SLA theory Archive

At the Interface: Dynamic Interactions of Explicit and Implicit Language Knowledge by Nick Ellis, Professor of Psychology, Research Scientist, English Language Institution, University of Michigan Much of language learning is done implicitly form naturalistic usage.  What then, if any, are the roles of explicit instruction and explicit learning in second language acquisition?  The ‘interface question’…

Fifty Probably True and Useful Findings from SLA by Richard Schmidt, Professor, Department of Second Language Studies, Director, National foreign Language Resource Center, University of Hawai’i-Manoa There is no generally accepted theory of Second Language Acquisition (SLA).  Indeed, major competing theories conflict in terms of such basic assumptions as the nature of language and the…

Effects of Instruction in Second Language Acquisition by Catherine Doughty, University of Hawaii at Manoa This talk will present an up-to-date survey of the recent explosion of empirical research on the effects of instruction on second language acquisition.  The findings will be discussed in terms of L2 learning rate, sequences, processes, and ultimate attainment.  We…

A Neurobiological Perspective on Variable Success in Second Language Acquisition by John Schumann, Professor and Chair, Department of Applied Linguistics and TESL, University of California, Los Angeles.

Two Language Acquisition Theories, Krashen’s i+1 and Vygotsky"s ZPD: Incommensurable Discourses, Incommensurable Theories by James Lantoff, Professor of Applied Linguistics, Cornell University.

Understanding and working with the complexity of second language learning and use in an intercultural orientation necessitates a re-examination of the different theories of learning that inform the different schools of second language acquisition (SLA). This re-examination takes place in a context where explicitly conceptualizing the nature of learning in SLA has not been sufficiently foregrounded. It also necessitates understanding how language itself, as the substance or object of learning a second language, is conceptualized. Neither the theorization of learning, nor of language on its own is sufficient to provide an adequate account of second language learning for contemporary times. In particular, this paper argues ...