CALL FOR PAPERS

The sound system is often the most salient feature of second language speech, especially to the non-specialist, yet it receives little attention when compared to other areas of investigation within studies of second language acquisition. While studies of the acquisition of the sound systems of Spanish and Portuguese by second language learners date back as far as the beginnings of the field of modern linguistics, and while studies within this area of linguistic inquiry have continued ever since and appear to be growing in numbers, there has never been a forum – whether a meeting or a publication – to bring together the community of scholars conducting research in this area.

Abstracts are invited for presentations on any topic related to the second language acquisition of the Spanish and Portuguese sound systems, and the theme is intended to be construed as broadly as possible. The aim is to include in the conference a wide range of approaches to the study of second language phonology, as well as a wide range of contexts, from acquisition of Spanish phonology by English speakers to the acquisition of Portuguese phonology by Spanish speakers, from classroom-based learning to full immersion in the culture of the second language, to name just a few of the possibilities.

Anonymous one-page abstracts (with a second page allowed for references and/or examples) should be submitted as e-mail attachments. Abstracts should be submitted as Word (preferable) or PDF documents. Please embed any special fonts. The body of the e-mail should contain the author’s name, affiliation, e-mail address, mailing address, and phone number. Each author may submit at most one abstract as sole author and one jointly authored abstract.

Submit to: hispling@umn.edu

Abstract deadline: September 15, 2007