Interlanguage

Interlanguage

1. DEFINITION

   • It describes the state of language that has not yet been fully developed by a learner
   • Interlanguage refers to the individual mental grammar of each language learner of a second language who has not yet fully acquired the target language but only approximated to it.
   • As new elements of L2 are acquired, language is tested and assessed.
     • Predictable path
       • Long states that the concept of interlanguage draws from the thought that psychological structures within the learner’s mind constrain the development of the target language.
         • This development from the initial state to target-like use is far from being random but follows a predictable path
     • Overgeneralisation
       • Refers to the phenomenon that language learners who have acquired a certain grammar rule overuse, it by applying it to all contexts even when there are exceptions from that rule.
         • Interlanguage is a crucial feature of any language acquisition, be it first or second language acquisition, be it acquisition in natural or instructed settings.