Three Streams of Generative Language Acquisition Research

Three Streams of Generative Language Acquisition Research
Author: Tania Ionin
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company
Total Pages: 366
Release: 2019-04-15
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9027262888

This edited volume contains a representative sample of papers presented at the 7th meeting of the Generative Approaches to Language Acquisition – North America (GALANA-7) conference. The book features three streams of research (Variation in Input, First Language Acquisition, and Second Language Acquisition), each of which investigates the nature of language acquisition from the generative perspective. A unique feature of the GALANA-7 conference, and of this volume, is the bringing together of research on generative language acquisition and research on the role that cross-dialectal input variation plays in acquisition. This volume should be of interest to scholars and students of first language acquisition, second language acquisition, and input variation.

Research Methods in Generative Second Language Acquisition

Research Methods in Generative Second Language Acquisition
Author: Roumyana Slabakova
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 229
Release: 2024-09-04
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1040110002

This timely text provides a comprehensive overview of the research methods used by the Generative Second Language Acquisition framework. The authors lay out the history and state of the art in the field, explain the theoretical underpinnings of this work, and offer practical hands-on guidance for developing, conducting and understanding studies related to L2 grammatical competence—using a rich array of techniques and advancing key insights into the rationale and circumstantial pros and cons of each method. With useful features in a consistent chapter structure, including diverse case studies and discussion questions, the book will be an invaluable resource to students and researchers of SLA, applied linguistics, theoretical linguistics, education, and related areas.

Current Perspectives on Generative SLA - Processing, Influence, and Interfaces

Current Perspectives on Generative SLA - Processing, Influence, and Interfaces
Author: Marta Velnić
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company
Total Pages: 412
Release: 2024-10-15
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9027246556

This volume comprises studies and keynote addresses presented at the 16th Generative Approaches to Second Language Acquisition Conference hosted by The Norwegian University of Science and Technology, NTNU, in Trondheim in 2022. The selection of cutting-edge studies presented covers a wide array of topics within generative linguistics, including the acquisition of grammatical features, challenges of functional morphology, the impact of the native language on subsequently acquired languages, and interfaces between linguistic domains. Other chapters address how non-native language processing differs from native processing, while the volume also highlights internal and external factors affecting bi- and multilingual development and points to important avenues for further generative research on second language acquisition.

Bridging the Gap between L2 Acquisition and Processing

Bridging the Gap between L2 Acquisition and Processing
Author: Filiz Cele
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
Total Pages: 109
Release: 2024-10-04
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1036412067

This edited volume offers a critical review of recent research in both second language (L2) acquisition and processing, with a focus on understanding potential differences between L1 and L2 processing. Examining the use of syntactic information, functional morphology, and semantic/discourse cues during online sentence processing, the book comprises six insightful chapters. The first two chapters provide current findings on L2 processing of syntactic and discourse information, particularly in resolving relative clause attachment ambiguity. The subsequent two chapters shed light on L2 processing and acquisition of functional morphology, while the final two chapters enrich our understanding of L2 speaking skills by integrating cognitive, psychological, and socio-economic analyses with insights from speech act and politeness theories. This collection not only provides valuable perspectives for researchers exploring the similarities and differences between L1 and L2 processing but also offers new perspectives for educators and students grappling with the complexities of L2 acquisition and instruction.

The Acquisition of Spanish

The Acquisition of Spanish
Author: Eve Zyzik
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 240
Release: 2024-11-05
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1040149197

As the first text to present, in one place, a comprehensive and systematic overview of Spanish Language Acquisition research, The Acquisition of Spanish: A Research Overview in Multilingual Learning Contexts discusses a range of theoretical perspectives that outline issues surrounding language learning and the gaps in its research and teaching. Drawing on classic and current empirical studies on learner cohorts at different proficiency stages all over the world, the authors aim to bring bi-/multilingualism to the forefront to provide the reader with a deeper conceptual understanding of the challenges faced by different groups of Spanish learners in various learning contexts. Eve Zyzik and Melissa A. Bowles expertly synthesize and analyze a range of linguistic features and factors affecting learning, connecting these insights from Spanish to key theoretical and applied questions in SLA research more broadly. The text concludes with observations about research methodology, indicating the gaps in the literature and setting an agenda for future work in Spanish SLA to move the field forward. This unique, cohesive volume will be an invaluable foundational resource to advanced students and researchers in SLA, bilingualism/multilingualism, Hispanic & Romance studies, applied linguistics, education, and related areas who are interested in LOTEs (languages other than English) and Spanish SLA in particular. It will also be useful to those studying to become Spanish second language educators.

