In most European countries, students begin learning second languages early on in school and most individuals, child or adult, are able to effectively communicate in their second language if not also in a third and fourth. In Canada, almost all of the provinces have total immersion programs set-up. Most people realize at this point that learning a second language is crucial, but for some reason, the United States has yet to significantly increase language programs.
1. Second language acquisition 1
NORTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY
Second Language Acquisition and the
Effectiveness of Different Methods of Studying Languages
A Thesis Submitted to the
University Honors Program
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements of the Baccalaureate Degree
With Upper Division Honors
Department of
Psychology
By
Gina M. Martino
DeKalb, Illinois
May 09, 2009
2. Second language acquisition 2
The United States is far behind most countries when it comes to second language
acquisition. In the US, students are not typically required to learn a second language until the
High School grade level. Even after completing the required language programs though,
students are unable to apply what they have learned. In most European countries, students
begin learning second languages early on in school and most individuals, child or adult, are
able to effectively communicate in their second language if not also in a third and fourth. In
Canada, almost all of the provinces have total immersion programs set-up (Cohen & Swain,
1976).
In the past, knowing a second language, at least from the American perspective, may
not have been as important. The United States is a large country, where practically everyone
spoke English, and there was little demand for individuals to learn additional languages. In
today's society however, things are a little different. First of all, the minority population is
growing larger by the day. It is helpful to know an additional language just to have the
ability to communicate with these individuals. Secondly, and probably more pressing reason
for individuals to learn another language, is that businesses need to communicate with the
minorities in the US as well as conduct trade with other countries. The job market is
becoming more and more competitive and companies are looking for people who are able to
do more. With this, they are looking to hire individuals who are fluent in both English and at
least one additional language. Many times, if a person does not know a second language,
they will be considered under qualified for a position and be passed over for a bilingual
individual who might be less qualified in every other way.
Most people realize at this point that learning a second language is crucial, but for
some reason, the United States has yet to significantly increase language programs. In turn,
people who wish to learn a language after or outside of the public school system are forced to
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find ulterier methods. There are so many different options for language acquisition though,
and not all are effective.
One of the most available methods to learning a second language comes in the form of
books. A trip to a local bookstore will present an individual with dozens of different books
on almost any language. There are books that specialize in learning verbs, books on
vocabulary, and books that take the reader through a general overview. Books may be
effective for some people, and are great supplemental materials for students studying through
other methods or just brushing up on a language they have not used in a while, but for the
individual who needs a more interactive method, books are very dry and can be difficult to
decipher.
A step up from books is audio programs. Audio programs could refer to cassette
tapes, CD’s, and the newly popular mp3 programs that can be downloaded onto iPods and
other MP3 players. There are many audio programs that advertise that a person can learn a
language in their car, or on the flight to another country, but the programs are rarely, if ever,
that effective. First of all, audio programs are commonly not entirely audio based but rather
come with a book that the student should follow along with or consult for vocabulary words
and such. Also, languages are much too complex to learn in the few hours that these audio
programs often advertise. Like books, audio programs are a great supplement to other
language instruction, but alone they are only minimally effective.
With the more recent popularity of the iPod and podcasts, there are many podcasts
which are concerned with language acquisition. Some of these are very basic and give the
listener a few vocabulary words with each episode, while others go more in depth and even
give the listener bits of cultural information. These still however fall into the audio category.
With technology at the forefront of today's society, probably the most popular way for
individuals to learn a foreign language is with computer programs. Computer assisted
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language learning is now very commonly used in language instruction to provide
supplemental practice in various skills, but computer programs are also very popular with
individuals who are unable or unwilling to enroll in a classroom language course. The most
prevalent ones on the market now-a-days are Instant Immersion (by Topics Entertainment),
Learn Now! (by Transparent Language), and of course Rosetta Stone (by Fairfield Language
Technologies). Each of these programs utilizes various teaching methods and varying levels
of immersion. The most popular of the three, Rosetta Stone, is surprisingly also the most
simplistic, using matching exercises as the focus of the program. These matching exercises
use pictures only, which many people see as a problem, with the preference being for
programs that use various multimedia methods. Another large oversight on the part of most,
if not all computer programs, is a lack of exercises requiring users to work with material
longer than a sentence in length (Traphagan).
While computer programs offer a consistency that instructors often like, this is only if
every student uses the program in the same way. Beyond the control of the program
designers, is how the student uses the exercises and tools made available by a given program.
