Six Dimensions of language acquisition by Wolfgang Klein

Propensity: (Inner force):

The learner feels the need, the urge of acquiring a language. Propensity has four components: Social Integration, Communicative Needs, Attitude and Education.

a.- Social Integration: Need of a learner to be integrated to others. Then they can communicate. It has a negative aspect; students stop talking when they think they are losing their culture (that is why we have to be careful to the children’s background).

b. - Communicative Needs: It is related to the context. In other words, it has to do with where or when I’m going to say something.

c. - Attitude: Children learn because language is there to be learned, adults are in will. Attitude can be conscious or unconscious.

d. - Education: This factor is the weakest of all because it depends on the outside and not on the inside of the learner. It may be effective only if it is combined with the other three propensity factors.

2.- Language Faculty

It is a natural capacity of communicate and the functioning of the language processor (in terms of Biological Determinants of Language Processor and the Knowledge Available to the speaker at any one time).

a. - Biological Determinants of Language Processor: This represents only a fraction of our language skills. It deals with process in some parts of the central system (brain) according to perception, memory and higher cognitive functions.

b. - Available Knowledge: It deals with conscious knowledge acquired from books, school, others; and tacit knowledge which is unconscious.

3. - Access (to Language):

The processor previously mentioned cannot work if it is not exposed to raw material. Access covers some components which are: Input and the Range of Opportunities of Communication

1. - Input: It is the social interaction. The information we receive while we are in contact with others

2. - Opportunities of Communication: This range talks about the amount of exposure to language. The acquisition process comes to an end as soon as the learner stop being aware of the differences between his/her speech production and the one of his/her environment.

4.- The Structure of the process:

The text talks about two important aspects: Synchronization among various skills and elements of knowledge that make up a language, and Variations observed across learners and learners categories in the acquisition process.

1. - Synchronization of Elements in a Language: It refers to the acquisition of all linguistically knowledge. If a speaker wants to know a language, he/she must be able to make a proper use of several types of information, such as phonetically knowledge, inflection and so on.

2. - Variability (in learners): The structure and the way of acquisition varies depending on the learners. This variability is caused by many factors which include propensity components, the biological aspects of the learner his/her knowledge, a good input and so on.

5. - Tempo of Acquisition: According to three groups of factors; Heading propensity, language processor and Access.

6. - End State: Dealing with Fossilization and Backsliding.

Principles and practice in second Language Acquisition. Stephen Krashen

The Acquisition - Learning distinction.

There are two independent ways of developing the second language acquisition process.

a) Acquisition: Is the process by which humans acquire the capacity to perceive, produce and use words to understand and communicate.

b) Learning: Is a conscious process; is acquiring new or modifying existing knowledge, behaviors, skills, values, or preferences and may involve synthesizing different types of information.

The Natural Order Hypothesis.

Claims that the acquisition of grammar takes place in a predictable order. This order seemed to be independent of the learners' age, L1 background, conditions of exposure. The child second language order was different from the first language order, but different groups of second language acquires showed striking similarities.

The Monitor Hypothesis.

This hypothesis shows how acquisition and learning are two different processes. The ability to produce utterances in a second language comes from the acquired competence. On the other hand, learning serves only as an editor, or monitor. The learned knowledge helps us to make corrections or change the output of the acquired system.

Krashen has stated three conditions to be met to access the learned system. The three conditions for Monitor are:

1. Time. Second language learners need enough time to think consciously about the rules they learned.
2. Focus on form. Besides time, the learner needs to focus not only on what to say but also how to say it, the form.
3. Know the rule. Second language learners should know the rules of the language in order to use them.

Krashen has divided second language learners when using the Monitor process into three types due to their individual differences. These three types are:
a) Monitor overusers.
b) Monitor underusers.
c) Optimal users.

The Input Hypothesis.
Krashen's attempt to explain how the learner acquires a second language. So, the Input hypothesis is only concerned with 'acquisition', not 'learning'.
Conditions:
The acquire must understand input that contains i+1. The teacher must provide comprehensible input.
According to our traditional assumption we first learn structures, but the input hypothesis claims the opposite, we acquire by "going for meaning" first, and as a result we acquire strucute.
According to this hypothesis is simply to provide comprensible input.

Input, interaction and second language acquisition by Rod Ellis

Input, interaction and second language acquisition by Rod Ellis

Answer the following questions:

1. How exactly does acquisition take place?

A) Understanding a second language i+1 for (i.e. linking it to a meaning).

B) Noticing a gap between the second languages i+1 form and the interlanguage rule which the learner currently controls.

