Eight Dollar Blog

“Wow. Reading is really that important?”
“Thirty minutes a day will make a delightful difference in your life because you will quickly start to see the vast reserves of knowledge available for your use. Every answer to every problem you have ever faced is in print. If you want to be a better lawyer, father, friend or lover, there are books out there that will rocket you to those goals. All the mistakes you will ever make in your life have already been made by those that have walked before you. Do you really think that the challenges you are facing are unique to you?”

“I’ve never thought about it, Julian. But I see what you are saying, and I know you are right.”
“All the problems anyone has ever, and will ever face over the course of their lifetime have already been made,” Julian asserted.
“More importantly, the answers and solutions are all recorded on the pages of books. Read the right books. Learn how those who have preceded you have handled the challenges you are currently facing. Apply their strategies for success and you will be astonished by the improvements you will note in your life.”

“What exactly are ‘the right books?’” I asked, quickly realizing that Julian’s point was an excellent one.
“I’ll leave that to your good judgment my friend. Personally, since I have returned from the East, I spend the better part of my days reading biographies of the men and women I have come to admire and a great deal of the wisdom of literature.”

“Any titles you could recommend to an eager young beaver?”
I said, flashing a broad grin.
“Sure. You will thrive on the biography of the great American, Benjamin Franklin. I think you will also find much growth impetus from Mahatma Gandhi’s autobiography entitled The Story of My Experiments with Truth. I also suggest that you read Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse, the highly practical philosophy of Marcus Aurelius and some of the work of Seneca. You might even read Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill. I read it last week and thought it was very profound.”

Taken From:THE MONK WHO SOLD HIS FERRARI

The fifth group of studies reviewed in this chapter involves the application of neuroimaging techniques such as PET and fMRI to L2 processing. Research utilizing this technology has begun to expose an extremely intricate picture of L2 inner speech mechanisms and areas of activation. Some research (Price et al. 1999) has shown that different internal L2 tasks, such as translation and language switching activate distinct neural systems. According to Rodriguez-Fornells et al. (2002), bilinguals are able to process an L2 without interference from the L1 by effectively blocking semantic access to the LI through an indirect route to the lexicon. A number of studies have looked at the way Lls and L2s are organized in the brain according to age of L2 acquisition. Whereas it appears that early bilinguals develop common neural areas for the LI and L2 (Chee, Caplan, et al., 1999; Chee et al., 2003), at least one study (Kim et al., 1997) found segregated LI and L2 zones of activation when the L2 was learned in adulthood and common brain areas for the LI and L2s learned in infancy. Other research (Chee, Tan,etal., 1999; Klein etal. 1995;Peranietal., 1998), however, has found that similar neural substrates are involved in L2 processing regardless of age of L2 acquisition. According to Perani et al. (1998), ultimate degree of attainment in L2 proficiency is more important than age of L2 acquisition in determining whether same or different brain areas will be assigned for the LI and L2.

CONCLUSION
This chapter has dealt with the issue of “thinking words” in an L2. In researching the L2 perspective on inner speech, only a few studies have been found to approach the topic of inner speech in the L2 in a straightforward manner. A review of the literature, however, has uncovered a host of related investigations dealing with the nature of
verbal thought in the L2, the question of internalization of the L2, the role of inner speech in L2 reading and writing, mental rehearsal as a mechanism involved in the development of L2 inner speech, and brain areas of activation during L2 inner speech activity, as shown through neuroimaging technology. Throughout this chapter, relationships among areas of investigation, salient aspects of the issue of L2 inner speech, implications for future research, as well as critical commentaries have been offered. The contents of this chapter provide a background for many of the ideas and arguments presented in Chapters 5 through 7 and serve as springboard for discussion of further research in Chapter 8.

Taken From:Inner Speech – L2 hinking words in a second langunge

“Point well taken. So what was that simple sub-ritual you were
about to teach me?” I asked.
“Read regularly. Reading for thirty minutes a day will do wonders for you. But I must caution you. Do not read just anything. You must be very selective about what you put into the lush garden of your mind. It must be immensely nourishing. Make it something that will improve both you and the quality of your life.”

