SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION
THEORIES
BY: ABIR ABOUTAHA
Feb.,20th 2018
Second Language Acquisition Theories
Behind every teaching approach is
some kind of a theory of language
learning/acquisition
Second language acquisition
theories are intrinsically related to a
wide variety of disciplines such as
applied linguistics, sociolinguistics,
psychology, neurology, and
education.
Various theories and models have
been emerged over the years to
study the process of language
acquisition.
Three main schools of thought provide theoretical
paradigms in language acquisition:
Behaviorism (Skinner's Behaviorist Theory)
Innatism (Chomsky's Innatist Theory).
Krashen's Monitor Model/Monitor Theory
Behaviorism (1940s-1950s)
•F.B Skinner (based on I.P. Pavlov's
research).
•Tabula Rasa (a blank slate) means there
is nothing when a baby is born. Skinner
said, "give me a child, and I will shape
him into anything" (T.V. interview, 1960).
Behaviorism (1940s-1950s)
•Behaviorism is a precursor to cognitive learning.
•Language:
-is behavior defined as a set of habits.
-can be taught/learned as any other behavior
•Teaching:
-should be done through conditioning.
-consequences determine behavior (e.g. reward or
successful communication).
Behaviorism (Cont)
According to B.F. Skinner's Behaviorist Theory,
learning is the result of
Imitation (word-for-word repetition of someone's else
utterances).
Practice (repetitive manipulation of form).
Feedback on success(positive reinforcement).
habit formation.
The nature of Language Learning According to The
Behaviorist Theory
Audio-Lingual Method and Behaviorism
It was a method for teaching foreign languages
popular in 1950s and 1960s.
It is supported by the behaviorist theory of Skinner.
It does not use mother tongue to explain vocabulary
or grammar.
Students drilled in the use of grammar in the target
language.
English is taught through discussion, conversation,
and reading in the second language.
Students learned language through a series of drills
involving imitation, repetition and practice (Richards
& Rodgers, 2001)
Behaviorists' Views
Behaviorists view the process of
child' language acquisition in the Reinforcement
following steps:
Controlled Drilling
Memorization
Repetition
Imitation •Reinforcement can either be negative
or positive.
•Reinforcement will trigger general
stimulus.
Noam Chomsky and Audio-Lingual Method
Chomsky refuted the audio- lingual method that is based
on the behaviorist theory of language learning for the
following reasons:
It could not function as a model of how humans learn
languages.
Learning is not imitated behavior.
Sentences are not learned by imitation and repetition,
but "generated" from the learners' underlying
"competence."
Language is creative and generative, not a habit
(Richards& Rodgers, 2001).
Noam Chomsky's Theory of Innatism (1959)
o Language is an innate capacity. A child's brain contains
special language learning mechanism at birth.
o Every child has a" language acquisition devise"
(Traxler, 2012).
o Children need only minimum language exposure to
prime the LAD.
o Human brain is ready innately for language in the sense
when children are exposed to speech, certain principles
for discovering and formulating language,
automatically starts to operate.
The LAD Theory
Chomsky asserted that children were born with a
hard-wired language acquisition device.
Chomsky asserted that children were born with the
instinct or "innate facility" for acquiring language.
The LAD is a postulated organ in the brain
supposed to function as a congenital device for
language acquisition.
LAD encodes the major principles of a language
and its grammatical structure into the child's brain.
This theory contradicted B.F. Skinner' theory of
behaviorism and operant conditioning.
Chomsky’s LAD Theory
Stephen Krashen' Theory of Second Language
Acquisition
"Language acquisition does not require
extensive use of conscious grammatical
rules, and does not require tedious
drill."(Stephen Krashen, 1987)
"Acquisition requires meaningful
interaction in the target language -
natural communication - in which
speakers are concerned not with the form
of their utterances but with the messages
they are conveying and
understanding." (Stephen Krashen, 1987)
Krashen's theory of second language acquisition
consists of five main hypotheses:
The Acquisition-Learning hypothesis
The Monitor hypothesis
The Natural Order hypothesis
The Input hypothesis
The Affective Filter hypothesis
1- Learning Vs. Acquiring
According to Krashen, there are two independent
systems:
•The acquired system is the product of a
subconscious process. It requires meaningful
interaction in the target language.
•The learned system is the product of formal
instruction and learning. It involves a conscious
process which results in conscious knowledge
about the target language
2-The Monitor Hypothesis
Conscious learning is limited in SLA.
Acquisition has the central role.
Learning functions as a Monitor.
The Monitor acts in planning, editing, and correcting
function.
Three specific conditions needed to use Monitor:
Sufficient time
Focus on form
Know the rule
When Monitor is not used, errors are natural
2-The Monitor Hypothesis
3-The Natural Order Hypothesis
• (Krashen, 1987)
4- The Input Hypothesis
The input hypothesis is only concerned with acquisition,
not learning.
The L2 learners improve when they receive L2 'input'.
"Human acquires language in only way-by understanding
messages or by receiving comprehensible input"
(Krashen, 1987).
Comprehensible input: understanding of input language,
that contains 'a bit beyond' the current level of
competence. (i+1)
Speech will 'emerge' once the acquirer has built up enough
comprehensible input (Krashen, 1987).
5-The Filter Hypothesis
A number of
attitudinal variables
affect SLA:
•Motivation
•Self Confidence
•Anxiety
References
Herrera, S.G.,& Murry, K.G. (2011). Mastering ESL and Bilingual
Methods. (2nd ed.). U.S.A: Pearson Education, Inc.
Richards, J.C.,& Rodgers, T.S. (2001). Approaches and Methods in
Language Teaching. [Online]. Cambridge Language Teaching
Library. (2nd ed.) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Retrieved
from: Cambridge Books Online
<http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511667305>
Krashen, Stephen D. Principles and Practice in Second Language
Acquisition. Prentice-Hall International, 1987.
Oxford Seminars. (1992). TESOL/TESL Certification Course: Training
Manual. Oxford University Press.
References
Skinner, B.F. (1957). Verbal Behavior. Acton, MA:
Copley Publishing Group.
Traxler, M.J. (2011). Introduction to psycholinguistics:
Understanding Language Science. Wiley- Blackwell.
Retrieved from
http://ca.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-
EHEP002301.html
Wikipedia. (2015). Tabula Rasa . Retrieved from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabula_rasa
