Logan Schanie

ENC 3242 / Instructor

Assignment 4 / 27.11.2017

Learning Languages: Natural Talent or Learned Skill?

Nature versus nurture is a long-standing debate regarding second-language acquisition (SLA).
However, research shows that it is much less nature versus nurture, but rather how nature and
nurture act together to allow humans to learn their primary language (L1) and how we acquire
others. Moreover, cognitive psychology has more to say about how we learn second languages
than biology, which plays a far less important role.

BIOLOGY
Darwinism uses the process of natural selection to explain the evolution of species through
passed down genes and mutations that occur to benefit that specific species. The FOXP2 (or
forkhead box protein P2) gene is commonly found in many other mammals, including our closest
ancestor – the ape. This is the same gene that is thought to benefit humans in language
acquisition. FOXP2 is involved in the developments of our lungs, brain, and nervous system.
Additionally, it assists in our ability to learn movements and enhance motor skills – these same
skills are beneficial to our production of speech. In fact, many individuals with impaired speech
have a mutated FOXP2 gene that is thought to be the cause (Kunert et al. 2013).

Cultural niche. Another biological aspect that affects how we learn language is how species can
create a cultural niche. A non-language based example would be beavers. They create a dam (a
change in their environment) that affects their related nutrient intake. This behavior has been
passed on through beavers because it has a positive impact on their survivability. Similarly,
elements of speech and language can have changes based upon these niches. For example, tonal
languages are very common in Asian cultures. The ability to hear and produce these tones has
created a cultural niche. One’s ability to produce these sounds would relate back to the FOXP2
gene and how advanced theirs is. If we took a group of German children and dropped them off in
Thailand to be taught Thai, they would be able to successfully learn the language. However, if
that same group were placed alone on an island, over generations, their dialect of Thai would
lose its tonality (Kunert et al. 2013).

Though biology plays a role in one’s ability to learn a language (L1), its applications regarding
second-language acquisition are more limited.

PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS

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Psychological factors are a more important part of second-language acquisition than their
biological counterparts. Both cognitive and sociocultural elements of psychology impact one’s
success when learning another language.

Cognitive factors. Cognitive science concerns itself primarily with the mental processes that are
used in learning another language. It posits that second-language acquisition simply uses general
learning mechanisms located in the brain. This theory contrasts with some linguistic theories that
charge SLA is its own learning process.

Cognitive theories often use the computational model to explain the general process of SLA. The
computational model is three-fold:
1. New language knowledge is placed into the short-term memory (referred to as intake).
2. More exposure to this information slowly converts the intake into the long-term memory.
3. Learners use the retained information to create output.
This model only provides a brief outlook at the general process of learning another language.
The processes that underlie this model are broken down into micro- and macro-processes. Micro-
processes are integration, attention, working memory, and a process called restructuring.
Restructuring is the process of change in the learner’s interlanguage system (how learners codify
semantics and syntax between their L1 and L2).

Skill acquisition and skills-based theories in SLA are other models based upon cognitive
psychology. These models assert that language learning is no different than acquiring any other
skill. Thus, practice is viewed as the key element to one’s ability in SLA.

Speech planning is a learning approach closely related to skill acquisition. Speech planning is a
simple process by which one plans what they are going to say in response to a certain question or
in a scenario. This is used outside of language learning as well. Think of a learning pilot who
needs to communicate with air traffic controllers (ATC). In many ways, that form of
communication acts as its own language. There are certain vocabulary and syntactical systems
used in communication with air traffic controllers. A learning pilot is often encouraged to
rehearse what they are going to say to ATC before pressing the button to begin speaking. This bit
of rehearsal reduces the pilot’s anxiety to speak and results in more accurate communications.
Similarly, someone learning a new language will plan what they will say to someone or how they
will respond to questions. These questions may be derived from conversations the learner has
had or expects to have. Thus, practicing what they will say beforehand is greatly beneficial and
leads to greater accuracy and fluency in the target language (L2).

Sociocultural factors. Though cognitive science is a large part of the puzzle, social context is
also necessary to understand second-language acquisition. The social structure presented by Rod
Ellis is three-fold:

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 1. Sociolinguistic setting – is the language spoken by the majority or minority; is it being
learned in a natural setting or an educational one?
2. Specific social factors – social class, age, gender, etc.
3. Situational factors – how one chooses to speak depending on the situation (i.e., formal
versus informal).

In-group connection is one of the strongest sociocultural elements. A learner’s connection to the
community whose language she is learning greatly increases her motivation to continue learning.
This sense of connection is based upon a perceived identity within the community. If the
community is monolingual and unaccommodating to foreign speakers, there will be a greater
social disconnect that can discourage one from learning a language even if they are immersed in
the culture. A foreign speaker in a multilingual community will likely perform far greater than a
learner in a monolingual community. Their ability to learn will also be relevant to class. For
example, if they are wealthier and have the resources to learn, they will be far more capable than
someone who has no money nor learning material or resources (Wikipedia).

IN SUM
Second-language acquisition is a complex process in which many factors play a role. The goal is
to decipher to what extent these elements are important in SLA. Many times, I have heard, “Oh,
you are just really good at learning languages.” It is fascinating to see that biology’s role in
second-language acquisition is limited, and that key cognitive and sociocultural elements play
greater roles in one’s language learning journey. Perhaps best stated in the Language, Nature and
Nurture – Can genes settle the debate? essay, “On all three levels nature and nurture are not
adversaries claiming to be right while proving the other one wrong. Instead, they complement
each other. Each one provides a piece of a bigger picture which neither would be able to provide
by itself. The nature versus-nurture debate? More like the nature-and nurture puzzle” (Kunert et
al. 2013).

SOURCES CONSULTED
Richard Kunert, Suzanne Jongman and Tineke Prins. 2013. Language, Nature and Nurture –
Can genes settle the debate? MPI.

“Second-Language acquisition.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 21 Nov. 2017,

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second-language_acquisition#Cognitive_factors.

“Interlanguage.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 23 Nov. 2017,

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interlanguage.

“Skill-Based theories of second-Language acquisition.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 10

Oct. 2017, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skill-based_theories_of_second-language_acquisition.

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WEBSITE
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