What is effective second language exposure and how does it relate to content-based instruction and language across the curriculum?

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 93-118
Author(s):  
Edward Y. W. Chu
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Learning Content ◽  
Interaction Hypothesis ◽  
Heritage Culture ◽  
Neuroscience Research ◽  
Based Instruction

Abstract Second language acquisition cannot take place in the absence of exposure to input. However, despite extensive L2 instruction and/or learning content subjects in L2, many struggle to communicate adequately in their L2 in social and/or academic contexts. A clearer delineation of the concept of ‘exposure’, which requires a review of relevant language acquisition theories and findings, is needed. As such, substantial bodies of work in L2 acquisition by well-known language educators, namely Jim Cummins (‘BICS’ and ‘CALP’), Stephen Krashen (‘Comprehensible Input Hypothesis’), Michael Long (Interaction Hypothesis) and Merril Swain (Output Hypothesis) are reviewed. A review is also made of relevant neuroscience research. Two educational approaches, Content-based instruction (CBI) and Language across the curriculum (LAC), are discussed in relation to the insights obtained, with special reference to contexts influenced by Confucian heritage culture (CHC). To allow subject networking to take place, school managers/L2 policy makers need to actively revamp the curriculum.

Concept-based instruction for applied L2 acquisition

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julien Zakhia Doueihi ◽  
Thomas François
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Teaching Method ◽  
Theoretical Background ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Classroom Experiment ◽  
Growing Body ◽  
Based Instruction

Abstract This study’s objective is to present an overview of experimental applications of Concept-Based Instruction (CBI) for Second Language Acquisition. CBI aims to describe complex grammatical notions in a thorough manner in order to facilitate their acquisition. Even though CBI is still considered as a recent domain in language teaching, the growing body of research makes it timely to present a systematic review, which is currently lacking. In the present paper, we will first describe the theoretical background upon which CBI is grounded. Then, we will carry out an analysis of 29 CBI studies in which a classroom experiment was performed, with the objective of considering the strengths and limits of this teaching method.

scholarly journals Age and Second Language Acquisition in Adulthood: The Learning Experiences and Perceptions of Women Immigrants

1999 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 01 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wendy Wang
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Adult Learners ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Classroom Practice ◽  
Age Of Onset ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Language Curriculum ◽  
The Social

Although considerable evidence indicates that age of onset for second language acquisition is related to second-language proficiency outcomes among adult learners Jew studies have actually looked at how adult learners of different ages experience and perceive second language acquisition. This study presents 30 women immigrant learners' accounts of their experiences and perceptions of learning English as a second language in the Canadian context. Findings from this study reveal the complexity of adult L2 acquisition, which involves factors pertaining not only to the learners themselves, but also to the social context in which the second language is learned. Implications of these findings are discussed in relation to the second language curriculum development and classroom practice.

scholarly journals Is There a "Logical Problem" of Second Language Acquisition?

1985 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lydia White
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Input Data ◽  
Universal Grammar ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Logical Problem ◽  
Acquisition Process ◽  
Generative Theory ◽  
Complex Knowledge

Arguments for universal grammar (DO) in generative theory are based on the so called "logical problem of language acquisition." The nature of the problem becomes apparent when we consider the end product of the acquisition process and compare this to the input data, which do not seem sufficiently rich or precise to allow the learner to work out all the complexities of the adult grammar, unless one assumes the availability of certain innate principles (DO). In this paper, I will suggest that this orientation is also useful when one comes to consider second language acquisition. If we focus on the successful second language (L2) learner, it would appear that he or she will also achieve complex knowledge of the L2 which goes well beyond the input. This suggests that DO might have a role to play in L2 acquisition as well, and raises the question of whether the way that DO has operated in the Ll has any effects in L2 acquisition. I will briefly look at current L2 research that presupposes a DO framework, as well as suggesting some directions for further research.

Acquisition without evidence: English infinitives and poverty of stimulus in adult second language acquisition

2019 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 415-443
Author(s):  
Jeanne Heil ◽  
Luis López
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
First Language ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Full Spectrum ◽  
Domain Specific ◽  
Linguistic System ◽  
Poverty Of Stimulus

This article provides a Poverty of Stimulus argument for the participation of a dedicated linguistic module in second language acquisition. We study the second language (L2) acquisition of a subset of English infinitive complements that exhibit the following properties: (a) they present an intricate web of grammatical constraints while (b) they are highly infrequent in corpora, (c) they lack visible features that would make them salient, and (d) they are communicatively superfluous. We report on an experiment testing the knowledge of some infinitival constructions by near-native adult first language (L1) Spanish / L2 English speakers. Learners demonstrated a linguistic system that includes contrasts based on subtle restrictions in the L2, including aspect restrictions in Raising to Object. These results provide evidence that frequency and other cognitive or environmental factors are insufficient to account for the acquisition of the full spectrum of English infinitivals. This leads us to the conclusion that a domain-specific linguistic faculty is required.

Informed consent in research on second language acquisition

2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 271-288 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margaret Thomas ◽  
Nicole Pettitt
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Second Language ◽  
Informed Consent ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Review Article ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Research Participants ◽  
Low Profile

The practice of securing informed consent from research participants has a relatively low profile in second language (L2) acquisition research, despite its prominence in the biomedical and social sciences. This review article analyses the role that informed consent now typically plays in L2 research; discusses an example of an L2 study where complex issues of informed consent surfaced; and summarizes debates about informed consent that are underway in other disciplines, but which so far have been little recognized in scholarship on L2 acquisition.

