Background: ChatGPT, a chatbot based on a large language model, captured global attention toward ... more Background: ChatGPT, a chatbot based on a large language model, captured global attention toward the end of 2022. With its potential to generate comprehensive texts of a variety of genres based on a string of straightforward prompts, it was soon perceived as a threat by many in various fields, including-and in particular-education. Schools across the world began banning its use as instructors started to receive suspiciously well-written essays and assignments from their students. Aim: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of use of ChatGPT among university students for written assignments, explore the ways students utilize the tool, and examine students' perspectives on the ethical aspects of its use. Method: An online questionnaire was designed to collect data from 201 students from private and public universities in Croatia. Results: The results show that more than half of the participants use ChatGPT for written assignments, that most use it to generate ideas, while many use it to summarize, paraphrase, proofread, but also to write a part of the assignment for them. According to the participants, the most ethically acceptable use of ChatGPT is for generating ideas, while other uses are perceived by many as being unethical; this, however, has not prevented some students from engaging in behaviors they deem unethical. Conclusion: We conclude that universities and instructors need to take a decisive stand on artificial intelligence in education and provide clear guidelines to students regarding the ethical use of ChatGPT and emerging technologies.
The paper describes Croatian EFL learners' collocational competence with regard to congruent and ... more The paper describes Croatian EFL learners' collocational competence with regard to congruent and incongruent collocations. Congruent collocations are those which express the same meaning in both languages with similar lexical components, whereby a direct translation from L1 into L2 produces an appropriate collocation. On the other hand, incongruent collocations use different lexical components in the two languages to express the same meaning and a direct translation from L1 into L2 most likely produces an error. Based on this difference between the two types of collocations, the hypothesis is that participants would be more successful in producing congruent as opposed to incongruent collocations due to a positive crosslinguistic influence. To test the hypothesis, 175 Croatian high school students at different year levels (ages 15-18) were tested by using a 22-item task in which they were asked to translate collocations from L1 Croatian into L2 English. The results show that students were more successful in producing congruent than incongruent collocations, and their collocational competence grew with year level and the number of foreign languages spoken.
In research on collocations published in English we encounter, albeit rarely, the use of the noti... more In research on collocations published in English we encounter, albeit rarely, the use of the notion "metaphorical collocations". It is interesting to note that seldom if ever are metaphorical collocations defined in any way in these studies, suggesting that researchers find the term self-explanatory. However, seeing that metaphorical collocations are an exciting area of research that is yet to draw attention from the wider community of researchers, the aim of this paper is to analyze the current understanding of what a metaphorical collocation is by examining the theoretical foundations as well as studies, specifically those published in English (as the language of scientific research). Therefore, I examined publications in English (and German) for definitions of a metaphorical collocation, and I examined a number of studies on such collocations, or studies that refer to such collocations, in English. In view of theoretical considerations, I have found that metaphorical collocations indeed have an established definition, while in regard to research on such collocations, I have found that authors most often than not leave out the definition and actually label a wide range of multiword units as metaphorical collocations. I propose that for the sake of clarity and transparency in research on metaphorical collocations in English, researchers refer to and adhere to a definition of the notion. This is particularly important as metaphorical collocations are at the intersection of two quite complex linguistic phenomena: metaphors and collocations.
The way people are spoken or written about has a critical role in how they are perceived, and thi... more The way people are spoken or written about has a critical role in how they are perceived, and this in turn influences how they are positioned within a society-belonging to its core, the majority, or being relegated to the margins, the minority. Various authors have reflected on the role of language in dehumanizing, oppressing, and discriminating certain groups, be it the Jewish citizens during the Nazi regime in Germany, the Tutsi in the Rwandan genocide of 1994, black people in the United States since 1619, women throughout history, or gay and disabled people today, to name a few marginalized groups. In these and other cases, language was the first step in the othering and, consequently, the marginalization of a certain group. The aim of this paper is to explore the language of marginalization in Croatian public discourse, looking at how media workers and public figures contribute to stereotyping people with autism by using the words "autistic" and "autistically" as pejoratives. For this purpose, I analyzed one of the most visited newspaper websites in Croatia in relation to how these words are used. I found that journalists, writers, and politicians use "autistic" and "autistically" as pejoratives when they want to say that an individual, an institution, or a state is "out of touch with reality", "self-centered", "unresponsive". In addition, "autistic" and "autistically" are often used with the intent to insult, thus further imbuing these words with negative connotations. I conclude that raising awareness is needed among media workers and public figures so that they recognize the danger of stereotyping people with autism through the pejorative use of the words "autistic" and "autistically".
U radu se raspravlja o nazivima koji se koriste u hrvatskome jeziku kako bi se imenovali Amerikan... more U radu se raspravlja o nazivima koji se koriste u hrvatskome jeziku kako bi se imenovali Amerikanci afričkoga podrijetla, a među najprimjerenijima se ističu "Crnci" te "Afroamerikanci". Čitatelje se također upućuje na problematične definicije u hrvatskim rječnicima na temelju čega se i donose se smjernice za daljnji leksikografski rad.
Language learning strategies (LLS) have been in the focus of researchers for the past five decade... more Language learning strategies (LLS) have been in the focus of researchers for the past five decades. However, few studies have explored young learners' LLS. Starting with the assumption that the intensity of second language (L2) exposure is one of the factors in the use of LLS, the aim of this paper is to investigate whether there is a difference between the use of LLS in young children with different L2 exposure in Croatia. The analysed data was collected from a sample of 35 participants aged 5 to 7 using a structured interview at two points. In the interview, participants were explaining how they would help a plush toy to learn to say certain words and structures in L2. This method enables participants to become aware of the LLS they are using and to verbalise them. Based on an analysis of the results from the first and second data collection, we describe the similarities and differences in LLS use regarding the intensity of L2 exposure. A key finding, in relation to the criterion of similarity considering the intensity of L2 exposure, is that participants prefer to use the memory strategies such as listening to the interlocutor, model repetition, and autonomous repetition. Regarding the differences in the use of LLS considering the intensity of L2 exposure, a key finding is that children at an early age with a higher intensity of exposure to L2 show a tendency to use informal strategies, such as learning through rhyme in rhymes and chants and exposure to media, as well as social strategies such as establishing contact with a native speaker. The results show that certain LLS are used regardless of L2 exposure, whereas the use of others may be linked to the intensity of L2 exposure.
