SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR STATE UNIVERSITY OF MAKASSAR 2011 THE SOCIAL CONTEXT OF SLA SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR STATE UNIVERSITY OF MAKASSAR 2011

CONTENTS SOCIAL CONTEXT COMMUNICATIVE MICROSOCIAL MACROSOCIAL

EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION INTRODUCTION LANGUAGE LANGUAGE USE (SOCIAL&CULTURAL) MICROSOCIAL MACROSOCIAL EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

Variation in Learner Language MICROSOCIAL The microsocial focus deals with the potential effects of different immediately surrounding circumstances One of the most important contributions of sociolinguistics (beginning with Labov 1965). For example, native speakers of English may say: I ate dinner or I ate supper (variable vocabulary); She was coming or She was comin’ (variable phonology); She has sewed or She has sewn (variable morphology); and That is a big book or That a big book (variable syntax); and they may respond to an introduction with Hi or I am very pleased to meet you (variable discourse). Variation in Learner Language Behaviorist learning theories consider input to form the necessary stimuli and feedback which learners respond to and imitate. Social approaches also consider the nature and role of interaction in acquisition, and ways in which it is helpful – and perhaps necessary – for the development of advanced levels of L2 proficiency Imput and Interaction An alternative view of the role of interaction in SLA is based on Sociocultural (S-C) Theory (Vygotsky 1962, 1978). A key concept in this approach is that interaction not only facilitates language learning but is a causative force in acquisition; further, all of learning is seen as essentially a social process which is grounded in sociocultural settings. Interaction as the Genesis of language

Global National Status of L1 and L2 Social Categories MACROSOCIAL The macrosocial focus relates SLA to broader cultural, political, and educational environments Global National Status of L1 and L2 Social Categories Circumstances of Learning Languages have power and status at global and national levels for both symbolic and practical reasons. An important symbolic function of language is political identification and cohesion. for example, where English is generally accepted as the single national language, and most people consider it important for national unity that all citizens be able to use one language People are categorized according to many socially relevant dimensions: e.g. age, sex, ethnicity, education level, occupation, and economic status. Such categorization often influences what experiences they have, how they are perceived by others, and what is expected of them. When they are L2 learners, members of different social categories frequently experience different learning conditions, and different attitudes or perceptions from within both native and target language communities. We begin with learners’ prior educational experiences. By the time children begin their formal education at the age of five or six, they have already internalized many of the basic values and beliefs of their native culture, learned the rules of behavior which are considered appropriate for their role in the community, and established the procedures for continued socialization.

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