Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'German language Grammar'

The following thesis focuses on forms that traditional German grammar designates as "Pronominaladverbien." The objective was to establish the word class under which these forms-hereafter DWPs-should fall and their syntactic role. The thesis also aims at determining which translation procedures are used when translating German DWPs into French.
As a first step, DWPs were integrated into a classification system that took into account both their proform character and their various syntactic roles.
Organizing the DWP translations into a system proved to be somewhat arduous. After reviewing various translation theories, a conclusion became unavoidable: these systems do not accommodate all the characteristics of DWPs. A new classification system was devised.
With the new system, it became possible to identify the most frequent translation procedures used for each DWP type and, at times, to explain their frequency. The conclusion of the thesis is that French manages in most cases to translate German DWPs without significant semantic loss.

This thesis investigates first languages (L1) influence on second language (L2) acquisition of long-distance wh-movement and related constraints governed by Universal Grammar. It thus seeks to integrate L2 syntactic knowledge into L2 knowledge at the syntax-semantics interface in order to find out more about the nature of L2 acquisition, thesis extends its body of research into L2 processing at the syntax-semantics interface. That being so, it allows us not only to explore an ultimate issue of whether L2 speakers have access to Universal Grammar but also to consider how grammar and meaning interact in real time. To this end, this thesis examines crossover phenomena in L2 English, by speakers of German and Korean. A series of experiments are employed in this research: an acceptability judgement task, a truth-value judgement task, and a self-paced reading task. Experiment 1 investigates whether L2 speakers have acquired syntactic knowledge of long-distance wh-movement in English. This experiment, in particular, examines whether L2 speakers are sensitive to locality conditions on wh-movement. Experiment 2 identifies whether semantic knowledge is facilitated by syntactic knowledge in L2 acquisition. Experiment 3–4 examine whether L2 speakers make use of syntax-semantics interface knowledge during online processing. The findings from Experiment 1–4 suggest that that L1 does not influence acquisition and processing of L2.

This dissertation study examined a broad question of whether computer-based grammar tutorials are effective and welcome tools to review grammar for language learners by investigating effects of three different modes of such tutorials on learners' knowledge and satisfaction. For this study, I developed experimental tutorials in three different modes (a static text with a voice-over narration, an animated text with a voice-over narration, and a recording of a real teacher) for two target structures of German grammar (regular verb conjugation and separable-prefix verbs). In total, there were more than 100 Elementary German students at two Midwestern universities, who participated in different stages of the study. The participants represented a mostly homogeneous group with characteristics that are common for college-level learners. There were two parallel experiments in this study that employed identical methods but focused on two different target structures. Thus, both experiments examined the effect of the three study tutorials on learners' knowledge and satisfaction, but Experiment 1 focused on the regular verb conjugation, whereas Experiment 2 focused on the separable-prefix verbs. For each experiment, the participants completed a pretest, worked with the assigned tutorial mode, completed a posttest, and filled out a number of questionnaires. The results of the analysis demonstrated that the study tutorials helped learners to significantly improve their knowledge of grammar; however, the mode of the tutorial did not make a difference. Likewise, all modes of tutorial received similar satisfaction ratings; however, additional qualitative analysis suggested that a considerable number of the participants preferred the animated mode. The findings of the study demonstrate that computer-based grammar tutorials can be effective and welcome tools to review grammar for language learners. Moreover, tutorials of this type can be a viable method of achieving the desired balance between the form- and meaning-focused activities in language classrooms. Also, such tutorials appeal to learners because they support more individualized learning.

The main purpose of this study is to explore the effects of the use of games as a teaching strategy for raising the grammatical accuracy level of secondary students of German as a second language. This thesis seeks also to examine the effect of game-based grammar instruction on students’ motivation and classroom atmosphere. The participants in this study were divided into two groups, the Control and Experimental groups, and received 90 periods, over 18 weeks, of grammatical instruction by the same teacher. The teaching program was the same for both groups. The difference consisted in the use of game-based practice for the experimental group, while the control group performed traditional grammar-based practice only. Data were collected using the following instruments: grammar tests and examinations,a questionnaire on motivation, a questionnaire on classroom atmosphere, a questionnaire on the type of grammar practice, a questionnaire on the role of grammar and grammar instruction, focus group interviews with students, and the researcher’s field notes. While the main result does not support the hypothesis for significant improvement in grammatical accuracy by the experimental students as a result of game-based practice, their overall improved performance is a worthwhile achievement, particularly if it is linked to significant improvements in students’ motivation and classroom atmosphere.These positive results offer a notable incentive to language teachers to include games in their teaching of grammatical features, because the positive results of this experiment with regard to learners’ motivation, peer interaction, teacher-student interaction augur well for an eventual improvement also in the rate of grammatical accuracy.

