The University of Iowa Second Language Acquisition Lab is located in Phillips Hall, Suite 303 at the University of Iowa.
Research in our lab primarily focuses on understanding non-primary language acquisition (second (L2), third (L3) or additional (Ln) language acquisition) in adulthood. Mainly, our research looks at adult learner’s ability to acquire new target syntactic, semantic and pragmatic knowledge.
We also conduct research on childhood primary language (L1) acquisition and bilingualism, especially concerning the competence outcomes of so-called “heritage speakers”. We use a variety of experimental techniques to determine grammatical competence at various levels of linguistic development.
We conduct many collaborative projects with researchers from other US, European and South American institutions.
Our various research projects are made possible through grants from the National Science Foundation, the Arts and Humanities Initiative and International Programs and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Iowa.
If you are interested in participating in one of our studies or coming to study in our lab, please contact Dr. Jason Rothman or Dr. Roumyana Slabakova
To learn more about our research program and current projects, please visit our research section.
We look forward to hearing from you!
Made possible by the generous grant support of the Obermann Center for Advanced Studies, we will co-host with MIT a week long seminar on L3 Acquisition: Developing a Research Base between June 7th and the 11th.
Invited speakers include Kees De Bot, David Singleton, Maria Polinsky, Aneta Plavenko, Judith Kroll, Camilla Bardel, Yvla Falk, Jean Marc Dewaele, Ulrike Jessner, María del Pilar García Mayo, Cristina Lundqvist and Roumyana Slabakova.
UIOWA SLA lab graduate students presenting at BUCLD 34: Ivan Ivanov and Tiffany Judy. Congratulations guys!