Unit 1 SLA Theories-Strategies

Second Language Acquisition
What is Second
Language Acquisition?
In second language learning, language plays an

institutional and social role in the community. It
functions as a recognized means of communication
among members who speak some other language as their
native tongue.
In foreign language learning, language plays no major

role in the community and is primarily learned in the
classroom.
The distinction between second and foreign language learning

is what is learned and how it is learned.
What is the Study of Second Language
Acquisition?
It is the study of:

how second languages are learned;
how learners create a new language system with limited exposure to a

second language;
why most second language learners do not achieve the same degree of
proficiency in a second language as they do in their native language; and
why some learners appear to achieve native-like proficiency in more than

one language.
How Do Learners Acquire a
Second Language?
Learners acquire a second language by making use of
existing knowledge of the native language, general
learning strategies, or universal properties of language
to internalize knowledge of the second language.
These processes serve as a means by which the learner
constructs an interlanguage (a transitional system
reflecting the learner’s current L2 knowledge).
Communication strategies are employed by the learner
to make use of existing knowledge to
cope with communication difficulties.
The Language Learner
Individual differences affect L2 acquisition. These may include: (1)
the rate of development and (2) their ultimate level of
achievement.
Learners differ with regard to variables relating to cognitive,

affective and social aspects of a human being.
Fixed factors such as age and language learning aptitude are

beyond external control. Variable factors such as motivation are
influenced by external factors such as social setting and by the
actual course of L2 development.
Cognitive style refers to the way people perceive, conceptualize,

organize and recall information.
Learner Strategies
Learner strategies are defined as deliberate behaviors or

actions that learners use to make language learning more
successful, self-directed and enjoyable.
Cognitive strategies relate new concepts to prior knowledge.
Metacognitive strategies are those which help with organizing a

personal timetable to facilitate an effective study of the L2.
Social strategies include looking for opportunities to converse

with native speakers.
Natural Order of Strategies of
Second Language Development
Chesterfield & Chesterfield (1985) identified a natural order of

strategies in the development of a second language.
Strategi
1)
2)
repetition (imitating a word or structure);
memorization (recalling songs, rhymes or sequences by rote);
es
3) formulaic expressions (words or phrases that function as units i.e. greetings);
4) verbal attention getters (language that initiates interaction);
5) answering in unison (responding with others);
6) talking to self (engaging in internal monologue);
7) elaboration (information beyond what is necessary);
8) anticipatory answers (completing another’s phrase or statement);
9) monitoring (self-correcting errors);
10) appeal for assistance (asking someone for help);
11) request for clarification (asking the speaker to explain or repeat); and
12) role-playing (interacting with another by taking on roles).
GROUP WORK
 Listen carefully to the presentation of
these theories in SLA:
 Universalist theory
 Behaviorist theory
 Nativist theory
 Cognitivist theory
 Social interactionist theory
 Give examples of how these theories
relate in young children acquire English.
Theories of Second Language
Acquisition
Theory
Universalist Theory defines linguistic universals from
two perspectives:
The data-driven
The theory-driven
Universalist Theory Theory
(Continued)
Several Characteristics of the data-driven approach include the following:
It has language typology = patterns which exist among languages and how they vary in
human languages.
Language universals focus on what is common. For example, subject/verb/object.
Implicational universals which refer to the properties of language such as “all languages
have vowels” without looking at any other properties.
Several Characteristics of the theory-driven approach include the following:
Language is acquired through innateness. Certain principles of the human mind are
biologically determined.
There are sets of principles and conditions where knowledge of language develops.
Universal grammar is seen as part of the brain.

Theories of Second Language Theory
Acquisition (Continued)
Behaviorist Theory dominated both psychology and linguistics in the
1950’s. This theory suggests that external stimuli (extrinsic) can elicit
an internal response which in turn can elicit an internal stimuli
(intrinsic) that lead to external responses.
The learning process has been described by S-R-R theorists as a process

forming stimulus-response-reward chains. These chains come about because
of the nature of the environment and the nature of the learner.
The environment provides the stimuli and the learner provides the responses.
Comprehension or production of certain aspects of language and the
environment provide the reward.
The environment plays a major role in the exercise of the learners’ abilities
since it provides the stimuli that can shape responses selectively rewarding
some responses and not others.
Behaviorist Theory Theory
(Continued)
When the learner learns a language, this learning includes a set of stimulus-
response-reward (S-R-R) chains.
Imitation provides the learner with a repertoire of appropriate, productive

responses. The learner learns to imitate or approximate the productive responses
provided by the environment.
The characteristics of human and non-human learners include the ability to:
1. respond to stimuli in a certain way;
1. intuitively evaluate the reward potential of responses;
2. extract the important parameters that made up the stimulus response

(positive reward chains); and
3. generalize these parameters to similar situations to form classes of

