ABSTRACT
This chapter begins by considering some perspectives on second language acquisition in childhood dating from Roman times and from the Renaissance. The focus then turns to views which surfaced in the mid-twentieth century, some of which have remained very influential to this day. The notion of a critical or sensitive period for second language learning, which emerged at that time, is discussed in the light of a range of research evidence as well as the thorny theoretical problems surrounding the coherence of the relevant hypothesis and its falsifiability. Attention is also paid to differences in age-related findings associated with research conducted in naturalistic settings as opposed to findings derived from research into instructional second language learning. The latter research area obviously has very practical pedagogical and educational policy dimensions, the controversies relating to which are explored. While the debate about age and second language learning will no doubt continue to rumble on – since some of its aspects remain extremely difficult to resolve definitively – an attempt is made in the chapter to point to a number of pockets of consensus – to propositions agreed on by researchers who in other ways sharply differ.