Writing in a foreign language is a particularly difficult skill to develop, especially when young... more Writing in a foreign language is a particularly difficult skill to develop, especially when young learners are concerned because they are parallelly learning to write in their L1 and do not have strong oral foundations in their L2. The issue becomes even more complex when the ways to assess young learners’ writing are considered, given that research has shown there is room for improvement regarding English language teachers’ assessment literacy. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to examine the practices and challenges of assessing the writing of young EFL learners in Croatia. In the first part of the study, 97 English language teachers working with learners from year 1 to year 4 of elementary school (children aged 7 to 10) took an online questionnaire with close-ended and open-ended questions. In the second part, I analyzed the writing tasks that the learners were assigned by the teachers in the school. The results show that teachers do not always use appropriate writing tasks for summative assessment, that they need more support in creating language tests, and that Croatian universities need to do more to prepare future teachers to teach and assess young English language learners.
This paper examines the challenge of starting a sentence with a proper noun or an abbreviation th... more This paper examines the challenge of starting a sentence with a proper noun or an abbreviation that is written with an initial lowercase letter (e.g. iPhone, danah boyd, pH). Traditionally, placing such words at the beginning of a sentence would be avoided, but this limits one's syntax and style. Hence, the aim of this paper is to explore the rules and practices of writing certain proper nouns and abbreviations with a lowercase letter and starting a sentence with such words in Croatian and English. Therefore, we reviewed the rules and guidelines in orthography handbooks and style guides, analyzed the corpora to examine the use of the initial lowercase letter, and surveyed a group of 60 bilingual college students to gain an insight into what they find acceptable regarding the matter. The results show that a sentence can indeed begin with a lowercase letter and that the acceptability of this phenomenon depends on several factors.
Početkom se 21. stoljeća u Hrvatskoj zamjećuje promjena diskursa – ne govori se više o posuđivanj... more Početkom se 21. stoljeća u Hrvatskoj zamjećuje promjena diskursa – ne govori se više o posuđivanju iz engleskoga već o prodiranju toga jezika u hrvatski. Doba interneta i elektroničkih medija omogućilo je da govornici hrvatskoga dolaze u kontakt s riječima iz engleskoga jezika neposrednije i mnogo brže nego prije te da engleske riječi brzo uključuju u svoju komunikaciju. Dio je jezikoslovaca ali i drugih stručnjaka, poput lektora, podigao uzbunu da je hrvatski jezik pod opsadom engleskoga te su kao jedan vid obrane počeli nuditi zamjenske, hrvatske riječi za anglizme. Cilj je ovoga rada istražiti stavove govornika hrvatskoga jezika spram anglizama i pripadajućih prevedenica. U radu se stoga na temelju mrežnoga upitnika koji je ispunilo 1340 sudionika sagledava prihvatljivost određenoga broja hrvatskih zamjena za anglizme. Analiziraju se usto i razlozi sudionika za uporabu anglizma naspram prevedenica te obratno. Kvantitativna je i kvalitativna analiza pokazala da postoje razlike u prihvatljivosti pojedinih zamjenskih riječi za anglizme te da govornici imaju različite razloge zašto prednost daju engleskoj odnosno hrvatskoj inačici. Zaključuje se da pri osmišljavanju prevedenica anglizama i oblikovanju hrvatske jezične politike u obzir svakako treba uzeti stavove govornika kao jedan od važnih čimbenika.
The aim of this paper is to determine the inclusion and the instructors' attitudes toward the inc... more The aim of this paper is to determine the inclusion and the instructors' attitudes toward the inclusion of content related to early foreign language learning and teaching at an early age in foreign language study programs in Croatia. To establish whether there is a specific course in early foreign language learning and to identify respondents, we looked at the study programs of English, German, Italian, and French from the faculties of humanities and social sciences at the universities of Osijek, Rijeka, Split, Zadar, and Zagreb. Following that, we asked a number of instructors of teaching methodology and glottodidactics courses from the aforementioned programs to fill out a questionnaire containing open-and close-ended questions regarding the importance of professional training for working with young learners, and the inclusion of topics from the field of early language learning and teaching in teaching methodology and glottodidactics courses. The results show that such topics are not sufficiently included in the programs, which leads us to conclude that students-future foreign language teachers-are not prepared to teach young learners once they leave university. Considering the fact that a foreign language is a mandatory subject from grade 1 in Croatia, and that there is a need for teachers educated to work with young learners, as a possible solution for preparing foreign language teachers to teach young children we highlight the importance of revising the content of initial foreign language teacher education in view of offering students a specialization in the field of early language learning.
Student teachers and teacher trainees face a number of challenges when they enter the classroom d... more Student teachers and teacher trainees face a number of challenges when they enter the classroom during their university education and upon graduation. The aim of this paper is to highlight the most common challenges that foreign language student teachers and teacher trainees encounter when delivering a lesson in elementary and high school – and to offer advice on overcoming these challenges successfully. The challenges were identified based on our observations of student teachers and teacher trainees during pre-service training and on the state exam. The observations were carried out over the period of seven years, and we used observation sheets to identify the most common problems. The paper thus addresses the issues of using one's voice, motivating learners, giving instructions, planning the length of activities, using additional materials, calling on students, organizing pair and group work, writing on the board, transitioning between activities, handling grammar, carrying out listening activities, and managing the classroom. The paper is intended for pre-service and in-service trainees, mentors, and novice teachers, but also for university instructors of foreign language teaching methodology as it may help point to areas of concern that could be addressed within the methodology course.
