Publisher's Synopsis
Sociolinguistics is the study of how social context influences the development of language. This means that sociolinguists are primarily interested in how the people in a society shape a language. The study of second language acquisition involves understanding what bilinguals know about their second language and how they acquire and use it. Because acquisition and use occur in a social context, it is important for second language acquisition researchers to understand the ways in which social context and the acquisition and use of a second language are related. In recent years, our understanding of language as a social phenomenon has increased greatly. Sociolinguists agree that there is so much that influences the process of learning a second language. Geography, age, how a person is taught the language, socioeconomic status, and other factors all influence how a person will acquire a language and how they will use it. Think about an immigrant learning English in the United States. Imagine that person spending time in a rural area of the South versus a downtown area of a major northeastern city. While many aspects of the language will overlap, a person learning English in the rural area will likely pick up different vocabulary, phrasing, and possibly even grammatical structures compared with a person living in a city - or even in a particular neighborhood of that city. Sociolinguistics and Language Acquisition discusses sociolinguistically oriented research on second language acquisition (SLA) in the decade. Over the last 10 years, substantial progress has been made in developing a model of the sociolinguistic processes that inform second language acquisition. This model is supported by empirical evidence on the relationship between social context and second language use and acquisition, which shows that learners' second language (L2) input and processing of L2 input in social settings are socially mediated, that social and linguistic context affect linguistic use, choice, and development, and that learners intentionally assert social identities through their L2 in communicating in social contexts. Sociolinguistics is the study of how social context influences the development of language. This means that sociolinguists are primarily interested in how the people in a society shape a language. The study of second language acquisition involves understanding what bilinguals know about their second language and how they acquire and use it. Because acquisition and use occur in a social context, it is important for second language acquisition researchers to understand the ways in which social context and the acquisition and use of a second language are related. In recent years, our understanding of language as a social phenomenon has increased greatly. Sociolinguists agree that there is so much that influences the process of learning a second language. Geography, age, how a person is taught the language, socioeconomic status, and other factors all influence how a person will acquire a language and how they will use it. Think about an immigrant learning English in the United States. Imagine that person spending time in a rural area of the South versus a downtown area of a major northeastern city. While many aspects of the language will overlap, a person learning English in the rural area will likely pick up different vocabulary, phrasing, and possibly even grammatical structures compared with a person living in a city - or even in a particular neighborhood of that city. Sociolinguistics and Language Acquisition discusses sociolinguistically oriented research on second language acquisition (SLA) in the decade. Over the last 10 years, substantial progress has been made in developing a model of the sociolinguistic processes that inform second language acquisition. This model is supported by empirical evidence on the relationship between social context and second language use and acquisition, which shows that learners' second language (L2) input and processing of L2 input in social settings are socially mediated, that social and linguistic context affect linguistic use, choice, and development, and that learners intentionally assert social identities through their L2 in communicating in social contexts. Sociolinguistics is the study of how social context influences the development of language. This means that sociolinguists are primarily interested in how the people in a society shape a language. The study of second language acquisition involves understanding what bilinguals know about their second language and how they acquire and use it. Because acquisition and use occur in a social context, it is important for second language acquisition researchers to understand the ways in which social context and the acquisition and use of a second language are related. In recent years, our understanding of language as a social phenomenon has increased greatly. Sociolinguists agree that there is so much that influences the process of learning a second language. Geography, age, how a person is taught the language, socioeconomic status, and other factors all influence how a person will acquire a language and how they will use it. Think about an immigrant learning English in the United States. Imagine that person spending time in a rural area of the South versus a downtown area of a major northeastern city. While many aspects of the language will overlap, a person learning English in the rural area will likely pick up different vocabulary, phrasing, and possibly even grammatical structures compared with a person living in a city - or even in a particular neighborhood of that city. Sociolinguistics and Language Acquisition discusses sociolinguistically oriented research on second language acquisition (SLA) in the decade. Over the last 10 years, substantial progress has been made in developing a model of the sociolinguistic processes that inform second language acquisition. This model is supported by empirical evidence on the relationship between social context and second language use and acquisition, which shows that learners' second language (L2) input and processing of L2 input in social settings are socially mediated, that social and linguistic context affect linguistic use, choice, and development, and that learners intentionally assert social identities through their L2 in communicating in social contexts. Sociolinguistics is the study of how social context influences the development of language. This means that sociolinguists are primarily interested in how the people in a society shape a language. The study of second language acquisition involves understanding what bilinguals know about their second language and how they acquire and use it. Because acquisition and use occur in a social context, it is important for second language acquisition researchers to understand the ways in which social context and the acquisition and use of a second language are related. In recent years, our understanding of language as a social phenomenon has increased greatly. Sociolinguists agree that there is so much that influences the process of learning a second language. Geography, age, how a person is taught the language, socioeconomic status, and other factors all influence how a person will acquire a language and how they will use it. Think about an immigrant learning English in the United States. Imagine that person spending time in a rural area of the South versus a downtown area of a major northeastern city. While many aspects of the language will overlap, a person learning English in the rural area will likely pick up different vocabulary, phrasing, and possibly even grammatical structures compared with a person living in a city - or even in a particular neighborhood of that city. Sociolinguistics and Language Acquisition discusses sociolinguistically oriented research on second language acquisition (SLA) in the decade. Over the last 10 years, substantial progress has been made in developing a model of the sociolinguistic processes that inform second language acquisition. This model is supported by empirical evidence on the relationship between social context and second language use and acquisition, which shows that learners' second language (L2) input and processing of L2 input in social settings are socially mediated, that social and linguistic context affect linguistic use, choice, and development, and that learners intentionally assert social identities through their L2 in communicating in social contexts.
