Contribution of Linguistics to Foreign Language Teaching and Language Acquisition

A complete list of vocabulary flashcards mapping out linguistic subfields, historical language teaching methods, and key theories of L1 and L2 acquisition based on the provided notes.

Linguistics

A discipline which studies language as a system of human communication.

Psycho-linguistics

The branch of linguistics that studies the relationship between language and the mind.

Applied linguistics

The branch of linguistics that focuses on language teaching.

Socio-linguistics

The branch of linguistics that studies language in relation to society.

Computational linguistics

The branch of linguistics that uses computers to simulate language.

Grammar Translation Method

A 19th-century language teaching method focused on learning a language to read its literature, where grammar was taught deductively, reading and writing were the main focus, vocabulary was taught through bilingual word lists, and translation was the primary feature.

Structural grammar (Ferdinard de Saussure)

A 20th-century linguistic perspective by Ferdinard de Saussure (1857-1913) that views language like a game of chess, treats words as arbitrary signs with no natural connection, places emphasis on speech over written language, and includes dichotomies such as syntagmatic/paradigmatic and language/parole.

Army Specialized Training Programme (ASTP)

An oral-based language training approach developed during World War II, based on Leonard Bloomfield's 1933 book Language, which emphasized that language is speech, skills should be taught through imitation, repetition, and memorization, and accuracy comes before fluency.

Generative grammar

A 1960s theory proposed by Noam Chomsky viewing language through a cognitive lens as creativity (the capacity to generate new sentences) via an innate Language Acquisition Device (LAD), where errors are considered normal.

Functional grammar

A 1980s theory proposed by Michael Halliday, influenced by Saussure, that views language as a social and cultural phenomenon emphasizing communicative proficiency.

Threshold Level

The Council of Europe's 1st Level Communicative Language Syllabus developed in line with functional grammar principles.

Communicative Language Teaching (CLT)

An approach based on functional grammar principles where language learning is learning to communicate, effective communication is sought, students interact using varied materials, and errors are treated as normal.

Behaviourist view of L1 acquisition

A theory by B.F. Skinner viewing language acquisition as a process of imitation and reinforcement structured around stimulus, response, and reinforcement.

Innatism

A 1960s theory originating from Noam Chomsky's generative ideas stating that children have an innate capacity for language known as the Language Acquisition Device (LAD).

Competence and Performance

Terms in Chomsky's innatism theory where competence represents underlying language knowledge and performance represents the practical realization of that knowledge.

Cognition theory of language

Jean Piaget's model attributing language acquisition to the child's overall intellectual and cognitive development.

Positive transfer

In second language acquisition behaviourism, the beneficial effect on learning caused by similarities between L1 and L2.

Negative transfer (Interference)

In second language acquisition behaviourism, the difficulty and resulting errors caused by differences between L1 and L2.

Interlanguage

A concept from the cognitive view of SLA describing the transitional stages of a language system constructed by a learner.

Error analysis

In cognitive SLA theory, the study of errors occurring when students make wrong deductions about the rules of L2.

Acquisition/learning hypothesis

A hypothesis in Stephen Krashen's Monitor Model stating that acquisition is a subconscious, natural process, whereas learning is a conscious process.

Monitor hypothesis

A component of Krashen's model proposing that conscious learning functions only as an editor or monitor to self-correct language output.

Input hypothesis

Krashen's hypothesis asserting that language acquisition takes place when learners receive comprehensible input slightly beyond their current level of competence.

Natural order hypothesis

Krashen's hypothesis stating that grammatical structures are acquired in a predictable, natural order.

Affective filter hypothesis

Krashen's hypothesis asserting that emotional state affects language learning, supporting friendly classroom atmospheres and respecting silent periods before pupils choose to speak.