The focus of this paper is the stance of Croatian language policy (LP) toward foreign languages (... more The focus of this paper is the stance of Croatian language policy (LP) toward foreign languages (FLs) in the education system, which we call Croatian foreign language policy (FLP). By analysing current curricula, which define the place of FLs in primary and secondary school explicitly or implicitly, we gain insight into Croatian FLP in primary and secondary education. Furthermore, we place it in the context of European LP of promoting plurilingualism. With this in mind, we analyse data from the Croatian Bureau of Statistics from the last ten years to establish the proportion (and popularity) of FLs in Croatian schools. We compare the inclusion of FLs in the Croatian education system with the inclusion of FLs in the curricula of other European countries. Based on the analyses, we find that the Croatian education system has moved away from the promotion of plurilingualism as one of the main goals of European LP. In the conclusion, we offer guidelines for developing Croatian FLP in view of embracing plurilingualism.
Rasprave: Časopis Instituta za hrvatski jezik i jezikoslovlje, 2017
U ovome se radu na temelju istraživanja uporabe paronima promišlja o odnosu norme i uzusa te o iz... more U ovome se radu na temelju istraživanja uporabe paronima promišlja o odnosu norme i uzusa te o izazovima istraživanja norme i uzusa. Naime, paronimi su kao riječi sličnoga izraza i različita značenja zanimljivo standardološko pitanje – ali i jezikoslovno s obzirom na to da je paronimija vrsta leksičkoga odnosa. Izazov pri istraživanju paronima kao standardološkoga pitanja predstavlja uopće istraživanje norme i uzusa te stoga kroz rad promišljamo o tome što čini normativne izvore u hrvatskome jeziku, na čemu treba temeljiti normu te kako istraživati uzus. Istraživanje je provedeno na uzorku od 296 ispitanika putem anonimnoga upitnika koji je sadržavao zadatak nadopunjavanja rečenica. Rezultati pokazuju da postoje paronimni parnjaci koje velik broj ispitanika upotrebljava u značenju drukčijemu negoli je propisano u normativnim izvorima, ali i da sama norma nije sasvim usuglašena oko toga je li kod određenih članova riječ o paronimima ili sinonimima.
Metodički ogledi: časopis za filozofiju odgoja, 2016
The aim of this paper is to suggest a possible order of teaching English tenses in Croatian prima... more The aim of this paper is to suggest a possible order of teaching English tenses in Croatian primary schools. After a short introduction in which we explain why such an order might be needed in the Croatian context, and after a brief look at possible foundations in scientific research, we review grammar teaching from the methodological aspect and discuss the notion of pedagogical grammar. We also bring a summary of grammar content provided in the current primary and secondary school curricula. In the main part of the paper, we analyze the tenses in terms of complexity and communicative potential and suggest an order of teaching. In the end, we offer suggestions to teachers and textbook authors regarding the presentation and teaching of grammar content in primary school.
Rasprave: Časopis Instituta za hrvatski jezik i jezikoslovlje, 2016
U ovome se radu istražuju razlike u uporabi pravopisnih znakova u hrvatskome i engleskome jeziku,... more U ovome se radu istražuju razlike u uporabi pravopisnih znakova u hrvatskome i engleskome jeziku, a posebice s obzirom na utjecaj engleskoga kao stranoga jezika na govornike hrvatskoga kao materinskoga jezika. Naime, posljednjih je desetljeća engleski jezik u Hrvatskoj toliko prisutan u raznim medijima da je počeo utjecati na hrvatski jezik. Stoga se u prvome dijelu rada na temelju priručnika za pravopisnu normu engleskoga i hrvatskoga jezika opisuju razlike između pravila o uporabi pravopisnih znakova, a u drugome se dijelu rada donose rezultati istraživanja o primjeni pravopisnih pravila kod studenata prve i druge godine diplomskoga studija Engleskoga jezika i književnosti od kojih se očekuje poznavanje norme obaju jezika. Istraživanje je provedeno na uzorku od 48 studenata, a korišten je instrument prevođenja kraćega odlomka koji sadržava odabrane pravopisne znakove. U zaključku se rada razmatraju mogući uzroci pogrešaka (utjecaj engleskoga jezika ili pak nedovoljno poznavanje pravopisne norme materinskoga jezika) te se naglašava važnost Hrvatskoga jezika kao općega kolegija za buduće učitelje, nastavnike, prevoditelje i akademske građane.
Napredak: časopis za pedagogijsku teoriju i praksu, 2015
U ovome se radu donose jezični savjeti i prijedlozi rješenja za pravopisne dvojbe s kojima se sus... more U ovome se radu donose jezični savjeti i prijedlozi rješenja za pravopisne dvojbe s kojima se susreću učitelji i nastavnici pri vođenju pedagoške dokumentacije. Iako zakoni, pravilnici i pedagoški priručnici propisuju i opisuju pedagošku dokumentaciju, oni se ne dotiču pitanja pravopisa odnosno standardnojezičnoga izražavanja kada je posrijedi, primjerice, upisivanje podataka u imenik ili pisanje zapisnika s roditeljskoga sastanka u dnevnik rada. Svrha je stoga ovoga rada ponuditi rješenja i savjete utemeljene na pravopisnim pravilima te načelima suvremenoga hrvatskoga standardnog jezika, a u cilju usustavljivanja školskoga administrativno-poslovnoga funkcionalnog stila. Razmatra se, primjerice, pitanje matičnoga broja učenika kao rednoga broja, kombiniranje pravopisnih znakova te imenovanje i pisanje izvannastavnih i izvanškolskih aktivnosti. Donose se jezični savjeti vezani uz pisanje zapisnika, daje se osvrt na sklanjanje imena čiji dativni oblik izaziva nedoumice, a razmatra se i sklanjanje ženskih prezimena koja završavaju na -a. Na kraju se upućuje na pravilne oblike riječi odnosno izraza koje učitelji i nastavnici često upotrebljavaju u praksi.
