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8/8/2019 WK 3 Monitor
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/wk-3-monitor 1/20
Research, Theory and the
Monitor Model
3002LAL
WEEK 3
8/8/2019 WK 3 Monitor
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What is research?
A systematic approach to finding answers to questions
Research includes:
Research questions or hypotheses
Data
Interpretation
Research is CREATIVE
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The roles & outcomes of research
Exploration and description ± Perceiving important aspects of a situation missed by
others
± Organising & labelling important phenomena
Explanation ± Recognising a relationship between & among variables
± Helps us make predictions
Validation ± Testing the explanation to make sure it works
Exploration Description Explanation Validation
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K inds of research (in general)
Quantitative ± Tests a hypothesis
± Uses measures & statistics
± Tightly designed & controlled
± Independent & dependent variables ± Demonstrates a relationship between variables
± Deductive logic to predict results from a proposedexplanation
Qualitative ± Shaped by research questions NOT research
hypotheses
± Verbal descriptions
± Unstructured interviews
± Inductive logic to find an explanation
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K inds of research II
Experimental (quantitative)
Ethnographic (qualitative)
Evaluation
± Determining the effectiveness of something
Case study Action research
± Research with a view to change
Cross-sectional
± At a point in time
Longitudinal ± Over a period of time
Historical
± Hitler¶s diaries
Model building
± Economists
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What is theory & why is it important?
An explanation of behaviour that makes good logical
sense and that is consistent with research findings
When we consider the huge number of things thatcould be researched, theories help us find the
significant variables
They suggest research directions and help locate
points where more research is needed to strengthenthe arguments
Good research problems are strengthened when they
relate to theory
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R esearch in Second Language Acquisition
Eclectic: SLA uses a variety of quantitative and
qualitative methods & techniques including«
Introspection ± Ls examine their own behaviour (self-report data)
± Successful in research on Learning Strategies
Participant // Non-participant observation ± Researchers take part // Researchers do not take part
± No initial hypotheses
± Descriptive (e.g. diary entries)
± Long term observation
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SLA research methods & techniques II
Focused description
± Of course, descriptive
± Narrow scope with focus on specific variables (e.g.
morphology, or learner motivation)
± Interaction analysis classification schemes
± Dulay & Burt¶s study of morpheme acquisition
Experimental
± A true experiment tries to establish a causal relationship ± Requires experimental and control groups
± Requires random selection (cf quasi-experimental)
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R esearch settings
The classroom setting
± Can instruction alter natural language processing?
± Textbook & teacher-induced errors (³However´)
± Students forced to produce structures before they are ready
± Feedback on errors
Naturalistic settings
± Different input
± Focus on communication of meaning
± No formal articulation of rules
± Only very occasional feedback on errors
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Instrumentation: Production data
elicitation
Reading aloud
Structured exercises
Completion task
Elicited imitation/translation Guided composition
Question & Answer
Reconstruction
Communication games Role play
Oral interview
Free composition
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Instrumentation: Intuitional data
elicitation Error recognition and correction
Grammaticality judgements
Other judgement tasks
± E.g. judging sentences in terms of their social acceptability
Card sorting
± E.g. Most polite to least polite
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The problem of defining
³language proficiency´
Dividing language proficiency into:
± The four skills
± The language components (vocabulary, phonology,
grammar)
Problem
± Language learning is unitary & indivisible
Communicative competences ± Grammatical competence
± Sociolinguistic competence
± Discourse competence
± Strategic competence
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K rashen¶s Monitor Model
A general theory of language learning
Based on a set of five basic hypotheses:
± The Acquisition-Learning Hypothesis
± The Monitor Hypothesis
± The Natural Order Hypothesis
± The Input Hypothesis
± The Affective Filter Hypothesis
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The Acquisition-Learning Hypothesis
Highly influential in SLA research and in language
teaching; still the subject of much debate today
Premise is that acquisition & learning are separate
processes
Acquisition: the µsubconscious process identical in
all important ways to the process children utilise in
acquiring their first language.¶ (Krashen 1985, p. 1)
Learning: the µconscious process that results in
³knowing about´ language¶.
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The Monitor Hypothesis
Learning & Acquisition are used in very specificways in second language performance
The Monitor Hypothesis states that conscious
µlearning has only one function, and that is as theMonitor or editor¶
Learning comes into play only to µmake changes inthe form of our utterance, after it has been³produced´ by the acquired system¶
Acquisition µinitiates¶ the speaker¶s utterances and isresponsible for fluency. (McLaughlin, 1987)
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The Natural Order Hypothesis
The acquisition of grammatical structures proceeds
in a predictable order.
µWe acquire the rules of language in a predictable
order, some rules tending to come early and others
late. The order does not appear to be determined
solely by formal simplicity and there is evidence that
it is independent of the order in which rules are
taught in language classes.¶
(Krashen 1985, p. 1)
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The Input Hypothesis
Linked to the Natural Order Hypothesis
L2 learners move along the developmental
continuum by receiving comprehensible input
Defined as L2 input just beyond the learner¶s current
L2 competence, in terms of its syntactic complexity.
This hypothesis is central to Krashen¶s model of SLA.
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The Affective Filter Hypothesis
Determines how receptive to comprehensible input
the learner is going to be.
The learners¶ emotional state or attitudes as an
adjustable filter that freely passes, impedes or blocks input necessary to acquisition
Three main kinds of affective or attitudinal variable
related to SLA
± Motivation
± Self-confidence
± Anxiety
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The Natural Approach
Derived from:
Tracy Terrell¶s experiences teaching Spanish
Stephen Krashen¶s theory of language learning
The Natural Approach: Language Acquisition in the
Classroom (Krashen & Terrell, 1983)
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K ey features of the Natural Approach
The primary function of language as communication
Central role of comprehension and meaning
No use of L1
Emphasis on:
Comprehensible input rather than practice
Meaningful communication rather than form
Listening & reading; speaking allowed to ³emerge´ Optimising emotional preparedness for learning
Visual aids, written and other materials as a source
of comprehensible input