This document summarizes several theories of first and second language acquisition: - Behaviorist theory proposed by Skinner viewed language as learned through reinforcement of behaviors. Piaget's cognitive theory saw language emerging from cognitive development and representation of knowledge. Vygotsky's socio-cultural theory emphasized the role of social interaction and the zone of proximal development. - Theories of second language acquisition draw from first language acquisition research. Krashen's theory included five hypotheses, particularly the importance of a low affective filter. Lenneberg proposed a critical period for language acquisition. Chomsky viewed an innate universal grammar. - Differences between first and second language acquisition include second language learners having prior language knowledge and more conscious learning,

1. Second Language Acquisition

2. First Language Acquisition Theories
The “bones” you must know about First Language Acquisition

3. 3
BF Skinner
1957, Behavioral Learning Theory
Behavioral Learning Theory: language is
learned through reinforcement. Language
learning is the result of forming new
habits.
STIMULUS: (Behavioral Theory) parents
modeling language.
RESPONSE: response(Behavioral Theory)
child copies language.
REINFORCEMENT: (Behavioral Theory)
parents understand child's language +
give praise OR parents don't understand
and correct.
Flaw of Skinner's Behavioral Theory
of Learning
This theory couldn't explain how children
come up with "novel utterances," which
are sentences or phrases that no one has
ever said in their presence.

4. 4
Jean Piaget
Cognitive Development theory
Language learning is a cognitive activity.
Cognitive acts organize children's
environment and are the result of
children's adaption to their environment.
Language itself is no innate, language
emerges as a product of cognitive
organization and development.
Language is only one of the several skills
we develop these emerges as a
consequence of gonitive maturation.
Piaget believed that language can be
used to represent knowledge that
children have acquired through physical
interaction with the environment.
Schema: everything I
know and have
experienced in life. It’s
my prior knowledge.
Our schema helps us
make meaning and
understand what we
read.
Our schema grows and
changes as we have
more life experiences.
When we use our
schema you think about
what you already know.

5. 5
Lev Vigotsky
Socio-cultural theory
Social interaction plays an important role
in the learning process and proposed the
zone of proximal development (ZPD).
The Zone of Proximal Development
The gap between what a child knows and
is able to do alone and what the child can
do with help. It's also the ability of a child
to solve problems on their own.
In the classroom:
Range of tasks too difficult for the child to
do alone but possible with the help of
adults and more skilled peers.
Task is still difficult for the child, but a
mentor teaches the child different
problem solving methods
Scaffolding: scaffolding
adjusting the support
offered during a
teaching session to fit
the child's current level
of performance.
View of make-believe
play: children advance
themselves as they try
out a wide variety of
challenging skills
Educational views about
assisted discovery:
child should discover,
but also be lead to
discover.
Teachers prompt, peer
collaboration, use
reciprocal teaching, or
cooperative learning
Main
Concepts
of
Vigotsky’s
theory

6. 6
Second Language Acquisition
"Why is it important for language teachers to know about language acquisition?"
Manfred Pienemann (1995) points out that
the study of SLA takes the perspective of
focusing on the learner rather than the
learning environment.
Looking at the learner and the language
acquisition processes provides information on
what learners normally do or do not do and
what can and cannot be taught.
Based on normal patterns of acquisition,
teachers should be able to evaluate where
their students are in the acquisition process.
The study of SLA will also enable teachers
to examine a syllabus to determine if the
content is geared towards the learner's
level of ability. Pienamann states: "It is
important to know what is learnable at
what point in time" (1995, p. 4).

7. 7
Second Language Acquisition
What does SLA offer to teachers of ESL/EFL?
SLA offers teachers a reminder that
appropriate input, output, and
interaction are all crucial to L2 learning.
Research on L2 learning and instruction reveals that
to be successful learners need both rich and
varied input in the target language and
opportunities to use the language (VanPatten,
2003).
SLA offers teachers guidelines or suggestions
for what to focus on in our teaching. It offers an
interesting perspective on the role of the teacher in
a classroom context, stating that to teach is only
one of the instructor’s four main jobs, with the other
three being to plan appropriate lessons, to train
students in language skills, and to test their
progress.

