Conscious Processes And Learning A Second Language Essay

Many popular theories of second language acquisition have been analyzed throughout history. The socialization of L2 learners, their present emotional state that is present at time of acquisition, as well as the comprehensible input and output with the use of scaffolding play a major role in second language acquisition. Let us also not forget the importance of written expression as well as reading comprehension with these L2 learners. Each play a role in language development. However, I believe that in acquiring a language, one must use a variety of techniques that work together to create a balance within the learning environment. Furthermore, all L2 learners learn differently and so a variety of resources will need to be used based on the ability of each student. There are many theories that have been developed by highly qualified experts in the field on linguistics. However, I will address those areas that I agree with as I present my personal theories on second language acquisition.

In the short narrative, Coming to an Awareness of Language, by Malcolm X, we are told the story of how a young Malcolm X developed from a illiterate street hustler to a self educated man in prison who would later go on to lead the Nation of Islam. Malcolm X recalls his stay in the Norfolk Prison Colony School as never feeling “so truly free in life.” OInTThe reader gets a firsthand account of the story from Malcolm X, which gives the audience a better and more realistic connection to situations in the story.

The amount of young children who are acquiring English as a second or even third language in the early care and education (ECE) setting as well as K-12 public classrooms have amplified across the United States in recent years (Espinosa, 2015, p. 40). These young children that are acquiring two or more languages concurrently, or learning a second language along with refining their native language are considered dual language learners (DLLs) (Espinosa, 2015, p. 40). The number of DLLs has multiplied tremendously and now accounts for 25% of all children living in the United States (p. 40). The Office of Head Start (2011) state that fifty-nine percent of the children enrolled in the Head Start Programs were from racial or ethnic minority families, 37% were Hispanic/Latino and more than 30% were dual language learners (as cited in Espinosa, 2015, p. 40). Unfortunately, starting from the preschool stage and throughout high school, the educational achievements of DLLs tend to

Within this paper we will take a brief look at the Language Acquisition Principles and how they work on the behalf of ELL students. We will see how these principles can be applied within our own learning environment. There is much information from Walqui article that gives a brief overview of ELL students and how things looked in the past for these students. Now that times has change we will see how educators can make the requirements for ELL students better and more effective for teacher and students. Hopefully, as we look at ways of changing learning for our ELL students we must remember that every student learns differently. Even if you follow the principles from

My seminar provided an overview of chapter 4- explaining second language learning. During my introduction, key points from each of the 5 perspectives were discussed. The cognitive perspective was given priority as it contained many subcategories within itself. This section also allowed my group mates to connect theory and practice of second language learning. My group mates were able to connect to the noticing hypothesis, processability theory and the three principles of practice through their own personal experiences while learning a second language. The first discussion question asked my group members to evaluate their own understanding of how language learning occurs and compare it with the perspectives we covered. The second discussion question provided them a chance to assess each perspective and think of one weakness and one strength for each. Overall if I were to re-do my seminar, I would like to provide more attention to the other perspectives. I would add more discussion questions in order to stimulate more in-depth discussions. Similarly, adding supplemental information from an outside source to further discussion and connect the theories to pedagogy. Additionally, I would create an activity that focused more on teaching of a second language and how these theories have influenced the current practices used.

T.Z. Suzuki is a Buddhist philosopher who claims awareness happens in three stages: Parroting, consciousness and unconscious consciousness. Note: I don’t believe these are the terms he uses, but the ideas at correct.

Often, immigrant parents will push for their children to learn the official language of the country they live in. These parents claim that their children will be more successful in life if they acquire that second language, because of the pressure of versatility in society. By quickly enforcing second language, the children find themselves taken over by this incoming force. Constant exposure is the most efficient method of learning, but requires an immense amount of time and effort. Due to frequent subjection of practice, the second dialect will outweigh the original, taking its place as the most proficient language a person uses. Most importantly, the learner must have the eagerness within themselves to truly acquire a second language. Non-native speakers can be uncomfortable with residing in a country whose official language is not their primary. Virginia Gonzalez’s and Ana Celia Zentella’s reports analyze Latinos’ standard of living and the possible outcomes of children of immigrant families in an English governed community. Other works such as Aria by Richard Rodriguez reveals advantages from learning English, such as being able to communicate confidently and feeling included. However, the risk of losing the first language outweighs the advantages. The negative effects are often overlooked and unexpected as shown through the scholarly works of Lily Wong Fillmore, Monique Bournot-Trites and Ulrike Tellowitz. As I will argue in the paper, the common notion that learning a

