LANGUAGE ACQUISITION IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPRESSIVE AND FASCINATING ASPECTS OF HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

Lightbown, P.M. and Spada, N. 2011. How Languages are Learned. Oxford University Press.

Popular Opinions About Language Learning and Teaching

• Hold up 5 fingers if you strongly agree

Popular Opinions About Language Learning

• Languages are learned mainly through imitation.• Parents usually correct young children when they make

grammatical errors.• Highly intelligent people are good language learners.• The most important predictor of success in second

language acquisition is motivation.

• The earlier a second language is introduced in school programs, the greater the likelihood of success in learning.

• Most of the mistakes that second language learners make are due to interference from their first language.

• The best way to learn new vocabulary is through reading.• It is essential for learners to be able to pronounce all the

individual sounds in the second language.

Popular Opinions About Language Learning

Popular Opinions About Language Learning

• Teachers should present grammatical rules one at a time, and learners should practice examples of each one before going on to another example.

• Teachers should teach simple language structures before complex ones.

• Learners’ errors should be corrected as soon as they are made in order to prevent the formation of bad habits.

• Teachers should use materials that expose students to only those language structures they have already been taught.

• When learners are allowed to interact freely (in group or pair activities), they copy each other’s mistakes.

Popular Opinions About Language Learning

• Students learn what they are taught.• Teachers should respond to students’ errors by correctly

rephrasing what they have said rather than by explicitly pointing out the error.

• Students can learn both language and academic content simultaneously in classes where the subject matter is taught in their second language.

WHAT DO WE NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE STUDENTS WE TEACH?

Second Language Acquisition Theory (SLA)Learner DifferencesPrinciples of Child DevelopmentCharacteristics of Children at Different Stages of Development

Second Language Acquisition

• If we understand what makes learners learn faster and progress further, then maybe we can be better teachers or learners – teachers must have a thorough understanding of how learners learn. Understanding the route learners follow, and having clear expectations of what learners can achieve at given points on the developmental continuum, is crucially important for learners and teachers.

http://www.llas.ac.uk/resources/gpg/421

Second Language Acquisition

• Stephen Krashen• Acquiring vs. Learning Languages• Comprehensible Input (i + 1)

• James Asher• Total Physical Response (TPR)• Listen and perform actions

• Merrill Swain (1985): Output• “Pushed” output• Error correction

Implications of Second Language Acquisition for Teachers

• For acquisition to occur, learners need rich natural input and interaction (Universal Grammar, Krashen, Communicative Language Teaching).

• Learning also involves the strengthening of associations and the automatisation of routines ( a more behaviorist view of learning). Thus learners are seen as central to the acquisition process, in the sense that they have to practice until patterns are well established. The role of input, interaction and feedback, and how they can speed up development, is seen as much more crucial, as is the role of practice in the development of fluency and control of the L2 system.

  

SLA Research and Good Practice• Learning is a highly complex process influenced by a

myriad of factors• Time and intensity of instruction• Low-anxiety learning environments• Rich, culturally-appropriate target language environment supplemented

with realia, props, visuals• Multi-sensory, emotionally-charged experiences• Repetition of content but in novel tasks and situations• Quality and intentionality of instruction • Opportunities to use the language, to engage with the language, and to

construct personal meaning

Historical View of Second Language Teaching and Learning

• Grammar Translation – • Originated in teaching classical languages• Objective was to give learners tools to read texts – vocabulary, grammar,

translation techniques

• Audio-lingual (ALM) – • Based on behaviorism and contrastive analysis• Emphasized oral listening and repetition• Few opportunities for authentic language use

• Communicative Approaches –• Exclusive focus on meaning• Little to no error correction

Brain Research

Study the following number. You have 20 seconds…

17766024365911

Brain Research

Write the number from memory…

You’ve got 20 seconds.

Brain Research

How did you do?

17766024365911What helped you remember the number?

Brain Research

How did you do?

What helped you remember the number?

Brain Research

American Revolution/Declaration of Independence

Minutes/hours/days

Emergencies

Memory and Retention of Learning

During a learning episode, we remember best that which comes first,

second best that which come last, and least that which come just past the middle.