U ovome se radu nastoje utvrditi značenja riječi čitak i čitljiv. Naime, norma nije usuglašena št... more U ovome se radu nastoje utvrditi značenja riječi čitak i čitljiv. Naime, norma nije usuglašena što znači prvi, a što drugi pridjev; rječnici daju suprotna značenja pa nije jasno koja se od tih riječi odnosi na razumljivost i lakoću čitanja teksta, a koja na razumljivost i lakoću čitanja rukopisa i tiska. Takvo se semantičko kolebanje javlja i u uporabi, u tekstovima različitih žanrova. Stoga u radu analiziramo rječnike hrvatskoga jezika od početka 20. stoljeća naovamo kako bismo pratili normativni put promatranih riječi, a odgovore tražimo i u jezičnim savjetnicima. Potom u gramatikama istražujemo sufikse -ak i -ljiv kako bismo ustanovili postoji li razlika u značenju promatranih riječi, te tražimo primjere uporabe u Hrvatskoj jezičnoj riznici i Hrvatskome nacionalnom korpusu kako bismo stekli uvid u to kako korisnici upotrebljavaju riječi čitak i čitljiv u osnovnim i izvedenim oblicima. Na temelju analize korpusa predlažemo proširenje i bolje oblikovanje rječničkih definicija te, zaključno, raspravljamo o pitanju leksikografskoga normiranja koje je otvorilo ovo istraživanje.
U ovome se radu problematiziraju strategije slušanja u nastavi stranoga jezika. U prvome se dijel... more U ovome se radu problematiziraju strategije slušanja u nastavi stranoga jezika. U prvome se dijelu daje kratak pregled povijesti slušanja kao vještine, a proces slušanja opisuje se na temelju kognitivnoga okvira razumijevanja pri slušanju. Pregled istraživanja donosi znanstvene radove koji ukazuju na probleme i zahtjevnost slušanja na stranome jeziku te radove koji istražuju bit razlika pri služenju strategijama slušanja. Slijedom toga pronalaze se neke odlike uspješnih slušatelja u stranome jeziku. U drugome se dijelu rada razmatra poučavanje strategija slušanja na nastavi stranoga jezika.
Background: ChatGPT, a chatbot based on a large language model, captured global attention toward ... more Background: ChatGPT, a chatbot based on a large language model, captured global attention toward the end of 2022. With its potential to generate comprehensive texts of a variety of genres based on a string of straightforward prompts, it was soon perceived as a threat by many in various fields, including-and in particular-education. Schools across the world began banning its use as instructors started to receive suspiciously well-written essays and assignments from their students. Aim: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of use of ChatGPT among university students for written assignments, explore the ways students utilize the tool, and examine students' perspectives on the ethical aspects of its use. Method: An online questionnaire was designed to collect data from 201 students from private and public universities in Croatia. Results: The results show that more than half of the participants use ChatGPT for written assignments, that most use it to generate ideas, while many use it to summarize, paraphrase, proofread, but also to write a part of the assignment for them. According to the participants, the most ethically acceptable use of ChatGPT is for generating ideas, while other uses are perceived by many as being unethical; this, however, has not prevented some students from engaging in behaviors they deem unethical. Conclusion: We conclude that universities and instructors need to take a decisive stand on artificial intelligence in education and provide clear guidelines to students regarding the ethical use of ChatGPT and emerging technologies.
The paper describes Croatian EFL learners' collocational competence with regard to congruent and ... more The paper describes Croatian EFL learners' collocational competence with regard to congruent and incongruent collocations. Congruent collocations are those which express the same meaning in both languages with similar lexical components, whereby a direct translation from L1 into L2 produces an appropriate collocation. On the other hand, incongruent collocations use different lexical components in the two languages to express the same meaning and a direct translation from L1 into L2 most likely produces an error. Based on this difference between the two types of collocations, the hypothesis is that participants would be more successful in producing congruent as opposed to incongruent collocations due to a positive crosslinguistic influence. To test the hypothesis, 175 Croatian high school students at different year levels (ages 15-18) were tested by using a 22-item task in which they were asked to translate collocations from L1 Croatian into L2 English. The results show that students were more successful in producing congruent than incongruent collocations, and their collocational competence grew with year level and the number of foreign languages spoken.
In research on collocations published in English we encounter, albeit rarely, the use of the noti... more In research on collocations published in English we encounter, albeit rarely, the use of the notion "metaphorical collocations". It is interesting to note that seldom if ever are metaphorical collocations defined in any way in these studies, suggesting that researchers find the term self-explanatory. However, seeing that metaphorical collocations are an exciting area of research that is yet to draw attention from the wider community of researchers, the aim of this paper is to analyze the current understanding of what a metaphorical collocation is by examining the theoretical foundations as well as studies, specifically those published in English (as the language of scientific research). Therefore, I examined publications in English (and German) for definitions of a metaphorical collocation, and I examined a number of studies on such collocations, or studies that refer to such collocations, in English. In view of theoretical considerations, I have found that metaphorical collocations indeed have an established definition, while in regard to research on such collocations, I have found that authors most often than not leave out the definition and actually label a wide range of multiword units as metaphorical collocations. I propose that for the sake of clarity and transparency in research on metaphorical collocations in English, researchers refer to and adhere to a definition of the notion. This is particularly important as metaphorical collocations are at the intersection of two quite complex linguistic phenomena: metaphors and collocations.
The way people are spoken or written about has a critical role in how they are perceived, and thi... more The way people are spoken or written about has a critical role in how they are perceived, and this in turn influences how they are positioned within a society-belonging to its core, the majority, or being relegated to the margins, the minority. Various authors have reflected on the role of language in dehumanizing, oppressing, and discriminating certain groups, be it the Jewish citizens during the Nazi regime in Germany, the Tutsi in the Rwandan genocide of 1994, black people in the United States since 1619, women throughout history, or gay and disabled people today, to name a few marginalized groups. In these and other cases, language was the first step in the othering and, consequently, the marginalization of a certain group. The aim of this paper is to explore the language of marginalization in Croatian public discourse, looking at how media workers and public figures contribute to stereotyping people with autism by using the words "autistic" and "autistically" as pejoratives. For this purpose, I analyzed one of the most visited newspaper websites in Croatia in relation to how these words are used. I found that journalists, writers, and politicians use "autistic" and "autistically" as pejoratives when they want to say that an individual, an institution, or a state is "out of touch with reality", "self-centered", "unresponsive". In addition, "autistic" and "autistically" are often used with the intent to insult, thus further imbuing these words with negative connotations. I conclude that raising awareness is needed among media workers and public figures so that they recognize the danger of stereotyping people with autism through the pejorative use of the words "autistic" and "autistically".
