco en la forma, el uso de la traducción pedagógica; Pautas y sugerencias para aplicar la lingüística cognitiva en la enseñanza de la lengua, así como futuras vías de investigación; Una selección de imágenes, gráficos e ilustraciones para facilitar la comprensión de los temas y conceptos que se abordan en el volumen; Un glosario bilingüe (español e inglés) de términos clave para que cualquier lector pueda familiarizarse con los conceptos fundamentales de la lingüística cognitiva. Escrito en español, de manera clara y accesible, y con abundantes ejemplos, Lingüística cognitiva y español LE/L2 es una obra de referencia para docentes de español como LE/L2, estudiantes graduados y formadores de profesores, así como para cualquier persona que desee adquirir una perspectiva actual sobre las principales aportaciones teóricas y prácticas de la lingüística cognitiva a la enseñanza y el aprendizaje de segundas lenguas.

This collection argues that being aware of and reflecting on language form and language use is a powerful tool, not only in language learning, but also in wider society. It adopts an interdisciplinary stance: one chapter argues the need for Language Awareness in business contexts, while another examines the role of critical cultural awareness and Language Awareness in education as ‘bildung’. Others report on research studies in language classrooms and in teacher education. Language Awareness is interrogated from a range of perspectives such as peer interaction, teaching young learners, learner strategies and strategies for writing, online reading, and oral fluency training. The scope is global, including contributions from Canada, Germany, Iran, Japan, Spain, and the UK, and covers bilingual as well as multilingual contexts. The book will be of interest to language teachers, language teacher educators, other language professionals, and generally to the language aware. This book was originally published as a special issue of Language Awareness.