Based on How the Brain Learns(2nd ed.) by David A. Sousa

Influence of Brain Research on SLA

• Patterns/Meaningfulness• We know that the brain searches for patterns as it organizes

information creating schema• Thus, learners need complex, meaningful experiences from which

they construct their own patterns of understanding

• Memorability/Emotional Impact• Emotions drive attention and create memory pathways in the brain• Attention influences memory and learning • Emotions also refer to classroom climate; the more supportive,

friendly, and collaborative, the greater the chance that learners will retain content and be able to use it in new situations

Social Dimension of Learning

“The opportunity to interact in the second language is central to developing second language proficiency.”

Ellis (2008)

Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences

• Visual (spatial):You prefer using pictures, images, and spatial understanding.

• Aural (auditory-musical): You prefer using sound and music. • Verbal (linguistic): You prefer using words, both in speech

and writing. • Physical (kinesthetic): You prefer using your body, hands

and sense of touch. • Logical (mathematical): You prefer using logic, reasoning

and systems. • Social (interpersonal): You prefer to learn in groups or with

other people. • Solitary (intrapersonal): You prefer to work alone and use

self-study.

Thematic Teaching

Thematic Units, what they are…• Units of study organized around

a theme• Content-based or content-related• Guided by national and state

standards• Opportunities for students to

develop interpretive, interpersonal, and presentational communication skills

• Rooted in cultural comparisons and contrasts

Thematic Units, what they are not…

• Vocabulary topics• A list of grammar points• A content-based unit devoid of

cultural content• The scope and sequence of a

textbook• Metalanguage

Stages of Cognitive Development PiagetStage Characterized by 

Sensori-motor  (Birth-2 yrs) 

Differentiates self from objects  Begins to act intentionally: e.g. pulls a string to set mobile in motion or shakes a rattle to make a noise  Achieves object permanence: realizes that things continue to exist even when no longer present to the sense

Pre-operational  (2-7 years) 

Learns to use language and to represent objects by images and words  Thinking is still egocentric: has difficulty taking the viewpoint of others 

Classifies objects by a single feature: e.g. groups together all the red blocks regardless of shape or all the square blocks regardless color 

Concrete operational  (7-11 years) 

Can think logically about objects and events  Achieves conservation of number (age 6), mass (age 7), and weight (age 9) 

Classifies objects according to several features and can order them in series along a single dimension such as size. 

Formal operational  (11 years and up) 

Can think logically about abstract propositions and test hypotheses systematically 

Becomes concerned with the hypothetical, the future, and ideological problems 

Egan’s Layers of Educational Development

Layer Characterized by The Mythic Layer(4 to 9 years)

EMOTIONAL CATEGORIES vs. Rational and logical categories.“The story form is the most powerful vehicle for instruction; in fact, young children require it. It incorporates the categories and processes used by the child in understanding and interpreting the world.”

The Romantic Layer(8/9 to 14/15 years)

Development of concept of “outside world.”Learn best when new info embodies qualities that transcend challenges posed byreal world. (courage, nobility, genius, energy, etc.)World is perceived as potentially threatening and alien.“What are the limits of the real and the possible?”

The Philosophic Layer  (14/15 to 19/20 years) 

Begin to understand that the world is a UNIT, of which they are a part.Focus: General laws by which the world works.Students are over-confident and know the meaning of EVERYTHING!Ability to generalize and organize information.

The Ironic Layer(19/20 through Adulthood) 

Learner recognizes that the general schemes of philosophic layer are not inthemselves true, but are necessary for imposing meaning on particulars. Ifscheme doesn’t serve adequately, it is discarded and another is used.

Journal Reflection• Based on the readings completed and the class

discussion…

• What key components define an effective lesson?

• Which specific strategies/techniques should be evidenced?

The Solar System• Using the TEFL Framework, find evidence of effective

world languages teaching in the video clip of Ms. Appel’s lesson.

• Share evidence with a small group (4) classmates.

• What advice would you give the teacher to enhance learning among these children?