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12. Individual differences in foreign language learning

The document discusses individual differences in foreign language learning, highlighting factors such as age, gender, language aptitude, motivation, learning styles, and strategies. It emphasizes the interplay between these characteristics and their impact on language acquisition, suggesting that teachers should consider these differences to enhance learning outcomes. The conclusion stresses the complexity of these interactions and the need for a supportive learning environment tailored to individual learners.

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Levi Szabo H
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8 views

12. Individual differences in foreign language learning

The document discusses individual differences in foreign language learning, highlighting factors such as age, gender, language aptitude, motivation, learning styles, and strategies. It emphasizes the interplay between these characteristics and their impact on language acquisition, suggesting that teachers should consider these differences to enhance learning outcomes. The conclusion stresses the complexity of these interactions and the need for a supportive learning environment tailored to individual learners.

Uploaded by

Levi Szabo H
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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12.

Individual differences in foreign language learning

elöljáróban: Sok tartalom nincs ezekben a szakirodalmakban. Szerintem ezt nagyjából


mindenki tudja magától is, csak nem ilyen bő lére eresztve. A csodás nyelvtanulási
stratégiákról készült felosztást, és az azokhoz tartozó alkategóriákat befényképeztem, hogy
mindenki válogathassaon a maga számára                   


Cohen, A. D. (2010) Focus on the language learner: Styles, strategies and motivation.
In Schmitt, N. (Ed.), An introduction to applied linguistics (2nd ed.) (pp. 161-178).
London: Hodder & Stoughton Ltd.

I. Characteristics outside the T’s control


- 1. age and gender:
- traditional view: the younger we start to learn a FL, the better chances for success we
have -> explained by the critical period
- recent research: „the younger the better” principle is only valid if there is a constant
and natural exposure to the L2 (learning French in France), in classroom environments
older learners have advantage over their younger peers in many areas -> „the older the
better”
- age affects pronunciation much more than other linguistic abilities (grammar,
vocabulary etc.)
- in general, girls outdo their male peers in lg learning

- 2. language aptitude:
- „lg-related aspect of intelligence” = determines the rate of learning and the amount of
energy the progress is likely to require of the learner
- BUT lg aptitude does not determine whether or not someone can learn a lg -> most
people are able to achieve at least a working knowledge of the L2 regardless of their lg
aptitude -> there’s hope
___________________________________________________________________________
II. Characteristics that T can have an effect on

- 1. motivation:
- the social nature of L2 motivation: L2 motivation will always have a strong
socicultural component -> e.g. having favourable attitudes towards a lg community
may increase the motivation to learn their lg
- motivation: dynamic process, three phases: 1. motivation is generated = choice
motivation; 2. the generated motivation is maintained and protected = executive
motivation; 3. retrospective evaluation of how things went = retrospective motivation
- the most important motives to learn an L2:
- 1. choice motivation = values and attitudes related to the L2, the L2 speakers and lg
learning in general -> three well-known concepts:
- integrative orientation = positive disposition toward the L2 group and the desire to
interact with and become similar to them
- instrumental orientation = potential pragmatic gains of L2 proficiency (e.g. getting a
better job)
- integrative motive
- 2. executive motivation = perceived quality of the learning experience, how satisfied
the lg learner is? -> motivational role of the participants is crucial: teacher, parents,
whole learner group e.g. bullying hinders learning
- learners’ autonomy is also important -> autonomy and motivation go hand in hand,
„ Autonomous laguage learners are by definition motivated learners.”
- 3. motivational retrospectation = learners look back and evaluate how things went ->
feedback, praise and grades are the most significant determinants of their final self-
evaluation
- all three phases of motivation affected by lg learning strategies -> strategy use and
motivation are closely linked:
- 2. learning styles:
- we learn in different ways and what suits for one learner may be inadequate for
another
- learning styles are stable but can be modified -> T’s role: encourage and support
„style-stretching”
- Learners can be divided into the following groups (these categories however are not
black and white, they are more like continuums):
- a) being visual, auditory and hands-on
- b) being more extroverted / more introverted
- c) being more abstract / being more concrete
- d) being more global / more particular
- e) being more synthesizing / more analytic

- 3. learning strategies:
- = actions aimed at improving your performance
- „the good lg learner” uses rich and sufficiently personalized repertoire of such
strategies
- categorization: 1. lg learning strategies = (semi-)conscious thoughts and behaviours
used by learners to improve their knowledge; 2. lg use strategies = strategies for using
the lg that has been learned, four subcategories: a) retrieval strs; b) rehearsal strs; c)
communication strs; d) cover strs
- most research about: communication strs: first aid devices which may be used to deal
with problems or breakdowns in communication –> enable learners to stay active
partners in communication even when things do not go well
- some commonly used communication strs:
- a) avoidance strs e.g. avoiding topic areas that pose lg difficulties
- b) achievement or compensatory strs e.g word-coinage -> creating a non-existing L2
word based on a supposed rule
- c) stalling or time-gaining strs e.g. use of fillers to fill pauses and to gain time to think
- d) interactional strs e.g. asking for repetition -> requesting repetition when not hearing
or understanding something properly

categorization of lg learning strs by skill areas:


