A Longitudinal Study of Spanish /ptk

This longitudinal study tracked ten L1 English-speaking learners’ acquisition of Spanish voiceless stops /ptk/ by measuring their voice onset time (VOT) over an academic year in two distinct contexts of learning. Living in a Spanish-speaking dorm, participants in the experimental group experienced a domestic partial-immersion , in which there were increased opportunities for L2 Spanish input and practice beyond that of a Spanish language course. Speech production data recorded at eight points over two semesters revealed greater group-level improvement for all three phonemes for students living in the Spanish-speaking dorm, as compared to control speakers who did not reside at the dorm during the same period. In line with current L2 pronunciation research and given that individual trajectories were highly variable, we examine each participant’s developmental trajectory considering context of learning in combination with learners’ individual difference profiles (including factors of self-rated motivation and Spanish proficiency, among others). This work examines an alternative setting for language learning on university campuses and informs future related research on the myriad of factors playing a role in trajectories of L2 phonological development

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