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7. Linguistic
Aspects of Interlanguage
Typological universals: relative clauses
Languages vary in whether they have relative
clause structures. It influences the ease with which learners are able to learn
relative clauses. Learners whose L1 includes relative clauses find them easier
to learn than learners whose L1 does not and they are less likely to avoid
learning them.
When
learners of L2 English begin to acquire relative clauses they typically begin
with the first type. The linguistic structure of English influences how
acquisition proceeds. On the one hand, linguistic facts can be used to explain
and even predict acquisition. On the other, the results of empirical studies of
L2 acquisition can be used to refine our understanding of linguistic facts.
Universal grammar
SLA
owes a considerable debt to another branch of linguistics-that associated with
Noam Chomsky’s theory of Universal Grammar (UG). Chomsky argues that
language is governed by a set of highly abstract principles that provide
parameters which are given particular settings in different languages.
Learnability
Chomsky
has claimed that children learning their L1 must rely on innate knowledge of language.
His argument is that the input to which children are exposed is insufficient to
enable them to discover the rules of the language they are trying to learn.
According
to Chomsky, children must have prior knowledge of what is grammatically possible
and impossible. This knowledge was referred to as the Language Acquisition
Device, is what comprises Universal Grammar (UG). It is claimed that some
errors, such as the one involving adverb placement, do not occur in L1
acquisition.
The critical period hypothesis
The
critical period hypothesis states that there is a period during which
language acquisition is easy and complete and beyond which it is difficult and
typically incomplete.
There
is considerable evidence to support the claim that L2 learners who begin
learning as adults are unable to achieve native-speaker competence in either
grammar or pronunciation.
The
relative lack of succes of most L2 learners in comparison to L1 learners
suggests that there may be radical differences in the way first and second
languages are acquired. That differences in the social conditions in which L1
and L2 learners learn have some kind of impact. It is possible that L1 and L2
acquisitions draw on different learning mechanisms because most adult L2
learners no longer have access to UG.
Acces to UG
1.
Complete
access
It is argued that
learners begin with the parameter settings of their L1 but subsequently learn
to switch to the L2 parameter settings.
2.
No
access
The argument here is
that UG is not available to adult L2 learners. They rely on general learnings strategies.
3.
Partial
access
Another theoretical
possibility is that learners have access to parts of UG but not others.
4.
Dual
access
According to this position, adult
L2 learners make use of both UG and general learning strategies.
The existence of contradictory positions
shows that the role of UG in L2 acquisition is still uncertain.
Markedness
This
uncertainty regarding the contribution of linguistic theory to the study of L2
acquisition is also evident in another area of linguistic enquiry-the study of markedness.
This term refers to the general idea that some structures are more ‘natural’ or
‘basic’ than other structures.
Cognitive versus linguistic explanations
UG
serves as a source of finely-tuned hypotheses about what structures will cause
learning difficulty and raises important questions about whether L2 and L1
acquisition are the same or different.
It
allows for modularity-the existence of different components of language that
are learned in different ways, some through UG and others with the assistance
of general cognitive abilities.
Questions :
1.
What is the
meaning of Universal Grammar by Noam Chomsky?
2.
What is the
difference between cognitive and linguistic explanations?
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