Quiz 1: Classic Theories and Approaches in Language Acquisition

Read about behaviorism and answer the questions.

'Learning a language means developing correct habits through imitation, repetition, and correction.'

According to this view of language learning, a learner begins with no knowledge of the language at all. However, the learner is stimulated by sensations (such as hunger) and emotions (such as the need to communicate) and so tries to produce language by imitating others. If the language is correct, the learner will receive positive feedback, e.g. he or she will be understood and get a positive reaction. This means the learner will be more likely to use the correct form in future. If, on the other hand, the language is incorrect, the learner will receive negative feedback, e.g. puzzlement or correction, and he or she will be less likely to make the same mistake again.

Over time, this cycle of stimulus, response, and positive or negative feedback creates a set of unconscious linguistic habits in the mind of the learner: correct grammar, correct vocabulary, correct pronunciation, and so on. Imitation, repetition, and correction are therefore essential elements of learning. Here's a well-known example from Leonard Bloomfield's classic book Language, first published in 1933:

^{'The child's speech is perfected by its results. If he says da, "da" well enough, his elders understand him; that is, they give him his doll. When this happens, the sight and feel of the doll act as an additional stimulus and the child repeats and practices his successful version of the word. On the other hand, if he says his da, da imperfectly, – that is, at great variance from the adult's conventional form doll, – then his elders are not stimulated to give him the doll. […] In short, his more successful attempts at speech are likely to be fortified by repetition, and his failures to be wiped out in confusion. This process never stops. At a much later stage, if he says Daddy bringed it, he merely gets a disappointing answer such as No! You must say "Daddy brought it"; but if he says Daddy brought it, he is likely to hear the form over again: Yes, Daddy brought it, and to get a favorable practical response.'}

_{Bloomfield, L. (1933, 1976), Language (Thirteenth impression). George Allen and Unwin.}

According to behaviorism, the language learner is motivated to speak by ___.

With the same passage about behaviorism, the learner produces language by _____.

According to behaviorists, the learner learns and repeats correct language by receiving ______.

Read about innatism and answer the questions.

'Learning a language happens naturally when learners are exposed to lots of language.'

According to this view, learners will naturally acquire language from the things they hear (or read) – what's called input – as long as this input is at least partially comprehensible. Human beings are born with an innate ability to pick up the sounds and words of language, and to work out the grammar for themselves. The process of working out the grammar is made easier by the fact that all human languages share some 'deep' grammar rules (universal grammar) which are present in the mind/brain at birth. Like a bird learning to fly, learning to talk is an unconscious, spontaneous – though not always effortless! – act, which any human will achieve under normal conditions.

Language instruction is therefore not necessary and correction makes little difference. Mistakes are a normal part of the language learning process and will eventually disappear on their own. Educationalist Stephen Krashen writes:

^{'Evidence from child language acquisition confirms that error correction does not influence acquisition to any great extent. Brown and his colleagues have shown that parents actually correct only a small proportion of the child's language(occasional pronunciation problems, certain verbs, and dirty words!). They conclude from their research that parents attend far more to the truth value of what the child is saying than the form.}

^{For example, […] a sentence such as:}

^{Her curl my hair.}

^{was approved, because the mother was, in fact, curling Eve's hair […].}

^{On the other hand,}

^{Walt Disney comes on on Tuesday.}

^{was corrected, despite its syntactic correctness, since Walt Disney actually came on television on Wednesday.'}

_{Krashen, S. (1987), Principles and Practice in Second Language Acquisition. Prentice Hall.}

According to innatism, language learning is _______.

Innatist would tell you that grammar rules ___.

In innatism, language teaching and correction _____.

Read about interactionism and answer the questions.

'Learning a language happens naturally when learners interact with other language users.'

