Learning Persian as a Second LanguageBased on Topic Hypothesis

The Processability Theory (Pienemann, 1998) is a theory that explains the way in which language is produced by the learner. It has extensions one of which is the Topic Hypothesis. The hypothesis predicts the manner and procedure of topicalization in different stages of language learning and posits three stages for it. According to the Topic Hypothesis, the learner does not differentiate between the grammatical function TOPIC and SUBJECT. At a later stage, adjuncts appear in sentence-initial position. Finally, the TOPIC function is assigned to a non-subject core argument. The aim of this study is to direct attentions to how significant it is to be conscious of the relatively free word order in Persian sentences. The problem of the study is to survey topicalization in different levels of Persian learning according to the Topic Hypothesis. To this end, 48 audio-files obtained from the online administration of the speaking placement test of two Persian Language and Literature Refresher Courses were first put into different levels. Then, 482 sentences involving subject and complete argument structure were extracted for analysis. Analyzing the final data indicated that the Topic Hypothesis was not fully supported against the development pattern of L2 Persian topicalization.