Do children learn second languages easier than adults? A comparative analysis of child and adult second language acquisition

Do children learn second languages easier than adults? A comparative analysis of child and adult second language acquisition PDF Author: Kevin Salzmann
Publisher: GRIN Verlag
ISBN: 365667177X
Category : Foreign Language Study
Languages : en
Pages : 20

Get Book Here

Book Description
Seminar paper from the year 2014 in the subject Didactics for the subject English - Pedagogy, Literature Studies, grade: 2,3, University of Kassel (Institut für Anglistik/Amerikanistik), course: Introduction to Second Language Acquisition, language: English, abstract: In the field of Second Language Acquisition (SLA), researchers often get confronted with a controversial issue: Are children better second language learners than adults? Do they always outperform older learners? After a general introduction into the field of SLA, this term paper focuses on the relevance of age in second language learning. Theories of critical and sensitive periods during the learning process will be examined in order to emphasize that age has an important impact on effective SLA. Afterwards, specific differences in child and adult SLA will be taken into consideration; how do children acquire a second language and how is it different from the acquisition of an old- er person? By answering these questions differentiated it might be possible to come to a conclusion whether children or adults are better second language learners.

How to Improve Your Foreign Language Immediately

How to Improve Your Foreign Language Immediately PDF Author: Boris Shekhtman
Publisher: M S I Press
ISBN: 9780967990750
Category : Foreign Language Study
Languages : en
Pages : 104

Get Book Here

Book Description
This book provides a unique set of tools designed to enhance an individual's success in communicati0n in a foreign language environment. The devices presented allow the speaker of a foreign language to demonstrate the level of his/her language more impressively. These techniques were developed and tested by the author with adult professionals in such varied fields as journalism, diplomacy, government, and international business.

Current Trends in Child Second Language Acquisition

Current Trends in Child Second Language Acquisition PDF Author: Belma Haznedar
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
ISBN: 9027290598
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 374

Get Book Here

Book Description
This volume presents recent generative research on the nature of grammars of child second language (L2) acquirers -- a learner population whose exposure to an L2 occurs between the ages of 4 to 8. The main goal is to define child L2 acquisition in relation to other types of acquisition such as child monolingual and bilingual acquisition, adult L2 acquisition, and specific language impairment. This comparative perspective opens up new angles for the discussion of currently debated issues such as the role of Universal Grammar in constraining development, developmental sequences in L2, maturational influences on the 'growth' of grammar, critical period effects for different linguistic domains, initial state and ultimate attainment in relation to length of exposure, and L1-transfer in relation to age of onset. These issues are explored using longitudinal, cross-sectional, and experimental data from L2 children acquiring a range of languages, including Dutch, English, French, and Greek.

Are Children Better at Learning Languages than Adults?

Are Children Better at Learning Languages than Adults? PDF Author: M. Amira
Publisher: GRIN Verlag
ISBN: 3346837017
Category : Literary Collections
Languages : en
Pages : 14

Get Book Here

Book Description
Essay from the year 2021 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Linguistics, grade: 1,5, Trinity College Dublin (Centre for Language and Communication Studies), course: Language, the Individual and Society, language: English, abstract: The assumption that children are better at learning languages than adults is neither new nor resolved and provides a constant space for debate in the field of linguistic research. The role of age in language acquisition is a contested and complex topic and the question whether children are better language learners provides a broad basis for discussion and reflects general beliefs that persist concerning language learning. However, this question is too general and must be narrowed down in order to stay within the realm of a realistic focus and to develop a reasonable argument. Therefore, I will investigate this question on the basis of age effects with a particular focus on second language acquisition. This essay discusses positions coming in for and against the assertion that children are better language learner than adults. In order to access the problematic of this question, we are going to take a look at common beliefs on age effects in second language acquisition. In the following analyses, the common “the younger, the better” belief is discussed, in combination with related SLA myths. In this context, the role of internal and external factors on SLA and in what way they impact bilingual outcome is taken into consideration. On the basis of this knowledge, particular differences in language acquisition for younger and older learners emerge, which demonstrate the complexity and range of language development. Next, we will approach various perspectives on the notion of the involvement of a biological variable that determines or influences language proficiency and whether this variable creates a biological advantage for children in language acquisition.

Age Effects on Second Language Acquisition

Age Effects on Second Language Acquisition PDF Author: Jule Dorin
Publisher: GRIN Verlag
ISBN: 3668090122
Category : Literary Collections
Languages : de
Pages : 16

Get Book Here

Book Description
Studienarbeit aus dem Jahr 2015 im Fachbereich Anglistik - Linguistik, Note: 1,7, Universität Paderborn, Veranstaltung: Second Language Acquisition, Sprache: Deutsch, Abstract: It is a widespread belief that the acquisition of a foreign language is much easier for children rather than for adults. It is said that the younger the learner, the better the outcome will be. The same applies for the assumption that an adult learner of a foreign language cannot reach native-like competence, no matter how long the process of acquisition will take, whereas a child indeed can acquire a perfect language without even the hint of a foreign accent. Furthermore, there is a common notion that the age of onset of the acquisition of a second language plays a role in it's further development. Indeed, the acquisition of a foreign language can be a frustrating and very tough experience for adults in, whereas it seems to be a facile and fast proceeding process for children or adolescents. A possible answer to these beliefs may be found in the Critical Period Hypothesis, which states that the age is a major factor for second language acquisition (henceforth SLA) and that there is a time span, where the acquisition of a language functions best. On the other hand, there are studies which want to make clear that in fact, the contrary is true or as well that age has no influence at all when it comes to SLA. This paper aims to find out if there indeed is a connection between the learner's age and his level of proficiency in the L2.

