Analyzing and Understanding Interlanguage

Abstract

The interlanguage theory analyzes the temporary linguistic system that target language (TL) learners develop to express meanings in the TL. A major limitation of this theory is that it claims that only five percent of adult second language (L2) learners achieve full competence. Another limitation is that it compares bilingual speakers with monolingual ones. In spite of these limitations, understanding the cognitive processes of interlanguage: language transfer , transfer of training , strategies of L2 learning , communication strategies , and overgeneralization of L2 rules , as well as its characteristics: permeability , dynamic nature , systematicity , stability , mutual intelligibility , backsliding , and variability , benefits L2 teachers and learners. Recent research challenges the monolingual bias in second language acquisition (SLA) and emphasizes that the interlanguage of most L2 learners is dynamic and not fossilized. There is no critical period for learning syntax, because some adult learners achieve full grammatical mastery of the TL if they receive appropriate grammatical instruction.