A Critical Examination of the Beliefs about Learning a Foreign Language at Primary School

observations of immigrants entering Canada who, as children, seemed to
acquire the target language effortlessly. His comments quite clearly ignored
crucial contextual differences and display a confusion between the processes
involved in the acquisition of a first language, in acquiring a second language in
naturalistic environments and the learning of a foreign language in the
classroom. In any case, as Harley pointed out, the ability of the damaged brain
to regain lost or disrupted language:

"...is not necessarily related to the ability of the healthy brain to acquire a new
L2." (Harley, 1986: 5)

Lenneberg¹S timing of the process of lateralization was also questioned by

Krashen (1973) who suggested that lateralization might be completed by the

age of four or five. Since much language learning takes place after that age the
relationship between a critical period and lateralization remains questionable:

"The evidence, then, appears to call for a revision of the critical period
hypothesis as originally put forth. If its biological basis is the lateralization of
language function, then the critical period for language development would
seem to occur between the ages of 2 and 4 or 5. A great deal of syntax is
acquired during this time span but ...by no means all syntax. Nor is
phonological or semantic development complete by the age of 4 or 5. To
assert that the child acquires language during this period of time seems to be
too strong a claim." (McLaughlin, 1984:48)

The essential question that remains for second language learning then is

'whether a general "matrix for language skills" which Lenneberg suggested was

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