Cognitive Perspectives in Teaching Speaking

Abstract

The second language (L2) speech production system is conceptualized within the information‐processing model of human cognition. Depending on the learner's proficiency, the production of speech is a challenging and conscious process rather than a natural and automatic one. It involves risk to “face,” so planning, monitoring, and rehearsal may be extensively utilized to cope with the lack of linguistic resources. When students are given the chance to practice the L2 in meaningful situations, it creates opportunities to negotiate meaning and receive online feedback. This communicative interaction helps learners construct a store of concrete “exemplars” that include associations of form‐meaning mappings, which can later be recalled to produce novel utterances. Thus, students' interaction during classroom activities facilitates access to information they have previously learned, and they incorporate it with new information they receive as they perform the task, allowing for their interlanguage to evolve.