Chapter 4: Explaining Second Language Learning

Vocabulary flashcards covering the major theories, hypotheses, and key scholars of second language acquisition (SLA) as detailed in the Chapter 4 notes.

Behaviourist Perspective

A perspective that language learning occurs through imitation, practice, reinforcement, and habit formation, influencing methods from the 1940s to the 1970s.

Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis

A claim that L1 habits interfere with L2 learning, though later research found many learner errors could not be explained solely by L1 transfer.

Innatist Perspective

Associated with Noam Chomsky and based on Universal Grammar (UG), suggesting that innate knowledge helps explain how learners know more than input alone provides.

Universal Grammar (UG)

A theory that constrains language possibilities; supporters like Lydia White argue it explains L2 learning, while critics like Robert Bley-Vroman argue adult L2 learning requires other explanations.

Monitor Model

A model proposed by Stephen Krashen consisting of five hypotheses: Acquisition vs Learning, Monitor, Natural Order, Comprehensible Input, and Affective Filter.

Comprehensible Input Hypothesis ($i+1$)

The hypothesis within Krashen's Monitor Model that acquisition occurs when learners are exposed to input that is one step beyond their current level.

Affective Filter Hypothesis

The idea that anxiety and negative emotions can act as a barrier, blocking the acquisition of a second language.

Cognitive Perspective

A view that language learning relies on general cognitive processes like attention, memory, and categorization, moving from controlled to automatic processing.

Skill Learning Theory

Associated with J. R. Anderson and Robert DeKeyser, this theory describes learning as a development from declarative knowledge to procedural knowledge and finally automatization.

Declarative Knowledge

The initial stage of Skill Learning Theory characterized as "knowing rules."

Procedural Knowledge

The second stage of Skill Learning Theory involving the actual "using" of rules.

Restructuring

The phenomenon where learners suddenly reorganize language knowledge, leading to bursts of progress or overgeneralization errors like "I seed."

Transfer-Appropriate Processing (TAP)

The principle that knowledge is retrieved most effectively when the learning and testing contexts are similar.

Usage-Based Learning

The theory that language develops through repeated exposure, frequency, and the formation of networks of associations and formulaic chunks.

Competition Model

Developed by Elizabeth Bates and Brian MacWhinney, it suggests learners interpret sentences by weighing cues such as word order, grammatical markers, and animacy.

Interaction Hypothesis

Associated with Michael Long, this hypothesis emphasizes negotiation for meaning through comprehension checks and clarification requests.

Output Hypothesis

Developed by Merrill Swain, it argues that producing language pushes learners to notice gaps in their knowledge and achieve greater accuracy.

Noticing Hypothesis

Richard Schmidt’s proposal that attention to language features is essential for acquisition, stating that "nothing is learned unless it is noticed."

Input Processing

Bill VanPatten’s theory that learners prioritize meaning over form, often missing grammatical features unless instructional intervention occurs.

Processability Theory

Developed by Manfred Pienemann, it posits that language structures are acquired according to the learner's processing capacity and developmental readiness.

Sociocultural Perspective

Based on Lev Vygotsky, this perspective views learning as a social process mediated through scaffolding and the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD).

Collaborative Dialogue

A process where learners develop language by discussing forms and meanings together, allowing language use and learning to occur simultaneously.

Complex Dynamic Systems Theory (CDST)

Associated with Diane Larsen-Freeman and Kees De Bot, it views language development as a complex, non-linear, and interconnected process that varies across situations.