A

Acculturation Model

(Modelo
de
Aculturacin)
Theory of SLA acquisition developed by Schumann. It
considers L2 acquisition as a form of acculturation.
Acculturation means the process of adapting to the new
culture with the corresponding changes in the learners'
attitudes to their own cultural values.

Acquisition

(Adquisicin)
Notion used by Krashen to refer to the unconscious,
spontaneous and natural process of language assimilation and
internalisation where the learner's attention is focused on
meaning rather than on form. Acquisition contrasts with
learning.

Advance organisers

(Anticipadores)
These were first defined by Ausubel (1964). They are
overviews used for previewing concepts in written material,
reviewing concepts, or linking two sets of concepts.

Affective Filter Hypothesis

(Hiptesis
del
filtro
afectivo)
Term used by Krashen to show the importance of affective
factors in SLA. The filter controls how much input the learner
comes in contact with and how much of that input is
transformed into intake. This means that high-motivated and
self-confident learners have low filters and obtain a great
amount of input, whereas low-motivated learners have high
filters and so receive little input. The Affective Filter
influences the rate of development, but not the route of
development.

Affective state

(Estado
afectivo)
The student's affective state is conditioned by a series of
factors such as anxiety, motivation, attitudes, motivation, the
desire to compete. This will directly condition the rate of L2
acquisition and academic achievement.

Analytic
research
ANOVA
Variance)

Anxiety

(or

constituent) This focuses on the single factors and constituent parts that
make up the total phenomenon.

(Analysis

of (Anlisis
de
Varianza)
Statistical test very commonly used in language studies. It is
used to make mean comparisons when there is a series of
dependent variables and one or more than one independent
variables.
(Ansiedad)
This is one of the affective factors that conditions language
learning. Anxiety can have a debilitating (or negative) effect
on language learning; this is known as debilitative anxiety.
However, it can also have a positive effect (facilitative
anxiety).

Applied research

Applies the theoretical models provided by basic research to

different fields of study.

Approach

(Enfoque)
This relates to theories about the nature of language and
language learning which serve as a source for specific
practices and principles in language teaching.

Appropriacy

(Apropiado)
The effectiveness of language use to successfully
communicate a message in an appropriate register and style.
Appropriacy contrasts with correctness.

Audiolingual
auro-oral)

method

(or A teaching and learning method which emphasises a) listening

and speaking before reading and writing, b) the use of
dialogues and drills, c) little use of the mother tongue in the
classroom, d) learning through forming habits.

B
Behaviourist learning theory (Teora
conductista
de
aprendizaje)
This is a general learning theory that applies to all kinds of
learning. It is based on the idea that learning is acquired by the
formation of habits. The learner receives stimuli which lead to
responses; these, in turn, are reinforced by rewards or
corrected. Behaviourism emphasises the importance of
environmental factors in the learning process as opposed to
cognitivism, which pays special attention to mental and
internal factors.

C
Caretaker talk

(Habla
dirigida
a
los
nios)
This refers to the language used by adults when addressing
young children. This is characterised by a series of
modifications or adaptations to make it easier for the children
to understand. The modifications can be formal (the use of
higher pitch, clearer pronunciation, slow pace) or/and
interactional (the use of explanations, repetitions, examples,
clarifications, etc.).

Chart

Teaching aids used to visually illustrate vocabulary, or

grammatical patterns. The phonemic chart shows the vowels
and consonants used in English pronunciation.

Client

(Cliente)
Curran's Community Language Learning (CLL) theory, which
uses terminology from counselling, refers to learners as
clients.

Cloze test

(Prueba

de

rellenar

huecos)

In cloze tests, a text has a series of blanks which are left for
learners to complete. To create these blanks, usually every
seventh word in the text is removed. Cloze tests aim to test a
learners knowledge of the language in a holistic way.
Cognitive Approach

(Enfoque
Cognitivo)
In this approach equal importance is given to the four skills,
and there is an overt focus on grammar. Conscious learning is
expected from learners, that is, they must be able to generate
their own language in new situations (principle of creativity).

Cognitive styles (learning The particular, characteristic way in which a learner tries to
style or cognitive strategy) learn something.
Coherence

(Coherencia)
This term is used to describe how a text hangs together
conceptually, that is, how it makes sense in terms of ideas
being clearly and logically linked throughout the text.

Cohesion

(Cohesin)
This is used to describe the formal features of language in a
text which bind a piece of discourse together at a linguistic
level. See also coherence.

