Language, Learning, and teaching

Linguistics
• Linguistics is the scientific study of language. It is concerned with describing
the rule-governed structures of languages, determining the extent to which
these structures are universal or language-particular, positing constraints on
possible linguistic structures, and explaining why there is only a fairly narrow
range of possible human languages.
• Linguistics involves an analysis of language form, meaning, and language
context.
 Main Branches of Linguistics

• The work of linguistics falls into two main areas: Language structure and
language use.
• Linguists interested in language structure consider the formal properties of
language, including word structure (morphology), sentence structure
(syntax), speech sounds and the rules and patterns between them
(phonetics and phonology), and meaning in language (semantics and
pragmatics).
• Contd.
 Main Branches of Linguistics (contd.)
• Linguists also study the way that language is used, and this can cover a very
broad range of subjects, since language enters almost every area of human
activity.
• Examples include: psycholinguistics (the psychology of language acquisition
and use); historical linguistics and the history of languages; applied
linguistics (using linguistic knowledge to help in real-world situations like
language teaching); sociolinguistics, varieties of English, discourse analysis
and conversation analysis (language use in social contexts) and stylistics
(the use of different styles in language).
 Applied Linguistics

• Applied linguistics is an interdisciplinary field of study that identifies,

investigates, and offers solutions to language-related real life problems.
• Academic fields related to applied linguistics are education, linguistics,
psychology, anthropology, and sociology.
• Major branches: bilingualism and multibilingualism, conversation analysis
(CA), language assessment, discourse analysis, literacies, language
pedagogy, sociolinguistics, second language acquisition (SLA), language
planning and policies, pragmatics, translation, and others.
 Language, Learning, and teaching

-Learning a second language is a long and complex

undertaking.
-Language learning is not a set of easy steps that can be
programmed in a quick do-it-yourself kit.
 Current issues in Second Language
Acquisition (SLA)
• At the beginning of this chapter, a number of categories of questions
about L2 acquisition are described, with numerous specific questions in each
category (who, what, how, when, where and why).
• In small groups (3-4 participants), try to generate some possible answers to
selected questions.
• To personalize your responses, include examples from the learning
experiences of members of your group.
 What is Language?

• Language is a system of arbitrary conventionalized vocal, written, or

gestural symbols that enable members of a given community to
communicate intellibly with one another.
 Language

1. Language is systematic
2. Language is a set of arbitrary symbols.
3. Those symbols are primarily vocal, but may also be visual.
4. The symbols have conventionalized meaning to which they refer.
5. Language is used for communication.
6. Language operates in a speech community or culture.
7. Language is essentially human, although possibly not limited to humans.
8. Language is acquired by all people in much the same way; language and
language learning both have universal characteristics.
 Learning
1. Learning is acquisition or ¨getting¨.
2. Learning is retention of information or skill.
3. Retention implies storage systems, memory, cognitive organization.
4. Learning involves active, conscious focus on and acting upon events
outside or inside the organism.
5. Learning is relatively permanent but subject to forgetting.
6. Learning involves some form of practice, perhaps reinforced practice.
7. Learning is a change in behavior.
 Teaching
• Teaching is guiding and facilitating learning, enabling the learner to learn,
setting the conditions for learning.
• Teaching is showing or helping someone to learn how to do something,
giving instructions, guiding in the study of something, providing with
knowledge, causing to know or understand.
 Schools of Thought in Second Language
Acquisition (SLA)

•Structuralism/Behaviorism
•Rationalism & Cognitive Phychology
•Constructivism
 Structuralism/Behaviorism

• Also known as structural or descriptive and empiricist school

of linguistics
• Time frame: Early 1900s & 1940s & 1950s
• Advocates: Pavlov (Russian) and B. F. Skinner (American),
• plus Leonard Bloomfield, Edward Sapir, Charles Hockett,
Charles Fries, and others.
 Characteristics of Structuralism/Behaviorism

• The linguist´s task, according to the structuralist, was to describe

human languages and to identify the structural characteristics of
those languages.
• The behaviorists also focused on publicly observable responses.
• This school focuses on the observable behavior, so they only
describe the language, but they do not explain how an individual
acquires the language. They only analize the observable data, the
WHAT? (Ex. what the child says)
Characteristics of Structuralism/Behaviorism
(Cont´d)

• They take into account the scientific method and the surface structure of
the language, NOT the deep structure.
• Surface structure (what can be really seen or heard). Miguel, 19
• Deep structure (What the brains conceives). My name is Miguel. I’m 19 years
old. (I have 19 years old)
 Characteristics of Structuralism/Behaviorism
(cont’d)
• Behaviorist learning theories describe and explain behaviors
using an Stimulus-Response (S-R ) model. Pavlov’s classical
conditioning: A connection is established between a stimulus
(S) and the organism’s response (R) to the stimulus.

• B. F. Skinner: (operant conditioning) for him, there is no need

for an stimulus to get a response. An individual can make
something happen in his or her environment. (Ex. Baby’s milk,
cry, mother finds out why) (the kid doesn’t need to see the milk
to produce a stimulus).
 Rationalism & Cognitive Phychology

• Also known as generative-transformational school of linguistics

• Time frame: 1960s & 1970s
• Advocate: Noam Chomsky
 Characteristics of Rationalism & Cognitive
Phychology
• This school takes into consideration the cognitive or mental processes that
are produced in order to get to a determined response or answer.
• They not only described languages, but they also wanted to arrive at an
explanatory level of adequacy in the study of language. They are not only
interested in the what, but also in the why: (the cognitive processes, those
interneural connections necessary to have the neuronal sinergy that needs
to occur (in the brain) in order to produce a response).
• For the rationalist linguist the child is preprogrammed for acquiring
language (Language Adquisition Device-LAD) because universal grammar
(UG) is innate.
 Characteristics of Rationalism & Cognitive
Phychology (cont’d)
• They believe the SLA process can be better understood by first
understanding how the human brain processes and learns new information.
• They were interested in both performance & competence (Chomsky) or
what is also known as Parole & Langue (Ferdinand de Saussure).
• Performance: is the actual use and realization of language. What you do,
when you walk, speak, dance, write, etc. What can be seen.
• Competence: is the person’s underlying and unobservable language ability
(the person’s knowledge of his language).
 Constructivism
• Time frame: 1980s, 1990s & early 2000
• Advocates: Jean Piaget & Lev Vygotsky
• Characteristics:
• All human beings construct their own version of reality. The person
interprets, constructs their own knowledge from the reality surounding
him/her.
• This school also focuses on “individual engaged in social practices”,
collaborate group, and global community.
• Social aspects through interaction. In order for an individual to construct
their knowledge there has to be interaction.
 Conclusion

• All three positions must be seen as important in creating balanced

despcriptions of human linguistic behaviour.
• No single theory or paradigm is right or wrong. It is impossible to refute
with any finality one theory with another. Some truth can be found in
virtually every theory.