ISSN 1799-2591 Theory and Practice in Language Studies, Vol. 2, No. 3, pp. 560-565, March 2012 © 2012 ACADEMY PUBLISHER Manufactured in Finland. doi:10.4304/tpls.2.3.560-565 © 2012 ACADEMY PUBLISHER Teaching English as a Second Language: The Role of Noticing the Gap Alexandra Uzoaku Esimaje Faculty of Arts and Education, Benson Idahosa University, Benin City, Edo state, Nigeria Email: alexandra.esimaje@live.com Abstract—The role of consciousness in learning has dominated current debate on second language learning. This is now the focal point of recent research by philosophers, psychologists, language theorists, linguists and especially language teachers who carry the burden of pedagogical consequences. The singular question is – how can successful language learning be achieved? In this paper, attempt at answer is made through the appraisal of the effect of consciousness, awareness or noticing on learning. It is argued that an effective way of learning is to raise the awareness of a learner on a language item to cause him to notice it and subsequently learn or internalize its use. A number of factors influence noticing but this paper focuses on the gap between the observed input and the learners typical output. The aim is to provide remedy to performance errors via positive feedback. In the paper, ‘learner’ is used to refer to every second language user but immediate attention is paid to the teacher at the intermediate level of education. The aim of the study is to enhance the communicative ability of the teacher by highlighting his performance errors, raising his awareness of them through the concept of noticing and subsequently providing him with positive feedback. Ultimately, the study hopes to invigorate the teacher towards self development and thus position him to effectively create linguistic appetite in other learners rather than linguistic apathy. The study used selected secondary school teachers in Maiduguri and Benin, as case study. The study submits that noticing, raising the consciousness of learners on what is right or wrong usage is a useful way to enhance the learning of English as a second language in our schools in Nigeria. Index Terms—second language learning, performance errors, noticing, gap, learning consciousness, successful learning, English and Nigeria I. INTRODUCTION A. The Concept of Noticing The concept of noticing is an innovation in language teaching which is a major step in the implementation of Lewis‟ (1993, 1997) Lexical Approach. Speaking on the major contribution of the Lexical Approach to linguistic theory, Lewis (1997, p. 7) says; The most fundamental linguistic insight of the Lexical Approach is that much of the lexicon consists of multi word items of different kinds…. It is a significant improvement to direct learners‟ attention to larger chunks (since) we store much of our mental lexicon in complete, fully contextualised phrases. The lexical Approach emphasizes conscious learning for acquisition to occur, that is, encouraging “transition from input to intake through exercises and activities which help the learner observe or notice the L2 more accurately, ensure quicker and more carefully formulated hypotheses about the L2, and so aid acquisition” (Lewis, 1997, p.52). Noticing therefore is prerequisite to internalisation. He goes further to talk about the importance of negative evidence in teaching-learning; this points to the occurrence of potential mistakes in language use, noting that the teacher is an important source of feedback on what is not sanctioned. Lewis (1997, 2000) defines noticing as a teaching strategy in which a teacher draws the learner‟s attention to the lexical features of the input to which they are exposed. This he argues raises the consciousness of the learner which in turn helps him to turn the input to intake. Although Lewis (2000) notes that noticing is a necessary but not sufficient condition for input to become intake, he argues that if learners are not directed to notice language in a text there exists a danger that they will 'see through the text' and therefore fail to achieve intake. He proposes a sequence of observe- hypothesize – experiment cycle rather than the erstwhile present–practice–produce paradigm. Ivor and Carlos (2003b.) believe, like Lewis, that encouraging learners to notice language, specifically lexical chunks and collocations, is central to any methodology connected to a lexical view of language. Kryszewska (2003) also points out the importance of „conscious acquisition‟ in the language learning process and believes that modelling teaching on the basis of real English, that is corpus of real English, will enhance the communicative power of second language learners. Noticing is a complex process: it involves the intake both of meaning and form, and it takes time for learners to progress from initial recognition to the point where they can internalize the underlying rule (Batstone, 1996). According to Ivor and Carlos (2003a.), noticing can take a number of forms; guided by the teacher i.e. the teacher directs the students' attention to lexical features thought to be useful; 'self-directed', i.e. the students themselves select features they think will be useful for them; noticing is explicit, e.g. when items in a text are highlighted; implicit e.g. when the