The main purpose of theories of second-language acquisition (SLA) is to shed light on how people who already know one language learn a second language. The field of second-language acquisition involves various contributions, such as linguistics, sociolinguistics, psychology, cognitive science, neuroscience, and education. These multiple fields in second-language acquisition can be grouped as four major research strands: (a) linguistic dimensions of SLA, (b) cognitive (but not linguistic) dimensions of SLA, (c) socio-cultural dimensions of SLA, and (d) instructional dimensions of SLA. While the orientation of each research strand is distinct, they are in common in that they can guide us to find helpful condition to facilitate successful language learning. Acknowledging the contributions of each perspective and the interdisciplinarity between each field, more and more second language researchers are now trying to have a bigger lens on examining the complexities of second language acquisition.
History As SLA began as an interdisciplinary field, it is hard to pin down a precise starting date. However, there are two publications in particular that are seen as instrumental to the development of the modern study of SLA: (1) Corder's 1967 essay The Significance of Learners' Errors, and (2) Selinker's 1972 article Interlanguage. Corder's essay rejected a behaviorist account of SLA and suggested that learners made use of intrinsic internal linguistic processes; Selinker's article argued that second-language learners possess their own individual linguistic systems that are independent from both the first and second languages. In the 1970s the general trend in SLA was for research exploring the ideas of Corder and Selinker, and refuting behaviorist theories of language acquisition. Examples include research into error analysis, studies in transitional stages of second-language ability, and the "morpheme studies" investigating the order in which learners acquired linguistic features. The 70s were dominated by naturalistic studies of people learning English as a second language. By the 1980s, the theories of Stephen Krashen's had become the prominent paradigm in the field of SLA. In his theories, often collectively known as the Input Hypothesis, Krashen suggested that language acquisition is driven solely by comprehensible input, language input that learners can understand. Krashen's model was influential in the field of SLA and also had a large influence on language teaching. During this period, new theories such as Michael Long's Interaction Hypothesis, Merrill Swain's Output Hypothesis, and Richard Schmidt's Noticing Hypothesis were introduced. Additionally, notable contributions included White's descriptions of learner competence and Pienemann's use of speech processing models and lexical functional grammar to explain learner output. This period also saw the beginning of approaches based in other disciplines, such as the psychological approach of connectionism. The 1990s were characterized by two major areas of research focus: linguistic theories of SLA based on Noam Chomsky's Universal Grammar and psychological approaches such as skill acquisition theory and connectionism. This era also saw the development of new frameworks, including Processability Theory and Input Processing Theory. Furthermore, sociocultural theory, which explains SLA in terms of the learner's social environment, and approaches influenced by complexity science were introduced during this period. These trends persisted into the 2000s, with research remaining divided between linguistic and psychological approaches. Scholars like VanPatten and Benati have noted that this division is unlikely to change in the near future, given the strong support both areas receive from the broader fields of linguistics and psychology, respectively.
Early cognitive approaches to SLA These hypotheses collectively belong to early cognitive approaches to SLA, emphasizing the importance of input, output, and learner interaction in the acquisition process.
Input hypothesis
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