February 21, 2007
Asst. Professor Rebecca Foote (UIUC)
Talk Title: Age of acquisition and proficiency as factors in language production: Agreement in bilinguals
Abstract:
Research on the production of subject-verb number agreement in monolinguals suggests cross-linguistic differences in the way it is computed; Spanish speakers show sensitivity to conceptual number while English speakers are sensitive to grammatical number.  Speakers sensitive to conceptual number make more agreement errors with grammatically singular subjects that can be conceptually plural (1) in comparison to subjects that are both grammatically and conceptually singular (2).  Speakers sensitive only to grammatical number show no difference between the two types of subjects.

(1)    The label on the bottles
(2)    The road to the mountains

Vigliocco et al.'s (1996) maximalist model of agreement production explains this cross-linguistic difference as a distinction in whether number information from the speaker's intended message is carried on both subject and verb (Spanish), or subject only (English).  However, this model is based solely on monolingual agreement production data; studies with bilinguals have found that they effect agreement the same way in both languages (Nicol et al., 2001; Nicol & Greth, 2003), even if those languages show differences when spoken by monolinguals. 

It is widely attested in the field of SLA that late bilinguals (onset of L2 after puberty) have difficulties with agreement morphology in their L2 (Jiang, 2004; Lardiere, 1998; Prévost & White, 2000).  Early bilinguals (onset of both languages before puberty) do not seem to show the same difficulties, though empirical research in this area is relatively scarce.  The question motivating the current study is therefore the following:  What role do age of acquisition (AoA) and proficiency play in agreement production in bilinguals?  To address this question, this study examined production of subject-verb number agreement in early and late bilinguals of varying proficiency.  It was hypothesized that both AoA and proficiency are factors in the accuracy of agreement production, but that neither is a factor in how agreement is computed in bilinguals' two languages; they do the same in both.

Participants included 38 early and 70 late English-Spanish bilinguals (subdivided by proficiency) who completed the experiment in Spanish and English.  They were aurally presented with 32 complex noun phrases (16 with conceptually plural, grammatically singular head nouns, 16 with conceptually and grammatically singular head nouns) and 64 fillers, accompanied by pictures that encouraged the conceptually singular or plural reading of the phrases.  Participants repeated and completed the phrases; responses were scored for agreement errors.

Results support the hypothesis that bilinguals compute agreement the same way in English and Spanish; they are sensitive to conceptual number in both languages regardless of AoA or proficiency level.  However, contrary to expectations, late bilinguals were more accurate than early bilinguals.  Implications for models of agreement production as well as theories that assume age effects in SLA will be discussed. (Handout and Powerpoint)

November 15, 2006
Professor Zoya Proshina (Far Eastern National University - Russia)
Talk Title: Teaching English in Russia
Abstract:
The presentation will focus on the English language situation in Russia and application of the theory of World Englishes to teaching English in Russia. Giving a brief survey of the historical situation of ELT in Russia, I will focus on functional, formal, attitudinal, and sociocultural aspects of Russia English. The attitudinal aspect of the local variety of English is rather complex. There is no unanimous recognition of Russia English and there is a strong rejection of Ruslish as the basilectal variety-the situation characteristic of the Expanding Circle countries. The presentation will also demonstrate the state-of-the art development of WE theory in Russia, drawing the listeners' attention to the three major schools in the field (Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Russian Far East) and the way this theory is applied to practice (culture guides, intermediary translation, university courses). (Handout)

November 10, 2006
Professor David Birdsong (University of Texas at Austin)
Talk Title: Age and the Limits of Attainment in Second Language Acquisition
Abstract:
In this presentation I provide an overview of experimental findings, conceptual issues, and theoretical positions that relate to the question of age and L2A. Both behavioral and brain-based evidence will be considered. The review includes facts and controversies relating to neurocognitive development and aging, and to cognitive neurofunction in the mature brain.
These varied perspectives are united by a basic empirical question: What are the upper limits of attainment among late L2 learners? Recent answers to this question move us beyond received views of L2 processing and acquisition "deficiencies" and promote reconceptualization of the nature of age effects, particularly in terms of the roles of L1 influence, experiential and psycho-social factors, and biological mechanisms of cognitive decline. (Related Presentations)