6th Topic Contribution of linguistics

Question 1

2. CONTRIBUTION OF LINGUISTICS TO THE TEACHING OF THE FOREIGN LANGUAGES.

Answer 1

For over 2,000 years, language has been an object of fascination. Linguistics is the study of language as a human communication system. It is a brief review of the most important linguistic currents and theories that have influenced language teaching.

Question 2

2.1. LINGUISTICS

Answer 2

2.1. LINGUISTICS

There are different theories on language acquisition between the 40’s and 80’s, all of them connected.

Question 3

A. (40s) STRUCTURALISM PARADIGM Saussure, Bloomfield

Answer 3

Considered the father of modern linguistics, Saussure discerned a language as a set of structures. He emphasises speech over the written language and the avoidance of translation.

Bloomfield based linguistic learning on the behaviourist theory, stating that a set of habits is acquired as language is learned. His contribution to FLT is that repetition is extremely powerful when learning new structures, strategies, or procedures.

Question 4

B. 50s CONTRASTIVE ANALYSIS - Lado

Answer 4

Lado contrasts languages to identify their structural differences and similarities, which allows for predicting difficulties experienced while acquiring a second language. Therefore, in an FL lesson, the priority is those structures that differ the most from one language to another.

Question 5

c) 60s - COGNITIVISM AND GENERATIVE PARADIGM- Chomsky

Answer 5

For Chomsky, learning a language was not just the repetition of structures. He strongly defended the nativist theory; thus, all children are born with innate and universal Language Acquisition Devices that facilitate language learning.

He radically changes the methodological approach in FLA, reducing the potential of repetition of behaviourist theories and paving the way for constructivist theories.

Question 6

D) 70s and 80s - COMMUNICATIVE LINGUISTIC AND PRAGMATICS Nunan, Canale and Swain

Answer 6

From Chomsky’s and other linguists’ works, the communicative approach emerged. Languages are seen for the first time as a dynamic phenomenon, a communication system whose aim is the development of communicative competence: an ability to produce well-formed sentences and know how to use language appropriately and effectively.

Question 7

2.2. PSYCHOLINGUISTICS

Answer 7

This discipline investigates and describes the psychological processes that make it possible for humans to master and use language. Language acquisition is an area within this field.

Question 8

A) ERROR ANALYSIS - CORDER

Answer 8

Corder was the first who pointed out the importance of learners’ errors in 1967, valuing mistakes as a part of the learning process.
Corder´s Error Analysis states that the same errors occur independently of the student’s mother tongue at the same learning stages, leading to the concept of transitional competence.

Question 9

B) INTERLANGUAGE - SELINKER -

Answer 9

Selinker introduced the concept of “interlanguage” to describe the transitional competence of students in FL.

L2 learners use a language system that is neither the L1 nor the L2, creating a third language with its own grammar, lexicon, and rules.

Question 10

C) CLASSROOM’S DIVERSITY - NEMSER

Answer 10

Nemser supported the concept of transitional Competence, clarifying that the timing of this process is different for each individual so the diversity of a classroom must be considered when planning a lesson.

Question 11

2.3. SOCIOLINGUISTICS

Answer 11

It studies the interrelationships between language and social structure, linguistic variation, and attitudes toward language.

Question 12

A) DISCOURSE ADAPTATION THEORY: Giles and Smith

Answer 12

They introduce a new element called the speaker’s intention. Speakers adjust their speech either to converge or to diverge from their listeners.

Question 13

B) ACCULTURATION MODEL - SCHUMANN

Answer 13

The more learners adapt to a culture, the better they learn the language. There are two types of acculturation:

Type 1: when learners are socially integrated into the group and psychologically open to the target Language.

Type 2: when learners share the previous characteristics and have a wish to adopt the lifestyle and values of the TL group.

Question 14

C) SOCIO-EDUCATIONAL MODEL - GARDNER’S

Answer 14

Gardner presented four factors responsible for the individual learners’ differences:
Intelligence,
aptitude for language
motivation
anxiety.
Motivation is the main factor in acquiring a high level of language competence because motivation has a major impact on learning, both in formal and informal contexts. At the same time, aptitude is more significant in a formal context.

Question 15

2.4. NEUROLINGUISTICS - BROCA AND WERNICKE

Answer 15

Neurolinguistics is the study of how the brain represents, acquires, and stores language. Paul Broca and Karl Wernicke observed that people with brain damage in the left hemisphere had speech and language problems, but injuries on the right side did not usually affect the language.

Broca´s area is associated with speech production and the articulation of ideas using words accurately in spoken and written language.

Wernicke´s area is a critical language area, primarily involving comprehension. *
age is one of the most relevant factors in connection with foreign or second language acquisition, the general belief is that the earlier the better.

Question 16

3. THE PROCESS OF LANGUAGE LEARNING: SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES BETWEEN FIRST AND FOREIGN LANGUAGE ACQUISITION.

Answer 16

Many authors have researched the best way of teaching a foreign language, giving rise to many teaching methods that were often justified in terms of how learners acquire their first language without investigating how a second language is developed.

