2. According to Meriam Webster dictionary:
Aid - to provide with what is useful or
necessary in achieving an end.
3. second language acquisition and learning
learning and acquisition of a second language once the
mother tongue or first language acquisition is established.
(Bright Hub Education)
Second language acquisition or SLA is the process of
learning other languages in addition to the native
language.
E.g
A child who speaks Bajau as the mother tongue starts
learning English when he starts going to school. English
is learned by the process of second language acquisition.
In fact, a young child can learn a second language faster
than an adult can learn the same language.
4. Rationale – based on practical concerns.
Often used as compensatory practice employed in
large classroom/ not-so-large classroom.
Aim – giving learners more speaking turns compared
to teacher-led instruction.
Used to provide a nonthreatening contexts in which
students can work together on L2 skills.
5. (Long, Adams, McLean, & Castanos, 1976) had
conducted a classroom study among Spanish
L1 learners of English in Mexico City.
Findings:
1. Enabled students to use language across a broader range
of social and interpersonal functions as compared to
teacher-led instructions.
2. Serves as a more effective aid to L2 BUT ONLY when
communication serves a role in learning process.
6. It does not take into account learners’
production accuracy.
7. 2 studies:
i. Carried out in French immersion classrooms in
Canada ( Lightbrown & Spada, 1990; White, 1991).
ii. Carried out in Spanish & Chinese bilingual
programs in the US ( Wong Fillmore, 1992)
Findings
When students spend most of their times interacting
with their L2- speaking classroom peers rather than
the L2 standard speaker, which is the teacher, they
develop their own production error and this was
believed to affect the accuracy of the L2 acquired.
8. Chesterfields, Chesterfields, Hayes- Latimer, and
Chaves (1983) addressed the influence of teachers
and peers on L2 Learning in bilingual preschool
programs.
Findings:
1. In classroom with a majority of students were English
speaking, greater proficiency in English L2 was related
to peer interaction more than to interaction with
teachers.
2. In classroom with a majority of students are Spanish
speaking, greater proficiency in English L2 was related
more to teacher interaction than to peer interaction.
9. Bruton & Samuda, 1980; Gass & Varonis, 1989;
Pica, Lincoln-Porter, Paninos, & Linnell, 1993)
did a research on university level students of
English L2 at work in small groups or pair.
Revealed that the students incorporate other
students’ error into their own production (the
students correcting their own pronunciation
after their friends made the mistakes).
10. The effects of group work in L2 learning are
highly contextual.
The effectiveness of group work as an aid to L2
learning is subjective ( based on different
situations, types of the task given and the
environment).
11. ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES
1. Giving learners more speaking
turns.
2. Provide a nonthreatening context.
3. Enable learners to use the language
across a broader range of social
and interpersonal functions.
4. Learn from correcting others’
mistakes.
5. Increase learners’ overall
production and comprehension.
6. Provides learning opportunities
(information gap task)
1. Not focussing on production
accuracy.
12. • The findings shows that group work has its role in
language classroom. But it does not guarantees the
success in learning L2.
• In language learning, teachers must come up with
whatever activities which suits their students’ level of
knowledge.
• We have to bear in mind, in language learning, there is
no ‘one size fits all’.
13. Group work helps me to build up my
confidence level in learning L2.
Encourages me to try speaking in L2.
Personally, I learned L2 mostly by referring to
others’ mistakes and tried pronouncing the
words correctly.
