HINDERANCES OF SECOND LANGUAGE COMPETENCE AND STUDENT ACCULTURATION: THE CASE OF INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS

Abstract

The present research presents the effects of second language competence on student acculturation and adjustment in learning second language. The study stems from a view of globalization as a key factor in today’s higher education considering, for instance, the rapid increase of overseas students over the years. A fundamental aspect of studying in a new country is the stipulation of interacting in a different language. With the spread of English as a lingua franca, a large part of the programs taught overseas is undertaken in English. Shedding light on this, the current paper provides a review of recent research efforts aimed at exploring the effects of second language competence on international students’ acculturation and academic success. When students have to write in English language, they face a lot of problems in writing. The present research would analyze those problems that students face in writing and present the reasons and recommendations to get rid of these problems. In creating English composition, students mostly face problems in syntax due to their poor grammar and lack of concepts of grammar. But some issues faced by students are of spelling errors. Two theories are being used as theoretical framework. First is Pit Corder’s theory of error analysis (1960) and second Lary Selinker’s theory of inter language (1972). Methodology of the present research include creative test taken from intermediate students and interview taken from some of the students of intermediate to find out difficulties that students face in writing. Analysis of the data revealed the issues that students face and reasons of those problems and at the end, there are some recommendation to cope up with these issues.