Lecture by Leslie Moore, September 24, 2004

Insights into SLA from Less Familiar Settings

by Leslie Moore, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Center for Informal Leaning and Schools, UC Santa Cruz

The vast majority of second language acquisition research examines L2 learning and teaching in Europe and North America in formal instructional settings (classrooms and laboratory simulations thereof).  I argue that we must investigate and include in our theorizing the full range of ways in which humans become competent users of second languages.  I present data from two ethnographic studies conducted in northern Cameroon to illustrate how such research can contribute significantly to our understanding of SLA by obliging us to (1) pay more attention to the role of context, (2) question some widely held assumptions about SLA and (3) open our eyes to L2 developmental paths that are unfamiliar or overlooked in current research.

Friday September 24, 2004
3:00-5:00 PM, B4 Dwinelle Hall

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