Understanding the Acquisition of English as an Additional Language

Acquiring an Additional Language in Stages

Students who acquire an additional language progress through a series of stages as their language proficiency develops. The student characteristics outlined in the following stages may vary from student to student, but they can generally be described in the following way (based on the five stages described by Stephen Krashen and Tracy TerrelKrashen, S.D. & Terrell, T.D. (1983). The natural approach: Language acquisition in the classroom. London: Prentice Hall Europe.).

These stages describe general abilities and behaviours of students at each stage of acquiring an additional language as well as an approximate timeframe for language development within each stage. These stages are not the same as benchmarks or English language proficiency levels.

Stage I: Observing, Listening, and Gesturing

English language learners
at this stage would have been exposed to English instruction for approximately 10 hours to 6 months.

Students may

have minimal or very limited comprehension
understand vocabulary related to routines and social exchanges
understand some key subject-specific words
understand common phrases and expressions in context but may have limited understanding of individual words or sentence structures
be in “the silent period,” preferring to observe and listen rather than produce language
repeat what they heard, but with little or no comprehension
copy written words
be able to respond to prompts, such as visuals
understand better when visual supports are used (e.g., gestures, images)
use some nonverbal communication to support attempts at oral communication

Teachers can

encourage students to use actions or body motions to respond to spoken language using total physical response (TPR)total physical response (TPR): a learning strategy that allows language learners to develop their listening and comprehension skills in preparation for speaking and promotes the use of body movement to support language learning

Students’ physical responses demonstrate whether or not, or to what extent, they understand the instructions. Students with no understanding of the instructions or commands can do the action that the teacher models, or they can mimic the movement of their peers and learn the meaning of the instructions through doing the action.

TPR can give beginner language learners some important survivor language and acquaint them with some basic commands, instructions, and classroom-management language.

Examples of TPR can be viewed in the Kindergarten Learning Experience Overview video at Supporting English Language Learners. activities
provide visual and written support to oral communication
provide resources and materials at a modified language level to support grade-level content
encourage the student to respond with single words
provide sentence frames to support speaking and writing
provide engaging opportunities for students to practise and repeat common phrases or patterned sentences
have students demonstrate listening comprehension by rephrasing or retelling
pair the student with another student who speaks the same home language home language: the dominant language that a student uses at home to communicate with family members
be sensitive to the demands of learning a new language, such as fatigue
provide positive reinforcement, a low-risk learning environment, and opportunities for review and practice
provide age-appropriate strategies to help students understand and use English words and phrases
encourage students to use home language knowledge as a tool for English language development and understanding of concepts

Stage II: Simple Comprehension and Production

English language learners at this stage would have been exposed to English instruction for approximately 6 months to 1 year.

Students may

have limited oral or written comprehension, especially when topics are unfamiliar
use key words and familiar phrases
speak and write one- or two-word responses; short, memorized phrases; and/or short, simple sentences in the present tense
memorize language chunks, with usage errors
use present-tense verbs
may overgeneralize “s” and “ed” endings
have receptive understanding (listening and reading), which is often more advanced than expressive language use (speaking and writing)
understand texts with visual support

Teachers can

provide visual cues and written text to support understanding
encourage interaction with peers in both the home language home language: the dominant language that a student uses at home to communicate with family members and English
design learning that maximizes opportunities for practice and encourages risk-taking within a positive learning environment
focus on vocabulary development in context
provide age-appropriate strategies to help students continue building vocabulary on their own (e.g., word families)
provide sentence frames and models to support productive language use (speaking and writing)
encourage students to create their own reference tools, such as personal dictionaries

Stage III: Expanding Language Proficiency

English language learners at this stage would have been exposed to English instruction for approximately 1 to 3 years.

Students may

have good comprehension, especially in social interactions and when topics are familiar
communicate using simple sentences and may begin to add detail
ask and answer questions to clarify and confirm understanding
make frequent grammar, word-use, and pronunciation errors
not understand wordplay or humour that is implied or requires cultural knowledge
initiate and engage in brief conversations with peers
understand complex texts with visual support

Teachers can

provide age-appropriate strategies to help students continue building vocabulary on their own (e.g., word families)
offer resources that address grade-level concepts using simplified language
use dialogue journals to communicate with students on topics of interest to students
provide explicit language instruction (vocabulary, grammar, and syntax) in context to support students’ understanding of concepts
model and recast recast: a language modelling and error-correction technique in which the teacher either corrects errors while repeating what the student has said or adds words or phrases to what the student has said to demonstrate alternate or more eloquent ways to express the thought using more complex sentences and vocabulary
make the meaning of figurative language and cultural references explicit
provide templates to support written tasks
model and provide support for cooperative learning tasks
encourage students to express their ideas and feelings with peers in conversations or journals
provide support for students to answer questions in the form of a complete response

Stage IV: Functional Academic Language Proficiency

English language learners at this stage would have been exposed to English instruction for approximately 3 to 5 years.

Students may

have excellent comprehension, especially when topics are familiar
begin to demonstrate good comprehension when topics and contexts are new or unfamiliar
make few grammatical errors
begin to use more complex sentence structures in speaking and writing
ask questions to clarify and confirm understanding
understand common metaphors and idiomatic expressions
create oral and written texts, with few usage and word-form errors
continue to translate between English and their home languagehome language: the dominant language that a student uses at home to communicate with family members

Teachers can

provide age-appropriate strategies to help students continue building vocabulary on their own (e.g., affixes, etymology)
use models and templates to support construction of more complex sentence structures
introduce more sophisticated cohesive devices to connect ideas in and between sentences
encourage cooperative group work and peer tutoring

Stage V: Native-like Proficiency

English language learners at this stage would have been exposed to English instruction for approximately 5 to 7 years.

(Some English language learners may require additional years.)

Students may

effectively understand and use a broad range of vocabulary in a variety of contexts
understand a range of idiomatic expressions and cultural references
understand implied humour and use figurative language appropriately in context
have a similar level of language proficiency and academic achievement as peers whose first language is English
speak English with an accent if they began learning English during their adolescent years or as adults

Teachers can

provide English language support in all content areas, focusing on word analysis and understanding implicit meaning and the nuances of the English language
enhance students’ written and oral communication skills by focusing on transition words and specific vocabulary to impart precise meaning
help English language learners pay attention to the different ways in which language is used and concepts are expressed and discussed within different disciplines or fields of study
promote self-directed use of learning strategies to support continued language acquisition