Cognitive Factors in Learning about Structured Sequences

1994 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 205-230 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas H. Carr ◽  
Tim Curran
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Second Language Learning ◽  
Cognitive Factors ◽  
Conscious Awareness ◽  
Limited Capacity ◽  
Syntactic Structures ◽  
Focal Attention ◽  
Two Factors ◽  
How People Learn

Cognitive science has developed a number of experimental techniques for studying how people learn about sequentially structured stimulus material. We describe these techniques, review findings they have produced, and discuss the findings' relevance for understanding the mastery of syntax during second language learning. Three issues are addressed: (a) the nature or content of what is learned and how it might be represented in the language learner's knowledge base, paying special heed to acquiring abstract rules versus generalizing across stored examples, (b) the role of conscious awareness in syntactic learning, and (c) the role of limited-capacity processing or focal attention in syntactic learning. Care is taken to distinguish between the latter two factors—Focal attention to the task of learning about syntax and conscious awareness of particular syntactic structures are not the same thing and may well play different roles in successful acquisition.

Language Ideology and Second Language Learning

2008 ◽  
Vol 155 ◽  
pp. 95-115 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theresa McGarry
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Ideology ◽  
Second Language Learning ◽  
Classroom Practices ◽  
Explanatory Power

AbstractThe increasing recognition of the concept language ideology and the corresponding increasing use of the term have not yet been matched by applications in the field of second language acquisition. However, applications of the concept in analysis of actual classroom practices have shown it to have considerable explanatory power. Greater consideration of language ideology in SLA is necessary not only to achieve greater understanding of the role of ideology in various areas but also to show connections between these areas that may yield important generalizations and to impel the application of the concept in areas where it has been neglected by highlighting its uneven treatment.

scholarly journals Errors in Second/Foreign Language Learning and Their Interpretations

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Falla Wood
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Second Language Learning ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Cognitive Strategies ◽  
Reliability And Validity ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Theoretical Foundations ◽  
Possible Cause

The aim of this article is to try to understand why the results of studies on errors in second language learning undertaken for several decades are diverse or even divergent. Some of these studies state that the mother tongue (L1) plays an important role in the learning process not only at the beginning, but also at higher levels of competency while others deny the influence of the mother tongue. The results of 60 studies on errors over a period of 40 years were contrasted to find out if a link existed between the theoretical foundations, and the interpretation of data, and conclusions of those studies. The results of the meta-analysis of studies whose theoretical foundations were related to operational cognitive strategies showed a continuum from partial to an important role of L1, and those related to order of acquisition, universal sequences showed a non-influence of L1. Another possible cause for this discrepancy was found in the method used to classify the errors. Finally, a possible cause could have been the methodological difficulties concerning the reliability and validity of the data. Only one third of the studies applied the control of bias and the triangulation of data.

Epilogue: A tale of two copulas

2008 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 383-385 ◽  
Author(s):  
EVE ZYZIK ◽  
SUSAN GASS
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
20Th Century ◽  
Language Contact ◽  
Second Language Learning ◽  
Past Century ◽  
Lexical Development ◽  
The Past ◽  
Context Of Learning

The five papers in this issue cover a range of perspectives on the acquisition and use of the Spanish copulasserandestarin a variety of contexts, including language contact, bilingual language acquisition, and classroom second language learning. The fact that these papers cite work in this area as far back as the early part of the 20th century with each subsequent decade being represented suggests the continual importance and complexity of the distinction between the two copular forms and shows how this complexity is played out in acquisition and bilingual use. Over the past century different perspectives have been taken on this multifaceted issue with linguistic explanations and the role of the native language being primary. In this epilogue, we focus on some of these same issues, but expand our commentary to include the new dimensions represented in this collection of papers: (i) context of learning (input), (ii) prior knowledge as represented by other language(s) known, (iii) item-learning and lexical development, and (iv) innovations in methodology.

scholarly journals Scholastic Grammar in College English Teaching

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 191
Author(s):  
Yanghua Peng
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Second Language Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
College English ◽  
English Teaching ◽  
Vital Part ◽  
Long Time

The research of grammar has been received much concern at home and abroad and the instruction of grammar is a focus and difficulty in English language teaching. The role of scholastic grammar has been paid little attention to for a long time. Some linguists and teachers believe that the traditional or school grammar should be the key in the classroom instruction, but others argue that scholastic grammar is a vital part in language itself. Based on the theories of second language learning and the viewpoints of Otto. Jespersen and H. Poutsma about scholastic grammar, this article conducts a research in colleges and analyzes the stylistic effect of attributive post-position from scholastic grammar perspective and finds that it is necessary to reconsider the important role of scholastic grammar in college English teaching. The paper ends with a conclusion about some implications of the present research for college English language teaching in China.

Creole phonological restructuring

2010 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 263-288 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric Russell
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Second Language Learning ◽  
Causal Factor ◽  
Perceptual Knowledge ◽  
Loanword Adaptation ◽  
Formal Framework ◽  
Target Languages

This article examines the influence of perception on creole phonological restructuring, drawing comparisons to loanword adaptation and second language learning and outlining a formal framework within which change can be described and explained. The three scenarios of contact-induced modification are compared and contrasted, focusing on the nature of contact, the role of different source and target languages, and the means by which participants access source tokens. Data from Haitian, showing diachronic modification to lexifier rhotics, is used to illustrate the position that perception may be the primary causal factor in phonological modification in some instances. It is argued that source ambiguity and substrate (L1) perceptual knowledge underlie restructuring. Perceptual competence is formalized in a broadly Optimality Theoretic grammar using level-specific constraints referring to the parsing and categorization of experiential input. Putative substrate data are used to establish a perceptual grammar which, when applied to experiential input, predict attested outcomes in Haitian.

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