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Art Un ticle I.1 ited Sta In the ates News - Woodring College of ...

Art Un ticle I.1 ited Sta In the ates News - Woodring College of ...

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<strong>Art</strong>icle II<strong>I.1</strong> A Brief Description <strong>of</strong> Second LanguageAcquisitionBy Dr. Kathy Escamilla & Elizabeth GrassiFrom <strong>the</strong> Pr<strong>of</strong>essional Development Resource Series, “SecondLanguage Acquisition”, BUENO Center, <strong>Un</strong>iversity <strong>of</strong> Colorado,Boulder (2000)This essay serves as a summary <strong>of</strong> several <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> seminal <strong>the</strong>ories<strong>of</strong> second language acquisition. It is meant to be used as asupplemental resource for those users who are looking for a moredetailed description <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>the</strong>ories mentioned throughout <strong>the</strong>module. While <strong>the</strong> perspectives discussed here are <strong>the</strong>oretical innature, <strong>the</strong>y are grounded in <strong>the</strong> needs <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> classroom teacherwho is increasingly likely to be faced with growing numbers <strong>of</strong>English language learners in her classroom. Teachers <strong>of</strong> secondlanguage students are faced with many challenges and <strong>of</strong>ten havequestions about how to best teach <strong>the</strong>se students. Common questions include:• How long does it take to learn a second language?• What do we know about second language learners?• What influences <strong>the</strong> learning <strong>of</strong> a second language?• What can I do in my classroom to facilitate <strong>the</strong> process <strong>of</strong> second language acquisition?• What should I expect <strong>the</strong> second language learners in my classroom to be able to do?This paper will address <strong>the</strong> above questions through an analysis <strong>of</strong> two second languageacquisition <strong>the</strong>ories which have greatly influenced second language teaching today: NativistTheory, and Environmentalist Theory. Nativist <strong>the</strong>ory explores <strong>the</strong> linguistic aspects <strong>of</strong> languageacquisition and provides an answer to <strong>the</strong> question <strong>of</strong> how people acquire a second language.However, this <strong>the</strong>ory does not adequately address <strong>the</strong> environmental factors which can affectlanguage acquisition. Environmentalists suggest that social and psychological factors are equallyas important as linguistic factors in second language acquisition. This ar<strong>ticle</strong> provides a briefdescription <strong>of</strong> both <strong>the</strong>ories and discusses <strong>the</strong> principal researchers within each camp and <strong>the</strong>contributions <strong>the</strong>y have made to <strong>the</strong> teaching and understanding <strong>of</strong> second language acquisition.Nativist TheoryThe term nativist “is derived from <strong>the</strong> fundamental assertion that language acquisition isinnately determined, that we are born with a built-in device <strong>of</strong> some kind that predisposes us tolanguage acquisition.” (Brown p.25). <strong>In</strong> 1965, Noam Chomsky, a linguist, proposed <strong>the</strong> <strong>the</strong>orythat all people have an innate, biological ability to acquire a language. He <strong>the</strong>orized that peoplepossess a Language Acquisition Device (LAD), a sort <strong>of</strong> neurological wiring that, regardless <strong>of</strong><strong>the</strong> language to be acquired, allows a child to listen to a language, decipher <strong>the</strong> rules <strong>of</strong> thatlanguage, and begin creating with <strong>the</strong> language at a very young age. With <strong>the</strong> LAD <strong>the</strong>y are ableto make or understand utterances that <strong>the</strong>y have not previously heard. Their first language isacquired with no direct instruction, no practice, no drills and with no apparent difficulty.Chomsky suggests that, if provided with <strong>the</strong> correct input, <strong>the</strong> LAD predisposes all people to <strong>the</strong>acquisition <strong>of</strong> a second language in basically <strong>the</strong> same manner.© 2008 Dr. Ca<strong>the</strong>rine CollierAll Rights Reserved93

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