35 How people learn languages 1

Revise

1 For questions 1–7, decide whether the statements describe acquisition

(A), learning (L) or noticing (N). ’ AK
1 ‘I’ll never forget all the lists of characters! They gave us a test every Friday. But
even though I am not Chinese I can write pretty well, thanks to that.’
2 ‘I was born in Japan – my parents are Japanese – but I went to the USA when I was
about four because my father got a job there. I did all my primary education there.
Some people think I sound like an American!’
3 ‘In my school in Turkey the teacher used to stand at the front of the class and
explain grammar rules and we wrote down what he said in our notebooks. My
English grammar is good thanks to him! At least I think it was thanks to him.’
4 ‘It was only after the first two lessons that I managed to hear what the teacher was
saying – hear the different sounds and words. That’s when I started to learn!’
5 ‘Yeah, well after I left university in the UK I worked on a farm in Cuba for ten
months and I kind of picked up quite a lot of Spanish. Not many of the people there
spoke any English.’
6 ‘At first when I listened to the radio, it just sounded like noise. But gradually I
started being able to tell different sounds and combinations of sounds – and that’s
when I started getting the language, I think.’
7 ‘I fell in love with a really great Polish guy. We’re married now. Yes, my Polish is
pretty good! I just kind of picked it up.’

Research

2 Interview someone who speaks more than one language.

1 What languages do they speak?
2 Did they acquire or learn their languages? How do they know?
3 Which was the best way for them to ‘get’ a language?

Reflect

3 Think of the language(s) that you studied at school.

1 Did your teacher use methods that focused on learning, or did he/she try and
promote acquisition?
2 What did you do to help yourself get the language?
3 What one thing most helped you to get the language successfully?
4 What was the thing you liked most about language learning at school? What was
the thing you liked least?

If/when you next ‘get’ a new language, how would you most like to get it?

ESSENTIAL TEACHER KNOWLEDGE | PHOTOCOPIABLE | COPYRIGHT PEARSON EDUCATION LTD 2012

36 How people learn languages 2
Revise

1 For questions 1–9, match the descriptions with the terms A–I. ’ AK
A Audio-lingual methodology F Scaffolding
B Behaviourism G Task-based learning
C Comprehensible input H The communicative approach
D Grammar translation I Target language
E Eclecticism

1 A method which is sentence-based and where students compare two languages.

2 Teaching is not organised around grammar and vocabulary, but instead on things
that the teacher asks the students to do.
3 A teaching approach that relied on behaviourism – and so was based on repetition.
4 Students are given chances to use the language in the classroom. Their success is
judged on how well they achieve their objectives using the language.
5 A psychological theory which suggested that learning is based on habit formation
(and that habits are formed through our responses to certain stimuli).
6 The support that teachers can give to students to help them learn.
7 The language that the students are studying.
8 When teachers use techniques etc. from a number of different approaches and
methods.
9 Spoken or written language which students can understand even if it is above their
own language production level.

Research

2 Using your knowledge of your own country, complete the chart below.
Child learning their home Teenager/adult learning a
language language at school
How many hours exposure do
they get to the language a
week?
Where do they get their input
from?
How do they get a chance to
practise the language?
What reasons do they have
for speaking and ‘getting’ the
language?

It takes a child a few years to master their home language; how long
might it/should it take a classroom learner?

Reflect

3 Imagine you are going to learn a new language and you can choose one
teacher from a list of four (see below). Which one would you choose and
why?
1 Ms Grammar Translation 3 Mr Communicative Approach
2 Ms Audio Lingual 4 Mr Task-based Learning

ESSENTIAL TEACHER KNOWLEDGE | PHOTOCOPIABLE | COPYRIGHT PEARSON EDUCATION LTD 2012