Children vs. Adults in second-language learn-

ing

3308 심리언어학 Chapter 6

1. Children are better: a common belief2. Basic psychological factors affecting second-language learning -Intellectual processing -Memory -Motor skills -Two other important psychological variables 3. Social situations affecting second-lan-

guage learning

-The natural situation -The classroom situation -Who is better? Children or adults? - ESL or EFL community context 4. Is there a critical age for second-

language learning?

What are the differences between children and adults?

- Age (critical period of learning)- Motivation- Attitude- Environment (ESL vs. EFL)

Theories on the second language ac-quisition

- During childhood, language learning is very easy. Our brains are ready for language learning. As we are getting older, people loose childhood ability (Lenneberg, 1964).

- The attainment of second language is constrained by

the age at which learning begins (Birdsong & Molis, 2 001, p. 235).

- “Acquisition of a normal language is guaranteed for children up to the age of six, is steadily compro-mised from then shortly after puberty, and is rare thereafter” (Pinker, 1994, p. 298).

Psychological factors: Intellectual processing

1. Explication - The process whereby the rules and struc-

tures of a second language are explained. - It is impossible for it to be learned entirely

by explication (e.g., tense, article). - Explication is rarely applicable to young

children (e.g., dogs/z/-voiced consonant, ducks/s/-unvoiced consonant).

- Simple rules can be learned by explication.

Psychological factors: Intellectual processing

2. Induction - Self-discovery of the rules - For young learners: (John danced then John sang-> John danced and then he sang) It is able to use and understand the complicated structures. -For the second-language learners: beyond the learner’s level of syntactic understanding?

Psychological factors: Memory

1. Syntax learning and episodic memory - Memory is crucial for the learning of grammati-

cal structures and rules. - Episodic memory: the learner must remember the situations in which the sentences are ut-

tered in order to derive the meaning.

2. Children’s memory ability - 7 to 12 years old: cognitive ability - Under 7 years old: rote memorization

Psychological factors: Motor skills

1. Articulators of speech - Motor skills: the use of muscles in performing certain

skills(e.g., walking, writing, speech).

2. Decline in general motor skills - Around at the age of 12 years: due to some change

in central functioning in the brain.

3. Decline in ability for new articulations - Children have the flexibility in motor skills that adults

generally have lost.

Three important psychological factors

1. Induction and Explication2. Memory3. Motor skills

Psychological factors: Motiva-tion

1. Motivation (according to the situation) - At the age of 1-2: no motivation. - At the age of 4-5: need motivation - The planned learning situation(classroom) : need

motivation the amount of attention+ effort

2. Other variables involved in second lan-guage learning: personality, social situation, intergroup attitude, self-confidence, desire etc.

Psychological factors: Attitude

1. Attitude: negative vs. positive determination, persistence.

2. Other variables involved in second language learning: status, cultural background.

Social situations1. Natural situation: it is similar to that in which the first language is

learned.

2. Classroom situation: it involves the social situation of the school classroom.

3. Community context: it allows students to have access to a natural situation

and thereby supplement their classroom learning.

Social situations: the natural situation

1. Characteristics of the natural situa-tion

2. With age, language is more essen-tial for social interaction

3. Older children can have problems

Social situations:the classroom situation

1. The classroom is isolated from other social life

2. Learning languages as part of a group and not as an individual

Social situations:who is better? children or adults?

- In a natural situation

Memory Motor skills

Induc-tion

Natural situa-tion

Children high high high high Adults medium low high low

Social situations:who is better? children or adults?

- In the classroom situationCognitive

experience Memory Motor skills

Older child low high highAdults high medium low

Environment for the second language learning

1. ESL: English as a second language

2. EFL: English as a foreign language