Applied Linguistics Essay Example for Free

Applied Linguistics EssaySecond voice communication give awaying has always execute an chief(prenominal) work-field both in schools and other private sectors portioning with vocabulary indoctrinateing and culture outgrowth curiously in the time of global desegregation. It is a daedal activity involving a mix of internal federal agents much(prenominal) as age, aptitude, pauperism, personality, or envisioning strategiesand external factors much(prenominal) as socio-economic and cultural background, discipline and direction cultivates exclusively these factors play a very substantial role in schoolchilds? succeeder in acquiring and apply a r bulge outine verbiage. Thus, scholarly persons flash base expression achievement brook be greatly improved when teachers fork over a fracture understanding of the assimilator, of the discipline process and of the variables that may foster or hinder prentices terminology achievement. Beca delectation of the limited size of this article, I am going to discuss many of the or so authorized factors affecting checkers second base voice communication achievement motivating, age, personality, social and cultural factor in order to analyze what arrests sure-fire delivery learning and what places obstacles in the learner s itinerary to spoken communication improvement.II. DEVELOPMENTII. 1. Some factors affecting learners L2 achievement II. 1. 1. Internal factors II. 1. 1. 1. Motivation It is irrefutable that motivation is one of the major factors in deciding the learners failure or achiever in second linguistic communication achievement. Motivation is a kind of desire for learning. It is very difficult to teach a second delivery in a learning environment if the learner does non come a desire to learn a language. Reece Walker (1997) stress that a less able schoolchild who is senior risque schoolly motivated dejection achieve greater success than the more intelligent scholar who is non well motivated.In this article, we atomic number 18 concerned with motivation related to foreign language teaching and learning. Wilkins (1972) points pop out that motivation is not a general covert term for possibly unambiguous concept such as energy, interest and enjoyment, but instead, restricted to the degree of leave behindingness to learn which depends generally on the learners needs in learning the language. Psychologists subscribe to distinguished deuce major examples of motivation which play an important role in determining how de break uping the learner is to persevere with the task instrumental and integrative motivation The first motivation will be discussed is instrumental motivation.It is gener everyy characterized by the desire to obtain whatsoeverthing serviceable or concrete from the study of a second language (Hudson 2000). With instrumental motivation, the purpose of language accomplishment is more utilitarian, such as meeting the r equirements for school or university graduation, applying for a job, requesting higher(prenominal) pay establish on language ability, reading technical material, translation work or achieving higher social status. submissive motivation is very much characteristic of second language acquisition, where little or no social integration of the learner into a community using the charge language takes place.According to Richards (1976) simply learning a language to gain wrinkle credits, or to carry out a limited range of tasks that do not involve the learner in close face to face interaction ( for example a person learning enough face to sell souvenirs to tourists does not generally lead to a high degree of accomplishment in learning). However, in recent years, according to Brown (1977), he stated that Indian side of meat is one example of a variety of English which can be acquired very successful for instrumental reasons alone.Another motivation will be taken into consideration i s integrative motivation. According to Gardner and liter (1959), this kind of motivation meaning learning a language because the learner wishes to identify himself with or live on integrated in the society whose language it is. It has generally been thought that integrative motivation is the more ruling of the two because it implies a desire to integrate with speakers of the target language. Instrumentally oriented students would be expected to acquire the second language only to the point where their instrumented name and addresss were satisfied.It is likely that when the learner precisely wanted to be able to deprave food and take public transportation he could achieve those goals with a very low direct of proficiency in the second language and if the learner had to use the target language in his passe-partout life, his level of learning would be much higher.Learners with integrative motivation view the language as a key to social and cultural enrichment through with(pre dicate) the opportunities to furnish for association with members of a opposite culture. Then their goal in learning the language is to be able to use the language as a means ofcommunication and to a fault for acceptance by the people who speak the language. Such motivation ofttimes leads to high accomplishment.In settings such as Vietnam, learners who learn English for special purposes retain a great deal of instrumental motivation to acquire English in order to be able to be utilise for a good job with a high salary. They learn English very fast that because they want to communicate orally, in a very simple English with other speakers of English. In Vietnam, English is a compulsory proceedss so almost all of students learn English just to pass the exam.Thus, the type of language learned namely forms as mainly for communicative use will be in a flash affected by the type of examination students need to pass. As a result, it is likely that learners will not achieve a high st andard of English. II. 1. 1. 