Reformulation and Acquisition of Linguistic Complexity proposes a new answer to the question of the appropriation or acquisition of a mother tongue – a complex object, one that is both stable and perpetually evolving. This answer is based on the reformulating principle that children spontaneously apply; a principle that is illustrated here with children retelling the same story. These children are all 6, 8 or 10 years old and speak French, Italian, Croatian or Polish as a first language. This book demonstrates that the acquisition of any mother tongue is explained by the application of various reformulation procedures between source predications and reformulated predications. These procedures are comparable from one language to another, and different from one age group to another. This book also studies certain complex phenomena at the lexical and syntactical levels, and analyzes how children, depending on their age, treat these phenomena. Finally, we show that the acquisition of a mother tongue is a fundamentally linguistic activity.

Whether we grow up with one, two, or several languages during our early years of life, many of us will learn a second, foreign, or heritage language in later years. The field of Second language acquisition (SLA, for short) investigates the human capacity to learn additional languages in late childhood, adolescence, or adulthood, after the first language --in the case of monolinguals-- or languages --in the case of bilinguals-- have already been acquired. Understanding Second Language Acquisition offers a wide-encompassing survey of this burgeoning field, its accumulated findings and proposed theories, its developed research paradigms, and its pending questions for the future. The book zooms in and out of universal, individual, and social forces, in each case evaluating the research findings that have been generated across diverse naturalistic and formal contexts for second language acquisition. It assumes no background in SLA and provides helpful chapter-by-chapter summaries and suggestions for further reading. Ideal as a textbook for students of applied linguistics, foreign language education, TESOL, and education, it is also recommended for students of linguistics, developmental psycholinguistics, psychology, and cognitive science. Supporting resources for tutors are available free at www.routledge.com/ortega.

First published in 1982. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

This volume brings together papers on a wide spectrum of topics within the broad area of language acquisition, stressing the interconnections between applied and theoretical linguistics, as well as language research methodology. These contributions in honor of Professor Jan Majer have been grouped in two sections: language learning, and discourse and communication. The former discusses issues varying from aspects of first, second, and third language acquisition, individual learner differences (i.e. gender, attitudes, learning strategies), and second language research methodology to the analysis of features of learner spoken language, the role of feedback in foreign language instruction, and the position of culture in EFL textbooks. The second part of the volume offers a theoretical counterbalance to the applied nature of the first one. Here, the contributions touch upon spoken and written language analysis, language awareness, and aspects of the English language; also, selected issues of language philosophy are discussed. The wide range of topics covered in the publication, authored by specialists in their respective areas, reflects Professor Majer’s academic interests and corresponds to the complex nature of the general field the volume aims to portray.

A clear and practical introduction to second language acquisition, written for students encountering the topic for the first time.