Second Language Acquisition, Rod Ellis

Question 1

learner language

Answer 1

the language used by learners when they are called on to use L2 in speech or writing

Question 2

naturalistic learner

Answer 2

someone who learns to use the language at the same time as learning to communicate in it (i.e. immersion setting)

Question 3

formulas

Answer 3

fixed expressions such as How’s it going?

Question 4

overuse

Answer 4

when a learner uses a form in the wrong functional context

Question 5

item learning

Answer 5

when learners learn chunks, unanalysed, such as Can I have…?

Question 6

system learning

Answer 6

when learners learn a rule of use, analysed, such as can+verbs for possibility, permission etc…

Question 7

mentalist view

Answer 7

that learners acquire structures in a certain order because they are pre-programmed to do so.

Question 8

error

Answer 8

these reflect gaps in the student’s knowledge

Question 9

mistake

Answer 9

these reflect temporary lapses in performance

Question 10

omission

Answer 10

leaving out an item that is required for an utterance to be considered grammatical

Question 11

misinformation

Answer 11

using one grammatical form in place of another grammatical form

Question 12

misordering

Answer 12

putting words in an utterance in the wrong order

Question 13

overgeneralisation

Answer 13

for example, using eated, rather than ate

Question 14

transfer

Answer 14

when learners try to formulate L2 rules using L1 knowledge

Question 15

global errors

Answer 15

those errors which make the entire utterance nonsensical

Question 16

local errors

Answer 16

those errors which affect only one constituent of an utterance, and do not take away from the meaning of the whole

Question 17

propositional simplification

Answer 17

a feature of both L1 and L2 learning in children – the omission of the more sophisticated parts of utterances, leaving those like me no blue for I don’t have a blue one

Question 18

acquisition order

Answer 18

the theory that learners pick up certain grammatical features in a pre-determined, universal order

Question 19

sequence of acquisition

Answer 19

the question of whether learners pick up new forms in a single step or in a gradual process

Question 20

accuracy order

Answer 20

the ranking of speech samples based on the correct forms used by the speaker

Question 21

transitional constructions

Answer 21

the process by which a feature is acquired, often featuring accuracy, overgeneralisation, and hybrid forms

Question 22

restructuring

Answer 22

part of the transitional process, when a learner may actually seem to regress in accuracy, partly due to overgeneralisation

Question 23

psycholinguistic context

Answer 23

the situation of whether or not learners have had time to prepare their utterances

Question 24

form-function mapping

Answer 24

when learners associate one particular form (e.g. no + verb) to a particular function (e.g. negative statements) – these may be quite different from normal target language form-function patterns

Question 25

free variation

Answer 25

when learners don’t systematically use form-function mapping

Question 26

fossilization

Answer 26

when a learner never reaches the target-language competence stage, and continues to make errors of form/function – this is uniquely a feature of SLA, and does not happen in FLA

Question 27

mentalist (aka nativist) theory

Answer 27

by contrast with behaviourist theory, this idea accounts for the workings of the mind in relation to SLA

Question 28

Language Acquisition Device

Answer 28

a theory related to FLA that states there is a function in the brain directly working to process/trigger language

Question 29

interlanguage

Answer 29

the ‘mental grammar’ that a learner forms as they progress in their language skill – often a permeable combination of input and L1 concepts, creating a interlanguage continuum

Question 30

learning strategies

Answer 30

these are the typical features of interlanguage, such as omission and overgeneralisation, often used because the learner is not yet at the stage at which he can fully use the language

Question 31

backsliding

Answer 31

when learners produce errors representing an earlier stage of development – this is a symptom of fossilization

Question 32

stylistic continuum

Answer 32

the range of ‘styles’ learners use to interact in L2

Question 33

careful style

Answer 33

the choice of language a learner uses when they feel the need to be correct

Question 34

vernacular style

Answer 34

the choice of language a learner uses when they feel the need to participate in freer talk

Question 35

convergence

Answer 35

when speakers try to bring their styles closer together to add cohesiveness to the situation

Question 36

divergence

Answer 36

when speakers actively accentuate the differences between their styles

Question 37

pidginization

Answer 37

occurs for L2 speakers when they fail or don’t desire to acculturate to their target language group or social context

Question 38

social distance

Answer 38

how close or far an individual is from the target language culture

Question 39

foreigner talk

Answer 39

the grammatical or ungrammatical speech patterns employed by native speakers when speaking to L2 speakers – contrast with baseline talk

