Chapter 4 Input, interaction, and SLA

1、Lead-in questions: 1. How does a mother speak to her baby? What are the features of mothers language to their children (motherese)? 2. Is the discourse in which learners participate different from the discourse native speakers are engaged in? 3. What are the criteria for effective teacher talk in cl

2、assroom? 4. What do you think is the role of output (learners production) in SLA?Outline4.1 Some notions4.2 Three views on input in language acquisition4.3 Modified input 4.3.1 “Motherese” and L1 acquisition 4.3.2 Foreigner talk (natural settings) 4.3.3 Teacher talk (classroom settings)4.4 Three inf

3、luential theories 4.4.1 The Input Hypothesis 4.4.2 The Interaction Hypotheis 4.4.3 The Output Hypothesis4.1 Some notions Input: the language that is addressed to the L2 learner either by native speaker or by another L2 learner. Intake: that portion of the L2 which is assimilated and fed into the int

4、erlanguage system. Corder (1967) distinguished between Input and Intake Input is what is available to learners Intake is what is internalized by learners Interaction: the discourse jointly constructed by learner and his interlocutors.4.2 Three views on input in language acquisition Behaviourist acco

5、unts Nativist accounts Interactionist viewBehaviourist accounts (p. 128) Behaviourist accounts ignore the internal processing that takes place inside the learner. Input comprises the language made available to the learner in the form of stimuli and feedback. With stimuli, the person speaking to the

6、learner models specific linguistic forms and patterns which the learner internalizes by imitating them. Feedback takes the form of positive reinforcement or correction. Without input, learning cannot occurNativist accounts Nativist accounts emphasize the importance of the learners “black box”. Altho

7、ugh input is still seen as essential for SLA, it is seen as only a “trigger” that activates the internal mechanism. (poverty-of-stimulus) Learners have internal systems that construct language in a particular order, regardless of the inputInteractionist view Interactionist treats the acquisition of

8、language as the result of an interaction between the learners processing mental abilities and the linguistic environment. The learners processing mechanisms both determine and are determined by the nature of the input. The interaction between external and internal factors is manifest in the actual v

9、erbal interactions in which the learner and his interlocutor participate. Language development is the result both of input factors and of innate mechanisms4.3 Modified input Motherese and L1 acquisition Foreigner talk (natural settings) Teacher talk (classroom settings)Motherese and L1 acquisition T

10、he nature of motherese Sachs (1977) shows that mothers tune the pitch, intonation and rhythm to the perceptive sensitivity of the child. These adjustments are considered to constitute a special use of language or register, known as motherese. The functions of motherese Ferguson (1977) suggests that

11、there are three main functions: (1) an aid to communication (2) a language teaching aid (3) a socialization function (Mothers pay little attention to the formal correctness of their childrens speech, but instead attend to the social appropriateness of their utterances.) The basis of adjustments made

12、 by mothers Gleason and Weitraub (1978) suggest that parents have a general idea of their childrens linguistic ability, particularly their ability to understand. Parents may internalize a model of a typical child of a given age and then adjust their speech upwards and downwards on the basis of feedb

13、ack from an individual child. Of crucial importance, is the extent to which the child comprehends what is said to him and the extent to which he signals his comprehension or lack of comprehension to his caretaker. The effects of motherese Little is known about the relationship between motherese and

14、the route of development. But there is much stronger evidence for an effect on the rate of acquisition.Foreigner talk (Input/interaction in natural settings) Just as mothers modify the way they speak to children learning their L1, native speakers modify their speech when communicating with learners.

15、 These modifications are evident in both input and interaction. Input modifications have been investigated through the study of foreigner talk, the language that native speakers use when addressing non-native speakers. Two types of foreigner talk can be identified-ungrammatical & grammatical. Un

16、grammatical foreigner talk Ungrammatical foreigner talk is socially marked. It implies a lack of respect on the part of the native speaker and can be resented by learners. Ungrammatical foreigner talk is characterized by the deletion of certain grammatical features such as copula be, modal verbs and

17、 articles, the use of base form of the verb in place of the past tense form, and the use of special constructions such as “no+verb”. Grammatical foreigner talk Grammatical foreigner talk is the norm. Various types of modification of baseline talk (i.e. the kind of talk native speakers address to oth

18、er native speakers) can be identified. First, grammatical foreigner talk is delivered at a slower pace. Second, the input is simplified. Features and examples of foreigner talk ( p. 135-136) Explaining foreigner talk Explanations of how native speakers are able to adjust their speech include: (1) Re

19、gression (the native speaker unconsciously moves back through the stages of development that characterized his own acquisition of the language until he reaches an appropriate level for the person he is addressing) (2) Matching (the native speaker assesses the learners language system and then imitat

20、es the language forms he identifies in it) (3) Negotiation (the native speaker simplifies and clarifies in accordance with the feedback that obtains from the learner)The most convincingThe negotiation of meaning An outstanding characteristic involving L2 learner and native speaker together struggle

