Cross-Linguistic Influences of Learning German in Finnish and German Upper Secondary Schools

The aim of this study is to find out what importance upper secondary school learners of German attach to the cross-linguistic influence (CLI) regarding specific aspects of German language learning in Finland and Germany. Cross-linguistic learning gives learners additional skills to learn and underst...

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Main Authors: Esa M. Penttinen, Heiner Böttger
Format: Article
Language:deu
Published: Prof Thomas Tinnefeld 2023-06-01
Series:Journal of Linguistics and Language Teaching
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Online Access:https://linguisticsandlanguageteaching.blogspot.com/search/label/81%20Penttinen
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author Esa M. Penttinen
Heiner Böttger
author_facet Esa M. Penttinen
Heiner Böttger
author_sort Esa M. Penttinen
collection DOAJ
description The aim of this study is to find out what importance upper secondary school learners of German attach to the cross-linguistic influence (CLI) regarding specific aspects of German language learning in Finland and Germany. Cross-linguistic learning gives learners additional skills to learn and understand structures and words in their mother tongue, a second language or a foreign language. The Finnish students (n=100) participating in our survey spoke Finnish as their mother tongue and studied German as a foreign language. German students spoke German either as their mother tongue (n=40) or as a second language (n=60), but they studied German as a native language. The survey data consisted of students' answers to one identical question that they were asked in the school years 2017-2020: 'How does the knowledge of the languages studied at school (Swedish, English, French, Spanish, Latin – cross-linguistic learning) affect their learning of German?' Our research methods were both quantitative and qualitative. The main results showed that the positive transfer on learning German was based on the perceived (objective) similarity of languages while the negative transfer was based on assumed (subjective) similarities which were in conflict with actual (objective) differences in German language learning processes and experiences of language learning. Skills in other languages contributed to learning German, but they also interacted positively and negatively with each other's learning. Learning to learn was found to be a unifying factor in language learning.
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institution Kabale University
issn 2190-4677
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publishDate 2023-06-01
publisher Prof Thomas Tinnefeld
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series Journal of Linguistics and Language Teaching
spelling doaj-art-229fba26373b4580acc2cee740e95fa22025-02-02T04:32:40ZdeuProf Thomas TinnefeldJournal of Linguistics and Language Teaching2190-46772023-06-011415977Cross-Linguistic Influences of Learning German in Finnish and German Upper Secondary SchoolsEsa M. Penttinen 0Heiner Böttger1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9767-9571University of Helsinki, FinlandCatholic University of Eichstaett-Ingolstadt, GermanyThe aim of this study is to find out what importance upper secondary school learners of German attach to the cross-linguistic influence (CLI) regarding specific aspects of German language learning in Finland and Germany. Cross-linguistic learning gives learners additional skills to learn and understand structures and words in their mother tongue, a second language or a foreign language. The Finnish students (n=100) participating in our survey spoke Finnish as their mother tongue and studied German as a foreign language. German students spoke German either as their mother tongue (n=40) or as a second language (n=60), but they studied German as a native language. The survey data consisted of students' answers to one identical question that they were asked in the school years 2017-2020: 'How does the knowledge of the languages studied at school (Swedish, English, French, Spanish, Latin – cross-linguistic learning) affect their learning of German?' Our research methods were both quantitative and qualitative. The main results showed that the positive transfer on learning German was based on the perceived (objective) similarity of languages while the negative transfer was based on assumed (subjective) similarities which were in conflict with actual (objective) differences in German language learning processes and experiences of language learning. Skills in other languages contributed to learning German, but they also interacted positively and negatively with each other's learning. Learning to learn was found to be a unifying factor in language learning.https://linguisticsandlanguageteaching.blogspot.com/search/label/81%20Penttinencross-linguistic influenceupper secondary school studentgermanlanguage awareness
spellingShingle Esa M. Penttinen
Heiner Böttger
Cross-Linguistic Influences of Learning German in Finnish and German Upper Secondary Schools
Journal of Linguistics and Language Teaching
cross-linguistic influence
upper secondary school student
german
language awareness
title Cross-Linguistic Influences of Learning German in Finnish and German Upper Secondary Schools
title_full Cross-Linguistic Influences of Learning German in Finnish and German Upper Secondary Schools
title_fullStr Cross-Linguistic Influences of Learning German in Finnish and German Upper Secondary Schools
title_full_unstemmed Cross-Linguistic Influences of Learning German in Finnish and German Upper Secondary Schools
title_short Cross-Linguistic Influences of Learning German in Finnish and German Upper Secondary Schools
title_sort cross linguistic influences of learning german in finnish and german upper secondary schools
topic cross-linguistic influence
upper secondary school student
german
language awareness
url https://linguisticsandlanguageteaching.blogspot.com/search/label/81%20Penttinen
work_keys_str_mv AT esampenttinen crosslinguisticinfluencesoflearninggermaninfinnishandgermanuppersecondaryschools
AT heinerbottger crosslinguisticinfluencesoflearninggermaninfinnishandgermanuppersecondaryschools