Principles of Instructed Second Language Acquisition (Ellis Erlam Sakui 2004)
Principle
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Instruction needs to ensure that learners develop both a rich repertoire of formulaic expressions and a rule-based competence.
Formulaic expressions are expressions that do not necessarily follow grammatical rules. They are essentially ‘complete phrases’. In the long term, both formulaic expressions and
the ability to apply grammatical rules is essential.
Instruction needs to ensure that learners focus predominantly on meaning.
There are two types of meaning – semantic meaning (meaning of words and grammatical structures) and pragmatic meaning (meaningful language that is used for real
communication). Creating meaning for an authentic purpose enables the acquisition of the language.
Instruction needs to ensure that learners also focus on form.
Learners need to pay attention to the specific forms in the language they are learning, and they need to notice forms such as verbs indicating the action was completed in the
past, or will be completed in the future.
Instruction needs to be predominantly directed at developing implicit knowledge of the target language while not neglecting explicit knowledge.
Explicit – meaning consciously held knowledge. The teacher gives explicit instruction and the learner consciously learns.
Implicit – meaning knowledge the learner holds unconsciously, they can access such knowledge quickly and easily to use in fluent communication
Instruction needs to take into account the learner’s “built-in syllabus”.
Research shows that learners follow a ‘natural’ order and sequence of learning which may not be in line with the teacher’s curriculum statement / plan. Be aware of this reason
for inadvertent error making. Teachers could provide authentic communicative tasks without planning the grammatical content of the lesson.
Successful instructed language learning requires extensive target language input.
This means providing learners with opportunities to listen, view and read the language.
Successful instructed language learning also requires opportunities for output.
This means providing learners with opportunities to produce sustained output in the target language. Teachers can ask learners to perform oral, visual and written tasks that
require them to communicate clearly and explicitly for many authentic purposes.
The opportunity to interact in the target language is central to developing proficiency.
Social interaction is the context in which language acquisition takes place. Teachers can incorporate interactive tasks into their programme and have their students work on these
together in small groups.
Instruction needs to take account of individual differences in learners.
Teachers can help address variation in their students’ language learning by teaching in a flexible way and by developing learners’ awareness and use of language-learning
strategies.
Instruction needs to take account that there is a subjective aspect to learning a new language.
Learning a new language is an opportunity for learners to acquire a new symbolic form, and develop their subjective selves by taking on new identities and even a new
personality. This requires instructional activities that encourage language play and emotional identification with the language.
In assessing learners’ target language proficiency it is important to examine free as well as controlled production.
Assessment should measure how proficiently learners can communicate. A communicative task that calls for a constructed response (with no single “right answer”) is more like
authentic communication and is therefore the best measure of learners’ target language proficiency.
Compiled by Dee Reid, for Te Manawa Pou, using: Ellis, R. (2005). Instructed second language acquisition: A literature review. Wellington, NZ: Ministry of Education and Erlam, R., & Sakui, K. (2006). Instructed second language acquisition: Case studies. Wellington, NZ:
Ministry of Education [Note: acknowledgement to Jeanne Gilbert for the provision of information about the ‘new’ principle (number 10) added in 2013.]
Principles of Instructed Second Language Acquisition
Provoking Thought / Guiding Practice…
(Ellis Erlam Sakui 2004)
Principle
Principle
Principle
Principle
1
Instruction needs to ensure that learners develop
both a rich repertoire of formulaic expressions
and a rule-based competence.
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6
Successful instructed language learning requires
extensive target language input.
 How often do you use te reo Māori in your teaching?
 How might you input te reo Māori in the Language Goals (where there is a focus on content)
 How might you input te reo Māori Social Goals (where there is a focus on the personal life and
social relationships of participants)
 How might you input te reo Māori Framework Goals (the classroom or instructional language in
which the teacher explains the procedures for performing an activity or monitors students’
understanding)
7
Successful instructed language learning also
requires opportunities for output.
 How do you provide opportunities for your students to produce te reo Māori output in the
classroom?
 What strategies could teachers use to encourage students to produce te reo Māori output?
8
The opportunity to interact in the target language
is central to developing proficiency.
 How do you scaffold your students’ attempts to use te reo Māori? (Scaffolding involves the
interactive work participants engage in to accomplish a task collaboratively to enable learners to
perform functions that they would be incapable of performing independently)
 How often do your students work in groups? Why / why not? Do they interact in te reo Māori
often?
 Can you indicate any ways in which you can endeavor to set up opportunities for students to
interact with native speakers?
What are some formulaic expressions you currently know / use?
What are some formulaic expressions your students currently know / use?
How do students have access to formulaic expressions in your class?
To what extent does your instruction focus on developing students’ ability to apply grammatical
rules? (This will be investigated in greater depth under Principle 3 though!)
Compiled by Dee Reid, for Te Manawa Pou, using: Ellis, R. (2005). Instructed second language acquisition: A literature review. Wellington, NZ: Ministry of Education and Erlam, R., & Sakui, K. (2006). Instructed second language acquisition: Case studies. Wellington, NZ:
Ministry of Education.