In programs that give the user control of which exercises they do or do not complete, a
student may skip an exercise they need simply because they do not enjoy it. One tool that is
likely to be ignored is the option of the user recording their voice to compare it with that of a
native speaker’s voice. Often times computers do not have microphones already installed and
individuals either cannot afford, or do not take the effort to go purchase a separate
microphone. Even once a separate microphone is acquired, they can be complicated to install
and make work and people will just give up. Other included features are often overlooked as
well. If a program has a help option, or a spell-check option, certain students may take
advantage of this while others choose not to (Chapelle, 1990).
5. Second language acquisition 5
Despite what companies have produced thus far in language acquisition, the
classroom environment is still generally more effective. Unlike books, audio programs, or
computer programs, a classroom environment allows for feedback from an instructor and
interaction with other students who are typically at an equal level. However the effectiveness
of a language program depends upon factors that determine the effectiveness of any
classroom. The most important element to determine the effectiveness of a class is the
instructor. While it is hoped that all instructors are effective, there are still teachers out there
who give very little instruction, or give instruction in only one manner (i.e. lecture). Many
students need more interactive methods to learn material, therefore the most effective
instructors use lectures, visual aids, computer programs, reading, and pretty much any other
way they can think of to expose the student to their target foreign language. The other large
drawback to classroom language acquisition is that, as stated previously, the United States
still puts little emphasize on language programs. Most high schools have language programs,
but not many junior highs or elementary schools have any language programs in place. In
addition, once a student reaches the high school level, there are not always a lot of options for
which language they can choose. The most popular languages taught in United States
schools are Spanish and French, but students may desire a chance to learn a different
language, such as Italian, Japanese, German, and other languages. Even if a school has
programs in various languages, it is often difficult to sign up for a course.
For example, Northern Illinois University has programs in 18 different languages
including: Arabic, Burmese, Chinese, French, German, Hebrew, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese,
Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Southeast Asian, Spanish, Swahili, Tagalog, and Thai.
However, for Spanish, there are usually at least two to three sections available for every level,
every semester. For most of the languages however, there is one section for each level, and
certain classes are only offered certain semesters. The Italian program for instance, might
6. Second language acquisition 6
have three sections of Italian 101 available, but the 101 and 201 levels are only offered in the
fall while the 102 and 202 levels are only offered in the spring. Then, the classes narrow
significantly as the student advances in the language. In the 2006-2007 academic year, there
were three sections of Italian in the 100-level, but the following fall there was only one
section of Italian 201. If the average class has 30 students in it, this meant that 60 students
were unable to continue into a second year with the Italian language. For the 300 and 400-
level classes, there is only one section available as well, but now this one section is only
offered every couple years. It might be argued that there is not enough interest in the
language to provide more sections, but from an insider’s perspective, there are always
students who are wishing to continue with the language and are unable to. In the fall of 2008,
three students were forced to take a 300 or 400 level course as an independent study because
the courses they needed to complete their chosen minor in the Italian language would not be
offered again before they graduated.
Even when a student makes use of every option to take a language class, one can only
learn so much in a one hour class offered two to three days a week. Another alternative to
classroom language acquisition is partial immersion. Partial immersion is when schools
structure classes in and through the second language. Many researchers believe that language
is better developed when the language itself is not the primary focus of the classroom or the
content the student is being graded on (Short, 1993, as cited in Christian, 1996; Snow, Met, &
Genesee, 1989). This is likely because it takes the pressure off of the individual to perfect the
language and turns it into a tool to communicate. An example of this is the Elgin program in
Ontario. This school program uses the second language, French for the first two and a half
hours of the day (including the subjects Mathematics, Music, French Language Arts, Reading,
and Composition), and English for the last two and a half hours of the day (including English
Language Arts, Physical Education, Science, Social Studies, Art, and Health). When the
7. Second language acquisition 7
Barik and Swain (1976) compared the Elgin programs effectiveness in learning a second
language with the normal language classroom, the results were not very promising in the first
few years, but the higher grade levels showed better results, suggesting that while partial
immersion was difficult at first, as students adjusted it was more effective.
Generally the languages are kept separate from each other by either subjects (Math
and Science in one language while Reading and Composition are in the other), time of day
(one language in the morning, the other language in the afternoon), or by specific teachers
(one teacher teaches everything in one language while another teaches in the other language)
(Christian, 1996). Also, while there may be use of both languages during the classroom
environment, children do not tend to switch to the second language on the playground when
they are free to use either language (Lee, Hill-Bonnet, & Gillispie, 2008). In this students
often continue to keep friends of the same native language and are less likely to interact with
native speakers of the second language which removes the opportunity to interact socially in
their second language entirely. Another important factor that contributes to the effectiveness
of these programs is that the instruction methods that are effective in normal schools
(activities vs. lecture) are also effective with partial immersion schools (Christian, 1996).
