Ling 122: English as a World Language

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Ling 122 English as a World Language 15

• Language Contact Bilingualism and Code Switching
• Readings
• Johnson
• Zentella

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Language Contact

• A situation that arises when
• two or more languages are spoken in the same or
  adjoining regions
• And
• when there is a high degree of communication
  between the people speaking them
• Can result in
• Language loss or even language death
• Bi- / multilingualism
• Language change

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Bilingualism (Multilingualism)

• Individual Bilingualism the use of two (or
  more) languages by an individual
• E.g., an individual who speaks both English and
  Spanish as described by many of the informants in
  the Hinton article
• Societal Bilingualism the use of two (or more)
  languages within a given community
• E.g., the bilingual setting in India, Canada,
  Switzerland, Malaysia, etc.

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Societal Bilingualism

• Identify a community here in California that you
  are familiar with.
• From your impressions, what languages are used?
  In what domains?

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Describing Individual Bilingualism
Multilingualism

• The term bilingualism may mean different things
  to different people.
• To the average person, bilingualism can be
  loosely defined as
• the use of two languages or
• the native-like control of two languages.

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What it means to be bilingual

• 75 of the worlds population speak two or more
  languages.
• Not all bilinguals speak two languages at the
  same level.
• By the age of 2.5, a bilingual child begins to
  make choices in language use, usually the
  majority language.
• Parents who want their children to retain their
  heritage language must work at it.
• In the U.S. immigrants are strongly urged to
  assimilate and discourages from retaining their
  heritage language.
• That is a national loss.

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Describing Individual Bilingualism

• Bilingualism has often been defined in terms of
  language competence. But a definition of
  bilingualism must also account for the impact of
  social, psychological and cultural variables on
  the bilingual individual.
• How did you (or someone you know) become
  bilingual?
• What is your (their) proficiency in each
  language?
• When do you (they) use each language?

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Describing Bilingualism Multilingualism

• Is someone bilingual who
• has a slight non-native accent in one or both
  languages?
• makes occasional errors of syntax in one or both
  languages?
• doesnt always know the right word to use in one
  or both languages?
• speaks both languages fluently but is culturally
  comfortable in only one language?

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Describing Bilingualism Multilingualism

• Five important variables in relation to
  bilingualism
• 1 degree of bilingualism
• 2 context of bilingual language acquisition
• 3 age of acquisition
• 4 domain of use of each language
• 5 social orientation

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Degree of Bilingualism - Definitions

• Bloomfield (1933) native-like control of two
  languages (maximalist)
• Mackey (1962) the ability to use more than one
  language (minimalist)
• Weinriech (1953) the practice of alternately
  using two languages (minimalist)
• Haugen (1953) the point where a speaker can
  first produce complete meaningful utterances in
  the other language (minimalist)
• Maximalist approach describes the ideal
  bilingual (not reality)
• Macnamara (1969) need to discuss the degree of
  bilingualism / competence in sub-components (LSRW)

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Degree of Bilingualism -

• Rate your own bilingual abilities (1 weak 5
  excellent) in your two languages
• Lg A Lg B
• Listening
• Speaking
• Reading
• Writing

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Degree of Bilingualism Balanced Bilinguals

• Individuals fully competent in both languages
  (Lambert et al. 1959)
• Almost impossible to achieve (Baetens Beardsmore
  1982)
• Sociolinguistic forces demand that bilinguals
  organize their languages in functionally
  complementary spheres. No society needs two
  languages to perform the same set of functions.
  Balanced bilingualism entails the death of
  bilingualism. (Fishman 1972)

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Degree of Bilingualism Dominant Bilinguals

• Individuals who are dominant in one language.
• Less dominant language subordinate.
• Dominance does not apply to all domains.
• One may be dominant in the subordinate language
  in some domains.

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Degree of Bilingualism Passive / Recessive
Bilinguals

• Individuals who are gradually losing competence
  in one language, usually because of disuse.
• common among immigrant groups
• often loose productive skills while retaining
  receptive skills

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Degree of Bilingualism Semilinguals / Limited
Bilinguals

• Individuals who appear to have limited
  proficiency in both languages. Deficit in six
  language competencies
• size of vocabulary
• correctness of language
• unconscious processing of language (automation)
• language creation
• mastery of the functions of language (e.g.,
  emotive, cognitive)
• meanings and imagery

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Context of Bilingual Language Acquisition

• Individual who are labeled as limited
  bilinguals are usually from lower SES groups.
  Their language proficiency is the result of their
  SES and not some cognitive deficit.
• Can you think of individuals you know who might
  fit into some of the categories listed above?

