ML 330 - Second Language Acquisition: Theory and Praxis

3 Credit(s)

This course explores the depth and breadth of research in the field of Second Language Acquisition (SLA) since Chomsky. Empirical studies of particular interest focus on variables such as age, cognition, aptitude, motivation, personality, and cross-linguistic influences, and their effect on the rate and complexity of second language attainment. Theoretical topics include the critical period hypothesis, Chomsky’s theory of universal grammar, Krashen’s comprehensible input hypothesis, Van Patten’s theories of input processing, Swain’s pushed output hypothesis, Dreyfus’s model for skills acquisition as well as more recent findings in neurolinguistics and emergentism. Students will be evaluated for their understanding of the major tenets of SLA and how contemporary research informs language instruction at the elementary, secondary and postsecondary levels. A final course project requires students to design and implement an SLA experiment in order to test an original pedagogical hypothesis.
Prerequisite(s): Completion of two semesters of a language at the intermediate level, or permission of the instructor.