U radu se raspravlja o nazivima koji se koriste u hrvatskome jeziku kako bi se imenovali Amerikan... more U radu se raspravlja o nazivima koji se koriste u hrvatskome jeziku kako bi se imenovali Amerikanci afričkoga podrijetla, a među najprimjerenijima se ističu "Crnci" te "Afroamerikanci". Čitatelje se također upućuje na problematične definicije u hrvatskim rječnicima na temelju čega se i donose se smjernice za daljnji leksikografski rad.
Language learning strategies (LLS) have been in the focus of researchers for the past five decade... more Language learning strategies (LLS) have been in the focus of researchers for the past five decades. However, few studies have explored young learners' LLS. Starting with the assumption that the intensity of second language (L2) exposure is one of the factors in the use of LLS, the aim of this paper is to investigate whether there is a difference between the use of LLS in young children with different L2 exposure in Croatia. The analysed data was collected from a sample of 35 participants aged 5 to 7 using a structured interview at two points. In the interview, participants were explaining how they would help a plush toy to learn to say certain words and structures in L2. This method enables participants to become aware of the LLS they are using and to verbalise them. Based on an analysis of the results from the first and second data collection, we describe the similarities and differences in LLS use regarding the intensity of L2 exposure. A key finding, in relation to the criterion of similarity considering the intensity of L2 exposure, is that participants prefer to use the memory strategies such as listening to the interlocutor, model repetition, and autonomous repetition. Regarding the differences in the use of LLS considering the intensity of L2 exposure, a key finding is that children at an early age with a higher intensity of exposure to L2 show a tendency to use informal strategies, such as learning through rhyme in rhymes and chants and exposure to media, as well as social strategies such as establishing contact with a native speaker. The results show that certain LLS are used regardless of L2 exposure, whereas the use of others may be linked to the intensity of L2 exposure.
Writing in a foreign language is a particularly difficult skill to develop, especially when young... more Writing in a foreign language is a particularly difficult skill to develop, especially when young learners are concerned because they are parallelly learning to write in their L1 and do not have strong oral foundations in their L2. The issue becomes even more complex when the ways to assess young learners’ writing are considered, given that research has shown there is room for improvement regarding English language teachers’ assessment literacy. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to examine the practices and challenges of assessing the writing of young EFL learners in Croatia. In the first part of the study, 97 English language teachers working with learners from year 1 to year 4 of elementary school (children aged 7 to 10) took an online questionnaire with close-ended and open-ended questions. In the second part, I analyzed the writing tasks that the learners were assigned by the teachers in the school. The results show that teachers do not always use appropriate writing tasks for summative assessment, that they need more support in creating language tests, and that Croatian universities need to do more to prepare future teachers to teach and assess young English language learners.
This paper examines the challenge of starting a sentence with a proper noun or an abbreviation th... more This paper examines the challenge of starting a sentence with a proper noun or an abbreviation that is written with an initial lowercase letter (e.g. iPhone, danah boyd, pH). Traditionally, placing such words at the beginning of a sentence would be avoided, but this limits one's syntax and style. Hence, the aim of this paper is to explore the rules and practices of writing certain proper nouns and abbreviations with a lowercase letter and starting a sentence with such words in Croatian and English. Therefore, we reviewed the rules and guidelines in orthography handbooks and style guides, analyzed the corpora to examine the use of the initial lowercase letter, and surveyed a group of 60 bilingual college students to gain an insight into what they find acceptable regarding the matter. The results show that a sentence can indeed begin with a lowercase letter and that the acceptability of this phenomenon depends on several factors.
Početkom se 21. stoljeća u Hrvatskoj zamjećuje promjena diskursa – ne govori se više o posuđivanj... more Početkom se 21. stoljeća u Hrvatskoj zamjećuje promjena diskursa – ne govori se više o posuđivanju iz engleskoga već o prodiranju toga jezika u hrvatski. Doba interneta i elektroničkih medija omogućilo je da govornici hrvatskoga dolaze u kontakt s riječima iz engleskoga jezika neposrednije i mnogo brže nego prije te da engleske riječi brzo uključuju u svoju komunikaciju. Dio je jezikoslovaca ali i drugih stručnjaka, poput lektora, podigao uzbunu da je hrvatski jezik pod opsadom engleskoga te su kao jedan vid obrane počeli nuditi zamjenske, hrvatske riječi za anglizme. Cilj je ovoga rada istražiti stavove govornika hrvatskoga jezika spram anglizama i pripadajućih prevedenica. U radu se stoga na temelju mrežnoga upitnika koji je ispunilo 1340 sudionika sagledava prihvatljivost određenoga broja hrvatskih zamjena za anglizme. Analiziraju se usto i razlozi sudionika za uporabu anglizma naspram prevedenica te obratno. Kvantitativna je i kvalitativna analiza pokazala da postoje razlike u prihvatljivosti pojedinih zamjenskih riječi za anglizme te da govornici imaju različite razloge zašto prednost daju engleskoj odnosno hrvatskoj inačici. Zaključuje se da pri osmišljavanju prevedenica anglizama i oblikovanju hrvatske jezične politike u obzir svakako treba uzeti stavove govornika kao jedan od važnih čimbenika.
The aim of this paper is to determine the inclusion and the instructors' attitudes toward the inc... more The aim of this paper is to determine the inclusion and the instructors' attitudes toward the inclusion of content related to early foreign language learning and teaching at an early age in foreign language study programs in Croatia. To establish whether there is a specific course in early foreign language learning and to identify respondents, we looked at the study programs of English, German, Italian, and French from the faculties of humanities and social sciences at the universities of Osijek, Rijeka, Split, Zadar, and Zagreb. Following that, we asked a number of instructors of teaching methodology and glottodidactics courses from the aforementioned programs to fill out a questionnaire containing open-and close-ended questions regarding the importance of professional training for working with young learners, and the inclusion of topics from the field of early language learning and teaching in teaching methodology and glottodidactics courses. The results show that such topics are not sufficiently included in the programs, which leads us to conclude that students-future foreign language teachers-are not prepared to teach young learners once they leave university. Considering the fact that a foreign language is a mandatory subject from grade 1 in Croatia, and that there is a need for teachers educated to work with young learners, as a possible solution for preparing foreign language teachers to teach young children we highlight the importance of revising the content of initial foreign language teacher education in view of offering students a specialization in the field of early language learning.
