Advantages And Disadvantages Of Second Language Acquisition

Learning to speak another language other than English is a highly debated subject in regards to education. Language in itself is an essential tool to everyday living,from whimsical conversations to important business meetings. Words have the power to inspire and change the world, but not everybody can understand the same words. There are hundreds of languages spoken around the globe how do we know which to speak? We can’t be certain. Therefore, it is not advantageous for English speakers to learn another language, there are too many languages for one to be exceptionally useful, and other countries are quickly learning English.

Many popular theories of second language acquisition have been analyzed throughout history. The socialization of L2 learners, their present emotional state that is present at the time of acquisition, as well as the comprehensible input and output with the use of scaffolding play a major role in second language acquisition. Kirsten Hummel states, “The one most effective way to increase L2 competence was by exposure to ‘comprehensible input’.” (Hummel, 2014, p. 73) Let us also not forget the importance of written expression as well as reading comprehension with these L2 learners. Each plays a role in language development. However, I believe that to acquire language one must use a variety of techniques that work together to create a balance within the learning environment. Furthermore, all L2 learners acquire language differently and so using a variety of resources that are based on the ability of each student is neccesary. There are many theories that have been developed by highly qualified experts in the field of linguistics. However, I will address those areas that I agree with as I present my personal theories on second language acquisition.

Acquiring second language is different with first language development. These differences are the learning environment, learning development, interlanguage, learning goal, knowledge transfer and others.

In the same vein, Keshavarz (1994) discusses that during the 1950s and 1950s, CA was considered as the ultimate panacea for language teaching problems: predicting and solving learner’s errors and difficulties. Based on the assumption that second/foreign language learners tend to transfer the formal features of their L1 to their L2 utterances, structural linguists set out to identify aeas of difficulty for second language and produce appropriate teaching materials to overcome these linguistic obstacles. In effect, on the one hand the task of a contrastive analyst was to pinpoint the items in learners L1 which are in line with the similar items in learner’s L2 (positive transfer) so as to facilitate language learning process. On the other hand, the contrastive

Some experts believe that it is better for children to begin learning a foreign language at primary school rather than secondary school.

Language has been in the world since humans began to exist on the Earth. Language is an important part in constructing people’s perception and cultures. It is the reason that aggressors tried to teach their language to the victims who were invaded. People in the world, nowadays, interact with foreign people who speak different languages, so the possibility that people meet foreign people is increasing. As time goes, the society where people live requires them to learn a second or third languages. Some people think that they do not feel like they need to learn a foreign language, such as America and China. They claim that people can use the time better instead of learning a second language. In fact, this is the truth that we can survive even if we don’t know other languages. However, since the trend of our world has been changing, people make an effort to learn a foreign language for different purposes. Becoming a bilingual person(or multilingual person) gives an opportunity for people to gain more and better skills and abilities than other people who do not learn a second language. For these reasons, many researchers study and search benefits and necessity of learning a foreign language. Thus, many schools in the world have formally started a class which is learning a second language because of getting the positive things even though we are able to live in our world without knowing another country’s language. We will have a lot of advantages if we know how to speak and

In this globalized world, learning an extra language other than their native languages is almost essential for every individual. Although the United States is one of the most diverse countries in the world, the need to promote a national language is widely held in the country as requisite for the promotion of a national identity, a President and Chief Executive Officer of the Center for Applied Linguistics in Washington, D.C, Terrence Wiley states (Wiley, 2014). However, English is not considered as an official language, which creates an opportunity for the citizens and immigrants to not only study English, but also inherit their mother tongues and learn other foreign languages as well, particularly during the secondary education. Additionally, “globalization in the economy and politics have profound consequences for language policies in education” (Wiley, 2014). High schools in the United States value diversity in language classes and support students learning more than one language to foster better communication with people around the world.

Second language acquisition has become an increasingly active field of study in the past couple of decades. As the world became more dynamic and people from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds more connected, language played a crucial role in keeping those relations successful. Subsequently, knowledge of only one language has become rarely sufficient, resulting in growing bilingualism. As bilingualism has slowly become the new norm, the researchers have become engrossed in the field of second language acquisition. One of numerous important questions within that field is that of the role of the first language in second language acquisition. In this essay, I will pinpoint some of the theoretical approaches and studies that dealt with the question of the role of the first

Language acquisition is the way in which humans perceive and understand a certain language, as well as producing and using words and sentences in order to communicate with one another. The way in which people learn another language is known as Second Language Acquisition, this refers to someone learning a language other than their mother tongue. A very important aspect within this process is cross-linguistic influence. Cross-linguistic influence is a term used to describe the various ways that certain language systems in the brain interact with and influence one and other. It explains how they can affect either the linguistic performance or the linguistic development of the learner, if not both. This most commonly refers to two separate languages, for example the effect that French has on a native speaker trying to learn another language such as Italian.

