Issues with different models of third language acquisition (TLA)

Abstract

Given the increased need to learn other languages beyond one's native language, third language acquisition (TLA) has received relatively little attention. As shown with the term of “bilingual turn” by Lourdes Ortega (2010) and the first journal dedicated to the field of TLA and multilingualism in 2004, TLA has gained attention recently. However, the short history of TLA kept the field at the beginning stage. Furthermore, in the Korean context, TLA research has not even begun. In this regard, the current study tries to provide a theoretical foundation for further TLA research based on several multilingual models, most of which come from a psycholinguistic perspective. Recently, sociolinguistic perspective and individual differences are also considered in the process of TLA. Features of TLA, emphasized by these models and analyzed in the current study, are its dynamic and diverse nature of the learning process and the important role of previously learned languages as an activator and as a bridge to learn a target language.