The Effects Of Different Oral Input Patterns On English Learners' Word Meaning Acquisition In A Chinese University Classroom Setting

Input is the prerequisite of second language acquisition (SLA) and learners cannot acquire a second language without input. Comprehensible input is a necessary condition for L2 learners'learning. According to the Interaction Hypothesis, learners can obtain comprehensible input by meaning negotiation, which could promote SLA. Does meaning negotiation promote L2 learners'learning just like what has been proposed in the Interaction Hypothesis? Researchers did some relative studies mainly about the effects of different input patterns on learners'SLA. Vocabulary acquisition is an important aspect of language learning, and it is difficult to acquire (Maiguashca, 1993). Experimental studies which examine the effects of different input patterns on L2 learners'word meaning acquisition in classroom settings are limited, thus this study aims to investigate the effects of different oral input patterns on word meaning acquisition for Chinese learners of English in a university classroom setting.The current study included four groups (n=76) which were exposed to four different input patterns respectively. The subjects were sophomore students of English major in Chongqing University, and they were asked to select ten business words which they were totally unknown from thirty words as the target items. Then two Americans whose native language was English were asked to make up ten directions including the target words as the baseline input materials. Premodified input materials were made up according to the suggestions of two English students drawn from the same population as the subjects and the existed principles. The following was the experimental process: the first group (n=21) listened to the baseline input; the second group (n=21) listened to the premodified input; the third group (n=16) listened to the premodified input, and they had the chance to negotiate with each other in dyad; the forth group (n=18) listened to the premodified input, and they were encouraged to negotiate with the teacher or the assistor. Two tests (immediate and delayed tests) which were used to examine the understanding of word meaning were given after the subjects in four groups were exposed to oral input patterns respectively. Separate one-way ANOVA and a post hoc turkey were used to analyze the obtained data. In the immediate test (the multiple-choice test), the scores obtained among the four groups were not significantly different. Subjects who had the chance to negotiate performed better than those who did not have the chance to negotiate. There was no difference between the subjects who were only exposed to input (baseline input and premodified input). There was also no difference between the groups in which the subjects had the chance to negotiate (input obtained by negotiating among learners themselves and negotiating between teachers and learners). In the delayed test (the English-Chinese word meaning translation test), the scores obtained among the four groups were not significantly different, which indicates that the subjects who negotiated performed better than those who failed to negotiate. There was no difference between the groups of subjects who were only exposed to input (baseline input and premodified input), but there was different between the groups of subjects who had the chance to negotiate, that is, subjects who negotiated meaning with teacher/assistor performed better than subjects who negotiated meaning with themselves in dyad. The reasons why such results were produced were discussed, and then suggestions for future research, implications and limitations of the study were discussed.