S-R-R chains.
Theories of Second Language
Theory
Nativist Theory views language acquisition as innately determined. Theorists

believe that human beings are born with a built-in device of some kind that
predisposes them to acquire language.
This predisposition is a systematic perception of language around us, resulting

in the construction of an internalized system of language.
Nativists are on the opposite end of the theoretical continuum and use more of a
rationalist approach in explaining the mystery of language acquisition.
Chomsky (1965) claimed the existence of innate properties of language that

explain a child’s mastery of his/her native language in a short time despite the
highly abstract nature of the rules of language.
This innate knowledge, according to Chomsky, is embodied in a “little black

box” of sorts called a Language Acquisition Device (LAD).
Nativist Theory Theory
(Continued)
McNeill (1966) described the LAD as consisting of four innate linguistic
properties:
1. the ability to distinguish speech sounds from other sounds in the environment;
1. the ability to organize linguistic events into various classes that can be refined later;
1. knowledge that only a certain kind of linguistic system is possible and that other kinds
are not; and
1. the ability to engage in constant evaluation of the developing linguistic system in order
to construct the simplest possible system out of the linguistic data that are encountered.
Nativists have contributed to the discoveries of how the system of child

language works. Theorists such as Chomsky, McNeill, and others helped
us understand that a child’s language, at any given point, is a legitimate
system in its own right.
Cognitivist Theory views human beings as having the innate capacity to
develop logical thinking. This school of thought was influenced by Jean Piaget’s
work where he suggests that logical thinking is the underlying factor for both
linguistic and non-linguistic development.
The process of association has been used to describe the means by which the
child learns to relate what is said to particular objects or events in the
environment. The bridge by which certain associations are made is meaning.
The extent and accuracy of the associations made are said to change in time as
the child matures.
Cognitivists say that the conditions for learning language are the same
conditions that are necessary for any kind of learning. The environment provides
the material that the child can work on.
Cognitivists view the role of feedback in the learning process as important for
affective reasons, but non-influential in terms of modifying or altering the
sequence of development.
Cognitivist Theory Theory
(Continued)
Language Learning as a Cognitive Process
1. Learning a language involves internal representations that regulate and guide performance.
2. Automatic processing activates certain nodes in memory when appropriate input is present.
Activation is a learned response.
3. Memory is a large collection of nodes.
4. Controlled processing is not a learned response. It is a temporary activation of nodes in a

sequence.
5. Skills are learned and routinized only after the earlier use of controlled processes have
been used.
6. Learner strategies contain both declarative knowledge i.e. knowing the ‘what’ of the
language-internalized rules and memorized chunks of language, and procedural knowledge
i.e. know the ‘how’ of the language system to employ strategies.
Social Interactionist Theory supports the view that the

development of language comes from the early interactions
between infants and caregivers.
Social interactionists stress:
 the importance of a child’s interactions with parents and other caregivers;
 the importance of “motherese”;
 contributions of context and world knowledge; and
 the importance of goals
Glew (1998) claims that learners have to be pushed in their negotiation of

meaning to produce comprehensible output. The classroom context needs to
provide adequate opportunities for target language use to allow learners to
develop competence in the target language.
Social Interactionist Theory Theory
(Continued)
Comprehensible output provides opportunities for
contextualized, meaningful use of language.
Social interactionists believe that:

Human language emerged from the social role that language plays
in human interaction;
The environment plays a key role in language development;
Adults in the child’s linguistic environment are viewed as

instrumental in language acquisition.
Social interactions are the key element in language processing and

input from social interactions provides a model for negotiation
opportunities.

Unit 1 SLA Theories-Strategies

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Unit 1 SLA Theories-Strategies

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Unit 1 SLA Theories-Strategies

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Second Language Acquisition

In second language learning, language plays an

In foreign language learning, language plays no major

The distinction between second and foreign language learning

It is the study of:

how learners create a new language system with limited exposure to a

why some learners appear to achieve native-like proficiency in more than

Learners differ with regard to variables relating to cognitive,

Fixed factors such as age and language learning aptitude are

Cognitive style refers to the way people perceive, conceptualize,

Learner strategies are defined as deliberate behaviors or

Cognitive strategies relate new concepts to prior knowledge.

Metacognitive strategies are those which help with organizing a

Social strategies include looking for opportunities to converse

Chesterfield & Chesterfield (1985) identified a natural order of

Language universals focus on what is common. For example, subject/verb/object.

Several Characteristics of the theory-driven approach include the following:

Universal grammar is seen as part of the brain.

The learning process has been described by S-R-R theorists as a process

Imitation provides the learner with a repertoire of appropriate, productive

1. respond to stimuli in a certain way;

1. intuitively evaluate the reward potential of responses;

2. extract the important parameters that made up the stimulus response

3. generalize these parameters to similar situations to form classes of

Nativist Theory views language acquisition as innately determined. Theorists

This predisposition is a systematic perception of language around us, resulting

Chomsky (1965) claimed the existence of innate properties of language that

This innate knowledge, according to Chomsky, is embodied in a “little black

Nativists have contributed to the discoveries of how the system of child

Language Learning as a Cognitive Process

3. Memory is a large collection of nodes.

4. Controlled processing is not a learned response. It is a temporary activation of nodes in a

Social Interactionist Theory supports the view that the

Glew (1998) claims that learners have to be pushed in their negotiation of

Social interactionists believe that:

The environment plays a key role in language development;

Adults in the child’s linguistic environment are viewed as

Social interactions are the key element in language processing and

You might also like