Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/20653
Title: Exploring the acquisition of tense and aspect by adult foreign learners of Maltese
Authors: Camilleri Grima, Antoinette
Keywords: Maltese language -- Study and teaching
Maltese language -- Aspect
Interlanguage (Language learning)
Second language acquisition
Issue Date: 2015
Publisher: University of Malta. Faculty of Education
Citation: Camilleri Grima, A. (2015). Exploring the acquisition of tense and aspect by adult foreign learners of Maltese. Malta Review for Educational Research, 9(1), 57-77.
Abstract: This article describes an initial analysis of the acquisition of Maltese as a foreign language by adult learners. It specifically looks at four verbal tense and aspect forms. Three intermediate-to-advanced level learners were asked to carry out a set of tasks, and the resulting data was compared to that produced by three adult native speakers of Maltese. The main finding was that on production tasks (unanalysed knowledge) the most commonly used tense/aspect by foreign learners is the ‘imperfett’ (unrestricted habitual aspect) which native speakers (NSs) use only half as much as the foreign learners (NNSs). On the other hand, native speakers use the ‘perfett’ (past tense) twice as much as the foreign users of Maltese. Another interesting finding is that on tasks that require analysed knowledge the main difference between NSs and NNSs was that the NNSs had greater difficulty with the progressive and the restricted habitual, but did not show significant variability with regard to the ‘perfett’ and ‘imperfett’. Thus, the results indicate that (i) there is a difference in the performance of NNSs in quantity rather than quality with regard to the ‘perfett’ and ‘imperfett’; and (ii) that on tasks requiring analysed knowledge NNSs have difficulty with regard to the progressive and restricted habitual forms.
URI: https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar//handle/123456789/20653
ISSN: 17269725
Appears in Collections:MRER, Volume 9, Issue 1
MRER, Volume 9, Issue 1
Scholarly Works - FacEduLHE

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