Review article: A tree in the wood: A review of research on L2 Chinese acquisition

2011 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 559-572 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yang Zhao
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Future Development ◽  
Review Article ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Considerable Research ◽  
L2 Chinese ◽  
Research Findings

There has been considerable research in Chinese as a second language (L2) in recent years, particularly in its morphological and syntactic aspects. This article reviews research in these aspects with reference to the broader discipline of second language acquisition (SLA) and suggests that L2 Chinese research has contributed to SLA through verification, modification or posing challenges to research findings in the L2 acquisition of other languages. On the basis of these studies, the author points out the limits of current L2 Chinese research and discusses the prospects for future development, arguing that L2 Chinese is to be investigated against hypotheses based on other L2s so that theoretical contributions can be made to the discipline of SLA.

Cross-linguistic influence in the interpretation of boundary crossing events in L2 acquisition

2016 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 161-182 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosa Alonso Alonso
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
First Language ◽  
Horizontal Axis ◽  
Boundary Crossing ◽  
Motion Events ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Bounded Space

This paper analyses the interpretation of boundary-crossing events in second language acquisition (SLA) to determine whether L2 learners are able to select the target-like option for the interpretation of motion events or whether, on the contrary, their choice reflects cross-linguistic influence (CLI) of their L1. The two groups participating in the study – thirty Spanish learners of L2 English and sixteen English first language (L1) speakers – were subjected to an experiment involving an interpretation task with L2 boundary-crossing events pictures. Findings indicate that Spanish L2 learners selected three possible constructions (manner verb + path satellite, path in verb + manner in satellite and a combination of both) in clear contrast to English L1 speakers who only selected one construction (manner verb + path satellite). CLI has also been found to regulate the type of boundary-crossing event selected, primarily in cases of motion INTO a bounded space in the horizontal axis.

The status of functional categories in child second language acquisition: evidence from the acquisition of CP

2003 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-41 ◽  
Author(s):  
Belma Haznedar
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Surface Morphology ◽  
Direct Relationship ◽  
Inflectional Morphology ◽  
Functional Categories ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Structure Building ◽  
The Status

This study examines the status of the functional categories in child second language (L2) acquisition of English. Results from longitudinally collected data are reported, presenting counterevidence for recent hypotheses on early L2 acquisition that assume (1) a structure-building approach according to which the acquisition of functional categories follows an implicational sequence of development of VP-IP-CP (Vainikka and Young-Scholten, 1994; 1996a; 1996b; 1998); and (2) a direct relationship between the acquisition of inflectional morphology and the development of functional categories (Eubank, 1993/94; 1996; Vainikka and Young-Scholten, 1994; 1996a; 1996b; 1998). The child L2 data analysed in this article show that the development of CP is not implicationally contingent on the prior acquisition of IP. The data also suggest that the lack of morphological forms in interlanguage grammars reflects a problem with the realization of surface morphology, rather than an impairment in the domain of functional projections.

The use of statistics in L2 acquisition research

2009 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-196 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shawn Loewen ◽  
Susan Gass
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Statistical Procedures ◽  
Growing Pains

Second language acquisition (SLA) as a discipline has not had a long history and, as any new discipline, has seen growing pains over the years. This research timeline traces the development of the increased and more sophisticated use of statistics in SLA research and the increasing demands for rigor in their use. Use of statistical procedures has been increasing in the SLA literature, but the tools themselves have not developed from within the field; rather the increased use stems from greater statistical sophistication on the part of users. In other words, SLA is not an innovator but an increasingly knowledgeable borrower and adapter of statistical procedures.

Theories of second language acquisition: three sides, three angles, three points

2005 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 393-414 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margaret Thomas
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Cognitive Bias ◽  
Sociocultural Theory ◽  
The Other ◽  
Theory Construction ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Point Evaluation ◽  
Evaluation Metric

Three recent books take up different positions in the on-going debate about how, and out of what, to construct a theory of second language (L2) acquisition. Johnson (2004) advocates a ‘dialogically based approach’, inspired by Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory and Bakhtin’s ‘dialogized heteroglossia’, with which she would replace what she views as a prevailing ‘cognitive bias’ in the field. Block (2003) similarly supports a ‘more interdisciplinary and socially informed orientation’ to second language acquisition. But Block wants to reform rather than replace certain assumptions of what he represents as the best existing theory of second language acquisition, namely, Susan Gass’ Input-Interaction-Output model (IIO model). Jordan (2004), on the other hand, argues forcefully that theorizing about second language acquisition must be based on a rationalist epistemology. He provides a set of ‘Guidelines’ for theory construction, including six assumptions foundational to rationalist inquiry in general, and a five-point evaluation metric against which rival theories can be judged. He also passes on a list of six ‘practices to be avoided’. Jordan encourages the cultivation of many, varied, theories so long as they observe the rationalist Guidelines. He goes on to criticize a broad sample of L2 research, commenting on whether specific proposals do or do not adhere to the Guidelines. This article reviews all three scholars’ positions in this important debate, which has the potential to sharpen second language theorists’ sense of what they are doing and how they should do it.

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