Linguistic and Psychological theory

1.Why do Curtain & Pesola state that "simply to place the child in the target language setting(...) is not an approach that will make it possible to bring languages to every child"? (Chapter four:51). Use some hypotheses of second language acquisition theory to back up your argumentation.

Because not all children have the same characteristics and the stages of development not always coincide among children. It also depends on the creativity of the teacher and what is more important language should be meaningful and the input comprehensive (Input hypothesis)

2. What are the conditions for effective monitor use?(Curtain &Pesola:52). Do these conditions apply to everyday speech? Give examples to account for your answer.

Speaker must know a rule , have time to thing of it and apply the rule and be in a setting in which it is appropiate to focus on form.  These conditions do not apply to everyday speech and if we worry too much on rules , we miss the opportunity to communicate.

3.Comprehensible output (Swain 1985). To what extent do you think that output is important for students acquiring a language? Discuss in relationship to Krashen's Input theory. See The Input theory: Issues and Implications.1986:35

According to Swain  the attempts at communication (output) help the student to acquire a language , it is important for students to receive corrections of communicative errors , which inhibit comprehension(comprehensible output). This mechanism works effectively if the student is not interrupted to correct grammatical errors , as this discourages the student to communicate.

On the other hand, Krashen minimizes the role of output in the acquisition process. He says that language can be acquired simply by comprehensible input.

4.How do the findings in the field of cognitive psychology support Krashen's affirmation that "hypotheses are tested on a subconscious level". (Krashen 1986:36)

This statement is supported by one of the principles of cognitive psychology that says that  students are active participants in the learning situation controlling and shaping their own learning processes ,. He feels that learners test hypotheses by subconsciously matching form in the input to their own notions about the language.

5. How can  you as a teacher make sure the language presented will be comprehensible to the students?

First of all I should try to make language meaningful to students , of high interest and with relevant information to them. Then I can use a slower rate of speech, more distinct pronounciation motherese , teacherese ,shorter less complex sentences, more concrete references, rephrasing and repetition, more frequent meaning checks, gesture and visual reinforcement and provide students with meaningful listening experiences.

6.Discuss Leslie Hart's definition of learning. What are the dangers of simplified input?

Leslie Hart defined Learning  as the the process of extracting meaningful partners from the rich environment and shaping it into a program: a fixed sequence of behaviour for accomplishing some intended objectives. The problem is that this way of extracting partners from the rich input implies a simplification of the input , which in many cases can inhibit learning .

7.Whithin the categories of Whole Language as presented by Edelsky 1992: beliefs about language, beliefs about language development and beliefs about learning, choose two aspects of each and discuss them in relation to your experience as learner and future teacher. Which aspects seem to be the most difficult to apply?

Beliefs about language:

¨Language is profoundly social and depends on a social context¨ : This belief together with the other one about learning ¨Learning is a social process¨ are completely true but I feel they are quite difficult to apply since we cannot face real situations unless we travel abroad or we have the chance to talk to a native speaker some time in our life.  As a learner of English (being primarily taught through drilling and repetitions) and  I have always dreamt of real everyday life experiences and I was lucky since when I worked as a bilingual secretary I had the chance to meet many native speakers and talked to them on the phone , facing real problems and working them out in English. This was a really rewarding experience and this is the moment when a learner of a language can realize about the meaning of it.

¨Language takes several forms, oral , written, sign, and each is valid in its own right. None is derived from or dependant on the other and they all share the same basic characteristics and can develop simultaneously : I think that all form of language are necessary to provide a comprehensible input. The oral form is the most difficult to apply if it is not provided with active participation of the students in real situations. The written form is also quite difficult specially considering that students are more engaged in the oral work.

Beliefs about learning:

¨Learning is a social process¨: Already developed in beliefs about language.

¨Learning involves hypothesis testing¨: That is true , corrections when properly made play an important role in hypothesis testing and therefore in learning . It depends  on the teacher skills to correct when it is necessary without inhibiting the communication.

Beliefs about language:

¨Language is learned through actual use to achieve personal purposes, it is not learned through drill and practice for its own sake: I agree and it is better to work on topics that interest students and with real information.