C) The reappearance of thei+1 form with minimal frequency.

2. Which conversational tactics are used in a Native Speaker – Non Native speaker talks?

The Native speaker – Non Native speaker were much more likely to make use of conversational tactics such as repetitions, confirmation checks, comprehension checks or clarification request.

3. Why is output important in second language acquisition?

Because producing output the students will improve their input, and it is necessary to produce it to know if they are learning or not, which are their mistakes, weaknesses and so on.

4. Why is the reflective role of output important?

Because it provides them with opportunities to reflect on, discuss and analyse these problems explicitly.

Match the teacher’s behavior with the proper correction techniques

A: Ignore the mistake.

B: Use finger correction.

C: Draw a time line on the board.

1. - You are working with a class of ten-year-old who are doing a fluency activity. One of the learners is talking to the class about her pet. She says: ‘My rabbit eat lettuce.’ You let her continue talking.

__A__

2. - You are doing a controlled practice activity. One of the learners says: ‘I have been working last week.’ You show her a diagram.

___C___

3. - You are focusing on spoken language and the use of contractions. A learner says: ‘I’m going swimming tomorrow.’ You want to show him where the mistake is. You use your hand.

___B___

Age and acquisition by Brown

Age and acquisition by Brown

Think about an answer for
these questions.

1. What exactly is the relationship between age and language learning?

The way that the person is going to learn, if is young it could be easier, on the contrary of is older it could be more difficult.

2. Do children learn language faster? What do they learn faster?

Because they are not focus of forms and rules, they internalize what they are listening and watching, for that reason is because they learn faster, because they acquire without analyze.

3. Is it impossible for adults to achieve fluency?

If they do not use their monitor all the time and if they practice over and over again, they can achieve fluency.

QUESTIONS

1. In your opinion which 3 of the 7 myths are of importance to dispell? Why? (page 50)

1. The first one because, when we learn a second language is not only by repetition all the time, because we need significant meaning of the concepts that we are learning.

5. Number five, because we can learn how to write a word without listening it before.

7. Number 7 because is important to show some differences of grammatical structures to children, because they might make some mistakes and if we do not explain and try to fix those mistake children will not understand what is wrong.

2. Refer and explain 3 out of the 5 topics from the cognitive psychologist Ausubel. (page 51)

The rote learning practice of audio-lingual drills lacked the meaningfulness necessary for successful first and second language acquisition. That is to say, even if students memories if there is no significant meaning there is not learning.

Adults learning a foreign language could, with their full cognitive capacities, benefit from deductive presentations of grammar; because they analyze and they are aware of forms and rules.

The native language of the learner is not just an interfering factor- it can facilitate learning a second language. Because sometimes students will find similar factors, concepts that they will connect with their first language.

3. Explain the possible comparisons and contrasts between children and adult acquisition. (page 52)

-First and second language acquisition in children (c1-c2) holding age constant. –Second language acquisition in children and adults (c2-a2) holding second language constant. –First language acquisition in children and second language acquisition in adults (c1-a2)

4. Refer to the CPH according to: (page 54) Lenneberg (1967) and Bickerton (1981) “The over the hill possibility”

This is by age of 12 or 13, when it comes to the possibility of successful second language learning.

5. Discuss three points about the hemispheric lateralization. (page 54)

Left hemisphere seems to control intellectual, logical, and analytic functions including language functions, while right hemisphere controls functions related to emotional and social needs.

Some scholars contended the lateralization is completed about at the age of puberty, and some said it’s about five.

Thomas Scovel applied this lateralization concept to the second language acquisition.

6. What do we mean by biological accent-related (page 55)

The development of a socially bonding accent at puberty. According to Scovel; ‘an accent emerging after puberty is the price we pay for our preordained ability to be articulate apes.’

7. What is the role of the right hemisphere in learning a L2? (page 55)

There is significant right hemisphere participation, and it consist of the ‘strategies of acquisition’; of guessing at meanings and of using formulaic utterances.

Second Language Acquisition Chapter 17,By Yule

Second Language Acquisition Chapter 17,By Yule

1. What is the difference between the terms ACQUISITION and LEARNING?

• ACQUISITION: Unconscious process that it naturally develops in communicative situations.

• LEARNING: Conscious process of accumulating knowledge of a Language

2. Why is motivation important for L2 students?

If students feel motivated they will learn easily because the LAD will be activated, and that is one of the most important factors when it comes to learning.

3. Why might foreign talk be beneficial?

Because when students think they can understand what the teacher actually says by modifying her/his own speech they will feel more motivated and this will leads students to learn TL easily.