One very important distinction to make here is that these are immersion programs, not
submersion. Submersion is what many students encounter when they first move to the
United States. ESL programs are generally taught entirely in English and contain students
from all different language backgrounds. Then, ESL students are thrown into the schools
normal curriculum and surrounded by native English speakers who they fear will tease them
and ridicule them for their imperfect knowledge of the language. The more insecure the
student feels in using the language, the less likely they are to do so which will inhibit their
development.
8. Second language acquisition 8
As the need for a globalized workforce increases, the demand for students to study
abroad has become a growing trend in higher education, showing a 250 percent increase in
the number of United States students completing study abroad programs from 1995 up until
now (Krisantas, 2005 as cited in Lowe, Dozier, Hunt-Hurst, & Smith, 2008). While the
opportunity to study abroad is an invaluable experience that can be exciting and life altering,
it is also very frightening and overwhelming. Individuals who submerse themselves in a
foreign culture frequently experience some degree of emotional disturbance (Mumford, 1998).
The exact degree of the disturbance depends on several different factors, including how
different the society and culture is from their own and how the individual handles stress and
change in general. A student studying in a foreign country is typically isolated almost
entirely from their closest friends and family. Even today with technology as advanced as it
is, telephone calls between distant countries are still very expensive and conversation via the
internet can be unsatisfying and slow when you really need to talk with someone. There is
also the issue of adapting to societal norms and customs that are entirely unlike those of
someone's home. Most people fall into certain routines, especially with the less thought of
activities. There may be a brand of shampoo a person always uses, a cereal they eat every
morning, or just a certain daily routine that is impossible to follow while abroad. This can
frustrate people, and in the case of food habits, can disrupt a person’s diet and cause them to
fall ill.
Individuals who have traveled abroad often for short vacations are often believed to
be more immune to these issues, however research has shown that having spent time
vacationing in a foreign country, even if done frequently, does not reduce the chance of
experiencing difficulty adjusting to a foreign culture (Furnham, 2004), or as it is more
commonly referred to, "culture shock." "Culture shock" was first used in 1960 by the
anthropologist Oberg in a short descriptive article based on personal observations, to refer to
9. Second language acquisition 9
the difficulty people experience when first immersing themselves in a culture that is unlike
their own. Though it started as simply a colloquial term and has never been assigned actual
psychiatric diagnostic criteria, the idea of culture shock has been the inspiration and focal
point of much research and literature. However, any research done regarding culture shock
still must include the fact that the concept is still theoretical and there may be several
differing opinions on how to measure the causes and experience of culture shock (Mumford,
1998).
Sandhu and Asrabadi (1994, as cited in Furnham, 2004) believe there are two main
contributing factors that determine whether an individual will experience culture shock or not.
The first is Intrapersonal factors, which includes any internal feelings and fears that are
caused by spending an extended time in a foreign environment (feeling inferior or uncertain
about the future). The second is Interpersonal factors, which refers to the fears or feelings of
awkwardness or isolation that are directly related to the environment and society (making
friends, school experience, loss of regular social support, etc.).
As for the actual experience of culture shock, Taft (1977, as cited in Mumford, 1998)
developed a set of six aspects:
1. Strain due to the effort required to make necessary psychological adaptions
2. A sense of loss and feelings of deprivation in regard to friends, status, profession
and possessions
3. Being rejected by and/or rejecting members of the new culture
4. Confusion in role, role expectations, values, feelings and self-identity
5. Surprise, anxiety, even disgust and indignation after becoming aware of cultural
differences
6. Feelings of impotence due to not being able to cope with the new environment
10. Second language acquisition 10
Another problem individuals might experience when studying in a foreign country, is
forgetting bits of their native language the more they immerse themselves in the foreign
language, known as first-language attrition. This can be due to the fact that they are using
their native language more infrequently, or to the fact that in learning a second language, a
person learns new words for everything they know which is a large memory learning task that
could interfere with their previous memories (Levy, McVeigh, Marful, & Anderson, 2007).
Most of the first-language attrition effects vocabulary, but general language usage may also
be effective. Many languages use different sentence structures, and after even a few hours of
forming foreign sentences in one order can confuse speech patterns in the native language.
