ESL Acquisition Theories 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: According to Krashen's Affective Filter Hypothesis, which condition MOST helps language acquisition?
- High anxiety and strict correction
- Low anxiety and a supportive environment (Correct answer)
- Frequent grammar drills and memorization
- Immediate error correction after every mistake
Correct answer: Low anxiety and a supportive environment
Krashen argued that a low affective filter—achieved through low anxiety and emotional safety—allows input to reach the language acquisition device more effectively.
Question 2: Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) in language learning refers to:
- Skills a learner can perform independently
- The gap between what a learner can do alone and with expert guidance (Correct answer)
- The total vocabulary a learner has acquired
- A learner's native language interference zone
Correct answer: The gap between what a learner can do alone and with expert guidance
The ZPD is the distance between a learner's independent ability and what they can achieve with skilled assistance, making it a key concept in social interactionist theory.
Question 3: Which theorist is most closely associated with the concept of 'scaffolding' in second language acquisition?
- Noam Chomsky
- Stephen Krashen
- Lev Vygotsky (Correct answer)
- B.F. Skinner
Correct answer: Lev Vygotsky
Scaffolding, derived from Vygotsky's sociocultural theory, refers to temporary support provided by a more skilled person to help a learner accomplish tasks within their ZPD.
Question 4: The 'Critical Period Hypothesis' in SLA suggests that:
- Children learn languages faster due to better memory
- There is a biologically determined window for optimal language acquisition (Correct answer)
- Adults are better language learners because of metalinguistic awareness
- The first language always interferes with the second
Correct answer: There is a biologically determined window for optimal language acquisition
The Critical Period Hypothesis, associated with Lenneberg, proposes that there is a biologically optimal window—typically ending around puberty—for acquiring language with native-like proficiency.
Question 5: In Behaviorist theory (Skinner), second language acquisition is primarily explained by:
- Innate grammatical knowledge
- Habit formation through stimulus-response and reinforcement (Correct answer)
- Conscious monitoring of grammatical rules
- Social interaction with native speakers
Correct answer: Habit formation through stimulus-response and reinforcement
Skinner's behaviorist view holds that language is learned through conditioning—correct responses are reinforced and incorrect ones are extinguished, forming habits.
Question 6: Which of the following best describes 'comprehensible input' in Krashen's model?
- Input that is exactly at the learner's current level (i)
- Input that is slightly beyond the learner's current level (i+1) (Correct answer)
- Input delivered only through reading, not listening
- Input corrected by a teacher before presentation
Correct answer: Input that is slightly beyond the learner's current level (i+1)
Krashen's Input Hypothesis states that acquisition occurs when learners are exposed to language just beyond their current competence, represented as i+1.
Question 7: Swain's Output Hypothesis argues that language production helps learners because it:
- Reduces the affective filter automatically
- Forces learners to notice gaps in their linguistic knowledge (Correct answer)
- Activates Universal Grammar directly
- Replaces the need for comprehensible input
Correct answer: Forces learners to notice gaps in their linguistic knowledge
Merrill Swain proposed that producing language (output) pushes learners to notice what they cannot yet express, prompting them to seek solutions and develop accuracy.
ESL Acquisition Theories 2
According to Krashen's Affective Filter Hypothesis, which condition MOST helps language acquisition?