4. What is communicative competence?

Is the way that we use to produce speech, we find three concepts of this which are:

· Grammatical competence; it is related to the accurate use of words and structures in the L2.

· Sociolinguistic competence: It enables the learner to discriminate the social context.

· Strategic competence: This is the ability to organize a message effectively and to compensate, via strategies, for any difficulties.

5. What is Positive and Negative Transfer?

· Positive transfer: when some concepts from L1 and L2 have similar characteristics, the learner may be able to benefit from the positive transfer of L1 Knowledge. For example; if students use the word doctor, even if he/she does not know that this words is equal in Spanish and English.

· Negative transfer (or interference): L1 and L2 are too different, and it is not effective for L2 communication. For example; if students say this is my carpet, referring to a folder, in Spanish, but the similitude between both languages make students do this negative transfer.

Interlanguage

Interlanguage

1. Explain the five central processes with your own words.

• Language transfer, this process occur in our IL performance. It is refers to speakers or writers applying knowledge from their native language to a second language, can occur in any situation when someone does not have a native-level command of a language.
• Transfer of training, when language teaching creates interlanguage rules that are not of the L2 and which result in the way the learners were taught.
• Strategies of second language learning, e.g. simplification
• Strategies of second language communication, when learner omits grammatically redundant items in an utterance, producing ill-formed sentences.

• Overgeneralization of TL linguistic material, where the learner tries to use TL rules and semantic features in the way there would not be used by a native speaker.

2. Which of these processes can be apply to you in terms of your L2 acquisition?.

Language transfer and Transfer of training

3. Which aspects have you fossilized?.

• Plurals.

• Pronunciation

True of false (justify the false)

a) ___F__ Unsuccessful second language learning refers to the generalization problem; the generalization problem refers to the use of different units of language, and these units are used for all languages the Native Language, Inter-language, Target Language.
b) ___F__ Storage refers to the process of recalling information that is stored in memory; retrieval In psychology, retrieval refers to the process of recalling information that is stored in memory, and storage refers to the process of storing information in the brain, those are mental processes.
c) ____T_ Some conditions that affect in the process of learning a new language are anxiety, shifting attention and second language performance.
d) ___T__ Fossilization can not be reversible.

How language is shaped.

How language is shaped.

Indicate IF TRUTH OR FALSE, provide the correct info.

Chomsky claimed that:

1. We have a predisposition to speak.___T__
2. We have not been genetically programmed with mental structures.____F___; we have been genetically programmed with mental structures.
3. Nouns, adjective and adverb are not used in our universal grammar.___F___ ; nouns, adjectives, adverbs are used in all language but their differences are situated in the grammar structures.
4. We are able to learn an Alien´s language_F__; the Alien's language could have different codes.
5. Skinner believes that a language organ can develop regarding the environment ___T_____

Match the following pictures to the corresponding theory, and therefore author.

¡ PIAGET__C__

¡ CHOMSKY__A__
¡ SKINNER__B__

Innateness Hypothesis

First Language Acquisition. By H. Douglas Brown.

THE DIFFERENT APPROACHES TO ACQUIRE OUR LANGUAGE

There have been different theories about how do we get our first language since we are born and at the same time, different methods, experiments and studies to prove, analyze, support or reject such theories. Some studies with the most similar animal to humans, the chimpanzee, have demonstrated that “humans are unique” as a rational specie with many special features in our brain to help us acquire completely our language to communicate. Although many specialists tried to teach chimpanzees by including them in daily lives and routines with kids in loving families and a lot of care and patience, they couldn’t reach other goal than separate words (no more than 4 in a logical sequence) using many strategies which included immersion, and treatment as a foreign student, and this only strength our statement (we are unique).

In the text wrote by Brown we can discriminate three different approaches about human language acquisition, he tells us about “behaviorist approaches, natives approaches and functional approaches”, and each one has influence in the language acquisition of every human. For example in one hand we can talk about behavior approach, we can find that humans get the majority of the language from the environment surrounding us while we grow up, and it means that in our relation with other people we learn grammatical structures based in our experience and not in our studies.

On the other hand the term nativist is derived from the fundamental assertion that language acquisition is innately determined, that we are born with a genetic capacity that predisposes us to a systematic perception of language around us.
Chomsky claimed the existence of innate properties of language to explain the child’s mastery of a native language. This innate knowledge is embodied in a language acquisition device (LAD). McNeill described LAD as consisting of four innate linguistic properties.
1. The ability to distinguish speech sounds from other sounds in the environment.
2. The ability to organize linguistic data into various classes that can later be refined.
3. Knowledge that only a certain kind of linguistic system is possible and that other kinds are not.
4. The ability to engage in constant evaluation of the developing linguistic system so as to construct the simplest possible system out of the available linguistic input.


