Study Unit 1 & 2 Notes: Language learning, acquisition, and bilingual/multilingual individuals

Study Unit 1: Language learning and acquisition

• 1.1 Learning outcomes

  • After studying this unit, you should be able to:

  • recognise that South Africa is a multilingual and multicultural society

  • form an opinion about why it is important to have awareness of, and respect for, all languages

  • distinguish between language learning and language acquisition

  • explain important terms listed under Key linguistic terms in your own words

• 1.2 Key linguistic terms

  • language acquisition: the development of first language (L1) or any second/third language learned unconsciously and informally by a pre-adolescent child

  • instructed L2 learning: learning a second language in a formal, classroom setting with textbooks and grammar rules, directed by teachers

  • language learning: more conscious learning process, typically for a second language (L2) or foreign language

  • first language (L1): mother tongue

  • indigenous language: language indigenous to the country where it is spoken (e.g., Nama, Sepedi, Tshivenda in SA); English is not indigenous to SA

  • second language (L2): any additional language learned in a social environment

  • foreign language: language not usually used in the society where it is spoken, learning occurs outside the social context

  • second language acquisition (SLA): broad sense covering learning of any additional language (L2, including heritage languages)

  • heritage language: language used by a community at home or in cultural/religious settings but not spoken in the wider community (e.g., Gujarati, Greek, Arabic in SA)

  • instrumental motivation: learning L2 for practical benefits, opportunities

  • naturalistic L2 learning: acquiring an L2 naturally through daily exposure and use, without formal study

  • integrative motivation: learning L2 because of positive interest in the L2 culture and desire to participate

• 1.3 Preview

  • Introduction to key concepts in language learning and acquisition, common terms used in linguistics

  • Terms will be used throughout the study guide

• 1.4 Introduction

  • SA is highly multicultural and multilingual with

  • 12 official languages in SA; beyond these, many other languages are used

  • Most people learn at least one additional language in their lifetime

  • All languages are valuable; respect for linguistic diversity is important

  • Did you know? According to the 2022 census data, $24.4\%$ of the SA population speak isiZulu as their language of largest use

  • Task 1.1 invites you to share opinions on living in a multilingual society and languages spoken around us

  • Feedback highlights:

  • language is part of personal and cultural identity

  • awareness and appreciation fosters respect for cultures and traditions

  • valuing all languages promotes parity of esteem and reduces marginalisation

  • awareness improves communication skills and reduces misunderstandings in work, school, and social settings

  • Mazari and Derraz (2015:251;354) say: “language and culture are intertwined: when learners learn the culture and the language, they learn to communicate with individuals belonging to that culture.”

  • exploring linguistic diversity broadens worldview

• 1.5 Investigating language learning and language acquisition

  • Linguists use ‘language acquisition’ to refer to first language development, or unconscious, informal learning of L2/L3 by pre-adolescent children

  • ‘language learning’ refers to more conscious learning processes, often by adolescents or adults

  • L1 = first language/mother tongue; L2 = second/additional languages

• 1.6 Learning a second language

  • Naturalistic L2 learning occurs when learners pick up L2 in daily life without formal study (e.g., moving to a new country, daily conversations)

  • Early L2 competence develops through naturalistic exposure, learners construct their own grammar by noticing regularities in the language they hear

  • Instructed L2 learning involves formal study with textbooks, grammar rules, vocabulary; teachers guide progression from frequent/simple vocabulary to longer sentences

  • Naturalistic L2 learning can occur at any age; instructed L2 learning often occurs in classroom settings

• 1.7 Indigenous, foreign and heritage languages

  • Indigenous language: native to SA, historically spoken by original inhabitants (e.g., Nama, Sepedi, Tshivenda)

  • Foreign language: not usually used in SA society where spoken (e.g., French, Swahili); learning is context outside daily life

  • Second language: acquired in the social environment where it is used (e.g., English, Xitsonga in SA)

  • Heritage language: language used within a particular community at home or in cultural/religious settings but not widely spoken in the broader community (e.g., Gujarati, Greek, Arabic)

  • Heritage languages may be learned via natural exposure or instructed learning by someone with cultural ties but not early childhood exposure

  • Task 1.3 Personal response highlights technology-enabled options for language learning (self-study courses, audio books, language apps like Babbel, Memrise, Duolingo; using social media for informal practice)