Communicative approach

(Enfoque
comunicativo)
An approach to foreign or second language teaching which
emphasises that the goal of language learning is
communicative
competence.
The communicative approach was developed as a reaction to
earlier grammar-based approaches.

Communicative competence (Competencia

comunicativa)
Term coined by the linguist Dell Hymes. It is an extension of
Chomsky's 'linguistic competence'. It reflects the belief that
language is always used in a social context or situation.
Competence

(Competencia)
The innate knowledge of a language that a speaker
possesses. Competence is often contrasted with performance.
See
also
grammatical
competence,
sociolinguistic
competence, discourse competence, strategic competence,
linguistic competence, and communicative competence.

Comprehensible input

(Input
comprensible)
According to Krashen, this is input which is slightly beyond a
learners current level of competence. It is also called i+1.

Comprehensible
Hypothesis

Output (Hiptesis
del
resultado
comprensible)
Swain claimed that in order to acquire a language, learners
need not only comprehensible input, but they also need to be
encouraged to produce language.

Comprehension-based
approach

(Enfoque
basado
en
la
comprensin)
This is based on receptive skills (listening and reading) and it
does not insist on oral production.

Constructivism

(Constructivismo)
The cognitive approach of constructivism aims to explain how
learners make personal constructions from the information
they receive.

Contrastive Analysis (CA)

(Anlisis
contrastivo)
Set of procedures for comparing and contrasting the linguistic
system of two languages with the aim of identifying main
similarities and differences.

Contrastive
Hypothesis

Analysis (Hiptesis
del
Anlisis
Contrastivo)
According to this hypothesis, errors in the L2 arise as the
result of the differences existing between the learner's L1 and
L2.

Control group

One of two groups used in experimental research (the other

group is the experimental group). Research is carried out on
the experimental group, and the results are compared with
those of the control group, who do not receive the treatment.

Corpus

(Corpus)
A body of materials (such as texts, or utterances)which have
been collected together for analysis.

Correctness

(Correcto)
Perfectly formed grammatically correct utterances. This
contrasts with appropriacy.

Counsellor

(Consejero)
Curran's Community Language Learning (CLL) theory, which
uses terminology from counselling, refers to teachers as
counsellors. Teachers are also called 'knowers'.

Creole

(Lengua
criolla)
This is a pidgin language that has become the native language
of a group of speakers. Broadly speaking, a creole is more
linguistically complex than a pidgin. An example of an
English-based creole is Jamaican creole.

Critical Period Hypothesis (Hiptesis

del
Perodo
Crtico)
(CPH)
According to the CPH, there is a period during which learners
can learn the L2 very easily. After this period language
learning becomes more difficult and is rarely completely
successful. Most researchers believe that this critical period
comes to an end with the onset of puberty.
Cuisenaire rod

Named after Georges Cuisenaire, and originally used to teach

mathematics to children. They are small coloured rods which
are used to highlight structure and pronunciation in the Silent
Way method.

Deductive approach

(Enfoque
deductivo)
An approach to language teaching in which learners are first
taught rules and given specific information about the language
(e.g. grammar rules), and are then asked to produce examples
of language based on these rules. See also inductive
approach.

Deductive research

Research which is hypothesis-driven, it makes predictions and

tests hypothesis. It aims to theorise about phenomena.

Dependent variable

This is the variable that changes or is influenced by the

independent variables.

Design

(Diseo)
This specifies the relationship of theories of language and
learning to the selection and organisation of language content
(syllabus), to the types of tasks and learning activities, and to
the roles of learners, teachers and materials within a method.

Developmental sequence

(Secuencia
de
desarrollo)
SLA research has shown that the L2 learner goes through a
series of stages in their learning: negatives, interrogatives, ingforms, possessive, copula be, etc. Apparently, this sequence
seems to be universal for all learners independent of their
language background and it is not affected by their L1.

Discourse competence

(Competencia
discursiva)
The ability to interpret individual elements in a message
through their coherence and cohesion.

Drill

(Ejercicio
de
repeticin)
This type of activity is the basis of the Audiolingual method.
Typically learners repeat sentence patterns after the teacher or
a cassette.

E
EFL

ILE
(Ingls
como
Lengua
Extranjera)
Abbreviation for English as a Foreign Language.

Error

(Error)
This is any deviation in learner language which has its origin
in the lack of knowledge of the correct rule. A distinction is
generally made between error and mistake. While the former
is systematic, the latter is produced by factors such as lack of
attention, tiredness, negligence and so on.

