Social Identity Theory and Second Language Acquisition - Essay Example

Social Identity Theory and Second Language Acquisition Name College Note This paper was prepared for ---------, Section ------------, taught by Professor ----------------. Introduction Various ways have been used in the process of second language acquisition and learners' backgrounds and experiences recorded in different ways since SLA was established. SLA is a scholarly field resting on human beings' capacity and inquisitiveness to learn (Ortega, 2009). Descriptors used in case of these language learners have been borrowed from different aspects of their lives, their abilities, their aspirations and even historically foregrounded in certain theoretical assumptions. This has led to the evolution of a number of terms in SLA theory and practice; something that has led to the use of several terms in the recent decades about SLA, which include fossilized L2 users, interlanguage speakers, limited (English) proficient speakers, immigrants, refugees, heritage-language learners, non-native speakers, and Generation 1.5 learners. It is interesting to note how these terms have evolved from institutions and researchers rather than learners themselves. Most of these convey outcomes and processes of learning that are incomplete in nature. Terms have even been used to depict these learners based on the social group to which they belong to like multilinguals, bilinguals, advanced L2 users (not “learners”), lingua franca speakers/users, or multicompetent speakers. It has come to the fore that SLA and learners of the second language have more often than not defined in a subjective, partial and situation-dependent manner; taking in their stride variety of identities, social roles and characteristics of the learners. Social identity and SLA Over a period of a given time, several labels have been used to describe second language learners based on their aspirations and abilities. This type of labelling has become a point of critical reflection in applied linguistics and attempts at theorizing the same. Numerous linguistic scholars have pointed out to this including Block (2007a, 2007b); Leung, Harris, & Rampton (1997); Norton (1997a, 1997b, 2000); Thesen (1997). As a result of this a deep relationship is getting evolved between language acquisition and identity and this relationship now pervades the domains of not only SLA but also that of sociolinguistics, language education and applied linguistics. This relationship has brought about a shift from a purely psycholinguistic approach to SLA to the one that focuses on cultural and sociological dimensions of language learning (Firth & Wagner, 1997; Morgan, 2007: Norton & Toohey, 2001). Block (2003) terms this as SLA's "social turn". The shift is perceivable because during 1970s and 1980s language learning research focussed on investigating learning styles, personalities, and individual learners' motivations but now it has shifted to diverse historical, social, cultural contexts and the environment in which language learning takes place. The focus is also on how learners either resist or negotiate these variables offer them while the learning process is on. Furthermore identity theorists have strong reservations against the binary use of terms to describe second language learners. Terms that have always been used in their context include introverted and extroverted, and motivated and unmotivated as they believe that they are frequently socially constructed in inequitable power relations, changing across space and time and coexisting in possible contradictions within a single learner. Theorizing of identity has largely been cited in context of Bonny Norton and it is her who is being considered as responsible for explaining language acquisition in the light of identity (Norton, 2001; Norton, 2000). Norton's theories of identity are to a greater extent based on Pierre Bourdieu (1991) and Christine Weedon (1997)-related postculturalism (Dornyei, 2001). This is possibly why motivation construct in SLA is complemented by her investment construct. Norton's argument is that however motivated a language learner might be, he or she may have little investment in a community of classroom language practice which is elitist, sexist, racist or homophobic in character. The point is simple. Norton wants to say that while motivation is a psychological construct, sociological construct determines investment. It is this investment that determines a learner's interest towards second language acquisitions. The investment determines his extent of commitment and desire, the connection between the two and the complex identity that they establish with each other. The 'investment construct' has led to unprecedented interest in the SLA in context of social identity (Pittway, 2004). Norton further coined a term called 'imagined communities' and remarked that investment and interest are related to this term as the new language learners will be joining this imagined communities as they learn the language. This is because, argues Norton, that the new language will be seen by these learners as something that offers an entry into a new identity of future. By default this imagined community will have an imagined identity and it can be said that a learner is making his or her investment within context of a new social identity. Variety of reasons is cited by individuals for learning second language and these include survival, education, personal enjoyment, and professional development. Gidden (1991) and Bourdieu (1988) have stated that identity in context of SLA is a process and not a fixed entity. Wenger (2000) has remarked that it is not an abstract idea, a title, an ethnic category, a personality trait or a label. Instead it