| 摘要: | 本研究旨在探究有關詞彙文法構式一系列待答的問題，這些問題於現今第二語言教學及研究中往往被忽略，但卻需長期研究以釐清諸多關鍵，特別是有關第二語言學習者如何能習得構式，以及在何種語言輸入或是語境下能有效地促發學習者習得構式。有鑒於此，此一年期計畫擬從以下面向著手：(一) 闡明並解釋學習者面對詞彙文法構式的基本挑戰，至今這些挑戰仍未被關注或是並無相應對的策略方法 (二) 提出理論架構以揭示這些挑戰的棘手處，使其易為處理 (三) 進行初步實徵研究，探求學習者可相應對的學習策略或方式，以利後續研究。詞彙文法構式乃指語言中多於一字的特定構造，其語義無法純由單字詞彙和文法預測而得知。這些構式既不像語序公式(formulaic sequence)般完全固化(如by the way或believe it or not等)，也不符合語法創造原則，能照規則套入字詞，組合出無限句子 (如Wh-問句或被動語法)。換言之，這些構式就第二語言教與學來說尤其難掌握，因其語義無法由所組的各個單字拼湊出來，而有其獨特的語形─語義配對。由於以上特性，語言辭典和文法參考資源皆無法界定詞彙文法構式，也無法呈現其全貌，而使其成為模糊不清卻又亟需探掘的研究領域。因之，無論是第二語言學習者或教師，都無法倚賴現今語言教學資源研發技術來辨別構式。而本計畫主持人與研發團隊十多年來的研究重心便是著眼於此知識落差，利用計算語言學開發以語料庫為本的知識資源，以彌補資源匱乏。然而，要能有效輔助語言學習，首要任務是得讓構式對學習者而言是可習得的，但其特定構造與形義配對難以藉傳統的直接教學法傳授。故本研究擬採用以學習者為本位的探索式學習，藉此奠定學生習得構式的基礎。本研究以台灣的大學生為對象，於課堂進行實徵研究，透過三組各異的實驗情境來探討以下問題：就語形而言，對於陌生的構式，學生有多大程度能識別出? 又，何種語言輸入能有利於他們識別構式? 其中影響的因素又為何? 此外，就語義而言，學生是否能覺察這些特定構造有其獨特的意義配對，而非自其組成單字各別拼湊? 再者，何種條件或狀況能增進學生對構式的識別力及其獨特語義的理解度? 最後，由於詞彙文法構式非完全固化，亦即其內部的單字語彙有某種約定俗成的替換性，學生是否能辨識出此特質? 而哪些語言輸入或學習任務又能促發此認知? 藉由這些問題，本研究欲釐清如何增進學習者在語境中對構式之敏銳度。 ;The proposed research begins a longer-term investigation into a set of neglected questions concerning lexico-grammatical constructions, specifically, how they are acquired by second language learners and what sorts of input and conditions could foster this learning. In particular, this one-year project aims (1) to elucidate fundamental challenges that lexico-grammatical constructions pose to learners (challenges which have not been previously articulated or addressed); (2) to provide the theoretical framework within which these challenges become apparent and tractable; (3) to motivate and conduct initial empirical research addressing these challenges. Lexico-grammatical constructions are multiword patterns that are neither frozen like formulaic expressions on the one hand (e.g., “by the way”, “believe it or not”, “as a matter of fact”), nor do they allow the open variation expected by fully productive grammar rules on the other (e.g., wh-questions; the passive construction). As a consequence, one challenge they pose is that their meaning is not predictable from the meanings of their component words; they can be understood only as whole multiword expressions. These traits taken together, lexico-grammatical constructions occupy a vast and poorly charted in-between territory that is missed by both dictionaries and grammar resources. In the current state of the art, therefore, learners and teachers cannot depend on available knowledge resources for help with lexico-grammatical constructions. The PI’s collaborative research for more than a decade has been devoted to analyzing this exact knowledge gap and developing corpus-derived computational resources to fill it (Wible 2008; Wible and Tsao 2017; 2016; 2010; Tsao and Wible 2013; 2009; Huang, Wible and Ko 2012). For these lexico-grammatical resources to effectively support language learning, however, it is essential that they reach the learner in ways that render the constructions learnable. The unique constellation of traits of lexico-grammatical constructions, however, make them especially resistant to traditional direct instruction. As an alternative, the proposed research investigates a case for learner-centered, discovery-oriented learning of these constructions and lays the groundwork for fostering discovery learning of constructions. A set of three empirical classroom studies of university students in Taiwan is proposed to investigate the following questions: To what extent and under what input conditions can learners recognize the presence of unknown lexico-grammatical constructions in their English input, and what factors influence this recognition? To what extent and under what input conditions do learners recognize that such constructions must be comprehended as multiword wholes rather than simply by deriving the meaning compositionally from the component words? What conditions can foster their sensitivity to the presence of unknown constructions in their input and to this non-compositionality of their meaning? To what extent can learners recognize a partially productive construction as not frozen but allowing substitutability in lexical content? What conditions of input and tasks would foster this recognition? The aim is to uncover ways of refining learners’attunement to constructions in their input so they can become independent life-long language learners. |