- the four basic skills create the categories -> 1. listening strs, 2. reading strs, 3.
speaking strs, 4. writing strs + 1. vocabulary strs which cross-cut the four basic skills
III. Pedagogical implications: the intersection of motivation, styles and strategies
- some recommendations:
- find out which styles learners favour, and which strategies they may already use or
may wish to add to their repertoire
- encourage „style-stretching” -> suggest and model new strategies, encourage Sts to
enhance strategy use
- provide guided exercises to help Sts put the strategies into practice
- encourage Sts to be willing to use strategies even when it may mean taking risks
- organize sharing sessions -> ask Sts to share information about their learning style and
strategy use preferences -> peers can hear about and may try new strategies
- conclusion:
- individual difference variables of motivation, style and strategies are interrelated in
many ways –> If Sts with certain style preferences succeed in finding learning
strategies that suit to them -> enhanced interest in the task and expectancy of success -
> increased motivation with this task and ideally with others
Lighbown, P. M. & Spada N. (2013) How languages are learned. (4th ed.). Oxford:
Oxford University Press. Chapter 3 “Individual differences in second language
learning”.

I. Introduction
- research on learner characteristics is usually based on a) tests that assess the learner’s
second lg proficiency; b) questionnaires to measure the given variable (e.g.
motivation) -> correlation: if two variables (e.g. lg proficieny + motivation) are
positively correlated -> researchers: In what ways?
- problem: it is not possible to objectively measure variables such as motivation or
intelligence because they cannot be observed directly and they are not independent of
each other, researchers use scales to measure them -> the results of research is not
always easy to interpret -> you have to be careful with jumping to conclusions because
they might be incorrect 

II. Variables
- 1. intelligence: great amount of research -> there is a link between intelligence and
second language learning BUT IQ tests may be more strongly related to metalinguistic
knowledge than to comm. ability -> intelligence has much weaker correlation to oral
production skills -> Sts with higher intelligence do not necessarily perform better in
speaking

- 2. aptitude = specific abilities thought to predict the success of lg learning


- Lg aptitude tests = tests used for assessing aptitude; they measure the ability to a)
identify and memorize new sounds; b) understand the function of particular words in
sentences; c) figure out grammatical rules from lg samples; d) remember new words
- early research revealed substantial relationship between performance on these tests
and performance in FLL BUT with the adoption of more communicative approach to
teaching, some believe that the abilities targeted by these tests were irrelevant to the
process of lg acquisition
- 3. learning styles = an individual’s natural, habitual, and preferred way(s) of
absorbing, processing, and retaining new information and skills (Reid)
- e.g. some Sts prefer learning things by seeing them -> visual learners
- Sts are different, they learn in different ways -> the same teaching method(s) or
textbook will not suit the needs of all learners -> as a T the challenge is to find
instructional approaches that meet the needs of learners with a variety of aptitude and
learning style profiles

- 4. personality:
- assumption: extroverted people are well suited to language learning -> not always true
e.g. Wong-Fillmore: in certain learning situations, the quiet observant learner may
have greater success
- learner anxiety, nervousness and stress: anxiety can play an importnat role in SLL if it
interferes with the learning process -> may result in slower learning and improvement
- BUT in general, the available research does not show a single clearly-defined
relationship between personality tratits and SLA

- 5. motivation and attitudes:


- the research cannot prove that positive attitudes and motivation cause success in
learning, but there is ample evidence that positive motivation is associated with a
willingness to keep learning
- language learning motivation: complex phenomenon –> 1. learners’ communicative
needs (e.g. S wants to learn a lg to fulfil professional ambitions); 2. their attitudes
towards the second language community (S wants to learn a lg because they desire
contact with the NSs of that lg) -> high(er) motivation
- intrumental motivation = lg learning for practical goals; integrative motivation = lg
learning for personal growth and cultural enrichment –> in certain situations not easy
to distinguish between them

- 6. identity and ethnic group affiliation:


- hugely affect lg learning motivation, attitudes and hence success
- e.g. social dynamic and power relationships between the languages -> members of a
minority group learning the lg of the majority group likely to have different motivation
and attitudes than majority group members learning a minority lg
- 7. age of aquisition and the critical period hypothesis (CPH):
- there is a time in human development when the brain is predisposed for success in lg
learning, developmental changes in the brain affect the nature of lg acquisition -> the
critical period ends around puberty or even earlier -> the younger the better (however
in the early stages of 2nd language development, older learners are more efficient than
younger learners, they can learn faster)
- important difference: older learnes have a noticeable foreign accent
- Patkowski’s study: age of acquisition is a very important factor in setting limits on the
development of native-like mastery of a second lg and that this limitation does not
apply only to accent
- based on that: At what age should second language instruction begin?
- it depends on the desired goal(s) of 2nd lg learning, if the objective is native-like
mastery of the target language, it is desirable for the learner to be surrounded by the lg
as early as possible
- if the goal is basic comm. ability, it may be sensible to begin lg learning later
- BUT the age at which instruction begins is not the only variable that determines the
succes in the 2nd lg classroom

III. Conclusion (highlighted parts)


Characteristics are not independent of one another: learner variables (motivation, aptitude,
age, opportunities to learn etc) interact in complex ways. The complexity grows when we
realize that individual learners will react to different learning conditions in different ways.
Researchers are beginning to explore the nature of these complex interactions, but it
remains difficult to predict how a particular individual’s characteristics will influence his
or her success as a lg learner. None the less, in the classroom, the goal of the sensitive
teacher is to take learners’ individual differences into account and to create a learning
environment in which more learners can be successful in learning a second language.
(mind blown)

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