A Study Of The Naxi Language Transfer In English Learning

The aim of this study is to find out the similarities and the differences between English and the Naxi language by comparing these two languages, and to know about how the Naxi language transfers in English learning for Naxi students when they are English beginners. The researcher himself is an English teacher who has been teaching Naxi students English for over 20 years. Data was collected from different aspects. Accordingly, analysis focuses on the comparisons of the differences and the similarities between English and the Naxi language, and oral production of English done by 20 Naxi students was also analyzed. Additional insights were investigated through interviews and questionnaires. The results show that there are indeed significant differences and similarities between the Naxi language and English, especially in pronunciation. Most initial consonants and some simple vowels of the Naxi language are similar to those of English and they facilitate English learning or they transfer in English learning in a positive way; while most vowels and some initial consonants of the Naxi language are quite different from those of English and they influence English learning or they transfer in English learning in a negative way. The study reveals that Naxi students learn English with the help of the mother tongue-the Naxi language at the very beginning, so their English has a strong Naxi local accent. However, the longer time Naxi students spend on English and the more English they read and learn, the less Naxi accent they have while speaking English and the more fluent their English is. This is in keeping with Sampson's Approximative System Model and Schumann's Acculturation theory. Although the study has some limitations, it does suggest that a better understanding of how to learn a "new" language by comparing the target language with the acquired language and the importance of teacher's model in learning a language will contribute a great deal to language learning when learners are only beginners.