Language Learner

おはよう！

今朝４時半です。

After having 'sahur', you cannot go straight to bed, right? So I'm looking for something to do. Actually I've got lots of things to do, especially with the due dates coming next week.....got to work extra hard. Anyway, before I do that, I really want to post something today. Haha, since I'm in the mood of studying, let's post something academic.

Do you know the difference between second and foreign language learner? I know they are different but before this I didn't bother to find out. But, since I'm back to school and had to do assignment on them (SLA is one of my field of study)....I got to say that the Second Language Acquisition class I attended last year was a good learning opportunity for me. 

Second and Foreign Language Learner

It is important to note that learning a target language as a second language and learning a target language as a foreign language are different in context and situation. Thus, the motivational orientation and the factors affecting learners’ success in acquiring the target language also differ for each group (Oxford, 2003). Second and foreign language learning are often not distinguished clearly in many studies of language acquisition, thus, “foreign language acquisition is often considered to be a subcategory of ‘second language acquisition” (Matsumoto & Obana, 2001, p.60).

A second language learner is a person who is living in a target native-speaking community or country and learning the language as a second language, while a person who is not living in the target native speaking community is known as a foreign language learner (Matsumoto & Obana, 2001; Oxford, 2003; Oxford & Shearin, 1994). The learner of a second language has more opportunities to use their skills in the target language inside and outside the classroom. Thus, they are exposed to more motivational and instructional advantages (Matsumoto & Obana, 2001; Oxford, 2003; Oxford & Shearin, 1994).

In contrast, the foreign language learner learns the target language in an isolated environment with less opportunity to practise the language outside the classroom (Matsumoto & Obana, 2001; Oxford, 2003; Oxford & Shearin, 1994). The Learner of a foreign language is exposed to the target language through class activities only. Therefore, efforts have to be put into designing and exposing learners to authentic language input to increase motivation and language acquisition (Matsumoto & Obana, 2001; Oxford & Shearin, 1994).

References:

Matsumoto, M. & Obana, Y. (2001). Motivational factors and persistence in learning Japanese as a foreign language. New Zealand  Journal of Asian Studies 3(1), 59-86.

Oxford, R. (2003). Language learning styles and strategies: Concepts and relationships. IRAL 41, 271-278.

Oxford, R. & Shearin, J. (1994). Language learning motivation: Expanding the theoretical framework. The Modern Language Journal 78, 12-28.