Llibres / Capítols de llibre (Llengües i Literatures Estrangeres)
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- ItemOpen Access“I often use Google Translate to correct spelling mistakes”. English-medium instruction students’ use of technology to learn English(Peter Lang, 2024) Zong Nebouet, Pascal Carmel; Arnó Macià, Elisabet; Mancho Barés, GuzmánThe growth of English-medium instruction (EMI) implementation in universities around the globe has aroused concern about the language challenges that EMI poses to students for whom English is a foreign language. At the same time, the pervasive use of mobile devices has contributed to blurring the line between formal and informal language learning contexts. In EMI classes, in which specific language learning objectives are seldom addressed, it is necessary to examine how students turn to technology resources to cope with language challenges and how lecturers mediate content to make it linguistically accessible to EMI students with diverse proficiency levels. In this chapter, we present a qualitative study of two EMI engineering classes at a School of Agrifood and Forestry Science and Engineering at a medium-sized Spanish university. Data include classroom observations, student and lecturer interviews, and laptop screen recordings of students' activities. Findings reveal that lecturers frequently use technology as a scaffolding technique to help students understand classes taught in English and that students display initiative and creativity toward the use of technology for language learning. They integrate a variety of technological tools that form part of their lives into language learning, which becomes an essential part of their EMI practice. The observation of students' use of technology can help EMI and English for specific purposes (ESP) lecturers design specific language support that meets students' language needs.
- ItemOpen AccessE-tándem, aprendizaje cooperativo como medio para mejorar las habilidades de subtitulado de los estudiantes(Asociación Cultural y Científica Iberoamericana (ACCI), 2014) Sabaté Carrové, Mariona; Baiget Bonany, Ester
- ItemOpen AccessGesture shape and gesture–speech alignment predict simultaneous L2 sound production accuracy(Taylor & Francis, 2024-04-01) Li, Peng; Baills, Florence; Xi, Xiaotong; Prieto, PilarPrevious research suggests hand gestures aid L2 pronunciation learning, but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. This study examines if accurate gesture imitation during phonetic training predicts the accuracy of non-native sounds produced while doing a pedagogical hand gesture. Twenty-nine Catalan speakers, unfamiliar with Chinese, learned to pronounce Chinese aspirated plosives while mimicking gestures representing the aspirated sounds. Results revealed that more precise gesture shape and better gesture–speech alignment predicted more accurate speech imitation, emphasizing the significance of the spatiotemporal gesture–speech coupling in embodied L2 phonetic training.
- ItemOpen AccessThe relation between pitch accent types, head movements and perceived prosodic prominence in L2 French(The International Phonetic Association, 2023) Baills, Florence; Baumann, Stefan; Rohrer, Patrick LouisRecent research has shown the relevance of multimodal cues in the realization of prominence in discourse. Speakers may not only use prosodic cues - e.g. pitch accents - to stress important information but also visual cues - e.g., manual and non-manual gestures such as head movements - in synchrony. As part of a larger project comparing the multimodal marking of information structure by L1 and L2 speakers, this study reports on the relationship between perceived prominence in L2 speech and the pitch accent and head movement types used by 25 Catalan learners of French during a narrative task. Results confirm the relationship between pitch accents, gestural cues, and prosodic prominence in L2 learners and show that higher prosodic prominence is associated with rising, falling, and high pitch accents as well as with protrusions and nods of the head. Falling contours associated with highly prominent words were less marked by head movements, indicating potential differences from L1 speech.
- ItemOpen AccessThe Battle Between Order and Chaos and Its Reconciliation in Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Lowland(Enredars Publicaciones (Universidad Pablo de Olavide), 2025) Jiménez Rodríguez, EstherJhumpa Lahiri’s The Lowland explores identity through concepts such as order, duty, freedom and chaos. The inner conflict of the text—order against chaos—is already hinted at in the title. Considering the metaphorical implications of these ideas, water may be associated with chaos and freedom while land suggests duty and order. The two siblings depicted in Lahiri’s story serve as personifications of this: Udayan represents chaos (unfolding freedom and rebelliousness), while Subhash symbolizes order (embodying duty and care). In this sense, Udayan illustrates water and Subhash symbolizes land. The character of Bela, Udayan and Gauri’s daughter, resolves this dichotomy through her ecofeminist perspective that exemplifies ecological care. Bela manages to bridge the gap between the two worlds: science and the natural world, reason and emotion, order and chaos, and, ultimately, land and water.