Running Head: FINAL OBSERVATION AND CASE STUDY PROJECT

Final Observation and Case Study Project

Kelley E. Bratcher
University of Southern Mississippi

FL 664
Dr. Joanne Burnett
4/30/2015

FINAL OBSERVATION AND CASE STUDY PROJECT

Abstract
The objective of the research is to use theories, literature, and observation to describe an Arabic
speaking ESL students second language acquisition process. The report first provides an
analysis of the case study participant, Mohammed, as an English Language Learner and goes on
to describe the conditions of data collection. Subsequent sections consider the findings in five
individual case studies: 1) Affective Factors Influencing Second Language Acquisition 2)
Contrastive Analysis 3) Pronunciation Issues 4) Nonverbal Communication Strategies 5)
Language Acquisition while Studying Abroad. The report concludes by providing pedagogical
implications.

FINAL OBSERVATION AND CASE STUDY PROJECT

Final Observation Case Study Project

1. Introduction
According to Steven Pinker in his book The Language Instinct, language is a complex,
specialized skill, which develops in the child spontaneously (Brown, 2014, p. 6). During
childhood, aspects of language such as syntax, morphology and lexicon are learned through
minimal formal teaching. Unfortunately, however, the opportunity to learn a second language is
not always presented to an individual as a child, but instead, only as a serious option later in
life. Many students want to learn another language to increase employability, to connect
socially with speakers of others languages, or to grow intellectually. Whatever the motivation
may be, many students choose to study abroad. In the U.S. alone more than 300,000 U.S.
students embark on a study abroad program every year (NLCATP, 2014). Perhaps inspired by
the words of Jacques Cousteau, The best way to observe a fish is to become a fish, these
students seek to increase language knowledge through immersion (NLCATP, 2014).
One such student is Mohammed, a Saudi Arabian native currently studying at the FLS
language institute in Cookeville, Tennessee. Section 2 provides an overview of Mohammed as
an English as a Second Language (ESL) learner and the data collection methods used. Section
3 includes five individual case studies concerning his second language acquisition (SLA): 1)
Affective Factors Influencing Second Language Acquisition 2) Contrastive Analysis 3)
Pronunciation Issues 4) Nonverbal Communication Strategies 5) Language Acquisition while
Studying Abroad. Section 4 provides pedagogical implications.

2. Methods

FINAL OBSERVATION AND CASE STUDY PROJECT

2.1. Participant
Mohammed has been in the United States for five weeks. Before traveling to the U.S.,
Mohammed had only traveled outside of Saudi Arabia to Kuwait. In the U.S., he has only
visited Nashville, New York City, and Cookeville.
He has a bachelors degree in Education. Mohammed was previously an Arabic reading
teacher in Saudi Arabia. He graduated in February of 2015 and came almost immediately to the
United States to study. Mohammed will return to Saudi Arabia when he finishes his Masters in
order to be a literature professor. He is currently enrolled as a level one beginner ESL student
at FLS Language School on the Tennessee Tech University campus. FLS provides international
students with English so that they may pass the TOEFL test and begin undergraduate or
graduate studies at Tennessee Tech. Mohammed will be pursuing his Masters in Education at
after finishing at FLS.
Despite his beginner language skills, Mohammed has received several years of formal
education. He had an Egyptian teacher for English class in his home country of Saudi Arabia
and took English for one hour per week throughout his entire primary and secondary school
career. At the post-secondary level, he enrolled in one English course, for a total of 4 months of
instruction. Mohammed has been given a scholarship to study English for sixteen months from
the Saudi Arabian government.
In his free time, Mohammed enjoys reading especially history or religious themed
books. Mohammed has seven brothers and five sisters. His siblings have a variety of
occupations ranging from a medical doctor to a mathematics teacher. His father worked in real
estate before retiring, and his mom is a homemaker. When he finishes his Masters degree, he
plans to return to Saudi Arabia and get married.

FINAL OBSERVATION AND CASE STUDY PROJECT

2.2. Data Collection
Observation of Mohammed occurred in three different settings: in his Core Grammar
class, in his Cultural Elective class, and at Starbucks coffee shop.
His Core Grammar class is taught by Brian, a third year ESL instructor. Mohammed
attends Brians class on a daily basis for three and a half hours per day. Six students are in
Mohammeds class. All students are from Saudi Arabia and in level one (Beginner). The class
is composed of one female and five males. The two lessons observed focused on events, times,
dates, and ordinal numbers.
Mohammeds Elective Culture class is taught by Keely, a fifth year ESL instructor. The
lesson is focused on culture, in this case, the Easter Holiday. The students dyed Easter eggs
during this class. There are five Saudi Arabian students present in the class, four men and one
woman.
Two one-on-one interviews were conducted with Mohammed at the Starbucks coffee shop
on Tennessee Techs campus. Topics ranged from his learning style to his adjustment to life in
the U.S.
Data collection occurred at the following dates and times.
Monday, March 23, 2015
8:00am-11:30am
First Observation (Brians Core Class)
Tuesday, March 24, 2015
8:00am-9:30am

