Running head: DIFFERENCES IN LEARNING LANGUAGE BETWEEN ADOLESCENT

Differences in Learning Language between Adolescent and Adults

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DIFFERENCES IN LEARNING LANGUAGE BETWEEN ADOLESCENT
Introduction

According to world health organization, adolescents refer to individuals who are at the

age of ten and nineteen years during which various developments and growth occur (Gouws &

Kruger, 2014). Research and theory on language learning have extensively recognized the

significant power of learners personalities. Simply these identities involve how the novice

perceives themselves and are perceived by others regarding the acquisition of the language as

well as their cultures influences. Researchers in linguistics have also found that adults can learn

the language better when subjected to controlled conditions. However, such conditions may not

be easy to provide in many learning sessions. Adolescent and children have been found to pick

up other tongues easier compared to adults. Additionally, the age of the learner is directly related

to the swiftness of learning a second language (Hayes et al., 2015). Accordingly, the two

essential elements intersect in the adolescent acquisition of second language case. This research

seeks to answer why it is easier to learn language during adolescent, and why its hard, during

old age?

Discussion

Recent studies show that age of the learner is principally believed to be the major factor

influencing the achievement of learning a foreign or a second language (Heinzmann, 2013). In

general, the adolescent is considered proficient in new language acquisition with ease and

quickness, while adults are thought to be bound for disappointment.

Gouws & Kruger, 2014, pp., 124

Hayes, Ciarrochi, & Hayes, 2015, pp78

Ur, 2012, pp., 64

Heinzmann, 2013, pp., 98

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DIFFERENCES IN LEARNING LANGUAGE BETWEEN ADOLESCENT
The critical period of acquiring language is typically defined as an epoch when lingo

learning naturally results to the high level of success and relatively easy. This exceptional ability

does not last beyond teenage years or even sometimes before (Ur, 2012). For that reason, adults

have difficulties of learning a foreign language and a standard learner can hardly attain the

native-like proficiency in the language.

Customarily, proficiency in a language has been directly equated to pronouncing words

like a native speaker (Ur, 2012). The adolescent is significantly accurate and faster in learning a

language than older adults. The decrease in the ability to learn a language can be attributed to the

fact that adults are affected by the native language more than adolescents. The influence of the

native language increases in post-puberty making it difficult for adults to learn the second

language (Hayes et al., 2015). At the same time, any improvement in the learning of the second

language in an adult is affected by the fact that they are not able to reduce the interference. When

the adults return to the native language regularly, they are distracted, and hence the process of

learning language is impaired. The level of learning distraction increases with increase in the

number of times that reference to the mother tongue is done. Distractions bring about

disconnection, impediment and hence interference in learning (Heinzmann, 2013).

Adolescent and children are less likely to be distracted because they do not regularly refer

to the native language. For instance, abstract thinking is reduced while reasoning and thinking in

wider perspective increase upon reaching the adolescent stage. Other improved areas during

adolescent include attention, memory, processing speed and organization of ideas. Moreover,

adolescents have more elaborate control of thought, coordination, and behavior.

Hayes, Ciarrochi, & Hayes, 2015, pp78

Ur, 2012, pp., 64

Heinzmann, 2013, pp., 98

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DIFFERENCES IN LEARNING LANGUAGE BETWEEN ADOLESCENT
Besides, there are also changes in the ways of approaching concepts, ideas, personality

formation and character development (Hayes et al., 2015). Changes in brain structure,

organization and connectivity further lead to massive cognitive development in that the

individual experiences, high level of acquisition of knowledge. The reasoning in an adolescent is

less abstract and more accurate compared to that of the adult. Interference occurs when ideas and

concepts overlap. In fact, learning becomes difficult as age advances an attribute that has been

correlated to interference.

As individual ages, learning language becomes tight. The reason is that ideas and new

concepts from the new language overlap leading to interference (Heinzmann, 2013). They also

demonstrate cognizance of more selectivity foreign language compared to the adolescent

individuals. Studies show that any attempt to impose long-term learning of language in adults

leads to resistance unless there is a clear comparison of the second language to the native

language (Ur, 2012). For adults, more learning occurs when the mother tongue is similar to the

foreign language. Consequently, the acquisition age is of great significance for a learner to

pronounce and use the grammar of the second language similar to indigenous orator.

Development in language has been connected with particular variations in the development of

the brain. According to studies, the level of lateralization of language reduces in old age as the

left hemisphere decreases between the ages of twenty-five and above(Ur, 2012). Similarly, there

is a significant increase in white matter in children and adolescence yet the same component

does not increase during adulthood.