• 1.8 Instrumental versus integrative reasons for learning a language

  • Instrumental motivation: practical benefits, opportunities, and advantages of learning L2

  • Integrative motivation: positive interest in L2 culture and desire to participate in that culture

  • Source: Thohir 2017

  • Task 1.4 Apply your knowledge (summary):

  • (a) businessperson learning L2 for international business transactions -> instrumental

  • (b) minority language speaker learning L2 to get a civil service job -> instrumental

  • (c) child whose parents immigrated -> integrative (and possibly instrumental depending on context)

  • (d) diplomat posted abroad for four years -> instrumental (and possibly integrative)

  • (e) man learning L2 because it is his wife’s first language -> integrative

  • (f) tourist learning L2 before visiting a country -> instrumental (practical use)

  • (g) refugee learning L2 in new country -> integrative (social integration) and possible instrumental

  • Note: instrumental and integrative are not mutually exclusive; learners can have both motivations

• 1.9 Summary

  • Focus on multilingual nature of SA; importance of recognizing value of all languages

  • Key linguistic terms introduced for use throughout the guide

  • Distinction between language learning vs language acquisition; instructed vs naturalistic learning

• 1.5–1.9: Assessment and reflection

  • 1.5–1.8 introduce concepts; 1.9 provides a recap of language learning vs acquisition, and learning approaches

• 1.5–1.9: Multiple-choice questions (Task 1.5)

  • 1. We say that SA is multilingual because: $[c]$ SA speaks many languages, some official

  • 2. The language we speak is part of: $[b]$ personal and cultural identity

  • 3. Language acquisition happens whereas language learning occurs : $[a]$ unconsciously, consciously

  • 4. Instructed L2 learning implies that: $[c]$ language teachers/textbooks direct L2 learning

  • 5. A child speaking isiZulu at home and learning English at school is learning English as: $[b]$ an L2

  • 6. L2 is learnt for integrative reasons when the learner: $[d]$ all of the above

• 2. Find out more (recommended sources)

  • Wolff et al. 2017. Multilingualism and intercultural communication: a SA perspective. Wits University Press

  • Macedo 2019. Decolonizing foreign language education: the misteaching of English and other colonial languages. Routledge

  • Vandeyar & Catalano 2020. Language and identity: multilingual immigrant learners in SA. Language Matters 51(2), 106–128

Study Unit 2: Bilingual/multilingual individuals

• 2.1 Learning outcomes

  • distinguish between different kinds of bilinguals/multilinguals

  • describe factors in choosing a language for a situation

  • describe how multilingualism affects social interaction

  • explain important terms listed under Key linguistic terms in your own words

• 2.2 Key linguistic terms

  • Individual bilingualism

  • Codeswitching

  • Early bilingual

  • Convergence

  • Late bilingual

  • Divergence

  • Additive bilingualism

  • Borrowing

  • Subtractive bilingualism

• 2.3 Preview

  • Focus on individual speakers who use more than one language in everyday life

  • Explore different types of multilinguals and language choice in various situations

  • Compare different kinds of language mixing

• 2.4 Introduction

  • Bilingualism/multilingualism has been debated and studied widely in linguistics and related fields

  • In SA it is important to understand how multilingualism influences individuals and society

  • Butler (2012) notes that bilingualism/multilingualism are heterogeneous and context-dependent; distinctions between bilinguals and multilinguals are useful

  • Did you know? Approximately $3000$ languages exist worldwide in about $150$ nations

  • Societal bilingualism refers to two or more languages spoken within a society; SA is highly multilingual

  • Our focus is on individual bilingualism: ability to use two or more languages in communication and switch between them when needed

• 2.5 Types of bilinguals

  • Degrees of bilingualism vary; many bilinguals have different proficiency levels across languages

  • Early bilinguals: L2 learned before school (before age $7$); often acquire L2 via naturalistic learning and achieve high proficiency

  • Late bilinguals: learn L2 as a teenager or adult (after $13$); often through instructed learning with less opportunity to practise outside class

  • Children who learn L2 in primary school (ages 7–13) show mixed characteristics of early and late bilinguals

  • Summary: early bilinguals often have naturalistic acquisition; late bilinguals often rely on formal instruction

  • Task 2.1: asks for opinions on potential negative effects and advantages of being bilingual; overview of findings indicating no cognitive overload in multilinguals; advantages include greater linguistic sensitivity, better problem solving, creativity, and cognitive benefits; references to Bialystok (2011) and Grosjean (2010)

