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Now in its second edition, this highly accessible introductory textbook establishes the fundamentals driving the field of second language (L2) acquisition research, including its historical foundations. Intended for the novice in the field with no background in linguistics or psycholinguistics, it explains important linguistic concepts, and how and why they are relevant to second language acquisition. Topics are presented via a 'key questions' structure that enables the reader to understand how these questions have motivated research in the field, and the problems to which researchers are seeking solutions. This edition has been fully updated to incorporate new research, with a new chapter focusing on language transfer, and new sections on the growing field of third and subsequent language acquisition, and how phonology interacts with L2 acquisition. With discussion questions and project ideas as well as a glossary, this is a complete package for an introductory course on second language acquisition.
This Element explores the roles of explicit and implicit learning in second language acquisition. The authors lay out some key issues that they take to underlie the debate on the extent to which second language acquisition involves explicit learning, implicit learning, or both. They also discuss what they take to be an oversight in the field: namely, the lack of clear definitions of key constructs. Taking a generative perspective on the nature of language, while addressing alternative approaches at key points, they refocus the discussion of explicit and implicit learning by first asking what must be learned (i.e., what is this mental representation we call “language” that all functioning humans possess?) The discussion and research reviewed leads to the conclusion that second language acquisition is largely if not exclusively implicit in nature and that explicit learning plays a secondary role in how learners grapple with meaning.
In the epilogue, we reflect on some of the major themes linked to the questions driving research in second language acquisition and return to the question that started the field in the 1970s: Are first and second language acquisition similar or different?
This chapter centers on the major descriptive findings of second language research, focusing on ordered and systematic development. We review and discuss such things as morpheme orders, developmental stages/sequences, unmarked before marked, U-shaped development, among others. We also review the evidence for L1 influence on ordered development. We touch on the nature of internal (e.g., Universal Grammar, general learning mechanisms) and external constraints (e.g., quantity and quality of input and interaction with that input, frequency) as underlying factors in ordered development. We also briefly discuss variability during staged development.
In this chapter we discuss the qualitative difference between explicit knowledge and implicit knowledge (underlying mental representation). The chapter focuses on whether instruction affects the latter. We review the accepted finding that instruction does not affect ordered development. We also review the issue of whether instruction affects rate of development and ultimate attainment. We look at important variables in the research on instructed acquisition, including type of knowledge measured, the nature of assessments used in the research, and short-term vs. long-term studies, among others.
In this chapter we review the competing perspectives on the starting point for second language acquisition. Do learners begin with the L1 and transfer all properties and processes into second language acquisition? Or is transfer partial and selective at the outset? Or do second language learners not transfer any aspects of the L1 and begin with universal properties of language and universal processes for acquiring language? We review such key hypotheses as Full Access and Full Transfer/Full Access, as well as important constructs such as minimal trees, input processing, and processability.
This chapter lays the foundation for how the field of second language acquisition arose. We briefly review the pioneering work in the late 1950s and 1960s in first language acquisition (e.g., Berko Gleason, Brown, Klima & Bellugi). We also review the generative revolution in linguistics and how it laid the groundwork for the idea of constrained language acquisition. We then review the seminal articles by S. Pit Corder (1967) and Larry Selinker (1972) that posited the major questions in second language acquisition, and end with the pioneering work that mirrored first language acquisition (e.g., Dulay & Burt, Krashen, Wode). We end the chapter with the major question that launched second language research in the early 1970s: Are first and second language acquisition similar or different?
This chapter defines what kind of input contains the data necessary for acquisition (communicatively embedded input) and focuses on its fundamental role in acquisition. Subsequently, we review the claims on the role of output and interaction, focusing on these major issues: comprehensible output is necessary for acquisition; comprehensible output is beneficial for acquisition; comprehensible output does little to nothing for acquisition. We also discuss the nature of interaction more generally, focusing on whether interaction affects the acquisition of formal features of language.
In this chapter we touch on the idea of inter-learner variability in outcome (i.e., how far learners get) as well as rate of acquisition among different learners. We then link these issues to the idea of individual differences as explanatory factors. We focus on the most studied: motivation, aptitude, and working memory.
This chapter covers three different ideas about nativelikeness in second language acquisition. The first is that learners can become nativelike in all domains of language and language processing. The opposite idea we will cover is that learners cannot become nativelike in any area of second language acquisition. The final idea we will treat is that learners can become nativelike in some domains of language but not others. We discuss what “nativelike” means and what kinds of measures are used to assess learner knowledge and ability. We also review key hypotheses and constructs such as The Fundamental Difference Hypothesis, The Shallow Structure Hypothesis, Full Transfer/Full Access, the critical period, and others.