Project 1 - Reaction Paper

Running head: PROJECT 1: REACTION PAPER – ACQUISITION VS. LEARNING 1

Project 1: Reaction Paper – Acquisition vs. Learning of a Second Language

Mardelin Martinez

EDU653

Mary Mills

PROJECT 1: REACTION PAPER – ACQUISITION VS. LEARNING 2

Synopsis

Acquisition and learning of a second language are not the same thing. There are many

factors that separate these two ways of becoming proficient in an L2 language. Oana BADEA’s

(2009) article Acquisition vs. Learning of a Second Language: English Negation puts Stephen

Krashen’s theories to the test with two case studies: one with adults and one with children.

BADEA (2009) explains that Krashen has two theories about acquisition and learning: one that is

based on Universal Grammar (UG) during the critical period and the other that “L2 is acquired

on the same universal innate principles that govern L1 acquisition (pp. 89-90). English is a

difficult language to acquire or learn because it has so many specific rules that apply with set of

words but do not apply to others. In this article, there was a focus on English negation and

comparing it to a person whose primary L1 language did not have a rule of double negatives: in

this case Romania.

BADEA (2009) provided two case studies to determine if Krashen theories could prove

correct with adults and children (pp. 91-93). The case studies were conducted in Craiova with

50 subjects in each group: the first had adults (ages 19-21) “who had elementary knowledge of

the English language” and the second had children (ages 7-8) “who started learning the English

language at the age of 5” so they also had an elementary knowledge of English (BADEA, 2009,

pp. 91-92). The adults were observed for six months while the children were observed for two

months. This is the length of time each group took to form negative sentences in English

correctly. The adults had a more difficult time to form theses sentences because they were using

their prior knowledge from L1 which allowed for double negatives; they” no longer used their

innate cognitive principles present” in L1 (BADEA, 2009, p. 92). The children on the other hand

were able to form them much faster because they were still in the critical period of language


development and “used the same inborn principles they have used when acquiring their native

language” (BADEA, 2009, p. 93). These case studies proved that Krashen was correct in the

theory that “young adults encounter many more difficulties when learning a second language

than a child who starts learning a second languages before the age of 11” since they are still in

the critical period (BADEA, 2009, p. 93).

Analysis of Article

This article provided some insightful information on the differences between adults and

children in second language development. Whether a person acquires or learns a language is

heavily based on how that person is introduced to the language and when they are introduced to

the new language. This article was well written and but could have been more descriptive in

each case study. The materials and hours of observation were explained but there was no

mention as to how long the students had access to the material and whether they were exposed to

English outside where they were observed. These are important factors to have information

about in order to know if there are outside factors influencing their results.

BADEA (2009) brought up many important aspects of acquiring another language such

as UG, the critical period and the acquisition of another language through innate principles from

L1. The study would reveal “to what extent does the first language’s L1 already-set parameters

transfer and potentially interfere with the learning process of a post-critical period of Second

Language Acquisition” (BADEA, 2009, p. 91). Researchers are unsure of when exactly the

critical period ends; some say puberty and others say it is a few years after puberty (Tabaeifard,

2014; Wang, 2015; Vanhove 2013). It seems that age contributes a great deal to language

acquisition. Wang (2005) explains that “age is one of general factors contributing to individual

differences in second or foreign language learning, and the Critical Period Hypothesis also has


great effects on foreign language learning” (p. 164).

A child will learn much more quickly than an adult when they are interacted with in

another language. Wang (2015) thinks this is because as the child moves into adolescence and

above, they will be more reluctant to participate because they are afraid to make a mistake and

being made fun of (p. 168). A child does not really mind when they make mistakes and they are

more likely to try it again taking the criticisms and corrections without feeling attacked or made

fun of (Tabaeifard, 2014, p. 339). It can be a bit disconcerting when learning a new language

and having to be corrected numerous times but this is part of what is needed in order to be

successful in acquiring the second language. Syed (2015) performed a study and found that “the

input which students receive from their teachers…plays [an] effective role in L2 acquisition not

only while the learners are acquiring a language; it rather continues exerting influence in later

life (p. 85). The children in BADEA’s (2009) study were able to acquire the negation rule much

faster than the adults because they responded “very well to reinforcement and imitation, rather

than explanation of the rule (p. 93). A person needs to receive proper feedback in order to not

become discouraged while learning a new language. This will allow them to acquire the

language more quickly than if the feedback is not constructive. In addition, they can take that

feedback and use it again in a future situation when they come to a similar word or phrase.

