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Chapter 10 Development of Language and Communication Skills
FIVE COMPONENTS OF LANGUAGE
Phonology – knowledge of language’s sound system (phonetics)
Morphology – rules specifying how words are formed from sounds
Semantics – meanings expressed in wordsFree morphemes – stand alone wordsBound morphemes – cannot stand alone,
change meaning of free morphemes when added
FIVE COMPONENTS OF LANGUAGE
Syntax – rules specifying how words are combined to produce sentences
Pragmatics – principles governing how language is used in different social situations
Also requires interpretation of nonverbal signals
THEORIES OF LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
The Learning (Empiricist) PerspectiveImitation, reinforcement and correction are
responsible for learning languageEvaluation of Learning Perspective
Imitation and reinforcement are importantSyntax (grammatical correctness) not reinforced
THEORIES OF LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
The Nativist PerspectiveHumans are biologically programmed to
acquire languageLanguage acquisition device – activated by verbal
input (Chomsky)Universal grammar – common set of rules
Language-Making Capacity (Slobin)
Figure 10.1 A model of language acquisition proposed by nativists.
THEORIES OF LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
Support for the Nativist PerspectivePresence of linguistic universalsLanguage is species specificBrain Specialization and Language
Broca’s area – speech productionWernicke’s area – speech comprehension
Sensitive-Period Hypothesis – language most easily acquired - birth to puberty
Figure 10.2 As shown here, there is a clear relationship between the age at which immigrants arrived in the United States and their eventual adult performance in English grammar. Those who arrived early in childhood end up performing like native speakers of English, whereas those who arrived as teenagers or adults perform much more poorly.
THEORIES OF LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
Problems with the Nativist ApproachOther species show auditory discrimination early in
lifeDoesn’t explain language developmentOverlooked the role of the environment
THEORIES OF LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
The Interactionist PerspectiveBiological and Cognitive Contributors
Biologically prepared to acquire languageGradually maturing nervous system, develop
similar ideas at same ageBiological maturation affects cognitive
development, affecting language
Figure 10.3 Grammatical complexity increases as a function of the size of children’s productive vocabulary.
THEORIES OF LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
Environmental Supports Language is a means of communicatingLessons from Joint Activities
Conversations require taking turnsLessons from Child-Directed Speech
Short, simple sentences (motherese)Becomes more complex with language
development
THEORIES OF LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
Environmental Supports, continuedLessons from Negative Evidence
Respond to ungrammatical speech o Expansion – corrected and enriched versiono Recast – new grammatical forms
Importance of ConversationMust be involved in using language, exposure to
speech is not sufficient
Figure 10.4 An overview of the interactionist perspective on language development.
BEFORE LANGUAGE:THE PRELINGUSITC PERIOD
Early Reactions to Speech3 days old, prefer mother’s voiceCan distinguish phonemes adults cannotThe Importance of Intonational Cues
Sensitive to cues from birth7 months sensitive to phrase units
BEFORE LANGUAGE:THE PRELINGUSITC PERIOD
Producing Sounds: Prelinguistic Vocalizations2 months – cooing (vowel sounds)4-6 months – babbling (vowel + consonant)10-12 months – vocables – reserving sounds
for particular situations
BEFORE LANGUAGE:THE PRELINGUSITC PERIOD
What Do Prelinguistic Infants Know about Language and Communication?7-8 months, vocal turn takingGestures and Nonverbal Communication
8-10 monthsDeclarative – directing attention Imperative – alter others’ behavior
BEFORE LANGUAGE:THE PRELINGUSITC PERIOD
Do Preverbal Infants Understand the Meaning of Words?12-13 months – yesReceptive language (understanding) develops
earlier than productive language (expression)
ONE WORD AT A TIME: THE HOLOPHRASE PERIOD
Holophrase – one word “sentences”Early Semantics: Building a Vocabulary
Vocabulary grows one word at a timeNaming explosion – 18-24 monthsTalk most about manipulable objectsMultimodel motherese – exaggerated
sentences by an adult accompanied by an action explaining the words
Table 10.1 Types of Words Used by Children with Productive Vocabularies of 50 Words. SOURCE: Adapted from Nelson, 1973.
ONE WORD AT A TIME: THE HOLOPHRASE PERIOD
Individual and Cultural VariationsReferential style – word refer to people or objects
(Western cultures)Expressive style – personal/social words (Eastern
cultures)Birth order influences language style
ONE WORD AT A TIME: THE HOLOPHRASE PERIOD
Attaching Meaning to WordsFast-mapping – quickly acquiring a word after
hearing it applied a few timesGood at 13-15 months, better for
understanding, difficult retrieving words from memory
ONE WORD AT A TIME: THE HOLOPHRASE PERIOD
Common Errors in Word UseOverextension – overgeneralizationUnderextension – using word for small range of
objectsStrategies for Inferring Word Meanings
Use of social and contextual cuesProcessing constraints
Object scope; Mutual exclusivity; lexical constraint
Table 10.2 Some Processing Strategies, or Constraints, That Guide Young Children’s Inferences about the Meaning of New Words.