According to this view, the key to language learning is interaction with others. During interaction, language is naturally simplified so that learners can understand and acquire it. This kind of 'simplified for the learner' language is called modified input (= child-directed language or foreigner talk). All language learners have access to modified input, e.g. children from parents and family members, adults from teachers, and fellow learners. Some characteristic features of modified input include:

^{*reduced speed, longer pauses}

^{*higher pitch and volume}

^{*wider intonation range}

^{*more careful articulation}

^{*more stress on keywords}

^{*simpler structures}

^{*fewer contractions}

^{*fewer pronouns and more full nouns}

^{*lots of repetition and paraphrase}

^{*lots of clarification and checking.}

Muriel Saville-Troike provides this example of modified input:

^{'While utterances by native speakers to language learners are usually grammatical, simplified input may omit some obligatory elements. For example, JoAnne Kleifgen […] recorded the following utterances by a native English-speaking teacher to L2 children who were engaged in an art activity:}

^{a. _____ Mommy look at your work? (deletes does)}

^{b. _____ You have Indians in Korea? (deletes do)}

^{c. Would you give us _____ pencil? (deletes a)}

^{d. See, Siti's made _____ mouth real scary. (deletes the)}

^{e. Baby sitter take_ care of baby. (deletes -s)}

^{Although this teacher's modification of input to L2 learners was for the most part unconscious, she adroitly adjusted her language to individuals' level of proficiency. This includes not only the grammatical deletions that these examples illustrate, but also shorter sentences and less varied vocabulary addressed to the least proficient children. This selective modification can be considered part of her own "communicative competence," acquired as a result of many years' experience in teaching young English learners.'}

_{Saville-Troike, M. (2012). Introducing Second Language Acquisition (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.}

According to interactionism, people learn language by ____.

Interactionist suggests that low-level learners communicate with __.

In interactionism, 'modified input' means ___.

Read about cognitivism and answer the questions.

'Learning a language is the same as learning any other complex skill: it needs effort and practice.'

According to this view, people learn languages in the same way that they learn other complex skills. Any complex skill consists of a number of simpler skills, and we need to learn the simpler skills before we can master the whole. Language is made up of many different skills components; learning a language means learning how to perform these skills automatically.

When we learn a new skill, this initially demands a considerable amount of mental attention or controlled processing. Simple exposure to language (input) is not enough: in order for processing to happen, we need to pay conscious attention to the features of the language we're interested in learning (so that input becomes intake). The amount of controlled processing we can do is quite limited, so we can only practice a limited number of skills at any onetime. For example, a beginning language learner needs to concentrate hard simply to understand basic vocabulary or produce basic grammatical structures.

With lots of practice, controlled processing becomes automatic processing. In other words, the skills become automatic and require less effort, so we can then start working on other, more complex skills. For example, a learner who has mastered basic grammar and vocabulary can then start to think about organizational aspects of writing such as information flow and logical paragraphing.

Muriel Saville-Troike gives some further examples of this kind of learning:

^{'Writers cannot usually compose"online" effectively until lower-level word-processing skills such as typing, saving documents, and changing fonts have become automatized. Further examples can readily be drawn from learning other complex nonverbal skills, such as driving or skiing, where tasks that initially require attentional control become automatized with practice; they then generally remain out of conscious awareness unless some unusual occurrence returns them to controlled processing. Behaviors under attentional control are permeable, i.e. they are changeable; but once automatized, they are both more efficient and more difficult to change.'}

_{Saville-Troike, M. (2012). Introducing Second Language Acquisition (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.}

In cognitivism, language learning ____. 

According to cognivists, learners need to start learning ___.

Input (exposure to language) can be turned into intake (processed input) by ____.

Cognitivist will tell you that low-level learners should focus on ___. 

A. Approach to correction

^{Now let's look at what the four theories of language learning have to say about some of the things that we do regularly in the classroom.}

^{CORRECTION: It's important to correct any mistakes that our learners make straight away.}

(A.1) This statement expresses a strongly ___  view: 

uncorrected errors are at risk of becoming habits and so must be stamped out straight away (negative feedback).

A. Approach to correction (cont.)

^{Now let's look at what the four theories of language learning have to say about some of the things that we do regularly in the classroom.}

^{CORRECTION: It's important to correct any mistakes that our learners make straight away.}

(A.2) At the opposite end of the spectrum, an extreme ___ view would be that explicit correction has no real effect on language development and is, therefore, a waste of time, if not actually damaging.