Studying Processability Theory

Processability Theory (PT) as developed by Manfred Pienemann is a prominent theory of second language acquisition. PT serves as a framework for a wide range of research covering issues, including L2 processing, interlanguage variation, typological effects on SLA, L1 transfer, pidgins and creoles, linguistic profiling, stabilisation/fossilisation and teachability. This textbook provides a reader-friendly introduction to PT. It is designed for students with a basic knowledge of (applied) linguistics. The components of PT are set out in four parts. The first part focuses on observed facts, in particular on paths of L2 development and learner variation. The second part gives an overview of the theoretical basis of PT. Part three details the application of PT to contexts other than ESL (i.e. Japanese, creoles and bilingual acquisition), and the fourth part focuses on practical applications. Each chapter contains exercises (including data analysis and interpretation) which may be used for individual study or in class. The textbook can be used as a concise introduction to PT. However, it may also serve as a point of reference for particular PT-related topics. The individual chapters were written by specialists in each of the research areas.

Processability Theory (PT) as developed by Manfred Pienemann is a prominent theory of second language acquisition. PT serves as a framework for a wide range of research covering issues, including L2 processing, interlanguage variation, typological effects on SLA, L1 transfer, pidgins and creoles, linguistic profiling, stabilisation/fossilisation and teachability. This textbook provides a reader-friendly introduction to PT. It is designed for students with a basic knowledge of (applied) linguistics. The components of PT are set out in four parts. The first part focuses on observed facts, in particular on paths of L2 development and learner variation. The second part gives an overview of the theoretical basis of PT. Part three details the application of PT to contexts other than ESL (i.e. Japanese, creoles and bilingual acquisition), and the forth part focuses on practical applications. Each chapter contains exercises (including data analysis and interpretation) which may be used for individual study or in class. The textbook can be used as a concise introduction to PT. However, it may also serve as a point of reference for particular PT-related topics. The individual chapters were written by specialists in each of the research areas

This book explores relationships between Processability Theory approaches and other approaches to SLA. It is distinctive in two ways. It offers PT-insiders a way to see connections between their familiar traditions and theories with other ways of working. Parallel to this it offers readers who work in other traditions ways of connecting with a research tradition that makes specific testable claims about second language acquisition processes. These dual perspectives mean that both beginning and established SLA researchers as well as those seeking to connect their work with views of language learning will find something of interest. Studies of multiple languages and multiple aspects of language are included. Chapters cover areas as diverse as literacy, language comprehension, language attrition and language testing.

Aims to provide a systematic perspective on some central psychological mechanisms underlying the spontaneous production of interlanguage (IL) speech. The text develops a framework that represents a theory of processability of grammatical structures, referred to as "Processability Theory".

Seven years ago Manfred Pienemann proposed a novel psycholinguistic theory of language development, Processability Theory (PT). This volume examines the typological plausibility of PT. Focusing on the acquisition of Arabic, Chinese and Japanese the authors demonstrate the capacity of PT to make detailed and verifiable predictions about the developmental schedule for each language. This cross-linguistic perspective is also applied to the study of L1 transfer by comparing the impact of processability and typological proximity. The typological perspective is extended by including a comparison of different types of language acquisition. The architecture of PT is expanded by the addition of a second set of principles that contributes to the formal modeling of levels of processability, namely the mapping of argument-structure onto functional structure in lexical mapping theory. This step yields the inclusion of a range of additional phenomena in the processability hierarchy thus widening the scope of PT.

A fundamental issue in second language acquisition research and in applied linguistics is the question of how learners acquire a second language. Today it is general knowledge that any second language learning follows certain, theoretically established and empirically supported developmental sequences. Based on Processability Theory (Pienemann 1998 and 2005) one can diagnose current states of individual learners' second language development. Knowing about the path of second language development provides important insights into what learners are ready to acquire in the second language at a given point in time. This can support second language learning both in natural and instructional settings. Pienemann's Processability Theory (PT) provides a well researched and empirically substantiated framework to explain the developmental sequences in second language learning across languages.Taking Pienemann (1998 and 2005) as the point of departure the chapters of this book apply, test and extend PT. The book is organised in four parts, (I) Introduction, (II) Current Theoretical Issues within the PT Framework, (III) Applying PT to the Second Language Classroom, and (IV) Work in Progress within the PT Framework.