Chapter I Introduction
1.1 Background of the Research
Several researchers in the 1960s had noticed a special phenomenon一thesystematic absence of a specific feature in learners' written production一in secondlanguage acquisition. They proposed it in some unconstrained elicitation tasks likecomposition or conversation. However, it was Schachter who first brought the notionof avoidance phenomenon to light. The proportion of avoidance phenomenon wasfounded on the theories of acquisition, comparative analysis and error analysis.The theory of acquisition believes that on two conditions that avoidance will beproduced by the learners. Firstly, the rules of mother tongue are greatly different fromthe target language. The learners have realized the correct forms of L2 throughconscious learning, but not acquire them. And conscious monitoring is quitethLtroublesome. Secondly, the L2 rules of learners' are not enough for them to correcterrors by themselves, although they have already realized the conflicts betweenand . Since they are not capable of correctingerror they have identified, theychoose to avoid making it. In this way theyconfirm the accuracy of theirlenlanguage.The contrastive analysis hypothesizes that by identifying the linguisticdifferences as well as similarities between the mother tongue and the target language,it is possible to predict the problems confronted by the learners of a particular L2. Itassumes that those language features which are similar in both languages will beeasier for the learners and the degree of difficulty will be determined by the number ofelements of contrast. On the contrary, instead of focusing on idealized linguisticstructures attributed to native speakers of L 1 and L2, error analysis describes andanalyzes the actual learner errors in L2.Schachter (1974) was an examination of the compositions produced by these 4sets of non-native learners and one set produced by a control group of Americanswhich is unspecified in number. She found that the errors that the Chinese andJapanese L2 learners produced are far fewer than Arabic and Persian L2 learners. Shebelieved that this was due to the differences between the mother tongue and the targetlanguage. As manifested in Schachter's research that instead of eliciting errors, thedifferences between the left-branching languages一Chinese and Japanese and theright-branching一English, lead to the phenomenon of avoidance.The studies of avoidance phenomenon after Schachter can be pided into twocamps: those that accept the notion of avoidance, and conduct a serial of research torefine the original research of Schachter(1974), and those argue that avoidancephenomenon may not be the only explanations on Schachter's data; some even denyits existence.
1.2 Significance of the Research
The previous studies abroad on avoidance phenomenon were mainly focused ona specific language structure, for example, phrasal verbs, passive voice, relativeclauses, etc. This can be a better guidance on pedagogy of each inpidual languageitems. But the overall structures of the learners' written production might be neglected.Secondly, the participants in most of the research were students who lived or studiedin an English speaking country. Their language environment was different from thatof middle school students studied in China. The empirical studies conducted in Chinabasically took avoidance as their theoretical foundations without questioning its actualexistence. And the researches were generally conducted among college students. TheirEnglish proficiency level was quite different from that of middle school students'.
References
1.Chiang, D. (1980). Predictors of relative clause production. Research in second language acquisition 1，42-45
2.Chasan, M. (1978). Avoidance or ignorance: a study in second language use (master's thesis). Retrieved from http://spectrum.library.concordia.ca/2602/
3.Corder, S. P.(1975). The language of second language learners. Modern Langzrage Journal, 59(8)
4.Dagut, M.; laufer, B. (1985). Avoidance of phrasal verbs一a case for contrastive analysis. Studies in Second Langzrgae Acquisition 7, 73-80
5.Eckman, F. (1977). Markedness and the constrastive analysis pothesis. Language Learning 27.
6.Ellis, R. (1999). Understanding Second Language Acquisition. Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press.
7.Grandman, H. (1971). The limitations of contrastive http://sblunwen.com/gzyyxzlw/analysis predictions. PCCLLU Papers 3(4).
8.Kellerman, E. (1977). Towards a characterization of the strategy of transfer in second language learning. Interlanguage Studies Bulletin 2, 58-145.
9.Kellerman, E. (1983). Now you see it, now you don't. In S. Gass&L. Selinker (Eds.), Language transfer in language learning.
高中学生写作中的回避现象分析
摘要 5-6
Abstract 6-7
Table of Contents 8-11
Chapter Ⅰ Introduction 11-15
1.1 Background of the Research 11-12
1.2 Significance of the Research 12-13
1.3 Overview of the Thesis 13-15
Chapter Ⅱ Literature Review 15-34
2.1 The Proposition of Avoidance Phenomenon 15-17
2.2 Explanations of Different Linguistics Theories on Avoidance Phenomenon 17-25
2.2.1 Theory of acquisition 17-19
2.2.2 Contrastive analysis and error analysis 19-25
2.2.2.1 Error analysis 20-23
2.2.2.2 Comparative analysis 23-25
2.3 Previous Studies on Avoidance Phenomenon 25-34
2.3.1 Avoidance and Its Advocates 27-32
2.3.1.1 Kleinmann 27-28
2.3.1.2 Dagut and Laufer 28-30
2.3.1.3 Seliger 30-31
2.3.1.4 The Domestic research on avoidance phenomenon 31-32
2.3.2 Alternatives to avoidance 32-34
Chapter Ⅲ Methodology 34-40
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Chapter IV Results and Discussion 40-62
4.1 Research Question 1:Do senior high school students adopt avoidance behavior in their writings? 40-44
4.2 Research Question 2:If so, what are the manifestations of avoidance? 44-49
4.3 Research Question 3:If so, why do they adopt avoidance behavior? 49-60
4.4 Theoretical Framework 60-62
Chapter Ⅴ Conclusion 62-66
5.1 Major Findings 62-63
5.2 Implications 63-64
5.3 Limitations 64
5.4 Recommendations for Further Research 64-66
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