8. 8
Second Language Acquisition
The process by which people learn a second language
Second language acquisition theory
derives from theories of first language
acquisition and what we know about how
children become fluent speakers of their
native languages in a relatively short
period of time.
We have evidence that children learn
languages by figuring out a set of rules
that govern that language. We have
similar evidence that nonnative speakers
learn a second language by engaging in a
similar process.
This evidence includes children's and
English language learners’ tendency to
overgeneralize rules and overextend word
meanings.
Examples: "You no see me
ball?" for "Do you see my ball?“
Second Language
Learner: "You no tired?” for
“You are not tired?”
Overgeneralization of
rules: "I drived the car” for “I
drove the car.”

9. 9
Second Language Acquisition
The process by which people learn a second language
This second language learner probably
never heard anyone say drived for
drove, yet she has learned that adding
an -ed ending to a base word usually
forms the past tense form. This
knowledge enables her to create her own
sentences by overgeneralizing the
grammar rule. Sentences like this one
demonstrate that second language
learners are figuring out rules and
learning language. Children learning their
first languages make very similar errors.
Overgeneralization of
rules: "I drived the car” for “I
drove the car.”

10. 10
Second Language Acquisition
First Language Acquisition vs. Second Language Acquisition
Similarities: Differences:
Both require a great deal of time. Second language acquisition is built on a prior
understanding of how language works.
Each type of acquisition includes automatic and
monitored processes.
Second language learners may learn languages for
many different reasons, unlike first language
learners who need to learn for survival.
Comprehension generally precedes production
of language forms.
Second language learners may start the process of
language acquisition at any age.
Each involves a process of figuring out
language rules.
Second language acquisition involves more
conscious thought than first language acquisition.
Language is learned through observation and
practice in communicative interactions.
Errors made by first language acquirers are
generally accepted and frequently not corrected
whereas errors made by second language acquirers
are often corrected.
Some aspects of language are learned before
others.
First language acquirers are usually in a supportive
and warm environment with plenty of contextual
cues ideal for language acquisition whereas second
language acquirers may not be.
Errors are a natural part of language
acquisition.

11. 11
Second Language Acquisition
The process by which people learn a second language
In the classroom: Teacher should know in
which stage a student is at.
This will allow the teacher to better assist
the student.
Process of second language acquisition
(Developed by Stephen Krashen).
6 stages:
1. Pre-production
2. Early production
3. Speech Emergence
4. Beginning fluency
5. Intermediate fluency
6. Advanced fluency

12. 12
Second Language Acquisition
Theories
Eric Lenneberg
“The Critical Period Hypothesis”
Eric Lenneberg, 1967; main idea = There
is a certain window of opportunity (critical
period) humans have to learn language.
Language has to be learned before
puberty.
L2 is best learned between age 2 and
puberty.
In the classroom: this critical window
applies to the elementary students the
most.
Develop vocabulary and language by
showing words with pictures.
In the 1960s

13. 13
Second Language Acquisition
Theories
Noam Chomsky
Chomsky’s theory of human language was
centered around his concept of Universal
Grammar (UG).
(Chomsky) Innate linguistic knowledge which
consists of a set of principles common to all
languages/that we are born
witheverything we need to
learnevery language.
All humans rests on innate building
blocks and expression. All share 3
things:
a) Nouns
b) Verbs
c) Adjectives
In the classroom:
Breaking sentences into the 3 basic parts will
help students understand meaning to
concepts.
In the 1970s
Noam Chomsky “Nativist
Theory”
language is innate (we are
born with the brain structure
to know all languages and
their features)

