Bilingual First Language Acquisition

For upper-level undergraduates and graduate students in psychology, linguistics, and education, De Houwer (language acquisition and teaching, U. of Erfurt, Germany) offers a textbook on bilingual first language acquisition that explains how children under the age of six learn to understand and speak two languages. She discusses how early language development occurs, linguistic concepts, methodological issues, learning contexts and socialization practices, bilingual environments, and each part of language, from sound to conversation. Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Annick De Houwer has recently been appointed as Chair of Language Acquisition and Teaching at the University of Erfurt in Germany. She is also the new Director of the Language Center there. In addition, Professor De Houwer holds the title of Collaborative Investigator to the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (U.S.A.). Her PhD was based on a dissertation on bilingual acquisition, a topic she has since continued to work on steadily. Her book The Acquisition of Two Languages from Birth (CUP, 1990) is widely cited in the bilingual acquisition literature. Dr. De Houwer has also published on Dutch child language, attitudes towards child language, teen language, and intralingual subtitling. She has extensive editorial experience.