Abstract:
Language attrition has become a vibrant theme as it has implications for theoretical linguistics, including, for example, the organization of linguistic information in the brain and language processing. Insights from this area also have an impact on the study of second language (L2) development and can feed the area of language teaching. Once language attrition may be valuable for the study of language retention and maintenance, it can contribute to language teaching with long lasting results, more effective planning and syllabus design. In this perspective, as studies exploring L2 attrition are still limited, this article1 1 This work was supported by the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq, Brazil), Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado da Bahia (FAPESB, BA, Brazil), and by the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Level Personnel (CAPES, Brazil). provides a synthesis of research on the area. By drawing from the Dynamic Model of Multilingualism and from the Threshold Hypothesis, it also explores the implications L2 attrition research has for language teaching with a view to establishing more informed language practices and policies.
Keywords:
Language Attrition; Language Teaching; Dynamic Model of Multilingualism; Threshold Hypothesis