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Learning Theory and Concepts

Teachability Hypothesis

Foundational and Developmental Learning Concepts

The teachability hypothesis is Manfred Pienemann's proposal that second-language instruction is effective only when it is compatible with a learner's current stage within a fixed hierarchy of acquisition stages. It holds that instruction can promote acquisition of a given grammatical feature only once a learner is developmentally ready to acquire that feature through natural, unguided use, so that recognizing which stage a learner has reached lets a teacher predict and classify the errors that learner is likely to make.

Facts
Core Claim
The Teachability Hypothesis was produced by Manfred Pienemann, extracted from his Processibility model. It proposes that learners will acquire a second language feature if what is being taught is relatively close to their stage in language development. 1
Origin Year
1984 1
Sources
1. Teachability Hypothesis (Wikipedia)
Wikipedia
  • Lead section
    The Teachability Hypothesis was produced by Manfred Pienemann. It was originally extracted from Pienemann's Processibility model. It proposes that learners will acquire a second language (L2) features if what is being taught is relatively close to their stage in language development.
  • Description section
    Pienemann (1984) emphasizes that teachability of L2 structures have psychological constraints are universally shared.
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