Project Overview


Our Goals

The YGLE corpus project aims to complement the extensive body of work on highly advanced, university-level L1 German EFL learners by creating a database on the production of beginning to intermediate L1 German EFL learners in institutional contexts.

Our main goals are:

Creating the corpus

The YGLE corpus will consist of written, spoken, and digital data from German learners in grades 5-11 (ages 10-18). Data are being collected at academic and vocational secondary schools (Hauptschule, Realschule, Gymnasium/Abitur-track) in three German states (Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, North Rhine-Westphalia).

Our spoken tasks include a group discussion and a picture description task, while our written tasks include a short argumentative essay and an instant messaging task. In addition, we collect an extensive set of metadata.

Complexity, Accuracy, and Fluency (CAF) 

The CAF triad has become a popular focal point for mapping second language proficiency and performance in a way that recognizes the multi-componential nature of language development and use. (Housen & Kuiken 2009; Polat & Kim 2014; Michel 2017). 


Following Pallotti (2021), CAF components can be generally defined as follows: 

Complexity

The number of elements and their inter-relationship in a linguistic system, with subcomponents such as lexical and morphosyntactic complexity.

Accuracy

The conformity of linguistic performance to target-like conventions at specific levels of description.

Fluency

The extent to which production is smooth at a holistic level, including the three dimensions of speed, breakdown and repair.

References

Housen, A. & Kuiken, F. (2009) Complexity, accuracy, and fluency in Second Language Acquisition. Applied Linguistics, 30(4), 461–473.

Michel, M. (2017). Complexity, accuracy, and fluency in L2 production. In S. Loewen & M. Sato. (Eds.) The Routledge Handbook of Instructed Second Language Acquisition (pp. 50–68). Routledge.

Pallotti, G. (2021). Measuring complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF). In P. Winke & T. Brunfaut (Eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Second Language Acquisition and Testing (pp. 201–210). Routledge.

Polat, B. & Kim, Y. (2014). Dynamics of complexity and accuracy: A longitudinal case study of advanced untutored development. Applied Linguistics, 35(2), 184–207.