Key topics in second language acquisition / Vivian Cook and David Singleton.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Cook, Vivian, 1940-2021.

Contributor:

Singleton, D. M. (David Michael)

Series:

MM textbooks

MM Textbooks

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Second language acquisition.

Language and languages--Study and teaching.

Language and languages.

Physical Description:

xiii, 149 pages ; 25 cm.

Place of Publication:

Bristol : Multilingual Matters, [2014]

Summary:

This textbook offers an introductory overview of eight hotly-debated topics in second language acquisition research. It offers a glimpse of how SLA researchers have tried to answer common questions about second language acquisition rather than being a comprehensive introduction to SLA research. Each chapter comprises an introductory discussion of the issues involved and suggestions for further reading and study. The reader is asked to consider the issues based on their own experiences, thus allowing them to compare their own intuitions and experiences with established research findings and gain an understanding of methodology. The topics are treated independently so that they can be read in any order that interests the reader. The topics in question are: how different languages connect in the mind, whether there is a best age for learning a second language, the importance of grammar in acquiring and using a second language, how the words of a second language are acquired, how people learn to write in a second language, how attitude and motivation help in learning a second language, the usefulness of second language acquisition research for language teaching, the goals of language teaching Book jacket.

Contents:

Topic 1 How Do Different Languages Connect in Our Minds? 1

What is a bilingual? 2

Characteristics of L2 users 4

What are L2 users like? 6

L2 users think differently 6

L2 users have a better feel for language 7

L2 users speak their first language slightly differently 8

Two languages in one mind n

Topic 2 Is There a Best Age for Learning a Second Language? 17

The word on the street: Popular beliefs on age and second language learning 18

The experience of immigrants: The research background 21

The idea of a 'critical period' 25

The effects of early instruction in a second language 30

Some concluding remarks 33

Topic 3 How Do People Acquire the Words of a Second Language? 37

Words and more 38

The lexical challenge in infancy...and later 40

Learning words one at a time 45

Learning words from context 47

Some concluding remarks 50

Topic 4 How Important is Grammar in Acquiring and Using a Second Language? 55

Learning the grammar of a second language 58

Three areas of grammar 63

Grammatical morphemes 63

Word order and processing 64

Articles 66

Topic 5 How Do People Learn to Write in a Second Language? 73

Pronunciation 75

Writing system 76

Letter/sound correspondences 77

Syllable structure 79

Scripts 80

Reading and writing porcesses 80

Spelling rules 81

Punctuation 84

Topic 6 How Do Attitude and Motivation Help in Learning a Second Language? 89

Liking and wanting 90

Attitudes 91

Motivation 94

Present and future directions 101

Some concluding remarks 102

Topic 7 How Useful is Second Language Acquisition Research for Language Teaching? 109

Teaching and learning 110

The grammar translation method 112

The audiolingual method 114

The communicative approach 117

Some concluding remarks 121

Topic 8 What are the Goals of Language Teaching? 125

The hierarchy of languages 126

Groups of L2 users 127

Native speakers and L2 users 134.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

1783091797

9781783091805

1783091800

9781783091799

OCLC:

865574961

Publisher Number:

99960394178