¨Language learning is both natural and social¨: It is true, it is the natural product of social interaction but it is also difficult to apply since we do not have many social places in our country where people can use English to communicate naturally.

Krashen, Stephen & Tracy Terrell.1983. The Natural Approach. Language Acquisition in the Classroom. Hayward, California: Alemany Press. Chapter 1, 2 & 3

Chapter one

1. What is the evidence Krashen gives for considering the Natural Approach  as a 'traditonal approach'?

Most people acquire another language through communicative practice in real situations using the language for specific  functions , without instruction in its grammar and this is how most people have ¨traditionally¨acquired languages.

2.The Audiolingual Method. What were the components of the Army language course? Discuss the basic tenet of audiolingualism.

They were two: The drill sessions and the conversation sessions.

In the drill sessions situational-based dialogs were practiced and memorized. These sessions were followed by conversations sessions with a native speaker and were usually constructed around real life situations, often those of the dialogs. The basic tenet of audiolingualism is focused on the importance of oral skills (listening and speaking) before reading and writing.

3. What are Krashen's criticism to the cognitive movement? Particularly in relation to this quote: "learned competence cannot directly 'become' acquired competeence" (Krashen 1986:38)

Acquired competence  is quite different from learned competence since when you acquire something it is subconsciously so , it is long lived and easily remembered.

4.Discuss the following quotation from Newmark& Reibel (The Natural Approach:17) in relation to Krashen's Natural Order Hypothesis.

(...) Sistematic teaching of structure (as in structure drills) imposes a formal rather than useful organization of language material (...)

The structures of a language are learnt through real communication not through structure skills.

5. The Silent period is considered to be an acitve period. Why is this so? What is the acquirer building up? (Krashen 1986:9)

The silent period always takes place when we are  exposed to a second language. During this period we are being active by listening and memorizing phrases and sentences we hear frequently and whose meaning we do not understand completely . We are building up competence by listening , via comprehensible input. It lasts for about six months and it is when second language production emerges.

6.Why cannot spoken fluency be taught directly but rather it emerges? Contrast cognitive psychology to behaviourist principles.

Because students, as active participant in the learning situation , control and shape their own learning processes . Their own internal motivation drives the learning process. In contrast, for the behavioral psycologist , the student is considered to be a relatively passive subject, to be manipulated through reinforcement techniques and drill.

The ability to speak or write fluently in a second language will come on its own with time.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

 Curtain, Helena & Carol Ann Pesola. 1994. Language and Children: Making the Match. White Plains, New York: Longman, Chapter 4.

Linguistic and Psychological Theory

1. Why do Curtain and Pesola state that "simply to place the child in the target language setting (...) is not an approach that will make it possible to bring languages to every child"? (Chapter 4: 51). Use some hypothesis of Second Language Acquisition Theory to back up your argumentation.

Because there must be an understanding of the principles of child development and of the characteristics of children at different stages of development, and this will help prepare the teacher to create curriculum and activities that bring languages and children together effectively.

Some hypotheses:

* Input Hypothesis, which suggests that the most important factor in the amount of language acquired by a learner is the amount of comprehensible input to which that learner is exposed and it must be used in such a way that the message is understood by the student at all times, even though every word or message may not be familiar. This is accomplished through the use of gestures, examples, illustrations, experiences and caretaker speech.

* Affective Filter Hypothesis: Krashen relates these experiences to language acquisition by describing a filter which the brain erects to block out second-language input and which goes up in the presence of anxiety or low self confidence or in the absence of motivation. The filter goes down and the input can come through when motivation is high, when a student is self-confident and when the learning takes place in a relatively anxiety-free environment.

2. What are the conditions for effective monitor use? (Curtain & Pesola: 52) Do these conditions apply to everyday speech? Give examples to account for your answer.

For the monitor to work effectively, the speaker must know the rule, have time to think of the rule and apply it, and be in a setting in which it is appropriate to focus on form. These conditions do not apply for everyday speech. Examples:

* If he is at school: during the break when he is talking with his friends.

* At home.

