1. The Idea of the Good Language Learner
Universität Bielefeld Fakultät für Linguistik und Literaturwissenschaft Wintersemester 2008/2009 Veranstaltung: Introduction to Second Language Acquisition Veranstalter: Nathan Devos
The Idea of the Good Language Learner by
Sedef Balkanli ( )
Katharina Gercken ( )
Marten Siegmann ( )

2. Contents Overview: What makes up a successful learner?
Characteristics in Detail:
Intelligence
Aptitude
Learning Style
Personality
Motivation
Societal Setting

3. The Language Learner

4. An Example: Michael

5. Skill-improvement is limited
If Michael does not change his attitude, he will not be able to improve his conversational skills!

6. Learner‘s success depends on …
… the different factors that influence the learner.
The variables do not cause but influence each other.
Complex setting of all factors together

7. Intelligence Intelligence ≈ success in school
IQ-tests more strongly related to metalinguistic knowledge than to communicative ability
This kind of “intelligence“ may play a less important role in classrooms with CLT
Howard Gardner (1993): `multiple intelligences`

8. Aptitude John Carroll (1991) = “ability to learn quickly“
Paul Meara (2005) developed tests:
Identify and memorize new sounds
Understand the function of particular words in sentences
Figure out grammatical rules from language sentences
Remember new words
Modern Language Aptitude Test (MLAT)

9. Aptitude
Communicative Approach => emphasis on communicative interaction
Leila Ranta (2002): no direct attention to grammar
Teachers supposed to ensure that their teaching activities are sufficiently varied to accomodate learners with different aptitude profiles.

10. Encourage learners to use all means available to them!
Learning Style
Reid (1995):
Learning Style = an individual´ s natural, habitual, and preferred way of absorbing, processing, and retaining new information
`visual` learners
`aural` learners
`kinaesthetic` learners
Encourage learners to use all means available to them!

11. Personality Extroverted vs. introverted person Inhibition
Learner Anxiety (can be negative and/or positive)
Peter MacIntyre (1995):
´because anxious students are focused both the task at hand and their reactions to it … [they] will not learn as quickly as relaxed students´
Self-esteem, empathy, dominance, talkativeness, and responsiveness

12. Motivation and attitudes
Integrative Motivation
Positive disposition towards SL group and the desire to interact with and even become a member of that community
Instrumental Motivation
Language learning is primarily associated with potential pragmatic gains of SL proficiency (e.g. getting a better job)

13. Dörnyei‘s process model of motivation in a classroom
Choice motivation
Executive motivation
Motivation retrospection
see overhead-projector

14. Motivation in the classroom (Graham Crookes & Richard Schmidt)
Motivating students into the lesson
Varying the activities, tasks, and materials
Using co-operative rather than competitive goals

15. Identity and ethnic group affiliation
Social factors can affect motivation, attitudes and language learning success
Instrumental and integrative motivation do not capture the complex relations of power, identity and language learning
Adjudged to be less loyal to their ethnic group

16. Learner beliefs Learners believe they know the best way to learn
Can be strong factors in experience in a classroom
“Virtually all students express a desire to have their errors corrected.“ (Renate Schulz)

17. Exam Questions
Do learner‘s variables cause or do they influence each other?
What is the connection between social life and the process of language learning?
What is "learner anxiety" and how does it influence second language learning?
What is meant by "aptitude" and how is this term related to second language learning?
What is meant by instrumental and integrative motivation?

18. Sources
Lightbrown, Patsy M., and Nina Spada. How Languages are Learned. 3rd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006.
Dörnyei, Zoltán. Motivational Strategies in the Language Classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001.