What Language Is

What Language Is PDF Author: John McWhorter
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101644451
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 242

Get Book Here

Book Description
New York Times bestselling author and renowned linguist, John McWhorter, explores the complicated and fascinating world of languages. From Standard English to Black English; obscure tongues only spoken by a few thousand people in the world to the big ones like Mandarin - What Language Is celebrates the history and curiosities of languages around the world and smashes our assumptions about "correct" grammar. An eye-opening tour for all language lovers, What Language Is offers a fascinating new perspective on the way humans communicate. From vanishing languages spoken by a few hundred people to major tongues like Chinese, with copious revelations about the hodgepodge nature of English, John McWhorter shows readers how to see and hear languages as a linguist does. Packed with Big Ideas about language alongside wonderful trivia, What Language Is explains how languages across the globe (the Queen's English and Surinam creoles alike) originate, evolve, multiply, and divide. Raising provocative questions about what qualifies as a language (so-called slang does have structured grammar), McWhorter also takes readers on a marvelous journey through time and place-from Persian to the languages of Sri Lanka- to deliver a feast of facts about the wonders of human linguistic expression.

Child-adult Differences in Second Language Acquisition

Child-adult Differences in Second Language Acquisition PDF Author: Stephen D. Krashen
Publisher: Newbury House
ISBN:
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 250

Get Book Here

Book Description


Age as a Factor in Second Language Acquisition

Age as a Factor in Second Language Acquisition PDF Author: Jasmina Murad
Publisher: GRIN Verlag
ISBN: 364031946X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 73

Get Book Here

Book Description
Seminar paper from the year 2006 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Linguistics, grade: 1,0, Free University of Berlin (Institute for English Linguistics), course: Second Language Acquisition, 23 entries in the bibliography, language: English, abstract: One of the central questions that SLA has tried to answer is why learners of a non-native language (L2) evince such a high degree of interindividual variation in their final attainment relative to the L2 components and skills they have acquired. In order to offer a satisfactory response to this key issue, SLA researchers have posited the existence of a set of individual factors of a very different nature, such as aptitude, motivation, attitude, personality, and intelligence, among others, that might explain such variation. However, one of the most obvious potential explanations for the lack of success of L2 learners compared to L1 learners is that the acquisition of a foreign language begins at a later age than that of the mother tongue does. Thus, it has been prevalently assumed that age itself is a predictor of second language proficiency. This paper focuses on research which has been carried out on maturational constraints for SLA and hereby tries to find answers to various questions concerning age as a factor in SLA.

Preschool Bilingual Education

Preschool Bilingual Education PDF Author: Mila Schwartz
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3319772287
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 374

Get Book Here

Book Description
This volume provides an up-to-date collection of key aspects related to current preschool bilingual education research from a socio-linguistic perspective. The focus is on preschool bilingual education in multilingual Europe, which is characterized by diverse language models and children's linguistic backgrounds. The book explores the contemporary perspectives on early bilingual education in light of the threefold theoretical framework of child's, teachers', and parents' agencies in interaction in preschool bilingual education. Five significant theoretical concepts are promoted in this volume: the ecology of language learning, an educational partnership for bilingualism, a notion of agency in early language development and education, language-conducive contexts, and language-conducive strategies. The volume examines preschool bilingual education as embedded in specific socio-cultural contexts on the one hand and highlights its universal features on the other. The book is a fundamental read for scholars and students of second language teaching, preschool education, and bilingual education in multilingual and multicultural societies.

Second Language Learning Before Adulthood

Second Language Learning Before Adulthood PDF Author: Vanessa De Wilde
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
ISBN: 3110743132
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 261

Get Book Here

Book Description
Researchers have looked into the role of individual differences in second language learning and found that differences between learners in areas such as language aptitude, language learning motivation and exposure to the language influence second language learning. Most of this research concerned adults. Far fewer studies have addressed the role of individual differences in second language learning of young learners. As second language learning programmes tend to start earlier than before and children are nowadays frequently exposed to a foreign language in social settings such as online games and social media, studying the role of individual differences in young learners can contribute both to SLA-theories and to evidence-based L2 education. This book discusses recent findings concerning the role of individual differences in language learning in young learners. The chapters in the book concern different topics linked to internal individual differences such as language aptitude, motivation, attitude and external individual differences such as exposure and type of instruction, the relative contribution of internal and external factors to language learning, and the interplay between the two types of individual differences.