Error analysis

(Anlisis
de
errores)
Study and analysis of the errors made by learners with the aim
of identifying, describing and explaining them in learner
language. Error Analysis was specially developed in the 1960s
and tried to show that many of the errors made by learners
could not only be explained as a simple interference of their

L1 since they reflected universal learning strategies.

ESL

ISL
(Ingls
como
Segunda
Abbreviation for English as a Second Language.

Experiential learning

(ExperiencialLearning by doing, through experience.

Experimental group

See control group.

Lengua)

F
Facilitator

(Facilitador)
In Communicative approaches to language teaching, the
teacher tends to adopt the role of guide, giving the students
more independence, hence the term facilitator for teacher.

Factor analysis

(Anlisis
factorial)
A statistical method for studying how (hidden) or underlying
variables in a study might affect the correlation of a set of
overt variables.

FLA

(APL
(Adquisicin
de
la
Primera
Lengua))
Abbreviation for First Language Acquisition. It refers to the
learning of the first language or mother tongue.

Formal instruction

(Enseanza
formal)
Formal instruction constraints with natural learning. It
involves some attempt to focus learner's attention on specific
aspects of the L2 so that they will learn them. Several types of
formal instruction can be distinguished. The most common
approaches are inductive (the leaner is given language input
and is encouraged to come up with the rule) and deductive
(full information is provided to the learner about a rule or
item).

Fossilisation

(Fosilizacin)
When learners fail to reach target-language competence, it is
said that they fossilize because they do not make any progress
in their learning. It is quite common that in the learning of a
second language, certain pronunciation features, use of
vocabulary and even grammar fossilize. It reflects the
operation of several internal processes.

Frequency distribution

(Distribucin
de
frecuencias)
This is simply the arrangement of score values from high to
low in a table.

Functions

(Funciones)
These are language structures which express functions such as
requests, threats, complaints, offers, etc.

GLL

(BAL-Buen
aprendiz
de
Abbreviation for good language learner.

lenguas)

Grammatical competence

(Competencia
The ability to use grammar and lexis accurately.

Group Embedded Test

(Prueba
de
las
figuras
enmascaradas)
This test was designed by Witkin (1962, 1971) to measure the
field dependence/independence dimension of a learner's
cognitive style. In this test learners are asked to find and
identify simple geometrical figures within complex structures.

gramatical)

H
Heuristic research

Research which is usually observational and ethnographic,

inductive and descriptive in nature, data-driven. It begins
without preconceptions in order to generate hypotheses to be
tested and described later.

High inference categories

These include subjective behaviour which demand that the

observer makes a judgement that goes well beyond what is
immediately visible. See also low inference categories.

Holistic learning

(Aprendizaje
holistico)
Learning is seen as an activity that involves the whole
integrated person of the learner within the learning
community. See also Humanistic approach.

Humanistic approach

(Enfoque
humanstico)
This is based on theories of 'learner-centred teaching', in
which the whole learner (physical, emotional and cognitive)
needs to be taken into account. Communication is seen as key
to fostering meaningful learning.

I
I+1 level

(Nivel
See 'comprehensible input'.

i+1)

IDs

(DI-diferencias
individuales
de
aprendizaje)
Abbreviation for individual differences (which affect language
learning).

Illocutive act

(Acto
ilocutivo)
Language expresses an intention. See also locutive act and
perlocutive act.

Independent variable

This is the factor that the researcher manipulates in order to

see what effect the changes introduced will have on the
dependent variable.

Inductive approach

(Enfoque
inductivo)
An approach to language teaching in which learners are given

whole examples of language (e.g. texts, or sentences) and are

asked to find the underlying rules. See also deductive
approach.
Input

(Aducto
o
entrada
de
datos)
Language information or data the learner is exposed and has
access to. The learner may receive input from different
sources (the teacher, textbook, readers, audio and video tapes,
other students in the class, satellite TV) and it may adopt
written or oral forms. It contrasts with output, that is, the
language that is produced by the individual.

Input hypothesis

(Hiptesis del aducto o hiptesis de la entrada de datos)

This is one of the five hypothesis of Krashen's Monitor
Model. According to this hypothesis, acquisition will take
place only when the input the learner is exposed to is a little
beyond the current level of his competence, i.e. the i+1 level.

