Class+Notes+02.01.12

Language

1) language is a tool used for communication, doesn't have to be verbal (body), 1000x1000 variations of language, universal languages for some concepts (pain, love, hate). 2) above plus use all senses to communicate--touch, see; language is social 3) language is a written, verbal, visual, or physical wway of communication involves interaction between people.

Topic: Structural Linguistics Description: Focus on language s people speak, describes human language, identitifues structurall characteristics, no pre-conceptions, no languages are the same, observe obvious data, Behavioralism: actions in response to stimulous, study of human behavior (skinner, pavlov) Key Vocab: structuralism, behavioralism, empiracal (observable) Tag Words: observable human behavior

Topic: Generative Linguistics and Cognitive Psychology Description: Human language cannot be scrutinized simply in terms of observable stimuli and responses or volumes of raw data gathered by the field of linguists. //Cognitive psychology// seeks to discover underlying motivations for //why// people do what they do and go beyond merely descriptive adequacy to explanatory power. Overall by asking difficult questions about the motivations of humans we gain a deeper insight into human behavior. Key Vocab: meaning, understanding, knowing Tag Words: generative linguistics, universal grammar, deep structure, rational, competence

Topic: 19th Century Description: Two Language Teaching Methods: 1. Classical Method - focused on grammar rules, vocab memorization, translations, and written exercises. - hardly any thought to teaching oral use of languages - was not taught for communicating, but more so for being "scholarly" 2. Grammar Translation Method - made to "reform" language teaching methods. - remains a standard for teaching in the classroom - does basically nothing to enrich a student's communication skills towards language - easy to construct for teachers Key Vocab: Classical Method, Grammar Translation Method Tag Words: vocab, grammar, no oral use/communication

Topic: Constructivisim Description: Constructivisim is part of a post-structuralist theory that developed at the end of the 20th century and is now generally accepted within society. It combines the studies of linguistics, psychology, and sociology to study how people construct meaning. There are two well known theories in Constructivisim: cognitive and social. Cognitive focuses more on the individual's representation of their own reality, and how they transform and discover complex information. Social focuses on the importance of social interaction and cooperative learning or more simply that thinking and meaning develop out of social interactions rather than from the self. Key Vocab: Cognitive, Social, Zone of Proximal Development Tag Words: social interaction, reality, individual, construction, comprehension

Description: Language Teaching in the 20th Century came to be by taking the system in place at the time, taking its best attributes and keeping those in play, while developing new systems of teaching language and repeating method of picking the best of the newest system until the 20th century hit. This way of teaching language was found through scientific research, experiments, and observations. In the 20th century there was a push to make language teaching and learning as natural as possible and realizes that students are individuals and not all the same.
 * Topic:** 20th Century
 * Key Vocab:** Methods, Cyclical and fluvial nature of methods, Audiolingual Method (ALM), Direct Method, Communicative Language Teaching (CLT), and Approach.
 * Tag Words:** Building, Natural, Difference