| Scope and method of study. The present study describes the frequency with which ESL students attend to form, the types of forms they attend to, the manner in which they attend to form, and the content of the form that they attend to. In addition, the study examines whether or not task types makes a difference in the number of forms students attend to. Nineteen advanced ESL students in a college writing class engaged in various group activities over the period of an academic semester. The students were tape-recorded and the forms they attended to and the manner in which they did so were later analyzed.; Findings and conclusions. It was found that advanced ESL writers most frequently attended to vocabulary rather than grammar; word definitions and usage were the most frequently focused on aspects of vocabulary; and that learners most frequently attended to form by negotiating after a communication breakdown. Based on the results of this study, the following conclusions can thus be made about focus on form: (1) While ESL students exhibit a strong ability to focus on vocabulary, they do not, by and large, explicitly focus on grammar in situations in which grammar is not the primary instructional objective. (2) Discussions of form usually arise when some sort of misunderstanding occurs; in other words, a form must impede communication if it is to be specifically treated by ESL learners. (3) While focus on form does not promote attention to grammatical forms, it does benefit learners in that it helps them attend to word meaning, usage, spelling, and pronunciation---all valuable aspects of second language learning. (4) ESL instructors should use focus on form, and find activities that promote attention to grammar and meaning at the same time. |