Hayes, Ciarrochi, & Hayes, 2015, pp78

Ur, 2012, pp., 64

Heinzmann, 2013, pp., 98

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DIFFERENCES IN LEARNING LANGUAGE BETWEEN ADOLESCENT
Although the left hemisphere is increased exponentially between the ages of five to

twenty years, there is considerable increase between the ages of twenty to twenty-five

(Heinzmann, 2013). Above the age of twenty-five, the level of lateralization decreases

considerably. The greatest significant of development in the performance of the left hemisphere

is experienced during adolescence and is the section that is involved in the receptive and

expressive language functions. Nevertheless, linguistic proficiency has recently included both

semantic and grammar or morpho-syntactic skills. The (CPH) which stands for Critical Period

Hypothesis was the term given to the notion that there is a limited best possible time of learning

a language (Hayes et al., 2015). CPH formulation is based on biological factors. In adolescent,

growth, and development of brain increases.

Correspondingly, there is a significant increase of white and gray matters as well as

changes in synapses. The differentiation and number of synapses get to the highest level between

age two and four and then reduces and reaches stable state between the ages ten and fifteen (Ur,

2012). Consequently, transmitters of chemicals in the brain only become stable when a child

becomes an adolescent. Although no much change in size is experienced when the person is

undergoing adolescent period the significant changes that take place are highly visible and

impactful as compared to adult age. Brain development progressively increases leading to greater

effectiveness, adaptability and efficient modulation. Nevertheless, brain changes in complexity

especially in the cortex region that deals with emotional and cognitive information (Heinzmann,

2013). As such, learning language becomes easier to the adolescent. Accordingly, this means

that he or she is in a learning phase of almost everything including language acquisition.

Gouws & Kruger, 2014, pp., 124

Hayes, Ciarrochi, & Hayes, 2015, pp78

Ur, 2012, pp., 64

Heinzmann, 2013, pp., 98

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DIFFERENCES IN LEARNING LANGUAGE BETWEEN ADOLESCENT
Other than biological factors which enable a person to learn a language with ease and

success at this stage of adolescence, there are other benefits associated with the stage that is

limited to other stages of life (Gouws & Kruger, 2014). Adolescents are prone to mistakes, and

they are not mostly affected by those errors the way adults would be affected. The child can be

corrected by a punishment and still corporate immediately without much resistance. As a

consequence, young learners are most likely to be anti-language apprehensive as compared to

older learners, therefore, making them absorb the most of the idiom rather than blocking it out. It

is also proved that there is more time present for everyday study for adolescents as well as more

collective time for them to achieve faster proficiency (Hayes et al., 2015). Accordingly, those

adolescents that start learning the language untimely succeed more than those who start at a late

age.

Similarly, a lot of cognitive capabilities are identified to diminish as a person gets older

(Heinzmann, 2013). Complexities in encoding new-fangled information as well as reduced

ability to study paired-connections are some of the age-associated cognitive processes changes

significantly to the acquisition of a language. Furthermore, older learners suffer from decreased

accuracy in remembering details as contrasted to the general idea. Moreover, their other factors

that affect adults include deficits in potential attention, common cognitive slowing and decreased

active memory aptitude (Gouws & Kruger, 2014). All these developments decrease with age, and

most researchers have documented them across the lifetime.

Despite the fact that many scientists support the idea of the critical period, currently,

some studies have criticized the issue of CPH (Heinzmann, 2013). Criticism has been brought in

based on biological and motivational factors.

Gouws & Kruger, 2014, pp., 124

Hayes, Ciarrochi, & Hayes, 2015, pp78

Heinzmann, 2013, pp., 98

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DIFFERENCES IN LEARNING LANGUAGE BETWEEN ADOLESCENT
One of the most critic researchers suggests that the CPH ought to involve the

consequence that passing this period is total inability to learn the language. Certainly, with

appropriate motivation cluster of any age can acquire any language. Nevertheless, there is no

substantial research supporting the idea that adults can completely attain fluency same as natives.

The reason behind this statement is due to the findings of language phonetic studies which show

that adolescently can distinguish the phonetics of both local and foreign language (Hayes et al.,

2015). On the other hand, if grown-up students are incapable of hearing phonemes of a second

language, then they may not be able to make those similar sounds.

There is also somewhat more persuasive argument in opposition to CPH which is based

on semantics domains. According to Gouws & Kruger (2014), adults perform as well as young

individuals in learning new words or semantic level concepts. This argument can hardly be

disputed bearing in mind that there are several modalities to lingo proficiency. However, lacking

a precise definition of this critical period among the modalities does not invalidate the broad

hypothesis. Even though there is no identified semantics critical period, several studies have

been concluded that adolescent and young learners of a language are most probable to gain

pronunciation like that of native speakers than old learners (Ur, 2012). Therefore, we can as well

conclude that those young learners have a unique benefit in acquiring languages but squanders as

they get old. Adolescence and young learners are highly skilled when it comes to recognizing

subtle variations in sounds (Gouws & Kruger, 2014). For instance, adolescence can easily be

able to pronounce minimal pairs of words such as flies and fries and pen and pin while adults

have challenges in pronouncing without confusion.