Student teachers and teacher trainees face a number of challenges when they enter the classroom d... more Student teachers and teacher trainees face a number of challenges when they enter the classroom during their university education and upon graduation. The aim of this paper is to highlight the most common challenges that foreign language student teachers and teacher trainees encounter when delivering a lesson in elementary and high school – and to offer advice on overcoming these challenges successfully. The challenges were identified based on our observations of student teachers and teacher trainees during pre-service training and on the state exam. The observations were carried out over the period of seven years, and we used observation sheets to identify the most common problems. The paper thus addresses the issues of using one's voice, motivating learners, giving instructions, planning the length of activities, using additional materials, calling on students, organizing pair and group work, writing on the board, transitioning between activities, handling grammar, carrying out listening activities, and managing the classroom. The paper is intended for pre-service and in-service trainees, mentors, and novice teachers, but also for university instructors of foreign language teaching methodology as it may help point to areas of concern that could be addressed within the methodology course.
The focus of this paper is the stance of Croatian language policy (LP) toward foreign languages (... more The focus of this paper is the stance of Croatian language policy (LP) toward foreign languages (FLs) in the education system, which we call Croatian foreign language policy (FLP). By analysing current curricula, which define the place of FLs in primary and secondary school explicitly or implicitly, we gain insight into Croatian FLP in primary and secondary education. Furthermore, we place it in the context of European LP of promoting plurilingualism. With this in mind, we analyse data from the Croatian Bureau of Statistics from the last ten years to establish the proportion (and popularity) of FLs in Croatian schools. We compare the inclusion of FLs in the Croatian education system with the inclusion of FLs in the curricula of other European countries. Based on the analyses, we find that the Croatian education system has moved away from the promotion of plurilingualism as one of the main goals of European LP. In the conclusion, we offer guidelines for developing Croatian FLP in view of embracing plurilingualism.
Rasprave: Časopis Instituta za hrvatski jezik i jezikoslovlje, 2017
U ovome se radu na temelju istraživanja uporabe paronima promišlja o odnosu norme i uzusa te o iz... more U ovome se radu na temelju istraživanja uporabe paronima promišlja o odnosu norme i uzusa te o izazovima istraživanja norme i uzusa. Naime, paronimi su kao riječi sličnoga izraza i različita značenja zanimljivo standardološko pitanje – ali i jezikoslovno s obzirom na to da je paronimija vrsta leksičkoga odnosa. Izazov pri istraživanju paronima kao standardološkoga pitanja predstavlja uopće istraživanje norme i uzusa te stoga kroz rad promišljamo o tome što čini normativne izvore u hrvatskome jeziku, na čemu treba temeljiti normu te kako istraživati uzus. Istraživanje je provedeno na uzorku od 296 ispitanika putem anonimnoga upitnika koji je sadržavao zadatak nadopunjavanja rečenica. Rezultati pokazuju da postoje paronimni parnjaci koje velik broj ispitanika upotrebljava u značenju drukčijemu negoli je propisano u normativnim izvorima, ali i da sama norma nije sasvim usuglašena oko toga je li kod određenih članova riječ o paronimima ili sinonimima.
Metodički ogledi: časopis za filozofiju odgoja, 2016
The aim of this paper is to suggest a possible order of teaching English tenses in Croatian prima... more The aim of this paper is to suggest a possible order of teaching English tenses in Croatian primary schools. After a short introduction in which we explain why such an order might be needed in the Croatian context, and after a brief look at possible foundations in scientific research, we review grammar teaching from the methodological aspect and discuss the notion of pedagogical grammar. We also bring a summary of grammar content provided in the current primary and secondary school curricula. In the main part of the paper, we analyze the tenses in terms of complexity and communicative potential and suggest an order of teaching. In the end, we offer suggestions to teachers and textbook authors regarding the presentation and teaching of grammar content in primary school.
Rasprave: Časopis Instituta za hrvatski jezik i jezikoslovlje, 2016
U ovome se radu istražuju razlike u uporabi pravopisnih znakova u hrvatskome i engleskome jeziku,... more U ovome se radu istražuju razlike u uporabi pravopisnih znakova u hrvatskome i engleskome jeziku, a posebice s obzirom na utjecaj engleskoga kao stranoga jezika na govornike hrvatskoga kao materinskoga jezika. Naime, posljednjih je desetljeća engleski jezik u Hrvatskoj toliko prisutan u raznim medijima da je počeo utjecati na hrvatski jezik. Stoga se u prvome dijelu rada na temelju priručnika za pravopisnu normu engleskoga i hrvatskoga jezika opisuju razlike između pravila o uporabi pravopisnih znakova, a u drugome se dijelu rada donose rezultati istraživanja o primjeni pravopisnih pravila kod studenata prve i druge godine diplomskoga studija Engleskoga jezika i književnosti od kojih se očekuje poznavanje norme obaju jezika. Istraživanje je provedeno na uzorku od 48 studenata, a korišten je instrument prevođenja kraćega odlomka koji sadržava odabrane pravopisne znakove. U zaključku se rada razmatraju mogući uzroci pogrešaka (utjecaj engleskoga jezika ili pak nedovoljno poznavanje pravopisne norme materinskoga jezika) te se naglašava važnost Hrvatskoga jezika kao općega kolegija za buduće učitelje, nastavnike, prevoditelje i akademske građane.
