Factors in Second Language Acquisition achievements

After much reading about L2 learning variables, I have come to the conclusion

that teaching and learning a foreign language is very complex. It is clear, however,

that some factors are more influential than others, and that I, as a teacher, can have

an impact on each of them. In this paper, I will discuss five of these.

In my mind, the most important variable in learning another language is learner

motivation. Lightbown & Spada (2017) explain that motivation is defined in two

different ways, one way is how important or necessary the second language is to the

learner and the second way is the attitude of the learner towards the second language.

Motivation is what pushes us to be either forever novice learners or actual second

language speakers, it moves us form one level to the next. Motivation not only helps us

reach great success in second language learning, but it also pushes us to start and to

continue. Zoltán Dörnyei (2001) created a three-step model that helps us understand

the phases that second language learners can go through, related to motivation. The

first is choice motivation, which is the jump start or how one is motivated to start

learning a second language. The second is executive motivation, which is the process

of continuation or maintaining that motivation until the task at hand, second language

learning, is complete. The last is motivation retrospection, which refers to how students

reflect on what they have accomplished or praising themselves for a job well done.

Without motivation our students cannot be as successful as their potential allows, and

as teachers we can only do so much. I hope as a teacher I can influence my students

to understand themselves and be encouraging. Most importantly I hope to portray a

message that their success is greatly up to them.

Another influential factor that varies in every student is aptitude. John Carroll

(1991) explains that aptitude is the ability to learn something quickly or the natural

ability to do or perform something, in this case, another language. There have been

many studies on this topic and tests that have been created to measure a student’s

ability to learn a second language. The most famous test is the Modern Language

Aptitude Test (MLAT) (Carroll & Sapon 1959). Although this test may be effective in a

classroom setting to be able to predict how quickly a student can acquire a language, it

is not effective in a real-life fluency setting. Every single person has aptitude, and

everyone can acquire more aptitude. As a teacher I hope that I can help my students

realize that they can grow and that they can always get better at learning. We are all in

that process. Even though sometimes we have an image of how smart we are or

aren’t, it can always change, and as teachers we can help that change happen.

The next influential factor that I want to address is Identity. We all have

identities in different aspects in our lives and at different times in our lives. Our

identities are fluid, they are always changing. Sometimes our identities are given to us,

and other times they are self-imposed. Bonny Norton Peirce (1995) conducted a study

of immigrant women in Canada, although all of their motivations to learn English were

high, their ability to speak was influenced by power. Because of their identity they were

reluctant or embarrassed to speak with native speakers of English. People's identities

are important to consider when you are teaching. There could be a million reasons as

to why they are not participating in class or why they are not progressing, and identity
could be one of them. I hope as a teacher I can recognize and understand the

identities of my students, so I can make the classroom a comfortable environment for

them to be able to be successful language learners.

The fourth variable that is influential to student learning and is unique to each

one of them is their personality. Lightbown & Spada (2017) explain that personality

does have an effect on language learning, even though it has been hard to prove.

Lightbown & Spada (2017) go on to explain that most people think that being an

extrovert makes you a better candidate for learning other languages than an introvert,

when that is not always the case. Other personality traits like anxiety, worrines,

nervousness, and stress can directly affect the way that we learn another language.

Most people would say that those things affect our language learning negatively, but

again, that is not always the case. Guy Spielmann and Mary Radnofsky (2001)

conducted a study that showed that their students who experienced anxiety, and stress

and other forms of ‘tension’, as they called it, were better off in learning, they even said

it was necessary for their success. It can be difficult to deal with a plethora of

personalities in a classroom, but I hope as a teacher I can be accommodating and

understanding so that my students can express themselves. I also hope that I can

channel their different personalities to create different ways of learning in my

classroom and help them benefit and learn from each other’s diverse personalities.

The last influential variable that I would like to address is the student’s beliefs.

Lightbown & Spada (2017) explain that language learning is impacted by a student’s

beliefs because the student believes that they should be taught or treated in a certain

way, and this is because of their prior experiences or exposures. There was a study
done by Stigler and Hiebert (1997) that was conducted between Japanese and

American 1st graders. They were all given an impossible problem and the American

children automatically gave up and said that they could not do the problem because

they did not believe they could. The Japanese students spent hours and hours trying to

figure it out, even though they did not, they believed they eventually could. Our beliefs

have a strong influence on how we look at the tasks at hand, in this case learning a

second language. Beliefs can be changed and so can attitudes. I believe that if we

change someone’s beliefs we can change their attitude, I also believe that if we

change someone's attitude it can change what they believe. As a teacher I hope to be

able to open my students’ eyes to what they believe they can achieve and what kind of

success they can have and believe they deserve.

Even though teaching a foreign language is very complex and can be difficult,

knowing the influential variables that make it so difficult can help me as a teacher. I

hope to become more familiar with these variables and be able to manipulate them for

the benefit of my students and their success as second language learners. By doing

these things, I can make not only my student’s experiences better but also help make

their lives better.

 Bibliography

Carroll, J. (1991). ‘Cognitive abilities in foreign language aptitude: then and now’ in T. Parry

and

C. Stansfield (eds.): Language Aptitude Reconsidered. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice

hall.

Carroll, J. and S. Sapon. (1959). The Modern Languages Aptitude Test. San Antonio, TX:

Psychological Corporation.

Dörnyei, Z. (2001). Motivational Strategies in the Language Classroom. Cambridge:

Cambridge

University Press.

Lightbown, P. M., & Spada, N. (2017). How languages are learned. Oxford: Oxford University

Press.

Norton Peirce, B. (1995). ‘Social identity, investment, and language learning. TESOL Quarterly

35/2: 307-22.

Spielmann, G. and M. J. Radnofsky. (2001). ‘Learning language under tension: New directions

from a qualitative study.’ Modern Language Journal 85/1: 119-58.

Stigler, J. W., Hiebert, J., & James. (1997, November 30). Teaching Is a Cultural Activity.

Retrieved March 21, 2019, from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ583031