3. Comprehensible output (Swain 1985). To what extent do you think that output is important for students acquiring a language? Discuss in relationship to Krashen's Input theory.

The Input Hypothesis states that an important part for the teacher's planning time for a classroom based on the principles of Second Language Acquisition will be devoted to strategies for making the target language comprehensible to the student, but I think that comprehensible output is also important if it is under pressure, because if the message that the student tries to communicate is understood, he will, first of all feel more confident, and at the same time he will acquire the rule.

4. How do the findings in the field of cognitive psychology support Krashen's affirmation that "hypotheses are tested on a subconscious level"?

Because one of the most important principles of cognitive psychology for the foreign language teacher is that information is best learned and retained if it is made meaningful to students.

5. How can you as a teacher make sure the language presented will be comprehensible to the students?

By engaging their students in meaningful situations and making them full participants in the communication of the classroom. They can work together with teachers across the curriculum to help children understand what it is they need to learn and how their own learning best takes place-to help children become aware of the process of language acquisition and to enjoy their own progress.

6. Discuss Leslie Hart's definition of learning. What are the dangers of simplified input?

Leslie Hart defines learning "as the process of extracting meaningful patterns from the rich input of the environment and shaping them into a program: a fixed sequence of behaviors for accomplishing some intended objective".

From what has been said, simplified input or presenting information in a carefully sequenced, prepatterned manner represents a danger for the student because since each individual learning style is different, the effort to prepattern the raw material of learning can be helpful for only a limited member of students.

7. Within the categories of Whole Language as presented by Edelsky 1992: beliefs about language, beliefs about language development and beliefs about learning, choose two aspects of each and discuss them in relation to your experience as a learner and future teacher. Which aspects seem to be the most difficult to apply?

* Beliefs about language:

* Language is a supersystem made up of interdependent and inseparable subsystems. Learning the rules of the language separately is not the same thing as learning language.

Since language is a supersystem, we don't acquire the language by simply knowing the rules. First, examples have to be presented and then the rule can be explained, in this way students can understand the rule.

* Language is profoundly social, its use always depends on a social context.

This aspect is difficult to apply when students have the opportunity of studying a second language for an hour, twice or three times a week and then they have no other contact with the language.

* Beliefs about Language Development

* Language is learned through actual use to achieve personal purposes. It is not learned through drill and practice for its own sake.

Again, in the case of being studied twice a week, it is very difficult to learn it through actual use, although it is a fact that it cannot be learned through drill and practice for its own sake.

* Language learning is both natural and social. It is natural in that it is a by-product of some important use to which language is put. It is social in that occurs through social interaction and develops in order to facilitate that intention.

This is very difficult to be applied if it is not practiced with a certain regularity or if the students are not in contact with native speakers.

* Beliefs about learning

* Learning is best achieved through direct involvement and personal experience. It is an active process in which learners construct meanings rather than a passive activity in which teachers transmit information.

To put in practice this, classes have to be carefully planned, and something that is easier for some teachers is just to transmit information and do a passive activity.

* It is the learner's purpose and intentions that drive learning, not the teacher's goal for the learner.

Sometimes teachers plan lessons according to the syllabus of a book and do not take into account the learner's purpose and intentions, and it may happen that the student is not quite interested in the teacher's goal, so he is not motivated.

* Krashen, Stephen & Tracy Terrell. 1983. The Natural Approach. Language Acquisition in the Classroom. Hayward, California: Alemany Press. Chapter 1, 2 & 3.

Chapter One

1. What is the evidence Krashen gives for considering the Natural Approach as a "traditional approach"?

 Krashen considers the Natural Approach as a "traditional approach" because it is likely that for most people the ability to communicate in another language is acquired through communicative practice in real situations using the language for specific functions.

 2. The Audiolingual Method. What were the components of the Army language course? Discuss the basic tenet of audiolingualism.

 It consisted typically of two sessions-one in which situational-based dialogs were practiced and memorized, followed by oral drills consisting of sentences illustrating the major syntactic patterns and form classes of the language. These drill sessions were conducted either by a linguist familiar with the language or by a native speaker trained by a linguist. The dialogue-drill sessions were then followed by conversation sessions with a native speaker, these were usually constructed around real life situations. The classes were small, usually under ten persons, allowing for sample opportunity to engage in communication experiences.

