Acculturation
Acculturation is a process in which members of
one cultural group adopt the beliefs and behaviors of another group.
Acculturation is the exchange of cultural features that results when groups
come into continuous firsthand contact Although acculturation is usually in the
direction of a minority group adopting habits and language patterns of the
dominant group, accult uration can be reciprocal--that is, the dominant group
also adopts patterns typical of the minority group. Assimilation of one
cultural group into another may be evidenced by changes in language preference,
adoption of common attitudes and values, members hip in common social groups
and institutions, and loss of separate political or ethnic identification.
J. H. Schumann's acculturation model of SLA
contends that learners will succeed in SLA
only to the extent they acculturate into the group that speaks the target
language natively. Schumann separates instruction from acculturation, and
claims that instruction is a minor variable in the SLA
process compared to acculturation. The acculturation process can, to some
extent, take place in the second language classroom as well as the naturalistic
setting. Despite Schumann's assertions, it is argued that a responsive teacher
can do much to alleviate psychological and sociological distance factors
between the students and the target culture, and responsive teaching may
increase learner receptivity to the target language.