The benefits of explicit knowledge for language learning is a much debated issue. In this study this question is approached from a new perspective since it focuses on the correlation between students’ concept images and their language ability. The focused concept is the subordinate clause in German. By means of a short written test the performance of 12 Swedish university-level students in three types of tasks was elicited: translating, correcting an erroneous text and commenting on grammatical differences in parallel German and Swedish texts. The students were asked to think aloud, but complementary questions were also asked if verbalizations were not lucid. A semi-structured interview that focused on school experiences, attitudes towards language learning and grammatical concepts followed. One year later the same procedure was repeated with three of the students who had successfully finished their first year of German.As for the concept images many students had only blurred conceptions of subordinate clauses, especially when they did not have access to texts to refer to. When they had the help from artefacts they often focused on visual clues such as subjunctions and verb position. Many verbalized statements were simply wrong. A common concept image described the subordinate clause as positioned after the main clause with the function of adding extra information. This led to the conclusion that the relative clause is the prototypical subordinate clause.Despite the often vague concept images, most students had no difficulty in producing subordinate clauses or in correcting a text with word order errors. Interestingly, the relative clause proved to cause the most problems.The fact that the students were able to produce subordinate clauses, but not able to explain their chosen solution indicates implicit knowledge. This in turn gives reason to believe that students have formed their own natural concepts from experience and not learned a well defined scientific concept. The students in this study could also be seen to represent stages in the concept building process that begins with a category ‘sentence’. Step by step different types of subordinate clauses break loose and form a new category ‘subordinate clause’. With time the attributes become more refined.The analysis of four Swedish grammars of German showed that three of them had content shortcomings, whereas the fourth placed too much emphasis on linguistic correctness which would leave the learners behind.In the last chapter implications for grammar writing and grammar teaching are discussed. One key point is the necessity of opportunities to verbalize your thoughts since this promotes learning
ZusammenfassungHintergrund, Ziel und ForschungsfragenDie übergreifende Frage dieser Arbeit stammt aus meinem Grammatikunterricht an einer schwedischen Universität. In dem Kontakt mit Studenten lässt sich leicht feststellen, dass sie alle individuelle Charakteristika aufweisen – auch was den Erfolg mit den theoretischen Aspekten der Grammatik als auch mit der Anwendung des Wissens. Einige Studenten haben damit große Schwierigkeiten, während andere einigermaßen korrektes Deutsch produzieren können und anscheinend auch verstanden haben, wie die deutsche Sprache aufgebaut ist, wie die grammatischen Begriffe gebildet sind, usw.Ich habe mich dann gefragt, ob vielleicht Grammatiklernen wie Mathematik¬lernen funktioniert und dass die beobachteten Schwierigkeiten auf ein mangelndes Verständnis grundlegender grammatischer Begriffe wie ,Satz‘ und ,Kasus‘ zurückzuführen sind. Nach einer Beschränkung auf ,Satz‘, aber vor allem ,Nebensatz‘ ließen sich folgende Forschungsfragen formulieren:•    Welche Vorstellungen haben schwedischsprachige Deutschstudenten vom Begriff ,Nebensatz‘?•    Wie verhalten sich die Begriffsvorstellungen eines Studenten zu seiner Fähigkeit, korrekte deutsche Nebensätze zu produzieren?Ein wichtiges Hilfsmittel beim Sprachenlernen und -lehren sind Grammatik¬handbücher. Wenn es um Grammatiken für die Schule, didaktische Gram¬matiken, geht, wird immer eine Auswahl vorgenommen und die Darstellung wird auch in anderer Weise den Schülern und ihren vermuteten Vorkenntnissen angepasst. Eine zweite Spur dieser Arbeit gilt solchen Beschreibungen der Struktur des Deutschen, und eine dritte Hauptfrage lautet:•    Wir wird der Begriff ,Nebensatz‘ in schwedischen Grammatiken für den Unterricht Deutsch als Fremdsprache beschrieben?Das Hauptziel der Arbeit ist es, einen Teil der ”Realität” zu erkunden (die Vorstellungen der Studenten von ,Nebensatz‘ und ihre Fähigkeit, solche zu produzieren, sowie Sprachbeschreibungen) und daraus folgernd mögliche Verbesserungen der Sprachbeschreibungen und des Sprachunterrichts  über¬sichtlich zu diskutieren.Theoretischer RahmenGrundlegende Fragen nach Begriffsvorstellungen betreffen kognitive Prozesse und Produkte. Der theoretische Hintergrund dieser Untersuchung setzt sich deshalb zusammen aus einerseits allgemeinen Lerntheorien sowie Theorien zu Begriffsbildung bzw. Begriffsaneignung, andererseits aus Theorien zum Fremdsprachenerwerb: wie lernen wir? Welche Wissensform ist das Ergebnis? Wie verhalten sich Wissen und Performanz zueinander? In den Gesprächen mit Studenten (s. u.) stellte sich aber heraus, dass die Gespräche an sich und die Möglichkeit, Gedanken und Hypothesen zu verbalisieren, oft zum Lernen führten.Material und MethodeMit zwölf Universitätsanfängern des Fachs Deutsch wurde ein kurzer schriftlicher Test und ein anschließendes gesprächsähnliches Interview durch¬geführt. Die Studenten lösten die Aufgaben individuell und waren aufgefordert, dabei laut zu denken. Wenn die verbalisierten Gedanken nicht aufschlussreich genug waren, wurden spezifische Fragen gestellt. Themen des Interviews waren teils Schulerfahrungen und Einstellung zum Sprachenlernen, teils explizite Fragen zu grammatischen Begriffen. Mit drei dieser Informanten wurde dasselbe Verfahren ein Jahr später wiederholt, nach erfolgreichem Abschluss des ersten Studienjahres. Bei dieser Gelegenheit wurden auch retrospektivisch ausgerichtete Fragen zum Lern- und Begriffsbildungsprozess gestellt.ErgebnisseWas die Begriffsvorstellungen betrifft, zeigte sich ein Unterschied je nach dem, ob konkrete Nebensätze zum Anschauen zugänglich waren oder nicht. Waren solche vorhanden, wurde eher auf visuell beobachtbare Charakteristika wie Einleiter und Verbletztstellung hingewiesen. Ohne die Unterstützung durch ein Artefakt standen ein Vergleich oder eine Verbindung mit einem Hauptsatz im Fokus.Eine zweite Beobachtung war, dass die Studenten häufig Merkmale anführten, die als fehlerhaft zu betrachten sind. So glauben viele, das Vorhandensein eines Kommas würde einen Nebensatz verursachen.Eine häufig vorkommende Vorstellung war, dass der Nebensatz immer dem übergeordneten Satz nachgestellt ist und inhaltlich eine Spezifizierung dazu ausmacht. Daraus lässt sich der Schluss ziehen, dass der Relativsatz der proto¬typische Nebensatz ist.Obwohl viele Studenten vage oder sogar fehlerhafte Vorstellungen vom Begriff ,Nebensatz‘ verbalisierten, hatten sie selten Probleme, deutsche Sätze mit korrekter Wortstellung zu produzieren oder Sätze mit inkorrekter Wort¬stellung zu korrigieren. Interessanterweise verursachte dabei gerade der Relativsatz Schwierigkeiten. Die Tatsache, dass die meisten Informanten also Nebensätze produzieren konnten, gleichzeitig aber Schwierigkeiten hatten, ihre Vorstellungen zu verba¬lisieren und die gewählten Lösungen im Test metasprachlich zu begründen, lässt sich als Indiz für implizites Wissen interpretieren. Das wiederum legt den Schluss nahe, dass sie eher von ihren konkreten Erfahrungen ausgehend, d. h. im Kontakt mit gesprochenem und geschriebenem Deutsch einen natürlichen Begriff gebildet haben, als dass sie sich einen fertigen, genau definierten Begriff angeeignet hätten. In diesem Fall ist es demnach nicht notwendig, im Besitz eines wissenschaftlichen Begriffs zu sein.Weiter stellte sich heraus, dass die Informanten dieser Untersuchung als Vertreter für unterschiedliche Phasen des Begriffsbildungsprozesses gesehen werden können. Dabei scheint eine Kategorie ”mening” (,Vollsatz‘) der Aus¬gangspunkt zu sein, aus dem sich schrittweise die verschiedenen Neben¬satztypen losmachen, um die Kategorie ,Nebensatz‘ zu bilden. Die Kenn¬zeichen, Attribute, die diese Mitglieder aufweisen, werden im Prozess zunehmend verfeinert.In den analysierten Grammatiken, die alle in einer ersten oder späteren Auflage in den 1990er Jahren erschienen, ließ sich eine gewisse Entwicklung von einer relativ starken Fokussierung auf Morphologie zu einer ausführlicheren Behandlung der Syntax sowie einer umfangreicheren Diskussion der Begriffe. Bei drei der Grammatiken waren inhaltliche Mängel und undeutliche Formulierungen zu verzeichnen, während die vierte in so hohem Grad eine sprachwissenschaftlich korrekte Beschreibung angestrebt hatte, dass die Anpassung an die Schüler in Frage gestellt werden musste.Didaktische ImplikationenDas abschließende Kapitel der Arbeit umfasst mögliche didaktische Implikationen der Untersuchung für Sprachbeschreibung und Sprachunterricht. Im ersten Fall werden u. a. der Einsatz der Nebensatzeinleiter als Signalwörter sowie der Gebrauch von Visualisierungen fokussiert. Wenn es um Unterricht geht,  werden die soziokulturellen Lerntheorien wieder aufgegriffen, wobei besonders ihre Betonung der Bedeutung des Gesprächs fürs Lernen thematisiert wird. Ferner wird auf die positive Wirkung eines induktiven Verfahrens hingewiesen
SammanfattningBakgrund, syfte och frågeställningarDen övergripande frågan för denna undersökning har uppstått i min under¬visning i tysk grammatik på universitetsnivå. Som vid all annan undervisning, eller kontakt med människor över huvud taget, konstaterar man ganska snart att individerna är olika. I mitt konkreta fall har vissa studenter stora svårigheter med både den teoretiska grammatiken och tillämpningen av den, medan andra både kan producera god tyska och tycks ha förstått hur tyskan är uppbyggd, hur de grammatiska begreppen är bildade och liknande. Inspirerad av forskning inom matematikdidaktik som visat att svårigheter som dyker upp kan bero på att eleverna inte förstått grundläggande begrepp som ’tal’ och ’mängd’ frågade jag mig om förhållandet kunde vara likartat här, dvs. att de som hade svårigheter inte förstått grundläggande begrepp som ’sats’ och ’kasus’. I denna undersökning inskränktes arbetet till att i någon mån behandla begreppet ’sats’ men i huvudsak omfatta begreppet ’bisats’.De konkreta forskningsfrågorna för undersökningen är:•    Vilka föreställningar har svenskspråkiga tyskstudenter av begreppet ’bisats’?•    Hur förhåller sig en students begreppsföreställning(ar) till förmågan att producera korrekta tyska bisatser?Ett viktigt hjälpmedel vid språkinlärning och -undervisning är handböcker i grammatik. När det gäller grammatikor för skolbruk, didaktiska grammatikor, har alltid ett urval gjorts och framställningen har även på annat sätt anpassats till elever och deras förmodade förkunskaper. Ett annat spår i avhandlingen gäller dessa beskrivningar av tyskans struktur och en tredje huvudfråga lyder därför:•    Hur beskrivs begreppet ’bisats’ i svenska skolgrammatikor för tysk¬undervisningen?Huvudsyftet med undersökningen är att ta reda på hur en del av verkligheten ser  ut (studenternas föreställningar om och förmåga att producera bisatser samt språkbeskrivningar) och utifrån detta diskutera hur man eventuellt kan förbättra språkbeskrivning och språkundervisning så att eleverna lär sig både mer och bättre.Teoretisk förankringDe grundläggande frågorna omkring begreppsföreställningar handlar om kognitiva processer och produkter. Den teoretiska bakgrunden till denna under¬sökning utgörs därför dels av teorier kring lärande generellt och kring begreppsbildning respektive begreppstillägnande, dels av teorier kring frågor om hur förvärvandet av ett främmande språk går till, vilken form av kunskap detta leder till samt hur kunskaper och performans hör samman. I samtalen med studenterna (se nedan) visade det sig dock att dessa samtal i sig och möjligheten att verbalisera sina tankar och hypoteser ofta ledde till lärande. Detta för¬hållande är centralt inom sociokulturella lärandeteorier varför även sådana beaktas – inte minst i diskussionerna kring didaktiska implikationer av resultaten.Material och metodFör att få svar på forskningsfrågorna sammanställdes ett kort skriftligt test. Sammanlagt tolv studenter på första terminens universitetsstudier i tyska löste testuppgifterna enskilt och ombads därvid tänka högt och motivera sina lösningar. Vissa specifika frågor kring deras svar ställdes också för att få dem att verbalisera sina föreställningar. I anslutning till testet genomfördes en lite längre semistrukturerad intervju dels kring deras erfarenheter från skolan och inställning till språkundervisning, dels kring grammatiska begrepp. Med tre av dessa studenter upprepades test och intervju ett år senare då de med framgång avslutat ett års studier i tyska. Då ställdes också frågor som syftade till att retrospektivt försöka klargöra hur begreppsbildning och -utveckling går till.Både testdelen och intervjun spelades in på video. Undersökningen bygger således på det skriftliga testet (performans) och transkriptioner av den samtals¬liknande intervjun.ResultatNär det gäller föreställningarna av begreppet ’bisats’ visade det sig att de skiljer sig åt något när studenterna hade konkreta bisatser att hänvisa till eller iaktta och när de bara besvarade frågan om vad en bisats är. I det första fallet var de visuella signalerna bisatsinledare och ordföljd viktiga, medan en jämförelse eller annan koppling till en huvudsats gjordes när inga hjälpande artefakter fanns.Ytterligare en iakttagelse var att studenterna i många fall anförde känne¬tecken hos bisatser som måste anses vara direkt felaktiga. Så tycks flera av dem utgå från att förekomsten av ett komma förorsakar en bisats. En vanlig föreställning var också att en bisats alltid står efter den över¬ordnade satsen och att den innehållsligt innebär en specificering av denna. Av detta kan man dra slutsatsen att relativsatsen är den prototypiska bisatsen. Trots att många studenter hade luddiga eller till och med felaktiga före¬ställningar av begreppet ’bisats’, hade de sällan problem att själva producera tyska bisatser eller korrigera satser med felaktig ordföljd. Intressant nog visade sig relativsatsen förorsaka mest problem i studenternas egna produktion. Det faktum att de flesta informanterna således kunde producera bisatser samtidigt som de hade svårigheter att verbalisera sina föreställningar och att motivera sina lösningar i testet i någon metaspråklig form kan ses som ett tecken på att de besitter implicit kunskap. Det i sin tur kan tolkas som att de utifrån sina konkreta erfarenheter med bisatser, det vill säga genom sin kontakt med tyskan i tal och skrift snarare bildat ett naturligt begrepp än tillägnat sig ett färdigt, väldefinierat begrepp. Att besitta en begreppsföreställning som motsvarar det vetenskapliga är alltså i detta fall inte nödvändigt.Det visade sig också att de studenter som ingår i denna undersökning kan ses som representanter för olika faser i begreppsbildningsprocessen. I denna tycks utgångspunkten vara en kategori ’mening’ från vilken olika bisatstyper stegvis lösgör sig för att bilda kategorin ’bisats’. De kännetecken, attribut, som dessa uppvisar blir med tiden allt mer förfinade.I de analyserade skolgrammatikorna, som alla utgavs i en första eller senare upplaga under olika skeden av 1990-talet, kunde en viss utveckling från en förhållandevis stark fokusering på morfologi i de äldre mot en utförligare behandling av syntax liksom ökad diskussion av begreppen. Tre av gramma¬tikorna kunde sägas uppvisa innehållsliga brister och otydliga formuleringar, medan den fjärde i så hög grad eftersträvat en språkvetenskapligt korrekt beskrivning att anpassningen till eleverna kunde ifrågasättas. Didaktiska implikationerI det avslutande kapitlet diskuteras de didaktiska implikationer som under¬sökningen har eller kan ha för språkbeskrivning och språkundervisning. I det första fallet fokuseras bland annat hur bisatsinledare kan framhävas som signalord och hur visualiseringar kan bidra till framställningen. När det gäller undervisningen återkopplas bland annat till de sociokulturella teorierna och deras betoning av samtalets betydelse för lärandet samt visas på möjligheterna med ett induktivt arbetssätt.

