Marta Carretero & Cristina Alonso Vázquez

Universidad Complutense de Madrid
Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha

The Realization of Modality in Compositions Written by Pre-University

This paper takes as starting point the hypothesis that the use of modal expressions in the written language of L2 learners is a reliable indicator of the degree of literacy. In order to check the correlation between both factors, we have carried out a cross-sectional study of 188 compositions from pre-university Spanish-speaking students of English. These data have been analyzed in terms of correlations and distributions, which have allowed us to concentrate on both the general frequency of expressions of modality and modulation and the individual preferences in the choice of realizations. The results show that the influence of the proficiency level is not significant with respect to the total number of realizations of either modality or modulation; however, differences may be found in the choice of realizations: for example, within modality, the auxiliaries may, might and could are almost exclusively used by the more advanced students; as regards modulation, even if the array of resources does not vary significantly across levels, differences in individual preferences have been found. These facts support the view that a correlation holds between degree of proficiency in ESL/EFL and resemblance of the use of modal expressions to that of educated native writers of English.

References:

Dittmar, Norbert and Terborg, Heiner (1991). Modality and second language learning: a challenge for linguistic theory, in Crosscurrents in Second Language Acquisition and Linguistic Theories, ed. by Thom Huebner and Charles A. Ferguson. Amsterdam: Philadelphia. John Benjamins. 347-384.

Giacalone Ramat, Anna (1996). Grammaticalization of modality in language acquisition. Studies in Language 23.2, 377-407.

Halliday, M.A.K. (1994) An Introduction to Functional Grammar (Second Edition). London: Edward Arnold.

Text 23.2 (2003). Special issue: Negotiating Heteroglossia: Social Perspectives on Evaluation. Ed. by Mary Macken-Horarik and J.R. Martin.