“What did the sages read?”
“They spent many of their waking moments reading and rereading
the ancient teachings of their ancestors. They devoured this philosophical literature. I still remember seeing these wonderful looking people seated on little bamboo chairs reading their strangely bound books with the subtle smiles of enlightenment unfolding across their lips. It was in Sivana that I really learned the power of the book and the principle that a book is the best friend of the wise.”

“So I should start reading every good book I can get my hands on?”
“Yes and no,” came the reply. “I would never tell you not to read as many books as you can. But remember, some books are meant to be tasted, some books are meant to be chewed and, finally, some books are meant to be swallowed whole. Which brings me to another point.”

“You’re feeling hungry?”
“No, John,” Julian laughed. “I simply want to tell you that to truly get the best out of a great book, you must study it, not just read it. Go through it as you do when you read those contracts your big clients bring to you for your legal opinion. Really consider it, work with it, become one with it. The sages would read many of the books of wisdom in their vast library ten or fifteen times. They treated great books as scriptures, holy documents of divine origin.”

Taken From:THE MONK WHO SOLD HIS FERRARI

A third group of studies concerned the role that inner speech plays in the reading and writing of L2 texts. The most outstanding of these studies is by far Sokolov’s (1972) research on reading in an FL. Using a variety of techniques (think-aloud protocols, interference with speech articulation, and electromyography), Sokolov was able to draw several conclusions about the function of inner speech in understanding FL texts. One of his most important findings was that inner speech aids in the formation of key semantic complexes, in making generalizations about the text, and in memorization. Sokolov was also able to show the relative need for concealed articulation of speech during reading among FL learners. The greater the difficulty of
the text or the lower the level of proficiency of the learner, the greater the need for inner speech in the form of unfolded concealed verbalization. In other words, before processes of reading comprehension in an FL become automatic, learners first go
through a phase of intense inward articulation of the text read. Sokolov’s experiments highlight the importance of motor, auditory, and visual mechanisms involved in inner speech while reading in the L2. The study by Upton and Lee-Thompson (2001) also throws light on the nature of inner speech during L2 reading. Analysis of learners’
think-aloud protocols revealed that as proficiency increased there was a decline in use of the LI to facilitate comprehension and an overall reduction of verbalizations, which is taken as a symptom of reduced inner speech activity with greater automatization of L2 comprehension. Finally, in this group, Huh (2002) applied the concept of inner speech to L2 writing. Her study, also based on learners’ think-aloud protocols, revealed the use of LI inner speech as a cognitive tool to make meaning while writing in the L2. Both Upton and Lee-Thompson’s and Huh’s research challenge the notion
of mental translation in reading and writing as a simple process of coding or decoding language in the mind. Rather, they present an intricate, dynamic process of meaning making in which LI inner speech plays a crucial mediating role.

The fourth area of research discussed in this review focused on mental rehearsal of the L2, a language learning strategy that has been associated with the development of L2 inner speech (Guerrero, 1994, 1999). Studies within the working-memory model have suggested that silent articulatory rehearsal is effective in foreign vocabulary acquisition (Baddeley et al, 1998). In L2 acquisition, Krashen (1983) was one of the first to call attention to a form of mental rehearsal that he characterized as a spontaneous (involuntary) Din of the L2 in the head. Further studies explored more
elaborate uses of mental rehearsal in L2 learning. Guerrero (1987), for example, documented the occurrence a voluntary form of rehearsal that L2 learners engage in when they want to practice the language. Lantolf (1997) investigated the rehearsal function of language play and its role in appropriating the L2. Lantolf claims that
language play is an essential mechanism in L2 learning used by learners to solve conflicts between their acquired system and external models and to advance intramentally in their mastery over the L2.

A point of contention around the notion of mental rehearsal is whether it increases or decreases with proficiency in the L2. There seems to be enough data in the literature to support both hypotheses. Guerrero (1999) explored this discrepancy and found that whereas L2 inner speech in general increased with proficiency, certain functions of mental rehearsal, such as memory storage and retrieval, decreased. Guerrero (1999) hypothesized that in very advanced stages of proficiency, L2 inner speech may be as powerful and effective a mediating cognitive tool as the LI.