The aim of this thesis is to comprehensively describe and evaluate the linguistic work of the German grammarian and teacher Max Wilhelm Götzinger (1799–1856). Götzinger‘s work has been little considered in linguistics and historiography of linguistics apart from some articles mainly on his grammatical theory. The first editions of Anfangsgründe (1825) and Die Deutsche Sprachlehre für Schulen (1827), which up to now have been considered to be lost, could be retrieved and used for this study. Aspects of Götzinger‘s didactics and grammar can still today be re-garded as modern. In many respects his didactic ideas were opposed to the methods of teaching inspired by rationalist grammar and prevailing in the schools of his time. His own method is inductive and the aim of teach-ing was mainly to make pupils familiar with the structure of the German language. Götzinger‘s grammatical system was inspired by his experience as a teacher. The logical judgement and the subject-predicate concepts were replaced by a verb centred concept of syntax and Götzinger‘s system of word classes began with the verb instead of the noun. He did not regard correct thinking, which was the main purpose of rationalist grammar, but communication as the basic aim of the teaching of grammar. His notion of the verb as the centre of the clause has basic features in common with modern dependency theories introduced by Lucien Tesnière. Götzinger performed pioneering work in the field of dialectology and he is understood be the first to include a comprehensive description of the dialects of the German speaking countries Even if there also are good reasons to criticise many aspects of his work, e.g. indistinct terminology, inconsistency in sticking to his theory, and subjectivity in the description of the dialects, Götzinger‘s achieve-ment as to the state of the art of his time and also with regard to modern linguistics must be considered remarkable.

Este trabalho apresenta uma análise da alternância dativa do verbo senden da língua alemã. Os pressupostos teóricos da Gramática de Construções postulados por Goldberg (1995) no que concerne aos bitransitivos e suas paráfrases preposicionais e a abordagem da sensitividade ao núcleo verbal de Rappaport Hovav e Levin (2008) são comparados e utilizados como ferramenta de análise do corpus. Por meio deles, analisa-se se as construções constituídas pelo verbo senden e o sintagma preposicional an denotam um evento de posse causada ou de movimento causado. As dificuldades encontradas para diferenciar recipiente de alvo e consequentemente o tipo de evento designado pela construção são discutidas. Apresentam-se preceitos abordados por Adler (2011) em seus estudos sobre a alternância dativa na língua alemã, que auxiliam na distinção do evento denotado pela construção. Assim, a pesquisa realizada corrobora as reflexões da autora sobre a nova faceta da preposição an que aparece em verbos de transferência o addressee-an, sustentando sua argumentação sobre o fato de que não são as variantes do objeto duplo (dativo), ou do sintagma preposicional, (no caso an) as responsáveis pelo evento denotado pela construção, mas sim os argumentos que a constitui. Essa pesquisa também propõe um outro tipo de classificação para a análise de verbos da língua alemã que denotam eventos de transferência em orações destituídas de agente volitivo: evento causal como transferência (Goldberg, 1995), no qual X CAUSA Y AFETADO A RECEBER Z EFEITO, evidenciando assim que não só o argumento TEMA, como também o agente da oração desempenha um papel fundamental na representação semântica da construção.
This work presents a dative alternance analysis of the verb senden from German language. The theoretical assumptions from the Construction Grammar postulated by Goldberg (1995) regarding the ditransitive and its prepositional paraphrase and a verb-sensitive approach to the dative alternation by Rappaport Hovav e Levin (2008) are compared and used as a corpus analysis tool. By means of them, it is analyzed if the constructions constituted by the verb senden and the prepositional syntagma an denote an event schemata caused possession or event schemata caused motion. The difficulties encountered to differentiate recipient and goal and, consequently, the kind of event designated by the construction are discussed. It is presented the precepts raised by Adler (2011) in her studies about the dative alternance in German language, which assist in the event distinction denoted by the construction. Thus, the realized research reinforce the authors reflections about the new facet of the preposition an that appears in transfer verbs the addressee-an, supporting the argumentation about the fact that it is not the double object variant (dative), or the prepositional sytagma (in the an case), the responsible for the event denoted by the construction, but the arguments that constitute it. This research also proposes another kind of classification for the analysis of German language verbs that denote transfer event in clauses deprived of volitive agent: causal event as transfer (Goldberg, 1995), in which X CAUSE Y AFFECT TO RECEIVE Z EFFECT, thus highlighting that not only the theme argument, but also the clause agent play a fundamental role in the semantics representation of the construction.

This study seeks to disprove the reasons offered by previous scholars for the emergence of the first German grammar for the English, the High Dutch Minerva (1680), by considering biographical material on the author of this grammar, Martin Aedler (1643 - 1724), and placing the author and his work in their German and English social context. It operates on the hypothesis that Aedler, a native of Saxony, published his grammar in England for the use of the English intellectual  lite, but did so essentially to satisfy the patriotic imperatives of the German intelligentsia; namely, members of the language societies of pre—national Germany. Previous scholars have hypothesised about the emergence of the grammar based on English requirement for such a work, but have not drawn biographical material into their argument, and thus unwittingly ignored evidence suggesting influence by the language societies, and the desire to legitimate the German language for a new audience. This line of argument is conducted by means of the provision of a chapter considering the general attitudes to language learning and requirement for skills in German in England, then the interest of German intellectuals in England during the same period. This leads into a biography of Aedler in his milieu both in England and Germany. He is shown to have patriotic concerns, a high level of skill in languages and, above all, is invested in matters which he believes are for the "public good". Aedler's motive for writing the grammar are next considered: it is established here that while there is a great deal of evidence supporting an intended English readership, there is also evidence to suggest that Aedler wrote his work to be able to propagate German abroad, and to demonstrate it to be an economical and rational language, acceptable to the English. The following chapter demonstrates how Aedler conducted his defence of the language in terms of his selection of grammatical theory. The final chapter considers the reception of the High Dutch Minerva in England and Germany. This hypothesis is supported by previously unpublished manuscript correspondence and other documents, archival records, and the High Dutch Minerva itself.

