Second+Language+Acquisition

//This page contains information and ideas for learning about second language acquisition in world language methods courses.//toc

=Objectives:=


 * Students will identify key characteristics of 5 stages of second language acquisition.
 * Students will explain key concepts of second language acquisition (SLA).
 * Students will analyze the content and pedagogy of a variety of communicative language activities in light of principles of SLA.
 * Students will use key principles of SLA to justify and defend their pedagogical decisions.

=Guiding Questions:=

1) What key concepts of second language acquisition resonate with you? 2) How might you use principles of second language acquisition to support the development of students' language proficiency? 3) Why is it important to include a wide variety of communicative language activities as a part of beginning language classes?

=Readings:=

[|Instructed Second Language Acquisition: A Literature Review] (Rod Ellis) - A 64-page report that briefly explores 3 approaches to language learning (oral-situational, notional-functional, and task-based), summarizes classroom research regarding relevant factors (direct and indirect intervention, corrective feedback, small group work, and individual differences), outlines 10 key principles for language instruction (formulaic and rule-based competence, form and meaning, implicit and explicit development, internal syllabus, individual differences, input and output, and free and controlled production). The report concludes with pedagogical implications and cautions regarding the use of research to guide classroom practice.

[|Principles of Communicative Language Teaching and Task-based Instruction] (Klaus Brandl) - Sample chapter (Chapter 1) of Brandl's methods book. Written in clear, simple language with lots of examples.

[|Principles of Instructed Second Language Acquisition] (Rod Ellis) - A one page (front and back) handout from CAL.

=Handouts:=

[|Four Quadrants] - Last page contains a diagram showing context-embedded/reduced and cognitively demanding/undemanding tasks (Cummins)

[|Myths & Misconceptions About Second Language Learning]

[|Principles of SLA: History & ELLIS Design] - First 2 pages of this handout do a nice job of outlining the history of SLA in a very abbreviated form.

[|Second Language Acquisition Stages & Related Linguistic Patterns] - This handout provides kind of a glossary of common problems teachers may encounter when working with second language learners (interference, interlanguage, silent period, language shift, language loss, attrition, bilingual code-mixing, The handout also includes a list of potential tasks appropriate for each stage of production.

[|Stages of SLA (One-pagers)] (Also available [|here].) - Outlines key characteristics of each of the 5 stages of SLA (pre-production, early production, speech emergence, early fluency, advanced fluency) in terms of student behaviors and teacher strategies and asks students to label them .The packet also contains charts of tiered questions, a sorting activity in which students must place the question number from a science worksheet on a grid under the appropriate stage based on the type of speech it is likely to elicit, etc.

=Activities:=

[|Arrange the Stages of SLA]

[|Myths of Second Language Acquisition Quiz]