Identifying Native Language Difficulties Among Foreign Language Learners in College: A "Foreign" Language Learning Disability?

Comparisons of successful and unsuccessful college foreign language learners on measures of intelligence, foreign language aptitude, native oral and written language, and math suggest that students with foreign language learning difficulties may have underlying native language problems manifested especially in the areas of syntax and phonology.

Abstract

The present study compared successful and unsuccessful college foreign language learners on measures of intelligence, foreign language aptitude, native oral and written language, and math. Unsuccessful students had received petitions to waive the foreign language requirement. No significant differences between groups were found on intelligence and reading comprehension. Significant differences were found on the Modern Language Aptitude Test, on tests of written and oral language in the syntactic and phonological domains, and on math calculation. Authors suggest that students with foreign language learning difficulties may have underlying native language problems manifested especially in the areas of syntax and phonology. Suggestions for diagnosing a foreign language disability are made.