The Role of Noticing and Attention in the Acquisition of L2 Grammatical Knowledg

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Abstract: The discussion in the literature on the question of how L2 grammatical knowledge is acquired has been influenced by the issue of noticing and attention. This article gives an overview of the important role of noticing and attention in L2 acquisition.

Key words: Noticing Attention l2 acquisition

1 The role of noticing in L2 acquisition

Schmidt (1990) put forward the "Noticing Hypothesis". The Noticing Hypothesis holds that, for L2 grammar acquisition to take place, it is not necessary to learn metalinguisitc principles or rules, but that learners must notice'' critical features in utterances. In the case of subject-verb agreement, for instance, learners must notice the co-occurrence of certain subject and verb forms. According to Schmidt (1995: 20), "What learners notice in input is what becomes intake for learning." Schmidt also states that noticing is a necessary condition for L2 acquisition".

Schmidt (1990) claims that the following factors may influence noticing in the input:

Instruction: Instruction may play an important role in priming learners to notice features by establishing expectations about language.

Frequency: When the item does appear more frequently in the input, the likelihood that an item will be noticed and integrated into the interlanguage system is increased.

Perceptual Salience: The more prominent a language form in input, the greater the chance it will be noticed (cf. Skehan, 1998).

Skill Level: Skill level includes how well individuals are able to routinize previously met structures. This processing ability in turn determines how ready learners are to notice new forms in the input. Another relevant factor Schmidt identifies is an individual''s ability to attend to both form and meaning in L2 processing. Noticing ability varies; some learners are better "input processors", as they have a larger working memory capacity or due to their superior speed of analytical processing within working memory (cf. Skehan, 1998).

Task Demands: This refers to the way in which an instructional task causes learners to notice particular features that are necessary in order to carry out that task (Schmidt, 1990). To achieve this, language features may be made intentionally prominent or the task be designed to "force" learners to process the language (R.Ellis, 1997). Also, Skehan points out that noticing may be more or less likely depending on whether the level of processing that the task demands is low, such as in the exchange of familiar information, or high, as in a task that requires imaginative and abstract decision-making.