Abstract

This article argues that previous attempts to explain SLA should not be disregarded. Instead, when they are put together, they provide a broader and deeper view of the acquisition process. There is evidence to support the claim that second language acquisition (SLA) is a complex adaptive system due to its inherent ability to adapt to different conditions present in both internal and external environments. Based on this understanding, widely discussed second language theories, including behaviorism, will be treated as explanations of parts of a whole, since each captures a different aspect of SLA. In order to justify this assumption, excerpts from some English language learning histories are provided to exemplify how learners describe their learning processes. The final claim is that SLA should be seen as a chaotic/complex system.

Highlights

  • Larsen-Freeman and Long [1] state that “at least forty ‘theories’ of second language acquisition (SLA) have been proposed” (p. 227) and it is my contention that none of these attempts to explain SLA present a thorough explanation for the phenomenon

  • There is a huge number of SLA theories and hypotheses, I will briefly summarize only eight of them: behaviorism, acculturation, universal grammar hypothesis, comprehension hypothesis, interaction hypothesis, output hypothesis, sociocultural theory and connectionism

  • He does not reject the positive role of modified input, but claims that modifications in interactions are consistently found in successful SLA

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Summary

Introduction

Larsen-Freeman and Long [1] state that “at least forty ‘theories’ of SLA have been proposed” (p. 227) and it is my contention that none of these attempts to explain SLA present a thorough explanation for the phenomenon. Larsen-Freeman and Long [1] state that “at least forty ‘theories’ of SLA have been proposed” 227) and it is my contention that none of these attempts to explain SLA present a thorough explanation for the phenomenon. Like any other type of learning, language learning is not a linear process, and cannot be deemed as predictable as many models of SLA have hypothesized it to be. Countless theories have been developed to explain SLA, but most such theories focus merely on the acquisition of syntactic structures and ignore other important aspects. I present a brief review of the main SLA theories and move to the current tendency to see SLA as an emergent phenomenon

Second Language Acquisition Theories
Behaviorism
Acculturation
Universal Grammar Hypothesis
Comprehension Hypothesis
Interaction Hypothesis
Output Hypothesis or Lingualization
Sociocultural Theory
Connectionism
Language Learning Histories and SLA Theories
The Edge of Chaos
Conclusions

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