Language Acquisition Theories and ELT Methods
Theories of Language Acquisition
How Do Babies Learn to Speak?
Behaviorism
Children learn to speak through repetition and imitation, reinforced by subsequent punishment or reinforcement. They acquire the habit of speaking.
Language acquisition is *not* seen as a process of continuous creativism supported by an innate grammar system.
Innatism
Language acquisition depends on the child’s innate capacity for language, not just social and cultural interaction.
Behaviorism
Skinner – Verbal Behavior (1975)
- Language is another behavior.
- The habit is created by external stimulus.
Reinforcement Stimulus
Response
Punishment
- Positive
- Negative
Innatism
- Noam Chomsky – Generative Grammar / The Universal Grammar.
- Language Acquisition Device (LAD): An innate mental capacity that enables the child to produce language.
- Language is a biological function, thus, biologically conditioned.
Interactionism
“The primary function of speech, in both children and adults, is communication, social contact” (Vygotsky, 1994, p. 45).
Language = a tool for social development.
The child expresses the world in words.
Language development comes from outside (context, social interaction), not from inside the person.
Active Learning: Constructivism
An instructional strategy that ensures the child gains confidence and takes control of the task while receiving meaningful support.
Jerome Bruner (1915-)
Integrating English in Pre-Primary Stage
Why integrate English in the pre-primary stage?
- Meaningful and holistic learning
- Spoken predominance
- Linguistic creativity
- Subconscious language learning
- Learning through games
- Speech as a necessity
- Outstanding curiosity
- Cross-curricular learning
- Need for repetition
Pre-primary is the perfect stage to start learning a foreign language.
ELT Methodologies
- Communicative Language Teaching (CLT)
- Total Physical Response (TPR)
- Formats
- Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL)
Communicative Language Teaching (CLT)
Emphasis on developing students’ communicative competence (CC) to make them effective users of the language in real situations.
- Effective communication
- Authentic situations
- Importance of fluency vs. correctness
- Autonomous learning
- Language functions
Total Physical Response (TPR)
Asher, J. (1969). “Learning another language through action.”
The English class is “a language-body conversation” where the learner understands and acts.
- Comprehensible Input
- Visual Support
- Stress-Free Context
Formats
- Bruner, “The formats of language acquisition” (1982)
- Gradual introduction of the language:
- From less to more complexity
- From less to more thematic variety
- Repetition and review
- For example: routines, tales, songs, games, narrations, projects, etc.
CLIL – Content and Language Integrated Learning
“The FL is used as a vehicle to teach and learn both the language and content.”
Types of activities: Games, songs, crafts, rhymes, etc.
Immersion programs
Attitudes and Motivation in L2 Learning
How Should I Teach English in Infant Education?
- Constant contact between the English teacher and the infant teacher.
- Global approach to content to provide learners with meaningful contexts.
- Holistic learning
- Parallel lesson planning
- Natural language acquisition reinforces oral language instead of written language.
- Visual stimulus, games, songs, puppets, drama, and storytelling have a deep impact on learners’ motivation.
- Content should not be ambitious; it must take into account the child’s maturation process. Recycle content periodically.