Difficulties in Learning English As a Second Or Foreign Language

in English
. This, in turn, made it more difficult for her to negotiate the culturally 
overlapping experience that Rosaldo (1989 as cited in Lim & Wieling, 2004, p. 148) 
referred to as the cultural borderlands and find a space in this experience, a sense of 
place
in the new culture (Elbaz-Luwisch, 2004, p. 388) that she could know to be her 
very own. If “the limit of my language means the limit of my world” (Wittgenstein, 
2001, as quoted in Curzon, 2005, p. 105), then Ching’s new world experience was 
severely limited along with her ability to express herself.

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Conclusion 
The answers to the original research questions, based on the data from 
researcher observation and first person interviews were: 
1.
There were several compounding reasons that the learner failed to 
make expected progress in English; 
2.
The learner’s first language learning experience, due to its 
foundational inadequacies and in its ambiguity, negatively effected her 
adult language learning experience; 
3.
Her early education experience was weak and did not provide her the 
tools necessary to continue effective lifelong learning; 
4.
The learner, whose first literacy was in a logographic language, had 
never been taught the sound-letter, phonological-orthographic rule 
system of English; and 
5.
It has not been determined whether this learner had language learning 
disability or whether it would have been beneficial to test or diagnose. 
Ultimately, the phenomenological design of this study could only come up short.
Despite the intent and effect of attempting to tell the learner’s story in her own words, 
the reality was that they were not truly her own words, even though she spoke them 
out of her own mouth. No, her own words had always been, like her foods, family, 
and favorite things in life, Taiwanese. Her truest self-expression had always been in 
that language, in that culture. 

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However, like the apple of her youth, and her developed ability to artfully 
express herself in Chinese, her second language, her optimism and ability to embrace 
the positive qualities in those around her and in her new experiences, she would still 
find the motivation and opportunity to continue learning this very foreign language.
Given the ideal learning situation, as described by respected researchers above, this 
learner would relish the opportunity to learn English in a well-structured and 
comfortable learning environment, with a patient and well-trained ESL instructor, 
with a number of learners at a similar level of ability, starting with the basics. 
Implications 
Many researchers, including Christison and Kennedy (1999), Comstock and 
Kamara (2003), Downey and Snyder (2000), and Schwarz and Terrill (2000) pointed 
to the need to teach to learners’ strengths and to multiple intelligences and to build 
lesson plans that are structured and predictable and that review and reinforce 
previously taught material and content. Ganschow et al. (1998) recommended 
interventions to help students with learning difficulties, such as: (a) in-class 
accommodations, such as untimed tests; (b) slowed pacing of verbal instructions; and 
(c) paired oral and visual cues to relate content. 
The ESL field remains weak, among many things, in regard to teacher training 
and standard methodology, especially around explicit teaching of the English 
phonological/orthographic rule system, especially for all learners whose first 
language was not alphabetic. A learner does not have to be diagnosed with a learning 

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disability or to have even shown difficulties in learning English in order for better 
practices to be implemented for the benefit of all learners of ESL or FL. 
Suggestions for Further Research 
There remains a need for further research, with attention to funding, ESL 
marginality, and practice, especially during a time of increased discussion on 
immigration in the U.S. Also, a companion study to follow up on this participant 
with regard to the explicit teaching of and effectiveness of the teaching of the 
phonologic/orthographic rules system, ideally in the classroom environment of a 
stable, structured, objective-oriented program, would benefit interested parties. 
Project Summary 
The project explored the experience of one adult female immigrant to the U.S. 
who has become known to the reader as Ching. This author sought to understand and 
describe her difficulties in learning English as a second language (ESL), and identify the 
most likely reasons for her lack of progress, based on knowledge from research 
highlighted in Chapter 2, Review of Literature, and on the learner’s account of her own 
learning experience. This phenomenological, case study research was accomplished by 
way of personal observation and interviews with the learner, which allowed the learner 
the opportunity to tell her own story, and added depth to the study.
The available literature provided a large amount of data regarding the many 
challenges facing foreign language (FL) learners, including language learning disability 
(LLD), and the findings in this study showed that the learner struggled with notable and 
multiple difficulties. Primarily, the data showed that the learner, whose first and second 

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languages were nonalphabetical, had never been taught the sound/letter rules system of 
English, and this fundamental deficit played a major role in the learner’s English 
learning experience. This basic weakness, in turn, affected her classroom attendance, 
motivation to learn and practice English, social interaction, and ultimately, her lack of 
progress in the target language. The question of the existence of LLD remained 
unanswered and created more questions around the availability and justification of 
screening and diagnosis.
This author hopes that this learner’s story can add depth and texture to the 
discussion of, and improvement to marginalized ESL programs, instructors, and learners 
and that interested ESL instructors and program directors will consider the need for basic 
phonological/orthographic training to be implemented in basic ESL programs, especially 
for nonalphabetic first language learners. 

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REFERENCES 
Almanza, D., Singleton, K., & Terrill, L. (1996). Learning disabilities in adult ESL: Case 
studies and directions. The year in review, 5(1995-1996): Reports of research 
conducted by adult education practitioner-researchers in Virginia
, 1-6. Retrieved 
October 8, 2005, from ERIC database. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service 
No. ED 442 311) 
Barer-Stein, T. (1985).