Pornpros is reasonable to see one, for the reason that most learners will shy away from using aspects of the language which they do not feel confident about, rightly or wrongly. It does not therefore give us a true account of what the learner knows. An error-free composition may delight the teacher's heart, but looked at coolly may reveal a very poor knowledge of the language. Elicitation procedures impose our sampling on the learner. They aim to 'put him on the spot'. Elicitation procedures are an `error-provoking' activity, whilst spontaneous speech is an `error-avoiding' one. Regarded as scientific investigations, elicitation procedures and error analysis have their parallels in other fields of scientific investiga. tion. The distinction is one between experimental methods and clinical methods. The real ex girlfriends clinical method is to wait until an example of the event to be studied occurs spontaneously under natural conditions, and then attempt to relate it to the observed circumstances. The experimental method establishes and controls the circumstances – independent variables – which it is predicted will precipitate the event – dependent variable – and then draws inferences about the relation between the two. Each method has its own strengths and weaknesses, determining the validity of the conclusions drawn. |