is a lived experience of either not belonging or belonging. He further states that strong identities involve deep connections through shared experiences and histories, affection, reciprocity and mutual commitments with others. Further to this a learner may exhibit an identity based on his social class, gender and physical ability. Learners have also been seen constructing or changing their identities while feeling motivated to learn a second language. For example, being a fan of Michael Jackson helped a Brazilian learner learn English because her focus was on to understand the meaning of Jackson's songs (Paiva, 2011). However, only little attention has been accorded to learner identity before 1990s, when it was still a site or negotiation of difference, agency and structure. Social identity also has another link with the language learning. Sociocultural theorists have long maintained that it is through participation in social environments that learning occurs. Lev Vygotsky is often mentioned in this case as he has done pioneering work in this field. He believed that children learn when they start internalizing habits, activities, ideas and vocabulary of either their grownup peers or members of the community in which they are brought up (Vosniadou, 2001). It is thus imperative that sociocultural perspectives keep the processes of learning embedded within several events in which individuals participate and learn. Tharp and Gallimore (1988) have stated that it is the social interactions which trigger the process of learning. Social identity plays a major role in the development of formation of relationship between individuals and the language being learnt. In this relationship the identity matters because, in the words of Moje, it matters because it tends to be what it actually is and is instrumental how an individual deciphers, through language, the world around him. This includes individuals' relationship with texts (McCarthey et al, 2002 & Moje et al, 2002). Moje has clearly explained, in that statement, the impact an identity has in the process of learning. Learning is a social act fundamentally. This is not to say that identity stays a fixed entity as mentioned above as well. Identity changes persistently. However, many researchers still find it intriguing as to why, sometimes, learners exhibit multiple identities. This is seen as explaining people's relationship with texts also, and not only with other individuals in a social setting. . Text, in this case, ceases to be only a linguistic artefact but goes deeper into one's 'ways of knowing" or "cultural tools" (Dillon, & O'Brien 2000). Analysed in the right context, that also means that identities are human being's tools to establish relevant and meaningful relationship with the texts or language tools that they come across. To gain further insight into role of social identities in relation with second language acquisition, it also becomes important to understand learner identity as part of a continued cultural socialisation. Krashen's (1982) comprehensive input and affective filter can be credited for providing momentum to the link between social identity and SLA as it focused heavily on theories that revolved around characteristics of language learners who were good. These theories rest on such constructs as confidence, motivation and even anxiety levels. Gardner (1986) says anything other than this explains language learning through the mirror of social contexts. It now emerges that there is a deep-rooted relationship between text, learner, and context but the complexity of this relationship is yet to be explored in detail and at length. In context of SLA theories, says Peirce (1995), a comprehensive theory of identity is required explain this learner and context dichotomous relation. Weedon (1987) can be cited for having simplified this relation to some extent. He says in this process some features of subjectivity can be looked into for throwing further light on the same. These include subject's multiple nature; subject construed as a site of struggle and the subject undergoing a change over time. In Weedon's words, “Language is the place where actual and possible forms of social organization and their likely social and political consequences are defined and contested. Yet it is also the place where our sense of ourselves, our subjectivity, is constructed”. Till now it has happened, more often than not, that while studying social context-SLA relationship, learners have been treated as individuals interested to learn and not as ones who carry with them a load of their social identities. Davis (1995) has remarked that SLA in context of social identities should not be viewed as a predominantly individual and mental process; instead it should be seen as identity approaching SLA through a sociocultural practice. Speakers localised in different sociocultural contexts make SLA a relational activity between them. It is to be seen whether these learners are deemded as individuals interested to learn or parts of a large sociocultural community indulging in the practice of learning and assimilation. Wenger (1991) terms this as "situated learning" and opines that it is an inseparable and integral part of a practice that is driven by society. . This is followed by a legitimate peripheral participation in which newcomers interested to learn get in touch with old-timers in a specific sociocultural community setting where they start assimilating salient characteristic features of that community through a process of language learning. However, Lave and Wenger (1991) have remarked that there might be such social arrangements at work in any community that may actually restrain one from fuller participation in the act of acquiring second language. Further