The study of the ways in which people learn a new language seems to center on native English speakers who learn a foreign language and on those who learn English as a second language. As both groups are usually composed of adults, the studies explore a different area than may be studied among children who learn the language of their parents. Anyone who has had the experience of learning another
. language can identify with the levels of difficulty that one encounters in such study. Adults who choose to learn English as a second language have an equally challenging task, although it may be more difficult in some ways. The irregular nature of English makes it more difficult to learn than many of the Romance languages, for example, because they tend to be much more regular in structure and pronunciation. Some learners seem to have a natural aptitude for adapting easily to the acquisition of a new language. A site at http://esl.fis.edu/parents/advice/styles.htm offers explanations of some of the learning styles that people use to acquire information about anything, including but not limited to language. Some of the more common categories include visual learners and auditory learners as well as tactile learners and several other categories. There are many students who do not take in information well unless they see it and others who need to hear something before they can learn it. Eight major categories of learning styles are illustrated and discussed here. Lingua Links at http://www.sil.org/lingualinks/languagelearning/otherresources/gudlnsfralnggandcltrlrnngprgrm/StagesOfLanguageLearning.htm describes what a learner is likely to be able to do at various stages. At the first stage, he is not able to understand much of anything and he has almost no speaking ability. In the second stage, a learner can speak about tasks that can be predicted. In three, he can engage in a conversation about ordinary things, and he can discuss abstract ideas in stage four. More Reference Links: http://www.sil.org/lingualinks/languagelearning/otherresources/gudlnsfralnggandcltrlrnngprgrm/StagesOfLanguageLearning.htm http://esl.fis.edu/parents/advice/styles.htm
