Which classroom activity best aligns with Long's Interaction Hypothesis?

Which classroom activity best aligns with Long's Interaction Hypothesis?

• A. Teacher-centered lectures.
• B. Silent reading with no interaction.
• C. Pair work with information-gap tasks.
• D. Grammar drills with no feedback.

Answer: (C)

Long's Interaction Hypothesis shows that language development happens through meaningful interaction that involves negotiation of meaning, feedback, and opportunities to notice gaps in understanding. Pair work with information-gap tasks best aligns with this idea because it forces learners to communicate to complete a task: they must ask for missing information, request clarification, and reformulate utterances based on feedback from their partner. This negotiation makes input more comprehensible and prompts learners to produce modified language, promoting uptake and improvement. The other options don’t provide the same level of interactive negotiation: teacher-centered lectures offer limited conversation for practice; silent reading with no interaction lacks negotiation and feedback; grammar drills with no feedback miss the crucial interaction that guides learners to notice and repair gaps in their interlanguage.

Long's Interaction Hypothesis shows that language development happens through meaningful interaction that involves negotiation of meaning, feedback, and opportunities to notice gaps in understanding. Pair work with information-gap tasks best aligns with this idea because it forces learners to communicate to complete a task: they must ask for missing information, request clarification, and reformulate utterances based on feedback from their partner. This negotiation makes input more comprehensible and prompts learners to produce modified language, promoting uptake and improvement.

The other options don’t provide the same level of interactive negotiation: teacher-centered lectures offer limited conversation for practice; silent reading with no interaction lacks negotiation and feedback; grammar drills with no feedback miss the crucial interaction that guides learners to notice and repair gaps in their interlanguage.