Taken From:Inner Speech – L2 hinking words in a second langunge

“What did Yogi Raman and the other sages do to live this ritual?”
“They had many sub-rituals which they performed on a daily basis as a tribute to the Ritual of Abundant Knowledge. One of the most important strategies is also one of the easiest. You can even start doing it today.”

“It won’t take up too much time, will it?”
Julian smiled. “These techniques, tools and tips I am sharing with you will make you more productive and effective than you have ever been. Don’t be penny wise, pound foolish.”

“Say what?”
“Consider those who say that they do not have the time to back up their computers because they are too busy working on them.
Yet, when those machines crash and months of important work is
lost, they regret not investing a few moments a day in saving it. Do
you see my point?”

“Get my priorities straight?”
“Exactly. Try not to live your life bound by the shackles of your schedule. Instead, focus on those things that your conscience and
your heart tell you to do. When you invest in yourself and start to
devote yourself to raising your mind, body and character to their
highest levels, you will almost feel as if you have a personal navigator inside you, telling you which things you must do to see the greatest and most rewarding results. You will stop worrying about your clock and start living your life.”

Taken From:THE MONK WHO SOLD HIS FERRARI

An interesting question arising from the literature is whether the deliberate efforts that students sometimes make in using the L2 in their minds, as for example, when a person is thinking how to say something in a language, represent thinking in that language. It has been argued that this voluntary use of the L2 may be better characterized as “thinking aboutthe language” (Lantolf, cited in Cohen, 1998, p. 173). There certainly exists a metalinguistic use of the L2, which is not the same as thinking in or through a language. In this case, the use of the L2 in the mind may be so fragmentary and fleeting that it may not amount to thinking in the L2.

An important point that emerges from the literature is whether the semantic basis of inner speech changes with the acquisition of an L2. According to Ushakova (1994), the basic foundation of inner speech structures built in LI acquisition remains fixed, and any language learned subsequently will be stored and organized on the lines laid by the LI. John-Steiner (1985b) adds some complexity to the issue of change by suggesting that the way two (or more) languages are related to each other in the mind shifts with development. At the beginning stages of acquisition of a new language, there will be a great dependency on the LI, as Ushakova suggested, but at a high degree of proficiency in the L2, there will be a consolidation of the native and the other language at the level of verbal thought. Like John-Steiner, Pavlenko and Lantolf (2000) and Pavlenko(1998) suggest there are stages of development in verbal thought. In their studies of identity formation among bilinguals, the authors have documented significant shifts, losses, and reconstruction in the semantic and conceptual layers of the bilinguals’ languages. In addition, their studies suggest that agency and personal choice are important factors in the kind of inner speech an L2 learner experiences. Finally, further evidence that changes in the mental organization and conceptual structures of an L2 learner may affect the nature of inner speech are provided in studies of the bilingual lexicon (Pavlenko, 1999, 1996) and on the appropriation of gestures of the L2 for self-mediation (McCafferty & Ahmed, 2000).

The second area of research reviewed concerns the process of internalization of the L2 that culminates in inner speech. Studies on private speech among L2 learners (Centeno-Cortes, 2003; Lantolf & Yanez, 2003; Saville-Troike, 1988; Ohta, 2001) throw light on some of the ways in which students try to appropriate the language they
are learning. In these studies, it is shown how learners, in their self-addressed low vocalizations, select aspects of the language they are exposed to and work on them privately through imitation, repetition, manipulation, and language play. Other uses of private speech include rehearsing for future production, answering questions addressed to other students, and drawing upon the LI to make sense or evaluate knowledge. Although not all students may resort to private speech as a transitional phase in the internalization of the L2, it is possible that the private speech they display may share many of the functional and structural aspects of inner speech. Therein, the value of private speech research in providing insights into inner speech. The study of inner speech per se, however, may yield different or additional findings. The diary study conducted by Guerrero (2004) on inner speech development among beginning learners revealed that the early process of L2 appropriation and transformation into inner speech is characterized by a great deal of sub vocal and mental repetition, recall and rehearsal of language heard or read, but little use of the L2 for private thinking purposes.

