二语习得复习汇总.doc

A General Review. Short & Long answers1. what is the difference between monolingual and multilingual communicative competence?Differencese between monolingual and multilingual communicative competence are due in part to the different social functions of first and second language learning, and to the differences between learning language and learning culture.The differences of the competence between native speakers and nonative speakers include structural differences in the linguisitc system, different rules for usage in writing or conversation, and even somewhat divergent meanings for the “same” lexical forms. Further, a multilingual speakers total communicative competence differs from that of a monolingual in including knowledge of rules for the appropriate choice of language and for switching between languages, given a particular social context and communicative purpose.2. what are the microsocial factors that affect SLA? a) L2 variation   b) input and interaction    c) interaction as the genesis of language3. What is the difference between linguistic competence & communicative competence (CC)?Linguistic competence- It was defined in 1965 by Chomsky as a speaker's underlying ability to produce grammatically correct expressions. Linguistic competence refers to knowledge of language. Theoretical linguistics primarily studies linguistic competence: knowledge of a language possessed by “an ideal speak-listener”. Communicative competence- It is a term in linguistics which refers to “what a speaker needs to know to communicate appropriately within a particular language community”, such as a language user's grammatical knowledge of syntax , morphology , phonology and the like, as well as social knowledge about how and when to use utterances appropriately.4. Why is CC in L1 different from L2? L1 learning for children is an integral part of their sociolization into their native language community. L2 learning may be part of second culture learning and adaptation, but the relationship of SLA to social and cultural learning differs greatly with circumstances.5. What is Accommodation Theory? How does this explain L2 variation?Accommodation theory: Speakers (usually unconsciously) change their pronunciation and even the grammatical complexity of sentences they use to sound more like whomever they are talking to. This accounts in part for why native speakers tend to simply their language when they are talking to a L2 learner who is not fluent, and why L2 learners may acquire somewhat different varieties of the target language when they have different friends. 6. Discuss the importance of input & interaction for L2 learning. How could this affect the feedback provided to students? . a) From the perspective of linguistic approaches: (1) behaviorist: they consider input to form the necessary stimuli and feedback which learners respond to and imitate; (2) Universal Grammar: they consider exposure to input a necessary trigger for activating internal mechanisms; (3) Monitor Model: consider comprehensible input not only necessary but sufficient in itself to account for SLA;b) From the perspective of psychological approaches: (1) IP framework: consider input which is attended to as essential data for all stages of language processing; (2) connectionist framework: consider the quantity or frequency of input structures to largely determine acquisitional sequencing; c) From the perspective of social approaches: interaction is generally seen as essential in providing learners with the quantity and quality of external linguistic input which is required for internal processing. Other types of interaction which can enhance SLA include feedback from NSs which makes NNs aware that their usage is not acceptable in some way, and which provides a model for “correctness”. While children rarely receive such negative evidence in L1, and dont require it to achieve full native competence, corrective feedback is common in L2 and may indeed be necessary for most learners to ultimately reach native-like levels of proficiency when that is the desired goal. 7. Explain ZPD. How would scaffolding put a student in ZPD?Zone of Proximal Development, this is an area of potential development, where the learner can achieve that potential only with assistance. Mental functions that are beyond an individual's current level must be performed in collaboration with other people before they are achieved independently. One way in which others help the learner in language development within the ZPD is through scaffolding. Scaffolding refers to verbal guidance which an expert provides to help a learner perform any specific task, or the verbal collaboration of peers to perform a task which would be too difficult for any one of them individually. It is not something that happens to learners as a passive recipient, but happens with a learner as an active participant.8. Explain why some learners are more successful than others from the perspective of S-C theory?The S-C framework supports the view that some learners may be more successful than others because of their level of access to or participation in a learning community, or because of the amount of mediation they receive from experts or peers, and because of how well they make use of that help.9. What are the macrosocial factors that influence SLA?(1) Global and national status of L1 and L2 (2)Boundaries and identities(3) Institutional forces and constraints (4)Social categories (5)Circumstances of learning10. What are the advantages of young learners and old learners respectively?Young L2 learners are more likely to acquire the language in a naturalistic setting; they are more likely to use the L2 in highly contextualized face-to-face situation. Older learners succeed in SLA to the level of being able to “pass” for a native speaker when social motivation is strong enough.11. What are the similarities and differences between linguists, psycholinguist, sociolinguists and social psycholinguists? （1） Linguists emphasize the characteristics of the differences and similarities in the languages that are being learned, and the linguistic competence (underlying knowledge) and linguistic performance (actual production) of learners at various stages of acquisition.（2）Psychologists and psycholinguists emphasize the mental or cognitive processes involved in acquisition, and the representation of languages in the brain.（3）Sociolinguists emphasize variability in learner linguistic performance, and extend the scope of study to communicative competence (underlying knowledge that additionally accounts for language use, or pragmatic competence).（4）Social psychologists emphasize group-related phenomena, such as identity and social motivation, and the interactional and larger social contexts of learning. 12. What are the differences between second language, foreign language, library language and auxiliary language? （1）A second language is typically an official or societally dominant language needed for education, employment, and other basic purposes. It is often acquired by minority group members or immigrants who speak another language natively. In this more restricted sense, the term is contrasted with other terms in this list.（2）A foreign language is one not widely used in the learners' immediate social context which might be used for future travel or other cross-cultural communication situations, or studied as a curricular requirement or elective in school, but with no immediate or necessary practical application.  （3）A library language is one which functions primarily as a tool for future learning through reading, especially when books or journals in a desired field of study are not commonly published in the learners' native tongue.（4）An auxiliary language is one which learners need to know for some official functions in their immediate political setting, or will need for purposes of wider communication, although their first language serves most other needs in their lives. 13. Why are some learners more (or less) successful than others? The intriguing question of why some L2 learners are more successful than others requires us to unpack the broad label “learners” for some dimensions of discussion. Linguistics may distinguish categories of learners defined by the identity and relationship of their L1 and L2; psycholinguists may make distinctions based on individual aptitude for L2 learning, personality factors, types and strength of motivation, and different learning strategies; sociolinguists may distinguish among learners with regard to social, economic, and political differences and learner experiences in negotiated interaction; and social psychologists may categorize learners according to aspects of their group identity and attitudes toward target language speakers or toward L2 learning itself.14. List at least five possible motivations for learning a second language at an older age. The motivation may arise from a variety of conditions, including the following:l Invasion or conquest of ones country by speakers of another language;l A need or desire to contact speakers of other languages in economic or other specific domains;l Immigration to a country where use of a language other than one's L1 is required;l Adoption of religious beliefs and practices which involve use of another language;l A need or desire to pursue educational experiences where access requires proficiency in another language;l A desire for occupational or social advancement which is furthered by knowledge of another language;l An interest in knowing more about peoples of other cultures and having access to their technologies or literatures.15. What are the two main factors that influence the language learning? （1）The role of natural ability: Humans are born with a natural ability or innate capacity to learn language.（2）The role of social experience: Not all of L1 acquisition can be attributed to innate ability, for language-specific learning also plays a crucial role. Even if the universal properties of language are preprogrammed in children, they must learn all of those features which distinguish their L1 from all other possible human languages. Children will never acquire such language-specific knowledge unless that language is used with them and around them, and they will learn to use only the language(s) used around them, no matter what their linguistic heritage. American-born children of Korean or Greek ancestry will never learn the language of their grandparents if only English surrounds them, for instance, and they will find their ancestral language just as hard to learn as any other English speakers do if they attempt to learn it as an adult. Appropriate social experience, including L1 input and interaction, is thus a necessary condition for acquisition.16. What is the initial state of language development for L1 and L2 respectively?The initial state of L1 learning is composed solely of an innate capacity for language acquisition which may or may not continue to be available for L2, or may be available only in some limited ways. The initial state for L2 learning, on the other hand, has resources of L1 competence, world knowledge, and established skills for interaction, which can be both an asset and an impediment.17. How does intermediate states process? The cross-linguistic influence, or transfer of prior knowledge from L1 to L2, is one of the processes that is involved in interlanguage development. Two major types of transfer which occur are: (1) positive transfer, when an L1 structure or rule is used in an L2 utterance and that use is appropriate or “correct” in the L2; and (2) negative transfer (or interference), when an L1 structure or rule is used in an L2 utterance and that use is inappropriate and considered an “error”.18. What is a necessary condition for language learning (L1 or L2)?Language input to the learner is absolutely necessary for either L1 or L2 learning to take place. Children additionally require interaction with other people for L1 learning to occur. It is possible for some individuals to reach a fairly high level of proficiency in L2 even if they have input only from such generally non-reciprocal sources as radio, television, or written text. 19. What is a facilitating condition for language learning? While L1 learning by children occurs without instruction, and while the rate of L1 development is not significantly influenced by correction of immature forms or by degree of motivation to speak, both rate and ultimate level of development in L2 can be facilitated or inhabited by many social and individual factors, such as (1) feedback, including correction of L2 learners' errors; (2) aptitude, including memory capacity and analytic ability; (3) motivation, or need and desire to learn; (4) instruction, or explicit teaching in school settings.20. Give at least 2 reasons that many scientists believe in some innate capacity for language. The notion that innate linguistic knowledge must underlie language acquisition was prominently espoused by Noam Chomsky. This view has been supported by arguments such as the following:(1) Childrens knowledge of language goes beyond what could be learned from the input they receive: Children often hear incomplete or ungrammatical utterances along with grammatical input, and yet they are somehow able to filter the language they hear so that the ungrammatical input is not incorporated into their L1 system. Further, children are commonly recipients of simplified input from adults, which does not include data for all of the complexities which are within their linguistic competence. In addition, children hear only a finite subset of possible grammatical sentences, and yet they are able to abstract general principles and constraints which allow them to interpret and produce an infinite number of sentences which they have never heard before.(2) Constraints and principles cannot be learned: Childrens access to general constraints and principles which govern language could account for the relatively short time it takes for the L1 grammar to emerge, and for the fact that it does so systematically and without any “wild” divergences. This could be so because innate principles lead children to organize the input they receive only in certain ways and not others. In addition to the lack of negative evidence , constraints and principles cannot be learnt in part because children acquire a first language at an age when such abstractions are beyond their comprehension; constraints and principles are thus outside the realm of learning process which are related to general intelligence.(3) Universal patterns of development cannot be explained by language-specific input: In spite of the surface differences in input, there are