Finally if we talk about functional approaches we see that Brown says that besides the behavior approaches like environment language acquisition and the nativity system of comprehension is necessary to understand the relation of them with the functions of language, and to understand it we have to see deeper in our mind functions, those are independently organized and include functions like perception and memory, this functions complement a superstructure that rules our linguistic abilities and give us the performance to communicate any idea in that specific language, it means that the learning of any language must be based in the functional cognitive capacities and in the linguistic experiences and not in the complex structures of languages.

I agree with the author in the last approach (Functional Approach) because it includes the idea of an environment influencing in language acquisition and accepts the idea of a native internal system of language comprehension so we can understand that this two approaches are not only necessary, but integrating these theories and the functional approach we can complement the best way of a first language acquisition.

First Language Acquisition. By G. Yule.

1.Which are two important features of the caretaker speech?

The characteristically simplified speech adopted by someone who spends a lot of time interacting with a young child.

This person uses a lot of questions and often using exaggerated intonation.

2.What is the term used to describe the process where a child uses one word like “Ball” to refer to an apple, an egg and a ball?

Overextension: this process is when the child overextends the meaning of something which has similar characteristics, such as; shape, size, sound, and so on.

3.Why saying that children learn because they imitate is controversial?

Because they dot no only learn by imitating speech patterns but by constructing their own sentences and testing them whether they work or not.

4.Do children change behaviour when they are corrected?

No, they do not change behaviour indeed when they are corrected. They continue saying the same words.

5.What is the role of feedback in children learning?

The feedback process appears when the child is talking, and use it his knowledge. The practice seems to be an important factor in the development of the child's linguistic repertoire.

Language, Learning, And Teaching. By H. Douglas Brown.

1.- What is a permanent struggle in teaching/learning? A permantent struggle is the management of the second language indentity that we create when we learn a second language, beyond the confines of our first language. 2.- Are we equipped with a do-it-yourself-kit? Language learning is not a set of easy steps that can be programmed in a quik do-it-yourself-kit. Many variables are involved in the acquisition process. 3.- Why do people learn or fail to learn a language? Because it's necessary that the teacher needs to know something about the intricate web of variables that are spun together to affect how and why one learners fails when they learn a second language. 4.- Name the issues to consider in second language acquisition. The current issues in second language acquisition (SLA) may be initially approached as a multitude of questions that are being asked abour this complex process. Those of the questions are: Who? -> These question focus attention on some of the crucial variables affecting both learners' successes in acquiring a foreing language and teachers' capacities to enable learners to achieve that aquisition. What? -> These profound questions are of course central to the discipline of linguistics. How? -> Refers to where the learning take place, what is the optimal interrelationship of cognitive, affective, and physical domains for successful language learning. When -> One of the key issues in second language research and teaching is the differential success of children and adults in learning a second language. Where? -> Refers in whitch "foreign" language context the second language is heard and spoken Why? -> These question have been posed to give you an inkling of the diversity of issues involved in the quest for understanding the principles of language learning and teaching. 5.- What are the motivations to learn a language? This question have been posed, in very global terms, to give us an inkling of the diversity of issues involved in the quest for understanding the principles of language learning and teaching. 6.- What is a PARADIGMA? Paradigma it's an interlocking design, a theory of second language acquisition. 7.- Give 3 definitions of LANGUAGE. "Language is a complex, specialized skill, which develops in the child spontaneously, without conscious effort or formal instruction, is deployed without awareness of its underlying logic, is qualitatively the same in every individual, and is distinct from more general abilities to process information or behave intelligently". ( Pinker). "Language is a system of arbitrary conventionalized vocal, written, or gestural symbols that enable members of a given community to communicate intelligibly with one anothe" (Introductory texbooks) "Systematic communication by vocal symbols" ( Concise Columbia Encyclopedia). 8.- What is the relation between language and cognition? A foreing language teacher effectively teach a language if they don't know, even in general, something about the relationship between language and cognition. 9.- Which are some LEARNING definitions? "Learning is a relatively permanent change in a behavioral tendency and is the result of reinforced practice" (Kimble & Garmezy) "Acquiring or getting of knowledge of a subject or a skill by study, experience, or instruction". 10.- Can we define TEACHING apart from LEARNING? Teaching cannot be defined apart from learning. Teaching is guiding and facilitating learning, enabling the learner to lear, setting the conditions for learning . 11.- What is the importance of our PEDAGOGICAL PHILOSOPHY? Our understanding of how the learner, learns will determine our philosophy of education, our teaching style, our approach, methods and classroom techniques. 12.- Refer to the 3 schools of thought is SLA? a) Structuralism/Behaviorism During the 40' and the 50' the structural, or descriptive, school of linguistics prided itself in a rigorous application of the scientific principle of observation of human languages. The linguistic's task, according to the structuralist, was to describe human languages and to identify the structural characteristics of those languages. Among psychologists, a behavioristic paradigm also focused on publicity observable responses, those that can be objectively perceived. b) Rationalism and Cognitive Psychology This school of linguistics emerged through the influence of Noam Chomsky; he was trying to show that human language cannot be scrutinized simply in terms of observable stimuli and responses on the volumes of raw data gathered by field linguists. Cognitive phsychologists sought to discover underlying motivations and deep structures of human behavior by using a rational approach. c) Constructivism Constructivism argue that all human beings construct their own version of reality, and therefore multiple constrasting ways of knowing and describing are equally legitimate. 13.- Describe the GTM. The grammar translation method of foreign language teaching is one of the miost traditional methods in the classroom. It was originally used to teach "dead" languages (and literatures) such as latin and Greek, involving little or no spoken communication or listening comprehension. This method it focuses on learning the rules of grammar and their application in translation passages from one language into the other. The vocabulary in the target language is learned through direct translation from the native language, it is taught in the form of isolated word list. e.g. with vocabulary test such as: the house = la casa the mouse = el ratón

