This is the current view of how the semester will proceed, but the schedule will be adjusted from time to time. Do not rely on the printed copy; instead, consult this page. Homework will generally be assigned on Thursdays and due on the following Thursday (the “assignment” column in the table, therefore, represents the time you have to work on the assignment, an assignment is due on the class that occurs after the time you have to work on it ends. E.g., homework 1 is given out on Jan 19 and is due Jan 26). The readings in the Readings column are those that pertain to the lectures that week, which come from the Meisel (2011) textbook (“M”) unless otherwise noted. Readings listed as “Related” constitute (part of) the source material for the discussions they are listed with, but it is not necessary to read “related” papers (usually because they assume a fair amount of background). Handouts are linked in the “class topic” column and presentations in the “date” column, when available.
Theme | Date | Class topic | Readings | Assignment |
---|---|---|---|---|
Issues in L1A: structure, parameters, development of morphosyntax |
Tue Jan 17 |
Overview | (Lust 2006, ch. 2) | Survey |
Thu Jan 19 |
Logical problem of language acquisition | Lust (2006), ch 3, M sec 2.1. | HW1 | |
Tue Jan 24 |
Development of syntax | M sec 2.2 | ||
Thu Jan 26 |
Root infinitives | M sec 2.3 to p. 46. | HW2: Root infinitives | |
Tue Jan 31 |
Agreement, case, ATOM, and the UCC | Schütze & Wexler (1996) | ||
Thu Feb 2 |
Null subjects (and part 2) |
(No reading) | HW3: ATOM | |
Tue Feb 7 |
Guasti (2002, ch. 5, 160-185) | |||
Thu Feb 9 |
Binding theory and Principle B | (Chien & Wexler 1990) | ||
Experimental methodology, data analysis, and reporting |
Tue Feb 14 |
Experimental methods, design, analysis, and write-ups. CHILDES demo |
Snyder (2007), chapter 4 | CHILDES lab: Data collection |
Thu Feb 16 |
Snyder (2007), chapter 5 | |||
Tue Feb 21: Monday schedule, no class |
||||
Issues in L2A: transfer, parameters |
Thu Feb 23 |
Second language acquisition of syntax | M 1, 3.1–3.2 | CHILDES lab: write-up |
Tue Feb 28 |
Transfer, initial state | M 3.3, 4.1, 4.2 | ||
Thu Mar 1 |
Parameters in L2 acquisition | M 4.4, 5.2, MacLaughlin (1995) | HW4: L2 parameters | |
Tue Mar 6 |
The definiteness effect in L2A | White et al. (2012), M 4.3 | ||
Thu Mar 8 |
Wh-movement in L1 acquisition | Guasti, Thornton, and Wexler (1995) | Final project: Proposal |
|
Mar 10–Mar 18: Spring recess | ||||
Acquisition of syntactic movement |
Tue Mar 20 |
Wh-movement in L2 acquisition, critical periods | Umeda (2007) | |
Thu Mar 22 |
Passives and A-chains in L1 acquisition | TBA | Final project: Design |
|
Tue Mar 27 |
Acquisition of semantics in L1 acquisition | (No readings) | ||
Topics | Thu Mar 29 |
In-class discussions of statistics | (No readings) | |
Tue Apr 3 |
Specific language impairment | (Wexler et al. Schaeffer et al.) |
Final project: Data collection |
|
Thu Apr 5 |
Morphology/syntax interface in L2 acquisition, etc. | (Prévost & White) | ||
Acquisition of meaning |
Tue Apr 10 |
Pragmatics, Albanian | (Kapia 2010) | |
Thu Apr 12 |
Guest lecture, Prof. Stephen Crain (Macquarie University) |
— | Final project: analysis |
|
Tue Apr 17 |
Acquisition of semantics in L2 acquisition | TBA | ||
Topics | Thu Apr 19 |
Attrition, language mixing | (MacSwan, Sorace) | Final project: Presentation prep |
Assessment | Tue Apr 24 |
Recap | No reading | |
Presentations | Thu Apr 26 |
Presentations (JG) — (JH) — (KK) — (CL) — |
Final project: write-up |
|
Tue May 1 |
Presentations (DG) — (KH) — (AK) — (CK) — (MS) — | |||
Semester ends |