2. oral communication aptitude As has been discussed in the previous air division, success in mastering a foreign language depends very much on the learners motivation. Beside the motivation factor, social psychologists have also found out that whether a student can learn a foreign language very successfully or not also depends on his language aptitude.This section is an attempt to discuss an intrinsic factor influencing foreign language learning that is language aptitude. readiness for language learning is usually composed of four contrasting types of abilities the ability to identify and memorize bleak sounds, the ability to understand the function of particular words in sentences, the ability to figure out well-formed rules from language samples, the ability to memorize new words. Many tests of language aptitude have proven highly effective in predicting which learners will be successful in learning.However, considerable controversy remains aro und whether language aptitude is properly regarded as a unitary concept, an organic property of the brain, or as a complex of factors including motivation and short-term memory. Research has generally shown that language aptitude is quite distinct from general aptitude or intelligence, as measured by various tests, and is itself fairly consistently mensural by different tests. Language aptitude research is often criticized for organism irrelevant to the problems of language learners, who mustiness attempt to learn a language regardless of whether they argon gifted for the task or not.This require is reinforced by research findings that aptitude is largely unchangeable. In summing up, traditional language aptitude measures such as the Modern Language Aptitude Test strongly favor decontextualized humpledge of the sort utilise in taking tests, rather than the sort used in conversation. For this reason little research is carried out on aptitude today. However, operators of select ive language programs such as the United States Defense Language demonstrate continue to use language aptitude testing as part of applicant screening. In my opinion, as a teacher of English, aptitude plays an important role in learners language achievement.How is it that some people can learn a foreign language quickly while others, given the uniform opportunity experience utter failure? Does this depend on how language is taught? Partly this is true as when the teacher is equipped with a better language teaching method acting, his students can learn faster. But partially it is not true as in the same group at that place always exists fast and tardily learners. Another answer to the question is the problem of motivation but not all students with the same motivation can have the same accomplishment. Another possible answer to the question is that some people have language aptitude while others do not.II. 1. 1. 3. Learners age The previous section dealt with the learners language aptitude, a factor that decides language acquisition a great deal. This section will take into consideration other factor age which has received a number of opinions so far. In the past few decades, the comparisons among child, adolescent and adult learners have been made by many researchers, and the different findings as well as explanations have been reported. Traditionally, research in Critical Period Hypothesis and other variables has derived two major aspects of language learningthe younger = the better and the old = the better.However, recently the scholars in the fields of linguistics, psychology and psycholinguistics have reported their study or experiment results continually, resulting in completely different points of view so the design for or against the Critical Period Hypothesis has never stopped. The question of how developmental stages interact with case-by-case learning differences is still a question of great debate. Is there an optimal age, a critical period or a sensitive period? How does the age factor affect the development of linguistic abilities? Are adults really inferior to children and even to adolescents?There exists a belief that younger learners have certain advantages over older learners in language learning. According to Ellis in 2008 Larsen-Freeman in 2008 Mayberry Lock in 2003, Robert Dekeyser in 2000, younger children learn L2 intimately and quickly in comparison to older children. Larsen-Freeman Long in 2008 also invoke that there is a period of time, between birth and somewhere around the age when a child enters puberty, exists in which the learning a second language can be accomplished more rapidly and easily than times falling outside of this period (i. e. post puberty).This is because children ar in the most flexible form learning a foreign language. This stage competency be strongly impressed on their brain, which can stimulate nervous function system, and the further learning can help them to form language habilitate and competency easi1y. however Researchers also disagree with withdrawing home language support too soon and suggest that although oral communication skills in a second language may be acquired within 2 or 3 years, it may take 4 to 6 years to acquire the level of proficiency needed for understanding the language in its academic uses (Collier, 1989 Cummins, 1981).So children who be taught L2 intensively too untimely will damage their L1 acquisition. Another belief reported by Johnson and Newport, Dekeyser, Asher and Price, Politzer and Weiss, Olson and Samuel, Lightbown and Spada (2008) that older learners have a higher level of problem solving and metalinguistics abilities than younger learners.. The young learners are considered fluent in communication of the second language and achieve native like accent. Learners after the age of puberty do not acquire native like accent of a second language but have complex learning pattern.Research suggests that children and adult s L2 learners pass through different developmental states in second language learning. Learning depends on the cognitive maturity and neurological factors. with child(p)s cerebra nerve network has come into being completely, and their thinking habits have become mature in this period. They can deal with complicated language form and contents easily, because their meta-language consciousnesses, common star and literary knowledge are better than children.In general, age is important but not everything in second language learning. There are some factors related to the age, for example the learning opportunities, the motivation to learn, individual differences, and learning styles, are also important determining variables that affect the rate of second language learning in various developmental stages of the learners. II. 1. 1. 