THE WORD
Critical Thinking in Student Essays . . . (continued)
(Continued from page 13.)
clearly distinguishes critical thinking
from non-critical, reductive thinking.
This clear distinction and explanation is
of the utmost importance when teach-
ing L2 speakers of English because
they are often from distinct cultural
backgrounds, that have vastly different
conceptions of critical thinking. As
teachers, we need to explicitly commu-
nicate our expectations regarding criti-
cal thinking and our reasons for teach-
ing it.
References
Fischer, S. C., Spiker, V. A., & Riedel, S.
L. (2009). Critical thinking training
By Juan Escalante and Mark James
At the core of all learning, accord-
ing to Information-Processing Theory, is
something like the following:
Input + Noticing → Intake + Inter-
nalizing + Output + Feedback = Learn-
ing (SLA)
This cognitive process does not
occur in a vacuum however. One of the
reasons not all second language learn-
ers are equally successful is that cogni-
tion is affected (positively and/or nega-
tively) by many individual differences.
When reading research about sec-
ond language acquisition, it is clear
that teaching and learning a foreign
language is very complex. The acquisi-
tion process for each individual is af-
fected by his or her previous experi-
ences, motivations, attitudes, strate-
gies, age, L1 background, personality,
and so on. Fortunately, what is also
clear is that some factors are more
important than others are, and we, as
teachers, can have an influence on
many of them.
One of the most important vari-
ables is metacognition. Anderson
(2005) explained that once language
learners develop metacognitive strate-
gies and discover how to regulate their
learning, the language acquisition proc-
Page 14
for army officers. Volume 2: A
model of critical thinking. Arling-
ton, VA: U.S. Army Research Insti-
tute for the Behavioral and Social
Sciences.
Popova, M. (2012) Mind and cosmos:
Philosopher Thomas Nagel’s brave
critique of scientific reductionism.
Brain Pickings. Retrieved from
http://www.brainpickings.
org/2012/10/30/mind-and-
cosmos-thomas-nagel/
Tanaka, J. (2014). Students thinking
critically about what they read on
the Internet. The Word, 23(2), 11-
13. http://hawaiitesol.wildapricot.
Mission Impossible (Our Job)
ess usually accelerates because they
have become more conscious and stra-
tegic in their efforts. As teachers, we
must help our students to think, reflect,
and be critical of their language learn-
ing strategies.
Another factor is motivation. Tradi-
tionally, our field has focused on two
different motivational orientations: In-
strumental (language as a tool for
work, or vehicle toward school admis-
sion, or job promotion), and Integrative
(language for personal development
and change). Whether integrative or
instrumental, both types have proven
successful in language learning
(Lightbown & Spada, 2013). The impor-
tant point is that high levels of motiva-
tion maintain the desire to learn, and
as teachers, we must examine our mo-
tivational behaviors.
Age is perhaps beyond our influ-
ence. Some have hypothesized that
there is a critical period for language
acquisition and that changes in the
brain have a debilitating effect on the
acquisition of language over time. How-
ever, recent research indicated that
older learners have several advan-
tages. Grosjean (2013) argued that
although older learners may have diffi-
The Word | February 2015
org/Resources/Documents/Feb%
202014.pdf
About the Author:
Author:
Jay Tanaka is a PhD student in Second
Language Studies at the University of
Hawai‘i at Manoa and an instructor at
the Hawai‘i English Language Program.
His research interests are in critical
thinking instruction in English for
academic purposes and second
language writing.
culties acquiring native-like pronuncia-
tion, many of them become very com-
petent language users because of their
ability to organize, focus, strategize,
analyze, and so forth. As teachers, we
must be aware of our students’ ages
and tailor our instruction to meet their
strengths and weaknesses.
Personality needs another look.
Many have thought that extroverts are
better at learning languages. A closer
look at this variable revealed that dif-
ferent personalities are better at differ-
ent competencies (e.g., literacy, pro-
nunciation, vocabulary development).
Again, it is our job is to help learners
identify and maximize their best quali-
ties, while developing others.
If this complexity were not already
enough to make our professional lives
seem more complicated than they al-
ready are, there is more bad news. This
multitude of internal variables (or
“individual differences” as they were
traditionally called) are interconnected
in a myriad of ways, best imagined by—
a hairball. Gross, you say. Well . . . all
other metaphors fail. A traffic jam re-
sults in no movement. A Gordian knot
is something to be undone.
(Continued on page 15.)

