Second Language Acquisition

1. Second Language Acquisition Think about a baby acquiring his first language. Think about a person acquiring a second language. What similarities and differences are there in the two processes?

2. 1st & 2ndLanguage Acquisition Characteristics L1 Learner L2 Learner Uses prior knowledge x x Requires interaction x x Understands more when input is modified (caretaker talk, foreign talk) x x Develops language in predictable stages x x Makes developmental errors x x Generally has a greater knowledge of the world x Generally can learn and apply rules more easily x Is familiar with one or more other cultures x May have a problem with motivation x Is more likely to be nervous about speaking x Adapted from: P. Richard-Amato. (1996). Making it happen: Interaction in the second language classroom. P.27

3. Age and Second Language Acquisition Is it better to learn a second language when one is young or when one is older? Why?

4. Critical Period Hypothesis • This hypothesis states that an individual must acquire a language by a certain age (before adolescence) or it will be difficult to acquire a language. • The main advantage to learning a language when younger is that the individual is more likely to acquire a native-like accent.

5. Proficiency: What is it? When is a person proficient in a second language? How do you know a person is proficient?

6. Proficiency: • Grammatical Competence Mastery of language code, such as pronunciation rules, grammar rules and spelling. • Sociolinguistic Competence Mastery of appropriate language for different contexts such as when to use formal language and when to use slang. • Discourse Competence Mastery of combining form and meaning to create different genres of speaking (e.g. workplace English, casual English) and writing (e.g. essays, emails) • Strategic Competence Mastery of to fix communication problems, such as using gestures or simplifying the language when someone doesn’t understand you.

7. Proficiency: How long does it take? If you wanted to learn a second language, how long do you think it would take you to speak and understand that language? How long would it take you to read and write?

8. BICS ( Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills) 2 to 3 years Ability to converse and understand every day discussions • CALP (Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency) 5 to 7 years Ability to read, write, speak, and listen at an academic level

9. Stages in Second Language Acquisition • Preproduction/Comprehension Stage Characteristics Silent period Can respond non-verbally Will be able to understand more than they can produce

10. Early Speech Production CharacteristicsCan understand more than can produce Can produce one or two words at a time Will make lots of errors Interlanguage occurs (a mixture of vocabulary and structures from both languages)

11. Speech Emergence Characteristics Will be able to understand more than they can produce Interlanguage continues to occur Longer utterances Decreases in errors

12. Intermediate Fluency Characteristics Appear orally fluent Errors are same errors native speakers make Struggle with content area reading and writing.

13. Comprehensible Input Stephen Krashen says comprehensible input is “the only true cause of SLA”. Input = the process of comprehending the language (reading and listening) Comprehensible = input is at or little above the learner’s level of competence Krashen called this i+1

14. Influence of L1 on L2 Learning Do you think knowledge of your first language makes it easier or harder to learn a second language? Why?

15. Transfer: using ideas or rules from one language learning experience influences another language learning experience. Transfer can be either positive or negative. Positive transfer example: English and French use future tense in the same way. If you learn French, you can transfer this knowledge: I am going to eat. Je (I) vais (am going to) manger (eat).

16. Overgeneralization: Generalizing a rule in language learning beyond conventional rules or boundaries. It is the negative transfer of previously learned rules for the target language. Example: saying "buyed" instead of "bought"

17. Interference: A negative transfer that occurs when previously learned languages disrupts new language learning. The most common interference comes from the L1. Example: When I started learning Khmer I put “jia” between subject + adjective because this is the English structure. She is beautiful. Koat jia* sa-at.

18. Hierarchy of Difficulty: Scale to predict the difficulty of a given aspect of language. • Level 0 – Transfer (no difference btw L1 & L2) • Level 1 – Coalescence (2 items in L1 become 1 in L2) • Level 2 – Underdifferentation (An item in L1 is absent in L2); • Level 3 – Reinterpretation (An item in L1 is given new shape in L2); • Level 4 – Overdifferentation (An new item must be learned in L2); • Level 5 –Split (An item in L1 becomes two or more in L2).

19. Contrastive Analysis: • Views L1 as the primary obstacle to L2 learning • Oriented to errors • Strong version uses the hierarchy of difficulty to predict difficulties a new learner will encounter. • Cross-Linguistic Influence: • Looks at L1 to explain errors made in L2 • Emphasis is on the influence that the L1 has on what the learner produces, rather than on prediction.

20. Think about your language learning experience • What was the most difficult parts of learning English? • What mistakes do you still make?

21. SLA & Language Learning • What is the difference between acquiring a language and learning a language?

22. The acquisition-learning hypothesis • Acquisition: we acquire L2 knowledge as we are exposed to samples of the L2 which we understand with no conscious attention to language form. It is a subconscious and intuitive process. • Learning: we learn the L2 via a conscious process of study and attention to form and rule learning. • Krashen argues that “acquisition” is a more important process of constructing the system of a language than “learning’ because fluency in the L2 performance is due to what we have acquired not learned.

23. The input hypothesis • Acquisition occurs when one is exposed to language that is comprehensible an that contains i+1 • If the input contains forms and structure of just beyond the learner’s current level of competence in the language (i+1) then both comprhension and acquisition will occur.

24. SLA & Teaching • As a teacher do you need to know about SLA? Why or why not? • How can this information help you in the classroom?