Language and the Mind Prof. R. Hickey SS 2006 First and Second Language Acquisition.
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Deborah Simshäuser (LN Grundstudium)Michail Tsiropoulos (LN Grundstudium)Sandra Breian (LN Grundstudium)Marcel Kalisch (LN Grundstudium)Nadja Hoeckesfeld (TN Grundstudium)Hannah Link (LN Grundstudium)Meryem Gögdagöz (TN Grundstudium)Julia Sadokhina (TN Hauptstudium)
The question one has to ask is how learners acquire a second language?
a) Internal factors like cognitive mechanisms and knowledge
b) External factors like the social milieu and the input
A case study is a detailed study of a learner´s acquisition of an L2. These studies are longitudinal (samples of the learner´s speech or writing are collected over a period of time).
Errors and error analysis I
- omission ->leaving out items which are required for
- misinformation -> use of one grammatical form instead of another
- misordering -> putting words in a wrong order
Errors and error analysis II
-> L2 learners create rules on their own – different to the rules of the target language
-> L2 learners commit the same grammatical errors
-> purpose: to help learners to learn an L2.
Developmental patterns I
- silent period
- formulaic chunks -> use of fix expressions
- propositional simplification
= the mental system of a learner‘s L2 knowledge
To understand the concept of interlanguage we need to consider two major learning theories:
1. Behaviourist learning theory:(1950s & 1960s)
habit = stimulus-response connection
cannot adequately account for L2 Acquisition (L2A), because learning is not just a response to an external stimuli !
2. Mentalist theory of language learning:(1960s & 1970s)
The concept of interlanguage draws directly on the mentalist theory with elements from cognitive psychology !
What is interlanguage ??
outside influence learner inside influence
A model of L2A:
Input intake L2 knowledge output
1. different styles of language use depending on the condition of the use
Elaine Turon: stylistic continuum
careful style vernacular style
Howard Giles: accommodation theory
2. determination of the input by social factors
John Schumann: acculturation model
3. social identities
Bonny Pierce: relationship between social context and L2 acquisition
subject to subject of
- Goals in the study of learner discourse in SLA
- Acquiring discourse rules
- Example: compliment + response
- more research is needed
- Krashen: input hypothesis
- Long: interaction hypothesis
- Hatch: scaffolding
-> You won’t forget to buy the ice-cream on your way home, will you?
-> No forget buying ice-cream, eh?
-> The ice-cream – You will not forget to buy it on your way home – Get it when you are coming home. All right?
A: A man is drinking coffee with the saucer of the coffee set in his knee.
B:in him knee
A: uh on his knee
A: on his knee
B: so sorry: on his knee.
substitutionPsychoanalytic aspects of interlanguage
Psycholinguistics: study of mentalstructures and processes involved in the acquisition and the use of language
L1 Transfer + Communication Strategies:
Interlanguage development takes place by transfer but mainly by forming interim rules!
not interference but cognitive process
SELINKER: choice of communication strategy reflects learners´ stage of development
1. Stephen KRASHEN
acquired vs learned L2 knowledge
2. Richard SCHMIDT
consciousness as: intentionality, attention, awareness
a) intentionality: intentional vs incidental
b) attention: conscious attention to features of the input is always required
subconscious learning is not the same as learning without conscious attention!
whether the learner is conscious of acquiring L2 knowledge
Different kinds of knowledge:
explicit knowledge can at least help indirectly to process the input and the intake!
a) Operating principles:
eg one-to-one-principle (one meaning—one form)
b) Processing constraints:
1. Developmental axis: to move from one stage to another
2. Variational axis: socio-psychological factor (wilingness to integrate)
Two Types of Computational Model
1. Serial processing:
Series of sequential steps which results in some kind of rule or strategy
2. Parallel distributing process:
several mental tasks simultaneously worked out: mental network
L1 TRANSFER + COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES
THE ROLE OF CONSCIOUSNESS
a) learned vs acquired
b) intentionality, attention, awareness
explicit knowledge is often helpful for implicit knowledge
TWO TYPES OF COMPUTATIONAL MODEL
a) serial processing
b) parallel distributing process
How does language influence development?
Some languages have relative clauses, others do not
Effects of relative clause structure on L2 acquisition
Learners of L2 English tend to use the first possibility.
In most cases (languages) relative clauses with a subject pronoun (who) are used more often than those with an object pronoun (whom).
It is not really clear if or how far the accessibility hierarchy influences the
acquisition of relative clauses.
But it is an important example of the relation between SLA and linguistics.
The success depends on:
Language aptitude – a natural ability for learning an L2:
- auditory ability
- linguistic ability
learning for some functional reason, e.g. to get a better job
interest in the people and culture
motivation is the result of learning
interest in learning activities
Cognitive, metacognitive and social/affective strategies