Should linguistics be applied and, if so, how

Bibliographic Data

ID11437366
AuthorsLydia White (0000-0002-7531-5168)
Year2023
Volume56
Issue3
Pages349-361
Publication date2023-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueLanguage Teaching (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0261-4448 • E-ISSN: 1475-3049
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s0261444822000313
OpenAlexW4294761569
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited26

Research on second language (L2) acquisition in the generative tradition (GenSLA) addresses the nature of interlanguage competence, examining the roles of Universal Grammar, the mother tongue and the input in shaping the acquisition, representation and use of second languages. This field is sometimes dismissed by applied linguists as irrelevant because it does not provide direct applications for language teaching. However, the assumption that theories must have applications involves a fundamental misconception: linguistic theories explore the nature of grammar; GenSLA theories explore the nature of language learning. No such theory entails that language must be taught in a particular way. Nevertheless, potential applications can be identified: examples are presented that describe aspects of language that do not need to be taught, properties that might benefit from instruction, and cases where textbooks provide inadequate information. I argue that linguistic theory and GenSLA theory have more to offer in terms of considering what aspects of language might or might not be taught rather than how languages should be taught

Comprehension approach · Developmental linguistics · Emergent grammar · First language · Generative grammar · Grammar · Interlanguage · Language acquisition · Language education · Linguistic competence · Linguistics · Second-language acquisition · Theoretical linguistics · Computer Science · EFL/ESL Teaching and Learning · Multilingual Education and Policy · Philosophy · Second Language Learning and Teaching

Tools

Open DOI