Contextual Factors in Second Language Acquisition.
by Walqui, Aida
While many discussions about learning a second language focus on teaching
methodologies, little emphasis is given to the contextual factors-individual,
social, and societal-that affect students' learning. These contextual factors
can be considered from the perspective of the language, the learner, and
the learning process. This digest discusses these perspectives as they
relate to learning any second language, with a particular focus on how
they affect adolescent learners of English as a second language.
Several factors related to students' first and second languages shape
their second language learning. These factors include the linguistic distance
between the two languages, students' level of proficiency in the native
language and their knowledge of the second language, the dialect of the
native language spoken by the students (i.e., whether it is standard or
nonstandard), the relative status of the students' language in the community,
and societal attitudes toward the students' native language.
"Language Distance." Specific languages can be more or less difficult
to learn, depending on how different from or similar they are to the languages
the learner already knows. At the Defense Language Institute in Monterey,
California, for example, languages are placed in four categories depending
on their average learning difficulty from the perspective of a native English
speaker. The basic intensive language course, which brings a student to
an intermediate level, can be as short as 24 weeks for languages such as
Dutch or Spanish, which are Indo European languages and use the same writing
system as English, or as long as 65 weeks for languages such as Arabic,
Korean, or Vietnamese, which are members of other language families and
use different writing systems.
"Native language proficiency." The student's level of proficiency in
the native language-including not only oral language and literacy, but
also metalinguistic development, training in formal and academic features
of language use, and knowledge of rhetorical patterns and variations in
genre and style-affects acquisition of a second language. The more academically
sophisticated the student's native language knowledge and abilities, the
easier it will be for that student to learn a second language. This helps
explain why foreign exchange students tend to be successful in American
high school classes: They already have high school level proficiency in
their native language.
"Knowledge of the second language." Students' prior knowledge of the
second language is of course a significant factor in their current learning.
High school students learning English as a second language in a U.S. classroom
may possess skills ranging from conversational fluency acquired from contacts
with the English-speaking world to formal knowledge obtained in English
as a foreign language classes in their countries of origin. The extent
and type of prior knowledge is an essential consideration in planning instruction.
For example, a student with informal conversational English skills may
have little understanding of English grammatical systems and may need specific
instruction in English grammar.
"Dialect and register." Learners may need to learn a dialect and a formal
register in school that are different from those they encounter in their
daily lives. This involves acquiring speech patterns that may differ significantly
from those they are familiar with and value as members of a particular
social group or speech community.
"Language status." Consideration of dialects and registers of a language
and of the relationships between two languages includes the relative prestige
of different languages and dialects and of the cultures and ethnic groups
associated with them. Students whose first language has a low status vis
a vis the second may lose their first language, perhaps feeling they have
to give up their own linguistic and cultural background to join the more
prestigious society associated with the target language.
"Language attitudes." Language attitudes in the learner, the peer group,
the school, the neighborhood, and society at large can have an enormous
effect on the second language learning process, both positive and negative.
It is vital that teachers and students examine and understand these attitudes.
In particular, they need to understand that learning a second language
does not mean giving up one's first language or dialect. Rather, it involves
adding a new language or dialect to one's repertoire.
This is true even for students engaged in formal study of their first
language. For example, students in Spanish for native speakers classes
may feel bad when teachers tell them that the ways they speak Spanish are
not right. Clearly, this is an issue of dialect difference. School (in
this case, classroom Spanish) requires formal registers and standard dialects,
while conversation with friends and relatives may call for informal registers
and nonstandard dialects. If their ways of talking outside of school are
valued when used in appropriate contexts, students are more likely to be
open to learning a new language or dialect, knowing that the new discourses
will expand their communicative repertoires rather than displace their
familiar ways of communicating.
Students come from diverse backgrounds and have diverse needs and goals.
With adolescent language learners, factors such as peer pressure, the presence
of role models, and the level of home support can strongly affect the desire
and ability to learn a second language.
"Diverse needs" A basic educational principle is that new learning should
be based on prior experiences and existing skills. Although this principle
is known and generally agreed upon by educators, in practice it is often
overshadowed by the administrative convenience of the linear curriculum
and the single textbook. Homogeneous curricula and materials are problematic
enough if all learners are from a single language and cultural background,
but they are indefensible given the great diversity in today's classrooms.
