In the Meta-LLL project, we investigate the relation between literacy, meta-linguistic cognition, and language acquisition. Many people learn a language while also developing literacy: the ability to read and write. When people acquire literacy, they learn to think about language as an object of thought; they learn that language consists of separate words, that words are comprised of separate sounds, and that sounds can be represented by symbols. Literacy allows people to manipulate and analyze language. There are good theoretical reasons to assume that becoming literate changes how language is acquired. Yet, we know very little about this. This project aims to increase our understanding of the link between literacy, meta-linguistic cognition, and language acquisition by studying emerging readers: adults and children who learn language while simultaneously learning to read.
