The Gifted Language Learner

Language learners beyond early childhood are scarcely expected to reach native-like abilities in their new language yet some do. Are these individuals uniquely gifted? If so are such gifts innate or the result of intense drive optimal experience opportunity or something else altogether? Bringing together theory and empirical work from across disciplines this ground-breaking book aims to better understand the perennial mystery of giftedness in language learning (GLL). Incorporating quantitative qualitative and case study data this analysis demonstrates the need to reach across cognitive neural emotional psychological and social lines to understand native-likeness in a second language. All such ''outliers'' face limits potentials and choices. What they do in the face of these is key. With this complexity in mind specific recommendations are provided to re-orient the research toward an appreciation of the individual''s role and a clearer understanding of the inherent balance of nature and nurture in GLL.