1. What is the target of language?

Pedagogic precepts: communicative competence models, competence components, knowledge/ ability, language
proficiency (Kumaravadivelu, 2006)
 Communicative competence (Hymes, 1972)
- The notion of native speaker’s ideal competence is vague and unusable.
- Hume proposed the term of CC, meaning performance situated in concrete social situations.
- CC was first defined as “the tacit knowledge of a language and (ability for) use”
-This ability is the sociolinguistic competence (language use involves SPEAKING: setting, participants, ends
(goals), act (utterances), key/ manner, instrumentalities (channel/ code), norms, genre.
 Expanded communicative competence (Canale & Swain, l980)
- Grammatical competence: knowledge of the lexical items and rules of morphology, syntax, sentence-grammar
semantics, and phonology
- Sociolinguistic competence: knowledge of how utterances are produced and understood appropriately in various
sociolinguistic contexts depending on contextual factors: status, purposes, norms
- Discourse competence: knowing how to combine sentences or utterances to achieve a cohesive and coherent
text.
- Strategic competence: knowledge of verbal and non-verbal communication strategies that are called upon to
handle communication breakdown.
 Communicative language ability (Bachman, 1990)
- Organizational competence: grammatical competence and textual competence
- Pragmatic competence: illocutionary competence and sociolinguistic competence
 Components of language ability/ knowledge
- Avoid the ambiguity of the term “competence”
- Knowledge/ ability means they are inseparable
- Linguistic knowledge/ ability
+ knowledge/ ability of phonological, morphological, semantic and syntactic features of a language.
+ implicit and explicit knowledge and control of the language
- Pragmatic knowledge/ ability
 Language proficiency
- Proficiency means: “The capacity to use the language with maximum attention to communication and minimum
attention to form and the creativity of language use.” (Stern, 1983, p. 346)
 Two approaches to language teaching (Wilkins, 1976)
- Synthetic approach: language is broken into pieces to be taught and learners assemble them into whole in
communication
- Analytical approach: rules are drawn out through communication in real life stimulation
=> Comments: + language is both rule-governed and creative
+ language teaching must consider both regularities, patterns, structures, and the possibility of
using the regularities in novel ways.
+ without analysis, a language is too massive to be studied scientifically or learnt practically
without synthesis, we are left with pieces which are not very serviceable for ... language learning
Conclusion:
- Language teaching should take account of language as a whole: a form-meaning system, discourse in
communication in sociolinguistic and cultural contexts.
- The goal of teaching a second language is ultimately to develop the knowledge of the target language and ability
to use it accurately and appropriately in coherent discourse.
2. What is the nature of language and language learning?
 Learning generally means
- An establishment or change in behavior
- Acquiring, retaining and storing information in memory which is retrieved for use later
- Constructing and reconstructing understanding/ meaning of new information (based on prior knowledge)
 What does the learning process involve?
- Sensory perception (hear, see, ...)
- Memorizing, recalling, forgetting (memory)
- Practice and reinforced practice
- Learning styles and strategies
- Experiencing and acting upon things
- Emotions and feelings
- Prior knowledge
 Teaching means
- Transmiting/ imparting/ passing on knowledge
- Guiding and facilitating the learning process
- Setting conditions for learning to occur
- Training learners how to learn skills
A learning theory (Brown, 2007)
  Information Processing Models

Information Processing Theory

Throughout much of the 1950s psychologists involved in the Information Processing movement began to view the
brain as a neural computer that processes information with extraordinary efficiency and excellent performance in
problem solving and critical thinking, through a process increasingly enhanced over time.The idea of Information
Processing lies within Cognitive Psychology - I highly encourage you to check Cognitive Load Theory and
Instructional Design - and as a theory combines multiple theoretical perspectives that mainly seek to explain
human learning as the development of networked memory structures.

The 3 Main Functions of Information Processing

The Information Processing Model consists of three key functions:

1. Sensory memory
2. Working memory
3. Long-term memory
Sensory memory helps people screen incoming information. Working memory helps people manage and store
larger chunks of information, and perform visual-spatial mental operations. Long-term memory serves as a
permanent repository, holding all sorts of information that can be accessed at a later time, enabling humans to
continually build upon their knowledge base.

The 3 Principles of the Information Processing Theory

The Information Processing Theory and Instructional Model rely on three key principles:
 1. The information provided by our environment is constantly processed by a complex series of systems.
2. The processing systems modify the information we gather in “systematic” ways.
3. The primary goal of research tasks that delve into information processing is to determine which
processes and brain structures are behind cognitive performance.