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Context of Bilingual Language Acquisition

• Primary context / natural bilingualism
  situations in which a child acquires both
  languages in a naturalistic setting without any
  structured instruction
• Secondary context / school bilingualism
  situations in which a child acquires one of the
  languages in a structured setting, usually school.

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Context of Bilingual Language Acquisition

• Naturalistic fused setting no separation of
  context for both languages child is exposed to
  both languages in the same context.
• Naturalistic separate setting one parent, one
  language model but also applies to other
  interlocutors, i.e., siblings, peers,
  grandparents, etc.

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Context of Bilingual Language Acquisition

• Elective bilinguals individuals who have some
  element of choice about learning a second
  language.
• Circumstantial bilinguals individuals who have
  no choice about learning a second language
  indigenous colonized or minority groups.
• Distinction is important especially with respect
  to how bilinguals are measured.

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Age of Acquisition

• Sensitive age for language learning (from
  Lennebergs 1967 critical period) We have a
  superior language learning capacity early in life
  which will disappear or decline with maturation.
• evidence for exceptions
• no clear cut-off age
• Important references on age acquisition
• Birdsong, D. 1992. Ultimate attainment in second
  language acquisition. Language 684 706-755
• Birdsong, D. 2005. Interpreting age effects in
  second language acquisition, In J. Kroll A De
  Groot, eds., Handbook of bilingualism
  Psycholinguistic approaches. New York Oxford
  University Press.

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Age of Acquisition

• Possible factors
• neurological
• aptitudes
• attitude
• identity and motivation
• nature of exposure
• What is a native speaker?

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Age of Acquisition

• Rate your competence in your first language in
  the four macro skills (LSRW). Are you equally
  competent in all skills? What would be considered
  native-like proficiency for a learner of that
  language? What levels of competence do you expect
  native speakers to have?
• Who would you rule out as a native speaker? What
  standards of norms do you use in your assessment?
  (Consider someone brought up in India or the
  Philippines who speaks English as a first
  language. Would you consider that person a native
  speaker?)

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Domains of Use

• Domains the different spheres of influence in a
  speakers life
• Family
• Friendship
• Religion
• Education
• Employment
• etc.

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Domains of Use

• Interlocutors a language relationship tends to
  evolve naturally. And once established, it is
  usually not easy to alter
• Place or Location work vs. home physical
  location like neighborhoods
• Topic language of technical discourse or
  cooking, gardening, etc.

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Social Orientation

• Attitudes of bilinguals toward their bilingual
  status
• Attitudes toward the larger community
• Attitudes of the larger community toward them and
  their bilingual status.

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Additive vs. Subtractive Bilingualism

• Subtractive bilingualism / differential
  bilingualism Without first language support, the
  learning of a new language may entail the loss of
  that first language.
• Additive bilingualism an environment conducive
  to the development of the first language as well
  as the development of the second language results
  in the maintenance of both.

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Code Switching The case of Spanglish Ana
Celia Zentella

• Code switching The juxtaposition within the same
  speech exchange of passages belonging to two
  different grammatical systems or subsystems
  (Gumperz 1982)
• Lexical borrowing Words from one system adapted
  phonologically and morph-syntactically and used
  regularly in another system and

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Why switch? On the spot variables

• The linguistic proficiency of the person(s) to
  whom one is speaking
• The language requirements of the setting, i.e.,
  speak the language that is spoken to one

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Why switch? In the head variables

• Where to switch
• Switch at turn points
• Switch within a turn
• Switch to co-construct a unique identity
• Footing (re-alignment)
• Speaker to quoter friend to protector narrator
  to evaluator
• Clarification
• Check for approval, attention, or hearers
  knowledge

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Why switch?Out of the mouth variables

• Ones own language proficiency
• Lexical limitations
• Syntactic constraints

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Zentellas conclusions

• English-Spanish switching is a creative style of
  bilingual communication
• To negotiate meaning with each other
• To construct a unique identity
• To realign footing
• To clarify
• To emphasize a message
• To control the interlocutor
• Code switching was a way of saying that one
  belongs to both worlds

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Discussion

• Code switching is especially noticeable to those
  who dont speak one of the languages involved in
  the switching, yet even monolinguals engage in
  style shifting, moving from one style or variety
  of their language to another (for example, when a
  minister or politician who is speaking Standard
  English switches to a regional or ethnic dialect
  for humor or to make a point). When do you shift
  styles? Why? Can you give an example?