Learning to Use Post-nominal Modifiers in English: A Case Study in a University EFL Composition Classroom

學習使用英文中的名詞後位修飾用法：大學英文作文課堂的個案研究

王秋棠(Chiu-Tang Wang)

衍生語法 ； 名詞後位修飾詞 ； 寫作文法複雜性 ； generative grammar ； post-nominal modifiers ； syntactic complexity in writing

東華人文學報

23期（2013 / 07 / 01）

253 - 273

英文

本文主張寫作如同口語溝通，以結構複雜性所呈現的「描寫的充足」是為文的前提。本文研究中高級寫作課的老師旨在使文法學習更簡易並明示學生七種衍生的名詞後位修飾結構－介繫詞片語、不定詞片語、分詞片語、形容詞子句、形容詞片語、名詞子句、名詞片語。此後，針對學生學習前的記敘文與學習後的說明文之間，此七種文法複雜性項目做質性與量性的比較。研究結果顯示學生開始習得七種中的六種修飾詞並應用在說明文中。此外，最受學生偏好的結構為形容詞子句，但是仍需後續加強學習。記敘文與說明文中形容詞子句的主詞動詞一致仍是學生最大的錯誤，彰顯出母語干擾，仍需後續學習。

It is posited in this paper that in writing, paralleling the process of oral communication, ”description sufficiency” as manifested in structural complexity, is a premis. The teacher of the Advanced Writing class in the present action study aimed to facilitate syntax learning and explicitly instruct the 19 university juniors to learn the seven types of generative post-nominal constituents in English, i.e., prepositional phrases, infinitive phrases, participle phrases, adjective clauses, adjective phrases, noun phrases, and noun clauses. Thereafter, the differences in the target categories of the syntactic complexity found in the writing assignments of the learners between the pre-learning narrative and post-learning expository sets of data were compared and contrasted qualitatively and quantitatively.The research results indicated that the learners began acquiring the six out of seven types of modifiers and applying them in their expository writings. In addition, the most preferred structure statistically remained relative clauses, which stayed problematic and needed further tackling. For both narrative and expository writings, subject-verb agreement in number and tense in the relative clauses fell into the largest category of errors, which revealed L1 interference and also needed further instruction.

1. Beers, S. F.,Nagy, W. E.(2011).Writing development in four genres from grades three to seven: Syntactic complexity and genre differentiation.An Interdisciplinary Journal,24(2),183-202.
2. Beers, S. F.,Nagy, W. E.(2009).Syntactic complexity as a predictor of adolescent writing quality: Which measures? Which genre?.An Interdisciplinary Journal,22(2),185-200.
3. Berman, R. A.,Nir-Sagiv, B.(2007).Comparing narrative and expository text construction across adolescence: A developmental paradox.Discourse Processes,43,79-120.
4. Brown, D.(2006).Principles of language learning and teaching.New York:Pearson ESL.
5. Brown, D.(2007).Teaching by principles: An interactive approach to language pedagogy.New York:Pearson ESL.
6. Chang, Y.-F.(2004).Second language relative clause acquisition: An examination of cross-linguistic influences.Annual Meeting of the American Association for Applied Linguistics,Portland, OR:
7. Connors, R. J.(2000).The erasure of the sentence.College Composition and Communication,52,96-128.
8. Crowhurst, M.(1980).Syntactic complexity and teachers' quality ratings of narrations and arguments.Research in the Teaching of English,14,223-231.
9. Crowhurst, M.(1983).Syntactic complexity and writing quality: A review.Canadian Journal of Education,8,1-16.
10. Eckman, F.R.(Ed.),Bell, L. N.(Ed.),Nelson, D.(Ed.)(1984).Universals of second language acquisition.Rowley, MA:Newbury House.
11. Ellis, R.(1993).Studies in second language acquisition.White Plains, NY:Longman.
12. Ellis, R.,Loewen, S.,Elder, C.,Erlam, R.,Philp, J.,Reinders, H.(2009).Implicit and explicit knowledge insecond language learning, testing and teaching.Bristol, UK:Multilingual Matters.
13. Flynn, S.,Espinal, I.(1985).Head initial/head final parameter in adult L2 acquisition of English.Second Language Research,1,93-117.
14. Fromkin, V.,Rodman, R.,Hyams, N.(2002).An Introduction to Language.Independence, KY:Thompson/Heinle.
15. Gass, S.(1979).Language transfer and universal grammatical relations.Language Learning,29,327-344.
16. Hunt, K. W.(1966).Sentence structures used by superior students in grade four and twelve and by superior adults.Tallahassee:Florida State University.
17. Hunt, K. W.(1965).Research Report No. 3Research Report No. 3,Champaign, IL:National Council of Teachers of English.
18. Hunt, K. W.(1970).Syntactic maturity in school children and adults.Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development,35(1)
19. Krashen, S.(1981).Second language acquisition and second language learning.Oxford:Pergamon Press.
20. Ladefoged, P.(2007).A course in phonetics.Boston, M. A.:Heinle & Heinle.
21. Lado, R.(1957).Linguistics across culture.Ann Arbor:University of MichiganPress.
22. Malvern, D. D.,Richards, B. J.,Chipere, N.,Duran, P.(2004).Lexical diversity and language development: Quantification and assessment.Basingstoke, Hampshire:Palgrave Macmillan.
23. Nippold, M. A.,Hesketh, L. J.,Duthie, J. K.(2005).Conversational versus expository discourse: A study of syntactic development in children, adolescents, and adults.Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research,48,1048-1064.
24. Nippold, M. A.,Mansfield, T. C.,Billow, J. L.(2007).Peer conflict explanations in children, adolescents, and adults: Examining the development of complex syntax.American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology,16,179-188.
25. O''Donnell, R. C.(1976).A critique of some indices of syntactic maturity.Research in the Teaching of English,10,31-38.
26. O''Donnell, R. C.,Griffin, W. J.,Norris, R. C.(1967).Research Report No. 8Research Report No. 8,Champaign, IL:National Council of Teachers of English.
27. Olson, D. R.,Astington, J. W.(1990).Talking about text: How literacy contributes to thought.Journal of Pragmatics,14,705-721.
28. Quirk, R.,Greenbaum, S.(1973).A Concise grammar of contemporary English.New York:Harcourt School.
29. Radford, A.(1988).Transformational grammar.Cambridge:Cambridge University Press.
30. Ravid, D.,Berman, R.(2010).Developing noun phrase complexity at school age: A text-embedded cross linguistic analysis.First Language,30,3-26.
31. Richard-Amato, P.(2003).Making it happen.White Plains: NY:Longman.
32. Rijlaarsdam, G.(Ed),van den Bergh, H.(Ed),Couzijn, Michel(Ed)(1996).Theories, models and methodology in writing research.Amsterdam:Amsterdam University Press.
33. Scott, C. M.,Windsor, J.(2000).General language performance measures in spoken and written narrative and expository discourse of school-age children with language learning disabilities.Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research,43,324-339.
34. Vygotsky, L.(1978).Mind in society.Cambridge, Mass:Harvard University.