This blog post examines errors made by Korean language learners and their educational significance, focusing on the concept of an intermediate language.
As Korean society develops, it’s common to encounter people using Korean as a second language. They learn Korean for various reasons: academics, employment, international marriage, or simply to experience Korean culture. These learners, each with distinct purposes, acquire Korean according to their backgrounds and exhibit differences in how they use the language. When the first language acquired at birth is termed L1, and languages learned after acquiring L1 are termed L2, Korean becomes an L2 for these learners.
In language acquisition research, the unique linguistic forms that emerge during the process of learning an L2 are called an intermediate language. An intermediate language refers to a linguistic system that is neither the learner’s native language (L1) nor the second language (L2), but partially incorporates elements of both languages. The structure of the interlanguage is generally simpler than that of the target language (L2), and learners gradually develop the interlanguage with L2 as their goal. During this process, learners produce various errors; these errors are an inevitable phenomenon arising from the learner’s struggle to approach L2.
Communication barriers can occur between native Korean speakers (L1) and L2 learners because they do not share the same langue. Here, ‘langue’ refers to the totality of linguistic rules shared by members of the same language community. This langue enables speakers of the same language to converse without major communication problems. For example, dialect speakers in Seoul and Busan can easily converse even if they don’t speak perfectly identical Korean, precisely because they share the same Korean langue. Conversely, learners using an interlanguage do not form a unified langue because each individually constructs their own distinct interlanguage system.
Therefore, a learner’s interlanguage is merely a language in the process of developing toward the target L2; it varies between learners and lacks fixed rules. Consequently, people learning Korean as an L2 do not use entirely consistent rules with each other. For example, when learners whose L1 is English and learners whose L1 is Chinese learn Korean, they both strive to follow Korean’s basic rules. However, influenced by their respective L1 characteristics, they form sentences differently and often exhibit distinct errors.
L2 learners inevitably produce various types of errors during the development of their intermediate language. Historically, these errors were viewed as hindrances to successful L2 acquisition, leading to an emphasis on learning to minimize them. However, errors are now recognized as a natural developmental process. Researchers aim to assess learners’ language acquisition status through their errors and explore more effective teaching methods. These errors primarily arise from negative transfer. That is, they occur when learners apply rules from their native language to the L2. For example, a Korean learner whose native language is English might say “나는 학교로 가요” (I go to school) instead of “나는 학교에 가요” (I go to school). This error stems from the influence of the English preposition “to,” representing interference from the learner’s native language into the interlanguage.
However, not all errors can be explained by negative transfer. Errors based on interlanguage rules also exist; these occur due to rules learners create themselves before fully acquiring the target language rules. For example, when a learner who hasn’t fully mastered Korean honorifics adds unnecessary honorifics to every sentence, this error stems from the imperfect rules of the intermediate language. Such errors are inevitable byproducts of the L2 learning process and gradually diminish as learners increase their proficiency in L2.
Comparing this to the language acquisition process of infants reveals similarities with the intermediate language in this regard. This is because the language system of infants also has a simpler structure than that of adults and undergoes a developmental process. However, while infant language simply develops into adult language over time, the intermediate language does not necessarily approach the target language or develop into a complete L2. The degree of L2 acquisition varies greatly among individuals depending on the language environment, the learner’s effort, and the available language resources, and sometimes learning stagnates and becomes fixed. This is called language stagnation, referring to the phenomenon where the intermediate language ceases to develop further and remains static at a specific level.
Thus, the diverse errors and developmental differences observed in the L2 learning process demonstrate that they are not merely limitations of the learner, but rather reflect the complex nature of language acquisition and the need for educational approaches that support it. Analyzing L2 learners’ errors and identifying their causes can serve as crucial data for understanding the learner’s intermediate language system and developing more effective language teaching methods.
