Acquisition vs Learning: Main Different Aspects 

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     "The term 'acquisition' is used to refer to picking up second language through exposure, whereas the term 'learning' is used to refer to the conscious study of a second language" (Ellis, 1999). Acquisition and learning cover a huge range of similar definitions because the processes reach the same objective which is gain the knowledge of a new language. Likewise, both terms include the learning or acquiring of the morph syntax. The mastering of those rules or elements of the new language depends on the effort of students but it is not the only factor. Therefore, acquisition and learning look as synonyms because they achieve the same goal but they differ in some aspects like age, settings, and sociocultural factors.  

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     Age influences in the learning and acquisition of a language because having a prior knowledge interferes with the study of a second language. Older learners have developed more their problem-solving and metalinguistic abilities than children but they also have lost the innate acquisition ability that young children has (Lightbown & Spada, 2006). Therefore, children have that ability to acquire in an informal setting if they have enough exposure to the language while older learners must learn consciously in a classroom with a limited exposure and the pressure of speak faster than the kids. However, the age in which learners acquire or learn the second language brings some consequences on their pronunciation. Children achieve a native accent while adults require the double of exposure to reach the same pronunciation. Having the knowledge of the first language and developed cognitive skills helps old learners to reach higher proficiency in grammar than young learners. The mastery depends on the setting in which they develop their skills.  

 

     The settings determine the time of exposure the learner involved the language in his life. Natural settings help learners to achieve a greater proficiency than the limited educational settings (Ellis, 1994, p.228). The two types of settings (i.e., the formal [educational] and informal [natural]), interfered proficiency because the formal learning is based on the conscious mastery of each topic and rules while the informal acquisition emphasized the social significance of what is being learnt. This exposure also defines the type of mastery in the learners (Scribner & Cole, 1973 as cited in Ellis, 1994). The informal learners acquire a better pronunciation and a variety of real contexts while the formal become more grammatically accurate. In the same way, this occurs because in an informal setting errors are ignored if they do not interfere with the message, for this reason sociocultural factors must not be overlooked.   

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     Sociocultural factors impact indirectly the learning outcomes because they determine the learning opportunities that each learner has. Acculturation is the way learners vary their language in order to fit in certain situation or environment (Schumann, 1978 as cited in Ellis, 1994). Specifically, second language learners change their language depending on the place or people they are relating to. Social class intrudes in both learning and acquisition because the more knowledge of the first language a learner has the more he will develop in the second. For this reason the favored and disfavored learners depend on their geographically area and the time of exposure to the language they have. However, when an appropriate setting appears the learner develops his skills and the sociocultural factors do not obstruct.  

 

     The relation between these terms (i.e. acquisition and learning) is that they benefit the acquisition or learning of a second language nevertheless, their little differences are in age, settings and sociocultural factors. All these aspects influence in the learner choices which impact the way the apprentice is developing his/her basic interpersonal communication skills and his cognitive academic language proficiency. For this reason, the teacher role is to identify the learner needs taking into account these aspects and take advantage of them. Likewise, the student need to benefit from all these main different aspects between learning and acquisition to achieve a great proficiency in the second language. Finally, mastering a second language also makes it easier to learn a third, fourth, which will broaden the horizons not only to the brain but also to the soul. 

  

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References 

Ellis, R. (1994). The study of second language acquisition. Oxford: Oxford University         Press. 

 

Ellis, R. (1999). Understanding second language acquisition. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 

 

Lightbown, P. M. & Spada, N. (2006). How languages are learned. Oxford: Oxford University Press.