Chapter 2 Second language acquisition research and language –teaching materials

Chapter 2 Second language acquisition research and language –teaching materials

Written by: Rod Ellis

Book Name: English Language Teaching Materials – Theory and Practice

Saeed Mojarradi  Ph.D. Candidate                   Saturday, May 5, 2018

Summary

In this part we consider two ways in which second language acquisition (SLA) research has informed language teaching materials:

(1) the design of tasks; and

(2) grammar teaching.

A “task” can be “unfocused” or “focused” depending on whether the aim is to elicit general samples of language or use if a specific linguistic feature A but in both cases the primary focus must

be on meaning and achieving a communicative outcome.

SLA researches has investigated how different design features impact on the way a task is performed and, thereby, on acquisition.

Different SLA theories underlie the use of tasks in “task-supported language teaching,” where focused tasks support a structural syllabus, and “task-based language teaching,” where the syllabus is specified only in terms of the tasks to be performed, SLA has also led to proposals for specific types of grammar-teaching materials.