bilingualism and second language acquisition

Question 1

what is the original definition of true bilinguals

Answer 1

having native like proficiency in 2 langauges

Question 2

what is the issue with this original definition of true bilinguals

Answer 2

people who can communicate in 2 languages but not with native proficiency are also called bilinguals

Question 3

what is the new definition of true bilinguals

Answer 3

regular use of 2 or more languages/dialects in everyday life

Question 4

what are some bilingual classifications

Answer 4

-simultaneous bilinguals/ bilingual 1st lang = exposure to 2 langs from birth

-sequential bilinguals = sequential exposure to 2 languages

-other: balance, dominant, elective, circumstantial etc

Question 5

are all classifications of bilinguals true bilinguals

Answer 5

yes

Question 6

bilingual prevalence in world

Answer 6

more than 50% of world population use 2 or more languages in everyday life

Question 7

what is early language acquisition and what is it also known as

Answer 7

having 2 languages from birth
aka bilingual first language acquisition (BFA)

Question 8

do language milestones differ for bilingual children

Answer 8

no, patterns of dev for bilingual children are identical to dev of monolingual children (De Houwer 2009)

Question 9

what are the key language milestones

Answer 9

27 weeks: babbling
12 months: one word/holophrastic stage
24 months: two word stage
36 months: multiword sentences
48 months +: complex sentences

Question 10

what are the 2 bilingual hypothesis’

Answer 10

the fusion hypoth
separate language hypoth

Question 11

what is the fusion hypoth

Answer 11

volterra and taeschner 1978
1. one language up to 3yrs (2 languages represented as 1)
2. distinction of 2 systems but same syntactical rules used in the 2 languages
3. differentiated systems

Question 12

what is the separate lang hypoth

Answer 12

houwer 2005
-bilinguals have separate systems for L1 and L2 from the start
-both languages are acquired simultaneously

Question 13

which hypothesis has now been discredited

Answer 13

the fusion hypothesis

Question 14

how does lexical differentiation support the separate lang hypothesis

Answer 14

-children exposed to 2 languages have 2 words for one object
-favours 2 lang systems hypothesis since monolingual children operate on the principle of mutual exclusivity

Question 15

what is mutual exclusivity

Answer 15

children assume words denote mutually exclusive object categories e.g if children already know a name for an object they will reject a new word for same object

Question 16

how does morpho syntactic development support the separate lang systems hypothesis

Answer 16

de houwer 1995
-no evidence of fused language system
-language mixing occurs but not with grammatical rules
-mixing words doesnt mean the child cant differentiate between the languages and it doesnt mean the languages are in the same place in brain
-mixing may occur bc child may not know the word in one language or might be used as a communicative strategy

Question 17

how does phonological differentiation support separate language systems hypoth

Answer 17

-bilingual children do not have accents for either language, maybe bc there isnt a clear distinction between sounds of L1 and L2
-L1 and L2 are probably encoded, stored and used in separate manners as proposed by the separate lang hypothesis

Question 18

definition of learning

Answer 18

dev of a skill due to conscious process that requires instructions and information present in the envrionment

Question 19

definition of acquisition

Answer 19

automatic and unconscious process by which skill is developed without instruction and scarce info available

Question 20

what age is L1 normally acquired by

Answer 20

6yrs

Question 21

what age can L2 be learnt

Answer 21

any age

Question 22

what is the biological clock

Answer 22

requires acquisition of aspects of L2 at right time (CP)

Question 23

what is the ceiling effect

Answer 23

it might be impossible to develop linguistic competency in L2 to a level similar to L1

Question 24

who completed initial research into the idea of the critical period (CP)1

Answer 24

penfield and roberts 1959: loss of plasticity as we age supports idea of CP

Question 25

lennenberg research into CP

Answer 25

1967 -hemispheric specialisation around puberty supports idea of CP

Question 26

definition of CP

Answer 26

irreversible loss of skill if not acquired at specific time

Question 27

definition of sensitive period

Answer 27

abnormal dev of skill if this is not acquired at a biologically specified time -can be compensated or reversed

Question 28

evidence for CP in acquisition of L1

Answer 28

-Genie (feral child): serious deprivation, isolated until age 13, at age of 13 she was taught lang but never reached native level, supports idea of CP -deaf children with hearing parents (Syirsky and Holt 2005), children had surgery of cochlear implants, if before age 2 lang was normal, if after 2 lang dev had some difficulties

Question 29

evidence for CP and acquisition of L2

Answer 29

-Oyama 1976: learning L2 later in life, morphological syntactical and phonological level was difficult to attain at native level -L2 speakers tend NOT to learn phonology or accent like a native speaker

Question 30

why are bilingual speakers considered special if there are over 50% of worlds population

Answer 30

bc learning L2 after early childhood is considered difficult/not normal/not natural

Question 31

studies into arrival of foreign country and language

Answer 31

johnson and newport 1989: foreigners arrive in USA, if arrival after age 8, english proficiency score drops hugely flege 1995: as age of foreigners entering canada increases, accent proficiency decreases, e.g if born in canada you learn phonology perfectly but do not adopt foreign accent

Question 32

neuroimaging evidence to support CP

Answer 32

-pp who speak L2 later in life have diff pathways in brain -less activation for L2 in LH compared to L1 (L2 not working as well as L1 at activating areas to help in LH) -strengthens critical period

Question 33

ERPs evidence to support CP and counter evidence

Answer 33

electrical activity different for those who learn L2 later in life HOWEVER marinova and todd 2000 -frequency of use of L2 may be more important in how proficient you use L2 than the AofA

Question 34

research contradicting CP

Answer 34

Loup et al 1994 -julie and laura (americal) learnt arabic with native like proficiency -people in egypt could not tell they were not native speakers

Question 35

what % of people learn L2 with native like proficiency

Answer 35

Birdsong 1999 - 5-25%

Question 36

is there a difference between bilingual indivs learning their L1 and L2

Answer 36

the difference is very small

Question 37

what are the 3 key traditional views of bilingualism

Answer 37

1.late bilinguals may have mixed language systems that includes full native lang and a funky L2 2.bilinguals should be functionally monolingual in the native langauge 3.the L1 should transfer to the L2 but not much transfer expected from the L2 to the L1