Cambridge DELTA Module 1 Terms
Questions & ANSWERS(GRADED A+)
acculturation - ANSWERSLA The process by which a person integrates into a
particular culture. One of the first theories of SLA that attempted to prioritize social
factors over purely cognitive ones. It has been partly rehabilitated under the name
socialization.
accuracy - ANSWERSLA The extent to which a learner's use of a second language
conforms to the rules of the language. Once thought to be a precondition for fluency.
achievement test - ANSWERTESTING Designed to test what learners have learned
over a week, month, term or entire course. Because ___ ___s are directly related to
the content of the teaching program, they provide feedback on the teaching-learning
process, and are therefore useful data for course evaluation.
adolescents - ANSWERMETHODOLOGY The ideal time to learn a second
language. This age group tends to outperform adults and to progress more rapidly
than younger learners.
affect - ANSWERPSYCHOLOGY The general word for emotion or feelings. These
factors positively or negatively influence language learning. Often contrasted with
cognitive factors such as intelligence and learning style. Low ___ive
filter=emotionally well-disposed to processing input High ___ive=won't process input
so effecitively.
affix, affixation - ANSWERVOCABULARY An element that is added to a word and
which changes its meaning. The process of doing this.
action research - ANSWERMETHODOLOGY A form of teacher-driven research, the
twin goals of which are to improve classroom practice, and to 'empower' teachers.
Typically motivated less by the desire to answer the 'big' questions than by the need
to solve a specific teaching problem in the local context.
planning->acting->observing->reflecting
affordance - ANSWERLINGUISTICS The language learning opportunities that exist
in a learner's linguistic 'environment.' Maximized with meaningful activities and giving
learners feedback.
agency - ANSWERMETHODOLOGY Control of your own actions, including your
mental activity. A notion from critical pedagogy. Learners are not objects of the
teaching process; they are subjects of the learning process. A factor that contributes
to motivation.
applied linguistics - ANSWERLINGUISTICS Concerned with the application of
linguistic theory to solving language-related problems in the real world. Language
planning, speech therapy, lexcography, translation studies, forensic linguistics.
,appraisal - ANSWERLINGUISTICS Also called stance; the way speakers and writers
use language to express their personal attitude to what is being said or written; one
of the main ways that language's interpersonal function is realized; consists of 3
categories: affect (personal feelings), judgment (social values and social esteem),
appreciation (opinions). These can all be expressed lexically, grammatically or
through the use of paralinguistic devices.
appropriacy - ANSWERSOCIOLINGUISTICS Using language in a way that is
suitable for the context and in a way that meets the expectations of the people you
are communicating with. An aspect of sociolinguistic competence, which is a
component of a speaker's overall communicative competence. (Dell Hymes)
appropriation - ANSWERSLA To make something your own. Gaining ownership of a
skill by first doing it with someone who is more skilled than you are until you can
control or regulate the skill yourself. A key concept in sociocultural learning theory.
Language is not simply a behavior that is conditioned through repeated practice, but
that it is one of collaborative construction, in which skills are transferred in socially-
situated activity.
aptitude - ANSWERPSYCHOLOGY The innate talent or predisposition for language
learning. 3 kinds of ability: auditory, linguistic, memory.
aspect - ANSWERGRAMMAR The way the speaker's 'view' of an event is expressed
by the verb phrase, regardless of the time of the event itself. 2 of these in English:
progressive and perfect.
contingency - ANSWERPSYCHOLOGY The sense that what is happening is
connected to what has just happened and what is about to happen.
audiolingualism - ANSWERMETHODOLOGY Became widespread in the US in the
1950s and 60s. Distinctive feature=drilling of sentence patterns. Came from a view of
learning as habit formation (behaviorism). Spoken language was prioritized;
translation and the use of metalanguage were discouraged; accuracy was
considered a precondition for fluency. Shot down by Chomsky in the early 60s and
the birth of mentalism.
authenticity - ANSWERLINGUISTICS Became a priority with the communicative
approach. The idea of "grade the task, not the text" was born. This kind of interaction
is both more communicative and offers more affordances for learning.
automaticity - ANSWERPSYCHOLOGY The ability to perform a task without having
to focus attention on it. This frees a learner's limited attentional resources for more
demanding activities. A process of setting up chunks and associations that link one
step with another. This doesn't mean a sacrifice of accuracy. When chunks of
language are produced in a pre-assembled form, the speaker has much less chance
of making mistakes.
autonomy - ANSWERPSYCHOLOGY Also called self-directed learning. The capacity
to take responsibility for your own learning.