Interaction

(Interaccin)
Interaction consists of the discourse jointly constructed by the
learner and the interlocutor in the classroom or outside the
classroom.

Interactionist
Theory

Learning (Teora
de
Aprendizaje
Interaccionista)
Learning theory that combines the contributions of the
linguistic environment and the learner's internal mechanisms
in explaining language acquisition.

Interlanguage

(Interlengua)
Term coined by Selinker to refer to the systematic knowledge
of the L2 which is independent of the learner's L1 and the
target language. This construct is at present used with three
different senses: (a) series of interlocking systems which
characterise acquisition, (b) the system that is observed at a
single stage of development, (c) a particular L1/L2
combination (for instance, Spanish/English, French/English).

International
Alphabet

IPA

Phonetic (Alfabeto
de
Fontica
Internacional)
A system of symbols for representing the pronunciation of
words in any language according to the principles of the
International Phonetic Association.
(IPA)
International Phonetic Association or International Phonetic
Alphabet.

L
L1

L1
(Lengua
Abbreviation for first language or mother tongue.

1)

L2

L2
(Lengua
Abbreviation for second language.

2)

Language Acquisition Device (Dispositivo de Adquisicin del Lenguaje (DAL))

(LAD)
According to Chomsky, we are born with a built-in device of
some kind that predisposes us to language acquisition, that is,
to a systematic perception of language around us, resulting in
the construction of an internalized system of language.
Language Aptitude Battery (Batera
de
Aptitud
Lingstica)
(LAB)
Test designed by Pimsleur (1966) to measure language
aptitude. For Pimsleur, language aptitude seems to consist of a
language analytic ability and an auditory ability.
Language as mediation

(Lenguaje
como
mediacin)
According to Widdowson (1990), "an approach informed by
the mediation view will focus attention on creating conditions
for negotiation".

Language as medium

(Lenguaje
como
medio)
According to Widdowson (1990), "an approach to pedagogy
informed by the medium view will focus attention on the
syntactic and semantic properties of the language itself and
look for ways of manipulating them for the purposes of
transmission".

Language transfer

(Transferencia
lingstica)
According to Odlin, language transfer is the influence that
results from the similarities and differences existing between
the L1 and the target language. This can be negative
(interference) or positive (the similarity of certain features
between the L1 and L2 facilitates second language learning).

Learner autonomy

(Autonoma
del
aprendiente)
Encouraging learners to take responsibility for their own
learning. The concept of learner autonomy is related to the
role of the teacher as 'facilitator'.

Learning

(Aprendizaje)
According to Krashen, learning contrasts with acquisition
and refers to the development of conscious knowledge of an
L2 through conscious effort and formal study.

Linguistic competence

(Competencia
lingstica)
Term coined by Chomsky. It is the knowledge and mastery of
the "underlying system rules" which make up a language.

Linguistic universals

(Universales
lingsticos)
According to Chomsky, there exist a series of features that are
common to all or most world languages, e.g. negation can be
regarded as a linguistic universal since in all languages there
are ways and means of expressing negative forms.

LISREL

(Relaciones
estructurales
lineales
(REL))
Abbreviation standing for "Linear Structural Relations",
which corresponds to a computer package. This technique
allows the researcher to specify chains of causality which can

then be evaluated against data.

Locutive act

(Acto
locutivo)
Language is seen as the transmission of information or
meaning. See also illocutive act and perlocutive act.

Low inference categories

These include objective behaviour that can be counted or

coded without the observer having to infer very much (the
number of times a certain student raises his or her hand, for
example).

M
Mean

The sum of all scores of all subjects in the group divided by

the number of subjects.

Median

The score which divides the group into two parts, so that half
of the scores are above it and half are below it.

Mentalist
theories
language learning

of (Teoras
mentalistas
de
aprendizaje)
Language learning theories that emphasise the importance of
the learner's innate mental capacities for acquiring a language.
According to this theory, in their minds learners possess a
series of principles that are activated by means of the input
they are exposed to.

Method

(Mtodo)
A language teaching philosophy that contains a standardised
set of procedures; a system that spells out exactly how to teach
a language (what particular skills and content to teach, and
techniques to use in the classroom).

MLAT

(Test o prueba moderna de aptitud lingstica (TALM))

Test constructed by Carroll and Sapon (1959) with the purpose
of measuring language aptitude. It has different formats
depending on the age of the learner, language considered and
time available. Carroll and Sapon identified four main
components in language aptitude: phonemic or phonetic
coding ability, grammatical sensitivity, inductive language
learning ability and rote learning ability for language learning
materials.

