Language Ideologies and Language Learning Myths
In the last section you learned about the idea that you don’t need to speak a language perfectly to communicate, in a way breaking a barrier on something that many believe to be a fact in some way or another. Maybe you know that you don’t need to be perfect, but you still think you need at least a year or two in a language class before you begin trying to speak. Or maybe you think that you need more time with “harder” languages. Perhaps you think you’ll never be able to speak like a native, so you are discouraged to try. These are examples of language ideologies.
What are language Ideologies?
Nod and smile if you ever assumed one or many of the following to be true:
- Some languages are more difficult than others.
- Some languages are inherently more logical and beautiful than others.
- Some languages sound funnier than others.
- There is always a proper way of articulating a word in target language.
- The best kind of language is produced by native speakers.
- The best way to learn a language is immersion or study abroad.
Keep smiling and read on.
These assumptions are just a few of the widely held beliefs about language, common to all human societies. These beliefs are called language ideologies. Michael Silverstein, one of the leading figures in linguistic anthropology, defined these ideologies as, “sets of beliefs about language articulated by users as a rationalization or justification of perceived language structure and use” (Silverstein, 1979, p. 193). Interestingly, these ideologies are ubiquitous but they do not come from human reasoning. Instead, they show us how people feel about and perceive a particular language or languages in general.
Do Language Ideologies Matter?
Imagine a scenario where a job applicant is judged in a job interview based on their use of regional dialect, despite being highly qualified. It implies that the interviewer holds a standard-language ideology and interviewee’s dialect is considered less prestigious and professional.
To know more about the case of Pakistan, read an opinion by Punjani and Khan (2020).
I have a disclaimer here i.e., language ideologies do not always impact negatively. If they are constructive and progressive beliefs, these ideologies can bring a massive change in making the world more beautiful and diverse for all. Language ideologies are game changers! To imagine the power of a language ideology that believes in preserving endangered and local language, look at the UNESCO’s project in Amazon region for safeguarding the linguistic and cultural heritage.
This also hints towards a language ideology shining through in this book. Our ideology promotes the message that every language matters. For example, efforts should be made to preserve endangered languages. To answer the question, does language ideology matter, it is imperative to understand that these beliefs shape our identities and drive the course of social actions as well. Think about it – the way we perceive and talk about languages influence everything, from high fives to chat messages to even job interviews
Language Learning Myths: Questioning the Obvious
Language ideologies are everywhere and I want you to notice that these language ideologies contribute to your own language learning process as well. For example, if you think Hebrew is a very complex language, you will probably not learn it. Similarly, if you have the same impression that language learning is difficult, listen to this TedTalk by Mathew Youlden who explains that learning any language can be an easy task if one starts the journey with questioning their own myths.
Dear friends, since this is the first chapter of this book, let’s take the opportunity to debunk some obvious myths towards language learning. For example, in the last section we saw that we can communicate even when we feel that we do not know a language enough to do so. Communication is limited to language is one of the common myths. Let’s explore what some of the other ones are.
Myth 1: You can only learn easily when you are young, I’m too old now
If someone says any of the following:
- Babies learn faster than adults.
- Learning a language is easier for children.
- The best time to learn a language is one’s initial years of life
They are referring to critical period hypothesis. There is a big discussion in Second Language Acquisition (SLA) that age plays a great role in learning languages, but what exactly is the role remains a debate among scholars. Penfield and Roberts (1959) first proposed this hypothesis that our ability to learn languages gets diminished after a biologically determined phase. The hypothesis also capitalizes on a notion that the sooner the better predicts the learning process of language easy for children.
However, this remains only a hypothesis to this day!
Yes, it’s true that children tend to learn in a naturalistic and immersive environment, unlike adults who tend to put themselves in a conscious state of mind to learn a language. But many adults learn languages very well! It is never late to learn whatever you wish to.
Also, saying that it is ‘easy’ for children to learn a language is debatable. After constant input and motherese, it takes babies several months to say their first word and kids several years to develop their first language completely. Let’s say 4-6 years! So is it really that easy for children? Similarly, it is not a one-night transformation for adults either. Language learning can take a lot of time and that’s okay. Adults have the advantage of being able to consciously dedicate themselves to the task. In short, it is completely possible to learn a language at any age you wish to do so.
If you want to know more about this topic, listen to Kaitlyn Tagarelli on Am I too old to learn a new language?
Myth 2: You can, but only if you have language in your DNA.
Maybe you have heard some people saying one or more of the following:
- Some people are better at languages than others.
- Languages come so naturally to her.
- I have a gift for languages.
It is true that some people exhibit remarkable progress at learning language but does it mean that some people have a language in their DNA? No, it is not. Instead, it is about language learning aptitude and motivation people have towards a language. In simple words, it is more like learning any other skill like cycling, knitting, or baking. If you have a desire and a way to do it, you will learn it.
Language learning aptitude is a prediction of how well you can do in different skills of learning a language. For example, some learners can differentiate subtle sound changes and produce them well instantly because of their previous language background or some other reasons. They will have benefit of learning tonal languages like Chinese or Vietnamese and their learning speed may be greater than those who struggle to discern sounds.
