Introduction
Language is described as a code that is socially shared or a conventional structure of communication that is governed by rules. Language is an in borne tendency as individuals are born with tendencies to develop sounds through cognitive and mental ability. Language acquisition occurs in early developmental stages of a person.
Instead of learning language rules and syntaxes, children obtain language behavior. They learn how to use language to define, operate or explore the world around them. Their main reason for learning language is to express their intentions, describe items and make others perform actions especially in their favor (IPEK, 2009).
This is acquired through exposure to the environment that provides language expressions and non-verbal inputs like waving and signaling. Hence, language acquisition is characterized by interaction of children with the larger community, learning with no tuition being offered as well as exhibiting traits of the community’s language.
Stages in language acquisition
There are five language acquisition stages. First is the pre-linguistic period. This is the period in which the child acquires the first language. It occurs between six to nine months of age and lasts till the tenth to thirteenth month. During this stage, the child responds to the environment but cannot express himself. It is characterized by production of certain sounds, an action referred to as cooing.
The infant uses the phonemes of not only what will be their first language but all phonemes in general (IPEK, 2009). Phonemes are the smallest significant sound components that can be distinguished in a language. For example, an infant whose first language is English would be heard making such sounds as “aaaa”, “mmmm” or “tttt”.
The second language development stage is bubbling. This stage is characterized by production of vowels and syllables which are strung together. Usually the infant does this with no communication intentions. This stage occurs around nine months of age. During this stage, the child begins to use phonemes from his native language. For example, an infant may begin producing such sounds as “TI”, “YU” or “NO”
The third language acquisition stage is holophrastic stage. Holophrastic is derived from the term holo-phrase which is the use of one word to represent an entire thought or meaningful sentence. During this stage, an infant learns to use one word to pass a message (Lightbown & Spada, 2006). This stage occurs between the tenth and the fifteenth month. An example of a holophrastic communication is “mum”, “dad” or “nanny”.
The fourth stage is known as telegraphic stage. It is also referred to as two word period. The stage derives its name from the term telegraph which was a means of communication used till 1990’s to send messages. The mode uses least number of words possible to communicate given that the higher the number of words the more expensive it would be to send the message. During this stage, the infant learns to use multi-word statements.
This stage lasts between eighteenth and twenty-fourth month of age. Just like a telegraph, the infant is able to devise its own rules during this stage (IPEK, 2009). Examples of an infant communication in this stage include; “mummy water” or “daddy snack”. In the first message, the infant may be implying he is thirsty and wants water from his mother while the second message implies that the infant wants a snack from his father.
The fifth stage of language acquisition is the normal speech. This stage occurs from two years onwards. During this stage the infant can communicate with the rest of the society. The infant is no longer in his world and he is able to understand what others are saying. The larger community on the other hand is able to derive meaning from the infant’s utterances.
It is during this stage that children learn the meaning of words and how to construct meaningful sentences. This occurs while playing with older children, receiving instructions and orders from the elders while learning either at home or in a school set up as well as during story telling sessions.
Second language acquisition involves learning of another language on top the native language. This process is referred to as bilingualism. The best stage to learn second language is during is during childhood. However, adults may also learn a second language. However, the second language acquisition has six stages.
Pre-production stage is also dubbed as “soundless stage”. During this stage the individual absorbs the second language but is unable to speak it. This stage runs for six weeks or longer depending on the person. The second stage is the early production stage. Thru this phase, a child crams to converse using short verses as well as sentences, yet the hassle is still on heeding and spellbinding. At this stage, the learner makes many mistakes (Lightbown & Spada, 2006).
The third stage is the speech emergent stage. Thru this stage, the speech is more regular. The sentences and words become longer. Nonetheless, the novice banks profoundly on situational traces and collective issues. Vocabulary grows while the mistakes become less. The fourth stage of second language acquisition is the beginning fluency. In this stage, speech becomes fairly fluent in social contexts with few errors. At this point the novice brawls with expression as a result of terminology slits and deficiency in applicable sayings.
The fifth stage is referred to as the intermediate fluency. During this stage, the learner becomes more fluent while communicating in the second language, particularly during the social language contexts. The individual becomes fluent in new contexts as well as in academic capacity. Faults diminish and the novice reveals upper order intellectual skills for instance problem resolving as well as offering views.
The sixth stage is known as advanced fluency (Brown, 1994). The stage is characterized by fluency in communication in all contexts by the learner. He/ she can ploy through new contexts without failure. The individual is comfortable while speaking the second language. However, the learner may still have an accent or use idiomatic expression wrongly.
First and second language acquisition portrays several similarities and differences. These are as discussed below.
Similarities
Developmental: In both learning processes, learners follow a pattern of development. Both language acquisition processes have learning processes and stages which learners are expected to go through. The first stage in the learning process is common to both learning processes.
During the first stage of the first language acquisition, children learn to listen to adults and obtain what the native language entails. Same case applies to second language acquisition where the learner cannot communicate but takes in the new language (Brown, 1994). As the learning processes develop in both language acquisition processes, fluency improves. Both processes are characterized by vocabulary gaps in the initial stages which diminish in the latter stages.
Acquisition order: First language acquisition and second language acquisition follow the same course. There is a definite order in acquisition of morphemes in both first language acquisition and second language acquisition. In both processes, learners acquire language rules in a predictable order. Acquisition of questioning words such as whom, what or where, is similar in both the first and second language acquisition.
Input: In both first language acquisition and second language acquisition, input is of high importance. Input is language received or learnt and from which a learner can learn. Learners ought to receive comprehensible input in order to obtain language.
Differences
The acquisition or learning hypothesis: The first language is acquired subconsciously through informal or inherent learning. However, the second language may be acquired naturally or learnt. This is conscious formal and explicit.
The critical period Hypothesis: This hypothesis postulates that there exists “a biologically defined period in life when language can be obtained with more ease and past which language is increasingly difficult to obtain (IPEK, 2009 as cited in Brown, 1994).
This is because various capacities develop according to a fairly set schedule during which language appears in kids when neural, motor, anatomical, functional, and reasoning development allow it to emerge. The critical and biologically determined period of first language acquisition is between the ages of 2-12 years. However the second language acquisition has no age limit when as to when it should be acquired.
Conclusion
In a nutshell, both first language acquisition and second language acquisition processes are important in the development of a human being. The first language acquisition process enables a child to identify with his immediate environment, interact with his peers and elders as well as develop a cultural identity.
On the other hand, second language acquisition helps in cognitive development, improves general understanding, enables flexibility in communication, encourages cross-cultural awareness and helps individuals to retain their cultural identity.
References
Brown, H. D. (1994). Principles of language learning and teaching. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall Regents.
IPEK, H. (2009). Comparing and contrasting first and second language acquisition: Implications for language teachers. English Language Teaching, 2(2), 1-9.
Lightbown, P. M., & Spada, N. (2006). How languages are learned. London, UK: Oxford University Press.