Questions and answers about language learning

This page contains answers to questions about the English language and language learning.
What do I need to know about the questions and answers on this page?

This page contains my responses to questions I have been asked over the years about learning a new language. Most of the questions are from mainstream teacher colleagues with ESL students in their classes.

The information is based on my long experience as an ESL teacher in an international school. It is also based on my understanding of current research into second language learning.

Although I am now retired, I am happy to continue to respond to similar requests for information and advice. Send your question or comments via the Contact page.

Note: If you click the Expand All button top right, you can view all the answers at once without having to click the questions one-by-one.

What is the best way to learn a second language?

There is no one universally accepted theory of how a child learns a second language. Our philosophy in the ESL department at Frankfurt International School is that language is learned not for its own sake but in order to communicate and to find out about the world.

For that reason our teaching is organized around major topics, such as animals, ecology, inventions, culture and language, etc. Each topic consists of linguistic tasks, and incorporates study and computer skills.

Students are exposed to written and spoken language that is (made) comprehensible to them, and engaged in different kinds of productive activities.

Professor Krashen, the eminent researcher who in my opinion has the most coherent and convincing theory of language learning, has postulated that language is acquired, both in the language and the mainstream classroom, when the student is motivated by the task, feels low or zero anxiety, and has had his self-esteem protected or enhanced.

If such conditions prevail, and the input is comprehensible, interesting and relevant, then there is no filter or barrier preventing the natural acquisition of language. It does not require the explicit teaching of grammar, aspect by aspect.

Here is a list of common language teaching methods with brief explanations and links to more detailed information.

You might also be interested in reading some of the articles on Stephen Krashen's website.

What is the best age to start learning a new language?

If you want to be able to speak the new language without an accent, then the younger the better. Otherwise, researchers think that early adolescence is the optimal time.

See my article on language learning myths for more information and references to research on this question.

How long does it take to learn a second language?

This is like asking How long is a piece of string? It depends on what you mean by "learning a language". Even on the assumption that this means acquiring the language skills and vocabulary of an average native-speaking adult, there is still no simple answer to the question.

It depends on where and how the second language is learned, and the age at which it was started. Obviously the language learning situation of a young Peruvian child adopted by America parents is totally different from that of an adult Chinese man trying to teach himself English from English novels.

The question has to be made much more specific before an answer can be given. So, for example, in the Frankfurt International School (FIS) situation we can ask: How long will it take a beginning ESL student at FIS to learn sufficient English to be ready to enter the full mainstream program in middle school (i.e. exit from ESL)?

Now it is possible to answer. Namely, that students with little or no English proficiency generally need about three years in ESL before they have sufficient English to function successfully and independently in the mainstream. However some students pass through the program much more quickly, while others need a fourth or even fifth year of ESL. See the answer to the next question for reasons why this should be.

For a further discussion of this point, see my answer to parents asking the same question.

What are the factors that influence the acquisition of a second language?

The speed and ease of acquisition of a second language is a complex interplay of internal and external factors. These are outlined in some detail in Second language acquisition - key factors elsewhere on this site.

The information is summarized for ESL parents in a further article titled The good language learner.

How is learning a second language different from learning your mother tongue?

The differences are due to three main factors: the age at which you learn, who teaches you and how long you have to learn. Generally, you learn a second language a lot later than you learn the first, and this can give you certain advantages.

When you start a new language you already have experience as a learner of your own language and you are cognitively more mature. You also have a metalinguistic knowledge. This means for example that you know what a word is and what it means to make a noun plural. Finally, you have a greater knowledge of people and the world. This helps you to make good guesses at the meaning of the unfamiliar language you encounter.

On the other hand, the fact that you are older may mean that you are more inhibited and less spontaneous in using the new language, for fear of making mistakes or appearing silly.

The most important teachers of your first language are of course your parents and immediate family. They generally have boundless patience and enthusiasm with your efforts to learn the language. And by intuition offer just the right kind of input to promote optimal language learning.