4. Learners personality We have mentioned some important factors influencing learners second language achievement such as motivation, language aptitude and age .In this section we continues with some ad hoc personality factors in human behavior in relation to second language acquisition. The psychological factors to be discussed here are self- appreciation, inhibition, extroversion/ introversion. Self esteem is the degree of value, a probity which an individual ascribes to himself. According to Schuman in 1978 and Brown in 1980, there are three kinds of self- esteem global, particularized and task self esteem. How is self esteem related to second language acquisition?Brown (1980) states that specific self- esteem might refer to second language acquisition in general but task- esteem might approximately refer to ones self-evaluation of a particular aspect of the language process speaking, writing A study by Adelaide Heyde (1979) revealed that all three aspects of self-esteem correlated positively with execution in oral production and student with high self esteem actually performed better in the foreign language. Inhibition sets of de fences built to protect the ego, a concept closely related to self-esteem and of course has to be considered by teachers.Language learners, children or adults, make progress by learning from making mistakes but at the same time, making mistakes can be viewed as a threat to ones ego. As a result, the learner tends to build a certain degree of defence to protect himself. Guiora et al (1972a) produced one of the few studies in inhibition in relation to second language learning, and the experiments have been high-lighted a possibility that the inhibition, the defence which we place between ourselves and others can prevent us from communicating in a foreign language.. Another factor which also needs some examination is extraversion and introversion. Language teachers often assume that the extraverts are better language learner than introverts. In a language class, the teacher tends to like to have more students with an outgoing and talkative personality. At an early stage, extroverts se em to speak the language better than the introverts, but this does not mean that the proficiency of a more introverted student will be lower. This depends very much on the goal of learning.It can be argued that the reserved learner may be very quiet but he can be a good language learner in the sense that he is good in aural and reading comprehension even though he cannot speak. Thus, it is not clear then that extraversion or introversion helps or hinders the process of second language acquisition and it is hard to say which is ideal for language learning. II. 1. 2. External factors The previous section examined some aspects of internal factors. This section accounts for some equally important external factors which also affect learners second language achievement.As language teachers we are faced with factors such as the social context of learning, the cultural differences between two language involved. The learning environment of the cultivational context and the teaching method b eing used. Most of these are largely beyond our control but nevertheless they are important because they can affect, sometimes decide the learners internal factors in learning. To improve teaching and stimulate better learning, these factors should be taken into consideration.II. 1. 2. 1. complaisant factor The childs acquisition of his mother saliva is affected by the condition under which it takes place. The same influence is also relevant to learning of a second or foreign language. The classroom itself is a kind of social setting where each student has a role, so his success of learning a foreign language is, to some extent, determined by the teacher- student relationship and the student- student relationship. The teachers love for his job is often an encouragement to his students in their learning.According to Cheatain (1976), student is also strongly encouraged to learn the language when his teacher is always hopeful. The student- student relationship is no less important. Th is instance concerns face- saving. No students likes to let his errors be known to his friends, so chastisement of errors by the group is helpful when there is non- hostile trusting climate in the classroom. In addition to the classroom features of the learning situation itself, there are factors in the wider social context that influence language learning.Teaching never occurs in a vacuum. Any subject occupies a position in the plan in order to meet a need of all part of the school population. Second language or foreign language teaching is not an exception. As the political, economic and historical conditions change, the course objectives are altered. In a great number of countries it so happens that shifting political economic and social conditions often bring about the change in status of a second or foreign language. For example, English was not introduced into the school curriculum in Vietnam until 1971.Nowadays, when Vietnam is a member of WTO, English becomes a compulsory subject as it is an international language of commercial and official communication. Political factors are not the only ones that influence second language learning. Other attitudes towards language learning which are characteristic of the society to which the learner belongs are particularly important to the success of language learners. In Vietnam, the ability of using English fluently is a special qualification for certain favored jobs, but in others like the UK or the USA, learning another language is little more than a hobby.Obviously, all the different attitudes, which actually stem from political, economic or historical causes play an important part in the overall achievement in foreign language learning. II. 1. 2. 2. Cultural factors It is obvious that knowing a second language no longer means merely having acquired some linguistic competence the ability to construct grammatically correct sentences. It also includes the acquisition of communicative competence the ability to communicate the second language.To the extent that language is culturally acquired, one can never learn a second language successfully without learning the culture of that language. In the article public lecture across culture in 1981, Richards argues that those who are supposed to know a foreign language must have linguistic competence, communicative competence and social competence as well. By social competence, he means that the learner is expected to know how to behave in a speech community of speakers of the target language. In other words, he must be familiar with the culture of the native speakers otherwise, he will beshocked, or fail to understand native speakers even though he is linguistically competent. It can be concluded that anyone decides to learn a certain language properly, culture is something he cannot avoid in the process. In teaching English, we need to be aware of the cultural assumptions that the students already possess. We also need to be aware of the cultu ral assumptions that surround the use of English. Functions and structures used to be examined for cultural content, it cannot be assumed that they are neutral. II. 2. Language teaching implications.For the reason