What You Know When You Know A Language

What You Know When You Know a Language

The Study of Language

Language is systematic and complex at the same time, the language can be used to express an infinite number of ideas. Language also changes over time, whether speakers desire change or not. Another characteristic is that language varies according to locations, commonly referred to as dialects. Lastly, although there exist some differences regarding vocabulary and pronounciation in the same language known as dialects, there are also some features that all languages share.

The Speech Communication Chain

We humans use language to communicate an idea from our mind to the mind of someone else. In order to act either as a source and transmitter or as a receiver and destination, you must have several information stored as part of your linguistic competence; that is you must know a lot about you language.

What You Know When You Know a Language

One of the basic features that you know when you know a language is that you can immediately recognise when someone is speaking in your own language, because you are able to recognise your language speech sounds and the ones that are not.

Another feature is that you know how to produce those speech sounds without having to think twice about them (Phonetics). You also know how those sounds work together as a system, so the knowledge about the distribution of speech sounds is part of your knoledge of Phonology.

You can also know how to break individual words down into smaller parts that have a particular meaning or function, and how to create new words by combining there smaller parts. You also know which combinations are words and which are not (Morphology).

You also know a great deal about your language´s Syntax; how words combine in order to form phrases and sentences well formed. Another part of your linguistic compentence has to do with the ability to interpret meanings of phrases and sentences, Semantics. And lastly Pragmatics has to do with the ability to determine the meaning according to the context, depending on the situation sometimes we can find ourselves involved.

What You Know When You Know A Language?

What Is Applied Lingusitics?

1.- How is language defined?

Language is a tool considered vitally important by society, in order to communicate and interact with people in everyday’s life.

2.- What is applied Linguistics?

The AL deals with how people use the language depending on the context.

3.- Which is defferent in L1 and L2 acquisition?

The main difference between L1 and L2, is that you can get L1 by only the acquiring process whilst L2 can be acquired or learnt.

4.- What are the diference between Acquisition and Learning?

The acquisition process is unconscious and it exits exposure, the learning process is a conscious process it does not usually exist exposure

5.- Which factors are part of L2 learning?

Affective factors (stress, self-consciousness) and transfers (trying to apply rules from L1 to L2) which can be positive or negative.

6.- What is interlanguage? When a mistake does not belong to the mother tongue neither the target language.

Teaching Phylosophy

As teacher my composition class is a mixture of argumentative theory which presents students with the vocabulary to discuss their methods of argumentation, critical essays that open debates among the students, and student essays, both as examples and to train critical reading. By reading and debating current articles, the students are forced to address controversial topics, analyze their opponent's arguments and logically defend their own position. By analyzing their peers’ essays in order to teach them to become better readers of their own work. By continually writing, revising, rewriting, they learn to translate their thoughts into a reader-friendly argument that is coherently structured, well-argued, and aware of its audience.