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1. Introduction
The acquisition and learning of a second language does not occur overnight.
Both involve a process during which the learner develops, through trial and error and
conscious or unconscious contrastive analysis, a number of hypotheses about the new
language and strategies which help them internalise it. As a result, each learner starts to
build their own version of the new language, which has been called since the seventies
interlanguage.
Much like the word suggests, an interlanguage is an intermediate language that students
develop between their native language (L1) and the target language (L2).
This interlanguage has its own grammar, its own lexicon, its own phonetic rules, etc. Most
ESL and EFL students develop an interlanguage that reflects the differences between their
mother tongue and the L2 and highlights the specific challenges they face in acquiring the
latter. Consequently, this interlanguage presents a unique set of challenges for both
teachers and language learners.
In the following pages we will analyse some data obtained from learners’ work (which can
be found in the corresponding appendices) in order to see what features of their
interlanguage is portrayed in them.
Case 1 (The corresponding data can be found in Appendix 1)
1- Work out an IL generalization that might account for the forms in boldface. Give your
reasons for postulating this generalization.
From what we have read about on this subject, our opinion is that these students are
overgeneralizing the rules about the use of gerunds, past tense participles and adjectives
as nouns in English, studied in class. These sentences are incorrect because they are
using verbs (gerunds and past participle) and adjectives instead of using nouns. We must
remember that students tend to use the forms that they already know rather than try out
the ones that they are not sure of, maybe it was a previous lesson and they kept it in mind.
These mistakes may also reflect cultural differences since the students come from
different countries and cultures. According to Johnson (1995) these mistakes can be

2. considered a fossilizable linguistic phenomenon because they aren’t able of using the
correct grammar forms since they are only able to use the already mastered topics
Some second language learners tend to keep the linguistic items, rules and subsystems of
a particular native language in their interlanguage relative to a particular second language,
no matter what the age of the learner or amount of explanation and instruction he receives
in the target language. In addition, English is a language with a very complicated verb
system. Important information in English is performed by auxiliaries and by verb
inflections. For example, the verb ‘to be’ in English can be used to convey a progressive
aspect such as I am brushing my teeth or with the passive voice. In addition, the verb have
can convey a perfect aspect, such as in the sentence I have become a man. So we
conclude that second language learners’ backgrounds have a strong tendency toward
making mistakes or even develop fossilization in the target language. Speakers of different
mother tongues do, in fact, make different mistakes, and if these mistakes do appear to be
related to structures in the mother tongue, then it would seem reasonable to speak of
interference errors.
2- What strategy/strategies do you think these learners have come up with regarding
lexical use?
Lexical use seems to represent one of the major problems second language learners face
in learning English. One of the factors attributable to the learners' lexical problems may be
in large part due to the use of the L1 as a medium of instruction in teaching English, the
environment surrounding these students or their cultures. These students show that most
of the lexical deviations are traceable to both problems with the target language itself
(intralingual) and transfer effects from the native language (interlingual).
It is not surprising that the students who have limited experience in English may face
difficulties expanding and using vocabulary appropriately in different contexts. In order to
overcome these difficulties, they might have resorted to different strategies. However,
because of their insufficient and imperfect knowledge of English, the students produced
deviant lexical items. Although the high occurrence of the problematic uses might not
necessarily mean that they have great difficulties with those areas, the potential sources of
problems must be given special consideration in language instruction so the teacher will

3. be able to help them to overcome these problems. All of them need the assistance of the
teacher in order to cope with these situations.
Another strategy used by these students includes literal translation from L1 to L2 while
trying to use the language appropriately. These errors are a consequence of the students’
strategy of using his/her limited knowledge in order to communicate properly with other
people.
3- What additional information, if any, would you like to have from these learners to test
your hypothesis?
In the classroom context, we would like to know more about the students like their family
background, their mother tongue and the amount of input they receive or even if they are
corrected when they make a mistake, the perceptions, beliefs, attitudes, and metacognitive
awareness that students bring with them to the learning situation and the teacher
methodologies to deal with these situations. All of them have been recognized as
significant factors in the learning process and ultimate success (Duff, 1986).
For example, second or foreign language students may hold strong beliefs about the
nature of the language under study, its difficulty, the process of its acquisition, the success
of certain learning strategies, the existence of aptitude, their own expectations about
achievement and teaching methodologies. Identification of these beliefs and reflection on
their potential impact on language learning and teaching in general, as well as in more
specific areas such as the learners' expectations and strategies used, can inform future
syllabus design and teacher practice in the course. Pedagogy has the capacity to provide
the opportunities and conditions within which these learner contributions are found to have
a positive effect upon learning and may be more fully engaged. (Ellis, 1984)
Conclusion
In the above analysis we have seen the influence that the different features of
interlanguage have in the learners’ oral and written production. These features have a
double capacity of enhancing and hindering second language acquisition, i.e. students
may benefit by knowing that some rules can be generalized or through contrasting both

4. their L1 and L2, but this is not sufficient to achieve a native-like proficiency.
In the case of English, the complexity of its syntax, morphology and phonology due to its
almost hybrid origins (with the influence of different language families like Germanic, Latin
and Celtic) make of it a language difficult to understand. For learners whose L1 is Spanish
they might find some similarities associated to their Latin origins, and then tend to
generalise some rules. However, this can be deceiving as it usually happens with
cognates or false friends.
We have looked at the concept of interlanguage, which sees learners as constructing their
own grammatical systems. These systems are learner-driven rather than teacher-driven -
the learner progresses through employing a number of different strategies, some of which
are based upon their L1 acquisition, some of which are based upon their desire to
communicate. We have also seen that learners of a second language tend to fossilize,
retaining certain errors while progressing in the second language acquisition.
At the lexical level, general words are substituted for particular words. For example, house
might be substituted for home and parents might be used to describe the members of a
family. At the discourse level, ESL and EFL students have difficulty mastering the social
contexts in which to use a certain expression or colloquialism.
To understand how ESL or EFL students’ interlanguage develops provides both students
and teachers with specific tools to move continually towards L2 proficiency
Bibliography
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➢ ELLIS, R., 1984. Classroom second language development. Oxford: Pergamon Press.
➢ FARRAR EMERSON, O., 2005. The history of the English language. Elibron Classics
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➢ YULE, G. 1999. Explaining English Grammar. Oxford University Press.