Interactional feedback and children\u27s L2 development

The relationship between interactional feedback and second language learning has been the focus of much recent research. Studies have examined the type and effectiveness of interactional feedback in a range of different settings and contexts. However, most of the existing research has focused on adults, despite the fact that there is general agreement that age plays an important role in second language learning outcomes. In the current study, we explored the effects of interactional feedback on children’s L2 development in a pretest/posttest design. Twenty-two child ESL learners carried out communicative tasks that provided contexts for targeted forms and interactional feedback to occur. The children interacted in dyads with adult native speakers. During a 3-day treatment period, the experimental group (n=11) received interactional feedback in response to their non-targetlike production of question forms, while the control group (n=11) interacted, but did not receive feedback. Results showed that the experimental group improved more than the control group in terms of question formation. This study that children developed following interactional feedback just as adults have been shown to. Interestingly, the children’s interlanguage seemed to be impacted by feedback relatively quickly, while similar studies with adults have demonstrated more delayed effects