The Stages of Second Language Acquisition
We have all seen children move through the stages
of acquiring their first language—from babbling to one-word utterances,
two-word phrases, full sentences, and eventually, complex grammar. Students
learning a second language also move through stages. One of the most important
things you should know about each of your English language learners (ELLs) is
which stage of acquisition they are in. Knowing and understanding the stage and
its characteristics are critical for effectively differentiating instruction
for these students.
Stephen Krashen and Tracy Terrell first explored
stages of second language acquisition in their 1983 book, The Natural
Approach. Figure 2.1 lists the five stages of language acquisition, along
with the characteristics, approximate time frames, and appropriate teacher
prompts for each stage.
Figure 2.1. Stages of Second Language Acquisition
|
Stage
|
Characteristics
|
Approximate Time
Frame
|
Teacher Prompts
|
|
Preproduction
|
The student
·
Has minimal comprehension
·
Does not verbalize
·
Nods “Yes” and “No”
·
Draws and points
|
0–6 months
|
·
Show me...
·
Circle the...
·
Where is...?
·
Who has...?
|
|
Early Production
|
The student
·
Has limited comprehension
·
Produces one- or two-word responses
·
Participates using key words and familiar phrases
·
Uses present-tense verbs
|
6 months–1 year
|
·
Yes/no questions
·
Either/or questions
·
One- or two-word answers
·
Lists
·
Labels
|
|
Speech Emergence
|
The student
·
Has good comprehension
·
Can produce simple sentences
·
Makes grammar and pronunciation errors
·
Frequently misunderstands jokes
|
1–3 years
|
·
Why...?
·
How...?
·
Explain...
·
Phrase or short-sentence answers
|
|
Intermediate Fluency
|
The student
·
Has excellent comprehension
·
Makes few grammatical errors
|
3–5 years
|
·
What would happen if...?
·
Why do you think...?
|
|
Advanced Fluency
|
The student has a near-native level of speech.
|
5–7 years
|
·
Decide if...
·
Retell...
|
|
Source: Adapted
from Krashen and Terrell (1983).
|
The Preproduction stage lasts from zero to six
months and is also known as “the silent period,” because it's likely you won't
hear students speak any English at all during this stage. At the next level,
Early Production, students begin using single words or two-word phrases, yes/no
responses, names, and repetitive language patterns (e.g., “How are you?”). At
the Speech Emergence stage, students are able to say simple sentences (e.g., “I
walked home”). Eventually, at the Intermediate Fluency stage, students can use
sentences of increasing length and complexity, until finally, at the Advanced
Fluency stage, they demonstrate a near-native level of fluency.
All students acquiring English will pass through
these stages. Although Figure 2.1 provides an approximate time frame for each
stage, the length of time students spend at each level will be as varied as the
students themselves. Krashen and Terrell's early work linked classroom
activities with the stages to ensure that teachers did not expect utterances
from ELLs that were beyond or beneath their stages of acquisition. Imagine, for
example, a student in the Preproduction stage being asked “how” or “why”
questions or a student in the Intermediate Fluency stage being asked to perform
a Preproduction-stage task, such as pointing to an object.
The so-called “Ramirez Report” (Ramirez, 1992)
found that in all the language programs studied, including immersion as well as
early-exit and late-exit transitional bilingual education, teachers tended to
ask low-level questions. By knowing the stages of language acquisition and the
stage-appropriate questions, you can engage students at the correct level of
discourse. In addition, when appropriate questions are asked, content knowledge
can be assessed alongside language proficiency.
Knowing the level of language acquisition also
allows you to work within the student's “zone of proximal development”—that
area between what the student is capable of at the moment and the point you
want the student to reach next (Vygotsky, 1978). According to Vygotsky, you can
work in a student's zone of proximal development by “scaffolding” language development,
or providing the support a student needs as she progresses.
Scaffolding is essentially a way to nudge a student
toward a higher level of performance. With language development, this can be
done by modeling correct grammar or pronunciation, asking challenging
questions, or providing direct instruction. For example, if a student is in the
Preproduction stage, he will be successful at stage-appropriate tasks such as
pointing, finding, or circling a picture. However, you can scaffold further development
by supporting him as he attempts tasks characteristic of the Early Production
stage, such as answering yes/no or either/or questions or providing one-word
responses.
Recognizing the level of language acquisition is
also a factor when setting language objectives. This can best be explained by
Krashen's input hypothesis (i + 1), which builds upon the scaffolding
approach described above (i = actual level and i + 1 =
potential level of language development; Krashen & Terrell, 1983).
Krashen's hypothesis states that a speaker will move to the next level of
acquisition when the experience of the target language (the input) includes
some of the structures that are part of the next stage of acquisition, and the
speaker is encouraged to use language that reflects that more advanced stage.
Paying attention to teacher prompts that accompany
the levels is one way for a student to move to the next level of English
proficiency. If you adapt the way you prompt, students will respond according
to both their current stage and the stage just beyond.
A common question teachers ask is, “How long does
it take an English language learner to pass through the stages of language
acquisition so that he can perform as well as a native English speaker in
school?” In answer to this question, let's take a look at Figure 2.2.
Figure 2.2. Surface and Deeper Level of Language Proficiency
Not available for electronic dissemination.
