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(Second) Language Acquisition

Students Name/ ID Vivian 9722609Betty 9722609

Yuri 9722616

Instructor Philip Lin

Date Sep. 29th, 2008


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SLAQuestion of Chapter 1

Question 3

What are primary differences between a

behaviorists, a cognitivists and a

Constructivists understanding oflanguage and language learning? Name

some scholars and teaching techniques

associated with each approach.


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Content

Behaviorism

Cognitivistism

Constructivistism

Comparative

Discussion


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Behaviorism

Behaviorism is a study of the behavior of organisms(including humans) by focusing centrally on publiclyobservable responses that can be objectively andscientifically perceived, recorded, and measured.

Typical behavioral models were classical and operantconditioning, rote verbal learning, instrumental learning,discrimination learning, and other empirical approaches tostudying human behavior.

A behaviorist might consider effective language behaviorto be the production of correct responses to stimuli. If aparticular response is reinforced, it then becomes habitual,or conditioned.


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Behaviorism

B.F. Skinners classic, Verbal behavior (1957)

Skinners theory of verbal behavior was an extension of hisgeneral theory of learning by operant conditioning. Operantconditioning refers to conditioning in which the humanbeing gives a response, or operant without necessarilyobservable stimuli; that operant is maintained (learned) byreinforcement.

According to Skinner, verbal behavior, like other behavior,

is controlled by its consequences. When consequences arerewarding, behavior is maintained and is increased instrength and perhaps frequency.


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Behaviorism

The Audiolingual MethodIt is known as the Army Specialized Training Program (ASTP) or theArmy Method. Characteristic of these coursed was a great deal oforal activity-pronunciation and pattern drills and conversation practice-with virtually none of the grammar and translation found in traditionalclasses. H. Douglas Brown, Teaching by Principle, P.23

The characteristics of the ALM New material is presented in dialogue form. There is dependence on mimicry, memorization of set phrases, and

overlearning. Structures patterns are taught using repeating skills. There is little or no grammatical explanation. Vocabulary is strictly limited and learned in context. Great importance is attached to pronunciation. Very little use of the mother tongue.


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Behaviorism

The aids of the ALM

There is much use of tapes, language labs, and visual aids.

The goal of the ALM

There is a great effort to get students to produce error-freeutterances.

The drawback of the ALM

1.Language was not really acquired through a process of habit

formation and overlearning.

2.Errors were not necessarily to be avoided at all costs.

3.Structural linguistics did not tell us everything about

language that we needed to know.


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Cognitivistism

Cognitive psychologies asserted that meaning,understanding , and knowing were significant datafor psychological study and tried to discoverpsychological principles of organization andfunction.

Discover underlying motivations and deeperstructures of human behavior by using a rationalapproach.

They freed themselves from the strictly empiricalstudy typical of behaviorists and employed thetool to derive explanations for human behavior.


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Cognitivistism

Chomsky

human language cannot be scrutinized simply in term

of observable stimuli and response or the volumes of

raw data gathered by field linguists.

Ferdinad de Saussure-

a. Parole (What skinner observes" and what Chomsky

called performance)b. language (akin to the concept of competence, or our

unobservable language ability)


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Cognitivistism

Interest in the ultimate question why

1. What underlying factors- innate,

psychological social, or environmental

circumstances2. Why the person did

3. What the persons motivation and

psychological state4. What might have been the cause of the

behavior


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Constructivistism

Constructivism- A Multidisciplinary Approach

Constructivists think that all human beings construct their ownversion of reality, and therefore multiple contrasting ways ofknowing and describing are equally legitimate. Moreover, they

think this theory is based on the idea that the dialectic

1

or interactionist 2 process of development and learningthrough the child's active construction should be facilitated andpromoted by adults. Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky, namedoften associated with constructivism, Piaget stressed theimportance of individual cognitive development as a relativelysolitary act. Biological timetables and stages of development

were basic; social-interaction was claimed only to triggerdevelopment at the right moment in time. On the other hand,Vygotsky (1978), described as a social constructivist by some,insisted that social interaction was foundational in cognitivedevelopment and rejected the notion of predetermined stages.


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Constructivistism

Constructivism- A Multidisciplinary Approach

1 Everything is transient and finite, existing in the medium of

time (this idea is not accepted by all dialecticians).

Everything is made out of opposing forces/opposing sides(contradictions).

Gradual changes lead to turning points, where one forceovercomes the other (quantitative change leads toqualitative change).

Change moves in spirals not circles. (Sometimes referred

to as "negation of the negation") 2

promotes the idea that nothing in society is determined, and

that people can break free of a label as individuals
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time


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Constructivistism

Constructivism- A MultidisciplinaryApproach

Researchers studying first and secondlanguage acquisition. They figured out thatin many ways constructivist perspectivesarte a natural successor to cognitive studies

of universal grammar, informationprocessing, memory, artificial intelligence,and interlanguage systematicition.


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Constructivistism

Constructivism: Cognitive constructivism, socialconstructivism

1.Nowadays, Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotskystheories are not by any means new to the scene of

language studies. Yet, in a variety of post-structuralist theoretical positions, constructivismemerged as a prevailing paradigm only in the lastpart of the twentieth century, and is now almostorthodoxy. A refreshing characteristic of

constructivism is its integration of linguistic,psychological, and sociological paradigms, incontrast to the professional chasms that oftendivided those disciplines in the previous century.