• 2.6 Additive vs subtractive bilingualism (and scenarios)

  • Additive bilingualism: L2 added to L1 with positive language environment; speaker remains fluent in L1 and adds L2

  • Subtractive bilingualism: L2 learned at the expense of L1; L1 competence declines

  • Language shift: L2 replaces L1 in more domains; common in immigrant contexts

  • Task 2.2: apply knowledge to scenarios

  • Scenario 1: Afrikaans speaker fluent in Venda learned early; additive bilingualism

  • Scenario 2: Xhosa student learns English at school but maintains L1; additive bilingualism

  • Scenario 3: Sotho child moves to US and becomes English monolingual; subtractive bilingualism

  • Scenario 4: case study Nathan switches to English at home; initially subtractive, later additive after return to Kiswahili; ends additive

  • Grosjean (myths) and research show that strong L1 supports L2 acquisition; additive bilinguals often succeed

  • Task 2.3 Ask-a-multilingual: interview a bilingual speaker and record details about L1, L2, age learned, usage percentages, etc.; classify as early/late bilingual and additive/subtractive

• 2.6 Bilingual families

  • Bilingual families use two or more languages regularly; language choice inside the home is influenced by goals, attitudes, and strategies

  • Examples: Mamabola family (Sepedi L1, Tshivenda L2? home language Northern Sotho; others understand some Tshivenda) vs Andersen family (parents speak English and Afrikaans; children bilingual English and Afrikaans)

  • Strategies include unrestricted use of two languages at home or stricter “one-person, one-language” policy; effectiveness shown for promoting bilingualism in young children

  • Parents and teachers influence language attitudes and opportunities; government and education policies also matter

  • Family literacy programs support goals in the languages of home and heart

  • Task 2.4 Personal response: reflect on family language goals, strategies used, and their effectiveness

• 2.7 Choosing a code

  • Monolinguals also choose codes (dialects, styles) in different social situations

  • Task 2.5: practice greeting different people (grandmother, best friend, boss) and decide which language and form of address to use; reflects subtle code choices and social signaling

  • Code choice is influenced by location, formality, gender, status, intimacy, and activity; signals group membership and social alignment

• 2.8 Convergence and divergence

  • Convergence: adjusting speech to match the interlocutor’s language/variety to facilitate understanding and signal unity

  • Divergence: intentionally maintaining a different language/variety to signal difference or distance from the interlocutor

  • Examples: Afrikaans to English when the other person is not fluent (convergence); switching to Igbo when addressing someone who does not share the same language (divergence)

  • Convergence strategies include answering in the language of the address, adopting similar pronunciation, using similar dialect, adjusting pace

  • Divergence examples include continuing to speak in a different code to mark group identity

  • The dominant group in a society often expects subordinate groups to converge; divergence can signal official roles or ethnic solidarity

  • Task 2.6 Apply your knowledge: evaluate conversations for convergence or divergence

  • Convergence/divergence illustrate how speakers negotiate identity and social relations through language

• 2.9 Codeswitching

  • Codeswitching: use of two or more linguistic varieties in the same conversation or sentence

  • Myers-Scotton example: Swahili with English in Nairobi context; switching used to signal social group membership and shared identity or topic change

  • Codeswitching can be a deliberate strategy to express solidarity or mark topic shifts; it is common in SA and even appears in writing (headlines, national anthem)

  • Codeswitching is a normal part of bilingual interaction; norms vary by community

  • Task 2.8 Ask-a-multilingual: investigate whether codeswitching is encouraged or tolerated in your community; collect 3 sentences with glosses and translations; note L1 and L2 proficiency and context

  • Examples from SA show codeswitching across English, Afrikaans, and local African languages, sometimes including religious Arabic in formal contexts

• 2.7 Codeswitching within a sentence

  • Examples show mixed-language sentences with English stems and Afrikaans affixes, or Afrikaans word order with English words

  • Demonstrates phonology and morphology interplay when borrowing occurs

  • Codeswitching is not necessarily a sign of linguistic decay; can express solidarity or topic shift; practice varies by community

• 2.10 Borrowing words from other languages

  • Borrowing: word from one language adopted into the grammatical framework of another language

  • Occurs when languages coexist and influence one another; often content words are borrowed while function words are seldom borrowed