Taken From:Inner Speech – L2 hinking words in a second langunge

“That doesn’t seem like it would be too hard to do,” I replied.
“I’ve been hearing a lot about the power of a largely vegetarian diet. Just last week, Jenny told me about a study in Finland where it was found that thirty-eight percent of new vegetarians studied reported that they felt far less tired and much more alert after only seven months of this new way of life. I should try eating a salad with every meal. Looking at you, Julian, I might even make the salad the meal.”

“Try it for about a month and judge the results for yourself You will feel phenomenal.”
“Okay. If it’s good enough for the sages, it’s good enough for me. I promise you I will give it a shot. It doesn’t sound like too much of a stretch, and anyway I’m getting pretty tired of firing up the barbeque every night.”

“If I have sold you on the Ritual of Live Nourishment, I think you will love the fourth one.”
“Your student is still holding his empty cup.”
“The fourth ritual is known as the Ritual of Abundant Knowledge. It centers around the whole notion of lifelong learning and expanding your knowledge base for the good of yourself and all those around you.”

“The old ‘knowledge is power’ idea?”
“It involves far more than that, John. Knowledge is only potential power. For the power to be manifested, it must be applied. Most people know what they should do in any given situation, or in their lives for that matter. The problem is that they don’t take daily, consistent action to apply the knowledge and realize their dreams. The Ritual of Abundant Knowledge is all about becoming a student of life. Even more importantly, it requires that you use what you have learned in the classroom of your existence.”

Taken From:THE MONK WHO SOLD HIS FERRARI

Few research studies exist specifically on L2 inner speech There is, however, a considerable amount of scholarly work on verbal thought and mental processes in L2 learning that throw light on various aspects of the inner speech-L2 connection. Five areas of research were reviewed in this chapter: (a) inner speech as the mechanism for
verbal thought in the L2, (b) inner speech as internalization of the L2, (c) inner speech in L2 reading and writing, (d) inner speech and mental rehearsal of the L2, and (e) neuroimaging research on L2 inner speech activity.

The first area to be reviewed was that of studies dealing with the nature of verbal thought among L2 learners. These studies particularly illuminate, in fact expose, the complexity of the semantic and conceptual aspects of inner speech. An important question arising from these studies is what it means “to think in a foreign/second language.” The literature reveals there is a simplistic tendency to equate “thinking in another language” with the process of encoding ready-made thoughts into words or with the stage immediately preceding speech externalization. Some researchers Leontiev, A. A., 1981; John-Steiner, 1985b), on the contrary, believe that coding, or putting thoughts into words, is just one step in the process of speech production and that “to think in another language” involves a much more complex operation of formulating thoughts through the medium of the L2. Thoughts, in this view, are
completed, rather than expressed, by language. This means that language has an enormous effect at a conceptual level in that it helps shape thoughts and that, particularly at high levels of proficiency, an L2 could exert a great influence on verbal thought. The research conducted by John-Steiner (1985b) with competent bilinguals in fact points to the unification of two (or more) languages at the level of verbal thought. It would appear then that any equation of inner speech with “thinking in a second/foreign language” would have to encompass not only the idea of verbalizing thoughts in some linguistic “externalizable” code but also the notion of thought
completion through the L2 at a deep conceptual level.

Some researchers, however, are not so much concerned with what it means “to think in another language” as with its practical considerations: Is it beneficial for learners to think “directly” in an L2? Should students be encouraged to think in an L2? Can thinking in a target language be promoted? Why do learners prefer to think in one language or another? Cohen (1998) has addressed several of these questions, and the answers he provides are by no means simple. Preferences for a “language of thought,” as Cohen puts it, may depend on a variety of factors, such as the student’s level of
proficiency in the L2, mastery of the specific discourse domain, the content of the thoughts themselves (e.g. the thought of an event may trigger a particular language associated with it), the method or program used to instruct the learner, and the student’s motivation and goals in learning the language. Even the particular purpose for which the person is privately using the language, whether for praying, solving mathematical problems, or remembering life experiences, for example, may determine a preference to think in the L2, as demonstrated by Cook (1998) and Larsen et al. (2002). All these factors could contribute to stimulate or inhibit the intramental use of a certain language at a certain moment. Moreover, the switch from one language to another may be planned or unplanned. It may be completely spontaneous and automatic, or it may be deliberate, even sometimes enforced (by the method, the teacher, etc.) Whether it is beneficial for students to try to think in the L2, this has not been proven. What is evident, however, is that no matter how much educators insist that students think in their L2, they will resort to their LI, if necessary, to mediate their thinking. To ban the LI from the students’ minds is an unrealistic expectation, as Cohen (p. 170) suggests. Not only that, it may deprive students of a critical mediating cognitive tool, for example, in reading and writing L2 texts.

