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EXTRAMURAL ENGLISH ACTIVITIES AND INDIVIDUAL LEARNER DIFFERENCES
The weak interface position, however, offers a compromise between the two
extremes. It holds that there is a possibility of explicit knowledge becoming
implicit (Ellis 2009: 207) and that “explicit knowledge facilitates the develop¬
ment of implicit knowledge through promoting other processes (e.g., noticing)
that aid acquisition.” According to Schmidt (1993, 1995, 2001), noticing helps
learners spot certain linguistic features they can acquire. Nassaji (2017) points
out that the significance of the interface position lies in the fact that it raises
learners’ awareness by channeling their attention to linguistic elements “in
meaning-focused contexts.” In the case of EE activities, for instance, it is not
necessarily enough to be exposed to the given L2, but a certain degree of notic¬
ing is required for the input to become intake, even if it occurs implicitly, i.e.,
if a certain linguistic element is not noticed, it is not likely to be registered by
the learner. This is what Gass (1988) calls noticing the gap: when learners
compare and contrast the L2 linguistic feature in the input with their existing
knowledge. In this respect, both form and meaning are simultaneously at¬
tended to, by which criticism of the non-interface and the strong interface
position is tackled as the weak interface position does not overemphasize
neither the importance of meaning nor form; it claims that both are equally
important.
Implicit learning and incidental learning are closely related concepts and
may indeed seem, at first glance, to describe the same process. However, it is
vital to distinguish between the two as they address different dimensions of
learning, and though there may be a significant overlap between them, this
overlap is incomplete. Hulstijn (2003: 360) points out that incidental learning
and implicit learning are not synonyms, as the latter “entails more than what
is meant by incidental learning.” Therefore, it is important to address this
terminological issue and distinguish between incidental and implicit learning.
2.2.2.3 Distinguishing between incidental/intentional
and implicit/explicit learning
When determining and identifying the kind of learning taking place when
engaging in EE activities, intentional and incidental learning, as well as ex¬
plicit and implicit learning, may be taken into consideration. Ellis (2009) claims
that intentional and explicit learning and incidental and implicit learning are
similar concepts. On the one hand, in the case of both intentional and ex¬
plicit learning, there is an attempt of the learner to “understand” what is to be
acquired. On the other hand, incidental and implicit learning “both involve
the absence of intentionality (Ellis 2009: 263). However, researchers such as
Hulstijn (2003) and Dörnyei (2009b) defined incidental learning through test¬
ing. In their interpretation, incidental learning occurs when learners do not
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