Exploring Boundedness for Concept‐Based Instruction of Aspect: Evidence From Learning the Spanish Preterite and Imperfect

Abstract

This study investigated to what extent and how novice second‐language (L2) Spanish learners use the cognitive linguistics‐informed concept of boundedness to support their development of aspect—namely, the Spanish preterite and imperfect. The concept was presented within the framework of concept‐based instruction (CBI) as part of a regular, semester‐long U.S. college Spanish course for true beginners (N = 16). The sociocultural approach of CBI has been found to be effective for other complex L2 phenomena with more advanced learners, but the usefulness of the concept of boundedness for novice learners was untested. Definition, comprehension, verbalization, and performance data were triangulated to measure instructional effectiveness. Results suggest that the concept‐based instructional approach using the concept of boundedness supported students’ understanding of aspect, evidenced by multiple measures of conceptual development, as well as their accuracy in using aspect to create personal narratives.

Sociocultural theory and classroom second language learning in the East Asian context: Introduction to the special issue

“…Many of the language concepts taught through C‐BLI are at odds with what is often found in textbooks and in the belief system of teachers as captured in so‐called rules of thumb (e.g., the belief that verbal aspect in Spanish is governed by the occurrence of particular adverbial expressions). A recent article by Kissling and Muthusamy (2022) provides an excellent example demonstrating how use of verbal aspect in fact depends on the underlying concept of boundedness. Given that verbal explanations of conceptual information tend to be complex and at times difficult for learners to understand and often result in rote memorization without understanding, in the second phase of C‐BLI, conceptual knowledge is represented holistically in the form of a drawing, diagram, or—as in the case of Kissling and Muthusamy's study—an animation.…”