Input and interaction and second language acquisition - adapted by Anna Kowynia
from The study of second language acquisition by Rod Ellis (1994)
1. The role of input in language acquisition is a controversial issue. Ellis (1985)
distinguishes three different views about the role of input:
- the behaviourist
- the mentalist
- the interactionist
2. The characteristics of input to language learners. The research on input has
focused on two issues:
- ‘input text’ – what native speakers actually say
- ‘input discourse’ – special kind of register used by native speakers to language
learners. E.g. caretaker talk, foreigner talk
3. foreigner talk comprises:
- ungrammatical input modifications (see table)
- grammatical input modifications (simplification, regularization, elaboration)
- interactional modofications (discourse management, discourse repair, discourse
structure)
- functions of foreigner talk
4. Interlanguage talk
GRAMMATICAL
STRUCTURE
copula
LEARNER LANGUAGE
FOREIGNER TALK
Deleted in 5 out of 43
instances
Pervasively deleted
V-ing used grammatically
Auxiliary ‘do’ regularly
deleted
Negatives
Possessives
Regularly deleted – occurs
in some contexts
Pervasive deletion
Uninflected verb form used
for all time reference, no
auxiliary –do
V-ing used freely
‘no+verb’, ‘I don’t know’
No possessive ‘s
‘for’
Is upset for you ?*
Pronoun ‘it’
Verb tense
Mixed ‘no+verb”, no+v-ing
Nounse marked with
possessive ‘s
Similar use of ‘for’in 3 out
of 15 instances
Table. A comparison of learner language and foreigner talk (based on data from Hatch,
Shapira, and Wagner-Gough 1978) adapted from Ellis 1994