(1) People who learn another language as kids can sound like native speakers, but adult language learners often make noticeable grammatical mistakes. (2) But when exactly in a person’s life does it become difficult to master the rules that govern a language? (3) While previous theories speculated that people can only acquire a new language at a young age, new research supports a different perspective.
(4) Boston-area researchers found evidence that the time span for language acquisition lasts from infancy until early adulthood; this time span is known as the “critical period.” (5) Such a period also exists for the development of eyesight. (6) Prior studies had reached varying conclusions about the critical period: it closes just after birth; it stops around age 5; it lasts until age 13. (7) Dissatisfied with these studies’ small number of participants, the Boston researchers aimed for a large sampling of language users for a study of English grammar acquisition. (8) The researchers developed an online grammar quiz with follow-up questions about the quiz takers’ language background. (9) Getting nearly 700,000 responses, two-thirds from nonnative English speakers, the research team mapped the relationship between age and language fluency in detail.
(10) The accuracy of answers to the questions on the grammar quiz plummeted for those who began learning English after age 17. (11) Though this result indicates that the critical period for language acquisition lasts longer than previous studies suggested, the achievement of native-speaker-level fluency is out of reach for adult learners.
(12) However, adult second-language learners should remain optimistic. (13) The researchers found that optimal language learning doesn’t stop completely after the critical period: it continues for both native and nonnative speakers until around age 30. (14) What’s more, the fact that so many adult second-language learners did poorly on the researchers’ quiz can help other such learners be more realistic about their goals. (15) Letting go of a desire for complete mastery of a language’s grammar can enable an adult learner to strive for basic competence in communication—an outcome best achieved, the researchers note, via educational programs that immerse students in the experience of a second language rather than ones that focus on rote learning.
Question
The writer wants to change sentence 3 (reproduced below) to provide a more specific preview of the passage’s argument.
While previous theories speculated that people can only acquire a new language at a young age, new research supports a different perspective.
Which of the following pieces of information is most appropriate for the writer to include in the new version of the sentence?
Responses
Information about previous theories holding that people can only acquire a new language when young
Information about previous theories holding that people can only acquire a new language when young
Examples of the types of people who may be seeking to learn a new language
Examples of the types of people who may be seeking to learn a new language
An overview of the new study’s claim that optimal language acquisition can occur up to age 30 and that even older adults should remain hopeful about their language-learning prospects
An overview of the new study’s claim that optimal language acquisition can occur up to age 30 and that even older adults should remain hopeful about their language-learning prospects
Explicit details regarding the different age ranges during which language learners can expect to achieve fluency, mastery, and basic competence in a new language
Explicit details regarding the different age ranges during which language learners can expect to achieve fluency, mastery, and basic competence in a new language
The names and affiliations of the individuals who produced the new research
The most appropriate piece of information for the writer to include in the new version of the sentence is:
An overview of the new study’s claim that optimal language acquisition can occur up to age 30 and that even older adults should remain hopeful about their language-learning prospects