Napredak: časopis za pedagogijsku teoriju i praksu, 2015
U ovome se radu donose jezični savjeti i prijedlozi rješenja za pravopisne dvojbe s kojima se sus... more U ovome se radu donose jezični savjeti i prijedlozi rješenja za pravopisne dvojbe s kojima se susreću učitelji i nastavnici pri vođenju pedagoške dokumentacije. Iako zakoni, pravilnici i pedagoški priručnici propisuju i opisuju pedagošku dokumentaciju, oni se ne dotiču pitanja pravopisa odnosno standardnojezičnoga izražavanja kada je posrijedi, primjerice, upisivanje podataka u imenik ili pisanje zapisnika s roditeljskoga sastanka u dnevnik rada. Svrha je stoga ovoga rada ponuditi rješenja i savjete utemeljene na pravopisnim pravilima te načelima suvremenoga hrvatskoga standardnog jezika, a u cilju usustavljivanja školskoga administrativno-poslovnoga funkcionalnog stila. Razmatra se, primjerice, pitanje matičnoga broja učenika kao rednoga broja, kombiniranje pravopisnih znakova te imenovanje i pisanje izvannastavnih i izvanškolskih aktivnosti. Donose se jezični savjeti vezani uz pisanje zapisnika, daje se osvrt na sklanjanje imena čiji dativni oblik izaziva nedoumice, a razmatra se i sklanjanje ženskih prezimena koja završavaju na -a. Na kraju se upućuje na pravilne oblike riječi odnosno izraza koje učitelji i nastavnici često upotrebljavaju u praksi.
U ovome se radu nastoje utvrditi značenja riječi čitak i čitljiv. Naime, norma nije usuglašena št... more U ovome se radu nastoje utvrditi značenja riječi čitak i čitljiv. Naime, norma nije usuglašena što znači prvi, a što drugi pridjev; rječnici daju suprotna značenja pa nije jasno koja se od tih riječi odnosi na razumljivost i lakoću čitanja teksta, a koja na razumljivost i lakoću čitanja rukopisa i tiska. Takvo se semantičko kolebanje javlja i u uporabi, u tekstovima različitih žanrova. Stoga u radu analiziramo rječnike hrvatskoga jezika od početka 20. stoljeća naovamo kako bismo pratili normativni put promatranih riječi, a odgovore tražimo i u jezičnim savjetnicima. Potom u gramatikama istražujemo sufikse -ak i -ljiv kako bismo ustanovili postoji li razlika u značenju promatranih riječi, te tražimo primjere uporabe u Hrvatskoj jezičnoj riznici i Hrvatskome nacionalnom korpusu kako bismo stekli uvid u to kako korisnici upotrebljavaju riječi čitak i čitljiv u osnovnim i izvedenim oblicima. Na temelju analize korpusa predlažemo proširenje i bolje oblikovanje rječničkih definicija te, zaključno, raspravljamo o pitanju leksikografskoga normiranja koje je otvorilo ovo istraživanje.
U ovome se radu problematiziraju strategije slušanja u nastavi stranoga jezika. U prvome se dijel... more U ovome se radu problematiziraju strategije slušanja u nastavi stranoga jezika. U prvome se dijelu daje kratak pregled povijesti slušanja kao vještine, a proces slušanja opisuje se na temelju kognitivnoga okvira razumijevanja pri slušanju. Pregled istraživanja donosi znanstvene radove koji ukazuju na probleme i zahtjevnost slušanja na stranome jeziku te radove koji istražuju bit razlika pri služenju strategijama slušanja. Slijedom toga pronalaze se neke odlike uspješnih slušatelja u stranome jeziku. U drugome se dijelu rada razmatra poučavanje strategija slušanja na nastavi stranoga jezika.
Ovaj je rad nastojanje da se opiše utjecaj hrvatskoga kao materinskoga jezika na engleski kao str... more Ovaj je rad nastojanje da se opiše utjecaj hrvatskoga kao materinskoga jezika na engleski kao strani jezik kroz kvantitativnu i kvalitativnu analizu leksičkih i gramatičkih pogrešaka zabilježenih u pisanome ostvaraju učenika osmoga razreda. Istraživanje je provedeno na uzorku od 500 učenika, izvornih govornika hrvatskoga jezika, koji su engleski jezik učili od prvoga razreda; uzorak je diversificiran po spolu, veličini naselja, drugome stranom jeziku te temi pisanoga rada. Za instrument je odabran poluvođeni sastavak. Početne su pretpostavke bile da će (1) međujezičnih pogrešaka biti manje nego unutarjezičnih, da će (2) učenici koji uče još jedan strani jezik imati manji postotak unutarjezičnih pogrešaka od učenika koji uče samo engleski, da će (3) učenici koji uče još jedan strani jezik imati bolje ocijenjen rad od učenika koji uče samo engleski, te da će (4) postotak međujezičnih pogrešaka kod učenika koji uče samo engleski jezik te učenika koji uče još jedan strani jezik biti jednak. Istraživanjem su potvrđene prve tri hipoteze, što je u skladu s rezultatima prethodnih istraživanja; četvrta hipoteza nije potvrđena. Naime, rezultati su pokazali da učenici koji uče samo engleski jezik čine i veći broj međujezičnih pogrešaka. Takav rezultat implicira da je drugi strani jezik (J3) relevantan čimbenik u jezičnome prijenosu koji se odvija između materinskoga i prvoga stranoga jezika. Na temelju se cjelokupne kvantitativne i kvalitativne analize može zaključiti da hrvatski kao materinski jezik utječe na pisani ostvaraj na engleskome kao stranome jeziku. Utjecaj se ogleda na svim jezičnim razinama pisanoga diskursa, a rezultira različitim tipovima pogrešaka koje pokazuju sustavnost. Iako materinski jezik nije ukupan glavni izvor pogrešaka, on jest dominantan izvor leksičkih, prijedložnih i sintaktičkih pogrešaka, što zasigurno zahtijeva daljnju pozornost istraživača i učitelja.
Prikaz povezanosti ishoda, vještina i vrednovanja prema kurikulumu Engleskoga jezika (http://bit.... more Prikaz povezanosti ishoda, vještina i vrednovanja prema kurikulumu Engleskoga jezika (http://bit.ly/engleskikurikulum).
Prikaz povezanosti ishoda, vještina i vrednovanja prema kurikulumu Engleskoga jezika (http://bit.... more Prikaz povezanosti ishoda, vještina i vrednovanja prema kurikulumu Engleskoga jezika (http://bit.ly/engleskikurikulum).