research on social identity shows promise in throwing more light on SLA theorising and in this regard it is expected that new technologies, like that of multilighual and multimodal graphic interfaces, will steer this research in new directions. The new information technology tools pertaining to voice, sound and data are expected to incorporate newer dimensions in this research among different communities, teachers and learners alike. This might as well pave way for doing more interpretive and critical research in the field. Once further strides are made in this direction, different SLA parameters like indigenous languages, lingua francas, postcolonial settings, signed languages and non-European target languages can be seriously understood. Given the availability of state-of-the-art research methodologies, both quantitative and qualitative data analyse tools can be used to interpret narrative results and sufficiently contextualise, theorise and exemplified. For example it will be worth the time and labour to see how qualitative data analysis might help explain and interpret linguistic expression of social identity (Pavlenko, 2000). Conclusion Studies conducted so far have established a clear link between social identity and SLA for both language learners and educators, in both circumstantial and elective learning. What is important for both is to understand their respective positions and stances how the link affects their respective engagements. In order to make best use of this link and pass the advantage on to the learners, it becomes all the more mandatory for teachers to be aware of the linguistic and cultural backgrounds, aspiration and abilities and more importantly the abilities of the learners. This can go a long way in making the transition to second language acquisition smooth and better. References Block, D. (2007a). Second language identities. London, UK: Continuum. Block, D. (2007b). The rise of identity in SLA research, post Firth and Wagner (1997). Modern Language Journal, 91(5), 863-876. Block, D. (2003). The social turn in SLA. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh Press. Bourdieu, P. (1988). Homo Academicus. Cambridge: Polity Press. Dornyei, Z. (2001). Motivational strategies in the language classroom. Cambridge, UK:Cambridge University Press. Firth, A. & Wagner, J. (1997). On discourse, communication, and (some) fundamental concepts in SLA research. Modern Language Journal, 81, 286-300. Gardner, R. C. (1986). Social psychology and second language learning: The role of attitudes and motivation. London: Edward Arnold. Giddens, A. (1991). Modernity and self-identity: Self and society in the late modern age. Cambridge: Polity Press. Krashen, S. (1982). Principles and practice in second language acquisition. Oxford: Pergamon. Leung, C., Haris, R., & Rampton, B. (1997). The idealised native speaker, reified ethnicities, and classroom realities. TESOL Quarterly, 31(3), 543-560. Lave, J., & Wenger, E. (1991). Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. Morgan, B. (2007). Poststructuralism and applied linguistics: Complementary approaches to identity and culture in ELT. In J. Cummins & C. Davison (Eds.), International Handbook of English language teaching (pp. 1033-1052). New York: Springer. McCarthey, S. J. & Moje, E. B. (2002). Conversations: Identity matters. Reading Research Quarterly. Vol. 37. No.2,228-238. Dillon, D. R. & O'Brien, D. (2000). Reexamining roles of learner, text, and context in secondary literacy. The Journal of Educational Research. Vol. 93. No. 3, 165-180. Norton, B., & Toohey, K. (2001). Changing perspectives on good language learners. TESOL Quarterly, 35(2), 307-322. Norton, B. (1997a). Language, identity, and the ownership of English. TESOL Quarterly, 31(3), 409-429. Norton, B. (1997b). Language and identity. [special issue]. TESOL Quarterly, 31(3). Norton, B. (2000). Identity and language learning: Gender, ethnicity and educational change. London: Pearson/Longman. Norton, B. (1997). Language, identity, and the ownership of English. [Introduction, Special Issue] TESOL Quarterly, 31(3), 409-429. Norton, B. (2000). Identity and language learning: Gender, ethnicity and educational change. London: Pearson/Longman. Ortega, L. (2009). Understanding second language acquisition. London: Hodder. Pittaway, D. (2004). Investment and second language acquisition. Critical Inquiry in Language Studies, 4(1), 203-218. Paiva, V. L. (2011). Identity, motivation and autonomy in second language acquisition from the perspective of complexadaptive systems. In G. Murray, X. Gao, & T. Lamb (Eds.),Identity, motivation and autonomy in language learning(pp. 57-72). Toronto, Canada: Multilingual Matters Pavlenko, A. (2002). Poststructuralist approaches to the study of social factors in second language learning and use. In V. Cook (Ed.), Portraits of the L2 user (pp.277-302). Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters. Tharp, R. G. & Gallimore, R. (1988). The redefinition of teaching and schooling (Chapter 1, pp. 13-26), A theory of teaching as assisted performance (Chapter 2, pp. 27-43) in Rousing minds to life: Teaching, learning and schooling in social context. New York. Cambridge University. Thesen, L. (1997). Voices, discourse, and transition: In search of new categories in EAP. TESOL Quarterly, 31(3), 487-511. Vosniadou, S. (2001). How children learn. Brussels, Belgium: International Academy of Education. Wenger, E. (1998). Communities of practice: Learning, meaning, and identity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Wenger, E. (2000). Communities of practice and social learning systems. Organization. Vol. 7. No.2, 225-246. Weedon, C. (1987). Feminist practice and poststructuralist theory. London: Blackwell. Read More