The basic tenet of audiolingualism is the teaching of oral skills (listening and speaking) before reading and writing, so the language is acquired through communicative practice in real situations using the language for specific functions (Natural Approach).

3. What are Krashen's criticisms to the cognitive movement? Particularly in relation to this quote: "learned competence cannot directly "become" acquired competence" (Krashen 1986:38)

The cognitive movement was a return to grammar explanation followed by various sort of exercises to practice the rule in question. According to Chaslain "the purpose of a cognitive exercise is the comprehension of forms, the conscious learning of forms, and the conscious selection of forms to fit the context".

Krashen thinks that language is acquired through communicative practice in real situations and acquiring must be subconscious; what is acquired is more lasting than what is learned.

4. Discuss the following quotation from Newmark & Reibel (The Natural Approach: 17) in relation to Krashen's Natural Order Hypothesis.

(...) Systematic teaching of structure (as in structure drills) imposes a formal rather than useful organization of language material (...)"

Krashen's Natural Order Hypothesis differs from Newmark & Reibel quotation, because the Natural Order Hypothesis does not state that every acquirer will acquire grammatical structures in the exact same order.

5. The silent period is considered to be an active period. Why is this so? What is the acquirer building up? (Krashen 1986:9).

The silent period is considered an active period because the acquirer is constantly acquiring input, but he is not able yet to output. He is building up competence by listening, via comprehensible input. His first words in a second language are not the beginning of his second language acquisition, rather, they are the result of the comprehensible input he has received over the previous months.

6. Why cannot spoken fluency be taught directly but rather it emerges? Contrast cognitive psychology to behaviorist principles.

Spoken fluency in second languages is not taught directly. Rather, the ability to speak fluently and easily in a second language emerges by itself after a sufficient amount of competence has been acquired  through input. It may take some time before any real spoken fluency develops.

The study of the brain and intensive work in cognitive psychology have resulted in a significant shift in orientation away from the behaviorist principles. Rote learning, habit formation, and observable outcomes are being replaced by an emphasis on meaningfulness, metacognition and process. For the behavioral psychologist, the student is considered to be a relatively passive subject, to be manipulated through reinforcement techniques and drill. The cognitive psychologist, in contrast, sees students as active participants in the learning situation, controlling and shaping their own learning processes. In the behaviorist classroom the student responds to stimuli and reinforcement, while in a classroom based on cognitive psychology, the students' own internal motivation drives the learning process.

Chapter Two

1. "Some individuals, it is believed, have a special aptitude for second language study". (Krashen 1983:38) Why is this debatable? What are the two different skills that Krashen associates to acquisition and learning?

Having high aptitude makes you a good learner but not necessarily a good acquirer. This may be an asset but it is certainly not sufficient for success in second language acquisition. On the other hand, a high aptitude does seem to predict success in a language classroom which is grammar based on tests that demand grammatical analysis rather than real communicative ability.

The two different skills that Krashen associates to acquisition and learning are: that aptitude is related to learning and attitude is related to acquisition.

2. The Role of First Language. According to Krashen, why are Interferenced errors produced? Contrast the two possible cures for this (drilling or more input).

Interferenced errors are produced as a result of "falling back" on the first language when we lack a rule in our second language.

The two possible cures for this are drilling or more input. The behaviorist psychologist will use "drilling", the cognitive psychologist will use "more input".

3. What are routines and patterns useful for?

Routines and patterns are useful for gaining more input and managing conversations.

4. Individual variation. Discuss the three types of adult second language acquirers.

The three types of adult second language acquirers are:

a) Monitor over-users are those who monitor all the time. They are constantly checking their output with their learned conscious knowledge of the second language. As a result, they speak hesitantly, often self correct in the middle of utterances, and are so concerned with correctness that they have difficulty speaking with any real fluency.

