L2 Acquisition and Learning

Recommended Prerequisites

Level C1 in Portuguese is a prerequisite for all courses in the program.

Teaching Methods

The b-learning rotation flipped classroom model is followed. Drawing on students' personal experiences as native speakers and as non-native learners of languages as a starting point, theoretically sustained definitions of basic concepts result from access to materials available on a learning management system (LMS) followed by group discussions and hands-on activities during synchronous weekly sessions. The concept of interlanguage is addressed through the analysis of data selected from reliable and accessible PL2 production corpora.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completing  the course, the student is expected to:

1. General skills:

- Be able to define, with guided supervision, adequate research goals;

- Be capable of selecting, with autonomy, credible and relevant information in the light of the defined research goals;

- Plan and write an essay/report on the research carried out, and to present it orally.

2. Specific skills:

- Master the core concepts covered in the syllabus;

- Apply explicit criteria in identifying subtypes of non-monolingual speakers of Portuguese;

- Acknowledge the differences between language acquisition and language learning considering underling cognitive processes;

- Identify specific properties of L2 development and the critical language structures for non-native learners of Portuguese.

Work Placement(s)

No

Syllabus

1. Basic concepts: native language, (NL), non-native language (NNL) - foreign language (FL) and second language (SL); L1/A e L2/B; non native variety of a colonial language, creole, heritage language.

2. Bilingualism(s): towards a typology of PL2 learners;

3. Acquisition and learning of L1/NL and L2/NNL.

4. Interlanguage(s):

4.1. L1 transfer and L1 non-dependent mechanisms;

4.2. The role of different types of input.

Head Lecturer(s)

Professor a Definir - Faculdade de Letras

Assessment Methods

Assessment
Project: 20.0%
Resolution Problems: 40.0%
Research work: 40.0%

Bibliography

Cook, V. & Singleton, D. (Eds.) (2014). Key Topics in Second Language Acquisition. Multilingual Matters.

Doughty, C. J. & Long, M. H. (Eds.) (2003). The Handbook of Second Language Acquisition. Blackwell.

Gass, S. & Selinker, L. (2008). Second Language Acquisition: An Introductory Course. Routledge.

Leiria; I. (2006). Léxico, aquisição e ensino do Português europeu língua não materna. FCG/FCT.

Loewen, S. & Sato, Masatoshi (Eds.). (2017) The Routledge Handbook of Instructed Second Language Acquisition. Routledge Taylor & Francis Group.

Selinker, L. (1972). Interlanguage. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 10(3), 209-231.

VanPatten, B. & Williams, J. (ds.) (2015). Theories in Second Language Acquisition. An Introduction (2nd ed). Routledge.

Winford, D. (2002). An introduction to Contact Linguistics. Blackwell.