FINAL OBSERVATION AND CASE STUDY PROJECT

Second Observation (Brians Core Class)

Tuesday, March 31, 2015
3:00-4:30pm
First one-on-one meeting
Thursday, April 2 2015
3:00pm-4:30pm
Second one-on-one meeting
Wednesday, April 1, 2015
2:00pm-4:00pm
Third Observation (Keelys Elective Class

3. Case Studies

3.1. Affective Factors Influencing Second Language Acquisition

According to educational psychologist Ernest Hilgard, Purely cognitive theories of learning
will be rejected unless a role is assigned to affectivity (Brown, p. 141, 2014). Affective factors
such as personality, cultural empathy, and optimism can contribute to language learning
success. Fortunately, Mohammed shows many personality traits commonly found in successful
language learners including taking charge of his own learning, confidence to experiment with

FINAL OBSERVATION AND CASE STUDY PROJECT

language, and self-monitoring to learn from mistakes (Brown, 2014). Mohammed shows a
good deal of ambiguity tolerance (AT). He is relatively open to new ideologies, grammatical
rules, and vocabulary differences that are contrary to his own. According to studies by Chapelle
and Roberts, learners with high levels of AT, such as Mohammed, tend to have increased
success in learning a second language (L2) (Brown, p. 118).
In the classroom, Mohammed is usually the first to raise his hand to answer a question and
volunteers often. His low inhibitions and fairly high degree of risk-taking allow him more
practice with the language, increased opportunities for peer and teacher feedback, and the
opportunity to learn from errors. Mohammed has several other traits that lend themselves to
language success including high self-esteem, willingness to communicate, healthy amounts of
both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, and an extroverted personality.
Although he lacked the motivation to study English when he was in grade school, he now
has a huge amount of desire and enthusiasm to do so. When asked why he did not have the
incentive as a child, he stated, All Saudi, no like English. No study. He now realizes the
employment opportunities, pay increases, and personal satisfaction that learning an L2 can
provide.

3.2. Contrastive Analysis

As stated by contrastive linguistics expert Dr. Robert Lado, Individuals tend to transfer
the forms and meanings, and the distribution of forms and meanings of their native language
and culture to the foreign language and culture (Gass, p. 792013). Contrastive Analysis tries
to predict areas that will be easy or difficult for learners based on a comparison of similarities
and differences in regards to the sounds system, morphological system, syntactic system, and

FINAL OBSERVATION AND CASE STUDY PROJECT

even the cultural system. English and Arabic belong to two different language families
Semitic and Indo-European respectively (Peduto). Mohammed must learn several new habits
and rules since his native and target language have few similarities.
In regards to syntax, Arabic has feminine and masculine nouns, few irregular verbs, and
does not use is or are (The King good = The King is good.). Small changes to a verb are made
by adding to the root and follow a regular pattern (ECTACO, Inc., 2015). English has a
Subject-Verb-Object word order, while Arabic has a Verb-Subject-Object word order. English
includes prepositions such as of, by and at which do not exist in Arabic. There are no simple
patterns to English nouns, verbs, and adjectives, unlike the three letter root system pattern of
Arabic words. In contrast to English, there are no modal verbs in Arabic, nor are there gerund
forms, infinitive forms, indefinite article, or phrasal verbs (The Arabic Language, 2009).
Differences further include the fact that adjectives follow their nouns in Arabic, and plurals in
Arabic are often formed by internal patterns, (i.e. mouse-mice).
The following five statements are transcribed from conversations with Mohammed:

Preposition error: All Saudi before work Kuwait. All Kuwait work Saudi.

Preposition/Syntax Errors- I here Cookeville live."

3rd person conjugation / use of infinitive or gerund: "My friend don't good cook." "I
like cook."

Possessive Adjectives/ use of infinitive: Every day I tell friend. Come. Come. I like
all come."

Typical to ESL students, Mohammed shows a lack of understanding of the English morpheme
/s/ as evidenced by the following statements:

FINAL OBSERVATION AND CASE STUDY PROJECT

"Mr. Billy like music.

He sing. Smile.

