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COGNITIVISM
 Cognitivism
• Psychology- Latin “cognoscere” – knowing & information.
• Cognitive psychology: information processing psychology-
• -derived – from earlier traditions –investigation of thoughts &
problem solving.
• theoretical framework- understand mind
• Gained credence in 1950s
• Response to behaviourism, highlighted learning mechanics
4 Influential factors- development of cognitivism

• Experimental psychology

• The shift from behaviourism to cognition

• Language acquisition (Chomsky)

• Computer- artificial intelligence

• Cognitivist revolution replaced behaviourism-1960s
• Learning theory of psychology
• Emphasis on acquiring knowledge using internal processes
• Learning theory that focuses on how information is
• received,
• organized
• Stored &
• Retrieved by mind.
• cognitivism emphasizes active role of learner.
• Our physiological system- absorbs stimuli from environment
• Stimuli- interactions able -produce knowledge & skills
• attention- a vital part of cognitive development( external stimuli)

awareness

focus

margin
• Behavioural psychologists – consider humans to be programmed-respond
external stimuli

• Cognitive psychologists- individuals- rationality- learn- active participation

• Emphasizes role of mental activities in learning process

• Includes processes
• Thinking
• Remembering
• Perceiving
• Interpreting
• Reasoning
• Problem solving
• Behaviourists acknowledged -thinking, but as a behaviour
• Cognitivists-way of thinking – impacts behaviour
• attempts to explain human behaviour –understanding thoughts

• Cognitive development –process of assimilating & expanding the

intellectual horizon.
• Stresses acquisition of knowledge, growth of mental structure
In teaching
• focuses- conceptualizing the student’s learning process
• how information is received, processed & organized into existing
schemas
• how information is retrieved upon recall
Major cognitivists
NOAM CHOMSKY
• Published Syntactic Structures (1957)
• Introduced - generative & transformational grammar
• Highly theoretical approach-universal principles of language
• Universal grammar- turned linguistics towards mentalism
• Laid foundation-integrating linguistics into the yet unnamed
new discipline- cognitive science
• theory of L.A.D. Language Acquisition Device- a postulated
organ in brain, suggested- perform as a congenital device –
language acquisition

• Stood as antithesis- B.F. Skinner’s Classical & Operand

conditioning

• Showed contested theories of language acquisition- evidence

of human cognition
• One of the most famous criticisms addressed by behaviourists.
• Chomsky’s argument- language cannot be acquired purely by
conditioning,
• must be explained by the existence of some inner abilities.
• In his 1972 book, Language and the Mind ,he states that language is
innate.
Stephen Krashen
• Expert linguist
• Specialized- theories of language acquisition & development
• 5 hypotheses to language acquisition- 2nd language
• 1987 work Principles and Practice in Second Language Acquisition

ACQUISITION LEARNING HYPOTHESIS

INPUT HYPOTHESIS
MONITOR HYPOTHESIS
NATURAL ORDER HYPOTHESIS
AFFECTIVE FILTER HYPOTHESIS
ACQUISITION- LEARNING HYPOTHESIS
• Most fundamental of all hypotheses- most widely known-linguists
• 2 independent systems - 2nd language performance
• Acquired system & learned system

• Acquisition or acquired system- product-subconscious process

• similar to - children undergo (1st language acquisition)
• Requires meaningful interaction in target language
• Natural communication- importance to communicative act
• Not concentrated in the form of utterances
• Learning system- product of formal instruction
• Comprises a conscious process
• Results in conscious knowledge ‘about’ the language
E.g. grammar rules

• Learning results in knowing about a language,

• Acquisition results in knowing a language.
• Second language acquisition has replaced the term second language
learning.
Input hypothesis
• Krashen’s attempt to explain how learner acquires 2nd language
• The learner progresses along the natural order,
• When he/she receives a 2nd language input, i.e.
• 1 step beyond his/her current stage-linguistic competence
• Comprehensive input that belongs to
• Level i+1 , i- sensible /comprehensive input
Monitor hypothesis
• Accounts for relationship b/w acquisition& learning
• Defines the influence of learning on acquisition
• Monitoring function- practical result of the learned grammar.
• Acc. to Krashen, acquisition system –utterance initiator
• Learning system performs the role of ‘monitor’ or editor.
• Role of monitor should be minor
• only to correct deviations from ‘normal’ speech
• To give speech a more polished appearance
Natural order hypothesis
• Suggests acquisition of grammatical structures,
• - follows a natural order, predictable
• In a language, some grammatical structures-tend –acquired early,
while some others late.
• Difficulty level of learning needs gradation in each level
Affective filter hypothesis
• Embodies Krashen's view – a number of affective variables play a
facilitative, but non- casual role in 2nd language acquisition.
• Affective variables include : motivation, self-confidence, anxiety
• low motivation, low self esteem, debilitating anxiety- combine to
‘raise’ the affective filter
• It can form a mental block
• prevents comprehensible input from being used for acquisition
• Filter up- impedes language acquisition
• Constructivism- learning theory built on cognitivism
• Piaget & Bruner-cognitive constructivists

• PIAGET
• Jean Piaget devised 3components – cognitive theory
• Introduced concept of “schema”- patterns/building blocks-learning
• Process of adaptation- children learn to adapt –environment
• It includes 3 processes: assimilation, accommodation & equilibrium
• Also devised - the different stages of cognitive development
• -sensori motor stage, pre-operational stage, formal operational

• BRUNER
• Argued learning-an active process-learners construct new
ideas/concepts based on their existing knowledge
Thank you
KP