Exploring the neurocognition of second language speaking and writing
Join Professor Andrea Révész for this Professorial Lecture as she takes us on a methodological journey introducing various ways to study second language speaking and writing processes.
Exploring the neurocognition of second language speaking and writing
13 Jun 2024, 17:30 – 19:30
For many, the ability to speak and write in a second language is key to achieving their academic, professional, and/or personal goals. Task-based language teaching has been proposed as a promising approach to help learners achieve these aims, preparing them to carry out genuine communicative tasks aligned with their future needs.
However, to help develop effective task-based language teaching materials and assessments, it is essential to first understand the neurocognitive processes that underlie task-based performance and learning.
In this lecture, Andrea will introduce various ways to study second language speaking and writing processes, both more traditional (e.g., verbal protocols) and state-of-the art (e.g., eye-tracking, keystroke-logging, fMRI). Drawing on her own and colleagues' work, she will highlight methodological advances in the field, share what recent research has revealed about the neurocognition of second language speech and writing, and discuss potential implications for task-based language teaching and learning.
This in-person event will be particularly useful for researchers, policymakers, teachers and students.
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Her main research interests lie at the interfaces of second language acquisition, instruction, and assessment, with particular emphases on the roles of task, input, interaction, and cognitive individual differences in second language acquisition.
Currently, she is also investigating the neurocognitive processes underlying second language speaking and writing performance.
Peter Skehan (PhD Birkbeck) is an Honorary Research Fellow at IOE. Previously he taught at universities in the UK (including IOE), Hong Kong, and New Zealand.
He is interested in second language acquisition, especially task-based performance, language testing, and foreign language aptitude. Recent publications have appeared in the Modern Language Journal on speaking style (with Francine Pang) and Language Teaching, on the implications for testing speaking of recent research on second language task-based performance.
Most recently, with Edward Wen and Richard Sparks, he has edited Language Aptitude Theory and Practice (CUP: 2023). He is currently working on ways of improving the measurement of second language task performance, specifically by looking at the range of indices for accuracy, complexity, lexis and fluency.
His research covers many aspects of bilingualism and multilingualism, including language acquisition in childhood, education policy and practice regarding bilingual and multilingual learners of minoritised and transnational backgrounds, and the cognitive benefits of language learning.
He is a fellow of the British Academy, Academy of Social Sciences, UK, and Academia Europaea.
Further information
Ticketing
Pre-booking essential
Cost
Free
Open to
All
Availability
Yes