In terms of UG, “if second language learners have access to Universal Grammar,

grammar of the second language (L2) would not be fundamentally different from that of the first

language (L1), which is guided by UG” (Farahani, Mehrdad & Ahghar, 2014, p. 299). A person

will be able to tap into UG as they did when they acquired their first language especially during

the critical period. These two parts, UG and the critical period, are what separates the child and

adult learner. The children can hear a language, be immersed in it and become proficient at such


a higher rate than an adult. The adult, on the other hand, does not have that luxury because their

mind does not work as easily to retain the information needed in order to acquire the language.

In the video The Linguistic Genius of Babies, Patricia Kuhl, it is discussed that after the age of 1,

a child’s brain is less and less likely to be able to discriminate the different sounds languages and

this is a big part of how we learn a new language (TED-Ed, 2013). This means that as the child

gets older he/she will be less and less likely to discriminate sounds and therefore will need more

instruction and interaction in order to fully acquire another language. Penke (2009) states “the

ability to perceive native phonemic contrasts increases during the first year, the ability to

discriminate phonemic contrasts that are not used in the native language declines during this

same period of time” (p. 91). Although the ability to discriminate phonemic contracts decreases

as the child gets older, they are now able to become more phonemically aware of their own

language and this will be helpful in acquiring a second language.

It is fascinating how different the minds of a child and an adult can be so different in their

acquisition of a second language. One would think that it would be easier for an adult to acquire

a new language because all that needs to be done is to practice and repeat it over and over. On

the contrary, Stephen Krashen explains in his video that if educators teach their students a new

language focusing on grammar and talking at someone in the new language they will not learn

the language (General Videos, 2012). They may learn some aspects of it but they will not be

proficient by any means. Instead he suggests that people learn language thorough

comprehensible input that is interesting to the person (General Videos, 2012). Educators need to

know that it is not what is being taught but how they are teaching it (General Videos, 2012).

This will determine whether or not someone is able to acquire the new language.


Conclusion

The subjects of UG and Critical Period are ones that have many options and debates over.

BADEA (2009) article touches on it in order to prove whether or not Krashen’s theories were

true. In addition, the study was performed to see how the transfers of L1 to L2 would work for

adults and children. The critical period and UG depends on the age of the student. The article

should supply more information on exposure to the English language outside of the observation

for both the adults and children.

The ideas in this can affect current day language learning and teaching in a few ways.

Educators need to be aware of the needs of their students and understand that it is important to

know that the older students will need more time to learn the language. This article shows how

quickly the younger children are able to acquire the English negation rule: four months faster

than the adults. This means we should provide our students with opportunities to acquire a

second language at an early age – even starting in preschool. This early exposure to the language

through fun, interesting methods will allow the students to continue to develop their proficiency

as they continue through grade 12. For the ELL students, educators should try to expose them as

early on as they can. Not all ELL students will arrive at young ages and educators need to give

them time without frustrating them or making them feel uncomfortable to be able to reach

proficiency in the second language.


References

BADEA, O. (2009). Acquisition vs. Learning of a Second Language: English Negation.

Philologica Jassyensia, 5(2), 89-94. Retrieved from

http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=a9h&AN=47660245&authtype=cookie,cpid&custid=ns017336&site=ed

s-live&scope=site

Farahani, A. K., Mehrdad, A. G., & Ahghar, M. R. (2014). Access to universal grammar in adult

second language acquisition. Procedia - Social And Behavioral Sciences, 136 (Global

Conference on Linguistics and Foreign Language Teaching (LINELT-2013), 298-301.

General Videos. (2012, September 12). Dr. Stephen Krashen. YouTube. [Video File]. Retrieved

from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Rx_ZJwZCo0

Penke, M. (2009). Universal grammar in second language acquisition. Zeitschrift Für

Sprachwissenschaft, 28(1), 87-96. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.05.332

Syed, N. A. (2015). The role of the teacher in second language learning. NUML Journal Of

Critical Inquiry, 13(1), 71-91. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=ufh&AN=102766329&authtype=cookie,cpid&custid=ns017336&site=e

ds-live&scope=site

Tabaeifard, S.T. (2014). Investigating the similarties and differences between first and second

language learning: Exploring factors concerning CPH. Modern Journal of Language

Teaching Methods, 4(4), 338-341. Retreived from

http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=eue&AN=100457080&authtype=cookie,cpid&custid=ns017336&site=e

ds-live&scope=site


TED-Ed. (2013, July 10). The linguistic genius of babies - Patricia Kuhl. YouTube. [Video File].

Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-ymanHajN8

Vanhove, J. (2013). The critical period hypothesis in second language acquisition: A statistical

critique and a reanalysis. Plos ONE, 8(7), 1-15.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0069172

Wang, M. (2015). A study on the relationship between age onset of English learning and English

achievement. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 5(1), 164-169.

http://dx.doi.org/10.17507/tpls.0501.22

Project 1 - Reaction Paper

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