Kazumi Yamada (Professor, Faculty of Engineering) gave a presentation at GASLA 18 (Generative Approaches to Second Language Acquisition Conference 18) on third language acquisition with a focus on East Asian languages, examining the interpretation of null subjects in Chinese and the challenges associated with their acquisition.

Professor, Kazumi Yamada, School of Engineering served as an Presenter for GASLA 18（Generative Approaches to Second Language Acquisition Conference 18）, which was held from 16-18th April 2026 in Cambridge. GASLA is an international conference that focuses on research in second language acquisition grounded in generative grammar, serving as an important forum where researchers from around the world gather to present and discuss theoretical and empirical studies. The study of her group examines how L1 Japanese–L2 English speakers interpret null subjects in L3 Chinese, shedding light on features of East Asian languages that have received relatively little attention in previous research. The results of the experiment suggest that learners face challenges specific to interpreting Chinese, and that these difficulties may persist even as proficiency increases. These findings suggest that prior linguistic knowledge continues to influence the acquisition of additional languages over time, providing important insights for developing the mechanisms underlying third language acquisition. The conference participation also provided a valuable opportunity to disseminate our research findings in an international setting and to build networks that will contribute to the future development of our research.