Second Language Acquisition Teaching Research Articles

Differentiated Instruction in Second Language Acquisition: A Case Study in Kazakhstan

This research aims to state our findings in the approach to second language acquisition by examining ways in which language knowledge is transferred from one person to another through media that includes online learning, correlated to the field of differentiated instruction. The assumptions made for this study are as follows: first, study of foreign languages is closely related to the political decisions. Secondly, it is our assumption that one can determine new approaches to second language acquisition and differentiated instruction considering new cultural, linguistic and psychological theories, such as anthropology, functionalism and cognitive grammar. The third assumption states that although numerous methods for differentiated instruction have been created by Russian scholars and successfully applied to American and European systems of education, they have not been assimilated or are not being used in Kazakhstan. New approaches such as contrastive analysis as a way of transferring information from one language to another in second language acquisition and differentiated instruction — have been established. We discussed criteria for differentiated instruction based on control and experimental groups’ observations and individuals’ accomplishments in the process of language assimilation

Linguistic complexity and instruction in second language acquisition

Linguistic complexity and instruction in second language acquisition

Language Learning Great and Small: Environmental Support Structures and Learning Opportunities in a Sociocognitive Approach to Second Language Acquisition/Teaching

AbstractSociocognitive theory views learning, including second language acquisition, as the progressive alignment of individuals vis‐à‐vis their ecosocial environments. In this article we first update sociocognitive theory in light of recent evolutionary/ecological research on learning/teaching: (a) Humans are evolutionarily adapted to adapt to myriad environments, placing a premium on adaptive learning, (b) human adaptation is effected substantially through niche construction—engineering environments to make them more adaptive, and then transmitting the results culturally, placing a premium on adaptive teaching, (c) both human learning and teaching are innate/instinctive, and co‐evolved, and (d) there are many kinds of ‘teachers’ in the world. Second, we briefly review 3 approaches to second language acquisition/teaching (SLA/T) vis‐à‐vis sociocognitive theory: van Lier's ecological‐semiotic approach, Schumann's interactional instinct, and conversation analysis. Third, we apply our theoretical perspective exploratorily to videotaped data of a Japanese learner/user of English as a lingua franca who is baking pastries with a Finnish friend. Our analysis includes 5 widely studied ‘units of participation’: activity types, routines, co‐constructed tellings, repetition, and assessments. Analysis suggests that these constitute powerful environmental support structures yielding rich learning opportunities for SLA/T in moment‐to‐moment interaction. Fourth and finally, we discuss our results vis‐à‐vis our theoretical approach. We conclude by suggesting how our expanded view of teaching/learning might broaden SLA/T's ‘pedagogical imagination.’

Processing instruction in helping map forms and meaning in second language acquisition of English simple past

ABSTRACTIn the first phase of this study, how English simple past is being taught in the classroom was examined through a questionnaire. The findings report how primary and secondary teachers perceived the difficulties faced by Cantonese English as a second language learners when acquiring English simple past, and the dominant teaching approaches or strategies used to address the problems. The second phase of the study examined the role of explicit instruction versus implicit instruction by involving primary 2 students being taught using three different forms of pedagogical intervention: processing instruction, traditional instruction, and implicit instruction. Findings show that the processing instruction group had significant improvement from pretest to posttest in the interpretation task, and they also obtained the greatest gains. In the production task, both processing instruction and traditional instruction groups obtained greatest gains and their improvement was significant. Explicit instruction was found to be more effective than implicit instruction in second language acquisition of English simple past.

The role of input and output tasks in grammar instruction: Theoretical, empirical and pedagogical considerations

In this paper, a review of the role of input, output and instruction in second language acquisition is provided. Several pedagogical interventions in grammar instruction (e.g., processing instruction, input enhancement, structured output and collaborative output tasks) are presented and their effectiveness reviewed. A final and overall evaluation is provided at the end of the paper.

