Second language socialization as sociocultural theory: Insights and issues

In this paper, I describe the relationship between language socialization and sociocultural theory (SCT) and the implications of this connection for second language socialization (SLS) studies. I first describe the theoretical compatibility of language socialization and SCT by examining the basic tenets of each and then also explore how language socialization scholars have explicitly or implicitly drawn on SCT and how SCT scholars, in turn, have positioned research on socialization with respect to their theory. Second, I illustrate two common current theoretical and analytic approaches to research in SLS that exemplify: (1) a focus on indexicality in language learning, and (2) a community of practice orientation to SLS, which also embraces sociocultural theory (Lave Wenger 1998). Third, I illustrate how the community-of-practice approach, combined with SLS, helps account for findings in a sociocultural study of Korean exchange students' experiences of language and literacy socialization at a Canadian university. I conclude by suggesting future directions for SLS studies.