Gouws & Kruger, 2014, pp., 124

Hayes, Ciarrochi, & Hayes, 2015, pp78

Ur, 2012, pp., 64

Heinzmann, 2013, pp., 98

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DIFFERENCES IN LEARNING LANGUAGE BETWEEN ADOLESCENT
Accordingly, adult learners struggling to learn other languages including English have

difficulties in the pronunciation of minimal pairs. Correspondingly, adult learners have a strong

accent which reduces proficiency. The reason is that pronunciation is a reliable indicator of

eloquence and fluency (Hayes et al., 2015). Confusion in pronunciation and accent changes the

context and meaning of words and thus hinders the process of learning because it impedes

communication and decreases the level of confidence and urge to learn more words and their

meaning.

At the same time, the learning environment may determine the standard of success in

learning languages because most of the adults learn at home with the help of educational

software (Heinzmann, 2013). On the other hand, adolescent mostly enrolls in institutions and

study new languages in a formal setting and with guidance from the teacher. Consequently,

students are guided on the most significant aspects of learning languages an opportunity which

most of the adults studying at home cannot be able to achieve. The adolescent is also able to

strike a conversation with fellow students, partners and friends thus making them fluent and

faster in learning (Heinzmann, 2013). Adults studying at homes may not be able to access such a

vital opportunity and thus may be disadvantaged. The reason is that Learning language without

steady conversation with friends and partners can be a challenge because it might be unstructured

and thus missing fundamental factors such as fluency and eloquence (Hayes et al., 2015).

Moreover, missing necessary instructions from the teacher and lack of other essential

practices such as practicing writing down sentences can further impede learning. Although some

adult learners may attend classes and other formal learning settings, their levels are usually

conceptual and analytical and thus may miss the opportunity to include activities and friendly
Gouws & Kruger, 2014, pp., 124

Hayes, Ciarrochi, & Hayes, 2015, pp78

Heinzmann, 2013, pp., 98

Running head: DIFFERENCES IN LEARNING LANGUAGE BETWEEN ADOLESCENT

interactions. Adolescents can interact and carry out activities without established boundaries and

thus cannot miss the opportunity to freely interact and participate in activities. Accordingly,

adolescences have huge opportunities to learn and acquire more knowledge than adults.

Conclusion

Some adult learners are subjected frustration while trying to learn other languages. As

such, some of the adults give up learning languages claiming that young individual and

adolescents are the good while adults are underprivileged in learning languages. The argument is

that children and adolescent have more absorbent minds, more adaptability, and better memories.

Age of the learner is principally believed to be the major factor influencing the achievement of

learning a foreign or a second language. In general, the adolescent is considered proficient in

new language acquisition with ease and quickness, while adults are thought to be bound for

disappointment. Among the reasons why adolescence is right in understanding other languages is

the fact that adults are affected by the native language more than adolescents, they are not able to

reduce interference during learning and have challenges in challenges in the pronunciation of

minimal pairs. Besides, most of the adult learners study at home where there is minimal

interaction and communication while adolescents study in institutions where interaction is highly

encouraged. Besides, adults had deficits in potential attention, common cognitive slowing and

decreased effective memory aptitude. During the onset of adolescent, brain development

progressively increases leading to greater effectiveness, adaptability and efficient modulation.

Left hemisphere is increased exponentially between the ages of five to twenty years. In adults,

the level of lateralization of language reduces in old age as the left hemisphere decreases

between the ages of twenty-five and above. As such, learning language becomes easier to the

adolescent.
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DIFFERENCES IN LEARNING LANGUAGE BETWEEN ADOLESCENT
References

Gouws, E., & Kruger, N. (2014).The adolescent: An educational perspective. Durban:

Butterworth Publishers.

Hayes, L. L., Ciarrochi, J., & Hayes, S. C. (2015). The thriving adolescent: Using acceptance and

commitment therapy and positive psychology to help teens manage emotions, achieve

goals, and build connection. Oakland, CA: Context Press.

Heinzmann, S. (2013). Young language learners' motivation and attitudes: Longitudinal,

comparative and explanatory perspectives. London: Bloomsbury.

Ur, P., & Ur, P. (2012). A course in English language teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge

University Press.

Gouws & Kruger, 2014, pp., 124

Hayes, Ciarrochi, & Hayes, 2015, pp78

Heinzmann, 2013, pp., 98