SLA 1: Interlanguage amd error analysis

• Many L2 errors could not be predicted by Contrastive Analysis (Dulay & Burt 1974)

– Interference: 3%, developmental 85%, others: 13%

– low percentage of interference errors revised in later studies

• CAH: not adequate for explaining SLA (creative construction hypothesis (Dulay & Burt 1974))

• Practical limitations: Language specific teaching material

– Characteristics of learner language > similar across L2s

– Transfer from a cognitive perspective

• 1970s: Shift from Behaviourism to Mentalism through error analysis

• Errors are a sign that the learner is exploring the L2 system. They are part of the learning process.

• Collection, identification, description and explanation of errors – Interlingual (interference)

– Intralingual: developmental (incomplete learning; overgeneralization)

• learner language = a linguistic system in its own right

• System of implicit L2 knowledge (interim grammar)

• learners develop and amend IL over time (continuum) • IL construction: Hypothesis testing

• 1. Learners form hypotheses about the rules of the TL.

• 2. Learners test them against the input they receive.

• 3.Supportive evidence: confirmation of hypothesis negative evidence: rejection of hypothesis

What happens when a third language enters the scene?

• transfer

• codeswitching

• interlanguages interact > multicompetence

• plurilingualism as an educational goal – CEFR: plurilingual competence

• Codeswitching of L3 Swedish learners (L1= English, L2= German) (Hammarberg 1998)

• Switches to L1

– Intentional, metalinguistic self-regulatory function (e.g. asking for help, clarifying meanings)

• Switches to L2

– Unconsciusly, mostly function words

• Both languages influenced L3 acquisition

• Less influence of L1 & L2 occurs with growing L3 competence

Multilingual competence = multi-competence (cf. V. Cook)

• The brain is always receptive for multilingualism.

• The more languages are learnt, the more skillfully languages are acquired. (cf. Franceschini 2014)

• languages are interrelated and interconnected especially at the level of the individual

• languages and cultures are not kept in separated mental compartments

• all knowledge and experience of languages contribute to building up communicative competence

• balanced mastery of different languages is not the goal, but rather the ability (and willingness) to modulate their usage according to the social and communicative situation