New Trends In Language Acquisition Within The Generative Perspective

This book presents a comprehensive, state-of-the-art treatment of the acquisition of Indo- and Non-Indo-European languages in various contexts, such as L1, L2, L3/Ln, bi/multilingual, heritage languages, pathology as well as language impairment, and sign language acquisition. The book explores a broad mix of methodologies and issues in contemporary research. The text presents original research from several different perspectives, and provides a basis for dialogue between researchers working on diverse projects with the aim of furthering our understanding of how languages are acquired. The book proposes and refines new theoretical constructs, e.g. regarding the complexity of linguistic features as a relevant factor forming children’s, adults’ and bilingual individuals’ acquisition of morphological, syntactic, discursive, pragmatic, lexical and phonological structures. It appeals to students, researchers, and professionals in the field.

This volume presents recent generative research on the nature of grammars of child second language (L2) acquirers -- a learner population whose exposure to an L2 occurs between the ages of 4 to 8. The main goal is to define child L2 acquisition in relation to other types of acquisition such as child monolingual and bilingual acquisition, adult L2 acquisition, and specific language impairment. This comparative perspective opens up new angles for the discussion of currently debated issues such as the role of Universal Grammar in constraining development, developmental sequences in L2, maturational influences on the 'growth' of grammar, critical period effects for different linguistic domains, initial state and ultimate attainment in relation to length of exposure, and L1-transfer in relation to age of onset. These issues are explored using longitudinal, cross-sectional, and experimental data from L2 children acquiring a range of languages, including Dutch, English, French, and Greek.

This edited volume contains a representative sample of papers presented at the 7th meeting of the Generative Approaches to Language Acquisition – North America (GALANA-7) conference. The book features three streams of research (Variation in Input, First Language Acquisition, and Second Language Acquisition), each of which investigates the nature of language acquisition from the generative perspective. A unique feature of the GALANA-7 conference, and of this volume, is the bringing together of research on generative language acquisition and research on the role that cross-dialectal input variation plays in acquisition. This volume should be of interest to scholars and students of first language acquisition, second language acquisition, and input variation.

Against the background of the proliferation of the various subdisciplines of language acquisition research over the past decades, this volume aims to enhance the existing but somewhat fragile links between language acquisition and theoretical linguistics. With regard to previous research, the book focuses on the acquisition of syntax and syntactic theory, specifically on Chomskyan Generative Grammar.

The vast majority of work in theoretical linguistics from a generative perspective is based on first language acquisition and performance. The vast majority of work on second language acquisition is carried out by scholars and educators working within approaches other than that of generative linguistics. In this volume, this gap is bridged as leading generative linguists apply their intellectual and disciplinary skills to issues in second language acquisition. The results will be of interest to all those who study second language acquisition, regardless of their theoretical perspective, and all generative linguists, regardless of the topics on which they work.

This is a collection of essays on the native and non-native acquisition of syntax within the Principles and Parameters framework. In line with current methodology in the study of adult grammars, language acquisition is studied here from a comparative perspective. The unifying theme is the issue of the 'initial state' of grammatical knowledge: For native language, the important controversy is that between the Continuity approach, which holds that Universal Grammar is essentially constant throughout development, and the Maturation approach, which maintains that portions of UG are subject to maturation. For non-native language, the theme of initial states concerns the extent of native-grammar influence. Different views regarding the continuity question are defended in the papers on first language acquisition. Evidence from the acquisition of, inter alia, Bernese, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Icelandic, Italian and Japanese, is brought to bear on issues pertaining to clause structure, null subjects, verb position, negation, Case marking, modality, non-finite sentences, root questions, long-distance questions and scrambling. The views defended on the initial state of (adult) second language acquisition also differ: from complete L1 influence to different versions of partial L1 influence. While the target language is German in these studies, the native language varies: Korean, Spanish and Turkish. Analyses invoke UG principles to account for verb placement, null subjects, verbal morphology and Case marking. Though many issues remain, the volume highlights the growing ties between formal linguistics and language acquisition research. Such an approach provides the foundation for asking the right questions and putting them to empirical test.

This volume is a collection of state-of-the-art papers in generative studies of second language (L2) acquisition bringing together an unusually broad range of interests and inquiry. Selected papers report on controlled experimental studies within specific areas of research investigating the development of L2 grammars; others formulate exciting new proposals for methodology and learnability in both first and second language acquisition. Following an introduction which argues for new research strategies that focus on the process of acquisition along with its product, the book is divided into two sections: Current Perspectives includes compelling new work on the development of functional categories within a parameter-setting model of L2 acquisition; the second section, New Directions, introduces research and discussion on topics which reflect the latest developments in the field, including syntax-semantics correspondences, L2 processing research, code-switching from a UG perspective, and applications of Chomsky’s (1995) Minimalist Program to second language acquisition studies.

An introduction to the study of children's language development that provides a uniquely accessible perspective on generative/universal grammar–based approaches. How children acquire language so quickly, easily, and uniformly is one of the great mysteries of the human experience. The theory of Universal Grammar suggests that one reason for the relative ease of early language acquisition is that children are born with a predisposition to create a grammar. This textbook offers an introduction to the study of children's acquisition and development of language from a generative/universal grammar–based theoretical perspective, providing comprehensive coverage of children's acquisition while presenting core concepts crucial to understanding generative linguistics more broadly. After laying the theoretical groundwork, including consideration of alternative frameworks, the book explores the development of the sound system of language—children's perception and production of speech sound; examines how words are learned (lexical semantics) and how words are formed (morphology); investigates sentence structure (syntax), including argument structure, functional structure, and tense; considers such “nontypical” circumstances as acquiring a first language past infancy and early childhood, without the abilities to hear or see, and with certain cognitive disorders; and studies bilingual language acquisition, both simultaneously and in sequence. Each chapter offers a summary section, suggestions for further reading, and exercises designed to test students' understanding of the material and provide opportunities to practice analyzing children's language. Appendixes provide charts of the International Phonetic Alphabet (with links to websites that allow students to listen to the sounds associated with these symbols) and a summary of selected experimental methodologies.