Mode

The score which has been obtained by the largest number of

subjects, i.e. the most frequent score in the group.

Monitor

(Monitor)
A learner's capacity to be aware of their own output. At times
learners self-correct when they realise that they have made a
mistake. This Monitor (with a capital 'M') gives its name to
Krashen's learning theory and it refers to the ways used by
learners to edit linguistic forms produced by means of
'acquired' knowledge.

Morpheme studies

(Estudios
de
morfemas)
Acquisition research in the 1970's concentrated on the order of
acquisition of a series of grammatical units or morphological
features which were not restricted to English but also to other
languages such as Spanish and German. Their main purpose
was to identify an order of acquisition for the different
languages in both a first and a second language situation.
These studies are known in the second language field as the
morpheme studies.

N
Native language

(Lengua nativa)Ones first language, or mother tongue.

Naturalistic acquisition

(Adquisicin natural)This happens when one learns a second

language without formal study or attention to rules. Children
learn their first language this way.

Negotiation of meaning

(Negociacin
de
significado)
In the communication process both speaker and interlocutor
are forced to introduce comprehension checks, clarifications,
paraphrases to solve possible problems of understanding and
breakdown. According to the interactionalist learning theory,
negotiation of meaning is indispensable for learning to take
place.

Notions

(Nociones)
Concepts such as location, frequency, time, sequence, etc.

O
Over-generalization

(Sobregeneralizacin)
L1 and L2 learners tend to apply a particular rule to cases in
which this rule does not apply, e.g. the use of conduc in
Spanish instead of conduje, or in English bringed instead of
the irregular form brought.

P
Pearson test

(Test
o
prueba
de
Pearson)
This is a type of statistical test which measures the correlation
of two sets of scores or rankings obtained from two different
variables with the same group of subjects.

Perlocutive act

(Acto
perlocutivo)
Language produces an effect on the listener. See also locutive
act and illocutive act.

Practical research

This makes a practical use of a) theoretical research and b)

applied research. For example, by testing classroom

hypotheses, controlling variables, providing pedagogical
principles from classroom experience, etc. It should be noted
that practical research is based on the premises established by
theoretical and applied research and it is influenced by them
when it is developed in classroom situations.
Procedural syllabus

(Silabus
basado
en
procesos)
Prabhus Bangalore Project first used a procedural syllabus, in
which learners performed a series of communicative tasks,
and no attention was given to language form or rules. See also
task-based syllabus.

Procedure

(Procedimiento)
This includes the classroom techniques and practices that are
part of a particular approach or design.

Process-product paradigm

This refers to research studies that have focused on the

relationship between process (e.g. educational treatment) and
product variables (students achievement and outcomes).

Proficiency

(Competencia
en
el
uso
de
la
lengua)
This refers to the student's skill in the use of the language as
regards their command and understanding of the written and
spoken language. It contrasts with the term 'competence'
which denotes the learner's theoretical and passive knowledge
of the target language.

Protocol

(Protocolo)
Protocols are very commonly used for the investigation of
language learning strategies and they usually consist of the
subjects' reflection upon one area or factor of their language
learning. In many cases these thoughts are recorded by means
of audio or video cassettes so that they can be studied in more
detail.

R
Reference group

(Grupo
de
referencia)
This generally represents the target language group with
which learners wish to identify in natural L2 settings.

Regression analysis

(Anlisis
de
regresin)
Simple regression is used to predict values on a dependent
variable from those on an independent variable. In multiple
variable the process is the same as in simple regression but
several independent variables are taken into consideration.

Response

(Respuesta)
This is the learner's reaction to the stimulus, and may be oral
or written.

S
Schema or Schemata

These are forms of representation of knowledge in memory.

They refer to large units of interconnected features which
define a concept.

Self-report

(Autoinforme)
Teachers or learners reflect upon their learning or teaching,
and write their views on a report form. Self-reports are
commonly used as research and self-assessment instruments.

Silent period

(Perodo
de
silencio)
All learners (and children in particular), may go through a
period during which they do not try to say anything in the L2
although they may be internalising the new language by
listening to others speak it.

SILL

(Inventario de estrategias para el aprendizaje de lenguas

(IEAL))
Abbreviation for Strategy Inventory for Language Learning. It
was designed by Oxford (1989) and it consists of 121 items
where learners are asked to report the frequency with which
they make use of certain language learning strategies.