This modulated language input is called motherese, a feature of which is the fact that mistakes of fact are corrected whereas mistakes of grammar generally are not. All this contrasts strongly with the teaching that many learners of a second language receive in the language classroom.

As far as available time is concerned, you are learning your mother tongue from the moment you are born (some say you start even before you are born.) You are then exposed to language every waking second of your day until by the age of six or seven you have mastered its essentials. That is an awful lot of time on task. Compare it with 3 or 4 hours a week in the typical foreign language classroom

In summary, everyone learns their first language because they have the best teachers and the best circumstances, the most time and the least pressure and the greatest motivation. Learners of a second language have certain cognitive advantages but none of the others, so it is not surprising how few go on to be as proficient in their second language as in their first.

What is the difference between written and spoken language?

In general, spoken language is spontaneous and unplanned, irrevocable and transient (unless recorded). When speaking, the speaker and the listener(s) are in most cases both present and the listener responds to and can interrupt the speaker. Part of the message can be conveyed by intonation.

Writing on the other hand is often preplanned. It can be revised for content, and checked for grammatical accuracy. It is permanent. Often the writer does not know the reader(s) and receives no immediate feedback. Intonation obviously plays no part.

It is not surprising therefore that there are considerable differences between the two kinds of language in terms of word choice and word order, grammatical accuracy and complexity.

For example, spoken language tends to have more idioms and phrasal verbs than written language (put up with vs. tolerate). There is much more repetition in spoken language, which also abounds with fillers such as you know, I mean etc. Spoken language rarely has long, complex or complete sentences. It consists of strings of short phrases, backtracking and restarting or reformulating.

A problem arises when the typical features of written language are in evidence in oral texts, or conversely. An example of the former is when the presenter of a lecture or business analysis simply reads a prepared written text to her audience. And of the latter when a formal written business report is full of broken sentences, colloquialisms and idioms.

What is the best way to teach a language?

Over the last 30 years there has been an intensive study of how a second language is learned, but as yet no-one has been able to come up with a comprehensive theory. For this reason there is also no consensus on how language should be taught. And many methods have been tried with varying degrees of popularity and success.

Here is a brief outline of some of the language teaching methods that have been used over the past few decades.

Of course, how a language is taught depends to a large extent on the age of the learner and the reasons for learning. It also depends heavily on the learning situation. For example, read about the fundamental differences between ESL and EFL learning contexts.

At Frankfurt International School ESL students need to learn English for two main purposes: social and academic. The content of ESL teaching reflects these two main aims. The methods are fairly eclectic, but share many of the characteristics of Content and Language Integrated Learning.

In the ESL classroom students do authentic tasks that not only improve their Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (BICS) but also their Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP). The tasks are chosen to support, but not replicate, the work that the students have to do in their other classes such as science and history.

Read more about BICS and CALP.

Which is more important: learning grammar or learning vocabulary?

Clearly, no-one can claim to speak a foreign language unless they have mastery of both its essential grammar and its essential vocabulary. But the question here is: Should the learner focus more on acquiring grammatical knowledge or on acquiring an extensive wordstore?

Over the last few decades vocabulary has been neglected at the expense of grammar in a majority of the published English language teaching courses. This focus may well continue in most EFL situations in which the end goal is to pass an examination that in most cases directly tests grammatical knowledge.

In ESL situations such as at Frankfurt International School, however, the end goal for ESL students is not to pass an English examination. It is to acquire the English they need to achieve success in their mainstream subjects.

A major factor in academic success is the ability to read quickly and with comprehension. And a large vocabulary is a necessary condition of efficient reading. So in this respect it would seem evident that a large vocabulary (particularly an academic vocabulary) is more important than a detailed knowledge of grammar. Incorrect grammar rarely leads to incomprehension, but choosing the wrong word or not knowing the word at all often does.

