Psycholinguistics: The Psychology of Language Approximately half the world’s population are native speakers of more than one language. Even more people learn a second language after they’ve learned their primary language Bilingualism is the norm in many parts of the world (especially Asia and Africa) Second Language Acquisition

Learning a Second Language Sequential Language Acquisition (L2 Acquisition) Simultaneous Language Acquisition Early research Later research Sequential Language Acquisition (L2 Acquisition): The acquisition of a second language by someone who has already learned a first language Simultaneous Language Acquisition Learning two languages at more or less the same time, beginning in infancy People learn second languages in school, when moving to a new country, or because they’re raised to speak two languages Early research guessed that childhood bilingualism is detrimental Bilingual children sometimes mix two languages in the same sentence. Example from a French-English speaking child: His nose is perdu (mixing two vocabularies) A house pink (using French word order) That’s to me (using French idioms) However, recent research suggests that childhood bilingualism can be advantageous

Simultaneous Bilingualism Questions researchers try to answer: How can a child learn two languages at the same time? Does the child confuse the two languages? Does bilingual development take longer than monolingual development? Are bilingual children brighter? Does simultaneous language acquisition impair cognitive development? How much exposure to each language is necessary for a child to become bilingual?

Simultaneous Bilingualism Two hypotheses The Unitary Language System Hypothesis *The Dual Language System Hypothesis* Codeswitching Stages of bilingual acquisition What don’t we know? Two hypotheses for how children learn two languages at the same time: The Unitary Language System Hypothesis: Children learn one lexicon and one grammar, then learn to differentiate The Dual Language System Hypothesis: Children learn two separate lexicons and grammars from the beginning. This is the most widely accepted. Most research suggests that children learn two different lexicons and grammars Children will use the correct grammar for each language If a child doesn’t know the rule or the word in one language, the child will substitute the other language. Bilingual children codeswitch: using two languages depending on the social context Bilingual children acquire language in the same stages as monolingual children: Babbling Holophrasic stage Telegraphic stage Will omit function words in both languages What don’t we know? What kind of input is better? Mom speaks on language and Dad speaks the other? Can a child differentiate between the two languages if they’re combined? How much input from each language does a child need?

Simultaneous Bilingualism Bilingualism and cognition Problem-solving Metalinguistic awareness Social appropriateness Effects on education What effect does bilingualism have on cognition? Bilingual children tend to be better at certain kinds of problem solving Better metalinguistic awareness: conscious awareness about language (rather than of a language) Bilingual Hebrew / English-speaking child: “I speak Hebrew and English” Monolingual English-speaking child: “What’s English?” Bilingual children understand the arbitrary relationship between word and object earlier They have the awareness to speak each language in the socially appropriate context Success in school depends on how much the parents value both languages and education in general

Sequential Bilingualism Sequential bilingualism is Usually learned as a teenager or adult Consciously attempted Much more difficult to learn Usually impossible to perfect the accent Unlike acquiring a first language (for the most part) Learned in stages (not the same as L1 learning) How does native language influence second language learning? Second language learners apply the grammatical rules of their language to the second language Second language learners apply the phonemes from their native language to the second language (so they speak with an accent) They have difficulty learning to produce phonemes that don’t exist in their native languages Is there a critical period for L2 acquisition? The earlier a person is exposed to a language, the more likely s/he will be have to speak like a native Every year seems to make a difference A nine-year-old who comes to the US from China will have an easier time learning English than a 10-year-old However, teens and adults can learn to speak like natives

Sequential Bilingualism Critical period vs. “sensitive periods” “Overhearers” Is there a critical period for L2 acquisition? The earlier a person is exposed to a language, the more likely s/he will be have to speak like a native Every year seems to make a difference A nine-year-old who comes to the US from China will have an easier time learning English than a 10-year-old However, teens and adults can learn to speak like natives “Sensitive Periods” for acquiring language A second language has to be introduced in childhood for all the phonemes to be perfect Other elements of language (morphemes, grammar) have larger windows “Overhearers”: people who overheard a language frequently in childhood but never learned to speak it Have a more native-sounding accent than others Don’t have an easier time learning the grammar