Research in Language Acquisition
Course number: LS 363
Credits: 5
Tutor: Shruti Sircar
Meeting time: Thursday 10-1.
Prerequisites. Basic issues in Syntax/ Basic issues in Phonology.
Course goals
After a general introduction to the study of language acquisition within the principles and
parameters framework of generative grammar (defining the central concepts and laying out
some of the theoretical issues), we will cover a number of topics of current relevance to the
field of language acquisition, including: learning of phoneme discrimination, words and
concepts, functional categories, verb movement and finiteness, null subjects, and whquestions.
In the first part of the course, we will concentrate on first language acquisition, then turning
to second language acquisition in the second part of the course. We will also discuss research
methods in language acquisition, particularly syntax and semnatics.
Course Requirements. Readings from books and from papers will be assigned each week.
Grading
scheme.
Quiz 1 15%
Quiz 2 15%
Review of an 10%
experimental study
Final examination 60%
Reading requirements (among others)
Guasti, Maria Teresa (2002). Language acquisition: the growth of grammar, MIT.
Crain, Stephen, & Lillo-Martin, Diane (1999). An introduction to linguistic theory and
language acquisition. Oxford: Blackwell.
Crain, Stephen, & Thornton, Rosalind (2000). Investigations in universal grammar:
a guide to experiments on the acquisition of syntax and semantics, MIT.
White, Lydia (2003). Second language acquisition and universal grammar, New York:
Cambridge University Press.