Taken From:Inner Speech – L2 hinking words in a second langunge

“Most of the sages were well over one hundred and they showed no signs of slowing down, and just last week I read in the paper about a group of people living on the tiny island of Okinawa in the East China Sea. Researchers are flocking to the island because they are fascinated by the fact that it holds the largest concentration of centenarians in the world.”

“What have they learned?”
“That a vegetarian diet is one of their main longevity secrets.”
“But is this type of diet healthy? You wouldn’t think that it would give you much strength. Remember, I’m still a busy litigator, Julian.”

“This is the diet that nature intended. It is alive, vital and supremely healthy. The sages have lived by this diet for many thousands of years. They call it a sattvic, or pure diet. And as to your concern about strength, the most powerful animals on the planet, ranging from gorillas to elephants, wear the badge of proud vegetarians. Did you know that a gorilla has about thirty times the strength of a man?”

“Thanks for that important tidbit of information.”
“Look, the sages are not extreme people. All of their wisdom was based on the ageless principle that ‘one must live a life of moderation and do nothing to extremes.’ So if you like meat, you
can certainly keep eating it. Just remember that you are ingesting
dead food. If you can, cut back on the amount of red meat that you
eat. It is really hard to digest and since your digestive system is
one of the most energy-consuming processes of your entire body,
valuable energy reserves are needlessly depleted by this foodstuff.
Do you see what I’m getting at? Just compare how you feel after
eating a steak with your energy levels after eating a salad. If you
don’t want to become a strict vegetarian, at least start having a
salad with every meal and fruit for dessert. Even this will make a
huge difference in the quality of your physical life.”

Taken From:THE MONK WHO SOLD HIS FERRARI

Utilizing PET, Klein, Milner, Zatorre, Meyer, and Evans (1995) found no evidence supporting the hypothesis that an L2 learned after the age of 5 and the LI engage different neural substrates. In a study of word generation in L1 and L2 among English- French bilinguals, the authors found common neural areas involved in within- and across-language searches. Similar findings were obtained by Chee, Tan, and Thiel (1999) in an fMRI study involving word processing in Mandarin and English. In this investigation, no differences in areas of activation for LI or L2 were identified regardless of whether English (the L2) was learned early (before the age of 6) or late (after the age of 12).

While age of L2 acquisition appears in some studies to be a significant factor in the organization of LI and L2 in the brain, Perani et al. (1998), employing PET, observed no different cortical regions for early or late bilinguals as they performed story listening tasks. In the study, two groups of highly proficient bilinguals participated:
(1) Spanish-Catalan bilinguals who had acquired the L2 before the age of 4 and (2) Italian-English bilinguals who had acquired the L2 after the age of 10. The researchers found that several brain areas, similar to those observed for the LI in low proficiency bilinguals, were activated by the L2, findings that suggest that attaining a high proficiency level in the L2 is more important than the onset age of L2 acquisition in the organization of Lls and L2s in the brain.

Neuroimaging, in short, is beginning to reveal an extremely complex picture of the localization and handling of more than one language in the brain. Already it is evident that very sophisticated cerebral mechanisms of language storage, coordination, and segregation allow bilinguals and multilinguals to function successfully while processing one language or another. It is also clear that to fully understand inner
speech activity among L2 learners, bilinguals, and multilinguals it will be necessary to untangle an intricate maze of variables that are at play in L1-L2 language processing: age of L2 acquisition, level of proficiency, nature of the verbal task, and types of languages involved, to name just a few of the most salient ones.

Taken From:Inner Speech – L2 hinking words in a second langunge