2022-10 DroguettN SLA
2022-10 DroguettN SLA
2022-10 DroguettN SLA
PRACTICAL ACTIVITY
General instructions:
The practical activity of this subject consists of carrying out the tasks detailed below. To do
this, the learner must keep the statements of each of the tasks and respond to each of
them. In addition, the activity must meet the formal requirements:
Length: 5-6 pages (excluding instructions, statements, bibliography and annexes, if any).
Font: Arial.
Size: 11 points
Spacing: 1.5.
Alignment: Justified.
The activity should be carried out in this Word document following the rules of presentation
and editing in terms of citations and bibliographic references (see Study Guide).
Submission must be done following the procedures described in the subject’s evaluation
document; under no circumstances should it be submitted through the professor’s email.
On the other hand, remember that there are evaluation criteria which are considered
extremely important for the learner to follow. For further information, please refer to the
subject evaluation document.
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Student first and last name(s): Natalia Droguett Villablanca
Group: FP_TEFL_2022-10
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TASK 1 - SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES BETWEEN L1
AND L2 ACQUISITION
Table 2.3. of contents presents a summary table - adapted from Ellis (1994) who in turn
draws on a similar scheme by Bley-Vroman (1989) - which includes some of the features
involved in language acquisition. Refer to the table and answer the following questions:
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- helpful or necessary
- attention to form is often
Instructions not needed
necessary to enhance L2
competence (FUNIBER, 2022)
- correction generally helpful or
necessary
correction not found and not - implicit feedback preferable
Negative evidence
necessary when taking into account L2
learners’ Affective Filter
(FUNIBER, 2022)
play a major role determining
Affective factors not involved
proficiency
a) Can you think of any other difference? Try to add some more features to the
table.
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acquisition, babies go through a silent period in which they listen to and absorb their
mother tongue. In his Input Hypothesis, Stephen Krashen (1982) states his belief that
children acquiring a second language also go through this silent period. Krashen goes on
to say that “adults, and children in formal language classes, are usually not allowed a
silent period. They are often asked to produce very early in a second language, before
they have acquired enough syntactic competence to express their ideas” (p. 27). However,
in successful L2 acquisition, adults who go through this natural silent period are able to
build linguistic competence while on it.
When it comes to formulaic speech, it can be defined as “expressions which are
learned as unanalysable wholes and employed on particular occasions by native
speakers.” (Lyon, 1968, as cited in Ellis, 1983, p. 53) This formulaic language, also known
as chunks, can also be acquired by L2 learners. Krashen (1982) talks about memorized
sentences that, though at first the learner does not wholly understand their meaning, they
make the speaker appear competent until real competence arrives at later acquisition
stages.
The final developmental stage is structural and semantic simplifications. Ipek states
that
Structural simplifications take the form of omitting grammatical functors (e.g.
articles, auxiliary verbs) and semantic simplifications take the form of omitting
content words (e. g. nouns, verbs). There are two suggested reasons why such
simplifications occur. The first reason is that learners may not have yet acquired
the necessary linguistic forms. The second reason is that they are unable to access
linguistic forms during production. (2009)
These simplifications are observable in L1 and L2 acquisition processes, and thus another
shared characteristic.
Finally, another point in common between L1 and L2 is acquisition order. Kashen
states in his Natural Order Hypothesis that “acquirers of a given language tend to acquire
certain grammatical structures early, and others later. The agreement among individual
acquirers is not always 100%, but there are clear, statistically significant, similarities.”
(1982, p. 12) This rule is not wholly steadfast, but it has been observed throughout
interlanguages and can thus be considered a similarity between L1 and L2 acquisition.
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TASK 2
The next article describes some of the problems involved in conducting research into
motherese (also referred to as child directed speech in the article). Read the text and
answer the following question: Lieven poses three questions on the first page of the article.
Explain (very briefly) the main points she makes with regard to each one.
Answer:
Regarding the first question, (what is the range of environments within each
children learn to talk?), the author describes the many possibilities in which a child might
be encountered, being either dyadic (mother-child) or polyadic (within a group of varied
configurations).
When it comes to the second question (do adults from other cultures and
subcultures see themselves as adjusting their language to children, and if so, to what
purpose?), the author points out that even though there is much more data about adult and
children talk in an English speaking context, usually these studies do not reflect the culture
in which the child is set. Studies about language acquisition in non-industrialized countries
or non-Indo-European languages do consider context, but they tend to be conducted by
researchers that do not belong to the culture being studied, and thus may fail to
understand cultural behavior.
Finally, in order to address the third question (how, if at all, might these
adjustments relate to the child’s task of learning language structure?), the author points
out that children across cultures are mostly found in polyadic settings. Moreover, despite
the varied configurations of these groups that may or may not adjust their language
structure to address them, most children all around the globe successfully acquire
language.
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TASK 3. ERROR ANALYSIS
Next utterances have been produced by L2 English learners (L1= Spanish). The analysis
consists in:
1. We put all the equipments on the beach: The error is in the noun ‘equipments’. It
should be singular as it is an uncountable noun. This is an interlingual error, as the
word ‘equipos’ in Spanish is countable, so this is a case of interference.
2. A large number of people is sick: The error is in the verb ‘is’, there is no
subject/verb agreement, as ‘a large number of people’ needs a plural verb. This
error is interlingual, as the same expression in Spanish uses a singular verb. This is
another case of interference.
3. He is owing me ten dollars: The error is in the progressive conjugation ‘is owing’;
it is not possible, as ‘owe’ is a stative verb. This error is intralingual, as it is applying
a correct rule (Present Progressive), but omitting or not knowing the exception that
applies to stative verbs.
4. Does John can sing?: The error is the use of the auxiliary ‘does’ instead of using
‘can’. This is an intralingual error, as it is the result of hypercorrection (over
application of a rule).
5. I am also speak German: The error is the use of the verb ‘are’ to indicate Present
Simple. This is an intralingual error, as it is the result of a confusion with the rules of
Present Simple.
Very important: the following personal details must be included on the cover page.
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Bibliography
http://www.viviancook.uk/Writings/Papers/AL85.htm
J. Handscombe (ed.), TESOL ’83. The Question of Control. Selected Papers from
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED275141.pdf
Ellis, R. (1994). The study of second language acquisition. Oxford University Press
Ipek, H. (2009). Comparing and Contrasting First and Second Language Acquisition:
https://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v2n2p155
Hall.
Mercer & J. Swann (eds.), Learning English: development and diversity. (pp. 40-
43). Routledge.
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