Often times it is assumed that age plays a large factor into how easily one acquires a
language, but what is often overlooked is the frequency of how much particular age groups
use the new language (Hammerly, 1987). A child learning a second language is still at a low
level with their first language, so mistakes are more acceptable for them and they are not
trying to form sentences beyond their level. If an adult tries to convey a thought in a second
language, they may encounter difficulty expressing their thoughts which originate in their
advanced native language vocabulary, into their limited second language vocabulary. Also,
when a family moves to a new country, the children are forced to acquire the new language to
interact in school and society. Parents and grandparents however, tend to close off and rely
on their children to act as interpreters for them.
There is some truth to age influencing language however. Three principle factors
influence older individuals in their attempt to learn another language: decreases in processing
speed, deficits in working memory, and the ability to focus attention on relevant material
(Park, 2000, as cited in Birdsong, 2006). Research has shown that the declines in these
factors begins in early adulthood and decreases gradually more throughout the life span
(Birdsong, 2006).
11. Second language acquisition 11
Beyond all of the previously mentioned difficulties that exist in the environment for a
person learning a second language, there is also the internal foreign language anxiety, a
situation-specific anxiety disorder that arises from the foreign language learning. This
anxiety revolves around three interrelated performance anxieties: communication
apprehension, test anxiety, and fear of negative evaluation. Rodriguez and Abreu (2003) set
out to discover if there is any correlation between foreign language anxiety and which
language is being studied by an individual compared to the native language of the speaker.
They found no significant difference, implying that foreign language anxiety can occur across
several, if not all native language/foreign language combinations.
Another internal attribute to learning a foreign language lies in simply the strategies
used to learn. Vann and Abraham (1990) categorized these strategies into four groups:
engagement, risk taking, knowledge, and control. Engagement is the general attention a
person gives to learning. Risk taking refers to a person’s willingness to make mistakes and
have them corrected. Knowledge involves the ability to fit information learned in a foreign
language into set schemas and being able to discern when usage is correct or incorrect.
Control is simply a person’s ability to monitor their learning and coordinate new information
learned with old information learned. These four categories can also intersect with each other,
if a person feels they do not have sufficient knowledge of the language, they are less likely to
take risk.
Overall, the methods used in second language acquisition needs some re-inventing.
Hammerly (1987) suggested a four step process for language acquisition. First, students
receive an introductory or exploratory course in the second language. After this exploratory
course, students receive a semi-intensive systematic instruction in the second language. This
program would not be like the typical American language class which meets for about 50
minutes a day 2-3 days a week, but would instead meet about two hours a day 4-5 days a
12. Second language acquisition 12
week. The third step of this process is a partial immersion program such as the Elgin
program. Then, the final step would be to fully immerse the student in the second language.
The problem with these steps is that there is not currently enough of a demand for
such a focused and in-depth language program within the United States. What demand there
is, is given very little attention and funding. Until the benefits of knowing additional
languages is given some importance by English speaking parents and within the educational
system, a program of this depth is practically impossible (Cohen & Swain, 1976).
13. Second language acquisition 13
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Barik, H. C., & Swain, M. (1976). English-French bilingual education in the early grades:
The Elgin study through grade four. The Modern Language Journal, 58, 392-403.
Birdsong, D. (2006). Age and second language acquisition and processing: A selective
overview. Language Learning, 56(1), 9-49.
Chapelle, C. (1990). The discourse of computer-assisted language learning: Toward a context
for descriptive research. TESOL Quarterly, 24(2), 199-225.
Christian, D. (1996). Two-way immersion education: Students learning through two
languages. The Modern Language Journal, 80(1), 66-76.
Cohen, A. D. & Swain, M. (1976). Bilingual education: The “immersion” model in the north
American context. TESOL Quarterly, 10(1), 45-53.
Furnham, A. (2004). Foreign students: Education and culture shock. The Psychologist, 17(1),
16-19.
Hammerly, H. (1987). The immersion approach: Litmus test of second language acquisition
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Lee, J. S., Hill-Bonnet, L., & Gillispie, J. (2008). Learning in two languages: Interactional
spaces for becoming bilingual speakers. International Journal of Bilingual Education
and Bilingualism, 11(1), 75-94.
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14. Second language acquisition 14
Epidemiol, 33, 149-154.
Rodriguez, M., & Abreu, O. (2003). The stability of general foreign language classroom
anxiety across English and French. The Modern Language Journal, 87(3), 365-374.
Snow, M. A., Met, M., & Genesee, F. (1989). A conceptual framework for the integration of
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