,behaviorism - ANSWERPSYCHOLOGY A psychological theory popular in the mid-
twentieth century that viewed learning as a sort of habit formation and positive
reinforcement. Audiolingualism is the teaching method that is associated with this.
stimulus-response-reinforcement.
This theory rejected any role, in learning, for mental processes such as thought and
reasoning.
bilingualism - ANSWERSLA At one point it was considered a handicap to second
language learners since (according to behaviorist theory) the first language interferes
with the second. ADDITIVE=second language added to first without threatening the
speaker's first language identity; SUBTRACTIVE=the second language replaces the
first, threatening the speaker's language identity.
cognitive learning theory - ANSWERPSYCHOLOGY A learning theory that draws
upon ideas from cognitive psychology, the branch of psychology that deals with
perception and thinking. Piaget first proposed the view that language develops out of
the child's thoughts and growing awareness of the world. A later version suggests
that the child acquires language by forming and testing hypotheses about the adult
language it hears around it. Has been criticized as being mechanistic, and for
ignoring social and affective factors.
coherence - ANSWERDISCOURSE How the sentences in a text relate to each
other.
cohesion - ANSWERDISCOURSE The use of grammatical and lexical means to
achieve connected text. LEXICAL: repetition, synonyms, general words, same
thematic field, substitution, ellipsis; GRAMMATICAL: references, substitution,
ellipsis, linkers, parallelism
collocation - ANSWERVOCABULARY Words that frequently occur together. Can be
grammatical (collocate with specific prepositions: "account for") or lexical: "narrow
escape."
communication strategy - ANSWERSLA Ways that learners get around the fact that
they may not know how to say something, but that help the learner achieve their
intended message: paraphrase, word coinage, foreignizing a word, approximation,
all-purpose words, language-switching, paralinguistics, appealing for help.
avoidance strategy - ANSWERSLA Abandoning a message or replacing an original
messae with one that is less ambitious.
communicative activity - ANSWERMETHODOLOGY Activity in which real
communication occurs. Key features: purposefulness, reciprocity, negotiation,
unpredictability, heterogeneity, synchronicity.
communicative approach - ANSWERMETHODOLOGY An umbrella term used to
describe a major shift in language teaching that occurred in Europe in the 1970s.
Shift away from language systems and toward how these systems are used in real
, communication. Linguistic competience replaced with focus on communicative
competence. Directly related to functional-notional syllabus.
strong CLT - ANSWERMETHODOLOGY An emphasis on deep-end communication.
You learn language by using it. Led to task-based learning.
weak CLT - ANSWERMETHODOLOGY An emphasis on shallow-end
communication. You learn language and then you use it. Learn the language
systems first and then put them to communicative use.
communicative competence - ANSWERLINGUISTICS First proposed by Dell
Hymes, what you know in order to be able to communicate effectively. The term
contrasts with linguistic competence (Chomsky). Hymes introduced the notion of
appropriacy.
community language learning - ANSWERMETHODOLOGY Also called counseling
learning, a teaching method developed by Charles Curran in the 70s in the US. The
learners (clients) sit in a circle having a conversation. They consult with the teacher-
knower, who is outside the circle, to help formulate each utterance. The conversation
is recorded, played back, translated, transcribed, boarded and read aloud.
competence - ANSWERLINGUISTICS What we intuitively know about a language in
order to be able to use it. Contrasts with performance. This motivates he use of
corpus data to inform grammars, dictionaries and classroom materials. I language
(internalized language) and E language (I language put to use externally).
competency - ANSWERMETHODOLOGY A specific practial skill. sometimes in the
form of 'can do' statements.
complexity - ANSWERSLA Gauged by the following factors: amount of
subordination, complex sentences, reference, lexical/linking verb ratio, conjunctions
comprehension - ANSWERPSYCHOLOGY The process of understanding speech or
writing. It results from an interaction between different kinds of knowledge. Bottom-
up vs. top-down processing is involved. Involves different psychological operations,
including perception, recognition and inferencing.
computer-mediated communication CMC - ANSWERMETHODOLOGY The use of
networked computers in order to communicate. Can be synchronous (people
communicate in real time) or asynchronous (delayed communication).
concord - ANSWERGRAMMAR Also called agreement. The name given to the
grammatical relationship whereby the form of one word requires a corresponding
form in another. In English, it's the case with subjects and verbs (I like, He likes...).
assimiliation - ANSWERPHONOLOGY When a sound is modified by a neighboring
sound, such as when the final /n/ of green is followed by a /p/, and is pronounced
/m/; /t/ /d/=/p//b/; /t//d/=/k//g/
