Second Language Acquisition in Children: Key Factors
**Language Development in Children**
Immediately after birth, children distinguish their language from others. Babies need to learn to communicate in their social context: they start to learn languages they hear in interactions with other humans. They unlearn in order to learn the language they need.
- Underextension is when a child learns a word for something, without extending it to other things in the same category.
- Overextension is when a child would learn that the family pet is a dog, but mistakenly thinks cats, rabbits, and all other furry four-legged animals are also dogs.
- Whole object: Refers to a whole object, not parts.
- Shape: Objects with the same shape have the same name.
- Mutual exclusivity: Each object has one label.
- Overregularization is a part of the language learning process in which children extend regular grammatical patterns to irregular words, for example, “goed” instead of “went”.
- Input: Language they can hear in interactions.
- The way in which the language is used in adult-child discourse.
- Vygotsky and the Zone of Proximal Development.
- Scaffolding.
- The importance of routines: Necessary for development.
- Children learn because they want to communicate with others.
**Communicative Approach in Language Learning**
Knowing a language is not just knowing grammar and words. It involves communicative competence, including linguistic, sociolinguistic, and pragmatic competencies. This can be achieved through role-playing, simulation, information gap activities, and problem-solving.
When learning a first language (L1), children learn very quickly because they have had a lot of exposure and interaction in that language.
When you start learning a second language (L2), you already have an L1, which can either help you or make it more difficult.
- Second language refers to those contexts in which the language is used outside the classroom.
- Foreign language refers to language learning in contexts in which the language is not normally spoken outside the classroom.
- Fossilization is the process of an error becoming a habit so that a student makes it and finds it difficult to change.
- Critical period hypothesis suggests a sensitive period in which L2 acquisition is more efficient.
- Silence period is when the child or adult is first introduced to the second language and the time when he or she begins to speak.
**How Children Learn a Language**
- Meaning is the most important aspect.
- They use chunks of language phrases they have learned by heart.
- They learn better when they have fun.
- They learn through action.
**Role of the Teacher**
- Activate their desire to communicate in class.
- Recognize that feelings are important.
- Create a real need and desire to learn.
- Provide sufficient time.
- Provide exposure to varied and meaningful input.
- Provide opportunities to experiment and opportunities to practice and use the language in different contexts.
- Create a friendly atmosphere.
- Provide feedback.
**Key Hypotheses in Language Acquisition**
- Input Hypothesis: Adequate and rich input is crucial.
- Acquisition: Develop language subconsciously and spontaneously, without knowing the rules but using them correctly.
- Learning: Explicit knowledge about the language; knowing the rules but not necessarily using them.
- i+1: Receiving comprehensible input slightly beyond the level that the student has. We acquire language when we understand messages and are exposed to rich and comprehensible input.
- Affective Filter: Learners who are stressed, uncomfortable, or forced to speak do not acquire language effectively.
- Interaction Hypothesis: Input is made easier through interaction.
- Negotiation of meaning: A process in which learners and competent speakers interact, making adjustments in their speech until understanding is achieved.
- NOLA:
- Provides learners with modified or more comprehensible input.
- Pushes learners to produce output that is comprehensible to their interlocutor.
- Makes learners modify what they say in response to feedback.
- Draws learners’ attention to linguistic form.
- Output Hypothesis: Learners have to talk. You need to practice to find out how the language works, test different hypotheses about the language, make language production more automatic, and have an opportunity to notice the gap.
Communicative Approach: Knowing a language is not just knowing grammar and words. It involves communicative competence, including linguistic, sociolinguistic, and pragmatic competencies. This can be achieved through role-playing, simulation, information gap activities, and problem-solving.