The conditions for the acquisition of communicative competence in standard English must be considered in the case of language learning by immigrants, indigenous minority language groups, and speakers of Black English. The crucial factor in language learning is the relationship between the minority group and the local society. Among immigrant groups and indigenous minority language groups, interlanguages have arisen containing norms which fall partially between those of the mother tongue and the target language. Economic, social, and cultural variables are at play in the creation of interlanguages as they are among speakers of Black English. Efforts to teach standard English to speakers of nonstandard dialects do not consider societal realities. Most current literature on teaching standard English as a second dialect maintains that language is the key to social mobility rather than social mobility being responsible for changes in language. Nobody can be expected to learn the language of a social group if, at the same time, he is denied the means by which he can become a member of that group. (Author/VM)