How do general psychological processes inform FLL pedagogy? Presenting a new instructional framework

Abstract

Learning invariably proceeds by relating new facts to the already familiar and present in the conceptual structure. In the context of FL study the familiar is, of course, the student’s mother tongue. Drawing on the learner’s L1 (or another mastered tongue) and showing comparisons and contrasts between the languages mirrors, facilitates and accelerates the processes which occur independently in his/her mind. At the same time, when in a new situation, we look for familiar orientation points and similarities owing to our instinctive need for safety. This is also why the target language should literally be taught in the framework of the learner’s L1. Instruction in the Language Interface Model (LIM; Gozdawa-Gołębiowski 2003a,b, 2004a,b, 2005) proceeds from an explication of how relevant rules operate in the students’ L1 through an explanation of corresponding L2 rules and subsequent interface formation, modifying the L1 rule to accommodate L2 data, with practice first expecting the learner to apply the FL rules to L1 examples before moving to more traditional exercises, to finally end with competence expansion – integrating the two competences, leading to the development of multicompetence and allowing for the obliteration of the rules governing the structure of the utterance from the learner’s conscious mind.