Question 40

negotiation of meaning

Answer 40

the interactants in a conversation partake in this when the learner signals a lack of understanding

Question 41

input hypothesis

Answer 41

Krashen’s idea that acquisition takes place when the learner understands something that is at their current level plus one step

Question 42

negative evidence

Answer 42

when an interlocutor indicates they have not understood and may, or may not, model the correct target language

Question 43

interaction hypothesis

Answer 43

the idea that comprehensible input is important, as per the input hypothesis, but that it is more effective when modified through the negotiation of meaning

Question 44

zone of proximal development

Answer 44

novices learn through interaction with more knowledgable others – children then learn how to control a concept without the assistance of others

Question 45

psycholinguistics

Answer 45

the study of the mental structures and processes involved in the acquisition and use of language

Question 46

L1 transfer

Answer 46

the influence the learners’ L1 exerts over the acquiistion of an L2

Question 47

negative transfer

Answer 47

when the learner’s L1 causes error in the L2

Question 48

positive transfer

Answer 48

when certain rules in the learner’s L1 makes errors of a certain type impossible or unlikely in the L2

Question 49

contrastive analysis

Answer 49

comparisons of the L1 and L2, drawn up in list form, used to make decisions about teaching material

Question 50

speech acts

Answer 50

requests, apologies, refusals, etc...

Question 51

cross-linguistic influence

Answer 51

an alternative term for the effects of L1, as opposed to transfer, which has negative, los making, connotations

Question 52

noticing

Answer 52

attending consciously to linguistic features in the input

Question 53

implicit knowledge

Answer 53

knowing rules without awareness of what they consist of

Question 54

explicit knowledge

Answer 54

knowledge about the language, i.e. the rules and form

Question 55

noticing the gap

Answer 55

when a learner realises the difference between the input and their own interlanguage level output

Question 56

operating principles

Answer 56

strategies used by children in L1 acquisition to extract and segment linguistic information from input

Question 57

multi-dimensional model

Answer 57

a theory of acquisition in which certain features are learned sequentially, whereas others are more or less random

Question 58

processing constraints

Answer 58

these govern when it is possible for a learner to move on from one stage to another

Question 59

reduction strategy

Answer 59

when a learner deals with difficulty by switching to a different topic

Question 60

achievement strategy

Answer 60

when a learner tries to overcome difficulty by using other words or L1 words to maintain their original communicative goal

Question 61

Universal Grammar

Answer 61

Chomsky's theory about language being governed by highly abstract principles that provide parameters given particular settings in different languages (kind of like a graphic equaliser)

Question 62

poverty of stimulus

Answer 62

the lack of exposure to language which helps prove the UG theory

Question 63

critical period hypothesis

Answer 63

the idea that there is an ideal period for language acquisition, enabling native speaker level

Question 64

unmarked structures

Answer 64

these are 'natural' or 'basic', and are common in the world's languages and require only minimal evidence for acquisition

Question 65

marked structures

Answer 65

these lie outside of UG, for example, having arisen out of historical accident

Question 66

instrumental motivation

Answer 66

a specific goal based reason for learning a language (e.g. passing an exam, getting a better job)

Question 67

integrative motivation

Answer 67

the reason for learning a language based on social situations, whether positive or negative

Question 68

resultative motivation

Answer 68

the idea that successful learning breeds motivation

Question 69

intrinsic motivation

Answer 69

the idea that some students find that actual learning of the language, or the tasks related to it, interesting

Question 70

cognitive learning strategies

Answer 70

those strategies that are involved in the analysis, synthesis, or transformation of learning strategies, e.g. recombination

Question 71

metacognitive learning strategies

Answer 71

those strategies that involve planning, monitoring and evaluating learning, e.g. selective attention to a particular aspect of the input

Question 72

social/affective learning strategies

Answer 72

those strategies which concern the ways in which learners choose to interact with other speakers

Question 73

teachability hypothesis

Answer 73

Manfred Pienemann's theory which suggests that teaching will only result in acquisition if their interlanguage is close to a point in which the structure is 'ready' to be acquired in a natural setting

Question 74

input flooding

Answer 74

the practice of exposing learners to huge amounts of positive input over a short term period, with the resultant improvement (though not necessarily, acquisition) of potentially difficult forms