First Language Acquisition Vs Second Language Learning What….pdfVIP

First Language Acquisition Vs Second Language Learning: What Is the Difference? Fawzi Al Ghazali The University of Birmingham / The Centre for English Language Studies (CELS) / July 2006 ________________________________________________________________________________ Abstract This paper investigates the potential differences between First Language Acquisition (FLA) and New Language Learning (NLL) in the classroom. It examines the factors that influence language acquisition in the two different environments. This includes explication of the age factor and its impact on progress in language acquisition. It also involves studying the language input in terms of quantity and quality in both cases and the limitations of NLL in the classroom. This paper also studies the individual differences that influence language acquisition. This covers language aptitude, language anxiety, language ego, and motivation. This paper, moreover, studies approaches to FLA like behaviourism, innatism, and interactionist position. It finally explains more explicitly how the teaching techniques influence the progress students achieve in learning a new language. Key Words: First language acquisition, second language acquisition, language anxiety, language ego, motivation, language aptitude, behaviourism, innatism, interactionist approach 1 1. Introduction Language acquisition is one of the most impressive aspects of human development. It is an amazing feat, which has attracted the attention of linguists for generations. First Language Acquisition (FLA) and New Language Learning (NLL) have sometimes been treated as two distinct phenomena creating controversy due to their variability in terms of a