Second Language
Acquisition
Objectives
• explain expected stages and patterns
of language development as related
to first and second language
acquisition (critical period
hypothesis– Proficiency levels).
• explain how first language
development affects development of
English (Transferability TheoryThreshold Hypothesis).
Age and Second Language Acquisition
To Think About:
Is it better to learn a second language
when one is young or when one is
older? Why?
Discuss your ideas with a partner.
Age and Second Language Acquisition
The Critical Period Hypothesis (Eric Lenneberg
(1967)
Lenneberg stated that:
L2 is best learned between age 2 and
puberty
Ability to learn language is negatively
affected by the completion of process of
lateralization
Age and Second Language Acquisition
• Critical Period Hypothesis
• Laterialization is when each side of the brain
develops its own specialized functions
• Young learners use the same part of the brain
for learning both languages
• Older learners use different parts of the brain
Age and Second Language Acquisition
• Lenneberg stated that
• Lateralization is completed by puberty
• Therefore, an L2 should be learned between
age 2 and puberty (according to Lenneberg)
• More recent research has indicated that
lateralization actually is completed by age 5
Age and Second Language Acquisition
Therefore, young learners (before age 5) are
actually native speakers of both languages
They learn both L1 and L2 the way a native
speaker does
J. Lessow-Hurley. (2005). The foundations of dual language instruction
Age and Second Language Acquisition
• Advantages to being a younger learner
• More likely to develop a native-like
accent
• Less to learn to be considered proficient
• More likely to receive comprehensible
input
Age and Second Language Acquisition
• Advantages to being an older learner
• Can consciously use strategies to aid learning
• Has knowledge from L1 to draw from
• Has greater control over input
Proficiency: What is it?
To Think About:
When is a person proficient in a second
language?
How do you know a person is proficient?
Discuss your ideas with a partner.
Proficiency
• Proficiency includes grammatical,
sociolinguistic, discourse and strategic
competence
• Age appropriate competence in each of
these areas needs to be developed to be
considered proficient in a second language
Proficiency

Grammatical Competence
•Mastery of language code
Lexicon (vocabulary)
Word formation rules
Sentence formation rules
Pronunciation rules
Spelling
Proficiency
Sociolinguistic Competence
•Mastery of appropriate language use
in different contexts
• How to speak to a friend
• How to speak to someone in authority
• How to speak socially vs. professionally
Proficiency
Discourse Competence
Mastery of how to combine meanings and forms
to create a text in different modes
Examples:
Telephone inquiry
Narrative text
Oral report
Proficiency
Strategic Competence
Mastery of verbal and non-verbal strategies to
compensate for breakdowns in communication
Examples:
How to ask for help
How to rephrase a statement
Proficiency: How long does it
take?
To Think About:
If you wanted to learn another language,
how long do you think it would take you to
speak and understand that language?
How long would it take you to read and
write?
Discuss your ideas with a partner.
Proficiency: How long does it
take?
BICS ( Basic Interpersonal Communication
Skills)
2 to 3 years
Ability to converse and understand every
day discussions
Proficiency: How long does it
take?
CALP (Cognitive Academic Language
Proficiency)
4 to 10 years
Ability to read, write, speak, and listen at
an academic level
Stages in Second
Language Acquisition
• How can you identify a learner’s language
acquisition level?
• Discuss with a partner how the language
acquisition level can be determined. In
other words, how do you know if a
learner is a beginner, an intermediate, or
advanced learner of the L2?
Stages in Second
Language Acquisition
• Instead of using beginner,
intermediate and advanced, a more
specific classification system can be
used.
• A learner can be at the
preproduction, early speech, speech
emergence or intermediate fluency
stage
Stages in Second
Language Acquisition
Preproduction/Comprehension Stage
Characteristics
• Silent period
• Can respond non-verbally
• Will be able to understand more than
they can produce
Stages in Second
Language Acquisition
• Preproduction/Comprehension Stage
• The teacher should NOT force the
learner to talk
• The teacher should ask the learner
to draw, point, act out, label
Stages in Second
Language Acquisition
• Early Speech Production
• Characteristics
-Can understand more than can produce
-Can produce one or two words at a time
-Will pick up phrases (He cutted.)