Such diversity requires a different conception of curricula and a different
approach to materials. Differentiation and individualization are not a
luxury in this context: They are a necessity.
"Diverse goals." Learners' goals may determine how they use the language
being learned, how native-like their pronunciation will be, how lexically
elaborate and grammatically accurate their utterances will be, and how
much energy they will expend to understand messages in the target language.
Learners' goals can vary from wholly integrative-the desire to assimilate
and become a full member of the English-speaking world-to primarily instrumental-oriented
toward specific goals such as academic or professional success (Gardner,
1989). Educators working with English language learners must also consider
whether the communities in which their students live, work, and study accept
them, support their efforts, and offer them genuine English-learning opportunities.
"Peer groups." Teenagers tend to be heavily influenced by their peer
groups. In second language learning, peer pressure often undermines the
goals set by parents and teachers. Peer pressure often reduces the desire
of the student to work toward native pronunciation, because the sounds
of the target language may be regarded as strange. For learners of English
as a second language, speaking like a native speaker may unconsciously
be regarded as a sign of no longer belonging to their native-language peer
group. In working with secondary school students, it is important to keep
these peer influences in mind and to foster a positive image for proficiency
in a second language.
"Role models." Students need to have positive and realistic role models
who demonstrate the value of being proficient in more than one language.
It is also helpful for students to read literature about the personal experiences
of people from diverse language and dialect backgrounds. Through discussions
of the challenges experienced by others, students can develop a better
understanding of their own challenges.
"Home support." Support from home is very important for successful second
language learning. Some educators believe that parents of English language
learners should speak only English in the home (see, e.g., recommendations
made in Rodriguez, 1982). However, far more important than speaking English
is that parents value both the native language and English, communicate
with their children in whichever language is most comfortable, and show
support for and interest in their children's progress.
THE LEARNING PROCESS
When we think of second language development as a learning process,
we need to remember that different students have different learning styles,
that intrinsic motivation aids learning, and that the quality of classroom
interaction matters a great deal.
"Learning styles." Research has shown that individuals vary greatly
in the ways they learn a second language (Skehan, 1989). Some learners
are more analytically oriented and thrive on picking apart words and sentences.
Others are more globally oriented, needing to experience overall patterns
of language in meaningful contexts before making sense of the linguistic
parts and forms. Some learners are more visually oriented, others more
geared to sounds.
"Motivation." According to Deci and Ryan (1985), intrinsic motivation
is related to basic human needs for competence, autonomy, and relatedness.
Intrinsically motivated activities are those that the learner engages in
for their own sake because of their value, interest, and challenge. Such
activities present the best possible opportunities for learning.
"Classroom interaction." Language learning does not occur as a result
of the transmission of facts about language or from a succession of rote
memorization drills. It is the result of opportunities for meaningful interaction
with others in the target language. Therefore, lecturing and recitation
are not the most appropriate modes of language use in the second language
classroom. Teachers need to move toward more richly interactive language
use, such as that found in instructional conversations (Tharp & Gallimore,
1988) and collaborative classroom work (Adger, Kalyanpur, Peterson, &
While this digest has focused on the second language acquisition process
from the perspective of the language, the learner, and the learning process,
it is important to point out that the larger social and cultural contexts
of second language development have a tremendous impact on second language
learning, especially for immigrant students. The status of students' ethnic
groups in relation to the larger culture can help or hinder the acquisition
of the language of mainstream society.
Adger, C., Kalyanpur, M., Peterson, D., & Bridger, T. (1995). "Engaging
students: Thinking, talking, cooperating." Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.
Deci, E.L., & Ryan, R.M. (1985). "Intrinsic motivation and self-determination
in human behavior." New York: Plenum.
Gardner, H. (1989). "To open minds: Chinese clues to the dilemma of
contemporary education." New York: Basic.
Rodriguez, R. (1982). "Hunger of memory: The education of Richard Rodriguez,
an autobiography." Toronto: Bantam.
Skehan, P. (1989). "Individual differences in second-language learning."
London: Edward Arnold.
Tharp, R.G., & Gallimore, R. (1988). "Rousing minds to life: Teaching,
learning, and school in social context." New York: Cambridge University
This digest is drawn from "Access and Engagement: Program Design and
Instructional Approaches for Immigrant Students in Secondary Schools,"
by Aida Walqui, the fourth volume in the Topics in Immigrant Education