Direct Instruction in Second Language Acquisition: A Critical Review of Related Literature

Direct Instruction in Second Language Acquisition: A Critical Review of Related Literature

Contributions of Grand Linguistic Theories to Second Language Acquisition Research and Pedagogy

<p>Research on second language acquisition (SLA) and use has always been enriched by linguistic schools and theories. The purpose of the present paper is give readers a snapshot of contributions grand linguistic theories have made to L2 acquisition research and pedagogy. The grand linguistic theories chosen for review in the present study include <em>Structural Linguistics</em>, <em>Nativism</em>, <em>Functional Linguistics</em>, and <em>Cognitive Linguistics</em>. These four linguistics theories have been, and some of them are, paid much more focus in the field of linguistics than other theories. In fact, the areas of SLA research and pedagogy have been highly influenced by these four grand linguistic theories. However, their impacts on these two areas have not been equal and, as a matter of fact, some of linguistic theories have more influenced SLA research while other theories have had implications more for SLA pedagogy. The contributions of the aforementioned grand linguistic theories to SLA research and pedagogy are discussed, along with criticisms against the contributions of each linguistic theory posed by the rival researchers.</p>

An Investigation of the Role of Explicit and Implicit Instruction in Second Language Acquisition: A Case of English Embedded Question

The present study examined the facilitative effects of three types of input-based (explicit and implicit) instruction on the intake and acquisition of the English embedded questions. The participants were 105 Iranian EFL learners from four intact classes who were randomly assigned to three treatment groups of processing instruction (PI), consciousness-raising tasks (C-R), textual input enhancement (TE), and one control group (CO). A quasi-experimental design with a pretest-treatment-posttest (immediate and delayed) sequence was used. Assessment consisted of a grammar knowledge test which included interpretation and production tasks at sentence level and a timed grammaticality judgment test. The results of data analysis indicated that all treatment groups performed significantly better than the control group on the interpretation tests over time and the treatments were also effective in improving the intake of the target structure measured through grammaticality judgment test. Moreover, all types of instruction were effective in improving the learners’ production tests except the TE. Since PI was superior to other groups in all of the tests one reasonable pedagogical implication is that explicit instruction is a more effective technique in helping EFL learners to acquire target grammatical forms.

The Role and Effectiveness of Grammar Instruction in Second Language Acquisition*

The twentieth-century history of second language (L2) education has been characterized by a search for more effective ways of L2 education. The search...

Computer vs. Workbook Instruction in Second Language Acquisition

Many studies have failed to demonstrate the effectiveness of CALI (Computer Assisted Language Instruction) as compared to non-CALI instruction, and the pedagogical significance of CALI programs has been questioned. This study employs an intelligent CALI program, called Nihongo-CALI (Japanese Computer Assisted Language Instruction), which uses natural language processing to provide more sophisticated error analysis and feedback than conventional CALI programs. The study compares the effectiveness of Nihongo-CALI with non-CALI workbook instruction, in the form of self-study lessons. The results of the study show that given the same grammar notes and exercises, ongoing intelligent computer feedback is more effective than simple workbook answer sheets for developing learners' grammatical skill in producing Japanese particles and sentences. The results emphasize the importance of providing an intelligent level of feedback to the learner, a task for which natural language processing is well suited.

Helping Students Get it: How Law School Instructors Can Use Four Characteristics of Successful Second-Language Acquisition Pedagogy to Create Successful Law Students

Law students may come to law school with no training in how to learn. While many new legal educators have strong academic and professional experience, they may have little, if any, training in how to teach before teaching their first law school class. Because learning the law shares epistemological similarities to acquiring a second language, legal educators should apply four characteristics of successful second-language acquisition pedagogy to help law students evaluate and improve their learning skills. This article explains these characteristics, based on language acquisition theories, and how each characteristic applies to legal education, providing specific examples of strategies and techniques legal educators can use to help law students succeed. These characteristics will help make law students metacognitive about their legal education, thereby making them more likely to succeed on law school exams, on bar exams, and as practicing attorneys.