To a large extent, however, the question sets up a false dichotomy since grammar and vocabulary are inextricably entwined. Indeed, grammar learning and vocabulary accumulation can both take place when reading and listening to various texts and noticing certain grammatical features or lexical items A lexical item can be a single word or a word 'chunk' such as 'to a large extent'. .


Following are citations from research literature that support the claim that vocabulary is more important than grammar:

".. vocabulary is perhaps the most important component in L2 ability." (Folse)

"While without grammar very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed." (Wilkins)

"Research has shown .. that a lack of vocabulary knowledge is the largest obstacle for second-language readers to overcome." (Huckin and Bloch, cited in Folse)

"Nonnative speakers must have good reading skills if they expect to have any chance of academic success. Numerous researchers have shown the relationship between vocabulary knowledge and reading ability." (Folse)


References:

Folse, K. 2004. Vocabulary Myths: Applying second language research to classroom teaching. University of Michigan Press.

Wilkins, D. (1972). Linguistics in language teaching. London: Edward Arnold.

What word categories are difficult for learners of English?

There are various ways to categorize English words. For example, they can be categorized by word class (also known as parts of speech), such as noun, verb, preposition, etc. Another way is by the contexts in which they are typically found: everyday spoken language, literary text, nuclear science discourse, etc.

The vocabulary that English-language learners often find difficult falls into various overlapping categories. These are listed below, with links to explanations and examples:



Counter-intuitively, the words that would seem to be difficult (such as precipitation, denominator, reafforestation, etc.) are generally not such a problem for ESL students. This is because they are usually the focus of the discussion in the classroom or are glossed in the subject textbook.

It is helpful if teachers have a sensitivity to important words or phrases that are likely to cause difficulty, such as those from the categories listed above. They can then alert ESL students to their meaning in the given context.

Is English an easy language?

There's a whole section of this website devoted to my hypothesis that English is not the easy language that some hold it to be.

The question has a certain theoretical interest. And it seems that judged by most objective criteria, English is placed at the lower end of the scale of difficulty.

One objective criterion is a simple count of the number of verb inflections: English has a maximum of 5 - speak, speaks, spoke, spoken, speaking, whereas a language like Turkish has dozens of forms. Another example is that neither the articles nor the adjectives are inflected in English, as they are in German

My position is that the objective simplicity of English in fact masks a grammar system of extreme complexity. In an important sense, however, the question is irrelevant.

Depending on a multitude of factors, some learners find English relatively easy while others find it very difficult. The key is to try and analyze which aspects of English are difficult for the individual learner, and why. And then work out how best to overcome these difficulties.

Why do some ESL students learn much more quickly than others?

There are a number of reasons why some students learn English a lot more quickly than others.

The first language is obviously a major factor here. It is clearly easier for a Dutch or German child to learn English than for a child from Japan or China. Also, as children learn new languages they generally find each successive one easier to master. This is because they bring with them a great deal of implicit knowledge of how to learn languages. So a Dutch child who has already learned some French and German will probably find learning English does not present very much difficulty at all.

Another factor influencing second language development is the child’s attitude to the target language and culture. The situation at most international schools is a little complicated as the new ESL student is exposed to two new cultures at the same time. For example, the culture of Germany, the host country, and the culture of the school, which is dominated by Anglo-American practices.

A child who is unhappy about being in Germany, or uncomfortable in the new school will probably learn English more slowly than a child for whom the move is no problem.

A related factor is the attitude of the child to his new teachers and the classroom environment. Learning does not take place very easily where there is antipathy between the ESL student and the teacher or the other students in the class.

Another influence on the speed at which a child learns a second language is self-esteem, and linked to this, a lack of fear of taking risks or making mistakes. Confident students who are not afraid of being making mistakes have a language learning advantage over the fearful and timid.

Personality is another factor: a motivated, hard-working student will generally do better than someone with opposite characteristics.

There is more about this topic on Second language acquisition - key factors.

Is 'comprehensible input' really a sufficient condition for language learning.

Note: This question was asked during an ESL training workshop. A participant was referring to Stephen Krashen's comprehension hypothesis. My answer started with the following anecdote.