14. 14
Krashen’s 5 Hypotheses
Second Language Acquisition

15. 15
Second Language Acquisition
Theories
Stephen Krashen (1988) has a five-part
hypothesis explaining second language
acquisition which includes the following
elements:
1) A low affective filter so that language
input can be received. The affective filter
can be thought of as a wall that is present
around the learner. If that wall is too high
because of stress, anxiety or some other
kind of discomfort, then language learning
cannot take place.
In the classroom:
It is the role of the teacher to structure
a classroom environment and
atmosphere that lowers that wall
around second language learners so
that acquisition of language can take
place.
Motivating my students in everything
they will learn related to a second
language.
In the 1980s
Children don't get embarrassed in the same
ways that adults do, so the Affective Filter
doesn't get as high in children. For example,
adults may place very high expectations on
themselves, and when they are not met, emotions
run high. Teachers of children are more willing
to supplement lessons with large amounts of
realia, manipulatives, visuals, and props than
teachers of adults students are, so children get more
comprehensible input.

16. 16
Second Language Acquisition
Theories
Stephen Krashen
2) Input Hypothesis
We all acquire language the same way and one
way only. We acquire when we understand the
message.
In the classroom:
Drawing pictures is a great way to help students
understand the message =(Comprehensible
input)
It is important What people say, not HOW
they say it!
If too much new linguistic information is
given too quickly, then there is little chance
that language acquisition will take place since
the learner will confused and overwhelmed.
The class planning will be crucial to provide a
better experience with the language and thus
get improved results in communication.

17. 17
Second Language Acquisition
Theories
Stephen Krashen’s Monitor
Hypothesis
3) That language students have an
internal error-detector that allows them
to check for the accuracy of their speech
production
In the classroom: Teacher must reduce
correction of errors an allow freedom to
speak even if students are committing
errors, errors are an essential part of
language.

18. 18
Second Language Acquisition
Theories
Stephen Krashen
4) A natural order of language
acquisition exists. This indicates that
certain grammar features will be learned
in a sequential and predictable way
among second language acquirers.
In order to become a fluent language
user, language must
be acquired naturally (as in first
language acquisition) rather
than learned traditionally (as in school,
memorization of rules, excessive error
correction).
In the classroom: Giving my students
gradually the target language
exposure.

19. 19
Second Language Acquisition
Theories
Jim Cummins
Cummins theory states that there are
three aspects of English language
proficiency.
Basic Interpersonal Communicative skills
(BICS), Discrete Language Skills (DLS),
and Cognitive Academic Language
Proficiency (CALPS).
BICS=everyday language necessary to
communicate with family and friends.
DLS are the rules governing aspects of
language.
CALPS is our ability to interpret and to
produce increasingly complex aspects of
the language. Takes at least five years.
CALP=Language needed to discuss and
understand content in classroom.
Students may be fluent when
speaking with friends but may be
poor academically.
In the Classroom: a great way to help
students master CALP is by
encouraging reading and writing of
content related texts.
We should not assume that non-native
speakers who have attained a
high degree of fluency and accuracy
in everyday spoken English have the
corresponding academic language
proficiency.

20. 20
References
Hall, C., Smith, P., & Wicaksono, R. (2011, January 1). A brief introduction to
some of the main themes in Second Language Acquisition research. Retrieved
October 11, 2014, from
http://cw.routledge.com/textbooks/hall/downloads/sla.pdf
Hall, M., & Rentz, P. (2002, March 1). Applying SLA Research and Theory To
Practice: What Can a Teacher Do? Retrieved October 13, 2014, from
http://www.tesl-ej.org/ej20/a2.html
Language Acquisition. (2011, January 1). Retrieved October 11, 2014, from
http://faculty.scf.edu/sharric/lesson11/lesson11topic3.htm
Lessard-Clouston, M. (2007, January 1). SLA: What It Offers ESL/EFL Teachers.
Retrieved October 14, 2014, from http://www.catesol.org/07Lessard-
Clouston.pdf
First Language Acquisition. Retrieve October, 14, from:
http://emedia.leeward.hawaii.edu/hurley/Ling102web/mod5_Llearning/5mo
d5.3_acquisition.htm