Silent period
Encyclopedia
The silent period is a stage in second language acquisition
where learners do not attempt to speak. Silent periods are more common in children than in adult learners, as there is often more pressure on adult learners to speak during the early stages of acquisition. This can be due to communication demands such as a language being necessary at work, or to mainstream language teaching methods insisting on production from the very start of instruction.
's input hypothesis
, and does not appear very frequently in the modern second language acquisition literature. Krashen hypothesizes that learners are building up language competence during their silent periods through actively listening and processing the language they hear, and that they do not need to speak to improve in the language. He says that silent periods of up to six months are not unusual. According to VanPatten and Benati, although discussion of the silent period in modern second language acquisition research is rare, this is not necessarily any indication that the idea is wrong; rather they are of the opinion that it indicates how the priorities of the field have changed.
such as Total Physical Response
, the natural approach, the delayed oral response approach, and the comprehension method. In Total Physical Response and the natural approach, the instructor is specifically recommended to wait for students' speech to emerge naturally, rather than forcing early output.
Second language acquisition
Second-language acquisition or second-language learning is the process by which people learn a second language. Second-language acquisition is also the name of the scientific discipline devoted to studying that process...
where learners do not attempt to speak. Silent periods are more common in children than in adult learners, as there is often more pressure on adult learners to speak during the early stages of acquisition. This can be due to communication demands such as a language being necessary at work, or to mainstream language teaching methods insisting on production from the very start of instruction.
In second language acquisition research
The silent period is often associated with Stephen KrashenStephen Krashen
Stephen Krashen is professor emeritus at the University of Southern California, who moved from the linguistics department to the faculty of the School of Education in 1994. He is a linguist, educational researcher, and activist.-Work:...
's input hypothesis
Input Hypothesis
The Input Hypothesis is one of five hypotheses of second language acquisition proposed by Stephen Krashen. It is also often used as a catch-all term to refer to all of the hypotheses as one entity. The hypotheses are the acquisition-learning hypothesis, the input hypothesis, the monitor hypothesis,...
, and does not appear very frequently in the modern second language acquisition literature. Krashen hypothesizes that learners are building up language competence during their silent periods through actively listening and processing the language they hear, and that they do not need to speak to improve in the language. He says that silent periods of up to six months are not unusual. According to VanPatten and Benati, although discussion of the silent period in modern second language acquisition research is rare, this is not necessarily any indication that the idea is wrong; rather they are of the opinion that it indicates how the priorities of the field have changed.
In language teaching
The silent period has been put into practice in language teaching methodsLanguage teaching methods
Language education may take place as a general school subject or in a specialized language school. There are many methods of teaching languages. Some have fallen into relative obscurity and others are widely used; still others have a small following, but offer useful insights.While sometimes...
such as Total Physical Response
Total Physical Response
Total Physical Response is a method developed by Dr. James J. Asher, a professor emeritus of psychology at San José State University, to aid learning second languages...
, the natural approach, the delayed oral response approach, and the comprehension method. In Total Physical Response and the natural approach, the instructor is specifically recommended to wait for students' speech to emerge naturally, rather than forcing early output.
External links
- Julio Foppoli's article "The Silent Period of Second Language Acquisition" at Eslbase.