SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION AND SOCIOLINGUISTIC VARIATION R O B E R T B AY L E Y

Presented by: Wan Muhaimin bin Wan Ahmad, 2011801048

INTRODUCTION
The quantitative study of linguistic variation and systematic investigation of second language acquisition (SLA) were motivated by a common concern to understand the underlying systems of language varieties, often socially stigmatized varieties in the case of quantitative sociolinguistics, and learner language in the case of SLA.

Variationism

SLA

Deals with confronting the linguistics Early studies in SLA focused on socially stereotypes of non-standard varieties marginalised speakers. often working by serious scientific study. class immigrants Eg: Sankoff (1988) dates the A study to examine and investigate development of variationism as a how these L2 speakers acquire the The primary of the article is to examine paradigm distinct from goal dialectology, target language. the ways that ethnolinguistics, and traditional pidgin SLA is aunderstanding wide research area of as it variationist linguistics may enrich our the and creole studies with the involves many factors such as gender, SLA , focusing on misunderstandings by SLA researchers of appearance of publication on African contexts, and many more. concepts of variationist linguistics. Americanbasic Vernacular English. and methods Previous researches used It was then quickly extended to ethnographic method to research on speakers of other socially stigmatised SLA. language varieties such as American Sign Language, working class British English, Puerto Rican Spanish and Guyanese Creole

MISUNDERSTANDINGS OF VARIATIONIST RESEARCH

The misunderstanding of basic concept of variationist linguistics pose persistent challenges eg: Ellis defintion of Variable rule. Many researchers tend to explain variation found in learners language by reference to a single co-occuring contextual factor. Research in varitionist tradition, in contrast to research that seeks a single overarching explanation, assumes that interlanguage variation, like variation in any language, is likely to be subjected to the influence of not one, but multiple context influences.

POTENTIAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF VL TO SLA RESEARCH

Language Transfer The nature of Target Language Understanding the nature of SLA processes Acquiring Sociolinguistic Competence

Language Transfer
VL offers a clear way to study the effects of language transfer. Multivariate analysis could easily be conducted using VARBUL or commercially available software such as SPSS. One can perform several analyses, with groups representing different first languages, and with learners separated If speakers of different languages pattern in different ways and if the difference reflects a linguistic difference in their first languages, we might reasonably conclude that it is contributed to the effects of first language.

The Nature of Target Language

Sociolinguistic studies can provide clear idea of the target language the learners try to acquire. It is crucial in judging what constitutes transfer and what does not. eg: attribution of Persian learners use of resumptive pronouns Variationist studies can also provide a basis for determining what constitutes acquisition eg. Third person singular s with verbs is highly variable in AAVE. To assess acquisition adequately, we must compare the pattern of variation in learner speech with the pattern of variation in the vernacular dialects with which the learners are in contact and which they may select as the target.

Understanding the nature of SLA Processes

It is evident that linguistic factors have different effects on speaker performance indicates that speaker have different internal grammar. Linguistic constraints operated in the same way for all speakers of the same variety, regardless of the extent to which they used a particular variety. The principle that speakers who posses substantially identical internal grammars may vary in their frequency of use of a variant, but not in constraint ordering, providing means to test SLA empirically.

Acquiring Sociolinguistics Competence

Successful communication, whether within a culture and between persons of different cultures, requires an understanding of the meaning of speech acts and the ability to interpret the meaning of speaker uses of different linguistic forms. Learners use variable features to mark certain aspects of their identities or to create a new L2 identity. Contact with native speakers plays crucial role in acquiring sociolinguistic competence. Learners tend to have difficulty as they are more influenced by institutional discourse, hence being formal in non-formal situation

CONCLUSION
The study illustrates some of the ways that variationist linguistics may contribute to SLA, and, to the extent that acquiring as second language is necessary for communication between cultures, to intercultural communication. Variationist researches combined with ethnographic methods provide systematic ways to document L2 speakers come to acquire the stylistic resources necessary to function effectively in a variety of social situation both with native and non-native speakers of the second laguage.