期刊名称：Electronic Journal of Foreign Language Teaching (e-FLT)
电子版ISSN：0219-9874
出版年度：2017
卷号：14
期号：1
页码：37-52
出版社：National University of Singapore
摘要：Learning experiences are deemed relevant for foreign language (FL) learning. Related research, however, hasoften circumnavigated the influence of one important characteristic of learning experiences: variability. Thiswork addresses this characteristic by discussing two constructs proposed by Escandón (2012a) within the socioculturalframework: trajectory, the traits of an individual’s relevant learning events, and orientation, thelearner’s level of recognition of instructional discourse. These constructs influence FL accomplishment in formaleducational settings (Escandón, 2012a), and jointly – a combination of denominated learning profiles(Ramírez Gómez, 2015, 2016b) – they help determine some potential effects of learning experiences in theclassroom. Nonetheless, due to the recency of this proposal, it is still unclear whether or how these theoreticalconstructs are reflected in the reality of learners. By administering three questionnaires to a group of olderJapanese learners (60 years old and over) of Spanish, a cohort rarely addressed in FL education research, thisstudy shows that learning profiles are indeed reflected in some aspects of older adults’ FL learning. Also, itproposes a convenient tool for measuring trajectories and confirms that understanding these constructs mayconsiderably enhance the learning process.