Hironymous attributes the /-s/ issue in part due to the fact that English places several functions
on the /-s/ morpheme (Hironymous, n.d.). In English, /-s/ can denote plurality, possession,
subject/verb contractions, third person present/indicative, etc. It is fairly obvious to see how
Mohammed may be confused. Studies by Eckman et al. and Gass also state that generalization
does not occur from less difficult to more difficult items (Gass, 2013, p. 404). The morpheme /s/ may easily be taught to denote plurality in English, but the multiplicity of /-s/ uses is
currently beyond Mohammeds state of acquisition.
According to Krashens Natural Order Hypothesis, Mohammed is a prime example of a
student who is simply not ready at this point to understand the full scope of the /-s/ morpheme
and other advanced language structures in English. The Natural Order Hypothesis states that
language rules are learned in a specific sequence and this sequence is influenced very minimally
by outside factors (Gass, 2013, p. 404). Therefore, Mohammeds acquisition of language
structures will occur in a fairly predictable pattern regardless of instruction. Keeping this in
mind will help his instructor, as well as Mohammed himself, to accept errors as part of a
systematic learning process.

3.3. Pronunciation Issues

Considerable phonological differences exist between Arabic and English. Mohammed has
difficulty understanding the sound and spelling of English words. The article by Omran
Akasha, Exploring the Challenges Facing Arabic-Speaking ESL Students & Teachers in

FINAL OBSERVATION AND CASE STUDY PROJECT

10

Middle School, highlights differences in phonetic rules, which are the rules to enable the
recognition of letters and the understanding of sound-symbol relationships and spelling patters
(Akasha, 2013).
According to the article, Arabic ESL students have particular difficulty with the following
consonant sounds: /p/, /d/, /v/, /t/ (check, church), // (pleasure, vision), and // (sing, finger).
Some examples include (Akasha, 2013) :
I baid (paid) for a bicture (picture) at the concert.
/v/ and /f/ are allophonic, and are usually pronounced as /f/ It is a ferry (very) nice fillage
(village).
Pronunciation of /n/ as /ng/ or /nk/
Over pronunciation of /r/
Mohammed shows classic pronunciation issues found in native Arabic speakers learning
English. Consider the following observed examples:

Pronounces lear /lir/ instead of liar / la(r)/

Pronounces hAr /har/ instead of hair /hr/

"Like kitchen. Cook. Basta (pasta)." /bst/

These phonetic English rules can be difficult for Arabic students to learn because of the fact that
they are so irregular in English. Giving students extra time and constructive feedback can help
them to develop phonetic rules.

FINAL OBSERVATION AND CASE STUDY PROJECT

11

3.4. Nonverbal Communication Strategies

The silent language as Edward Hall describes nonverbal communication is crucial to
communicative competence (Brown, 2014). Arabic speakers tend to have very different
nonverbal communication styles than typical English speakers. For example, speaking loudly
in Arab cultures is not only acceptable, but demonstrates strength and sincerity (Peduto). The
writing styles are also dramatically different, which helps to explain Mohammeds difficulty
with letters such as p, b, and d.
Mohammed uses gestures and body language including waving his hands and shaking
his head. Meaning is also conveyed through his use of facial expressions with his eyes, mouth,
and eyebrows. Auditorily, Mohammed conveys meaning through his use of pitch, stress,
volume, enunciation, and intonation. He uses these nonverbal devices to distinguish among
statements, questions, and commands. Mohammed uses the fairly universal gesture of OK
with thumb and index finger to denote good while speaking. He uses tone and facial
expressions to add meaning to the one word, whether it be a question (Good?) or a statement
(Good.). Since he has trouble with 3rd person singular, as evident in sentences like, "My friend
say me 'you go to cinema?'" it helps that he puts inflections on his questions. The tone of his
voice emphasizes that you go to cinema is a question that his friend posed to him.
Mohammed shows beginning level skills in writing and exhibits common issues found
with Arabic speaking ESL student. In Native Speakers of Arabic and ESL Texts: Evidence for
the Transfer of Written Word Identification Processes, Rachel Hayes-Harb writes:
in English, vowel letters provide important information for distinguishing lexical items and
are not predictable based on grammatical function, as they often are in Arabic (Hayes-Harb,
2006). She suggests that teachers compensate for differences in the written word by designing

FINAL OBSERVATION AND CASE STUDY PROJECT

12

activities which provide students the opportunity to recognize vowel information that
distinguishes words in English (e.g., heat, hot, hat, hit). Knowledge of the differences in Arabic
and English vowels, consonants, and writing processes is crucial for language teachers in order
to provide optimal and efficient practice. Hayes-Harbs research shows the challenges facing
Mohammed and other Arabic speaking ESL students and possible strategies to overcome those
challenges.