Applications of Information Processing in Learning

In a learning environment, there are a number of ways in which Information Processing can be applied. In a
classroom setting, learners are continually learning and utilizing memory processes in order to store the
information being provided by the instructor. They are also actively retrieving the information required for the
lesson. From an instructor’s standpoint, Information Processing is used to help learners to further enhance their
respective skills and understand the curriculum presented.A great way for teachers and instructors to practice the
information processing skills of their learners is to test their focusing, information gathering, remembering, and
organizing skills.

 Focusing skills involve the determination of a situation and the establishment of the appropriate ways
to address it.
 Information gathering skills involve the collection of information around the situation and the
formulation of questions that will clarify it.
 Remembering skills involve encoding and recalling, which are both directly linked to mnemonics.
 Organizing skills include comparisons, categorization, sequencing and visual, verbal or symbolic
representations.

- Short-term memory/ working memory: temporary storage with a limited capacity (about 7 items of information
at a time)
- Long-term memory: unlimited and permanent storage of life experience, information/ knowledge, and
procedures; helps us to recall/ retrieve information for use; rehearsal and elaboratioin (connecting new info with
sth existing in the memory increases the possibility of remembering it)
Levels of processing model (Lockart and Craik, 1990)
- Explains the depth of information processing and how it affects recall ability
- Deep processing involves attending, fully analyzing, associating new information with existing knowledge
- Surface processing: information is not fully attended and analysed
- Processing levels depend on task, information types, time, its meaning for learners
Connectionist model (McLelland and Rumelhart, 1986)
- Information is stored in different locations in the brain, forming networks of connections
Why and how learners forget?
- Forgetting in short-term memory is due to attention, limited capacity, lack of motivaiton and memory skills.
- Forgetting in long term memory is due to interferences between memories, making it difficult to retrieve old
ones.
 Cue dependence: one piece of information cues another (Nutshall, 2000) => no right cues, not being able
to recall
- Successful learning depends on the speed of operation and the memory capacity
- The working memory acts as the central processor which controls the information processing
- Tasks which require learners to make conscious effort and use strategies fit the information processing models
(Meadows, 1993)
- Memory strategies can be taught based on principles of memory
=> What conditions are required for cognitive learning?
- Attention and noticing
- Conscious effort to understand and commit information to memory
- Repeat/ rehearsal/ re-encounter
Metacognition
- Cognition about one’s own cognitive processes (Flawell, Miller & Miller, 1993)
- Ability to monitor, control, and organize our mental activities
- Known as an executive control to monitor and self-regulate thinking
 Implications
- Teaching involves training thinking skills/ strategies
- Metacognitive strategies are necessary for leanring
- Self-regulated learners can learn consciouly and use strategies on their own
 Characteristics of self-regulated learners
- Analyse the task and interpret task requirement
- Set task-specific goals that aid successful task completion
- Self-monitor progress and provide “self-feedback”
- Adjust strategies and goals throughout the process
- Use self-motivated strategies to ensure task completion (Krause, Bochner & Duchnesne, 2007, p.169)
 Some pedagogical principles and instructional strategies of Information Processing Model
- Principle: Teach memory strategies (classifying, elaboration, mnemonic devices to associate info wih
meaningful images/ contexts)
 Constructivist theory of learning
- Sensorimotor => Preoperational => Concrete Operational => Formal operational (Child cognition stages,
Piaget)
+ To Piaget:
- Learning depends on biological stages/ readiness of the child.
- As growing up, the child develops complex cognitive structures, or schemas.
- The child links new information to the previously known to construct understanding.
- Interaction with the development triggers this development
Constructive processes
- Assimilation: taking in new information and integrating it into existing knowledge.
- Accomodation: change the pre-existing cognitive schemas to allow the new info to fit in.
- Equilibration: the state of having no cognitive conflicts (how cognitive conflicts occur: happy with current
knowledge => aware of the shortcomings of thinking => sophisticated situations
Social constructivism
- Piaget emphasizes the individual’s active role in constructing knowledge.
- Vygotsky (1978): a sociocultural approach to cognitive development
 Zone of proximal development
- “the level of potential development as determined through problem solving under guidance or in collaboration
with more capable peers.”
  Difference from Piaget
- Social interaction/ environment/ culture is essential to the child’s cognitive development
- Learning is guided and scaffold
- Language and thought are initially separated, and merged around 3 years-old, called “inner speech”
- Cognitive development is determined by values, beliefs, and cultural tools (e.g. mind maps, writing)
- Langugae functions as a cultural tool mediating cognitive development
 Social learning theory/ social cognitive theory
- Albert Bandura (1977)
 Situated learning theory
- Lave and Wenger (1991)
- Known as the “apprenticeship model”
- Learning occurs in social situations where 2 or more people interact in various ways
- Demonstration and instruction followed by practice
 Principles of constructive learning
- Learning is an active process of constructing knowledge
- Individuals internally construct their own understanding in a social and cultural context
- Learners may differ in understanding level
- Social interaction is essential for effective learning
- Learning by doing is central in practice
 What conditions are needed
- Learner’s prior knowledge
- Learner’s cognitive ability/ readiness
- Learner’s active participation
- Opportunity for social interaction
- Support from more capable persons
  Humanist view of learning
- Personal values and self-concept are considered
- The learner is not just a biological,mental, but also a social and emotional being
- The child’s needs are central

