Larsen-Freeman Diane, Long Michael H. An Introduction to Second Language Acquisition Research

Routledge, 2014. — 718 p. — (Applied Linguistics and Language Study). — ISBN: 0-582-55377-6.Understanding how people learn and fail to learn second and foreign languages is increasingly recognised as a critical social and psycholinguistic issue. Second languages are vitally important to diverse groups of people, ranging from refugees to college students facing foreign language requirements. This book provides a synthesis of empirical findings on second and foreign language learning by children and adults, emphasising the design and execution of appropriate research.The place of second language in the world today
Why study second language acquisition?
Development of the field of study of second language acquisition
The scope of second language acquisition research
Second language acquisition research methodologyQualitative versus quantitative methodologies
Setting
Instrumentation: production data elicitation
Variability problem
Instrumentation: intuitional data elicitation
Instrumentation: use of miniature languages
Instrumentation: affective variables
Instruments from other disciplines
Measuring learner performance
SLA: Types of data analysisContrastive analysis
Error analysis
Performance analysis
Discourse analysisInterlanguage studies: Substantive findings
4.1 Introduction
ILs vary systematically
ILs exhibit common acquisition orders and developmental sequences
ILs are influenced by the learner's LI
The linguistic environment for language acquisition
Linguistic input for first language acquisition
Linguistic input for second language acquisition
Does the linguistic environment make a difference?
Explanations for differential success among second language learnersAge
Aptitude
Social-psychological factors
Personality
Cognitive style
Hemisphere specialization
Learning strategies
Other factorsTheories in second language acquisitionTheory construction and social science
Nativist theories of SLA
Environmentalist theories of SLA
Interactionist theories of SLA
Conclusion: the state of SLA theories
Instructed second language acquisitionEarly research on the effect of instruction, and some claimed implications
The effect of instruction on accuracy orders and developmental sequences
The effect of instruction on acquisition processes
The effect of instruction on rate of acquisition
The effect of instruction on the level of ultimate SL attainmentExplanations
Researching instructional design features