This dissertation describes the results of a didactic experiment that tests the effectiveness of formal linguistic theories in L2 teaching at the primary school. The investigation focuses on the acquisition/learning of verb second (V2) in Italian L2 learners of German, who range in age from 6 to 10 years. My research is based on the theoretical framework of Principles and Parameters (Chomsky 1981, 2005), and I investigate the role that principles and parameters play in L2 learning: on the one hand, I examine the availability of Universal Grammar (UG) in tutored child L2 learners. On the other hand, I test whether the didactic intervention triggers/supports the resetting of the V2 parameter in the L2 under construction. L2 learners in the primary school fall within the scope of the critical period for language acquisition, and they are thus in condition to acquire − and not just to learn − a L2, even though the exposure to L2 input takes place in an artificial classroom context. As to the early stages of L2 learning, the children spontaneously rely on the syntactic structure of the L1. The activation of a real process of L2 acquisition, that includes the reset of the L2 parameters, is possible only if the L2 learners are adequately stimulated with significant L2 input. The L2 teachers must not only select focused L2 input, but also analyse the L2 models with the learners. Moreover, the crosslinguistic comparison between the L1 and the L2 must not be neglected. The process under examination is not just the recall of prescriptive grammar rules, but the productive application of a L2 structure. If lexical and functional items enter the syntactic computation, the learners’ language-specific abilities are stimulated. The immediate positive results that this method entails must be supported with a regular and constant exposure to focused L2 input. The didactic experience discussed in my thesis shows that explicit grammar reflection, based on formal linguistic theories conveniently simplified, is adequate to the didactic needs and the general cognitive development of child L2 learners. The data collected in the experiment also suggest that L2 teaching should be enhanced in the primary school, particularly for the youngest learners.
Il presente lavoro descrive i risultati di un esperimento didattico atto a testare l’efficacia della teoria linguistica formale nell’insegnamento di una lingua seconda (L2) alla scuola primaria. Il fenomeno preso in esame è l’acquisizione/apprendimento del verbo secondo (V2) tedesco da parte di bambini italiani di età compresa tra i 6 e i 10 anni. Le basi teoriche della ricerca rientrano nel quadro dei Principi e Parametri (Chomsky 1981, 2005). Da un lato, si è esaminata la possibilità di accesso ai principi della Grammatica Universale da parte di apprendenti guidati di L2. Dall’altro lato, si è verificato se l’intervento didattico attuato favorisse l’impostazione del parametro del V2. I bambini della scuola primaria rientrano in una fase privilegiata per l’acquisizione del linguaggio e sono quindi nella condizione di acquisire − e non semplicemente di apprendere − una L2, anche in un contesto artificiale di esposizione all’input come quello scolastico. Per quanto riguarda le fasi iniziali di costruzione della grammatica della L2, si è osservato come l’apprendente si appoggi direttamente alla struttura sintattica della lingua materna (L1). Per innescare un processo di acquisizione della L2 completo di reimpostazione dei relativi parametri, l’apprendente deve essere adeguatamente stimolato ed esposto a un input significativo in L2. Occorre quindi che l’insegnante di lingua sia in grado non solo di selezionare quest’input, ma anche di analizzare con la classe modelli esemplificativi delle strutture sintattiche della L2. Inoltre, nemmeno il confronto interlinguistico tra L2 e L1 deve essere trascurato. L’operazione cognitiva presa in esame nello studio non consiste semplicemente nella memorizzazione o riproduzione di una regola grammaticale prescrittiva, ma nella costruzione produttiva di una struttura grammaticale. Se gli elementi lessicali e funzionali entrano in un processo di computazione sintattica, si vanno a stimolare abilità specifiche per il linguaggio. Gli effetti positivi immediati che questo metodo comporta devono essere supportati da una pratica regolare e dall’esposizione costante a un input mirato. L’esperienza didattica presentata nella tesi mostra come una riflessione grammaticale esplicita, basata su teorie linguistiche formali convenientemente semplificate, sia adeguata alle esigenze didattiche e allo sviluppo cognitivo generale degli apprendenti della scuola primaria. I dati raccolti mostrano anche come l’insegnamento di L2 alla scuola primaria sia da potenziare, soprattutto nei primi anni di scuola.

In der vorliegenden Arbeit wird der für die allgemeine Wissenschaftssprache des Deutschen charakteristische Bereich der figurativen Verben im Rahmen eines gebrauchsbasierten Ansatzes unter Verwendung korpuslinguistischer Methoden empirisch erfasst und beschrieben. Auf der Grundlage dieser Untersuchung wird ein integrativer Ansatz zur Erfassung und Beschreibung zentraler Wortschatzbereiche der allgemeinen Wissenschaftssprache entwickelt. Das so gewonnene integrative Beschreibungsmodell verbindet die Perspektiven bisheriger quantitativ-bestandsbezogener und bedeutungsorientiert-einheitenbezogener Ansätze und bezieht darüber hinaus sowohl formale als auch inhaltlich-funktionale Aspekte als Gliederungsprinzipien für die zu beschreibenden Wortschatzbereiche mit ein. Methodisch zeichnet es sich durch das Ineinandergreifen von korpusgesteuertem und korpusbasiertem Vorgehen aus. Die Ausarbeitung der Komponenten des Beschreibungsmodells wird auf mehreren Ebenen vorgelegt: Diese werden im ersten Kapitel zunächst ausgehend von einer Bestandsaufnahme vorliegender Arbeiten zur Beschreibung allgemein-wissenschaftlichen Wortschatzes formuliert. Im zweiten Kapitel werden sie im Rahmen eines gebrauchsbasierten Modells der Sprachbeschreibung, der Kognitiven Grammatik Langackers, sprachtheoretisch fundiert. Methodisch eingelöst findet sich diese theoretische Fundierung in den korpuslinguistischen Untersuchungen zu figurativen Verben, die Gegenstand der Kapitel drei und vier sind. Im fünften Kapitel werden die dabei gewonnenen Ergebnisse zu einer formbasiert-funktionalen Typologie figurativer Verben zusammengeführt. Kapitel sechs zeigt die mit dem vorgeschlagenen Ansatz verbundenen Transfermöglichkeiten zur Erfassung und Beschreibung anderer Bereiche des allgemein-wissenschaftlichen Wortschatzes auf. Kapitel sieben ordnet den Untersuchungsgegenstand der figurativen Verben und das entwickelte Beschreibungsmodell aus fremdsprachendidaktischer Perspektive ein und skizziert einen Vorschlag zur Vermittlung allgemein-wissenschaftlichen Wortschatzes
Verbs like ‘ausgehen von’, ‘beziehen auf’ or ‘darstellen’ that contain semantically concrete basic verbs (gehen, ziehen, stellen) form an essential part of German general academic vocabulary, i.e. vocabulary that is used across disciplines. Adopting a corpus linguistic approach, the study develops a comprehensive description of these ‚figurative verbs‘. Based on a data-driven methodology it investigates the properties of this lexis and shows that figurative verbs containing typical recurring forms like -stellen, -führen, -gehen and others are highly relevant from a quantitative point of view. On the basis of the most prominently recurring formal parts, a core inventory of verbs is collected and described with respect to the areas of meaning expressed as well as regarding aspects of polysemy. Based on the empirical study, a model for the identification and description of vocabulary is developed, that integrates the hitherto separated quantitative - inventory based and meaning oriented - unit based perspectives. Moreover, it brings together aspects regarding form and function as means of structuring the vocabulary under description. Methodically, the model builds on a combination of the corpus-driven and the corpus-based approach. The model is elaborated as follows: In Chapter 1, important aspects of description that the model should meet are identified based on a survey of existing work on general academic language. Chapter 2 provides a linguistic foundation within the framework of usage-based language description. In particular, it draws on Langacker’s Cognitive Grammar, from which the concepts of linguistic unit and construal are adopted. Chapters 3 and 4 present the corpus linguistic investigations on figurative verbs. In Chapter 5, the empirical results are brought together in a form- as well as function-based typology of figurative verbs. Chapter 6 synthesizes the findings into a model and shows possibilities of application of the proposed approach to other areas of general academic vocabulary. Finally, Chapter 7 summarizes the results from the perspective of language pedagogy and outlines a proposal for the teaching of general academic vocabulary

This master's thesis is devoted to the peculiarities of using electronic educational resources at the initial stage of teaching German grammar to adults. The paper considers the features of teaching adults a foreign language in the framework of language courses, the psychological characteristics of adults who study a foreign language in courses, the use of electronic educational resources for teaching foreign language grammar. The quantitative and qualitative classification of grammatical errors of adult students was carried out according to such parameters as the primary structure of grammatical errors (types) the whole contingent of students; the degree of their frequency, typicalness, the main reasons for their occurrence; the relative structure of errors in each group; the proportion of grammatical errors in individual groups; the dynamics of changes in the relative structure of errors in a particular group at different stages of training in the course with the allocation of dominant types of dynamics: stability/instability of different types of errors. Based on the classification of grammatical errors formed in the course of classes aimed at familiarizing with grammatical phenomena, exercises for differentiation, transformation, and substitution exercises with the use of LearningApps, Kahoot! and Quizizz, aimed at teaching German grammar at the initial stage. In the course of experimental research on German language courses for adults in the framework of the Local public organization " National and cultural autonomy of the Germans of the city It was found that in the experimental and control groups, with a significant difference in the total number of errors, their dynamics is such that in the middle of the course, errors become less than they were at the beginning: in the experimental group, we observe a jump in grammatical errors by 5.3 times, in the control group - by 1.2 times, i.e. the order of reducing speech errors in these groups differs significantly. At the same time, it should be noted that the overall error density indicator decreases by the end of the training course. In the experimental group, the decrease in error density is very significant and indicates an increase in the volume of statements and a decrease in the number of errors, which is proof of the effectiveness of the developed exercises aimed at teaching German grammar at the initial stage. Grammar exercises developed in the course of this study using the electronic educational resources LearningApps, Quizizz and Kahoot! they can be used at the initial stage of teaching a foreign language in the framework of language courses and non-linguistic faculties of higher educational institutions.
Настоящая магистерская диссертация посвящена особенностям использования электронных образовательных ресурсов на начальном этапе обучения взрослых грамматике немецкого языка. В работе рассмотрены особенности обучения взрослых иностранному языку на языковых курсах, психологические особенности взрослых, изучающих иностранный язык, применение электронных образовательных ресурсов для обучения грамматике иностранного языка. Была осуществлена количественная и качественная классификация грамматических ошибок взрослых обучающихся по таким параметрам, как первичная структура грамматических ошибок (по видам) у всего контингента обучающихся; степень их частотности, типичности, основные причины возникновения; относительная структура ошибок в каждой группе; удельный вес грамматических ошибок в отдельно взятых группах; динамика изменения относительной структуры ошибок в отдельно взятой группе на разных этапах обучения в рамках курса с выделением доминирующих типов динамики: устойчивость/неустойчивость разных видов ошибок. На основании классификации грамматических ошибок, сформированной в ходе занятий, были разработаны упражнения с применением LearningApps, Kahoot! и Quizizz, направленные на обучение грамматике немецкого языка на начальном этапе. В ходе опытно-поисковой работы на курсах немецкого языка для взрослых, было выявлено, что в экспериментальной и контрольной группах при значительном различии в общем числе ошибок их динамика такова, что в середине курса ошибок становится меньше, чем было в начале: в экспериментальной группе мы наблюдем скачкообразное уменьшение грамматических ошибок в 5,3 раза, в контрольной группе - в 1,2 раза, т.е. порядок снижения ошибочности речи в этих группах существенно различается. При этом, следует отметить, снижение общего показателя плотности ошибок к концу курса обучения. В экспериментальной группе снижение плотности ошибок весьма значительно и свидетельствует о росте объема высказываний и снижении количества ошибок, что является доказательством эффективности применения разработанных упражнений, направленных на обучение грамматике немецкого языка на начальном этапе. Разработанные в ходе данного исследования грамматические упражнения с использованием электронных образовательных ресурсов LearningApps, Quizizz и Kahoot! могут быть использованы на начальном этапе обучения иностранному языку в рамках языковых курсов в центрах дополнительного образования и нелингвистических факультетов высших учебных заведений.

