TWELVE POPULAR VIEWS
about
how languages are learned and what
the implications are in respect of how these languages should be taught.
*Languages
are learned mainly through imitation.
* Parents usually correct young children when they make grammatical errors.
* People with high IQs are good language learners.
* The most important factor in second language acquisition success is
motivation.
* The earlier a second language is introduced in school programs, the
greater
the likelihood of success in learning.
* Most of the mistakes which second language learners make are due to
interference
from their first language.
* Teachers should present grammatical rules one at a time, and learners
should
practice examples of each one before going on to another.
* Teachers should teach simple language structures before complex ones.
* Learners' errors should be corrected as soon as they are made in order
to prevent
the formation of bad habits.
* Teachers should use materials that expose students only to those
language structures
which have already been taught.
* When learners are allowed to interact freely ( for example in group or
pair
activities), they learn each other's mistakes.
* Students learn what they are taught.
Source : How Languages are Learned -
Patsy
M. Lightbown and Nina Spada. Oxford University Press, 1996. 135pp. ISBN 0
19 437169 7
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