Mission Impossible (Our Job) . . . (continued)
(Continued from page 14.)
Nevertheless, it does not stop
there. The relatively recent
“sociocultural turn” in our profession
has led to the understanding that we
cannot focus only on what is happen-
ing inside the learner. In reality, learn-
ers are constantly being affected by
external variables: peers, resources,
external exams, socio-politics, the
economy, and so forth.
The learner’s family and peers is
one of the most important external
factors in second language acquisition.
Learners are supported, pressured,
and influenced by those around them.
Close family and friends can bring
great support or much stress. As teach-
ers, we may not always have the oppor-
tunity to get our students’ family and
peers involved in the learning process,
but we should remain mindful and
seek opportunities for positive involve-
ment.
The place or location where our
students are learning English is also a
factor which greatly affects learning by
influencing the input to which students
will be exposed. In a foreign language
context, teachers must constantly work
to expose students to enough language
input, as class time might be the only
time they are exposed to English. In a
second language environment, we
must complement the exposure our
students receive since exposure alone
is not enough to notice or learn every-
thing necessary to be a compe-
tent L2 speaker.
Culture and language overlap
one another and this creates a
challenge for many language
learners. The challenge arises
from differing practices, values,
and expectations. Our own cul-
ture sets the tone as to how we
interact with others. Accepting
the relationship between culture
and language as inseparable is
essential for a successful lan-
guage learner. Culture and lan-
guage are very complex ,and for
many people the task of under-
standing and adjusting can be
daunting. As teachers, we can
find ways to break down the lan-
guage and cultural barriers in order to
help our learners.
Ultimately, even the hairball meta-
phor fails. Although it conveys a notion
of innumerable pathways and touching
points, it fails to incorporate a fourth
dimension: time. From what we now
know, the relationships and influences
of these variables are dynamic and
fluid. As teachers, we have always
“known” this. (“Johnny” was on task
minutes ago but now seems distracted.
“Susan,” once your best student, has
recently turned inward and uncoopera-
tive.) Dornyei (2009) summarized the
parallel universes of research that
have contributed to our understanding
of these matters as effectively as any-
one. Watson-Gegeo’s Language Sociali-
zation Approach (Watson-Gegeo & Niel-
sen, 2003) made it seem that nothing
short of thick ethnographic longitudinal
research will reveal what we need to
know. This current state of things
makes it seem almost impossible for
even the best of teachers to succeed
as they are making decisions about
what to teach, when, and how.
However, on a more positive note,
this fluid complexity supports Kumara-
vadivelu’s (2001) “post-method” asser-
tion that no one else on the planet is in
any better position than the teacher.
Research can only discuss generaliza-
tions and principles. The “particularity”
of the classroom, to use Kumara-
vadivelu’s term, demands that teach-
The Word | February 2015
Volume 24, issue 2
ers (informed by principles, of course)
be recognized and empowered in mak-
ing the day-to-day, moment-to-moment
decisions.
Hopefully, these thoughts have left
you, as a teacher, stirred but not
shaken. To conclude with a line from
another movie, “Good luck, Jim, should
you choose to accept this assignment.
This article will self-destruct in 5 sec-
onds.”
References
Anderson, N. (2005). L2 learning
strategies. In E. Hinkel (Ed.),
Handbook of research in second
language teaching and learning
(pp. 757-771). Mahwah, NJ: Law-
rence Erlbaum.
Dornyei, Z. (2009). The psychology of
second language acquisition. Ox-
ford: Oxford University Press.
Grosjean, F. (2013, September 1). How
early a second language? Re-
trieved from https://www.psychol
ogytoday.com/blog/life-bilingua
l/201309/how-early-second-
language.
Kumaravadivelu, B. (2001). Toward a
postmethod pedagogy. TESOL
Quarterly 35,4, 537-560.
Lightbown, P., & Spada, N. (2013).
How languages are learned. Ox-
ford: Oxford University Press.
Watson-Gegeo, K., & Nielsen, S.
(2003). Language Socialization
Theory in SLA. In C. Doughty & M.
Long (Eds.), The handbook of sec-
ond language acquisition (pp. 155-
177). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell
Publishing.
About the Authors:
Authors:
Juan Escalante, is a TESOL Education
major graduating in April 2015. He
hopes to pursue a Master’s Degree in
Applied Linguistics.
Mark James is Professor of Second
Language Acquisition in the
Department of English Language
Teaching & Learning at Brigham Young
University--Hawaii, where he has taught
since 1981.
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