Many researchers have hypothesized that language could be acquired only within a critical period, which is from early infancy to puberty. If this is true, this should be extended to second language acquisition as well, and, if so, young children should be better at acquiring the second language than adults, and the individuals who started to learn the second language in their early childhood should reach higher levels of proficiency in the second language compare to those who started to learn the language in their adulthood. If this prediction is true, it would importantly demonstrate that children should be exposed to language with rich vocabulary and grammar within the critical period, and foreign language exposure at school should take place in early grades in order to maximize their opportunity to learn the language effectively. However, the self-motivation and the value of learning the language may differ depending on the individuals and those factors can limit or expand the exposure to the target language. In this paper, I would like to discuss the correlation between the age that bilingual individuals are exposed to the second language as well as their motivation, and the value of learning the second language. I would like to suggest that regardless of the age that individuals are exposed to the second language, if one values the importance of learning the target language and maximize their exposure to it, they can reach to the native level of

Language remains an integral part of human culture that our brains instill before we are born. Scientists have known for years fetuses can hear inside the womb, but they have discovered newborns possess the ability to cry in a way which mimics their native language (Cox). Scientists also recognize that as humans age learning a new skill―like a language―proves increasingly more difficult. Adults’ brains do not possess the same absorbency skills that children do (Baer). For this reason, I would advocate for high schools and colleges requiring students to take at least two years of a foreign language. Numerous studies have linked learning a second language to increased cognitive function, heightened global awareness, and understanding foreign cultural traditions.

In the affective filter hypothesis, Krashen (1985) suggests that not only understanding the information being put forth is important, but places significance on the environment in which the information is being received. Krashen saw the student emotional state as an “adjustable filter that freely passes, impedes, or blocks input necessary for acquisition (1985, pg 130). The affective filter controls the amount of input that is received by the learner; the lower the affective filter, the more input and therefore meaningful learning can take place (Liu, 2015).

Second language acquisition is a process that is extraordinarily complex and requires the cooperation of multiple learning factors. Altogether, these factors can be divided into three main domains-cognitive, psychomotor, and affective. The cognitive domain consists deals with the factors on learning, whereas the psychomotor deals with the physical aspects of learning. Although both of these domains are essential to the learning process, this paper will focus on the third domain-known as the affective domain. (the second principle). The affective domain is “the emotional side of human behavior… [and] the development of affective states or feelings involves a variety of personality factors, feelings both about ourselves and about others with whom we come into contact” (Brown 153). The factors of self-esteem, willingness, inhibition, risk taking, anxiety, and personality factors such as motivation and the tendency for extroversion or introversion are all part of the affective domain. This paper will explain all of these factors and their impact on the process of second language acquisition.

Intelligence also has some connection with school performance that there are links between intelligence and aptitude in classroom, as might be expected (Cook, 2008 cited Genesee, 1976) On the other hand, intelligence may play a less important role in language learning that focuses more on communication and interaction (Cummins, 1980). Hence, it is important to keep in mind that “intelligence” is complex and that a person has many kinds of abilities and strengths (Brown, 2000; Johnson, 2008). For the second cognitive variables is aptitude that refers to the ability to learn quickly (Carroll, 1991) and is thought to predict success in learning or the natural ability to learn a language that is thought to be a combination of various abilities, such as the ability to identify sound patterns in a new language, the ability to recognise the different grammatical functions of words in sentences, Rote-Learning ability, and the ability to infer language rules (Richards et.al., 1995; Cook, 2008). In term of Language aptitude refers to the potential that a person has for learning languages. This potential is often evaluated using formal aptitude tests (Modern Language Aptitude Test (MLAT), which predict the degree of success the candidate will have with a new language. Aptitude tests vary but many include evaluation of ability to manage sounds, grammatical

The research of second language acquisition (SLA) and its theories surged in the twentieth century. At a first glance, the definition of SLA may seem clear, however when analysed further it becomes clear that the subject is a bit more complex. Nevertheless, a good definition of it could be as follows: “a study of … the way in which people learn a language other than their mother tongue, inside or outside a classroom.” (Ellis, 1997:3) From the 1940s to the 1960s, a psycholinguistic theory known as behaviourism (stimulus-response), was developed, becoming recognised as a legitimate theory behind SLA. This was a positivist approach towards language learning which involved the interference and transfer between a speaker’s first