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Date Posted: 13:27:55 10/18/05 Tue
Author: Giovanna Ferreira Mendes Avelar de Pinho
Subject: Final Draft: Keys issues in the study of Second Language Acquisition - Personal aspects

FINAL DRAFT: KEY ISSUES IN THE STUDY OF SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION – PERSONAL ASPECTS

I can say clearly that some personal aspects can interfere in the Second Language acquisition Process. I can nominate the learners age, which can distinguish even the time they will require to get proficient. In general, adults are able to learn syntactic and morphological development earlier than children; older children get it quicker than younger children. Learners who begin natural exposure to second language during childhood generally acquire higher second language proficiency than those beginning as adults. Motivation is other important aspect because it is related to fundamental human needs for autonomy and competence. This is obvious that the teachers must provide learners with motivated activities. According to Deci and Ryan (1.985) motivated activities are those that the learners connect in because of their value, interest and challenge. These activities present the best possible opportunities for learning. Emotions are very important because it can directly interfere or help in the learning of a Second Language, that’s what Krashen´s theory suggest. Intelligence is exciting as an aspect of Second Language Acquisition because it depends on each learner situation – social, economic and cultural background.

Teachers must be aware that all those aspects make each learner different from another, what can be a great challenge. All these personal aspects must be observed in order to understand the Second Language Acquisition as a complex process. I intend to focus in subjective factors and I will try to convince you that knowing those personal aspects can help learners to understand the Second Language Acquisition phenomena. And as they will understand it, they will probably be able to participate of an interesting challenge. And we, as teachers, will find out how to be successful just by understanding, from each learner personal aspect, exactly the way they will really learn a Second Language.

In that way we must consider the age, the motivation, the emotions and the intelligence of each one. One “Problem” teachers may go through is that in one class we will have many kinds of learners, what can make us to find one way to get the whole group. It is really hard to confront but certainly it is not impossible and it is exciting.

If learners and teachers are conscious about those personal aspects (age, motivation, emotions and intelligence), they will be able to understand the Second Language Acquisition in an easier way. According to Krashen´s theory learning a new language can result in anxiety or embarrassment. These harmful emotions can make a kind of filter that chunk the learner’s skill to process words of a Second Language.

After all the studies we can conclude that this subject is so vast and can be explored in a very long essay. It is a really interesting subject. But for now, we can conclude that teachers must be able to prepare classes of a Second Language which will support understandable input using daily basis, output, interaction and meaning. Having learners with different backgrounds and inner feelings can provide exciting classes.

The motivation must lead learners to analysis the new language as an access to opportunities, just like in the Noonan’s theory. We must avoid losing face, taking advantages of the practice of the new language, communicating with native speakers and non-native speakers. And finally, grammar must symbolize a manner to get the real meaning of the new language in order to make possible to the learners to communicate in the new language.

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