Variación morfosintáctica y enseñanza del español como lengua extranjera: reflexiones de un lingüista metido a profesor

Abstract

RESUMENEn este trabajo se realiza un examen crítico del tratamiento de la variación morfosintáctica de la lengua española en los libros de texto para su enseñanza como lengua extranjera. El propósito principal es elaborar algunos comentarios generales sobre la necesidad de considerar la heterogeneidad idiomática en las clases. Palabras clave: Variación morfosintáctica, enseñanza, español como segunda lengua. ABSTRACTIn this paper a critical revision about Spanish language morphosyntactic variation treatment is carried out from the textbooks published for its teaching as a foreign language. The main purpose is to state some general commentaries concerning the importance of considering the heterogeneity of the language in the classrooms. Key words: Morphosyntactic variation, teaching, spanish, foreign languages. Sabías?Los costarricenses son conocidos como "ticos" porque usan mucho el diminutivo -ico. Comen su "comidica" (comida) y se acuestan en su "pequeñica camica" (pequeña cama)" Brown y Moore. 2000. Spanish for life 1 IntroducciónLa enseñanza de segundas lenguas y lenguas extranjeras ha experimentado un desarrollo creciente en las últimas décadas en cuanto a concepciones, métodos, materiales, recursos e, incluso, aspectos históricos. No parece revelarse, no obstante, la misma producción intelectual

Regional Variation in the Language Classroom and Beyond: Mapping Learners' Developing Dialectal Competence

“…This may be in part because most lower‐level textbooks do not address regional variation effectively or at all. Textbook surveys have shown that most textbooks opt for oversimplified explanations and avoid drawing connections between the forms or vocabulary they present and the regional varieties where they are used (Gilmore, ; Sánchez‐Avendaño, ; Wieczorek, , ). For instance, most surveys have noted that textbooks almost always include instruction on the vosotros (second‐person plural) forms used in Spain but rarely mention voseo (the use of vos as a second‐person singular pronoun), which is used in multiple areas of South America (see Schmidt‐Rinehart & Leloup, this issue).…”

“…Many language learners struggle to understand novel speakers in their second language (L2). While this may be the result of insufficient listening practice, another explanation could be students' limited knowledge of L2 regional variation: Previous research has shown that regional variation is rarely discussed either in introductory language textbooks or by instructors (Gallego & Conley, ; Gilmore, ; Sánchez‐Avendaño, ; Wieczorek, , ). Since learners have been shown to be capable of recognizing certain L2 dialects at rates above chance (Clopper & Bradlow, ; Cunningham‐Andersson, ; Stephan, ; Sullivan & Karst, ) and since dialect familiarity has been shown to help learners' comprehension of native speech (Matsuura, Chiba, & Fujieda, ; Schmidt, ), it is unclear to what extent exposure, with or without direct instruction, impacts learners' concept and development of dialect in the L2.…”

Register and Forms of Address in Costa Rica: Sociolinguistic Realities and Pedagogical Implications

“…The recommendation to incorporate this additional material into an already overloaded Spanish curriculum in general has met with resistance on several fronts (Long, 2011). In contrast, it has also been recommended that the voseo be included in one fashion or another (Cameron, 2012(Cameron, , 2014Congosto Mart ın, 2004;Lotherington, 2007;Mason & Nicely, 1995;Pearson, 2006;S anchez Avendaño, 2004;Shenk, 2014;Watts, 2001). The case for inclusion of the voseo in the Spanish curriculum of the United States can be made on many fronts.…”

“…Presently, most if not all Spanish textbooks used in the United States incorporate the form of vosotros, indisputably present in Spain with a population of 48 million Spanish-speakers. Nevertheless, regular users of the voseo in Latin America number more than 85 million -a dramatically larger number in comparison (Mason & Nicely, 1995;Potowski, 2010)-yet this structural paradigm is omitted from nearly all Spanish textbooks that are used in the United States (Cameron, 2012(Cameron, , 2014Lotherington, 2007;Mason & Nicely, 1995;S anchez Avendaño, 2004;Shenk, 2014;Watts, 2001). Germane to this study, the presence of the voseo is very noticeable in Costa Rica, in contrast with the relative absence of the tuteo, a form that is ubiquitous in commonly used Spanish instructional materials (Cabal Jim enez, 2013;Cameron, 2012Cameron, , 2014Jara Murillo, 2008;Kapovi c, 2007;Moser, 2006Moser, , 2008Vargas Dengo, 1974;Villegas, 1963).…”

“…Thus, language learners from secondary and postsecondary programs in the United States currently have, and it appears will continue to have, increasing contact with native speakers there, many of whom are daily voseo users (Mason & Nicely, ). Nevertheless, the voseo is largely absent from the Spanish textbooks that are used in the United States, and as a result, a high percentage of L2 learners of Spanish are never exposed to these forms (Cameron, ; Lotherington, ; Mason & Nicely, ; Sánchez Avendaño, ; Shenk, ). In fact, apart from learners who happen to be instructed by or have regular contact with a native speaker from Costa Rica, it is likely that most L2 learners of Spanish at the secondary and postsecondary levels are unaware that millions of native speakers of Spanish in Central and South America regularly employ this subject pronoun instead of what is taught in most textbooks (e.g., tú and vosotros ).…”