Teacher Talk and Foreign Language Learning.docVIP

Teacher Talk and Foreign Language Learning 　　Abstract. This paper tends to analyses teacher talk and argues that teacher talk is the most significant external factor in foreign language learning even in a communicative interaction model. The characteristics of foreign language learning determines that the learning might not occur in a naturalist setting due to lack of linguistic environment. Therefore, the task how to encourage student to involved in the classroom communication falls on the teacher. However, this does not mean to decrease teacher talk to a smallest proportion. Simply decrease teacher talk is impractical in foreign language. The disadvantage of teacher talk in a traditional teacher-dominant classroom attributes to the low quality of it. Appropriate teacher talk with high quality can facilitate foreign language learning. Effective teacher talk is characterized by using more referential questions and positive feedback and properly reacts to students errors, with which communicative classroom interaction between teachers and students could take place. 　　Key words: teacher talk, classroom communicative interaction, foreign language learning, teacher question, feedback, effectiveness 　　Introduction 　　Although it is said that real meaningful learning could only occur when learners are actively involved in, appropriate input is very important for language learning as a necessary external factor. According to interactionist view, language acquisition is the outcome of the dynamic interplay between external and internal factors. However, foreign language learning occurs in classroom setting is quite different from SLA (second language acquisition) in a naturalist way. It is characterized by its seldom using of the TL (target language) outside classroom due to lack of linguistic environment, which is especially conspicuous in China. 　　Therefore, teacher talk and classroom interaction is the major variable affecting foreign language learning. It has be