Approaching motion in a second language: how bilinguals restructure motion event expressions inside and outside the classroom

Abstract

Abstract In this introduction, we focus on three approaches to motion event construal, and explain how the papers in this special issue contribute to ongoing discussions in different fields of research. First of all, in second language (L2) acquisition, researchers ask to what extent L2 learners can separate the different conceptual systems that underpin motion in both languages, and whether there is crosslinguistic influence from the first language (L1) on the L2 or vice versa in the expression of motion. In particular research on gestures in SLA can throw new light on this issue. Second, linguists and psychologists are interested in finding out whether crosslinguistic differences might have an influence on non-linguistic cognition in the motion domain. This might be revealed in experimental tasks where speakers are asked to judge the similarity of film clips in contexts where no overt language is used. The third relevant question is to what extent this conceptually complex domain can be taught. This pespective on motion event construal has received very little attention from researchers interested in Instructed Second Language Acquisition. In the current SI, insights from cognitive grammar are used to explore the teaching of motion event construals to L2 learners, but we hope that the current SI will inspire researchers working in different frameworks to explore the teachability of motion in the classroom.