In der vorliegenden Arbeit wird der für die allgemeine Wissenschaftssprache des Deutschen charakteristische Bereich der figurativen Verben im Rahmen eines gebrauchsbasierten Ansatzes unter Verwendung korpuslinguistischer Methoden empirisch erfasst und beschrieben. Auf der Grundlage dieser Untersuchung wird ein integrativer Ansatz zur Erfassung und Beschreibung zentraler Wortschatzbereiche der allgemeinen Wissenschaftssprache entwickelt. Das so gewonnene integrative Beschreibungsmodell verbindet die Perspektiven bisheriger quantitativ-bestandsbezogener und bedeutungsorientiert-einheitenbezogener Ansätze und bezieht darüber hinaus sowohl formale als auch inhaltlich-funktionale Aspekte als Gliederungsprinzipien für die zu beschreibenden Wortschatzbereiche mit ein. Methodisch zeichnet es sich durch das Ineinandergreifen von korpusgesteuertem und korpusbasiertem Vorgehen aus. Die Ausarbeitung der Komponenten des Beschreibungsmodells wird auf mehreren Ebenen vorgelegt: Diese werden im ersten Kapitel zunächst ausgehend von einer Bestandsaufnahme vorliegender Arbeiten zur Beschreibung allgemein-wissenschaftlichen Wortschatzes formuliert. Im zweiten Kapitel werden sie im Rahmen eines gebrauchsbasierten Modells der Sprachbeschreibung, der Kognitiven Grammatik Langackers, sprachtheoretisch fundiert. Methodisch eingelöst findet sich diese theoretische Fundierung in den korpuslinguistischen Untersuchungen zu figurativen Verben, die Gegenstand der Kapitel drei und vier sind. Im fünften Kapitel werden die dabei gewonnenen Ergebnisse zu einer formbasiert-funktionalen Typologie figurativer Verben zusammengeführt. Kapitel sechs zeigt die mit dem vorgeschlagenen Ansatz verbundenen Transfermöglichkeiten zur Erfassung und Beschreibung anderer Bereiche des allgemein-wissenschaftlichen Wortschatzes auf. Kapitel sieben ordnet den Untersuchungsgegenstand der figurativen Verben und das entwickelte Beschreibungsmodell aus fremdsprachendidaktischer Perspektive ein und skizziert einen Vorschlag zur Vermittlung allgemein-wissenschaftlichen Wortschatzes.
Verbs like ‘ausgehen von’, ‘beziehen auf’ or ‘darstellen’ that contain semantically concrete basic verbs (gehen, ziehen, stellen) form an essential part of German general academic vocabulary, i.e. vocabulary that is used across disciplines. Adopting a corpus linguistic approach, the study develops a comprehensive description of these ‚figurative verbs‘. Based on a data-driven methodology it investigates the properties of this lexis and shows that figurative verbs containing typical recurring forms like -stellen, -führen, -gehen and others are highly relevant from a quantitative point of view. On the basis of the most prominently recurring formal parts, a core inventory of verbs is collected and described with respect to the areas of meaning expressed as well as regarding aspects of polysemy. Based on the empirical study, a model for the identification and description of vocabulary is developed, that integrates the hitherto separated quantitative - inventory based and meaning oriented - unit based perspectives. Moreover, it brings together aspects regarding form and function as means of structuring the vocabulary under description. Methodically, the model builds on a combination of the corpus-driven and the corpus-based approach. The model is elaborated as follows: In Chapter 1, important aspects of description that the model should meet are identified based on a survey of existing work on general academic language. Chapter 2 provides a linguistic foundation within the framework of usage-based language description. In particular, it draws on Langacker’s Cognitive Grammar, from which the concepts of linguistic unit and construal are adopted. Chapters 3 and 4 present the corpus linguistic investigations on figurative verbs. In Chapter 5, the empirical results are brought together in a form- as well as function-based typology of figurative verbs. Chapter 6 synthesizes the findings into a model and shows possibilities of application of the proposed approach to other areas of general academic vocabulary. Finally, Chapter 7 summarizes the results from the perspective of language pedagogy and outlines a proposal for the teaching of general academic vocabulary.

In der vorliegenden Untersuchung soll ausgehend von einer produktorientierten, korpuslinguistischen Methode die akademische Textproduktion von Deutschlernern zu vergleichbaren Textprodukten von Muttersprachlern dargestellt werden, um Abweichungen im Sprachgebrauch festzustellen. Die ermittelten Tendenzen können als empirisch gewonnenes Datenmaterial die Grundlage weiterführender Untersuchungen in theoretisch und praktisch orientierten Forschungsbereichen bilden. Die vorliegende Arbeit wird im Rahmen der Textproduktion und der frequentiellen Untersuchung sprachlicher Phänomene durchgeführt.

Neste trabalho, a partir de uma proposta de investigação híbrida, ao combinar elementos da pesquisa quantitativa aos da qualitativo-interpretativista, e com base em arcabouços teóricos advindos da área de alemão língua estrangeira e psicolinguística, entre outras, procura-se comparar os produtos do ensino-aprendizagem de alunos brasileiros de alemão língua estrangeira que aprendem as orações relativas do alemão a partir das propostas de progressão de tópicos gramaticais sintética e analítica, assim como descritas por Wilkins (1978). Para tal, realizaram-se coletas de dados junto a aprendentes que tiveram contato com as orações relativas alemãs em meio institucional, onde se adotava os livros didáticos Schritte International 5 e studio d A2. Considera-se que o ensino de tópicos gramaticais em blocos, com a transmissão de grandes volumes de informação de uma só vez, como na abordagem analítica e mediante o emprego de Schritte, possa gerar uma sobrecarga da memória de trabalho dos aprendizes, enquanto que o ensino da gramática em fases ou ciclos, a partir da abordagem sintética, permita o depósito paulatino de informações na limitada memória de trabalho (e de curta duração), com a possibilidade de que dados se assentem na memória de longa duração e possam ser acessados quando do depósito de novos dados relacionados. O trabalho confirma a hipótese inicial de que ambas as perspectivas, ao apresentarem seus bônus e ônus, conduzem a resultados semelhantes no processo de ensino-aprendizagem. Adotando-se a tipologia de exercícios de Neuner et al. (1981), influente na área de alemão língua estrangeira, verifica-se a produção dos estudantes em exercícios que oscilam entre os mais reprodutivos e os mais produtivos, constatando-se que a performance dos alunos é superior nos primeiros, quando se avaliam as frases construídas de forma adequada morfossintática e semântico-pragmaticamente. Em resumo, os dados coletados e analisados, de forma geral, não apontam para uma suposta superioridade de uma ou outra abordagem de progressão de tópicos gramaticais em cursos de (alemão) língua estrangeira
In this work, from a proposed hybrid research method, by combining elements of the quantitative and qualitative-interpretative methods, and based on theoretical frameworks coming from the area of German as a foreign language, psycholinguistics etc., we seek to compare the products of teaching and learning German as a foreign language by Brazilian students, based on the proposals of the progression of synthetic and analytical grammatical topics, as described by Wilkins (1978). To this end, we collected data from learners who had contact with the German relative clauses in institutional environment, where two different textbooks were used, Schritte International 5 and studio d A2. It is considered that the teaching of grammar topics in blocks, with the transmission of large amounts of information at once, as in the analytical approach and by employing Schritte, can generate an overload of the working memory of the learners, while the grammar teaching in phases or cycles, from the syntetic approach, allows the gradual deposit of information in the limited working memory (short term), with the possibility that data be deposited in long-term memory and can be accessed when the deposit of new information occurs. The work confirms the initial hypothesis that both perspectives, in presenting their bonuses and burdens, lead to similar results in the teaching-learning process. Adopting the type of exercises of Neuner et al. (1981), influential in the area of German foreign language, we analyze the production of students in exercises ranging from the most reproductive and more productive, in order to verify if the performance of students is higher in the first, when evaluating sentences constructed appropriately in morphosyntactic and semantic- pragmatic terms. In summary, the collected and analyzed data, in general, do not point a supposed superiority of one of the two approaches to the progression of grammar topics in (German) foreign language courses