SLA

ASL
(Adquisicin
de
una
Segunda
Lengua)
Abbreviation for Second Language Acquisition, which
generally refers to both second and foreign language learning.

Socio-educational model of (Modelo socio-educativo del aprendizaje de la L2)

L2 learning
Model of L2 learning developed by Gardner (1985).
According to this, the social and cultural milieu where learner
live determines the attitude and motivational orientations they
hold towards the target culture, its language and speakers.
These in turn condition learning outcomes.
Sociolinguistic competence

Speech
Theory

(Competencia
sociolingstica)
The ability to understand the social context in which
communication takes place.

Accommodation (Teora
de
Adaptacin
del
Discurso)
This is a social-psychological model of language use proposed
by Giles to account for the dynamic nature of variation within
the course of conversation. Speakers may converge, that is,
they may try to adapt their speech to that of the addressee, or
they may diverge by doing just the opposite, making their
speech different from the style of their interlocutor. The
speakers' attitudes towards their audience determine and
condition speech accommodation.

Standard deviation

This refers to the average of the differences of the scores from

the mean.

Stimulus

(Estmulo)
What is taught or presented of the foreign language.

Strategic competence

(Competencia

estratgica)

The ability to start, finish, maintain, repair or redirect

communication.
Student talk
Synthetic
research

This mainly refers to students interventions in the classroom.

(or

holistic) Research which is global and emphasises the interdependence

of the parts of the field.

T
T-test

(Prueba
T)
Used to compare means between two different groups of
subjects. It can be applied regardless of the size of the two
samples and because of this, it is very commonly used in
language studies. There are two versions of the t-test. One is
applied for correlated means while the second version is used
to compare independent means.

Target language

(Lengua meta)The language (e.g. English, Spanish, French

etc.) which is the object of study.

Task-based syllabus

(Silabus basado en tareas)A syllabus which is organised

round a series of tasks, with a primary emphasis on meaning
and communication. Current views of task-based learning
include a focus on form. See also procedural syllabus.

Teacher talk

(Habla
del
profesor)
This refers to the type of language used by teachers in the
classroom. This is characterised by a series of simplifications
and adaptations to the learners' language level to ensure
mutual understanding.

Technicist view of LT

A technological view that puts great emphasis on rational

planning of teaching and learning objectives and contents,
efficiency, academic standards and expected outcomes.

Technique

(Tcnica)
A classroom device or activity.

TEFL

EILE (Enseanza del Ingls como Lengua Extranjera)

Abbreviation for Teaching English as a Foreign Language,
more commonly used in the UK.

TESL

EISL (Enseanza del Ingls como Segunda Lengua)

Abbreviation for the Teaching of English as a Second
Language.

TESOL

EIHOL (Enseanza del Ingls a Hablantes de Otras Lenguas)

Abbreviation for Teaching of English to Speakers of Other
Languages, more commonly used in North America.

Test-retest

This is a procedure used to test reliability. It consist of

administering the same test twice to one group of subjects and
then calculating a correlation coefficient between the pair of
scores from the two administrations.

Theoretical research

Research which aims to construct abstract theoretical models

which explain second language teaching and learning.

Threshold level

(Nivel
umbral)
A series of syllabus specifications which identify the actual
content of English needed for general communication. The
Threshold Level was the result of the Council of Europe
Modern Languages Project (1975).

TL

(LM
(Lengua
Meta))
Abbreviation for target language, that is, the language to be
studied.

TOEFL

(Test o prueba de ingls como lengua extranjera)It stands for

Test of English as a Foreign Language. The passing of this test
is usually a requirement to be allowed to study a course at a
North American university.

U
Universal Grammar (UG)

(Gramtica
Universal
(GU))
Theory that tries to account for the L1 grammatical
competence of all adults, independent of their mother tongue.
According to this, all speakers possess knowledge of a set of
principles that govern all languages as well as a series of
parameters that may vary across languages, but always within
certain limits. This theory was proposed by Noam Chomsky in
the 1950s and has been more recently redefined in his Model
of Government and Binding.

Usage

The knowledge of linguistic rules. See also use.

Use

(Uso)
The ability to use linguistic rules for effective communication.
It contrasts with usage.

V
Variable Competence Model (Modelo
de
Competencia
Variable)
This theory claims that the way a language is learned is really
a reflection of the way it is used, and it tries to account for the
variability found in the learner's language.

W
Whole person learning

See Humanistic approach.