1. Applied Linguistics (Language Teaching and Learning)
James P. Lantolf
Abstract
I am pleased to have been afforded the opportunity to offer my reflections on the articles included in the special issue of JALDA on what I will call “pre-paradigm” research. I borrow the concept from Kuhn (2012), which I believe appropriately describes the current state of affairs in SLA. ...
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I am pleased to have been afforded the opportunity to offer my reflections on the articles included in the special issue of JALDA on what I will call “pre-paradigm” research. I borrow the concept from Kuhn (2012), which I believe appropriately describes the current state of affairs in SLA. Each article compares different aspects of SCT with other frameworks and methodologies in the field. An appealing aspect of the overall project is that contributions have adopted different perspectival lenses. In what follows, I will address each article individually. In some cases, I will expand upon what the authors argue and in others I will critique their arguments to encourage the authors to think more deeply about their proposal(s) and perhaps to bring to bear additional theoretical insights. For convenience, I have organized the seven articles into what I see as a coherent grouping. The criterion used was whether an article reflected more of a theoretical, empirical, or practical orientation.
1. Applied Linguistics (Language Teaching and Learning)
Michael Amory; Mariana Lima Becker
Abstract
Research on motivation in second language (L2) learning has progressed tremendously over the last several decades. Within the recent trend to investigate the socially situated context of motivation and the role of social processes in shaping individual L2 motivation, Sociocultural Theory (SCT) and Complexity ...
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Research on motivation in second language (L2) learning has progressed tremendously over the last several decades. Within the recent trend to investigate the socially situated context of motivation and the role of social processes in shaping individual L2 motivation, Sociocultural Theory (SCT) and Complexity / Dynamic Systems Theory (CDST) stand out in their contributions. Although researchers have attempted to combine SCT and CDST, there is an ongoing debate in the field of Applied Linguistics regarding the general compatibility of these two traditions. This article consists of a critical literature and theoretical review concerning how SCT, focusing on Activity Theory (AT), and CDST, focusing on the L2 Motivational Self System, address L2 motivation. We argue that SCT and CDST appear to be compatible superficially, since both portray L2 motivation as dynamic, complex, and arising through interactions between individuals and their environments. However, through a more in-depth examination, fundamental differences emerge not only in the context of L2 motivation, but also in the guiding theoretical principles of each research tradition. Ultimately, and arguing from an SCT perspective, we offer a critique of CDST and posit that these theories are not commensurable in their view of L2 motivation or in general.
1. Applied Linguistics (Language Teaching and Learning)
Benjamin White; Kyoko Masuda
Abstract
In recent years, there has been a growing interest in bringing together Vygotskian sociocultural theory and cognitive linguistics for research on second language (L2) instruction. This paper explores the compatibility of the two theoretical orientations and finds that certain key assumptions within cognitive ...
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In recent years, there has been a growing interest in bringing together Vygotskian sociocultural theory and cognitive linguistics for research on second language (L2) instruction. This paper explores the compatibility of the two theoretical orientations and finds that certain key assumptions within cognitive linguistics align well with sociocultural theory. Importantly, both theories hold similar positions on the relationship between language and cognition and on the influence of culture and the external physical world on language. Possible tension between the theories lies namely in their application to L2 pedagogy and research methodology for the classroom. In order to examine how sociocultural theory and cognitive linguistics are being integrated in L2 pedagogy, we review six recent empirical studies that are informed by both theories and that target the instruction of lexicogrammar in four different languages. We identify common themes and note challenges for future research. Finally, we make recommendations for the continued integration of sociocultural theory and cognitive linguistics for L2 instruction.
1. Applied Linguistics (Language Teaching and Learning)
Nuria Ballesteros Soria; Rémi Adam van Compernolle
Abstract
Pre-task planning has been extensively studied in task-based language teaching research, but a limited number of studies to date has explored the phenomenon through a sociocultural theory lens. In this article, we report on pre-task planning from a Vygotskian group-as-collective perspective by examining ...
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Pre-task planning has been extensively studied in task-based language teaching research, but a limited number of studies to date has explored the phenomenon through a sociocultural theory lens. In this article, we report on pre-task planning from a Vygotskian group-as-collective perspective by examining its mediational role during dynamic strategic interaction scenario tasks (DSISs) implemented in a first semester elementary-level US university Spanish classroom. DSISs involve pre-task planning, small group performances in front of the class, and post-task debriefings in which peer and instructor comments are immediately provided. Drawing on Vygotsky’s (1978) genetic method of analysis, we first show how turn-allocation emerged as an object of learning during the first debriefing, which was the result of pre-task planning and students’ observations following the first group performance. Second, we provide an account of the microgenesis of the debriefing observations through an analysis of planning tasks and the instructor’s framing and modeling of appropriate feedback, which we contend mediated students’ orientation to turn-allocation as a relevant learnable. In concluding, we discuss our findings, their research and pedagogical implications, and future directions for instructed research on L2 speaking development.
