Article Title：Social factors and language proficiency in postsecondary Spanish immersion: Issues and implications
Abstract：
A number of SLA studies indicate that social factors play a crucial role in the language use and performance of second-language learners participating in immersion experiences. Tarone and Swain (1995) described the impact of social pressures in the language choice of primary-level learners, indicating that issues of identity and group acceptance may impede use of the immersion language in informal interaction since learners lack a socially-appropiate vernacular. We suggest that social factors conditioning language use and performance are very important at the postsecondary level as well, but the impact of these factors on adult-age learners is of a quite different nature. The diglossic situation created in many primary-level immersion classrooms appears to be the most acceptable norm in encounters both inside and outside of the classroom, leading to immersion 'societies' which benefit those participants who already demonstrate higher levels of proficiency in both academic and non-academic interactions with more advanced learners and, on socio-psychological grounds, impeding their L2 acquisition. Theoretical and pedagogical implications for postsecondary level immersion programs are addressed.
Keywords: immersion learning; second language proficiency; Spanish second language acquisition; social factors in second language learning
DOI: 10.2307/3657811
Source：HISPANIA-A JOURNAL DEVOTED TO THE TEACHING OF SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE
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