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Constructivistism


2.Two branches of constructivism: cognitive version: emphasis is placed on the importance of

learners constructing their own representation of reality.Learners must individually discover and transform complexinformation if they are to make it their own, [suggesting] amore active role for students in their own learning than istypical in many classrooms(Slavin, 2003, pp.257-258), thistheory seemed to meet Piagets thought, but have taken thatlong to become widely accepted views. For Piaget, learningis a developmental process that involves change, self-generation, and construction, each building on prior learningexperiences(Kaufman, 2004, p.304).


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Constructivistism


2.Two branches of constructivism: Social version: emphasis that the importance of social

interaction and cooperative learning on constructing bothcognitive and emotional images of reality. Spivey(1997,p24)noted that constructivist research tends to focus onindividuals engaged in social practices,on a collaborativegroup, [or] on a global community. The champion of socialconstructivism is Vygotsky (1978), who advocated the viewthat childrens thinking and meaning-making is sociallyconstructed and emerges out of their social interactions withtheir environment (Kaufman, 2004, p.304).


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ComparativeComparativeSchool of Thought Typical Themes Scholars Approaches

Structuralism

behaviorism

Outside performance

Repetition/habitual Learning Performance Description Observable performance Scientific method Empiricism/ experience Surface structure Conditioning/reinforcement

B.F Skinner

Charles Osgood

Audiolingual Method

Series Method(Gouin)Direct Method(1930s-1940s)

Rationalism cognitive

psychology

Analysis/insight Explanation-why Intuition Mentalism Generative linguistics Acquisition/innateness Interlanguage systematicity Universal grammar Competence Deep structure

Noam Chomsky David Ausubel

Georgi Lozanovs(1979)-Suggestopedia

Constructivism Individual differences Social Practice Context Interactive discourse Sociocultural variables Cooperative group learning Interlangrage variability Interactionist hypotheses

Jean Piaget Lev Vygotsky

1970s-meaningfulcommunication

Silent WayCommunity LanguageKrashen-Natural Approach


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Discussion

First language acquisition FLA Behaviorist of FLA= Behaviorism of SLA Nativist of FLA= Cognitive of SLA

School of Thought Typical Themes Scholar

Behaviorist Tabula rasa Stimuli : linguistic responses Conditioning Reinforcement Observable Performance Habitual

B.F Skinner MacCorquodale

Nativist Innate predispositions (LAD/UG)

Systematic/rule-governed acquisition Creative construction Pivot grammar Parallel distributed processing Natural Biologically Cognitive Creativity Rule-governed

Noam Chomsky

Eric Lenneberg McNeill


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Discussion

First language acquisition FLA Behaviorist of FLA= Behaviorism of SLA Nativist of FLA= Cognitive of SLA

School of Thought Typical Themes Traits

Functional

(no scholar)

ConstructivistSocial interactionCognition and languageFunctions of languagediscourse

Language was one manifestationof the cognitive and affective abilityto deal with the world and others. The generative rules wereproposed under the nativistic

framework were abstract, formal,explicit and quite logical with formof language deeper functional levelsof meaning.


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Discussion

Schools ofthought

Difference Approach

GenerativeLinguistics andCognitivePsychology

Chomskyhuman language cannot be scrutinized simply in term ofobservable stimuli and response or the volumes of raw data gathered

by field linguists.Ferdinad de Saussure-1.Parole (What skinnerobserves" and what Chomsky called

performance)

2.language (akin to the concept of competence, or our unobservablelanguage ability)Cognitive psychologies asserted that meaning, understanding , andknowing were significant data for psychological study and tried todiscover psychological principles of organization and function.Discover underlying motivations and deeper structures of human

behavior by using a rational approach.They freed themselves from the strictly empirical study typical of

behaviorists and employed the tool to derive explanations for humanbehavior.

Interest in the ultimate question why1.what underlying factors- innate, psychological social, or

environmental circumstances.2. Why the person did3.What the persons motivation and psychological state4.What might have been the cause of the behavior

Georgi Lozanovs(1979)-Suggestopedia


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Discussion

Schools ofthought

Difference Approach

Constructivestructure

The characteristic is its integration of linguistic psychological andsociological paradigmsEmphasis both the learners role in construction meaning out ofavailable linguistic input and the importance of social interaction increating a new linguistic system.Two branches of constructivism

Cognitive & socialCognitive-Piageta.Learners must individually discoverand transform complex information if they are make by their owna. learning is a developmental process that involves change ,self-generation, and construction ,each building on prior learningexperiencesSocial constructivism-Vygotskya.individuals engaged in social practices....on a collaborative group,or on a global community

a.emphasizes the importance of social interaction and cooperativelearning in constructing both cognitive and emotional image ofreality.e. ZPD

(Zone of proximal development)--the distance between learners existing developmental state andtheirPotential development

1970s-meaningful communicationSilent WayCommunity LanguageKrashen-Natural Approach1.The goal is to build the

basic communication skills necessary for

everyday language situations.2.the initial task of teacherswas to provide comprehensible input ,thatis ,spoken language that is understandableto the learner or just a little beyond thelearners level


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