1. Applied Linguistics (Language Teaching and Learning)
Enrico Grazzi
Abstract
The main focus of this article is on the controversial issue of integrating English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) into English Language Teaching (ELT). Particularly, the plurilithic nature of English as an international language in the age of Globalization challenges the long sedimented native-speakerism ...
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The main focus of this article is on the controversial issue of integrating English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) into English Language Teaching (ELT). Particularly, the plurilithic nature of English as an international language in the age of Globalization challenges the long sedimented native-speakerism in the English classroom. Nevertheless, in spite of the extensive academic literature in the area of ELF research, it seems that a balanced pedagogical approach has not yet been developed by applied ELF scholars. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to show how Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory (SCT) and Gal’perin’s Systemic Theoretical Instruction (STI) (which informed the L2 teaching approach called Concept-based Language Instruction, C-BLI) may provide the appropriate scientific framework to bridge the gap between the mainstream English as a Foreign Language (EFL) syllabus, that is based on the native-speaker Standard English model, and the emergent use of non-native-speaker ELF, which results from the contact of learners’ L1 and English. In conclusion, this research intends to propose an integrated approach to teaching English that combines ELF, SCT, and C-BLI. This is expected to give language teachers a conceptual framework and theoretical orientation to carry out the paradigm shift in ELT that most ELF scholars advocate.
1. Applied Linguistics (Language Teaching and Learning)
Alessandro Rosborough; Jennifer Wimmer
Abstract
This paper addresses the in/commensurability of Vygotskian sociocultural theory (SCT) with popular K-12 educational curricula positioned and claiming to use his theory in practice (McLeod, 2019). We discuss well-known educational curricula, models, and social theories in relation to second language learning. ...
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This paper addresses the in/commensurability of Vygotskian sociocultural theory (SCT) with popular K-12 educational curricula positioned and claiming to use his theory in practice (McLeod, 2019). We discuss well-known educational curricula, models, and social theories in relation to second language learning. Representational examples for in/commensurable comparisons are taken from well-published Pre-K, Elementary, Secondary curricula, and educational psychology texts, all primarily used as instructional preparation for pre-service teachers. In operationalizing these comparisons for in/commensurability, we argue that Vygotsky’s explanations concerning the unity of thought and language, the zone of proximal development, mediational means for learning and development, and his overarching framework concerning perezhivanie and consciousness are not well considered by these popular texts and curricula, particularly for marginalized second language learners in the field of education. Conclusions and implications include arguments to more fully implement Vygotsky’s SCT theory in place of simplistic social turn strategies, and a call for supporting language minority students.
James P. Lantolf; Saeed Karimi-Aghdam
Abstract
James P. Lantolf is George and Jane Greer Professor Emeritus of Language Acquisition and Applied Linguistics and former director of the Center for Advanced Language Proficiency Education and Research at the Pennsylvania State University, USA. He is currently Adjunct Professor of Applied Linguistics in ...
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James P. Lantolf is George and Jane Greer Professor Emeritus of Language Acquisition and Applied Linguistics and former director of the Center for Advanced Language Proficiency Education and Research at the Pennsylvania State University, USA. He is currently Adjunct Professor of Applied Linguistics in the same academic unit at Xi’an Jiaotong University. He is founder of the Sociocultural Theory and Second Language Learning research group,which has been holding an annual meeting to discuss research in progress on second language acquisition from the perspective of sociocultural theory since 1993.He is founding editor of Language and Sociocultural Theory (Equinox Press, 2013 to present) and was co-editor of Applied Linguistics (Oxford University Press,1993–1998).He served as President of the American Association for Applied Linguistics (AAAL) in 2004 and was recipient of the AAAL Distinguished Scholarship and Service Award in 2016. He has co-authored or co-edited nine books and has published more than 140 articles and book chapters. His seminal book entitled Sociocultural Theory and the Genesis of Second Language Development (2006, coauthored with Steven L. Thorne) published by Oxford University Press coupled with a co-edited volume Vygotskian Approaches to Second Language Research (1994, coedited with Gabriela Appel) ushered in a new upswing of research on language development and teaching from the sociocultural theory vantage point. His latest co-edited book The Routledge Handbook of Sociocultural Theory and Second Language Development was published in 2018. The following is a written interview with James P. Lantolf conducted by Saeed Karimi-Aghdam. Dr. Karimi Aghdam is Associate Professor of English Language and Didactics in the Faculty of Education and Arts at Nord University, Norway. He is a member of the editorial board of Language and Sociocultural Theory and serves on the advisory board of the Journal of Applied Linguistics and Applied Literature: Dynamics and Advances.
