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Second Language Research on Individual Differences

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 November 2008

Rebecca L. Oxford  and
Madeline Ehrman
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Extract

To provide the most effective instruction possible, teachers of a second language (L2) should learn to identify and comprehend significant individual differences in their students. Many excellent teachers have learned to do some of this intuitively, but explicit understanding of individual-difference dimensions can enhance the work of all teachers. Among the most important such variations are differences associated with nine factors: aptitude, motivation, anxiety, selfesteem, tolerance of ambiguity, risk-taking, language learning styles, age, and gender. All of these variables and many more have been shown to be related to L2 learning in various ways. In fact, Gradman and Hanania (1991) identify 22 individual-difference variables that can affect success in learning a new language.

Type
The Role of the Language Learner
Information
Annual Review of Applied Linguistics , Volume 13 , March 1992 , pp. 188 - 205
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1992

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