Test 3

Question 0

Face validity

Answer 0

Concerns the appeal of the test to lay judgment (student, student family, members of the public, etc), e.g. finding out true ability for validity (leaving a question blank lessens validity). The test appears to test what it purports to test

Question 1

Zone of Proximal Development

Answer 1

The domain where learning can most productively take place. Learning happens in the right amount of space between 2 people. Space too big = +2 or 3, space just right = +1
The domain of knowledge or skill where the leaner is not yet capable of independent functioning, but can achieve the desired outcome given relevant scaffolded help.

Question 2

Content validity

Answer 2

A professional judgment, that of the teacher or tester. Does the test actually sample the class of situations (universe of subject matter) about which conclusions are to be drawn?

Question 3

Construct validity

Answer 3

Examples include proficiency, communicative competence, self-independence? Does the test actually tap into the theoretical construct as it has been defined? Ex: students who can’t write effectively score low on written tests, but are advanced level when asked

Question 4

Predictive validity

Answer 4

The extent to which test results predict some future outcome.

Question 5

Cross-linguistic influence

Answer 5

The effect on knowledge of one language by the knowledge of another. Knowledge of one language can be beneficial to learning another.

Question 6

Collaborative dialogue

Answer 6

A conversation between learners in which they work together to solve a problem. For example, reconstructing a story they heard.

Question 7

Cognitive maturity

Answer 7

The ability to engage in problem-solving, deduction, and complex memory tasks.

Question 8

Communicative competence

Answer 8

The ability to use language in a variety of settings, taking into account relationships between speakers and differences.

Question 9

Comprehensible input

Answer 9

language that a learner can understand. May be comprehensible in part because of gestures, contextual information, or prior knowledge/experience. Krashen

Question 10

Connectionism

Answer 10

A theory of knowledge (including language) as a complex system of units that become interconnected in the mind as they are encountered together. The more often units are heard or seen together, the more likely it is that the presence of one will lead to the activation of the other.

Question 11

Contrastive analysis hypothesis (CAH)

Answer 11

The expectation that learners will have less difficulty acquiring target language patterns that are similar to those of the first language than those that are different. Ex: French vs. Arabic learning English

Question 12

Declarative Knowledge

Answer 12

Information that we have and know we have. An example would be a rule such as “the verb must agree with the subject to form a correct sentence.” Theorized in some ways that all learning begins with declarative knowledge. Contrasts with procedural knowledge.

Question 13

Developmental Features

Answer 13

Those aspects of a language that develop in a particular sequence, regardless of input variation, learner motivation, or instructional intervention. Pinemann

Question 14

Display Question

Answer 14

A question to which the asker already knows the answer. Teachers often ask these questions (e.g. what color is your shirt?) to get the learner to display his or her knowledge of the language.

Question 15

Foreigner talk

Answer 15

The modified or simplified language that some native speakers address to second language learners. A special category of ______ is teacher talk.

Question 16

Form-focused Instruction

Answer 16

Instruction that draws attention to the forms and structures of the language within the context of communicative interaction. This may be done by giving metalinguistic information, simply highlighting the form in the question, or by providing corrective feedback.

Question 17

Fossilization

Answer 17

This term is used to describe a persistent lack of change in interlanguage patterns, even after extended exposure or instruction in the target language.

Question 18

Information Processing

Answer 18

A psychological theory based on the idea that learners’ cognitive resources are limited and they cant pay attention to everything at the same time. But with repeated experience and practice, things which at first required attention become automatic, leaving more attention available for focus on something else.

Question 19

Interaction Hypothesis

Answer 19

The hypothesis that language acquisition is based on both learners’ innate abilities and on opportunities to engage in conversations, often those in which other speakers modify their speech and their interaction patterns to match the learners’ communication requirements. Innate abilities are not seen as being specific to language or language acquisition.

Question 20

Negotiation of form

Answer 20

An interaction in which language learners work toward the correct form in a context where meaning is understood. A teacher guides students to find the right form instead of providing it for them.

Question 21

Negotiation for meaning

Answer 21

Interaction between speakers who make adjustments to their speech and use other techniques to repair a breakdown in communication.

Question 22

Procedural knowledge

Answer 22

Knowledge that underlies fluent or automatic performance.

Question 23

Recast

Answer 23

To repeat a learner’s incorrect utterance, making changes that convert it to a correct phrase or sentence.

Question 24

Simplification

Answer 24

Leaving out elements of a sequence. For example, using the same form of a verb regardless of a person, number, or tense. (e.g. I go today. He go yesterday.)