Myth 3: All you need is… Grammar and Vocabulary
[Beep sound please] This is a big myth!
It is true that both grammar and vocabulary are essential parts of language but they are not everything. Imagine you want to learn how to drive but you focus only on learning the different parts of the car. Would that be enough? You surely need to know what the engine and brakes are but what matters more in this case is whether you can hit the brake when the traffic light turns red or not.
Similarly, while grammar and vocabulary are the ABCs of language, you still need creative, interactive practice to learn to communicate in it. Unfortunately, most language learning settings stress upon ABCs and this kind of explicit learning can support the ideology of prescriptivism that tells us the ‘correct’ and ‘incorrect’ use of language and emphasizes adhering strictly to standardized rules. This ‘should-do’ and ‘must-do’ideology can limit learners from jumping into communication. Remember that language is a social activity; while it is fine to start with some ‘shoulds’ (typical forms of the language), it is equally important to discover some ‘coulds’ (possibilities for using the language) as well to understand the purpose of language learning, i.e., communication.
Myth 4: Choose one or the other! language must be pure!
Imagine Maria is learning Spanish in the US. It is her first year of learning and she has developed remarkable conversational fluency in Spanish. Her first language is English and when she talks to her friends who either know or are learning Spanish with her, her conversations look like this…
Maria: Hola, que tal?
Anthony: Hey Maria, I’m alright, but life’s been busy lately.
Maria: Vale, a veces work can be really stressful.
Anthony: I agree and you know the deadline for the final project is also approaching.
Maria: Oh, don’t remind me of that. El trabajo nunca se acaba
Notice how seamlessly Maria mixes two languages. This process of mixing languages is called translanguaging. This is a theoretical lens that views languages as a dynamic, flexible, and fluid systems for communication. It is us who label languages as Spanish, English, Arabic, French, etc for the purpose of using them in specific communities but the bilingual brain does not store two languages as different systems.
As Garcia (2017) further explains it, “… there are not two interdependent language systems that bilinguals shuttle between, but rather one semiotic system integrating various lexical, morphological, and grammatical linguistic features in addition to social practices and features…” (p. 5).
If you are getting to know this idea for the first time, you must be muttering “WHAT is THIS?” and your brain might trick you here with the ideology of linguistic purism. It is also possible that you feel stressed and pressured about keeping your target language expression free from the impurities of your first language, but rest assured that blending two or more languages is a normal and human activity for multilinguals. In other words, you don’t have to choose unless you choose to!
If you want to know more about translanguaging, listen to Eowyn Crisfield, What is translanguaging, really?
Myth 5: I need to sound like a native speaker
I have heard so many times fellow students in L2 classes say stuff like “I don’t want to be disrespectful” or “I don’t want to sound dumb” when it comes to pronouncing words in other languages. Think about it – in the Pacific Northwest we have an accent compared to that of the East coast, South, or Midwestern United States. We all speak the same language but pronounce things differently based on where we are from. Sometimes even internationally, You probably wouldn’t think to correct the way a Canadian says “about” or correct the way an Australian says “under,” because you know that is the way the way people from those places speak, it’s just their accent. So why is it when a Spanish speaker speaks English with a “Spanish” accent it suddenly becomes a problem? Why is the solution to this “problem” always to correct the accent? We don’t correct Canadians or people from the East Coast, so why are certain types of accents okay and not others?
The idea of ‘proper’ pronunciation’ comes from an ideology called nativespeakerism, another one of those things that exists due to power i.e., the power of native speaker over non-native. The neo-racist ideology was first used by Halliday (2005) for English language learning and English language teaching. However, it is not restricted to only one language anymore.
Now ask yourself where you learn how to pronounce things in your L2. Your language teacher? Social Media? Your Parents? Where do you think your parents or language teacher learned that pronunciation from? Probably from their parents or language teacher, the further back you go you realize that “proper” pronunciation is just which ever pronunciation was most used and or accepted for a given time by the people who were called “native” speakers of a particular language.
This is a damaging belief, dear readers. If you restrict yourself to this discriminatory language ideology, know that you are limiting your chances of growth and endless possibilities in language learning. Every accent is unique and beautiful; your efforts do not deserve biases and prejudice. They are the sign that you are courageous and resilient enough to step out and embrace a different language.
“Do you know what a foreign accent is? It’s a sign of bravery”. – Amy Chua
A set of shared beliefs and feelings about language that connects language and society.
A variation of a language specific to a certain geographical location or region.
"A bias toward an abstract, idealized homogenous language, which is imposed and maintained by dominant institutions" (Lippi-Green, 1997)
Having a high level of regard. Within sociolinguistics, the variety of prestige is considered the most "correct" by those in power and society.
Languages in danger of losing all speakers and disappearing.
Related to Standard-Language Ideology, this is the prescriptive practice of describing one language variety as being the most "correct" or most "pure", and therefore of higher value that other varieties.