SLA quiz

SLA stands for:

• Super Language Acquisition

• Second Language Acquisition

• Second Language Admiration

• Spaghetti Language Acquisition

1. Which of these statements does not apply to Behaviorism?

• Children are born with a

  language acquisition device

• Learning is understood in terms

   of habit formation (imitation,

  repetition, practice, reinforcement)

• Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis has been

  criticised as many mistakes in the L2 cannot

  be explained based on the mother tongue

• Behaviorism was a prominent theory of

  language learning from the 1930 to the

  1960s with B. F. Skinner as a central

  representative

Answer explanation

LAD (Language Acquisition Device) is one of the main points of the Cognitive Tradition (The Linguistic Approach). "People are born with a special acquisition device. It allows children to produce language that is consistent with the rules of Universal Grammar (UG)" (Kirsch 37:2008).

Identify the incorrect statement with regard to the Cognitive Tradition

• All languages share common

  features (principles). Parameters

  distinguish languages from each other

• Chomsky’s Theory has been criticised

  for ignoring needs and attitudes of

  individual learners

• Language learning = active and

  creative process of analysing

  language and inferring

  rules supported by the LAD

• Children learn language

  through copying

Answer explanation

Chomsky: "Children do not learn language through copying, but rather they analyze the language they hear and infer rules and apply them to produce new language" (Kirsch 36:2008).

Stephen Krashen developed the The Input Hypothesis. He belived that grammar should be taught explicitly.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

Krashen: All learners need in order to acquire a new language is optimal input, input that is comprehensible, relevant and interesting (Kirsch 42:2008).

Which statement does not apply to the affective filter?

• It is an emotional barrier

  that can affect learning

• You can lower a learner‘s affective

  filter by creating a relaxed learning

  atmosphere

• If someone’s filter is low, the input

  will not reach the LAD

• If someone’s filter is high, the input

  will not reach the LAD

What is meant by the Zone of Proximal Development?

• Part of the lesson which focuses

  on imitation and repetition

• The difference between the functions

   individuals can carry out by themselves

  and those they carry out with the help of

  an expert

• Area in the brain where language

  learning takes place

• Current proficiency in a

  foreign language

Which one of these is a scaffolding technique?

• Point out what is important

• Model other ways of doing the task

• Simplify the task by

  breaking it down into smaller steps

• All of them

Answer explanation

In the example provided by Kirsch (2008), the mother scaffolds the puzzle activity for the child and is able control his frustration.

Name one technique for giving feedback/correcting mistakes

Children are motivated to learn a foreign language because they want to master a particular form.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

Learning a language is not primarily motivated by wanting to master a particular form correctly but to communicate personal meanings (Legutke, Müller-Hartmann, Schocker-v.Ditfurth 2009)

How would you describe children as language learners?