21、to overcome the communicative difficulties which are always likely to arise as a result of the learners limited L2 resources. This is known as the negotiation of meaning.Negotiation techniques Confirmation checks Comprehension checks Clarification request Repetitions etc. (Examples are shown on p.13

22、6)Teacher talk (input/interaction in classroom settings) Teacher talk The language that teachers address to L2 learners is treated as a register, with its own specific formal and interactional properties. In general, ungrammatical speech modifications do not occur. Interactional adjustments occur. F

23、ormal adjustments occur at all language levels. Discourse analysis Discourse analysis serves as a device for systematically describing the kinds of interactions that occur in language classrooms. Discourse analysts give attention not only to the function of individual utterances but also to how thes

24、e utterances combine to form larger discoursal units. They aim to account for the joint contributions of teacher and students and to describe all the data. The analysis of classroom discourse has focused on one particular type- the three-phase discourse which is prevalent in teacher-centred classroo

25、ms. E.g.T: Is the clock on the wall? InitiatesP: Yes, the clock is on the wall. RespondsT: Good. Feedback Mctear (1975) has shown that the IRF structure is often modified. For instance, he notes that an optional pupil response occurs after the teachers feedback move. This produces the modified struc

26、ture IRF(R):T: what do you do every morning? InitiatesP: I clean my teeth. ResponseT: You clean your teeth every morning. FeedbackP: I clean my teeth every morning. Response4.4 Three influential theoriesThe Input HypothesisBy KrashenThe Interaction HypothesisBy LongThe Output HypothesisBy SwainThe I

27、nput hypothesis According to Stephen Krashens input hypothesis, L2 acquisition takes place when a learner understands input that contains grammatical forms that are at “i+1” (i.e. are a little more advanced than the current state of the learners interlanguage). Krashen suggests that the right level

28、of input is attained automatically when interlocutors succeed in making themselves understood in communication. Success is achieved by using the situational context to make messages clear and through the kinds of input modifications found in foreigner talk. According to Krashen, L2 acquisition depen

29、ds on comprehensible input.语言输入假说 Krashen把当前的语言知识状态定义为i，把语言发展的下一阶段定义为i+1。这里的1就是当前语言知识与下一阶段语言知识之间的距离。 只有当学习者接触到属于i+1水平的语言材料，才能对学习者的语言发展产生积极的作用。如果语言材料中仅仅包含学习者已经掌握的知识或者语言材料太难，对语言习得都没有意义。 语言输入的作用就是激活大脑中的习得机制，而激活的条件就是恰当的可理解的语言输入。 可见，可理解语言输入是习得语言的关键，教师的最大职责就是让学生接受尽可能多的可理解的语料。 理想输入的必备条件 (implications on la

30、nguage teaching) 1）可理解性 （ comprehensibility）理解输入的语言材料是语言习得的必要条件，不可理解的（ incomprehensible ） 输入对于习得者而言，只是一种噪音。 2）既有趣又有关 （ interesting and relevant ） 要使语言输入对语言的习得有利，必须对它的意义进行加工，输入的语言材料越有趣、越关联，学习者就会在不知不觉中习得语言。 3）非语法程序安排 （ not grammatically sequenced ） 语言习得关键是足量的可理解的输入。如果目的是“习得”而不是“学得”，按语法程序安排的教学不仅不必要，而且不

31、可取。 4）要有足够的输入量 要习得新的语言结构，仅仅靠几道练习题、几篇短文是不够的，它需要连续不断地有内容有趣味的广泛阅读和大量的会话才能奏效。 Michael Long interaction hypothesis also emphasizes the importance of comprehensible input but claims that it is most effective when it is modified through the negotiation of meaning.The Interaction hypothesis Long 提出了互动假设 ( I

32、nteractive Hypothesis), 认为可理解输入是习得之必需; 在协商解决交际问题的过程中出现的对交谈的互动结构的调整有助于使输入为学习者所理解。 Negotiation of meaning provides opportunities for (1) provision of comprehensible input and (2) production of modified input This is necessary for L2 learning as it creates a favourable context for negotiation of meanin

33、g (Ellis 2000) In the interactionist literature, research has found that learners test hypotheses about the target language and modify their output in response to clarification or confirmation requests by their interlocutors.Criticisms of the Interaction Hypothesis Comprehension does not have to do

34、with the difficulty level of the incoming materials. Negotiation of meaning when trouble occurs does not necessarily help the processing of input. (Avoidance) Mostly focused on CI, not interaction Ignore the output practiceThe Output Hypothesis Merrill Swain has argued that comprehensible output also plays in L2 acquisition. L2 output may trigger certain cognitive processes necessary for second language learning. Output Hypothesis stress language learners ”noticing” the gaps in thei