- Children who are statisfied with the first 3 levels can deal with challenges (e.g. frustration)
- This increases their self-esteem based on others’ approval, awareness of personal success, and an intrinsic
motivation.
 Principles
- Self-direction, autonomy and intrinsic motivation facilitate learning rather than the teacher’s control and
imposition
- Autonomous learning involves the following process
Want to learn => decide to learn => plan to learn => find effective ways to learn => do => evaluate
learning => adjust learning
 The language learning process
Observation 1: Exposure to input is necessary for SLA
The language input learners are exposed to for meaning is not sufficient to cause acquisition
Observation 2: A good deal of SLA happens accidentally
Linguistic features enter learners’s minds when they are engaged in communicative interaction.
Observation 3: Learners come to know more than what they have been exposed to in the input
Learners come to know unconsciously about L2 (e.g. what is grammatical/ ungrammatical)
Observation 4: Learners’ output often follows a predictable path with predictable stages in the acquisition of a
given structure.
No want that => he no want that => he can’t/ don’t/ not want that => he can’t do that/ he doesn’t want that
Observation 5: L2 learning is variable in its outcome
Learners achieve different levels of ability or comprehension
Observation 6: L2 learning is variable across linguistic subsystems
Learners may vary in their learning of pronunciation, syntax, lexicon, or pragmatic
Observation 7: There are limits on the effect of frequency on SLA
Very frequent feature may take a longer time to be acquired than a less frequent one (e.g. article “the”)
Observation 8: There are limits on the effect of first language on SLA
L1 effects vary across learners and are selective
Obsevation 9: There are limits on the effect of L2 instruction on SLA
Instruction does not change developmental sequences or acquisition orders
 Klapper’s (2006) comments
- L2 learning is similar to L1 acquisition in stage development, systematicity, and variability
- For L2 learners, their L1 parameters have been set
- This pre-setting automatically influences their FL learning
- They have to reset them where the L1 parameters conflict with the FL
- UG focuses on linguistic competence, rather than performance
- UG ignores psychological and social aspects of language learning
- UG is a model of language competence
 Krashen’s model of L2 acquistion
- It is based on 5 hypothesis
 Acquisition/ learning theory
 Monitor hypothesis
 The natural order hypothesis
 The input hypothesis
 The affective filter hypothesis
 Attention processing model (McLaughlin)
- The model explains how a new skill/ piece of information is processed in terms of kinds of attention and
processing

- Controlled processing is capacity limited and temporary

- Automatic processing: the skill/ informaiton is manageable, fast, effortless and subsconscious; simultaneous.
 *Notes
- Every performing act occurs with peripheral and focal attention (e.g. playing a piano, driving a car)
- Whether meaning or formal aspects of language are focally or peripherally attended to depends on the user
Noticing any aspect/ item of language => practicing the aspect/ item => becoming automatically retrieved =>
paying attentio to new aspects.
=> Second language leanring is seen as a process of skill building, starting from learning “what”, and
gradually turn into “how” to do something.
 Interaction hypothesis (Long, 1990)
- Interaction -> Input modification (i.e. modified speech) -> noticing linguistic point-> acquire knowledge
 Functions of interaction
- Negotiation for meaning, and especially negotiation work that triggers interactional adjustments by the native
speaker or more competent interlocutors, facilitates acquisition b/c it connects input, internal learner capacities,
particularly selective attention, and output in productive ways.
 Output hypothesis
- Comprehensible output or pushed output: Learners are pushed to produce language in ways that make
themselves understood (e.g. modify utterances, try out new format)
- Learners need to be “pushed toward delivery of a message that is not only conveyed, but htat is conveyed
precisely, coherently, and appropriately:
 Functions of output in SLA
- Testing hypothesis
- Developing automaticity (fluency) in interlanguage production
- Receiving crucial feedback to verify these hypothesis
- Forcing a shift from meaning-based processing of L2 to syntactic processin