Unlocking the power of productive classroom talk for early second language acquisition

Abstract

Abstract This study investigates whether participation in classroom interaction and a specific type of affective priming using parents’ pictures had positive effects on ethnic minority children’s L2 vocabulary acquisition. A quasi-experimental study was set up in which preschoolers-at-risk were engaged in a task-based intervention with different types of affective priming while they were participating in, or overhearing, classroom interaction in the L2. The results of the study indicated significant main effects of (1) the children’s prior proficiency in the second language and (2) their participation in productive classroom interaction on their vocabulary acquisition. A significant interaction effect was found for overhearing and school disliking. For affective priming, no significant effects were found. This present study provides evidence that both participating in, and overhearing, productive classroom talk are powerful ways to boost young children’s L2 vocabulary acquisition.