The sociocultural approach to second language acquisition

Abstract

The sociocultural theory (SCT) approach to SLA (henceforth, SCT-L2) is grounded in the psychological theory of human consciousness proposed by L. S. Vygotsky. Although not developed specifically to explain SLA, SCT as a theory of human mental activity has much to offer regarding how individuals acquire and use languages beyond their first. Although some SCT researchers have examined bilingual acquisition, including issues relating to biliteracy, most SCT research within the field of SLA has concentrated on adult learners. Therefore the focus of the present chapter is on SCT-L2 research relating to adult SLA.