(Re)thinking the Interface Hypothesis and its implications for language teaching

Abstract

The interface between syntax and other domains has recently become a key area of interest in generative L2 acquisition. Much of the recent research on linguistic interfaces has been influenced by the Interface Hypothesis (IH) (Sorace & Filiaci, 2006), which claims that narrow syntactic properties are easy to acquire, whereas properties at the interface between syntax and other domains may not be fully acquirable. While some studies have supported the IH’s predictions, others (though in a smaller number) have produced results which disconfirm them (e.g. Lozano & Mendikoetxea, 2010; Kraš, 2011). Despite their relevance, some of the latter studies have been overlooked in reviews of the IH-related literature (e.g. Sorace, 2011). To date, the studies on the IH have made no attempts to explore its potential pedagogical implications. For these reasons, this paper aims to (i) discuss the IH in the light of recent findings on the L2 acquisition at the interfaces, (ii) identify key problems and open questions regarding the IH’s formulation, supporting evidence, scope and explanations for the L2 learners/speakers’ difficulties, and (iii) explain why the examination of such issues may contribute to advance the current understanding of the process of L2 acquisition at the interfaces and to inform teachers’ expectations of learners, selection of grammar contents and approaches to teaching interface properties.