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Language Acquisition

When you'll study it
Semester 2
CATS points
15
ECTS points
7.5
Level
Level 4
Module lead
Roumyana Slabakova
Academic year
2025-26

Module overview

You may have asked yourself how children learn their first language or whether some animals can speak just like humans do. People often wonder whether there are any lifelong benefits of bilingualism as well. This module introduces you to the field of language acquisition providing answers to these questions and more. The module is an introduction to relevant theories and research methods in language acquisition exploring conflicting proposals including ‘Universal Grammar’ and usage-based approaches. The module also provides you with a comprehensive overview of relevant aspects of bilingual acquisition by both children and adults including cases of children learning a minority language (‘heritage language acquisition’) and adults ‘forgetting’ their first language (language attrition).