A critical period for second language acquisition: Evidence from 2/3 million English speakers
482
TL;DR: A dataset of unprecedented size and a computational model provide the first direct estimate of how grammar-learning ability changes with age, finding that it is preserved almost to the crux of adulthood and then declines steadily.
read more
About: This article is published in Cognition. The article was published on 12 Mar 2018. and is currently open access. The article focuses on the topics: Second-language acquisition & Language acquisition.
read more
Chat with Paper
AI Agents for this Paper
Find similar papers on Google Scholar, PubMed and Arxiv
Write a critical review of this paper
Analyze citations of this paper to find unaddressed research gaps
Citations
Music as a coevolved system for social bonding
Patrick E. Savage,Psyche Loui,Bronwyn Tarr,Adena Schachner,Luke Glowacki,Steven Mithen,W. Tecumseh Fitch +6 more
TL;DR: The music and social bonding (MSB) hypothesis provides the most comprehensive theory to date of the biological and cultural evolution of music.
Digital game-based L2 learning outcomes for primary through high-school students: A systematic literature review
Emmanuel O. Acquah,Heidi T. Katz +1 more
TL;DR: Examination of empirical evidence for the effectiveness of digital games on second language learning between 2014 and 2018 suggests that DLGs are an effective tool, but future research should explore how they can best be implemented in the classroom setting.
188
Controlling for Participants' Viewing Distance in Large-Scale, Psychophysical Online Experiments Using a Virtual Chinrest
TL;DR: The Virtual Chinrest is introduced, a method that measures a participants’ viewing distance in the web browser by detecting a participant’s blind spot location that provides a promising pathway to web-based psychophysical research requiring controlled stimulus geometry.
Plasticity, Variability and Age in Second Language Acquisition and Bilingualism.
TL;DR: This review suggests how plasticity, variability and age conspire to frame fundamental research issues in L2 acquisition and bilingualism, and provides points of reference for discussion of the present Frontiers in Psychology Research Topic.
Does the Bilingual Advantage in Cognitive Control Exist and If So, What Are Its Modulating Factors? A Systematic Review
Maurits van den Noort,Maurits van den Noort,Esli Struys,Peggy Bosch,Peggy Bosch,Lars Jaswetz,Benoît Perriard,Sujung Yeo,Pia Barisch,Katrien Vermeire,Sook-Hyun Lee,Sabina Lim +11 more
TL;DR: To conclude, there is some evidence for a bilingual advantage in cognitive control; however, if significant progress is to be made, better study designs, bigger data, and more longitudinal studies are needed.
159
References
Critical Periods in Speech Perception: New Directions
Janet F. Werker,Takao K. Hensch +1 more
TL;DR: The literature on human speech perception development is reviewed within the context of this CP model, highlighting research that reveals the interplay of maturational and experiential influences at key junctures in development and presenting paradigmatic examples testing CP models in human subjects.
658
When Does Cognitive Functioning Peak? The Asynchronous Rise and Fall of Different Cognitive Abilities Across the Life Span:
TL;DR: Convergent evidence from online participants and a comprehensive analysis of normative data from standardized IQ and memory tests reveal considerable heterogeneity in when cognitive abilities peak, which motivates a nuanced theory of maturation and age-related decline.
655
Age, Rate and Eventual Attainment in Second Language Acquisition.
TL;DR: This article found that older children acquire faster than younger children (in early stages of morphological and syntactic development where time and exposure are held constant) and that acquirers who begin natural exposure to second languages during childhood generally achieve higher second language proficiency than those beginning as adults.
640
On the evidence for maturational constraints in second-language acquisition
David Birdsong,Michelle R. Molis +1 more
TL;DR: This paper showed that L2 attainment negatively correlates with age of learning even if learning commences after the presumed end of the critical period, and that the outcome of L2 acquisition may depend on L1-L2 pairings and L2 use.
636
The Critical Period for Language Acquisition: Evidence from Second Language Learning.
TL;DR: The critical period hypothesis holds that first language acquisition must occur before cerebral lateralization is complete, at about the age of puberty as discussed by the authors, and it was found that the subjects in the age groups 12-15 and adult made the fastest progress during the first few months of learning Dutch and that at the end of the first year the 8-10-12-15-year-olds had achieved the best control of Dutch.