Extrinsic motivation

When an individual is motivated by outside factors or other people (as opposed to being motivated from within).

Extroversion/introversion

These terms describe the dimension of personality which has been most thoroughly investigated in SLA research. They reflect a continuum: at one end are learners who are sociable and risk-takers, while at the other end there are learners who are quiet and avoid excitement.

F

Fairy story

A traditional story written for children which usually involves imaginary creatures and magic.

False beginner

A learner who has had a limited amount of previous instruction in a language, but who because of extremely limited language proficiency is classified as at the beginning level of language instruction. A ~ is sometimes contrasted with a true beginner, i.e. someone who has no knowledge of the language.

Feedback (n., v.), give / provide feedback

The response learners get when they attempt to communicate. This can involve correction, acknowledgement, requests for clarification, backchannel cues (e.g., "mmm"). Feedback plays an important role in helping learners to test their ideas about the target language. 1. To tell someone how well they are doing. Teachers might give learners feedback at a certain point in the course, or after an exercise that learners have just completed. In addition, learners can give feedback to teachers and teacher trainers give feedback to trainee teachers. 2. To communicate to a speaker that you understand (or not) what they are saying.

Field dependence/independence

~ constitutes one kind of cognitive style. Field-dependent learners are believed to operate holistically (i.e. they see the field as a whole), whereas field-independent learners operate analytically (i.e. they conceive the field in terms of its component parts).

First Certificate

Cambridge First Certificate: an examination which may be taken by students of a good intermediate level.

Flipchart

A pad of large sheets of paper fixed to a stand, which teachers use for presenting information to the class.