The Relationship Between Second Language Acquisition Theory and Computer‐Assisted Language Learning

The point of departure for this article is the contrast between the theoretical landscape within view of language teaching professionals in 1991 and that of today. I argue that the pragmatic goal of computer‐assisted language learning (CALL) developers and researchers to create and evaluate learning opportunities pushes them to consider a variety of theoretical approaches to second language acquisition (SLA), which have developed, in part, in response to the need to theorize the role of instruction in SLA. To illustrate connections between SLA and CALL, I touch on multiple theoretical perspectives grouped into four general approaches: cognitive linguistic (Universal Grammar, autonomous induction theory, and the concept‐oriented approach); psycholinguistic (processibility theory, input processing theory, interactionist theory); human learning (associative–cognitive CREED, skill acquisition theory); and language in social context (sociocultural, language socialization, conversation analysis, systemic–functional, complexity theory). I suggest that such theoretical approaches can be useful in the development and evaluation of CALL materials and tasks. Finally, I propose that the expanding use of technology changes the nature of communicative competence theory, challenges SLA theory, and increases the number of consumers for SLA research.

Adquisició de primeres i segones llengües: perspectiva històrica i qüestions actuals

This article discusses theoretical approaches to language acquisition and language teaching and focuses on recurring themes in these approaches and how they have developed over time. The first section provides a historical overview of the history of language acquisition. The second section reviews the development of three contemporary issues that originated in past philosophical and linguistic discussions: the differences between first and second language acquisition and the poverty of the stimulus argument, innatism versus empiricism, and the effect of language instruction in second language acquisition. The article concludes with an emphasis on the interdisciplinary nature of language acquisition study.

Input Processing and Grammar Instruction in Second Language Acquisition

This book provides an alternative to the debate in second language acquisition theory and teaching. Accepting that language acquisition is at least partially input dependent, the author asks how grammatical form is processed in the input by second language learners and is it possible to assist this in ways that help the learner to create richer grammatical intake. He answers these questions and explains why traditional paradigms are not psycholinguistically motivated. Drawing on research from both first and second language acquisition, he outlines a model for input in second language acquisition that helps to account for how learners construct grammatical systems. He then uses this model to motivate processing instruction, a type of grammar instruction in which learners are engaged in making form-meaning connections during particular input activities.

Consciousness in second language acquisition: A review of field studies and laboratory experiments

Abstract This article addresses the roles of implicit learning, conscious hypothesis testing, and explicit instruction in Second Language Acquisition (SLA). In particular it asks (1) what is the role of consciousness in SLA, (2) what is the role of formal explicit instruction in SLA, (3) to what extent are the route, rate, and eventual levels of SLA affected by instruction, (4) does focusing learners’ attention on grammar facilitate SLA, (5) is there a role of negative evidence in SLA? In order to answer these questions it marshals relevant evidence from two complementary sources: (1) ecologically valid but methodologically weaker field studies of classroom SLA, (2) methodologically stronger laboratory experiments which investigate acquisition of artificial languages. These studies suggest that although much of the acquisition of language form comes as a result of implicit learning, there are demonstrable roles for explicit learning, for explicit instruction, particularly that which involves grammatical c...

The Role of Instrution in SLA

The papers in this issue were presented at a colloquium on The Role of Instruction in Second Language Acquisition held at Concordia University in Montreal, Canada, in July 1991. Participants in the Colloquium were the following:Birgit Harley, OISE, University of TorontoPatsy M. Lightbown, Concordia UniversityMichael Long, University of HawaiiManfred Pienemann, Sydney UniversityBonnie Schwartz, University of DurhamMichael Sharwood Smith, Utrecht UniversityNina Spada, McGill UniversityBill VanPatten, University of IllinoisLydia White, McGill UniversityThe Colloquium was sponsored by Concordia University and McGill University as well as by research grants from the government of Quebec through its Fonds pour la formation de chercheurs et l'aide à la recherche and from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

Instructional Strategies and SLA in Early French Immersion

Examining the role of instruction in second language acquisition (SLA) entails not only a specification of what aspects of SLA stand to be affected but also a clear conception of what is meant by instruction. In this paper the potential of various instructional strategies for promoting SLA among child second language (L2) learners is considered in relation to empirical findings in early French immersion programs. Several principles are proposed concerning the what, when, and how of code-focused L2 instruction in a communicatively oriented school-based acquisition context. These proposals need to be put to the test in further experimental research.