3.5. Language Acquisition while Studying Abroad

On a typical day he goes to school from 8:00am until 3:00pm. Afterward, he returns to his
host home to do homework or eat dinner with his host family. Often, a friend, also from Saudi
Arabia, will pick him up and they will have Arabic tea and conversation. He enjoys talking
about politics, history, and literature. Mohammed watches English television and movies in his
free time and tries to learn vocabulary, phrases, and culture via these media sources. He likes
movies with actors such as Sylvester Stalone, Angelina Jolie, the Rock, and Vin Diesel.
Based on the research by Baker-Smemoe et al., the factor that influenced L2 acquisition
while studying abroad the most was social network development (Baker-Smemoe et al, 2014).
The study showed no significant gain could be attributed to age, gender, personality, or L2
usage time. In Mohammeds case, his language progress could be hindered by the fact that he is
surrounded by mostly Arab speakers inside and outside of the classroom. He has very few
authentic English conversations in social situations. Most of his English conversation occurs
between him and his ESL teachers, Keely and Brian. Since Mohammed has no Englishproficient native speaking friends to facilitate his entry into social groups, this task falls to the
ESL teacher. In his case, his language instructors should try to introduce him to social groups

FINAL OBSERVATION AND CASE STUDY PROJECT

13

(i.e. community service organizations, student groups, athletic leagues, etc.) in order to widen
his access to English speakers.
Gainers in the Baker-Smemoe et al. study also scored significantly higher on the predeparture test that measures cultural sensitivity and tolerance than non-gainers. This suggests
that Mohammeds ability to deal effectively with other cultures will affect his L2 learning
(Baker-Smemoe et al, 2014). This emphasizes the need for cultural instruction in his L2
classroom. Activities such as the Easter discussion and egg dye help Mohammed to appreciate
and relate to others cultures, which hopefully increases his language acquisition.
Further studies on Mohammed would be needed in order to access the role of relationships
including any change in size of his friend group from program beginning to program end, the
number of social groups in which he participated, and the depth of interaction achieved within
the social group(s).

4. Pedagogical Implications
Teaching Arabic-speaking ESL students is a complex blend of art and science. The
successful ESL teacher must appreciate the uniqueness that each student brings to the classroom
and how the Arab culture and language may alter his or her language learning process. As
Brown states, Excellent teachers are competent scientists, but they are brilliant artists (Brown,
2014, p. 308).
Mohammed benefits greatly by being in an immersion environment. He is simultaneously
learning the target language and content (U.S. culture, history, literature, etc.). In his elective
class, there is a focus on form which draws his attention to language structures as they emerge

FINAL OBSERVATION AND CASE STUDY PROJECT

14

incidentally in lessons. For example, the words dissolve, put, and bend were taught while
dying Easter eggs. Lessons center on communication, not grammar, which are not only
effective, but increase self-motivation and an innate desire to learn in students such as
Mohammed.

5. Conclusion
This report used theories in second language acquisition, relevant literature in the field, and
observation of the learner to describe an Arabic speaking students English language
acquisition. Five case studies detailed Mohammeds language learning: 1) Affective Factors
Influencing Second Language Acquisition 2) Contrastive Analysis 3) Pronunciation Issues 4)
Nonverbal Communication Strategies and 5) Language Acquisition while Studying Abroad.
The report concludes by providing pedagogical implications.

FINAL OBSERVATION AND CASE STUDY PROJECT

15

References
Akasha, O. (2013, October). Exploring the Challenges Facing Arabic-Speaking ESL Students &
Teachers in Middle School. Journal of ELT and Applied Linguistics (JELTAL), 1(1), 120.
Baker-Smemoe, W., Dewey, D. P., Bown, J., & Martinsen, R. A. (2014). Variable Affecting L2
Gains During Study Abroad. Foreign Language Annals, 464 - 486.
Brown, H. (2014). Principles of Language Learning and Teaching: A Course in Second
Language Acquisition (6th ed.). White Plains, N.Y.: Pearson.
ECTACO, Inc. (2015). Arabic Language Information. Retrieved April 6, 2015, from Lingvo Soft
Online: The Joy of Understanding: http://www.lingvozone.com/Arabic
Gass, S. (2013). Second Language Acquisition: An Introductory Course (4th ed.). New York:
Routlege.
Hayes-Harb, R. (2006, June). Native Speakers of Arabic and ESL Texts: Evidence for the
Transfer of Written Word. Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages, Inc.
(TESOL), 40(2), 321-339. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/40264525
Hironymous, P. (n.d.). Third Person Indicative /-s/: Constraints on Second Language
Acquisition. Retrieved March 20, 2015, from www.gmu.edu:
http://www.gmu.edu/org/lingclub/WP/texts/1_Hironymous.pdf
NLCATP. (2014, November 18). 37 Great Jacques Cousteau Quotes. Retrieved from NLCATP
Web Site: http://nlcatp.org/37-great-jacques-cousteau-quotes/
The Arabic Language. (2009, June 18). Retrieved April 6, 2015, from www.Al-Bab.com:
http://www.al-bab.com/arab/language/lang.html