Theorizing of identity has largely been cited in context of Bonny Norton and it is her who is being considered as responsible for explaining language acquisition in the light of identity (Norton, 2001; Norton, 2000). Norton's theories of identity are to a greater extent based on Pierre Bourdieu (1991) and Christine Weedon (1997)-related postculturalism (Dornyei, 2001). This is possibly why motivation construct in SLA is complemented by her investment construct. Norton's argument is that however motivated a language learner might be, he or she may have little investment in a community of classroom language practice which is elitist, sexist, racist or homophobic in character.

The point is simple. Norton wants to say that while motivation is a psychological construct, sociological construct determines investment. It is this investment that determines a learner's interest towards second language acquisitions. The investment determines his extent of commitment and desire, the connection between the two and the complex identity that they establish with each other. The 'investment construct' has led to unprecedented interest in the SLA in context of social identity (Pittway, 2004).

Norton further coined a term called 'imagined communities' and remarked that investment and interest are related to this term as the new language learners will be joining this imagined communities as they learn the language. This is because, argues Norton, that the new language will be seen by these learners as something that offers an entry into a new identity of future. By default this imagined community will have an imagined identity and it can be said that a learner is making his or her investment within context of a new social identity.

Variety of reasons is cited by individuals for learning second language and these include survival, education, personal enjoyment, and professional development. Gidden (1991) and Bourdieu (1988) have stated that identity in context of SLA is a process and not a fixed entity. Wenger (2000) has remarked that it is not an abstract idea, a title, an ethnic category, a personality trait or a label. Instead it is a lived experience of either not belonging or belonging. He further states that strong identities involve deep connections through shared experiences and histories, affection, reciprocity and mutual commitments with others.

Further to this a learner may exhibit an identity based on his social class, gender and physical ability. Learners have also been seen constructing or changing their identities while feeling motivated to learn a second language. For example, being a fan of Michael Jackson helped a Brazilian learner learn English because her focus was on to understand the meaning of Jackson's songs (Paiva, 2011). However, only little attention has been accorded to learner identity before 1990s, when it was still a site or negotiation of difference, agency and structure.

Social identity also has another link with the language learning. Sociocultural theorists have long maintained that it is through participation in social environments that learning occurs. Lev Vygotsky is often mentioned in this case as he has done pioneering work in this field. He believed that children learn when they start internalizing habits, activities, ideas and vocabulary of either their grownup peers or members of the community in which they are brought up (Vosniadou, 2001). It is thus imperative that sociocultural perspectives keep the processes of learning embedded within several events in which individuals participate and learn.

Tharp and Gallimore (1988) have stated that it is the social interactions which trigger the process of learning. Social identity plays a major role in the development of formation of relationship between individuals and the language being learnt. In this relationship the identity matters because, in the words of Moje, it matters because it tends to be what it actually is and is instrumental how an individual deciphers, through language, the world around him.

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