In this book the authors address five central problems in the study of second language acquisition: transfer, staged development, cross-learner systematicity, incompleteness and variability. The book begins with a definition of each of these areas and an indication of why they are important for understanding SLA. In Chapters 2-4 attempts to explain these phenomena via early linguistic, sociolinguistic, and cognitive approaches are examined. It is argued that they all fail because they attach insufficient importance to the nature of language. In Chapters 5-9 the central problems are approached from the perspective of Universal Grammar and parametric variation: it is considered that this approach provides greater insights into transfer, staged development, cross-learner systematicity and into some aspects of completeness, but that it has difficulty accounting for variability. Variability, it is then argued in Chapters 10-13, is more attributable to factors related to language use and language processing. The most important of these are: the learner's need to develop hypotheses from data where Universal Grammar may not be accessible or applicable; the learner's need to transform linguistic knowledge into the productions required for language processing in real-time; and the learner's need to communicate effectively with an incomplete linguistic system. The variability observed in second language learners who began learning after the age of seven is attributed to the use of multiple knowledge sources and the different kinds of productions which may underlie second language use. The strands making up this argument are then brought together in Chapter 14 in a single model and indications of further directions for research are provided.
Language. Processing. In Chapter 10 we argued that there are three main
causes of the variability which is characteristic of L2 learning but not of Ll
learning. In Chapter 11, we have given detailed consideration to the first of these,
the multiple ...
This volume introduces the study of language attrition--the forgetting of language. In this first collection devoted to second language attrition, the contributors focus on contexts of loss where Japanese is either the attriting language, or the replacing language. Bringing together research to substantiate previous hypotheses in the field, this book offers new theoretical and practical insights for those interested in language change.
Lexical Maintenance and Attrition in Japanese as a Second Language Robert A.
Russell In recent years, researchers have shown increasing interest in the
phenomenon of second language (L2) loss or attrition. A few of the issues that
have ...
No language teaching program should be designed without a thorough analysis of the students' needs. The studies in this volume explore Needs Analysis in the public, vocational and academic sectors, in contexts ranging from service encounters in coffee shops to foreign language needs assessment in the U.S. military. In each chapter, the authors explicitly discuss the methodoldogy they employed, and in some cases also offer research findings on that methodology. Several studies are task-based, making the collection of special interest to those involved in task-based language teaching. Contributions include work on English and other languages in both second and foreign language settings, as well as a comprehensive overview of methodological issues in Needs Analysis by the editor.
Yet, if this aspect of course design is to go beyond reliance on notoriously
unreliable textbook writer intuitions, such is the task facing the conscientious
materials writer (and publisher). It is the kind of `homework' language teachers
and applied ...
THE INTERACTION OF LANGUAGE AND CULTURE: NEW VIEWS IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHING^ URSULA S. HENDON CULTURE: THE NEW
DIMENSION The development of foreign language teaching in the United States
has ...
The book concerns theoretical, interdisciplinary and methodological issues in L2 acquisition research. It gives an accurate and up-to-date overview of high quality work currently in progress in research methodology, processing, principles and parameters theory, phonology, the bilingual lexicon, input and instruction. The volume will have the purpose of a handbook for teachers, students and researchers in the area of second language acquisition. The aim is to provide the reader with an acquisition perspective on processes of second and foreign language learning.
Are there principles of universal grammar that do not apply to second language
acquisition? Paul van Buren 1. Introduction I thought it might be interesting for
budding language researchers to be taken through a detailed theoretical
argument ...
Measuring Second Language Vocabulary Acquisition provides an examination of the background to testing vocabulary knowledge in a second language and in particular considers the effect that word frequency and lexical coverage have on learning and communication in a foreign language. It examines the tools we have for assessing the various facets of vocabulary knowledge such as aural and written word recognition, the link with word meaning, and vocabulary depth. These are illustrated and the scores they produce are demonstrated to provide normative data. Vocabulary acquisition from course books and in the classroom in examined, as is vocabulary uptake from informal tasks. This book ties scores on tests of vocabulary breadth to performance on standard foreign language examinations and on hierarchies of communicative performance such as the CEFR.
Much of the literature on second language acquisition as a general process (e.g.
Mitchell & Myles, 2004; Lightbown & Spada, 1999) pays little attention to
vocabulary learning. This is not just a recent phenomenon. O'Dell (1997: 258) ...
This volume presents a selection of second language acquisition studies at the level of morphosyntax. It looks at different aspects of morphosyntactic development of bilingual language learners/users such as language transfer, syntactic processing, morphology and the pragmatics of language among others. The studies report on projects carried out in different language contact contexts, ranging from: English, German, Polish, Greek and Turkish. The volume also includes those studies which show the interface between research findings and pedagogy of foreign language teaching.
Many recent publications have focused on problems operating at the lexical level
in second language acquisition (SLA), which itself was the consequence of an
overwhelming emphasis on grammar research in the past and a corresponding ...
This book represents a major statement of the current research being conducted on the learning of second languages from a sociocultural perspective. The book is divided into a theoretical and an empirical part. Specific topics covered include: learning and teaching languages in the zone of proximal development; L1 mediation in the acquisition of L2 grammar; sociocultural theory as a theory of second language learning; gestural mediation in a second language; and constructing a self through a second language.
This book represents a major statement of the current research being conducted on the learning of second languages from a sociocultural perspective. The book is divided into a theoretical and an empirical part.
Classroom Strategies for Developing Communicative Competence
Language teachers present theories for sharpening students' communication skills in a second language, and describe examples of their application in actual classrooms. They explain strategies for beginning listening comprehension; interaction skills with idiomatic expressions, integrating social skills, and group work at intermediate levels; and refining literacy skills for advanced students. Provides a springboard of ideas and approaches for teachers and administrators to tailor to their specific needs. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
Over the past 25 years, many theorists specialising in second language
acquisition have promoted the communicative approach. Their arguments have
been very convincing, but many school boards and teachers remain unsure as to
how to ...
This volume focuses on the decision-making potential provided by second language performance assessments. The authors first situate performance assessment within a broader discussion of alternatives in language assessment and in educational assessment in general. They then discuss issues in performance assessment design, implementation, reliability, and validity. Finally, they present a prototype framework for second language performance assessment based on the integration of theoretical underpinnings and research findings from the task-based language teaching literature, the language testing literature, and the educational measurement literature. The authors outline test and item specifications, and they present numerous examples of prototypical language tasks. They also propose a research agenda focusing on the operationalization of second language performance assessments.
The primary goal of this project is to provide guidelines for designing
performance assessments for second or foreign language classes at all levels of
university instruction. Through our efforts towards this goal, we hope to achieve
three ...