U jesen 2019. učiteljice i učitelji počinju poučavati engleski jezik u 1. razredu osnovne škole p... more U jesen 2019. učiteljice i učitelji počinju poučavati engleski jezik u 1. razredu osnovne škole prema novome nacionalnom kurikulumu Engleskoga jezika. Prvi dio prikaza može biti koristan onima koji prvi put ulaze u 1. razred, dok se drugi dio odnosi na promjene koje donosi rad prema novome kurikulumu (http://bit.ly/engleskikurikulum).
Službena inačica objavljena 10. siječnja 2019. u Narodnim novinama (https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/... more Službena inačica objavljena 10. siječnja 2019. u Narodnim novinama (https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/sluzbeni/2019_01_10_211.html). Autori: Arjana Blažić, Sanja Božinović, Ela Ivanić, Melita Juraković, Ljiljana Kolar, Jakob Patekar, Snježana Pavić, Irena Pavlović, Livija Pribanić Katarinić, Sanja Vrhovec Vučemilović, Izabela Vujičić Capar
Službena inačica objavljena 22. siječnja 2019. u Narodnim novinama (https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/... more Službena inačica objavljena 22. siječnja 2019. u Narodnim novinama (https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/sluzbeni/2019_01_7_139.html). Autori: Arjana Blažić, Sanja Božinović, Ela Ivanić, Melita Juraković, Ljiljana Kolar, Jakob Patekar, Snježana Pavić, Irena Pavlović, Livija Pribanić Katarinić, Sanja Vrhovec Vučemilović, Izabela Vujičić Capar
Inačica prije druge javne rasprave - studeni 2018. Autori: Arjana Blažić, Sanja Božinović, Ela Iv... more Inačica prije druge javne rasprave - studeni 2018. Autori: Arjana Blažić, Sanja Božinović, Ela Ivanić, Melita Juraković, Ljiljana Kolar, Jakob Patekar, Snježana Pavić, Irena Pavlović, Livija Pribanić Katarinić, Sanja Vrhovec Vučemilović, Izabela Vujičić Capar Službena inačica nakon druge javne rasprave objavljena je na https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/sluzbeni/2019_01_7_139.html
Inačica nakon javne rasprave - prosinac 2017.
Autori: Arjana Blažić, Sanja Božinović, Ela Ivanić,... more Inačica nakon javne rasprave - prosinac 2017. Autori: Arjana Blažić, Sanja Božinović, Ela Ivanić, Melita Juraković, Ljiljana Kolar, Jakob Patekar, Snježana Pavić, Irena Pavlović, Livija Pribanić Katarinić, Sanja Vrhovec Vučemilović, Izabela Vujičić Capar Službena inačica nakon druge javne rasprave objavljena je na https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/sluzbeni/2019_01_7_139.html
Izvorna inačica prije javne rasprave - veljača 2016.
Autori: Arjana Blažić, Sanja Božinović, Ela ... more Izvorna inačica prije javne rasprave - veljača 2016. Autori: Arjana Blažić, Sanja Božinović, Ela Ivanić, Melita Juraković, Ljiljana Kolar, Jakob Patekar, Snježana Pavić, Irena Pavlović, Livija Pribanić Katarinić, Sanja Vrhovec Vučemilović, Izabela Vujičić Capar Službena inačica nakon druge javne rasprave objavljena je na https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/sluzbeni/2019_01_7_139.html
Uploads
Papers
Početne su pretpostavke bile da će (1) međujezičnih pogrešaka biti manje nego unutarjezičnih, da će (2) učenici koji uče još jedan strani jezik imati manji postotak unutarjezičnih pogrešaka od učenika koji uče samo engleski, da će (3) učenici koji uče još jedan strani jezik imati bolje ocijenjen rad od učenika koji uče samo engleski, te da će (4) postotak međujezičnih pogrešaka kod učenika koji uče samo engleski jezik te učenika koji uče još jedan strani jezik biti jednak.
Istraživanjem su potvrđene prve tri hipoteze, što je u skladu s rezultatima prethodnih istraživanja; četvrta hipoteza nije potvrđena. Naime, rezultati su pokazali da učenici koji uče samo engleski jezik čine i veći broj međujezičnih pogrešaka. Takav rezultat implicira da je drugi strani jezik (J3) relevantan čimbenik u jezičnome prijenosu koji se odvija između materinskoga i prvoga stranoga jezika.
Na temelju se cjelokupne kvantitativne i kvalitativne analize može zaključiti da hrvatski kao materinski jezik utječe na pisani ostvaraj na engleskome kao stranome jeziku. Utjecaj se ogleda na svim jezičnim razinama pisanoga diskursa, a rezultira različitim tipovima pogrešaka koje pokazuju sustavnost. Iako materinski jezik nije ukupan glavni izvor pogrešaka, on jest dominantan izvor leksičkih, prijedložnih i sintaktičkih pogrešaka, što zasigurno zahtijeva daljnju pozornost istraživača i učitelja.
Autori: Arjana Blažić, Sanja Božinović, Ela Ivanić, Melita Juraković, Ljiljana Kolar, Jakob Patekar, Snježana Pavić, Irena Pavlović, Livija Pribanić Katarinić, Sanja Vrhovec Vučemilović, Izabela Vujičić Capar
Službena inačica nakon druge javne rasprave objavljena je na https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/sluzbeni/2019_01_7_139.html
Autori: Arjana Blažić, Sanja Božinović, Ela Ivanić, Melita Juraković, Ljiljana Kolar, Jakob Patekar, Snježana Pavić, Irena Pavlović, Livija Pribanić Katarinić, Sanja Vrhovec Vučemilović, Izabela Vujičić Capar
Službena inačica nakon druge javne rasprave objavljena je na https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/sluzbeni/2019_01_7_139.html
Autori: Arjana Blažić, Sanja Božinović, Ela Ivanić, Melita Juraković, Ljiljana Kolar, Jakob Patekar, Snježana Pavić, Irena Pavlović, Livija Pribanić Katarinić, Sanja Vrhovec Vučemilović, Izabela Vujičić Capar
Službena inačica nakon druge javne rasprave objavljena je na https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/sluzbeni/2019_01_7_139.html