Question 17

3.1 THEORIES ON THE PROCESS OF LANGUAGE LEARNING

Answer 17

They vary according to the assumptions and beliefs on the nature of language and learning.

Question 18

3.1.1. THE OPERANT-CONDITIONING THEORY

Answer 18

Developed by Pavlov and Skinner, considered language is a result of imitation, repetition, and reinforcement processes.

When students receive praises and perceive their own success, they feel satisfied, having a desire to keep trying which makes them learn. It is vital to reinforce their responses to stimulate students positively.

Errors must be corrected immediately with a proper positive response, requiring many repetitions to develop accuracy and fluency.

Question 19

3.1.2. THE COGNITIVE PERSPECTIVE

Answer 19

Cognitive theories consider that language is a human capacity derived from the human’s capability of thought.

Language acquisition is a mental process that implies the gradual knowledge and development of linguistic structures and features through strategies.

Question 20

Chomsky´s Generativist theory

Answer 20

According to Chomsky and his followers, children do not learn to speak by repetition; instead, they claim that all humans are born with a language acquisition device (LAD) that makes learning languages possible and a Universal Grammar (UG): an innate knowledge of linguistic principles common to all languages.

Question 21

Krashen´s Natural Approach theory

Answer 21

Krashen´s second language acquisition theory highly and positively impacts the foreign language teaching practice. Five hypotheses constitute his theory:

Question 22

Krashen´s Natural Approach theory ACQUISITION-LEARNING

Answer 22

Acquisition occurs when learners are exposed to samples of the L2 that they can understand.
Learning takes place through a conscious process of study and attention.

Question 23

MONITOR

Answer 23

The acquisition is responsible for fluency.

Learning acts only as a monitor, making changes and polishing what the acquired system has produced.

Question 24

INPUT

Answer 24

Language is acquired by exposure to comprehensible input +1: a level that students can understand but not produce.

Question 25

AFFECTIVE FILTER

Answer 25

It is an imaginary barrier that prevents learners from acquiring language from the available input.

Question 26

NATURAL ORDER

Answer 26

The L1 and L2 are ruled by the same principles, from the simplest to the most complex, receptive skills before productive, oral before written skills

Question 27

3. 2 THE PROCESS OF LANGUAGE LEARNING | 1) PERIODS

Answer 27

PERIODS Children of different languages go through predictable stages when acquiring their mother tongue. * PRELINGUISTIC Pre-talking: Babies attempt to communicate through movements, They do not talk but take irreplaceable input from the environment, necessary to acquire the language. DEVELOPMENT First words: words are firmly centred around basic needs like “mama” and “dada.” Two-words: Pairing groups of words together into mini-sentences like “give me.” Telegraphic: Creating short sentences and beginning to utilize lexical morphemes to make the words they use to fit the sentence. IMPROVEMENT The multiword stage is the final stage where children learn to use functional morphemes to change the meaning of the words they use.

Question 28

3.2. - LEARNING STRATEGIES

Answer 28

Communicative approaches consider that learning strategies are an essential part of the teaching-learning process. -Cognitive strategies Used by students to learn more successfully, enhancing their learning skills, through mental activities related to comprehending and storing input in working memory for later retrieval. -Metacognitive strategies Conscious or unconscious mental activities are essential in managing cognitive strategies. These strategies empower students to think, organize their learning process and manage their own motivation for learning. - Socioaffective strategies The development is critical to adapting to society, fostering the management of emotions, negative and positive. In general, a positive environment helps to learn. -Communicative strategies were described by Tarone as mutual attempts of two interlocutors to agree on meaning in situations in order to have successful communication.

Question 29

3.2. - FACTORS

Answer 29

FACTORS From the learner´s point of view, some factors intervene in their learning process. Motivation Motivation has been recognised as a critical factor in many fields of learning, especially in language study. Extrinsic motivation generated to avoid punishment or receive a reward Intrinsic motivation A task is performed because it is personally rewarding to oneself. Social or external factors Context and setting Relevant factors that make a difference when acquiring an L2. Input must be comprehensible but also understood. Transfer is considered central in L2 learning and presented in all the language systems. * * * Individual factors It is tough to insolate age, personality, aptitude, affective factors and learning styles.

Question 30

3.3. SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES BETWEEN FIRST AND FL ACQUISITION. SIMILARITIES:

Answer 30

SIMILARITIES: Both L1 and L2 learning are cognitive processes. Children and L2 learners use their innate ability to learn a language. Many errors in L1 and L2 learning are similar. They are considered positive evidence. Both children and L2 learners need to be exposed to comprehensible input. There is a natural order both in L1 and L2 acquisition. In both L1 and L2 learning processes, repetition of the model takes place.

Question 31

3.3. SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES BETWEEN FIRST AND FL ACQUISITION. DIFFERENCES:

Answer 31

DIFFERENCES: L2 learners are different from children. L1 interference errors appear in the process of learning. L2 is taught in an artificial situation (the classroom), whereas L1 is learned in a natural environment (the family). L2 learners have less time and opportunities to learn the language. The motivation is also different because L2 learners already know a language. There is an uncertain parallel between how mothers talk to their children (caretaker talk) and teachers speak to L2 learners (foreigner talk). L2 learning is a conscious process.