A few years ago an Italian boy joined my grade 6 ESL1 class in August. He had a little German but minimal English. At first he was unhappy in school and refused to say anything. He soon became more comfortable and listened attentively in all his classes. Nevertheless he continued to be silent until well after Christmas. He then decided that he was ready to speak. Immediately he showed a good command of basic grammar, and in a very short time he became virtually fluent. Clearly, in his case, comprehensible oral and written input was sufficient to give him a very sound foundation in the language.

Of course, it could be claimed that he would have learned even more quickly had he been prepared to speak from the outset. And certainly, speaking to people usually means that they will speak back to you, thus increasing the amount of comprehensible input. But this does not refute Krashen's hypothesis that comprehensible input is a sufficient condition for language learning.

And even if Krashen is wrong on this, I believe that the single most important thing that mainstream teachers can do is to ensure that their classes are comprehensible to ESL students. Not only will this help students learn the subject but it will also contribute to their learning of English.

Helping ESL students understand what you say
Helping ESL students understand written texts
Preparing ESL-friendly tests and worksheets

I have a student who speaks perfect English, yet is struggling badly with reading and writing assignments. Why is this?

Some students, especially those with native languages similar to English, can quickly acquire the interpersonal language skills of speaking and listening. Research has shown however that it can take more than five years before the non-native speaker is operating at the same level of academic language competence (reading and writing) as her native English speaking peers.

It can take an especially long time for those students to catch up academically whose main priority in learning English is to make friends and feel comfortable in the school. When they have sufficient English to do this, they may consciously or sub-consciously decide that they have learned all there is to learn, and "switch off."

Read more about the different kinds of language proficiency and how long it takes to acquire them.

Does it confuse ESL students that they have to learn English and German at the same time?

In general it does not confuse them. There is research which suggests that the brain can acquire and store two languages at the same time with no problems except the occasional switching of words. In fact there are compelling reasons why even beginning learners of English should also take German at our school.

Firstly, it is most important that they learn the language of the host country so that they can make friends in their neighbourhood and make the most of their shopping and other social or sporting experiences. Children who feel alienated from Germany because they do not know any language are more likely to be unhappy and unsuccessful in school.

Secondly, it is very important for ESL students to have at least one subject in school in which the native English speakers do not have the special advantage that their command of English bestows. Provided the teacher speaks German most of the time in the German lesson, ESL students have an equal opportunity to be successful. This is good for their self esteem and has a positive effect on their learning of other subjects too.

What should I know about the vocabulary of my subject?

Generally speaking, each discipline (mathematics, the sciences, the humanities, etc.) uses three different kinds of vocabulary, two of which are shared by all disciplines, and the other specific to that discipline only.

Examples of subject-specific vocabulary are: hypotenuse (mathematics), convection (science), colonialism (history), glaciation (geography), inside-trading (economics).

In many ways, subject-specific vocabulary is not a problem for ESL students. The words will probably be new to native-speakers too, and the teacher will usually spend some time explaining and testing the meanings of such words.

Also relatively unproblematic for ESL students is the cross-discipline, everyday vocabulary that consists of the most common words of the language. Typically these are short words with concrete meanings and direct relevance to the daily experiences of our students.

Much more problematic is the vocabulary which is also cross-discipline but which is restricted to academic texts. It includes word such as simultaneous, consequence, whereby, outcome, gradual, etc.

Elsewhere on this website, there is section devoted to academic vocabulary where you will find a list of the 1000 most common cross-disciplinary academic words.

Read more information about English vocabulary and how mainstream teachers can facilitate the learning of vocabulary in their subjects.

What is the difference between ESL and EFL?

You can read about the differences between ESL (English as a second language) and EFL (English as a foreign language) on this page: English instruction methods.

Where can I find more information about second language learning?

There are more questions and answers about language learning on this page for learners and this page for parents.

If you have any other questions about learning languages, send me an e-mail via the Contact page below.