Second Language Acquisition
Second language can be acquired in various ways and at different stages in our lives. There are two main distinctions of second language acquisition; the acquired system or the learned system . The acquired systemm entails acquiring a second language naturally much like that of the first language. The learned language sysytem consists of a more formal and structured enviornment.
Stages of Second Language Acquisition
Pre-production: the silent stage.
- Has some understanding of the language
- Does not produce words
Early production:
- Vocabulary is very limited,
- Student produces one or two word responses
Speech Emergence:
- Vocabulary is expanding
- Student produces short sentence responses
- Gaining academic language
Intermediate Fluency:
- Produces more complex sentences
- Student is gaining academic language and vocabulary
Advanced Fluency:
- Student has control of language
- Comprehends and uses academic language
- Vocabulary is extensive
Video - Stages of language development
The following video provides an explanation of the stages of language development.
The following video provides an explanation of the stages of language development.
References
Baker, C. (2004). Foundations of bilingual education and bilingualism (4th ed.) Multilingual
Matters, Clevedon.
Cloud, N., Genesee, F.,Hamayan, E. (2000). Dual language instruction: A handbook for enriched
education. Building Equitable Two-Way Bilingual Programs (pp. 11-12). Boston, MA: Heinle
Garcia, O. (2009). Bilingual Education in the 21st Century: A Global Perspective. Wiley-Blackwell,
Oxford.
Freeman, D., Freeman, Y. (2001). Between Worlds: Access to Second Language Acquisition
(2nd ed.) Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann