Effect of explicit instruction on implicit and explicit second language knowledge an empirical study on English article acquisition

Based on a Cognitive view of second language acquisition, this study contributes to the ongoing debate on the effectiveness of explicit instruction on the development of both knowledge about language (i.e., explicit knowledge) and knowledge of language that is available for fluent use (i.e., implicit knowledge). Current approaches to second language instruction have called for an investigation of the role of explicit language knowledge in L2 acquisition, particularly on measures that reflect levels of accuracy during fluent language use; that is, on implicit language knowledge. While numerous intervention studies have observed English article acquisition, few have examined the effect of explicit instruction on implicit knowledge of articles, which, due to being non-salient forms, are found to be difficult even among advanced English L2 users.;This study examined the effect of explicit instruction on English articles on measures of implicit and explicit knowledge. Lessons on generic and non-generic articles were delivered through a Web-based computer program to adult L2 users with some prior knowledge of articles (n = 49). A Control Group (n = 45) participated in the pre- and post-tests only. The tests consisted of two oral production tasks designed to measure implicit knowledge; elicited production and spontaneous production tests, and two written tasks designed to measure explicit knowledge: grammaticality judgment and metalinguistic knowledge tests.;Results on all tests reveal gains that were sustained six weeks after instruction. Moreover, gains on implicit knowledge continued to increase in the delayed post-test. The theoretical implication of the results suggests explicit instruction adequately facilitates development of L2 language knowledge on non-salient forms in terms of both implicit and explicit knowledge. Methodologically, the elicited production test was found to provide a valid measure of implicit knowledge that may complement free production tasks. Pedagogically, these results suggest that explicit instruction on English articles based on a cognitive grammar approach may be of some benefit to English L2 users, particularly in facilitating their implicit knowledge of article usages.