Professional Documents
Culture Documents
prepared by :
Ain Fatihah Adam Ariff Ahmad Zulfaqqar Ashrafuqal Ahmad Ahmad Fauzi
KEY TERMS
ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNER ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE STUDENTS
An active learner of the English language who may benefit from various types of language support program
this term refers to a program of instruction designed to support the ELL. It is still used to refer to multilingual students in higher education.
nonnative-Englishspeaking students who are learning English in a country where English is not the primary language.
APTITUDE
FACTORS
LEARNING DIFFICULTIES
F.1 : APTITUDE
Aptitude refers to the special ability involved in second language learning Aptitude is a major factor determining the level of success of second language learning. Students can have a good aptitude for learning. This can infer various things, such as: The understanding of the function of words in sentences. The ability to understand and use grammatical rules. Memory of key words, what they mean and how to use them. Successful learners may not be strong in all the components of aptitude and can still succeed at learning a second language. For example, some individuals may have strong memories but only average abilities in the other components of aptitude.
Teachers cannot influence language aptitude, they can only measure it.
Teachers should recognise and understands that aptitude can be in everyone, just in different forms.
F.2 : MOTIVATION
A motivated student can be defined as someone who: Expends effort, is persistent and attentive to the tasks at hand, has goals, desires and aspirations, enjoys the activity, makes attributions concerning success or failure, is aroused and makes use of strategies to aid in achieving goals It makes sense that those individuals who are motivated to learn the second language will learn faster and to a greater degree than those who are not. If the students only reason for learning a second language is external pressure, a students motivation may be minimal and result in lack of success. Furthermore, if students feel that they are not going to need the language in their lives, students may not be motivated and attitudes toward leaning that language may be negative
They should decide what they feel comfortable using or one that leads to success.
F.4 : PERSONALITY
There are various theories that claim that personality factors are important predictors of success in second language learning. Personality traits such as extroversion, introversion, risk-taking, independence and empathy have been the basis of discussions and disputes relating to this topic. Research: Theorists such as Guiora, Brannon and Dull (1972) have considered empathy to be important and Krashen (1981) argues that an out-going personality contributes to language learning (Ellis 1986). Research, such as that done by Krashen (1981), have found that introverts generally perform better academically whereas an extrovert appears more likely to take advantage of social opportunities for second language input. Despite these theories, the available research does not demonstrate a clearly defined affect on second language learning. Rather, we all have different and unique personalities and each personality trait can affect our second language learning in different ways.
Teachers need to be understanding of difference and cater for the needs of all students.