Theories in

LANGUAGE
LEARNING/ACQUISITION
(Behaviorism)
 What’s the
difference
between
Acquisition &
Learning?
 SECOND LANGUAGE
LEARNING

❑ The process by which people

learn another language in
addition to their native
language.
 SECOND LANGUAGE
LEARNING

❑First language as (L1) whereas foreign

or second language is (L2).
 Foreign VS Second
language
❑ “Foreign Language” setting (learning a
language that is not generally spoken in
the surrounding community)

❑“Second Language” setting (learning a

language that is spoken in the
surrounding community).
 Foreign VS Second
language
Example :
Japanese students in an English class in
Japan are learning English as a foreign
language (EFL) but if those same students
were in an English class in USA, they would
be learning English as a second language
(ESL).
 1.
BEHAVIORIST
THEORY
What is Behaviorism?
❑ Behaviorism focuses on the
study of overt behaviors that
can be observed and measured.
❑ It views that mind is a “black
box” in the sense that response
to stimulus can be observed
quantitatively, ignoring the
possibility of cognitive.
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Key Figures

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 Ivan Pavlov
❑ He conducted a series of
experiments by training a
dog to salivate when
hearing a bell.

❑ It is known as Classical
Conditioning
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 Classical Conditioning

❑ Classic conditioning occurs

when a natural reflex
responds to a stimulus.

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“

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Classical Conditioning
❑ Consider a hungry dog who sees a
bowl of food.
Food ---> Salivation
❑ The dog is hungry, the dog sees
the food, the dog salivates.
❑ This is a natural sequence of
events, an unconscious,
uncontrolled, and unlearned
relationship. See the food, then
salivate. 16
Classical Conditioning
❑ When we present the food to the
hungry dog (and before the dog
salivates), we ring a bell. Thus,
· Bell with
· Food ---> Salivation

❑ We repeat this action (food and bell

given simultaneously) at several
meals. Every time the dog sees the
food, the dog also hears the bell.
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Classical Conditioning
❑ We ring the bell (Ding-
dong), but we don't show
any food.

❑ What does the dog do?

Bell ---> Salivate

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19
❑ The bell elicits the same
response the sight of the
food gets.
❑ Over repeated trials, the dog
has learned to associate the
bell with the food and now
the bell has the power to
produce the same response
as the food.
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B. F. (Burrhus Frederic) Skinner

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 Operant Conditioning
❑ Skinner was not satisfied that all
behavior was based on reflexes.
❑ He argued that we behave the way we
do because of the consequences
generated by our past behavior.

❑ For Skinner, it is the history

of reinforcements that determines
behavior. We learn to choose or avoid
behaviors based on their consequences.22
Operant Conditioning

❑ The behaviorists' basic mechanism

of learning is

stimulus => response => reinforcement

❑ Reinforcement is the key element

in Skinner's theory. 23
 Operant Conditioning
❑ A reinforcer is anything that strengthens the
desired response. It could be verbal praise, a
good grade or a feeling of increased
accomplishment or satisfaction.

❑ The theory also covers negative reinforcers -

- any stimulus that results in the increased
frequency of a response when it is
withdrawn. 24
25
 Application in
Language Learning

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In 1950s and 1960s, the learning
theory of Behaviorism underpinned
the used of Audiolingual Method
(ALM) on language teaching, with
three crucial learning elements:
1. Stimulus
2. Response
3. Reinforcement

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❑ The classroom
environment is
arranged with
mimicry,
memorization, and
pattern drills.

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❑ Behavioristic view of language
acquisition simply claims that
language development is the
result of a set of habits.

❑ This view has normally been

influenced by the general theory
of learning described by the
psychologist John B. Watson in
1923, and termed behaviorism.
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 Strengths of Behaviorism

◦ Clearly stated objectives

allow the learner to focus on
one goal.

◦ Cueing responses to
behavior allows the learner
to react in a predictable way
under certain conditions
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 Strengths of Behaviorism

◦ Behaviorism does not account for all

kinds of learning, since it disregards
the activities of the mind.

◦ Behaviorism does not explain some

learning--such as the recognition of
new language patterns by young
children--for which there is no
reinforcement mechanism.
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❑When language acquisition is taken into
consideration, the theory claims that
both L1 and L2 acquirers receive
linguistic input from speakers in their
environment, and positive
reinforcement for their correct
repetitions and imitations.

❑ As mentioned above, when language

learners’ responses are reinforced
positively, they acquire the language
relatively easily.
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THANKS!
Any questions?

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