The Effect of Formal Instruction on Monitored and on Spontaneous Naturalistic Interlanguage Performance: A Case Study

M The role of grammar instruction in second language acquisition is one of the most controversial issues in second language teaching and second language learning research. Advocates of formal instruction (e.g., Seliger, 1979; Sharwood Smith, 1981) argue that focusing on the formal characteristics of L2 input data facilitates hypothesis formulation and testing. In this respect, formal instruction is a shortcut to learning and enhances formal accuracy. On the other hand, critics (e.g., Krashen, 1982) maintain that grammar knowledge is of limited use and can even be counterproductive in spontaneous communication. Two theories of L2 learning that make explicit claims about the role of formal instruction are Krashen's (1982) and Bialystok's (1979) models. Krashen maintains that the knowledge language learners get through formal instruction is available for use only in monitored situations, when the user focuses on form, and that it cannot be used in spontaneous production, when the focus is on meaning. Bialystok's theory claims that formal instruction followed by formal practice is beneficial for both spontaneous and controlled performance. Studies on the effect of grammar instruction on formal accuracy in language use (e.g., Pica, 1983; Schumann, 1978) have arrived at incongruous findings. Schumann looked at the effects of formal instruction on the development of English negation in an adult learning ESL in a naturalistic environment. The instruction had a major effect on monitored elicited language use but not on spontaneous production. Schumann reported that his subject appeared to have very low motivation to learn English and that his attitude toward the English-speaking community was negative. He concluded that the subject's interlanguage did not develop because he was socially and psychologically separated from the Englishspeaking community and that instruction was not strong enough to overcome pidginization caused by social and psychological distance. However, he did not explain why formal instruction affected monitored performance but not spontaneous production. Pica (1983) examined the contribution of formal instruction to second language acquisition by studying the spontaneous production of English grammatical morphology by adult learners learning English in three different contexts: formal, naturalistic, and mixed. Her findings showed that formal instruction promotes accuracy in language use but that it may lead to overuse of the learned pattern. Pica's study provides valuable insights into the effect of analyzed knowledge on formal accuracy in spontaneous language use. However, with respect to Krashen's and

Reflections on the use of computers in second language acquisition — II

The success of computerized instruction in second-language acquisition requires that some FL teachers learn enough about the operation of computers to become able to direct the preparation of computerized materials. The kind of relationship that needs to exist between FL teachers and computer programmers is examined. The present limitations of computerized instruction are analyzed; much remains to be done in error analysis and adequate computer software must be developed. New technologies in the audio-visual domain (synthetic speech, digital compressed speech, videodiscs, etc.) may provide us with random, immediate access equipment which is either lacking or too expensive today.

On babies and bathwater—the case of grammar instruction in second language acquisition: Implications for the teaching of Xhosa

It is argued that paying attention to grammar actively impedes communicative competence (Krashen 1982). Competence is being sacrificed together with grammar-translation method. Grammar is thus clearly a thorny issue. In every methodological discussion which touches on linguistic or grammatical rules, the point is stressed that knowing the rules is not enough, the learner must be able to “use” them. But we have no theoretical basis for claiming that linguistic rules are “used”. Sociolinguistic and discourse rules mediate between grammatical knowledge and actual performance. The point is that just as knowledge about grammar does not itself constitute the ability to produce correctly, knowledge about sociolinguistics, discourse and pragmatic constraints docs not constitute the ability to produce appropriately. All the linguistic, sociolinguistic and other rules we know still provide only a description of a system. They do not describe the steps by which native speakers express and comprehend meaning. If mean...