Factors that Influence Language Learning for children
1. Motivation ; Is the child being forced to learn, or do they want to learn the language?
When a child understands the importance of understanding a language and can see how it directly
applies to their life, they learn faster. We’ve found that a contextual, theme-based curriculum can
help get students more excited to dive into language learning. When they are interested in
learning a language and they see meaningful connections to their lives, they begin to take risks to
produce language, which helps them to acquire it faster.
2. Support at Home ; Is another language spoken at the child’s home? What’s their exposure level
to different languages?
We’ve found that exposure is an important factor in language comprehension and acquisition. If a
child’s family only speaks one language, are they able to provide help when the student needs it?
It also matters how much value parents place in learning an additional language. Parents who
prioritize language learning are more likely to push their child to keep trying even when it feels
difficult.
3. Prior Linguistic Knowledge ; Is the language they’re learning their first foreign language?
Once a child has studied and acquired a language, their skill at learning another will increase.
Language learners have the ability to translate skills from one language to another because
they’re able to recognize the rules and patterns of language, even if the vocabulary is different.
4. Learning Environment ; How does the child feel in the classroom?
Another key factor is how comfortable students feel in their language learning environment. Does
their classroom feel cold and tense, or positive and relaxing? What’s the school’s culture and
beliefs about language learning? We’ve found that a student’s learning environment has an
impact on their motivation—a low anxiety language learning environment increases the chance
for acquisition.
5. Teaching Strategies ; How is the language taught?
The strategies a language teacher uses have a big impact on language learning. How does the
teacher help students understand the concepts of a language? How does the teacher take
different learning styles into account, as well as different levels of comprehension? For example,
watching a film in the target language and writing and performing skits in the target language
reach multiple learning styles. Offering an immersion experience helps students connect the
language learning to their everyday lives, but rote vocabulary memorization and grammar drills
create 'meaning-less' language lessons.
6. Comprehensible Input ; How attainable does the language feel to the student?
Linguist Stephen Krashen is known for developing the input hypothesis of second-language
acquisition. In this context, the titular “input” is the language curriculum. Krashen wrote that
teaching at just any level of difficulty isn’t sufficient: the input received by a student must be
comprehensible. In other words, the curriculum must reach a child at their current level and
challenge them with activities and just 1 level beyond their current stage. If the material feels out
of reach, the student can feel “shut down” and have trouble engaging with the lesson. To make
sure that students feel motivated to learn, it’s important to ensure that they feel like they have
the ability to progress to the next level of learning.
7. Student Personality ; Is the student introverted or extroverted?
A student’s personality can affect how they learn a second language. More introverted students
have been shown to take longer to acquire a language because they’re more hesitant to make
mistakes. Extroverted students, on the other hand, are more likely to go out on a limb and try out
their newly learned vocabulary. To ensure that both personality types succeed, it’s important to
create an environment where students understand that mistakes are part of the learning process
and it’s more important to speak than to be perfect.
8. Age ; How old is a student when they start learning a foreign language?
While students of all ages can learn a foreign language, there is consensus that certain aspects are
affected by the age of the learner. It becomes harder for students to have native pronunciation
from the teen years. Some students also find that it’s more difficult to fully acquire a foreign
language as they get older, but this isn’t true of everyone.
9. Comfort in their Country of Residence ; How happy are students in the country where they are
studying a language?
A final factor in language learning is the child’s comfort in the current country of residence. Most
children move to a new country because of a parent's job, not by choice. As a result, their
motivation to learn a new language can depend on whether they’re happy to be in a new place, or
if they’ve come kicking and screaming. Luckily, even if a child is unhappy at first, their attitude can
shift if they feel welcomed by their teachers and supported by their parents