Ausgehend von der Frage nach der Funktionsrelevanz des Konjunktivs als Anzeiger für 'Indirekte Rede' wird in einem zweiten Schritt das modale Funktionspotential von Indikativ, Konjunktiv I und II im Spannungsfeld von Sprachnorm, Sprachvariation und Sprachsystem diskutiert. Im Fokus stehen dabei die so genannte 'Berichtete Rede' und abhängige Verbletztsätze. Die anschließende empirische Untersuchung erhebt mittels speziell entwickelter Lückensätze, inwieweit mit der Modusverwendung in beiden Strukturen textsortenstilistische Empfehlungen und textgrammatische Regeln befolgt werden. Eine zusätzliche Befragung zielt darauf ab, ob ein Zusammenhang zwischen der Verwendung einer Modusform und dem Ausdruck einer Sprechereinstellung (Zustimmung, Neutralität, Skepsis und Ablehnung) zum Wahrheitsgehalt der wiedergegebenen Information feststellbar ist. Die statistische Auswertung ergibt einerseits, dass die Mehrheit sowohl der nichtmuttersprachlichen, als auch der muttersprachlichen Studierenden die wiedergegebene fremde Rede entweder gar nicht oder nicht konsequent als solche kenntlich macht und damit gegen die Wahrung geistigen Eigentums verstößt. Andererseits führt auch die Beobachtung eines häufig unsystematischen Modusformengebrauchs in beiden Probandengruppen nicht zum Nachweis, dass mit diesen grammatischen Mitteln mehrheitlich spezifische Sprechereinstellungen ausgedrückt würden.

Cette thèse propose de procéder à une histoire des parties du discours dans la grammaire germanophone entre le XVIIe et le début du XIXe siècle afin de mettre en évidence certaines spécificités de la description grammaticale allemande. En tant que structure pérenne de la réflexion linguistique occidentale, les parties du discours constituent, en effet, un lieu d’observation privilégié pour mettre en évidence les analogies et des divergences que peut présenter le discours grammatical germanophone vis-à-vis de celui d’autres traditions linguistiques. Certains traitements ou tendances descriptives particulières peuvent ainsi être dégagés et inscrits dans l’histoire de la grammaire allemande et plus largement européenne, ce qui invite alors à considérer plus attentivement les choix descriptifs ou les positions théoriques présidant à leur élaboration. Si la spécificité de l’idiome décrit intervient alors de manière déterminante sur le cadre descriptif, certaines initiatives de la deuxième moitié du XVIIIe siècle reposent aussi sur l’adoption d’une approche descriptive multicritérielle qui témoigne de l’élaboration d’une réflexion syntaxique sur les catégories grammaticales. Ces descriptions, qui présentent parfois des innovations remarquables dans l’histoire de la grammaire, peuvent ainsi être considérées comme participant, à plusieurs égards, du tournant syntaxique allemand qui se réalise dans le premier tiers du XIXe siècle et sont donc susceptibles d’en révéler certains des fondements
This thesis aims to establish a history of the parts of speech in German grammar between the seventeenth and the early nineteenth centuries in order to highlight certain characteristics of the ways German grammar was described. A study of the parts of speech —which are a foundational feature of Western linguistic thought— provides an opportunity to highlight the ways German grammatical discourse is different from, or analogous to, other linguistic traditions. The descriptive trends and processes which emerge from this study can be positioned within the history of German grammar and more broadly within the history of other European grammars. This leads us to consider in more detail the descriptive choices and the theoretical viewpoints governing the development of these grammars. Although the specific features of the German language play a decisive role in the choice of a descriptive model, some initiatives in the second half of the eighteenth century adopt a multi-criterion approach to description, where grammatical categories are established through syntactic analysis. These multi-criterion descriptions, which sometimes present remarkable innovations in the history of grammar, can be seen as contributing to the change in German syntax that takes place in the first third of the nineteenth century. They therefore can reveal certain roots of this turning point in the history of German grammar

Untersuchungsgegenstand der Dissertation sind sprachliche Strukturen, die aus einer Form des Verbs „machen“ und einer objektsprädikativen Adjektivphrase bestehen. Die Arbeit ist eingebettet in einen konstruktionsgrammatischen Rahmen, nach dem Sprache sich als strukturiertes Inventar von Konstruktionen (Form-Funktions-Beziehungen) beschreiben lässt. Ziele der Arbeit sind a) die korpusbasierte Ermittlung lexikalischer Kollokationen und Gebrauchstendenzen innerhalb der Zielstruktur sowie b) die systematische Beschreibung der damit verbundenen Form-Funktions-Beziehungen. Als Arbeitshypothese wurde übereinstimmend mit bisherigen Arbeiten zum selben sprachlichen Gegenstand eine kausative Bedeutung, also die Kodierung einer Ursache-Wirkung-Relation, angenommen. Da konstruktionsgrammatischen Ansätzen zufolge formale Unterschiede mit Unterschieden auf der Ebene der Funktion korrespondieren sollten, wurde empirisch untersucht, in welchen Fällen formale Unterschiede innerhalb der Zielstruktur tatsächlich systematisch zu unterschiedlichen funktionalen Interpretationen führen. Lexikalische Kollokationen innerhalb der Zielstruktur wurden statistisch anhand von Kollostruktionsanalysen („Covarying Collexeme Analysis“; vgl. Gries/Stefanowitsch, 2004) ermittelt. Zur Beschreibung der Bedeutung oder Funktion dienten Frame-semantische Beschreibungen englischer Verben aus dem FrameNet (vgl. Fillmore/Baker, 2010). Eine wesentliche Beobachtung besteht nun darin, dass entgegen der ursprünglichen Annahme keineswegs alle Vorkommen von „machen“ mit einer objektsprädikativen Adjektivphrase eine Ursache-Wirkung-Relation kodieren. Gerade die in der Kombination mit „machen“ hochfrequenten Adjektive korrelieren signifikant mit abweichenden, nicht im engeren Sinne kausativen, Interpretationen im Sinne der jeweils evozierten semantischen Frames.
This dissertation focuses on combinations of a form of the German verb “machen” with an adjective phrase which, according to a working hypothesis, is said to have a resultative reading. The work is grounded in a Construction Grammar approach, viewing language as a structured inventory of Constructions, i.e. form-function mappings. The aims are a) establishing lexical collocations and usage tendencies within these structures involving “machen” and a resultative adjective phrase, based on corpus studies, and b) describing systematically the relevant form-function mappings. As Construction Grammar approaches predict changes in function corresponding to changes in form, the formal collocations established according to aim a) are systematically analyzed with respect to their respective functional interpretations. The methods used involve a series of „Covarying Collexeme Analyses“ (cf. Gries/Stefanowitsch, 2004) to study lexical collocations within the given formal structure, and the application of frame semantic descriptions of English verbs, as found in FrameNet (cf. Fillmore/Baker, 2010), to the German structures found in the corpora. The results indicate that, contrary to the working hypothesis, a great number of “machen” plus adjective tokens does not lead to a causative or resultative interpretation. Especially the most frequent adjectives combined with “machen” exhibit a significant correlation with structures evoking different, not strictly causative, semantic frames.

Descriptive perception verbs have failed to receive a uniform analysis in previous verb classifications (cf. Chomsky 1965, Rogers 1974, Hengeveld 1992, Levin 1993, Van Eynde et al. 2014). This thesis argues that the descriptive perception verbs in Dutch (i.e. eruitzien 'look', klinken 'sound', voelen 'feel', ruiken 'smell', and smaken 'taste') should be classified as copular verbs, much like lijken 'seem' and schijnen 'seem'. This classification is supported by both the synchronic and diachronic behaviour of these verbs in Dutch. Synchronically, proposing that Germanic copular verbs (as opposed to copulas) are defined by their syntax rather than their (empty) semantics, I discuss that the Dutch descriptive perception verbs behave like stereotypical copular verbs: they require a predicative complement, usually in the form of an adjective. Semantically, the Dutch descriptive perception verbs are much like the copular verbs blijken 'turn out', lijken 'seem' and schijnen 'seem' in terms of epistemicity and evidentiality. Diachronically, I hypothesize that the Dutch descriptive perception verbs have evolved from one of the following two origins: either from intransitive verbs (as is the case for klinken and ruiken), much like English remain, through grammaticalization processes of semantic bleaching and reanalysis; or from cognitive perception verbs (as is the case of eruitzien and voelen), as found in Latin, Japanese and Zulu, through the process of argument reordering. The origin of smaken is not clear, and is left for future research. I show that other Germanic evidential copular verbs (i.e. lijken, schijnen 'seem', scheinen 'seem', seem) have developed diachronically in a uniform fashion, suggesting the following grammaticalization path: from a lexical verb to a copular verb, to taking a that-complement, an infinitival complement or a like-complement, and eventually being used in parenthetical constructions. The results of this thesis indicate that the Dutch descriptive perception verbs are only at the beginning of this grammaticalization path, but are on their way to becoming grammaticalized evidential copular verbs.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2007.
Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-11, Section: A, page: 4685. Adviser: Andrea Golato. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 338-355) Available on microfilm from Pro Quest Information and Learning.

