2. First,second
and
foreign
languages

3. Central chracteristics of
foreign language learning
Amount and type of
Exposure
English as a global language
The onus is on the teacher

4. Learning the first language
Formal literacy skills
Relatives clauses
Linking terms
Discourse skills
First language proficiency
Teachers of foreign languages

5. Learning a second language
Age and second language
learning
Native-like proficiency
Communicative ability
The Critical Period Hypothesis

6. Critical Period
 The critical period hypothesis states that
the first few years of life is the crucial time
in which an individual can acquire a first
language if presented with adequate
stimuli. If language input doesn't occur
until after this time, the individual will
never achieve a full command of language
—especially grammatical systems.

7. There are many studies that
disprove The Critical Period
Hypothesis
Learners’ objectives should
be considered

8. The influence of the first language
on the second
The Competition Model
Languages have different ways
of carrying meaning
The particular ways in which a
language encodes meaning
(Cues)

9. Example:
The cows eat the grass.
 Who or what does the eating?
 How do you know?

10. Some of the cues we use in order to
identify meanings are:
 Syntax
Word order
 Morphology (case of nouns, agreement
between subject and verb)
 Semantics

11. Age and first language
The Cue effect/ effect of age
Younger children/ older
children
Directing children’s
attention
“The whole and the parts”

12. Word order in English
All levels of language can
provide cues
Children rely on cues
from their L1
Transfers from L1 to L2

13. Influence of teaching on second
language
The range of language
experiences
Teachers’ methodologies
Foreign language learners who
depend on their teachers and
texts
Modelling of language use by
teachers

14. Advantages to starting
young
with
foreign languages

15. Learning an L2 through
immersion
Learning a second language as
a school subject
Receptive skills
Listening comprehension
Pronunciation
Slower process in grammar

16. References:
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Critical_period_hypothesis#S
(05-30-12)