  • English has borrowed from many languages (e.g., ketchup from Chinese, curry from Indian languages; German, French, Spanish, Afrikaans)

  • SA examples: sangoma, muti, fundi, mamba, donga, songololo; Afrikaans and Nguni borrowings

  • Borrowed terms are adapted to fit the phonology and morphology of the borrowing language (e.g., isiZulu ibayisekili from bicycle; or loanwords may be pronounced as in the original)

  • Sometimes meanings are borrowed and expressed using native words (e.g., skyscraper translated as wolkekrabber or gr | gratté-siel; “Go well” translated in SA as a loan translation of Nguni hamba kahle)

  • Borrowing differs from codeswitching: borrowed terms can be used by monolinguals; codeswitching requires bilingualism

  • Task 2.10 Just for fun: match borrowed words to their language of origin

  • Example: Delicatessen, hamburger, etc. from German, French, Spanish, Afrikaans; other lists illustrate cross-language borrowing across SA regions

• 2.11 Personal response

  • Read a letter to a newspaper arguing for linguistic ‘purity’ and against codeswitching; the response demonstrates sociolinguistics perspectives: codeswitching and borrowing are normal outcomes of multilingual societies; language adaptation helps survival and utility

• 2.12 Multiple-choice questions

  • 1. The Swahili-English utterance is an example of: a) codeswitching b) borrowing c) subtractive bilingualism d) divergence → Answer: [a]

  • 2. A standard language is: a) a dialect with dictionaries and grammar b) used uniformly by all speakers c) a prestigious variety in a society d) All of the above → Answer: [d]

  • 3. Which is considered a convergent strategy? a) answering in English when greeted in Afrikaans b) using slang with a lecturer c) using professional jargon with a colleague d) speaking at a normal rate to a foreigner → Answer: [c]

  • 4. Which is considered a divergent strategy? a) using in-group slang with a friend b) answering in the language you were addressed in c) speaking slowly to a beginner d) codeswitching when addressing a monolingual person → Answer: [d]

  • 5. SA learners who speak Setswana as L1 and attend English-medium schools, competent in both languages, are: a) monolinguals b) additive bilinguals c) subtractive bilinguals d) None of the above → Answer: [b]

• 2.11 Summary

  • Recap of key concepts: definitions of bilingualism/multilingualism, types of bilinguals (early vs late), additive vs subtractive, convergence/divergence, code choice, codeswitching vs borrowing

  • Language choices reflect social position, identity, and interaction goals

• 2. Find out more (references)

  • Alshewiter et al. 2024. The role of multilingualism in cognitive enhancement. Migration Letters

  • Achaa-Amankwaa et al. 2023. Multilingualism and cognitive performance in older adults. Scientific Reports

  • Backer & Bortfeld 2021. Bilingual effects on cognition. Brain Sciences

  • Dilfuza 2023. Multilingualism in early childhood. Proceedings of the Canada International Conference on Education, Sciences and Humanities

• 2.13 Additional notes

  • Codeswitching and borrowing are dynamic features of multilingual communities; both contribute to linguistic creativity and social identity

• 2.14 Key takeaways

  • Bilingualism/multilingualism depends on age of L2 acquisition, environment, and attitudes

  • Additive bilinguals maintain L1 while acquiring L2; subtractive bilinguals shift away from L1 toward L2

  • Code choice, convergence, and divergence play crucial roles in social interaction and identity signaling

  • Codeswitching and borrowing are normal, functional phenomena in multilingual societies; neither indicates cognitive decline or language decay

• 2.15 Quick reference: common terms

  • L1: first language; L2: second language; Ln: any additional language

  • additive bilingualism vs subtractive bilingualism

  • convergence vs divergence

  • codeswitching vs borrowing

  • indigenous vs foreign vs heritage languages

• 2.16 Examples to remember

  • Codeswitching can occur within a single sentence (e.g., English-Afrikaans mix) or across sentences

  • Borrowing often involves content words (nouns, adjectives, verbs) with the borrowing language’s phonology and morphology

  • Added language policies and family strategies can influence long-term multilingual competence

• 2.17 Reflection prompts

  • Consider your own linguistic repertoire and the role of multiple languages in your daily life

  • How do you decide which language to use in different settings (home, school, workplace)?

  • What are your attitudes toward borrowing and codeswitching in your community?

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Study Unit 1 & 2 Notes on Language Learning, Acquisition, and Bilingualism