Theories of the Second Language Learners

Theories of the Second Language Learners

1. Cognitive Theory

   • Jim Cummins
     • BICS vs CALP theory
   • 5 - 7 years to reach grade level proficiency (factors include: age of arrival, prior schooling, native language literacy)
   • Example of Cognitive Theory An infant experiences the house cat; they know that it meows, is furry, purrs, eats from a bowl in the kitchen – hence develops the concept of cat first then learns to map the word “kitty” onto that concept

2. Sociocultural Theory

   • Lily Wong Filmore
     • Fillmore stated that teachers can't do the job they have to do without the support of parents and school administrators, so it is crucial that they understand what it takes to educate children in two languages, how long it takes for children to master both languages, and why the process is not helped by over-emphasizing test performance.

3. Child Language Data Exchange System (CHILDES) database

   • Catherine Snow
   • contributed significantly to theories of bilingualism and language acquisition through parent-child interaction.

4. Nativist Theory

   • Noam Chomsky
   • Chomsky suggests that language is an innate faculty - that is to say that we are born with a set of rules about language in our heads which he refers to as the 'Universal Grammar'. The universal grammar is the basis upon which all human languages build.
     •    Nativist Theory views language acquisition as innately determined. Theorists believe that human beings are born with a built-in device of some kind that predisposes them to acquire language.   

5. Innate Theory

   • Stephen Krashen
   • It is based on 5 hypotheses: 1. Acquisition/learning hypothesis 2. Monitor hypothesis 3. The natural order hypothesis 4. The input hypothesis 5. The affective filter hypothesis
   • "We all learn language the same way"

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