A principled approach to incorporating second language acquisition research into a teacher education programme

Second language acquisition (SLA) researchers have not been slow to assert the importance of SLA research for language pedagogy (LP). There is, however, no consensus on the nature of the relationship between SLA and LP. A number of sometimes conflicting positions can be identified, ranging from a su...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Ellis, Rod
Format: Book Chapter
Published: Centre for English Language Communication National University of Singapore 2011
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/60746
_version_ 1848760631628398592
author Ellis, Rod
author_facet Ellis, Rod
author_sort Ellis, Rod
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Second language acquisition (SLA) researchers have not been slow to assert the importance of SLA research for language pedagogy (LP). There is, however, no consensus on the nature of the relationship between SLA and LP. A number of sometimes conflicting positions can be identified, ranging from a supercautious “don’t apply” to a confident “go ahead and apply” while also claiming that the relationship should not be one-way but symbiotic. In this paper, the relationship in terms of a framework that links (1) SLA researchers, (2) classroom researchers, (3) teacher educators, and (4) language teachers is probed. Using this framework, I propose a set of general principles that can inform the SLA/LP relationship and serve as basis for designing a course as part of a graduate programme in TESOL or foreign language teaching. The principles concern both the “what” and the “how” of the relationship between SLA and LP, that is, what SLA topics are of relevance to teachers and how technical knowledge drawn from SLA can interface with the practical knowledge that informs actual teaching. These principles are then applied to examine one particular aspect of teaching—corrective feedback—and how this is informed by SLA.
first_indexed 2025-11-14T10:18:51Z
format Book Chapter
id curtin-20.500.11937-60746
institution Curtin University Malaysia
institution_category Local University
last_indexed 2025-11-14T10:18:51Z
publishDate 2011
publisher Centre for English Language Communication National University of Singapore
recordtype eprints
repository_type Digital Repository
spelling curtin-20.500.11937-607462018-05-30T06:41:39Z A principled approach to incorporating second language acquisition research into a teacher education programme Ellis, Rod Second language acquisition (SLA) researchers have not been slow to assert the importance of SLA research for language pedagogy (LP). There is, however, no consensus on the nature of the relationship between SLA and LP. A number of sometimes conflicting positions can be identified, ranging from a supercautious “don’t apply” to a confident “go ahead and apply” while also claiming that the relationship should not be one-way but symbiotic. In this paper, the relationship in terms of a framework that links (1) SLA researchers, (2) classroom researchers, (3) teacher educators, and (4) language teachers is probed. Using this framework, I propose a set of general principles that can inform the SLA/LP relationship and serve as basis for designing a course as part of a graduate programme in TESOL or foreign language teaching. The principles concern both the “what” and the “how” of the relationship between SLA and LP, that is, what SLA topics are of relevance to teachers and how technical knowledge drawn from SLA can interface with the practical knowledge that informs actual teaching. These principles are then applied to examine one particular aspect of teaching—corrective feedback—and how this is informed by SLA. 2011 Book Chapter http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/60746 Centre for English Language Communication National University of Singapore restricted
spellingShingle Ellis, Rod
A principled approach to incorporating second language acquisition research into a teacher education programme
title A principled approach to incorporating second language acquisition research into a teacher education programme
title_full A principled approach to incorporating second language acquisition research into a teacher education programme
title_fullStr A principled approach to incorporating second language acquisition research into a teacher education programme
title_full_unstemmed A principled approach to incorporating second language acquisition research into a teacher education programme
title_short A principled approach to incorporating second language acquisition research into a teacher education programme
title_sort principled approach to incorporating second language acquisition research into a teacher education programme
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/60746