that motivation plays a very important role in second language achievement, the task of the teacher is to maximize the motivation. Teachers should raise students interest in learning English so that they no longer learn English to pass the exam or to fulfill curriculums requirement but for the desire to interact and communicate with foreigners In order to achieve these goals, teachers should sidetrack the activities, tasks and materials, provide students with opportunities for interaction in the target language in and outside the language learning environment through preplanned, and authentic activities.As a result, students will be more interested in learning English. non many researchers have carried out research about language aptitude because it is something that tea chers are powerless to alter. Students vary in terms of aptitude so teachers should categorize them according to their aptitude profiles. For example, one group was identify as having particularly good memory abilities (relative to other abilities), and another group was identified as being high in verbal analytical abilities.It is the indebtedness of teachers to select appropriate teaching approaches and activities based on learners aptitude profiles to accommodate their differences in aptitude. If the methodology matches students, they will learn better otherwise it may diminish students second language achievement. We all know that different ages have different ways of learning and different ways of achieving language. The differences among the three age groups (children, adolescents and adults) are really existent and the biological L2 learning conditions are unchangeable.Learners of different ages and stages should use different strategies. Thus, the teachers duty is differen t in the three groups and the teaching approaches and strategies should allow for for the traits of students. For example, children use strategies unconsciously and their teacher should help them form good learning habits in this period. Some adolescents might be unable to be aware of using learning strategies, and others use too many complex and sophisticated learning strategies in L2 language learning, which might not ensure to achieve high level.Adult learners prefer analytic-style strategies such as comparative and contrastive analysis, generalization rules learning, and dissecting words and phrases. As a result, teachers should parry a number of options according to the aim of the teaching and learning, such as different reading materials, the hie of teaching procedures, etc Suitable approach and strategies for each trait of age will help learners achieve language better, compensate the shortcomings and take good advantage of in three groups. As the results listed in the pre vious part indicate, learners differ in terms of personality.Some students are very reserved, some are self- confident, some are ready to take a risk but others do not. Understanding each students personality is extremely important to every teacher not except for teacher of English. When teacher know students characteristics, they can use appropriate methods for each of them. For example, most of Vietnamese students are still basically fainthearted and withdrawn. Then teachers should involve a lot of pair and group work instead of using the teacher- students questions and answers.Teachers should use cooperative rather than competitive goals to create a supportive and non-threatening learning atmosphere. Besides, teachers should encourage and support students all the time especially when they are struggling or lacking confidence in certain areas. good enough teachers will know how to adapt their methods of teaching to different learners personalities to have best results in second language achievement. It cannot be denied that social context has a big influence on situation of second language teaching and learning of each nation.Thus, in order to create a good learning condition for second language learning to flourish is the duty of everyone parents, authority of school, community, ministry For example, parents should give children favorable condition to learn second language, school should be concerned about students language learning and teaching to make it better, ministry of education should pay more attention to the quality of language teacher, textbooks and facilities necessary for effective second language teaching and learning to happen.Culture is very important in second language learning so the duty of teachers is to raise students awareness of cultural differences between countries. When teaching a foreign language such as English, teachers should teach students language competence along with socio- cultural competence. Both teachers and authoriti es should bear in legal opinion that learning about other cultures does not mean changing ones own determine and world outlook.On the contrary, by comparing some aspects of cultures in different societies, students may better respect their own culture and tradition and avoid false stereotypes which may result in either disfavor against other culture or blind belief that other cultures are superior. A successful language learner is a person who not only knows how to make grammatical and meaningful sentences but also knows how to use them in appropriate situations and a good language teacher is a person who knows how to help them do so successfully.III. CONCLUSIONIn conclusion, the success in second language acquisition depends largely on many factors but some of the most important factors can be mentioned are motivation, language aptitude, learners age and personality, social and cultural context. Thus, knowing these factors and how they influences learners second language achiev ement is very crucial to teachers of foreign languages in general and English in particular. Their language can be greatly improved when teachers have a better understanding of the learner, of the learning process and of the variables that may help or hinder learners language achievement.IV. REFERENCE Krishna K.B , Age as an Affective means in Second Language Acquisition, Troy Universityn Press. HIDASI, Judit, (2005) The Impact of Culture on Second Language Acquisition, Annals of the International Business School. Hoan, P. K, (1985), Psychological and cultural factors related to methodologies to Hanoi foreign languages Teachers college student, Sydney Zhang . J, (2006) Sociocultural Factors in Second Language Acquisition, Sino-US English Teaching, Volume 3, No. 5 (Serial No. 29) Mehmet, N. G, (2001) the do of age and motivation factors on second language acquisition F? rat University Journal of Social Science. tic