The Age Effect in Second Language Acquisition and Its Study Design Method

Abstract

The focus of this paper was the effect of age on second language acquisition. The effect of the critical stage of second language acquisition is introduced. A retrospective discussion on the influence of age on second language acquisition, this paper tackles the conventional empirical methods of age-effect studies and analyses and summarizes some of the key questions in related research. The different testing methods used in these studies are the main reason for the research's contradictory results on the effects of age in second languages, including subject selection, content study content and time for comparison. Because of these issues, reference principles for research design on the influence of second language acquisition age are proposed: appropriate criteria for selecting subjects and number of subjects. Extensively sampled subjects, tools for testing and uniform implementation of assessment criteria, and a dynamic and comprehensive examination of the effects of age. The implication of the study on the influence of age on second language teaching and learning is that different teaching methods for students of different ages and different language characteristics should be applied in second language teaching.