In her Communication Analysis (1988) Ilah Fleming developed a model of language analysis that treats all strata of language as a network of interplay. Through the application of her philosophy and methodology to language teaching, grammar instruction becomes a part of an integrated system of morphotactic, propositional, and discourse strategies. Functional areas, like case, voice, and transitivity, are customarily treated as morphotactic in language texts. Following Fleming's model, these are taught as propositional, their functional operations are clarified, and their relationship to both morphotactic and discourse structures are revealed.

D.Litt. et Phil.
The purpose of this study is to establish differences and similarities between German and Zulu and to identify areas of difficulty for different groups of South African learners in order to give the language learners autonomy in determining their own learning strategies in accordance with their mother tongue and to foster a mutual understanding between different cultural groups in South Africa. Historically, German is a subject, which was taught to mainly white learners in segregated South African schools; hence research was limited to the problems of English and Afrikaans speaking learners of German as a foreign language. This study is aimed at addressing the problems that Zulu speaking learners would encounter when learning German. Since English and/or Afrikaans form part of the linguistic knowledge of these Zulu speaking students, cognizance is taken of the effects this knowledge has on the learning of German as Lx, where Lx > L3. Learners from English and Afrikaans L1 backgrounds are incorporated into the study as control groups. The error analysis that forms part of this study reveals that the language repertoire of the learners does indeed impact on language learning. This study is useful for teachers who have little or no knowledge of Zulu, but who are confronted with learners from diverse linguistic backgrounds.

The varying presentations of the rules for nicht and kein found in intermediate grammar books for students in North America and DaF-learners in Germany highlight the difficulty in finding sources that are both reliable and consistent as well as easily applicable. This thesis seeks to compare the explanations found in A.E. Hammer’s German Grammar and Usage (revised by Martin Durrell), Helbig/Buscha’s Deutsche Grammatik, and Hall/Scheiner’s Übungsgrammatik, comparing all three to the basis of their information, Duden: die Grammatik. In order to assess how and where these sources converge and diverge, the analysis compares the intended use of each book, followed by the underlying concepts and terms, and then finally the rules for negation. The final two chapters attempt to answer two important questions that arise from comparing these sources. First, do beginner level textbooks prepare students with sufficient declarative grammar knowledge to understand and apply negation rules successfully? An analysis of Kontakte’s approach to teaching grammar, most specifically how to use nicht and kein, seeks to answer the first question. Secondly, could authors use a different approach for explaining this difficult grammar topic? Professor Hardarik Blühdorn’s approach, as presented in his course Negation: Syntax, Prosodie und Semantik at the Universität Mannheim during the Fall semester of 2007, serves as an example of new research. His different approach might help non-native speakers of German learn how to use nicht and kein correctly. The analysis reaches three main conclusions. First of all, the rules differ primarily in the amount of detail used, as well as in the inconsistent use of common terminology across the sources. Secondly, beginner’s level textbooks do not provide students with sufficient information about general grammar or negation to help them transition to using explanations found in intermediate grammar books. In order to understand the rules of nicht and kein, these students must first work through the background material methodically. Finally, intermediate learners could not rely on Professor Blühdorn’s approach, as it focuses on the scope of nicht, not on the correct placement of nicht in order to negate an entire sentence. Appendix B provides a chart comparing the rules found in each source.

This thesis investigates the L2 English pronunciation of a native speaker of German who has lived in western Canada for 25 years. The goal of the study was understand the defining features of his accent, to determine what factors contributed to his accent, and to characterize his interlanguage grammar. There are two opposing theories about L2 speakers’ linguistic competence, encoded in what is called their interlanguage grammar: 1) The L2 speaker has several heterogeneous grammars at their disposal depending on discourse type (the socio-/psycholinguistic theory), so variable task performance is indicative of variable competence, and 2) variable task performance exists but it not indicative of variable competence. Instead, competence is a stable, homogenous system and it is performance that is variable (the generative/rationalist theory). This thesis discusses the concepts of variable competence in light of the L2 English pronunciation investigated. The subject’s pronunciation of a variety of speech sounds of North American English was tested in three production tasks with differing formality levels: wordlist, sentences, and a semi-spontaneous interview. Additionally, in a qualitative element of this study, extra-linguistic factors like motivation, attitude, aptitude, identity, and personality of the L2 speaker were investigated to determine how they contribute to L2 accented speech production. These were reported through an interview with the subject and a self-assessment of his L2 pronunciation proficiency. Finally, through native speaker judgments (NSJs), it was assessed whether foreign accentedness in the L2 interferes with intelligibility and comprehensibility. Production data from the three tasks was auditorily and acoustically analyzed to understand the contribution of various intra-linguistic factors to speech production: task type, orthography, cognate status, syllable context, stress, and phonetic environment. This thesis also investigated the validity of predictions made by the Speech Learning Model (Flege, 1995) about the ease of phonetic acquisition of L2 sounds. The findings of this investigative study indicated that the L2 learner has a homogenous interlanguage grammar that is not responsible to variable competences despite variable task type performance. They showed that all variable performance in production could be attributed to intra-linguistic factors that influence performance, but do not alter the mental representation the subject has of these L2 sounds. Additionally, the findings showed that the Speech Learning Model does not accurately predict the ease or difficulty of acquisition of L2 speech sounds. Furthermore, the findings indicated that mispronunciation of individual speech sounds resulting in accentedness does not hinder effective communication in the L2, nor does accented speech production reflect an impoverished L2 interlanguage grammar. It further revealed that the subject was aware of his interlanguage grammar differing from that of native speakers of English. Findings from the qualitative interview study indicated that the subject makes use of his accent as an identity marker to reflect his cultural attachment to his home country Germany.
Graduate

This thesis is placed in the context of the ongoing debate on the issue whether second language acquisition occurs on the basis of innate language-specific learning mechanisms or general learning mechanisms. The author shares the view of scholars who propose that an innate knowledge base underlying first language acquisition does not extend to second language acquisition due to the lack of uniform success in the acquisition of native speaker competence, the possibility of fossilisation and the facilitative potential of form-focused instruction. It is, thus, assumed that the sequential second language acquisition process can be accounted for by general learning mechanisms. The key to these learning mechanisms is, firstly, the investigation of the nature of the knowledge underlying the grammatical encoding procedures for speech production in the context of M. Pienemann’s (1998a) Processability Theory and, secondly, the investigation of the nature of its acquisition process. Pienemann’s Processability Theory explains and predicts the sequential acquisition process of a second language as the result of the hierarchically ordered development of the processing procedures of the grammatical processor to grammatically encode conceptual information. It shares with Levelt’s (1989) theory of speech production the assumptions concerning the nature of the knowledge underlying the grammatical encoding procedures, which require further investigations for verification. Since the Processability Theory does not specify how the assumed knowledge underlying grammatical encoding is acquired, an investigation of the nature of its acquisition process is necessary. This investigation highlights the interdependence between the nature of the knowledge to be acquired and the nature of its acquisition process by demonstrating that the knowledge underlying grammatical encoding is predominantly implicit and, consequently, determines the implicit nature of its acquisition process. Such implicit knowledge is dissociated from explicit knowledge, which determines the explicit nature of its acquisition process. This investigation also demonstrates that explicit grammar teaching and practice in the context of the manipulation of the learners’ attentional orientation mediated by alertness may contribute to the implicit learning process under certain conditions. In conjunction with the provision of guidance by the Processability Theory in regard to the achievement of instructional focus and the independent finding that comprehensible input is needed in order for second language acquisition to occur, these results constitute the basis for the formulation of detailed instructional measures for the effective organisation of the sequential second language acquisition process. These measures are exemplified by their implementation for the initial stages of the acquisition of German as a second language.
PhD Doctorate

This thesis is placed in the context of the ongoing debate on the issue whether second language acquisition occurs on the basis of innate language-specific learning mechanisms or general learning mechanisms. The author shares the view of scholars who propose that an innate knowledge base underlying first language acquisition does not extend to second language acquisition due to the lack of uniform success in the acquisition of native speaker competence, the possibility of fossilisation and the facilitative potential of form-focused instruction. It is, thus, assumed that the sequential second language acquisition process can be accounted for by general learning mechanisms. The key to these learning mechanisms is, firstly, the investigation of the nature of the knowledge underlying the grammatical encoding procedures for speech production in the context of M. Pienemann’s (1998a) Processability Theory and, secondly, the investigation of the nature of its acquisition process. Pienemann’s Processability Theory explains and predicts the sequential acquisition process of a second language as the result of the hierarchically ordered development of the processing procedures of the grammatical processor to grammatically encode conceptual information. It shares with Levelt’s (1989) theory of speech production the assumptions concerning the nature of the knowledge underlying the grammatical encoding procedures, which require further investigations for verification. Since the Processability Theory does not specify how the assumed knowledge underlying grammatical encoding is acquired, an investigation of the nature of its acquisition process is necessary. This investigation highlights the interdependence between the nature of the knowledge to be acquired and the nature of its acquisition process by demonstrating that the knowledge underlying grammatical encoding is predominantly implicit and, consequently, determines the implicit nature of its acquisition process. Such implicit knowledge is dissociated from explicit knowledge, which determines the explicit nature of its acquisition process. This investigation also demonstrates that explicit grammar teaching and practice in the context of the manipulation of the learners’ attentional orientation mediated by alertness may contribute to the implicit learning process under certain conditions. In conjunction with the provision of guidance by the Processability Theory in regard to the achievement of instructional focus and the independent finding that comprehensible input is needed in order for second language acquisition to occur, these results constitute the basis for the formulation of detailed instructional measures for the effective organisation of the sequential second language acquisition process. These measures are exemplified by their implementation for the initial stages of the acquisition of German as a second language.
PhD Doctorate