Over-use may derive from learning without acquisition. Another type may be related to personality.

b) Monitor under-users are second language performers who do not seem to use the monitor to any extent, even when conditions encourage it. Under-users do not rely on conscious rules, but only on acquisition.

c) The optimal monitor user uses the monitor when it is appropriate, when it does not get in the way of communication.

In normal conversation, where the focus in on communication and where there is little time, the optimal user will not be excessively concerned with applying conscious rules to performance. In writing, and in planned speech, when there is time, optimal users will make whatever corrections possible to raise the accuracy of their output.

5. "(...) the ability to think abstractly may be related to the ability to possess a mental representation of a language, or a conscious grammar (...) Not everyone attains formal operations and formal operations does not arrive at the same time in everyone". (footnote 42:51)

Discuss in relation to the role of instructed grammar in the classroom.

The ability to think abstractly is related to acquisition, each acquirer his "own time" to arrive at conclusions.

Instructed grammar is related to learning: the concrete thinker only arrives at abstraction from direct experience with concrete objects.

6. Age differences. What are the factors that differentiate children from adult acquisition? "The theory of second language acquisition described here posits a basic uniformity in language acquisition..." (Krashen 1983:44) What does "basic uniformity" refer to?

Older acquirers may be superior in initial rate of acquisition because they are able to get more comprehensible input.

Factors:

* Older acquirers are better at "managing conversations", or controlling the input directed at them and making it comprehensible.

* Older acquirers have a great ability to "beat the silent period" to produce in the second language using structures that have not yet been acquired.

* Older acquirers have a greater knowledge of the world. This greater extra-linguistic knowledge helps make input comprehensible.

"Basic uniformity" refers to the fact that we all acquire language in the same way, via comprehensible input. This is not to say, however, that individual variation does not exist.

7. Why is puberty considered a turning point for language acquisition?

Puberty may be the turning point for ultimate success in second language acquisition, and there is good reason to hypothesize that it is at puberty that the affective filter increases in strength dramatically. While affective variables do have an effect on second language acquisition before puberty, they do not seem to be strong enough to limit ultimate attainment in children: given sufficient exposure most children reach native-like levels of competence in second language.

Chapter Three

1. What are the implications for classroom practice of the Input Hypothesis?

The implications for the classroom practice of the Input Hypothesis are:

* Comprehension: The requirements that input be comprehensible has several interesting implications for language practice. First, it implies that whatever helps comprehension is important. Second, it implies that vocabulary is important. A third implication is that in giving input, in talking to students, the teacher needs to be concerned primarily with whether the students understand the massage.

The discussion of age differences and individual variations implies that comprehensible input will be the crucial element of a language teaching program for all students, young and old, grammar learners or not.

Another implication is that the classroom may be a very good place for second language acquisition, especially at the beginning and intermediate levels.

The affective filter hypothesis along with the input hypothesis, implies that effective classroom input must be interesting.

* Speaking: The input hypothesis claims that the best way to teach speaking is to focus on listening (and reading) and spoken fluency will emerge on its own.

Speaking is of course a primary goal for most language students. It is also important in that it stimulates conversation, which in turn will encourage more comprehensible input.

* The role of grammar: Grammar instruction  has a limited role. Only certain rules need be taught for optimal monitor use.

* Krashen, Stephen. 1986. The Input Hypothesis: Issued and Applications. New York: Longman. Chapters 1 & 2.

Chapter One

 1. Age Differences: According to Krashen what are the three strategies adults fall back to?

 Older acquirers obtain more comprehensible input in several ways. Their greater experience and knowledge of the world helps make the input they hear and read more comprehensible. Also, older acquirers can participate in conversations earlier than younger acquirers can by utilizing the strategy of falling back on first language syntactic rules, supplemented with second language vocabulary and repaired by the monitor.

A third way older acquirers gain more comprehensible input is via the superior skills in conversational management.

 2. Input and Exposure. Discuss.

 In cases where "exposure" really entails comprehensible input, as in some school situations, there's a relationship. Where exposure does not entail comprehensible input, as in the case of an immigrant in a situation in which he can continue to use his first language and uses his second language very little, we see a much weaker or no relationship.

 3. "Comprehensible subject matter is language teaching" (Krashen 1986:16) Discuss.

