The Handbook of Advanced Proficiency in Second Language Acquisition

This pioneering Handbook is unique in its scope and depth of treatment of issues in research into advanced second language proficiency. It is a landmark publication, clearly defining this broad field of inquiry, its relevance to SLA theory, and important consequences for language pedagogy and assessment.--Peter Robinson, Aoyama Gakuin University, Tokyo, JapanThere has been an unfortunate lack of research attention paid to the advanced learner, which, now, thanks to this volume, is no longer a neglected species... I was particularly struck by the documented plethora throughout of vast individual differences, both in productive and perceptual/interpretive abilities. The epistemological problems of definition, e.g. the difficulty of even defining 'advanced' and 'advanced development', are clearly presented and several innovative topics are treated in novel ways, such as the intricacies of 'information structure' and 'connected speech.' These vast documented lacunae open up great research opportunities for many dissertations to come.--Larry Selinker, New York University, USAThe Handbook of Advanced Proficiency in Second Language Acquisition offers an overview of the most recent and scientific-based research concerning higher proficiency in second language acquisition (SLA). With contributions from an international team of experts in the field, the Handbook presents several theoretical approaches to SLA and offers an examination of advanced proficiency from the viewpoint of various contexts and dimensions of second language performance. The authors also review linguistic phenomena among advanced learners through the lens of phonology and grammar development.Comprehensive in scope, this book provides an overview of advanced proficiency grounded in socially- relevant domains of second language acquisition including discourse, reading, genre-based writing, and pragmatic competence. The authoritative volume brings together the theoretical accounts of advanced language use combined with solid empirical research.Written for scholars, students and linguists, The Handbook of Advanced Proficiency in Second Language Acquisition is a comprehensive text that offers the most recent developments in the study of advanced proficiency in the acquisition of a second language.