Dissertação de mestrado em Estudos Luso-Alemães
Motion events are almost absent in the course syllabus of L2 German as an explicitly addressed structure in the classroom. Learners have a mostly receptive contact with this type of structures in reading texts or in aural activities. This hinders, therefore, the correct acquisition of their semantic and morphosyntactic features, when they are not explicitly addressed. The occurrence of motion events with the so-called “double particles” is even less frequent. These are composed of the deictic particles hinand her-, denoting the speaker’s perspective and the Path particles (-aus, -ein, -auf, etc.), denoting Path information. Thus, the main goal of the present study is to test a group of Portuguese L2 learners of German, regarding their knowledge of double particles, and execute a pedagogical intervention that aims at generating and/or solidifying said knowledge. For this purpose, I resorted to VanPatten’s Processing Instruction (PI) model (2000, 2004), which rests on an input-based explicit approach for teaching grammar. The theoretical framework is based on Talmy’s typology of motion events (2000). The empirical component of this study was divided into three parts: first, I tested the participants by means of a pre-test (including a vocabulary test, a production test and a grammaticality judgment task); then, I conducted a pedagogical intervention based on VanPatten’s PI model; finally, a post-test determined the successful effects of PI in the participants’ knowledge of the target forms, both in interpretative and productive contexts.
Na instrução de Alemão L2, estruturas de movimento surgem com pouca frequência. Os aprendentes tendem a ter um contacto estritamente recetivo com este tipo de estruturas, quer em atividades de compreensão escrita ou oral. Como tal, torna-se difícil a correta aquisição das suas características semânticas e morfossintáticas, quando não existe uma exposição concreta das mesmas estruturas. Ainda menos frequente é a ocorrência de estruturas de movimento com as denominadas “partículas duplas” (ou “partículas de direção”), que consistem na junção das partículas dinâmicas hine her-, relacionadas com a perspetiva do movimento, com as partículas de trajetória (-aus, -ein, -auf, etc.), relacionadas com o percurso efetuado. É, portanto, objetivo do presente trabalho testar os conhecimentos de uma turma de Alemão L2 relativamente a estas partículas e realizar uma intervenção pedagógica que visa gerar e/ou solidificar estes conhecimentos. Para esse efeito foi utilizado o modelo de instrução Processing Instruction (PI) de VanPatten (2000, 2004), que consiste numa abordagem explícita do ensino de gramática baseada no input. Os fundamentos teóricos têm como base a tipologia de Talmy (2000) relativamente às estruturas de movimento. Em termos práticos, o estudo foi dividido em três partes: primeiramente, os participantes foram testados através de um préteste de três componentes (teste de produção, tese lexical e tarefa de juízos de gramaticalidade); depois, foi levado a cabo o modelo de intervenção pedagógica de VanPatten; por fim, um pós-teste mostrou os efeitos positivos do modelo de PI no conhecimento dos aprendentes em relação às formasalvo, em situações de interpretação e produção.
Bewegungsereignisse werden selten im DaF(Deutsch als Fremdsprache)-Unterricht explizit angesprochen und trainiert. In der Regel haben DaF-Lernende einen lediglich rezeptiven Kontakt mit solchen Strukturen, welche nur in Verständnisaufgaben auftreten, wie z.B. Texten oder Höraufgaben. Daher fällt es Lernenden schwer, deren morphosyntaktischen und semantischen Grundlagen zu erwerben, wenn keine konkrete Anwendung der Strukturen vorliegt. Noch seltener ist das Vorkommen von Bewegungsereignissen mit den sogenannten Doppelpartikeln (bzw. Richtungspartikeln), d.h. Verbpartikeln, die aus dem Zusammenfügen der dynamischen Partikeln hin- und her- mit den Wegpartikeln (-aus, -ein, -auf usw.) besteht. Ziel dieser Arbeit ist es deswegen, die Kenntnisse einer portugiesischen DaF-Gruppe bezüglich dieser Partikeln zu prüfen und ein didaktisches Eingreifen auszuführen, welches diese Kenntnisse ausbauen bzw. erzeugen soll. Dazu wurde Gebrauch vom pädagogischen Modell Processing Instruction (PI) von VanPatten (2000, 2004) gemacht, welches einen auf expliziter bzw. fehlerbezogener Lehre basierenden Ansatz zum Grammatikunterricht darstellt. Die theoretischen Grundlagen wurden anhand von Talmys (2000) Rahmentypologie von Bewegungsereignissen nachgestellt. Praktisch wurde die Studie dreifach ausgetüftelt: zunächst wurde die DaF-Gruppe durch einen dreiteiligen Vortest (Produktion, Wortschatz, Grammatikalität) untersucht; danach wurde VanPattens pädagogisches Modell ausgeführt; letztens hat ein Nachtest die positiven Wirkungen des PI-Modells in den Kenntnissen der Probanden von den Zielformen, sowohl in interpretativen als auch in produktiven Kontexten.

The aim of this master's thesis, "Utilizing an interactive whiteboard to learn verbs in German lesson" is presented in two parts. The theoretical part is devoted to aspects which influence teaching, and therefore the preparation of interactive materials. The practical part is focused on the proposal of activities used on the interactive whiteboard. The theoretical part is divided into three chapters. The first chapter allows us to view the educative process from a psychological perspective, attempting to clarify the importance of relevant styles and strategies used effectively while learning a foreign language. The concern of chapter two is an interactive board and multimedia. Principles which should be followed by educators who are creating teaching materials are also introduced. Furthermore, there are presented internet portals which can be used in German lessons. The last chapter of the theoretical part is dedicated to grammar and the grammatical category - verbs. The practical part is predominantly based on creating your own teaching materials, which are designed to practise German verbs. The activities are split up into two sections (for elementary school and high school). An evaluation of the teaching materials results from survey. They were verified in the educational practice.

The topic of my diploma work is the analysis of verbal valence in the Czech textbook "Německy s úsměvem" ("German with a Smile"). The theoretical part is dealing with the verbal valence first, examining the verb as a part of speech and the valence itself. It deals with grammar from the DaF-point of view (DaF = teaching German as foreign language). The theoretical part is closed by a brief characteristic of exercise typology with selected exercise types for the valence practise. The main point of the work is the analysis of the verbal valence ? excerption, presentation and practice of verbal valence in the selected part of the textbook. The results of individual parts of the analysis are evaluated and statistically processed then. The analysis is followed by the list of problems detected with my own solution.

abstract: Scholars have long debated whether Old and Middle English (ME) are different diachronic stages of one language, or whether they are two closely related languages that have different historical roots. A general assumption is that Middle and Modern English descend from Old English (OE), similar to the way Middle and Modern German descend from Old High German. Traditional scholarship places English into the West-Germanic language subgroup (which includes Old English, and continental Germanic languages) Historically, criteria used by linguists to establish genealogy of languages involve sound change from parent to daughter languages and the sharing of core vocabulary. Until recently, consideration of the influence of contact-induced change, except in the lexical domain, has been minimized, favoring generative language-internal factors. While it is generally accepted that internal motivation shapes the outcome of language change, contact may provide the catalyst for the change. The syntax of ME emerged with linguistic variation that distanced it from its Germanic relatives. In order to understand how the grammar of ME evolved and differs from its West-Germanic cousins, the syntax and morphosyntactic properties of ME, evident in The Orrmulum, an early ME work written in the Danelaw region of England, are analyzed in comparison to Old English (OE), Old Norse (ON), and Celtic, and in relation to formal grammaticalization theory, social factors and historical events. An analysis of the grammar in The Orrmulum supports current research regarding Scandinavian influence on the syntax of OE and ME, because there is extensive historic evidence regarding effects of language tangency of the relevant cultures; the properties of a grammatical lexicon influence retention of syntactic patterns, despite additions/changes in lexical categories; and The Orrmulum is a revealing source of the transition of OE to ME regional dialect variations.
Dissertation/Thesis
Doctoral Dissertation English 2017

‘Scrambling’ languages allow arguments in a given sentence to be ordered in a variety of ways while leaving the grammatical roles of these arguments unchanged. West Germanic languages like German, Dutch, Yiddish, and West Flemish exhibit, to different extents, scrambling properties (Haider, 2006; Grewendorf, 2005; De Hoop, 2003). One well established assumption is that a prerequisite for scrambling is a rich (overt) case morphology: Grammatical relations need to be overtly marked on arguments in order for them to freely permute (Haider, 2006; Mahajan, 2003). Afrikaans, like other West Germanic languages, also allows a certain degree of flexibility (Molnárfi, 2002; Biberauer & Richards 2006; Conradie, 2007 Huddlestone, 2010). Generally, however, it is assumed to be much more rigid than a richly inflected language like German, in part because Afrikaans is the most morphologically ‘impoverished’ of all the West Germanic languages (Molnárfi, 2002; Biberauer & Richards, 2006; Huddlestone, 2010). In this thesis, I draw attention to certain double object constructions in Afrikaans that allow German-like flexibility without German-like morphology. Afrikaans allows the indirect and direct object of particular verbs to optionally invert their canonical order in finite embedded sentences without V-raising. I propose an analysis within a minimalist framework that accounts for the flexibility exhibited by these constructions.
Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2012.