Assignment 3

 Choose one “popular idea” about language learning that you find especially
important.
 Do you agree or disagree with it?
 Identify and discuss how one or more of the research studies you have read about in
this course can support your opinion.
 Read Chapter 7 in Lightbown and Spada to get an idea on how to complete this
assignment.
“Highly intelligent people are good language learners”

Intelligence refers to the capability of cognitive process. It is measured through an IQ Test.

The test mainly measures one’s intelligence through multiple-choice questions, focusing on
various skills such as mathematical understanding, visual skills, verbal skills and short-term
memory.

Intelligence Quotient might be a good predictor for success in academic performance.

However, this is not the truth in the case of language learning. It is the case that intelligent
leaners are capable of learning about the knowledge about a language. They can easily
obtain knowledge about the rules, lexical units and discourse. In 1976, Fred Genesee
conducted a study with students in French immersion programs in Canada. The finding was
that intelligent learners perform well in reading, grammar and vocabulary. There was no
significant correlation between intelligence and speaking skills.

Intelligence can be used to predict one’s ability of analysis of rules. Nevertheless, learning a
language is a complex and dynamic process that involves oral production skills. Therefore,
the classroom instruction focuses more on communication and interaction between learners,
where students learn cooperatively and are motivated to learn. This means that the central
goal of a teaching process in a classroom is communicative competence rather than
metalinguistic knowledge. What’s more, Language learning can be influenced by many
factors, such as motivation, attitude, aptitude, learning style, learning strategy, and learning
environment.

In conclusion, intelligent learners can perform well on analyzing rules and acquire
metalinguistic knowledge. Their intelligence does not guarantee their success in learning a
language because language learning involves other factors as well

Reference

BMI certified IQ Test. (n.d.). https://www.test-iq.org/iq-tests-and-iq/

Genesee, F. (1976). The role of Intelligence in Second language learning1. Language Learning,
26(2), 267–280. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-1770.1976.tb00277.x

Lightbown, P. M., & Spada, N. (2021). How languages are learned. Oxford University Press.