Consciousness is your awakened state of mind in which you are cognizant of and are able to distinguish between realities while also being preemptive to one’s thoughts, emotions, and feelings through the establishment of the fundamental aspect of student-object relationships in which one is not only aware and mindful of his surroundings, but oneself as well at any given moment as the present renders sentiments of familiarity, presumably rectifying preconceived notions that consciousness is merely an illusion and is rather more so a universal force and a collective body of existence and self-realization.

ii. The Monitor Hypothesis refers to the relationship between acquisition and learning. The role of the acquisition system is to initiate utterance and the role of the learning system is to serve as the monitor or editor. The idea behind the monitor hypothesis is that as individuals begin to produce language, an internal monitor watches over or edits information to ensure correct grammatical usage (Peregoy et al., 2008). It is said that the internal monitor is developed during the formal study of language. But, in order for the monitor to function properly, individuals must have sufficient time to think about utterances before producing them; focus on grammatical form; and have knowledge of the second language rules.

Many popular theories of second language acquisition have been analyzed throughout history. The socialization of L2 learners, their present emotional state that is present at the time of acquisition, as well as the comprehensible input and output with the use of scaffolding play a major role in second language acquisition. Kirsten Hummel states, “The one most effective way to increase L2 competence was by exposure to ‘comprehensible input’.” (Hummel, 2014, p. 73) Let us also not forget the importance of written expression as well as reading comprehension with these L2 learners. Each plays a role in language development. However, I believe that to acquire language one must use a variety of techniques that work together to create a balance within the learning environment. Furthermore, all L2 learners acquire language differently and so using a variety of resources that are based on the ability of each student is neccesary. There are many theories that have been developed by highly qualified experts in the field of linguistics. However, I will address those areas that I agree with as I present my personal theories on second language acquisition.

So far in this class we’ve look at many theorist who have presented on the idea of consciousness. These theorists (W.E.B. Du Bois, George Herbert Mead, and Dorothy Smith) have provided there theorization of the idea of consciousness. They’ve presented their views along with evidence that helps to support their claims. In this essay I will be discussing each theorist’s characterization of consciousness along with analyzing their similarities, differences and limitations on the subject. The initially question at hand is based on these theorist and there characterization of this of this idea of consciousness how has it contributed to the awareness and “solution” of the problem.

In our everyday lives, the origin of our ability to communicate is usually not often taken into consideration. One doesn't think about how every person has, or rather had at one time, an innate ability to learn a language to total fluency without a conscious effort – a feat that is seen by the scientific community "as one of the many utterly unexplainable mysteries that beset us in our daily lives" (3).. Other such mysteries include our body's ability to pump blood and take in oxygen constantly seemingly without thought, and a new mother's ability to unconsciously raise her body temperature when her infant is placed on her chest. But a child's first language acquisition is different from these

For me, learning a language is a complicated process. It is different from learning other subjects. It involves a lot of practices and follow up. When I talk about my personal experience, I would say that I have a rich experience in learning English as a second language. English was taught to me for ten years starting from grade seven till graduation from university. After graduation, I felt that I should improve my language skills. Therefore, I did a lot of efforts personally to increase my fluency. Until now I still learn the language. Indeed, learning a language takes a lifetime.

The role of consciousness in learning has been a heavily debated topic. Many researchers have been hesitant to even use the term “consciousness” when discussing the topic due to its vague nature and its difficulty to operationalize. Schmidt (1992) was one of the first researchers to explore in depth the true relationship of consciousness to second language learning. He operationalized the construct of consciousness under the umbrella term awareness. Awareness encapsulated attention and noticing, and implicit and explicit learning, factor groups which made awareness crucial for language learning (Schmidt, 1992). The factors attention and noticing held many interest’s as the notion of having a specific focus on the input, and noticing being vital to learning a new language, seemed unrealistic. The noticing hypothesis states it is one’s ability to change the input to long-term memory by not simply just noticing the input, but noticing all linguistic forms that are necessary to learn (Schmidt, 1992). These theories received backlash as many believed language could be acquired subconsciously without any target focus. Implicit and explicit learning shared a similar idea, but stressed the act of “understanding” (Schmidt, 1992). Understanding existed as a more complex form of noticing as it was less restricted to target learning and memorization. It was the ability to unconsciously internalize principals of the language. The contrast between the terms is implicit learning

It has been argued that children before puberty pick-up the language naturally, whereas adults have to learn it, making the acquisition of the language a conscious effort on the part of the adult. However, the Natural Approach hand in hand with Chomsky’s Language Acquisition Device (Mason, T. 2002), argue that the human brain is pre-programmed to learn languages and that this device is active and available at any moment of the learner’s life.