Words worth noticing

Abstract We use guided language learning journals written in second language (L2) German by Canadian undergraduates while studying in Germany and apply structural linguistic analyses and Cognitive Discourse Analysis to examine lexical items students attend to and, drawing on Bloom’s taxonomy, trace their learning process through their narrative language use. We show that lexical acquisition in study abroad is diverse and complex, observing a preference for meaning over function, and attention to items that were highly specialized or personally meaningful. Students also engaged in what we call private languaging in a safe environment serving to engage language to think through and construct meanings as planning for future interaction. We shed light on the process of language development during study abroad, refine quantitative understandings of L2 gains in previous studies through our qualitative approach, and expand our knowledge of how to assist learners to optimize the personal linguistic benefits of studying abroad.