Modaalverbide saama ja võima konstruktsioonid B1- ja B2-taseme 19 kirjalikus õppijakeeles kui keeleoskuse arengu näitaja
Constructions with modal verbs saama and võima as an indicator of increased language competence in Estonian B1 and B2 level written learner language

Summary/Abstract: The article describes the development of constructions with the modal verbs saama (can, may, be able) and võima (can, may, be able) in written exam texts of adult second language learners of Estonian at B1 and B2 level.The study on which the article is based is part of a larger study, the goal of which is to develop linguistic descriptions to accompany the functional descriptions of B1 and B2 level given in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR 2007). This is to be achieved by identifying the linguistic categories typically used at these levels, describing and analyzing their frequency of use, accuracy and morphological, syntactical and functional distribution (Martin et al. 2010) and specifying descriptors that distinguish the levels.The results of the study discussed in the article show that constructions with saama and võima both develop according to the general principles of learner language. The development of constructions with saama is smoother, but there is a big leap in the development of the constructions with võima between B1 and B2 levels. The frequency of constructions with võima is four times higher at the B2 level than at the B1 level, the dependency of these constructions on the text type is reduced, and the morphological, syntactical and functional distribution of the constructions shows a significant increase. The development of the constructions with the modal verb võima can be regarded as an indicator of B2 level.

• Details
• Contents