Stages in Second
Language Acquisition
• Early Speech Production
• The teacher should ask the learner
yes/no questions
• The teacher should ask the learner
choice questions (Is this a ___ or a ___?)
Stages in Second
Language Acquisition
• Speech Emergence
• Characteristics
-Speaks in phrases
-Makes lots of errors
-Interlanguage occurs (a mixture of
vocabulary and structures from both
languages)
Stages in Second
Language Acquisition
• Speech Emergence
• The teacher should ask the
learner questions such as What
is this? What does ___ do?
Stages in Second
Language Acquisition
• Intermediate Fluency
• Characteristics
-Appear orally fluent
-Errors are same errors native speakers make
-Struggle with content area reading and
writing.
Stages in Second
Language Acquisition
• Intermediate Fluency
• The teacher should modify higher level
questions. For example, instead of
asking a student to compare two items,
the teacher should ask the student how
two items are the same. Then the
teacher should ask how they are
different.
First Language Development
To Think About:
Do you think the child’s first language is a
hindrance or a help in terms of learning a
second language? Why?
Discuss your ideas with a partner.
Common Underlying
Proficiency/Transferability Theory
Look at the next slide which illustrates
a Dual Iceberg Representation of first
and second language development.
What does this illustration mean?
Common Underlying
Proficiency/Transferability Theory
Dual Iceberg Representation
surface features
L1
surface features
L2
common underlying
proficiency
Common Underlying
Proficiency/Transferability Theory
• Many skills and concepts are common
or interdependent across languages.
• A skill or concept learned in one
language transfers to another
language when the requisite
vocabulary is acquired
Common Underlying
Proficiency/Transferability Theory
• For example, a learner only learns to
read once. If a learner can read,
he/she can read in another language,
once the vocabulary is learned.
• What needs to be explicitly taught in
the other language are the features
that are different.
What Literacy Skills Transfer?
Directionality
Sequencing
Ability to distinguish shapes and sounds
Knowledge that written symbols correspond to sounds
and can be decoded in order and direction
What Literacy Skills Transfer?
Activation of semantic and syntactic knowledge
Knowledge of text structure
Learning to use cues to predict meaning
Awareness of the variety of purposes for reading and
writing
Confidence in oneself as a reader and writer
What Skills Do Not Transfer?
Critical and Cultural Literacy
(interpretation of text given a specific
cultural world view)
From: C. Roberts. (1994). Transferring literacy skills from L1 to L2: From theory to practice. In The Journal of
Educational Issues of Language Minority Students, v. p. 209-221
Threshold Hypothesis
• The threshold hypothesis states there is a
threshold level of ability that needs to be
reached in one language in order for a
learner to be successful in another
language
• The threshold hypothesis also states that
high levels of bilingualism have positive
cognitive effects
Threshold Hypothesis
• The better developed the L1, the better
developed the L2 can be.
• High level of proficiency in L1-high level of
proficiency in L2 is possible
• A low level of proficiency in L1-lower level
of proficiency in L2
What have you learned?
•With a partner, list three new
things you have learned today.
Assignment 1
1. Compare between first language learner and second language
learner in terms of the following characteristics:
-constructs language from prior conceptual knowledge
-is an active learner who tests and revises hypotheses
-requires interaction
-uses cognitive strategies (i.e., overgeneralization)
-understands more when input is modified (caretaker talk,
foreigner talk)
-develops language in predictable stages
- makes developmental errors
- experiences a silent period
-is familiar with one or more other cultures
- may have a problem with attitude/motivation
- is more likely to be inhibited or Anxious
Assignment 1
2. Select a topic that you will teach (for example, fairy tales,
plant life, animals, etc.). Then, think of how you would involve
a learner at each language proficiency level in the lesson. For
example, you might think of questions that you could ask
learners at each proficiency level. Or, you might think of an
activity in which learners at each proficiency level could
participate.