Focus on form
Encyclopedia
Focus on form is a concept in second language acquisition
and language education
, proposed by Michael Long
, in which, in the context of a communicative
interaction, the attention
of learners learning a second language
is drawn to the form of specific language features. It is contrasted with focus on formS, which is limited solely to the explicit focus on language features, and focus on meaning, which is limited to focus on meaning
with no attention paid to form at all. For a teaching intervention to qualify as focus on form and not as focus on formS, the learner must be aware of the meaning and use of the language features before the form is brought to their attention.
s pass through will exhibit non-native-like language forms. Furthermore, the progression of these stages is not clean; learners may use language features correctly in some situations but not in others, or they may exhibit U-shaped learning, in which native-like use may temporarily revert to non-native-like use. None of these findings sit well with the idea that students will learn exactly what you teach them, when you teach it.
Teaching approaches based on focus on meaning have enjoyed more support in the second language acquisition literature than those based on focus on formS. In particular, in his Input Hypothesis
, Krashen
proposed that all that was needed to learn a second language was massive exposure to comprehensible language input. The importance of language input has been backed up by studies linking language level to time spent in the country where it is spoken, and by studies on extensive reading. However, in a review of the literature comparing instructed with uninstructed language learning, Long found a clear advantage for instructed learning in both the rate of learning and the ultimate level reached. An important finding that supported Long's view came from French
language immersion
programs in Canada
; even after students had years of meaning-focused lessons filled with comprehensible input, their spoken language remained far from native-like, with many grammatical errors. This is despite the fact that they could speak fluently and had native-like listening abilities.
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...
and language education
Language education
Language education is the teaching and learning of a foreign or second language. Language education is a branch of applied linguistics.- Need for language education :...
, proposed by Michael Long
Michael Long (academic)
Michael Long is Professor of Second Language Acquisition at the University of Maryland, College Park. Long introduced the concept of focus on form, which entails bringing linguistic elements to students’ attention within the larger context of a meaning-based lesson in order to anticipate or...
, in which, in the context of a communicative
Communication
Communication is the activity of conveying meaningful information. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast...
interaction, the attention
Attention
Attention is the cognitive process of paying attention to one aspect of the environment while ignoring others. Attention is one of the most intensely studied topics within psychology and cognitive neuroscience....
of learners learning a second language
Second language
A second language or L2 is any language learned after the first language or mother tongue. Some languages, often called auxiliary languages, are used primarily as second languages or lingua francas ....
is drawn to the form of specific language features. It is contrasted with focus on formS, which is limited solely to the explicit focus on language features, and focus on meaning, which is limited to focus on meaning
Meaning (linguistics)
In linguistics, meaning is what is expressed by the writer or speaker, and what is conveyed to the reader or listener, provided that they talk about the same thing . In other words if the object and the name of the object and the concepts in their head are the same...
with no attention paid to form at all. For a teaching intervention to qualify as focus on form and not as focus on formS, the learner must be aware of the meaning and use of the language features before the form is brought to their attention.
Motivation
The concept of focus on form was motivated by the lack of support for the efficacy of focus on formS on the one hand, and clear advantages demonstrated by instructed language learning over uninstructed learning on the other. The research conflicting with focus on formS has been wide-ranging; learners typically acquire language features in sequences, not all at once, and most of the stages the learners' interlanguageInterlanguage
An interlanguage is an emerging linguistic system that has been developed by a learner of a second language who has not become fully proficient yet but is approximating the target language: preserving some features of their first language , or overgeneralizing target language rules in speaking or...
s pass through will exhibit non-native-like language forms. Furthermore, the progression of these stages is not clean; learners may use language features correctly in some situations but not in others, or they may exhibit U-shaped learning, in which native-like use may temporarily revert to non-native-like use. None of these findings sit well with the idea that students will learn exactly what you teach them, when you teach it.
Teaching approaches based on focus on meaning have enjoyed more support in the second language acquisition literature than those based on focus on formS. In particular, in his 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,...
, Krashen
Stephen 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:...
proposed that all that was needed to learn a second language was massive exposure to comprehensible language input. The importance of language input has been backed up by studies linking language level to time spent in the country where it is spoken, and by studies on extensive reading. However, in a review of the literature comparing instructed with uninstructed language learning, Long found a clear advantage for instructed learning in both the rate of learning and the ultimate level reached. An important finding that supported Long's view came from French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
language immersion
Language immersion
Language immersion is a method of teaching a second language in which the target language is used as the means of instruction. Unlike more traditional language courses, where the target language is simply the subject material, language immersion uses the target language as a teaching tool,...
programs in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
; even after students had years of meaning-focused lessons filled with comprehensible input, their spoken language remained far from native-like, with many grammatical errors. This is despite the fact that they could speak fluently and had native-like listening abilities.