Source:Bilingualism and special education: Issues
in assessment and pedagogy
Picture the English language as an iceberg divided
into two parts: conversational language and academic language. The tip of the
iceberg—the small part that is visible above water—is conversational English,
or basic interpersonal communicative skills. This is the language of normal
everyday speech, including pronunciation, grammar, and basic vocabulary. It is
the ability to understand and speak informally with friends, teachers, and
parents. This conversational ability is not especially demanding
intellectually. It is the language that non-English-speaking children develop
after about two years of living in an English-speaking country.
Because they have developed a conversational
ability, these children sound fluent to many people. They understand the
teacher's questions, converse with classmates in English, and even translate
for their parents. However, their daily schoolwork and exams may not reflect
this fluency. Frustrated parents and teachers, faced with this contradiction,
often conclude falsely that such students have learning disabilities, are
poorly motivated, or are just plain lazy.
Let's go back to the iceberg. If we apply the
iceberg metaphor to our fluent but underachieving students, we are likely to
see that they have only developed the tip (i.e., conversational English). They
have not developed academic English—the large portion of the iceberg that is
hidden under the sea.
Academic English, or cognitive academic language
proficiency, is the language of the classroom—the language of isosceles
triangles, complex compound sentences, and photosynthesis. Students must master
academic English to understand textbooks, write papers and reports, solve
mathematical word problems, and take tests. Without a mastery of academic
English, students cannot develop the critical-thinking and problem-solving
skills needed to understand and express the new and abstract concepts taught in
the classroom. However, academic language takes at least five to seven years to
develop, and it can take even longer for a student who was not literate in her
primary language when she started in a U.S. school (Collier & Thomas,
1989).
In the chapters that follow, you will find examples
of instructional strategies that have been modified to meet the needs of ELLs
according to their language acquisition level. You will also find examples of
how to engage these students in whole-class activities by asking tiered
questions associated with their level of language acquisition. Each chapter
features an example of how an instructional strategy can be adapted for Preproduction,
Early Production, Speech Emergence, and Intermediate and Advanced Fluency
students. By providing stage-appropriate adaptations of instructional
strategies, we hope to help you achieve the greatest possible success with your
ELLs.
Classroom Examples
Here are examples of the kinds of adaptations you
will find in the following chapters.
Subject: Literacy
Content Objective: To help students learn the basics of summarization.
A 1st grade teacher is teaching students to
summarize using a Big Book version of The Three Little Pigs. She
can help her ELLs acquire a better understanding of summarizing by using tiered
questions in different ways depending on the stage of the student.
Preproduction
Students can point to a picture in the book as the teacher
says or asks: “Show me the wolf. Where is the house?”
Early Production
Students do well with yes/no questions and one- or
two-word answers: “Did the brick house fall down? Who blew down the straw
house?”
Speech Emergence
Students can answer “why” and “how” questions with
phrases or short-sentence answers, and can also explain their answers: “Explain
why the third pig built his house out of bricks.”
Intermediate Fluency
Students can answer “What would happen if” and “Why
do you think” questions: “Why do you think the pigs were able to outsmart the
wolf?”
Advanced Fluency
Students can retell the story, including the main
plot elements and leaving out the insignificant details.
In addition to using tiered questions to include
all students in a whole-class activity, you can also use these questioning
strategies one-on-one with ELLs to check for comprehension.
The Word-MES Strategy
The Word-MES formula is another strategy you can
use to enhance language development. Jane Hill, one of the authors of this book,
named this formula based on her experiences learning to speak Spanish in Mexico
and Spain. She knew what she wanted to say, but when she tried to say it she
ended up in a big word mess—entangled in an utterance of disjointed nouns,
verbs, and adjectives. Today, when she works with ELLs on language development,
she uses the phrase “Word-MES” to remind her to
1.
Work on word selection with
Preproduction students,
2.
Model for Early Production students,
3.
Expand what Speech Emergence students have said or written, and
4.
Help Intermediate and Advanced Fluency students “sound
like a book.”
Here is how the 1st grade teacher in our classroom
example can employ the Word-MES formula with ELLs at different stages.
Preproduction
Students need help with word selection. They need
to learn vocabulary words such as “wolf,” “pig,” “house,” “straw,” “bricks,”
and “blow.”
Early Production
Students benefit from you modeling good English. If
a student says, “Wolf blowed,” you can say, “Yes, the wolf blew and blew.” Note
that explicit corrections should not be made.
Speech Emergence
Students should focus on expanding oral and written
sentences. If a student says, “He blew the house down,” you can say, “Yes, he
blew the straw house down.” You have expanded by adding an adjective.
Intermediate and Advanced Fluency
Students should sound like a book. You can help
them achieve this by exposing them to words beyond their current repertoire.
Furthermore, in the early grades, students acquire
vocabulary through repeated readings of the same book or singing the same
chants and familiar songs over and over. Word walls are a way for all ELLs to
increase word knowledge while engaged in such activity. See Figure 2.3 for a
word wall based on The Little Red Hen.
Figure 2.3. Word Wall
Summary
When you are familiar with the stages of second
language acquisition, you will be more attuned to the appropriate types of
questions and prompts to use to engage and motivate your ELLs. By understanding
your students' levels of linguistic proficiency, you will become more competent
at differentiating instruction to promote linguistic and academic achievement.
You will also feel better, because students will participate and feel more
confident as they successfully respond.
