On the morning of October 21st, Professor Rod Ellis of Curtin University was invited to the 2nd Language Acquisition, Cognitive and Brain Science Academic Forum, bringing us the title "A short history of SLA: Where have we come from and where are we going?" academic lecture. It was initiated by Professor Wang Jianqin, Director of Center for the Cognitive Science of Language, Beijing Language and Culture University, and hosted by Dr. Wei Yanjun. The lectures broadcasted via zoom and bilibili, which attracted hundreds of domestic and foreign audiences.
In this lecture, Professor Ellis gave a systematic and detailed introduction to the development process of Second Language Acquisition (SLA) research around three main issues. First, Professor Ellis reviewed the main concerns in the study of second language acquisition since the 1960s, including the order of second language acquisition, the role of input and interaction, implicit and explicit Implicit and explicit learning, the role of consciousness in language learning, Sociocultural theory, complex dynamic systems of learners, etc. Secondly, Professor Ellis sorted out the methods of second language acquisition research and summarized three types of data, which are data obtained from natural situations, experimental situations, and test situations. Professor Ellis also pointed out an important methodological problem, namely the validity of the sample. The data obtained from the experiment should pay special attention to this problem. Finally, Professor Ellis briefly summarized the research status and development direction of second language acquisition.
Professor Ellis' lectures are rich, comprehensive and understandable. In the question and answer part at the end of the lecture, teachers and students enthusiastically asked questions, Professor Ellis gave detailed and comprehensive answers to the questions raised by the teachers and students. Professor Ellis’ lecture made a systematic and comprehensive summary of previous studies in the field of second language acquisition, and provided us with many references and enlightenments for our future research on Chinese as a second language acquisition.
