A PAPER FOR MY MASTER PROGRAM FOR English SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNERS

1. Wasan F. Abu-Baker
LiteracyInstructionResearchPaper
Spring2013
Cognitive science can be defined as the scientific study of the human mind. It focuses
on reasoning, perception, memory, awareness, emotion, attention, judgment, motor control,
and language use. Cognitive science is a very complicated study and may require the
collaboration of specialists from various disciplines; informatics, linguistics, philosophy,
neuroscience, and psychology. The specific study of linguistics and the nature of human
language is a practical way of approaching second language acquisition (SLA) in children. SLA or
second-language learning is the process by which people learn a second language. The “second
language” referred to is any language besides the person’s original language of communication,
meaning that the term can be applied to any number of languages after the first or original
language (Gass & Selinker 2008).
Second language acquisition is a sub-specialty of linguistics. Much like cognitive science
it is a field that is very complicated and relies heavily on multiple disciplines; psychology,
cognitive psychology, and education. There has been much debate about exactly how language
is learned, and many issues are still unresolved. There are many theories about second-
language acquisition, but none are accepted as a complete explanation by all SLA researchers.
According to cognitive psychology SLA is construction-based, rational, exemplar-driven,
emergent, and dialectic (Ellis 2006). Learning language is similar to learning other things,
however, language is relied upon to represent and share meanings through communication.
Language begins with constructions, which are the basics of language. Constructions are
complex symbols that give language meaning to people. They could be formulas, words, or any
lexical item (part of a word or phrase). These constructs are acquired by individuals through

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language use, communication, and memories of utterances. The person’s brain becomes
accustomed to expecting constructions based on repetition and probability of occurrence. We
do this on a regular basis every day, where we find ourselves jumping to conclusions or filling-in
the blank in anticipation of what someone might say or do. It is not simply language or words
that we take into account, but all forms of communication that give us these queues (i.e.
constructs) that lead us to a conclusion. When teaching a child these queues we generally
utilize various exercises such as; memorization, narration, reading, writing, problem solving,
and educational games. Such tools are meant to expose the learner to as many constructs as
possible, and the more frequently the child utilizes these constructs the more fluent he or she
becomes with the language. This approach is generally used in teaching children their first
language; however, they can be applied to a second language as well.
According to wellknow experts in linguistics such as NaomChomsky and Vivian Cook, an SLA
(or SL2) learner will rely on their first language (SL1). Therefore mastery of the first language is
essential before the child can progress to SLA. According to Dr. Mel Levine, a well-known
education expert and pediatrician, in his book “A Mind at a Time”, there are eight fundamental
systems of learning that draw on a variety of neurodevelopmental capacities; attention,
memory, language, spatial ordering, sequential ordering, motor, higher thinking, and social
thinking. Some students are strong in certain areas and some are strong in others, but no one
is equally capable in all eight systems. The language system is no different and child can either
be strong in it or not. This system which involves receptive (processing and understanding
incoming information) and expressive (communicating and producing ideas) functions is central
to the language skills I mentioned. Being able to express and comprehend language is central

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to the ability to do well in school. In addition, being proficient in a first language is essential to
progressing to learning a second language. There are many abilities involved in language
proficiency, for example; awareness of different sounds, pronouncing words, comprehending
written symbols, understanding grammatical structures, and telling or writing stories
acquisition, and if the child is lacking in these areas with his/her first language comprehension
and proficiency in a second language is difficult to achieve. Dr. Levine observes that in cases
where the child is weak in language, the problem is not a lack of intelligence but a learning style
that doesn’t fit the assignment. So we must pay more attention to individual learning styles
and individual minds so that we can maximize a child’s learning potential for a second language
(Levine 2002).
Overall, with continued exposure to a second language children have the ability to learn
two or more languages. However, for those with some neurodevelopmental dysfunction in
their first language, such as; improper sentence structure, poor phonology, semantics, the
challenge of learning a second language is very difficult to achieve. For these children, working
on their first language for support and continuous exposure to the second language may
achieve success. However, abandoning the first language and attempting to overcompensate
with the second language is unlikely to yield positive results. It may also be wise to delay the
second language until the child is proficient in the first, which will give the student a better
chance at success later on. There is pressure and an assumption that younger children
(preschoolers) have the capability of learning a second language more so than older children
(highschoolers). Studies have disproven this myth where fourteen-year-olds showed the ability
to learn foreign languages faster and better than five-year-olds (Levine 2002).

