Some factors which may affect the attainment of implicit and explicit knowledge in learning English as a second or foreign language

Mariana Gotseva

doi:10.33919/esnbu.15.2.6

Some factors which may affect the attainment of implicit and explicit knowledge in learning English as a second or foreign language

Authors

Mariana Gotseva South-West University Neofit Rilski, Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.33919/esnbu.15.2.6

Keywords:

second language acquisition, implicit knowledge, implicit learning, explicit knowledge, explicit learning, attainment of L2 proficiency, contextual SLA factors

Abstract

This article is an attempt to shed some more light on certain factors, related to individual differences in the process of second/foreign language acquisition/learning, proven by previous research in the field of second language acquisition (SLA). These are factors which may affect the final attainment of adult learnersâ€™ implicit and explicit knowledge of English as a second/foreign language and their proficiency. A study based on empirical data collected from a sample of 103 participants, through a battery of tests, aimed at tapping into the attainment of implicit or explicit knowledge of ESL/EFL, was conducted to explore certain factors such as: starting age of learning; length of exposure to English as a second/foreign language in a target language country; length of learning and type of input received, which have a statistically significant impact on attainment and on ESL/EFL proficiency. The results were analysed using SPSS software.

Author Biography

Mariana Gotseva, South-West University Neofit Rilski, Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria

Mariana Gotseva, MA in Applied Linguistics from Birkbeck, University of London, UK, is currently a PhD student there, and in receipt of SSHP research studentship. She is a member of BCALS (Birkbeck Applied Linguistics Society) and of BALEAP (British Association of Lecturers in English for Academic Purposes). Mariana Gotseva is Assistant Professor in the Department of Germanic and Romance Studies, South West University, Bulgaria, where she teaches EFL and Strategies of Written Communication. For the past 13 years she taught EFL, EAP and Academic and Research Skills for universities in London, UK. Her research interests include SLA; implicit and explicit learning; EAP; and strategies of written communication.

English Studies at NBU, Volume 1, Issue 2, 2015

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Published

2015-12-31

How to Cite

Gotseva, M. (2015). Some factors which may affect the attainment of implicit and explicit knowledge in learning English as a second or foreign language. English Studies at NBU, 1(2), 85–100. https://doi.org/10.33919/esnbu.15.2.6

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Issue

Vol. 1 No. 2 (2015)

Section

Articles

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