Choose video games topic

Your Annotated Bibliography must have 8 sources. Please go back to the prompt for the unit, located under "files" to refer to the guidelines for how many peer-reviewed/ scholarly, popular, hard-copy sources you must have as a minimum. Having 8 sources allows you to have a couple sources which don't end up working well for your argument. Make sure that you also have at least 2 sources which seem to take an alternative approach or indicate an opposing answer to your research question than the majority of the others.

Analysis Process Assignment Consists of 4 Parts for each source and a 5th step to Synthesize and Analyze them all together.

The Annotated Bibliography will consist of the following for 10 sources:

 1. Cite the source using MLA format. (Someone in class asked if it is acceptable to use an online citation generator such as Easybib- it is ok to start from here in order to organize the pieces, but always double-check the accuracy with your McGraw Hill Handbook  or Purdue OWL because these generators frequently make mistakes.)
 2. Below the citation include a two paragraph summary of the source
 3. In sentence format, rate the source on a scale of 1( not helpful to answering your research question) to 5 (very helpful) and another 2-3 sentences answering these questions " Why is this a good source for/ how does it relate to my research question? Does this source help me to determine an arguable point within the research?"

4. Followed by 2-3 quotes, in MLA format, for each source including information which you would like to use in your paper. You may intend to direct-quote or to summarize or paraphrase the information in these quotes.

The 5th step applies to all sources together.
 5. After annotating all your sources, go back through and determine what the majority of the sources seem to indicate is the answer to your research question. At the bottom of the page include

A. Your research question: Who is affected/ what is the problem/ why is it important?

B. 1-2 paragraphs to synthesize what all the research says together (still only the facts but look for relationships based on agreement and disagreement)

C. 1-2 paragraphs on what you think the research seems to indicate is the answer (make sure to note any research which seems to disagree with the majority which supports your interpretation.)

D. Your idea of a possible arguable stance regarding the topic.This would be the answer to your research question, and the basis for your thesis.

EXAMPLE:

The authors' purpose in the article is to support the investigation of linguistic relativity in second language acquisition. The authors identify and discuss three theoretical-methodological components necessary to their process of support. First, they highlight the importance of using nonverbal methods to study linguistic relativity effects in second language (L2) speakers. Second, they identify and delineate the likely cognitive mechanisms underpinning cognitive restructuring in L2 speakers by introducing the theoretical framework of associative learning. Third, they offer an in-depth discussion of the factors (e.g., L2 proficiency and L2 use) that characterize those trajectories, anchoring them to the framework of associative learning, and reinterpreting their relative strength in predicting L2 speaker cognition.

I rate this article a 4 due to the clear and systematic definition of terms. It also identified research terms such as "cognitive restructuring" and "associative learning." 

 [include 2-3 quotes from source]

In this article James Citron posits whether a theory of ethno-lingual relativity may be formulated in relation to second language acquisition. Citron begins by discussing past studies which have shown that multilingualism fosters a greater openness to cross cultural learning approaches. However, Citron would like to be able to prove the converse assertion, that an openness to cross cultural understanding can actually foster second language acquisition. Citron identifies two components of ethno-lingual relativity. "The first is the ability to recognize that languages are not direct translations of each other, and , furthermore, that the way one's first language expresses a thought is arbitrary" (Citron). "The second... is the ability to recognize how much of one's own language is culture-bound" (Citron).

Citron relates studies in individual learner aptitude and social psychology to his theory. He focuses specifically on Brown's treatment of Acculturation Theory, which Citron claims shows evidence in support of a Theory of Ethno-Lingual Relativity. Citron also looks at a case study of SLA in a study-abroad setting which he uses to support his theory.

I would rate this article a 5, mostly due to its clear definition of terms but also due to the cross-disciplinary approach to support. It seems to be a foundational work on the topic, published in 1995. It helped me to understand the two main components of ethno-lingual relativity: student understanding of 1 the arbitrariness of language and 2 the culturally-bound nature of language.

Quotes:

Citron identifies two components of ethno-lingual relativity. "The first is the ability to recognize that languages are not direct translations of each other, and , furthermore, that the way one's first language expresses a thought is arbitrary" (Citron). "The second... is the ability to recognize how much of one's own language is culture-bound" (Citron).

This article addresses the resources from language, literature, and culture that students apply when learning a second language are defined as a social semiotic in the sense of M. A. K. Halliday (1978) and are examined in an appreciation of the potential contribution of applied linguistics to foreign language departments. Structuralist, social, and social-semiotic models of the study of foreign languages, literatures, and cultures are contrasted to show that the social semiotic model, which promises to remedy the disappointing results of the communicative orientation in language instruction, draws on three post-structuralist principles in addition to the principle of linguistic relativity: intertextuality, language learning as social and dialogic meaning construction, and the historical situatedness and local context of language users as an essential element of language. Interlanguage is characterized in this framework as a social semiotic construct; the traditional focus of the foreign language curriculum is shifted by applied linguistics to include the central role of discourse in meaning making, interest in bilingual writers, and contacts with the social sciences.

I rate this article a 4 for its clear interpretations of the theoretical framework needed for approaching linguistic relativity in SLA. This article also helped me by bringing forward the research terms "social-semiotic," "interlanguage," and "meaning making."

Research Question:

How does learner awareness of linguistic relativity impact the second language acquisition process?

(Who/what/why?)

What does the research seem to indicate?

The research seems to indicate that learner awareness of linguistic relativity has a positive impact on the language acquisition process. Much of the study on this topic has focused on language immersion programs, in which students are exposed to the cultural-context of the target language by living in the place related to that culture for a somewhat extended period of time. Study has also focused on the psychological, social, and academic contexts of these learning experiences in order to determine the factors which make up linguistic relativity and determine its impact on the language learning process. However, (problem) a broad study which addresses the relationship between study abroad or immersion programs and language acquisition has not yet been enacted.

Possible arguable stance/ thesis with solution:

Learner awareness of linguistic relativity has a positive impact on the second language acquisition process especially in the context of study abroad and language immersion programs. In order to understand the impact of study abroad and language immersion programs on language acquisition, a broad study which includes students from many backgrounds should be performed.