The Routledge Handbook of Second Language Acquisition, Morphosyntax, and Semantics

The Routledge Handbook of Second Language Acquisition, Morphosyntax, and Semantics
Author: Tania Ionin
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 586
Release: 2024-03-11
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1003823505

This handbook provides innovative and comprehensive coverage of research on the second language acquisition (SLA) of morphosyntax, semantics, and the interface between the two. Organized by grammatical topic, the chapters are written by experts from formal and functional perspectives in the SLA of morphosyntax and semantics, providing in-depth yet accessible coverage of these areas. All chapters highlight the theoretical underpinnings of much work in SLA and their links to theoretical syntax and semantics; making comparisons to other populations, including child language acquirers, bilinguals, and heritage speakers (links to first language acquisition and bilingualism); dedicating a portion of each chapter to the research methods used to investigate the linguistic phenomenon in question (links to psycholinguistics and experimental linguistics); and, where relevant, including intervention studies on the phenomenon in question (links to applied linguistics). The volume will be indispensable to SLA researchers and students who work on any aspect of the SLA of morphosyntax or semantics. With its coverage of a variety of methodologies and comparisons to other populations (such as child language acquirers, early bilinguals, heritage speakers, and monolingual adults), the handbook is expected to also be of much interest to linguists who work in psycholinguistics, first language acquisition, and bilingualism.

The Cambridge Handbook of Heritage Languages and Linguistics

The Cambridge Handbook of Heritage Languages and Linguistics
Author: Silvina Montrul
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 1171
Release: 2021-11-25
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 110880053X

Heritage languages are minority languages learned in a bilingual environment. These include immigrant languages, aboriginal or indigenous languages and historical minority languages. In the last two decades, heritage languages have become central to many areas of linguistic research, from bilingual language acquisition, education and language policies, to theoretical linguistics. Bringing together contributions from a team of internationally renowned experts, this Handbook provides a state-of-the-art overview of this emerging area of study from a number of different perspectives, ranging from theoretical linguistics to language education and pedagogy. Presenting comprehensive data on heritage languages from around the world, it covers issues ranging from individual aspects of heritage language knowledge to broader societal, educational, and policy concerns in local, global and international contexts. Surveying the most current issues and trends in this exciting field, it is essential reading for graduate students and researchers, as well as language practitioners and other language professionals.

Native Speakers, Interrupted

Native Speakers, Interrupted
Author: Silvina Montrul
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 347
Release: 2022-12-31
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1009302078

A heritage language is the term given to a language spoken at home by bilingual children of immigrant parents. Written by a leading figure in the field, this pioneering, in-depth study brings together three heritage languages – Hindu, Spanish and Romanian - spoken in the United States. It demonstrates how heritage speakers drive morphosyntactic change when certain environmental characteristics are met, and considers the relationship between social and cognitive factors and timing in language acquisition, bilingualism, and language change. It also discusses the implications of the findings for the language education of heritage speakers in the USA and considers how the heritage language can be maintained in the English-speaking school system. Advancing our understanding of heritage language development and change, this book is essential reading for students and researchers of linguistics and multilingualism, immigration, education studies and language policy, as well as educators and policy makers.

Multilingual Acquisition and Learning

Multilingual Acquisition and Learning
Author: Elena Babatsouli
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company
Total Pages: 657
Release: 2024-06-15
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9027247021

The volume espouses an ecosystemic standpoint on multilingual acquisition and learning, viewing language development and use as both ontogenesis and phylogenesis. Multilingualism is inclusively used to refer to sociolinguistic diversity and pluralism. Whether speech, writing, gesture, or body movement, language is a conduit that carries meaning within a complex, fluid, and context-dependent framework that engages different aspects of the individual, the communicative interaction, communicative acts, and social parameters. Continually modified over the years to better represent its multidisciplinary scope, the sociobiological notion of language has found steady and productive ground within major theoretical frameworks, which, individually or holistically, contribute to a rounded understanding of language acquisition, learning, and use by exploring both system-internal and system-external factors and their interaction. Summoning the work of leading academics, the volume outlines the changing dynamics of multilingualism in children and adults internationally with the latest advances and under-represented coverage that highlight the ecosystemic nature of multilingual acquisition, learning, and use.