Introducing Second Language Acquisition. Kirsten M. Hummel
Note that an additional distinction between “second” language acquisition and “foreign” language acquisition is an important one in some contexts. In such cases, “second language acquisition” applies to circumstances in which the language learned (the target language) is generally the dominant language used in the learner's environment (such as an immigrants learning English in the United States), while “foreign language acquisition” indicates that the learner lives in the L1 environment and contact with target language speakers is not widely available (such as learning English in Beijing, China). In the context of learning English, a frequent abbreviation is “ESL” to refer to “English as a second language” and “EFL” for “English as a foreign language.” The use of the term “second language acquisition (SLA)” throughout this book generally includes foreign language acquisition, although the latter term will be used when it is important to make a distinction between the two circumstances.
The study of SLA also generally encompasses the acquisition of a third or additional languages (sometimes referred to as the study of multilingualism), although research specifically devoted to describing how third (or more) language acquisition might resemble or differ from SLA is increasing.
In addition, this book uses the terms “acquisition” and “learning” interchangeably as this usage has been generally adopted by scholars in the field (see, for example, Ortega 2009, p. 5).
Why study second language acquisition? To start, here are a number of questions that one might want some answers to:
Is second language acquisition like first language acquisition?
Does the first language help or get in the way of second language learning?
What are some of the circumstances in which people learn a second language?
Do innate capacities play an important role in second language acquisition?
Why do we make mistakes in a second language?
Do learners need their errors to be explicitly corrected?
Are there any universal processes affecting second language acquisition?
Is there a teaching method that has proved to be more successful than others?
Can adults learn to speak a second language as well as native speakers?
What about individual differences? Are there factors that enable some people to learn aspects of a second language better or faster than others?
Are there certain learning strategies that seem particularly useful?
What happens when children learn two languages at the same time? Do they end up confused and does one or both of their languages suffer?
Can bilinguals “turn off” or ignore one of their languages?
Our exploration throughout the field of second language acquisition will offer some responses to the preceding questions. We begin in Chapter 2 by examining L1 acquisition. A basic understanding of this universal process, noting ways in which it resembles or differs from SLA, should be useful for gaining a clearer view of SLA. In the following chapter, Chapter 3, the reader is introduced to a selection of contexts, both naturalistic and classroom‐related, associated with the learning of a second language. Chapter 4 presents an overview of some past and present theoretical views underlying the field. Chapter 5 continues this theoretical overview with attention to relatively recent views primarily based within a cognitive processing approach. Chapter 6 recognizes the importance of SLA applications to language teaching, an area of interest for a growing number of practitioners: predominant teaching approaches and methods are presented, followed by a look at some current instructional issues. Development of the learner's L2 language is the focus of Chapter 7. Chapter 8 begins an exploration into individual difference factors, by focusing on the effect of the learner's age on SLA. Additional individual difference factors, such as aptitude and motivation, are discussed in Chapter 9. Finally, in Chapter 10, the overlapping disciplines of bilingualism/multilingualism are explored, with a look at characteristics of simultaneous language acquisition along with issues related to bilingual lexical representation and access and possible cognitive effects of bilingualism.
To help illustrate concepts and issues, starting with Chapter 3 on language learning contexts, we will follow six fictional language learners who are profiled throughout the book. These individuals each have their own unique backgrounds and experiences with SLA. The learners profiled are:
Mila, a woman with two teenage sons, who immigrated to the United States from her native war‐ravaged Bosnia during the early 1990s;
Steve, an American university student who chose to study abroad in Beijing for a year;
Linda, a Boston schoolteacher who followed her passion for Italian opera to Tuscany, Italy;
Alberto, growing up bilingual in English and Spanish in Southern California;
Walid, also bilingual, but in Arabic and English, living near Detroit, Michigan;
Xia Mei, a native speaker of Cantonese who is learning English in an immersion program at her high school in Hong Kong.
In addition, to clarify connections between research and practice, throughout the chapters the reader will encounter “Language learning in practice” textboxes illustrating the more practical applications of discussed research and theoretical approaches. Other features have also been included to aid in understanding the book's material. For example, new terms which may be unfamiliar to readers are bolded throughout the text and defined in the margins as well as in the end‐of‐book glossary. Also, readers can test their own knowledge after reading each chapter by doing the “Self‐assessment questions” and by checking their answers at the online site (www.wiley.com/go/hummel). Classroom discussions can be stimulated after each chapter using the “Discussion questions” feature and students can undertake projects with reference to the “Exercises / Project ideas” section. Each chapter also contains an annotated “Further reading and viewing” section which allows students to follow up on subjects treated in that chapter.
Since SLA is an area of study that is increasingly recognized as relevant to a number of disciplines, I have attempted to write this book so that it will be accessible to any undergraduate or graduate student needing a basic introduction to the field. I hope it is also accessible to the general reader without a specialized academic background who is simply interested in learning more about SLA.
We will begin this exploration by looking at L1 acquisition. I hope you enjoy the journey!
reference
1 Ortega, L. (2009). Understanding Second Language Acquisition. London: Hodder Education.
2
First Language Acquisition
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