Comprehensible subject matter is language teaching because it does not focus on form but on the message.

4. What is the importance of first language in relation to Cummins (CALP) "cognitive academic language proficiency"?

Solid subject-matter teaching in the first language provides the child with "cognitive academic language proficiency" (CALP), the ability to utilize language to learn and discuss abstract ideas. This ability can be developed via any language and transfers to any other; once a person can use language "intellectually", this ability can be utilized in any other language the person subsequently acquires.

5. Discuss the following quote: "writing competence comes only from large amounts of self motivated reading for pleasure and / or interest" (Krashen 1986: 19)

This is so because it was discovered that instruction can give the student only the most obvious aspects of the written language. This is confirmed by the failure of several studies to show any clear relationship between the study of grammar and the ability to write.

Chapter Two

1. How does acquisition occur for the Output Hypothesis? Why is this hypothesis inappropriate to describe ill formed versions in children's speech?

In the output hypothesis the performer acquires rules by "trying them out" in communicative situations: when he experiences communicative success, his hypothesis about the rule is confirmed; if this happens often enough the rule is acquired. If the performer fails to communicate using a given rule, his provisional hypothesis is disconfirmed.

This hypothesis is inappropriate to describe ill formed versions in children's speech because communicative pressure and approval "cannot be the forces causing the child to relinquish immature forms and adopt adult forms". Rather acquisition occurs because of "the occasional mismatch between the child's theory of the structure of the language and the data he receives", a view consistent with the Input Hypothesis.

2. Where does the testing of hypotheses take place according to the Input Hypothesis and the Output Hypothesis respectively? (Krashen 1986:36)

According to the Input Hypothesis, the testing of hypothesis takes place on a subconscious level. On the other hand, according to the Output Hypothesis, it takes place on a conscious level.

3. What are the characteristics of the Output filter? (Krashen 1986:45)

The characteristics of the output filter are:

* It is a device that attempts to explain why second language users do not always perform their competence.

* The Output filter prevents acquired rules from being used in performance.

* There is a great focus on communication.

* Accuracy increases when the focus is off form, which indicates that the increase was not due to the conscious monitor.

4. According to Krashen, what are cases of "understanding without speaking" due to? (Krashen 1986:53)

The cases of "understanding without speaking" are due to:

* Despite his claims, the non-speaker is not fully competent in understanding the language.

* The most likely explanation for most non-speakers is the presence of a strong output filter, a hesitancy to perform for psychological or affective reasons.

* In some cases, the non-speaker may have considerable competence in his first language, but may encounter negative evaluations of his competence due to the presence of occasional developmental errors. This can have the effect of discouraging production.

5. What are the possible causes for Fossilization? (Krashen 1986:52)

The possible causes for fossilization are:

* The result of inadequate input.

* A strong affective filter.

* A performer not performing his competence.

* The acquisition of an imperfect version of the target language.

6. Discuss the role of the language teacher within the Natural Approach.

A language teacher is first of all someone who can prevent messages of interest, help make them comprehensible, and put students at ease; in short a communicator. The grammarian function of the language teacher is very secondary.

7. Discuss the differences between an international ESL student and an adult immigrant.

The differences are:

* Many of these students will not tolerate grammar study, students in elementary school do not have the cognitive maturity to handle complex grammatical concepts, while many adult immigrants have not had the necessary formal training.

* While some children will accept "trivialized" instruction, the uneducated adult student often will not.

* A great deal is at stake in ESL both for LEP students and for adult immigrants. In many cases, the ESL class is their only possible source of comprehensible input. Many LEP children of today do not have the chance to use English outside the school, and many adult immigrants live isolated from English speakers. For these people, the ESL class must succeed if they are to have a chance of participating in American life.

 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 Congratulations to these hard-working students !

With this issue you will find four attachments. They are the transparencies that Prof. Claudia Alvarez , Class "C" Morning Shift uses for her classes for this first unit (Ficha de Cátedra 1). We are  sure they will be very useful to all of you.

Well, as Bugs Bunny used to say "That´s all , folks"... for the time being, at least.

See you around!!