CTEL CTEL Factors in Language Development 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of the following BEST describes the concept of 'language fossilization'?
- A learner's permanent inability to acquire any additional language
- The stabilization of non-target-like forms that persist despite instruction (Correct answer)
- The process by which a first language replaces a second language
- A natural stage where learners stop speaking temporarily
Correct answer: The stabilization of non-target-like forms that persist despite instruction
Fossilization refers to the permanent retention of non-native forms in an interlanguage that resist correction over time.
Question 2: A student consistently writes 'He go to school every day.' This error MOST likely reflects:
- Language loss in the first language
- Negative transfer from L1 grammar patterns
- A fossilized error in subject-verb agreement (Correct answer)
- The silent period in language acquisition
Correct answer: A fossilized error in subject-verb agreement
Persistent subject-verb agreement errors in writing are a classic example of fossilized interlanguage features.
Question 3: The 'Critical Period Hypothesis' suggests that language acquisition is MOST efficient:
- During adolescence when metalinguistic awareness peaks
- Before puberty when neural plasticity is highest (Correct answer)
- After age 18 when formal learning strategies are mature
- During any age if motivation is sufficiently high
Correct answer: Before puberty when neural plasticity is highest
The Critical Period Hypothesis, associated with Lenneberg, holds that language acquisition is most natural and efficient before puberty.
Question 4: Which of the following is the BEST example of positive language transfer?
- A Spanish speaker using 'yo tengo' instead of 'I have'
- A Spanish speaker correctly recognizing that 'nation' and 'nación' share meaning (Correct answer)
- A Spanish speaker avoiding English words that resemble Spanish cognates
- A Spanish speaker pronouncing English vowels with Spanish phonology
Correct answer: A Spanish speaker correctly recognizing that 'nation' and 'nación' share meaning
Cognate recognition is a form of positive transfer where knowledge from L1 facilitates understanding in L2.
Question 5: Which factor MOST strongly predicts long-term academic success for English learners according to current research?
- English immersion starting before age 5
- Strong oral language proficiency in the first language (Correct answer)
- Exclusive use of English at home
- Placement in structured English-only programs
Correct answer: Strong oral language proficiency in the first language
Strong L1 language and literacy skills are among the strongest predictors of L2 academic success due to cross-linguistic transfer.
Question 6: A teacher observes that an ELL student understands spoken instructions but struggles to read grade-level text. This gap MOST likely reflects a difference between:
- BICS and CALP (Correct answer)
- L1 and L2 phonology
- Additive and subtractive bilingualism
- The monitor hypothesis and input hypothesis
Correct answer: BICS and CALP
The student has developed conversational (BICS) skills but has not yet acquired the academic language (CALP) needed for reading.
Question 7: According to Vygotsky, language development is PRIMARILY driven by:
- Innate grammatical structures present at birth
- Social interaction and collaboration with more capable peers (Correct answer)
- Individual discovery of language rules through trial and error
- Explicit grammar instruction and error correction
Correct answer: Social interaction and collaboration with more capable peers
Vygotsky's sociocultural theory emphasizes that language and cognitive development emerge through social interaction within the Zone of Proximal Development.
CTEL CTEL Factors in Language Development 3
Which of the following BEST describes the concept of 'language fossilization'?