In adult education, there are few studies linking age and language development. Birdsong (2006) showed through the analysis of neurolinguistic data that procedural memory begins to decline very slowly from the age of 20. This implies that the resources used by an adult are different from those of a child but not necessarily deficient (Dabrowska & al., 2020). Birdsong (2018) also indicates that the decline of procedural memory at different rates induces greater variability in language development in adults as they age. This variability is also linked with the decline of other cognitive faculties, each with their own rhythm, which further increases the span of variability for the overall second language development in the adult population (Hartshorne & Germine, 2015). The Age factor also encompasses motivational, identificational attitudinal, and experiential characteristics of the learner (Pfenninger, 2020); as such, Length of residence could be a more accurate measurement to account for the beginning of language development (Munoz & Singleton, 2011). The longer the exposure time to the target language lasts, the greater the progress should be, provided interaction takes place with the target language embodied through its local population (Munoz & Singleton, 2007; Helleman, 2008; Llanes, 2010).
To investigate the influence of Age and Length of residence of adult migrants on second language development, we carried out statistical analyses on a group of 75 migrants (Age range: 20-69; Mean = 38; Length of residence spread: 0-9 years; Mean= 2 years) registered for a 448 hour long French for Professional Purpose training. A pre-test identified that they all did not know French at the beginning of the session. A standardized post-test gave a reading of their language development at the end of the training. Results show that older learners had a slight disadvantage compared to younger adults (p=0,005; r=-0,32); there was no significant difference for the factor Length of residence indicating that second language classes are equally beneficial for new and late residents.
BIRDSONG, David. (2006). Age and second language acquisition and processing: A selective overview. Language Learning, 56(1), 9–49.
BIRDSONG, D. (2018). Plasticity, Variability and Age in Second Language Acquisition and Bilingualism. Frontiers in Psychology, 9:81.
DABROWSKA, Ewa, BECKER, Laura & MIORELLI, Luca. (2020) Is Adult Second Language Acquisition Defective? Frontiers in Psychology. 11:1839
HARTSHORNE, Joshua & GERMINE, Laura. (2015). When Does Cognitive Functioning Peak? The Asynchronous Rise and Fall of Different Cognitive Abilities Across the Life Span. Psychological Science, 26, 433–443.
HELLMAN, Andrea. (2008). The Limits of Eventual Attainment in Adult-Onset Second Language Acquisition. (Doctorate in Education). Boston University, Boston.
LLANES, Angels. (2010). Children and adults learning English in a study abroad context. (Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis). University of Barcelona, Barcelona.
MUÑOZ, Carmen & SINGLETON, David (2011). A critical review of age-related research on L2 ultimate attainment. Language Teaching, 44, 1–35.
PFENNINGER, Simone (2020). The Dynamic Multicausality of Age of First Bilingual Language Exposure: Evidence From a Longitudinal Content and Language Integrated Learning Study With Dense Time Serial Measurements. The Modern Language Journal, 104(3), 662–686.
