Negative feedback on task repetition: ESL vs. EFL child settings

ABSTRACT

Research on task repetition in second language (L2) learning has shown the benefits of this practice for subsequent L2 learning. However, as with much L2 research, most studies on task repetition have focused on adults and there is a dearth of research in this area involving young children. This study examines the effect of task repetition on two forms of negative feedback (NF), recasts and negotiation of meaning (NoM) strategies, available to children in an English as a second language (ESL) setting (Australia) and in an English as a foreign language (EFL) setting (Spain). Participants were 7–8 years old and worked in pairs on a spot-the-differences task at two testing times (time 1 [T1] and time [T2]). Differences were reported in the provision and use of NF from T1 to T2, and between the ESL and EFL group: feedback was provided and used significantly more at T2, and especially by the ESL group, but EFL learners made more errors and used different NoM strategies than ESL learners. The results are discussed in light of recent research on task repetition.

KEYWORDS:

• Task repetition
• young learners
• task-based interaction
• ESL
• EFL
• negative feedback
• recasts
• negotiation of meaning

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the reviewers for their comments and suggestions on this manuscript. We also want to thank the participating schools. Without them this study would have been impossible. A special thank you to Professor María del Pilar García Mayo, Doctor Ainara Imaz Agirre, Marian Hidalgo and Marta Kopinska for their invaluable collaboration with this research.

ORCiD

Agurtzane Azkarai http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3011-344X

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Basque Government (Language and Speech-IT-311-10), the University of the Basque Country (UFI11/06) and the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO-FFI 2012-32212). The first author also acknowledges the post-doctoral grant POS_2013_1_98 from the Basque Government.