Center forLanguage Acquisition

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Course Offerings

First Session

June 22–July 3

L2 Sentence Processing: Theory and Experimental Quantitative Research Methods (Nuria Sagarra)

Overview of research on second-language sentence processing, and hands-on experience in use of moving-window and eye-tracking techniques.

Lending a Hand: Gesture and L2 Learning and Teaching (Steven G. McCafferty)

Focuses on the relevance of L2 gesture studies for language learning and teaching and on how to conduct gesture research.

The Contributions of Chaos/Complexity Theory to Applied Linguistics (Diane Larsen-Freeman)

Examination of the contribution of chaos/complexity theory to applied linguistics, and of appropriate design for conducting relevant research.

Implicit and Explicit Knowledge of a Second Language: Investigating Learning and Instruction (Yasuhiro Shirai)

Examination of methods for measuring implicit/explicit knowledge in relation to L2 proficiency. Considers effects of implicit/explicit instruction on acquisition.

Technology, Mediation, and Second-Language Development (Steven L. Thorne)

Exploration of the theoretical and pedagogical implications of Internet-based technologies in a wide array of language education contexts.

Psycholinguistic Approaches to Second-Language Development (Kees de Bot)
Focuses on psycholinguistic processes that play a role in second-language development over the life span.

Language and Identity (Tim McNamara)

Considers contemporary approaches to understanding ways in which language is involved in the construction and indexing of social identity.

Cognition and SLA (Nick Ellis)

Cognitive analysis of the acquisition of second-language constructions.

Language as Symbolic Power (Claire Kramsch)

Exploration of the impact of sign-making and sign-using on the constitution of the symbolic self.

Language and Alzheimer’s (Robert Schrauf)

Examines the role of language in Alzheimer’s disease, at the level of the individual and in medical and societal discourse.

Writing in Second Languages (Alister Cumming)

Reviews studies of learning, teaching, and assessing of writing in second languages. Focuses on analyzing learners’ texts, composing processes, and personal characteristics and orientations.

Self, Identity, Agency: The Theory and Practice of Action-Based Learning and Teaching (Leo van Lier)

Explores, describes, and studies the impact of the interrelated constructs of self, identity, and agency on language learning and teaching.

Cognitive Linguistics and Its Applications to Second-Language Learning (Marjolijn Verspoor)

Introduction to cognitive linguistics and its applications to L2 learning. Deals with categorization, metaphor, cultural models, and grammar as conceptual organizing system.

World Englishes: New Questions for Policy, Proficiency, and Pedagogy (Suresh Canagarajah)

Discussion of dominant and localized varieties of English, challenges in describing these, and emergent models of acquisition and multilingual communication.

Second Session

July 6–17

Error Correction in L2 Classrooms (Lourdes Ortega)

Examination of a selection of the empirical, theoretical, and educational literature that addresses error correction in L2 classrooms.

Second-Language Conversations (Johannes Wagner)

Covers basic concepts in conversation analysis, with a variety of examples from second-language talk (primarily ESL).

A Conceptualization-Based Approach to Grammar: Corpus, Discourse Analysis, and Cognitive Linguistics (Susan Strauss)

Using conceptual grammar, provides overview of English and compares English with Korean, Japanese, Spanish, French, and Persian.

Introducing Sociocultural Theories through Narratives of Second-Language Learning and Teaching (Merrill Swain)

Focuses on furthering students’ understanding of L2 learning through the lens of Vygotskian and neo-Vygotskian sociocultural theory.

Second-Language Teacher Education (Karen E. Johnson and Paula Golombek)

Exploration of teacher learning and professional development throughout teachers’ careers. Considers teacher socialization in classrooms, schools, and professional communities.

Qualitative Interviews in Applied Linguistics (Gabriele Kasper)

Critical examination of interview studies in applied linguistics. Training in developing, conducting, and analyzing interviews.

Non-Western Perspectives on Applied Linguistics: Toward a Globalizing Applied Linguistics (Sinfree Makoni)

Considers emerging perspectives on applied linguistics in Asia, Latin America, and Africa, along with colonial, postcolonial, transcontinental, and cosmopolitan approaches.

Critical Language Testing: Power, Consequences, Responsibility, and Responses (Elana Shohamy)

Focuses on the power, motivations, and intentions of language tests, and their impact on individuals and societies.

Classroom Interaction and Language Learning (Joan Kelly Hall)

Introduction to study of additional language learning in classroom interaction based on a perspective of language learning as discursive practice.

Multilingualism: Psycholinguistic, Sociolinguistic, and Educational Perspectives (Jasone Cenoz)

Focuses on different aspects of multilingualism, including psycholinguistic, sociolinguistic, and educational perspectives.

Sociocultural Theory and the Pedagogical Imperative (James P. Lantolf)

From the perspective of praxis, considers how conceptual knowledge and social mediation in the ZPD promote language development.

Computational and Statistical Methods for Corpus Analysis (Xiaofei Lu)

Hands-on introduction to the core and advanced computational and statistical methods for analyzing corpus data.

L2 Classroom-Based Assessment (Pauline Rea-Dickins and Matthew E. Poehner)

Exploration of theoretical assumptions of contemporary assessment practices and an alternative view that understands assessment as integral to classroom activity.

The Interactional Instinct: The Evolution and Acquisition of Language (John Schumann)

Explores evolutionary theory of language as a complex adaptive system that exists as a cultural artifact without innate abstract grammatical representations.

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