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:
Analyze complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF) in young German learners of English
Analyze the interdependence of CAF components in this learner group
Analyze the influence of learner variables (e.g. gender, socio-economic status) on the development of CAF in this learner group
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.