Now in a fifth edition, this bestselling introductory textbook remains the cornerstone volume for the study of second language acquisition (SLA). Its chapters have been fully updated, and reorganized where appropriate, to provide a comprehensive yet accessible overview of the field and its related disciplines. In order to reflect current developments, new sections and expanded discussions have been added.
The fifth edition of Second Language Acquisition retains the features that students found useful in previous editions. This edition provides pedagogical tools that encourage students to reflect upon the experiences of second language learners. As with previous editions, discussion questions and problems at the end of each chapter help students apply their knowledge, and a glossary defines and reinforces must-know terminology. This clearly written, comprehensive, and current textbook, by Susan Gass, Jennifer Behney, and Luke Plonsky, is the ideal textbook for an introductory SLA course in second language studies, applied linguistics, linguistics, TESOL, and/or language education programs.
About the Author: Susan M. Gass is University Distinguished Professor of Second Language Studies at Michigan State University. She has served as president of the American Association of Applied Linguistics (AAAL) and the International Association of Applied Linguistics (AILA). Throughout her career, she has made groundbreaking contributions to advance the study of SLA, and remains one of the leading figures in the field. She is the winner of numerous local, national, and international awards.
Jennifer Behney is Associate Professor of Italian and Applied Linguistics in the Department of World Languages and Cultures at Youngstown State University. Her work has appeared in Foreign Language Annals, Studies in Second Language Acquisition, and several book chapters, and she was co-editor of a volume on salience in SLA. She was the recipient of the 2019 Ed Allen Award for Outstanding College World Language Instructor.
Luke Plonsky (PhD, Michigan State University) is Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics at Northern Arizona University, where he teaches courses in SLA and research methods. His work in these areas can be found in over seventy articles, book chapters, and books. Luke is Senior Associate Editor of Studies in Second Language Acquisition, Managing Editor of Foreign Language Annals, Co-Editor of de Gruyter Mouton's Series on Language Acquisition, and Co-Director of the IRIS Database (iris-database.org). In addition to prior appointments at Georgetown University and University College London, Luke has taught in Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, Puerto Rico, and Spain.
