This paper presents an argument for how second language acquisition (SLA) research should be carried out if a researcher is genuinely interested in learner grammar (i.e., knowledge of language), its acquisition and use. SLA research has expanded greatly over many years and currently spans many subfields, but researchers share one main goal: to…

We report on a study of first-exposure learners with different first languages (L1s: English, Japanese) to examine their ability to process input for form and meaning. We used a rich set of tasks to tap respectively into processing, comprehension, imitation, and working memory. We show that there are advantages to having a first language (L1) that…

The induction problems facing language learners have played a central role in debates about the types of learning biases that exist in the human brain. Many linguists have argued that some of the learning biases necessary to solve these language induction problems must be both innate and language-specific (i.e., the Universal Grammar (UG)…

This study aims to explore the nature of definitions and classifications of Language Learning Strategies (LLSs) in the current studies of second/foreign language learning in order to show the current problems regarding such definitions and classifications. The present study shows that there is not a universal agreeable definition and…

This article critically reviews strategy research on learning Chinese both as a second and foreign language. Through a careful examination of major data bases in both the Chinese and English languages, the article summarizes research in the field and the principal research methods used in the studies reviewed. Moreover, key limitations in research…

Two researchers respond to a previous "TESOL Quarterly" article that assessed the state of the art of research and classroom applications of learning strategies, and the author of the article responds to those comments. (71 references) (JL)

This article notes seven key problems in language learning strategy concepts and classification systems as they relate to empirical research in the area of second- and foreign language development and suggests ways to resolve these problems and thereby increase unity, coherence, and meaningfulness of language learning strategy research. (99…

Examines three experimental studies deriving from contrastive analysis predictions and error analysis insights into deviances from expected target language forms. Each of these studies predate the Interlanguage hypothesis. (CB)

Academic language is the linguistic glue that holds the tasks, texts, and tests of school together. If students can't use this glue well, their academic work is likely to fall apart. According to the author of this article, "academic language" is defined as the set of words and phrases that (1) describe content-area knowledge and procedures; (2)…

Ways in which studies in second-language acquisition research can illuminate first-language acquisition research are explored. Emphasis is on issues of learner strategies, individual variation, acquisition of late learned structures, bilingualism, Universal Grammar, and the fate of obsolete knowledge in acquisition. (64 references) (Author/LB)

This study tested the hypothesis that children as young as two years use what adults tell them about meaning relations when making inferences about new words. Subjects (n=18) learned two new terms, with instructions to treat one term as superordinate to the other or replace one with the other, and with no instructions. Children used both kinds of…

An exploratory application of the "acquisitional strategies" framework investigated English-speaking language learners' acquisition of preposition stranding in Dutch. Interesting syntactic and morphological contrasts in both English and Dutch render the framework a valuable empirical tool for evaluating language acquisition strategies. (Author/CB)

Formal and functional similarities in a learner's first and second languages (L1 and L2) facilitate the perception of cross-linguistic equivalence between individual items (phonemes, morphemes, words, and phrases). The beginning foreign language learner makes frequent use of these perceived equivalences when he learns to understand L2 items. This…

A Compensation Model is proposed to help explain the difference between child and adult language acquisition in terms of different cognitive modules and theories. In this model, two assumptions are made: (1) existence of two different cognitive modules (language-specific and general-cognition) in the mind, and (2) the independent and interactive…

A study of learning strategies in second language learning, of both English and other languages, presents a theory of the role learning strategies play and uses it to examine specific studies and to integrate research results. The research and theory described here are based on a cognitive information processing perspective of human thought and…