Zusammenfassung der Ressource
SLA: Behaviorism
- Who?
When?
- Skinner (1957)
- Learner's
Knowledge
- Where does knowledge come from?
- New L2 knowledge equal to new behavior;
comes from a model (teacher:expert in the
structural knowledge of L1 and L2)
- How do learners learn?
- Habit-formation resulting in new associations
between forms and their meanings through
stimulus-response-reinforcement framework;
this involves repetition and pattern practice ad
nauseam; analogy plays a role as well
- What is the nature of
their knowledge?
- Implicit knowledge (new
responses to stimuli) leading to
automatization of new habits
- Systematicity,
Variability, Role
of First
Language
- Is systematicity addressed?
- No; however, learners from the same L1 background
are expected to commit the same errors
- Is variability addressed?
- Variability in success can only be attributed to
deficient teaching or insufficient practice
- How is the role of the first
language explained?
- Through the notion of transfer of L1 habits that
could be positive or negative depending on the
differences and similarities between L1 and L2
- Input Exposure
and Role of
Output
- Role of output
- The more the learner produces (output), the more
opportunities to acquire good habits; learners’
active engagement and output are crucial
- Role of input frequency
- The more practice of the new patterns, the
easier the formation of new habits
- Role of input
- Input is essential: this is THE source of
good stimuli; provided by the teacher
- Role of
Instruction and
Potential for
More Research
- Role of instruction
- Essential: need for models and for
immediate and consistent feedback
- Pedagogical
implications
- Combining the insights from Structural
Linguistics and Behaviorism, gave birth to ALM.
- Potential for more research
- Debunked by Chomsky’s review of Skinner’s
Language Behavior; however, some of its
principles (associationist learning; frequency
of input) will appear in later theories
- Evaluation
- Is the theory testable?
- The theory was not put to test by the
Behaviorists themselves; first empirical SLA
studies in the 1970s (Error Analyses) did not
support the claims made by Behaviorist
- What kind of evidence is
used to test the theory?
- Collecting learners’ samples and
examining errors
- Conclusion of evidence
- Too simplistic a view: there is much more than
repetition and practice involved in SLL; theory
interested in testing learners’ output only