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The physiological approach to cognitive science focuses on the brain’s ability to change
its structure (i.e. neuroplasticity) in order to learn new things, such as second language. For
nearly 100 years it had been believed that the human brain is a fixed structure, static and
stationary. (Begley 2007). However, cognitive scientists have understood that the brain does
have an ability to form synapses and strengthen connections but that this ability,
neuroplasticity, was lost in the adult brain. In 2004, the Dalai Lama invited researchers to
discuss the implications of neuroplasticity. A neuroscientist, Fred Gage, insisted that the brain
is unchangeable. However, more recently it has been discovered that the human brain is
extremely neuroplastic, malleable to change. The brain has a unique ability to strengthen and
restore connections to enable the human to improve and relearn functions such as violinists
moving their fingers in new ways and a depressed patient who overcomes their depression.
This neuroplasticity is not only present in a child’s brain, but it also exists in the adult brain.
Simply thinking about performing activities, like playing the piano, or trying to overcome
depression leads to changes in the brain’s activity to help perform these desires. Based on
these discoveries, it is clear that SLA is mediated by brain changes and neuroplasticity.
Brain activity is measured with imaging and other medical equipment; however, SLA and
language skills require much more complex mechanisms of assessment. Performance
assessment has been a preferred mechanism of assessment compared to multiple-choice tests
which fail to assess higher order skills (Pierce & O’Malley 1992). In addition, standardized tests
which are given once or twice a year cannot be used to closely monitor student progress
throughout the year. Performance assessment procedures and a portfolio assessment are used
in concert to monitor progress of SLA students. Performance assessment is used to find out

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what a student knows or can do. The student demonstrates specific skills and competencies in
relation to agreed upon standards of proficiency or excellence. Portfolio assessment is a review
of student work records over time in different styles to show the depth, breadth, and
development of the student's abilities compared to instructional goals and objectives. The
portfolio may also include student reflection and self-monitoring. The major areas in need of
assessment for SLA are oral language, reading, and writing. Oral language can be assessed
through various mechanisms; oral interviews, story retelling, simulations/situations, directed
dialogues, and incomplete story/topic prompts. The biggest challenge with oral language
assessment is time constraint due to the one-on-one nature of it. Reading assessment focuses
on reading comprehension rather than simple reading skills. Often we deceive ourselves by
assuming that simply because a child can perform reading skills he or she comprehends. The
four methods of reading assessment are miscue analysis, the individual reading inventory,
anecdotal records, and cloze tests. Writing assessments, the most commonly used
performance assessments, are completed through direct measure of functional literacy (writing
samples), process writing, and dialogue journals.
SLA is a challenging goal to achieve with the young student. However, based on
cognitive science and recent evidence, the tools we need to make it happen are in our hands.
The basic construct of language can be applied to SLA, however, the learner must first be
proficient in the first language. Besides teaching techniques that can help us achieve our goal,
assessment has a significant part to play.

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References
Gass, Susan, Selinker, Larry (2008). Second Language Acquisition: An Introductory Course. New
York, NY: Routledge
Ellis C (2006). Cognitive perspective on SLA; The Associative-Cognitive CREED, AILA Review 19
(2006), pg. 100-121.
Levine M. (2002). A mind at a time (1st ed.). New York: Simon & Shusger.
Begley S (2007). Train your mind, change your brain: how a new science reveals our
extraordinary potential to transform ourselves (pp. 73-109). Ballantine Books, New York.
Pierce L, O’Malley J (1992). Performance and portfolio assessment for language minority
students. NCBE Program Information Guide Series, Number 9, Spring 1992.