ONE WORD AT A TIME: THE HOLOPHRASE PERIOD
Syntactical Clues to Word MeaningSyntactical bootstrapping – learning meaning from
sentence structureo Noun – objecto Adjective – characteristic of objecto Causation – action word
THE TELEGRAHPIC PERIOD: FROM HOLOPHRASES TO SIMPLE SENTENCES
Telegraphic speech – 18-24 monthsSimple sentences, containing only critical
words (no grammatical markers)More common in languages where word
order is more important than grammatical markers
A Semantic Analysis of Telegraphic Speech
Table 10.3 Similarities in Children’s Spontaneous Two-Word Sentences in Four Languages. SOURCE: Adapted from Slobin, 1979.
THE TELEGRAHPIC PERIOD: FROM HOLOPHRASES TO SIMPLE SENTENCES
A Semantic Analysis of Telegraphic SpeechFollows some grammatical rulesContext is also vital for understanding
meaningThe Pragmatics of Early Speech
2 year olds – good at vocal turn-takingPrefer to talk about unshared informationMonitor responses to clarify meaningUnderstanding need to be polite
LANGUAGE LEARNING DURING THE PRESCHOOL PERIOD
Preschool period (2 ½-5) sentences become complex and adultlike
Grammatical DevelopmentDevelopment of Grammatical Morphemes
Grammatical morphemes – modifiers give more precise meaning to sentences ‘s’ for plurality; ‘ed’ for past tense ‘ing’ for present progressive
Table 10.4 Samples of One Boy’s Speech at Three Ages.
Table 10.5 Order of Acquisition of English Grammatical Morphemes.
Figure 10.5 A linguistic puzzle used to determine young children’s understanding of the rule for forming plurals in English.
LANGUAGE LEARNING DURING THE PRESCHOOL PERIOD
Grammatical Morphemes - continuedAcquired in a specific orderOverregularization – overextend new grammatical
morphemeso Relatively rare
LANGUAGE LEARNING DURING THE PRESCHOOL PERIOD
Mastering Transformational RulesTransformation grammar – rules for creating
variations of declarative sentencesAsking questions
o Yes/no – rising intonationo Wh- questions (who, what, where, when, why) o Moving auxiliary verb
LANGUAGE LEARNING DURING THE PRESCHOOL PERIOD
Producing Negative Sentenceso Negative before sentenceo Move negative inside sentenceo Combine negative with auxiliary verb
Producing Complex Sentenceso Age 3 - clauses, conjunctions first, embedded
sentences nexto 5-6 good grammar
LANGUAGE LEARNING DURING THE PRESCHOOL PERIOD
Semantic Development2-5 understand and express relational
contrasts Big/little; tall/short; in/on; here/there
Frequently misinterpret passives
LANGUAGE LEARNING DURING THE PRESCHOOL PERIOD
Development of Pragmatics and Communication Skills3 year olds – illocutionary intent – real
meaning may be different than literal meaning of words
3-5 – must tailor messages to communicate effectively
LANGUAGE LEARNING DURING THE PRESCHOOL PERIOD
Referential CommunicationAbility to detect ambiguities in others’ speech and
ask for clarificationPreschool – fail to detect linguistic ambiguities
o Generally successfully guessAssume own uninformative sentences are clearBetter in natural environment than lab
LANGUAGE LEARNING DURING MIDDLE CHILDHOOD AND ADOLESCENCE
Later Syntactical DevelopmentMiddle childhood – syntactical refinement
Subtle rules, complex structuresSemantic and Metalinguistic Awareness
Rapid vocabulary growth – Morphological knowledge – meaning of morphemes
to determine new wordsAdd abstract words
9 to 11 – recognize and make inferences
LANGUAGE LEARNING DURING THE PRESCHOOL PERIOD
Metalinguistic awarenessThinking about language and comment on
propertiesGrammatical awarenessPhonological awareness – linked to reading
achievement
LANGUAGE LEARNING DURING THE PRESCHOOL PERIOD
Further Development of Communication SkillsDramatic improvement in referential
communication skills by 6 or 7Less egocentric, more role-taking9 - 10 years old – more clarification for ambiguous
information
Table 10.6 Typical Idiosyncratic Descriptions Offered by Preschool Children When Talking about Unfamiliar Graphic Designs in the Krauss and Glucksberg Communication Game.
LANGUAGE LEARNING DURING THE PRESCHOOL PERIOD
What Role Do Siblings Play in the Growth of Communication Skills?Promotes effective communication
Siblings less likely to adjust speech, but then more likely to monitor and fix ambiguous messages
Less likely to interpret ambiguous message from younger sibling – forcing them to adjust
Table 10.7 Important Milestones in Language Development.
Bilingualism: Challenges and Consequences of Learning Two Languages
Exposure to 2 languages prior to age 3, proficient in both
Preschool children, often learn second language to proficiency in 1 year
Cognitive advantagesScore higher on IQ tests, metalinguistic
awareness, better selective attention
Bilingualism: Challenges and Consequences of Learning Two Languages
English-only instruction Causes LEP children to struggle academicallyDo not acquire sufficient level of skill in
English
Bilingualism: Challenges and Consequences of Learning Two Languages
Two-way bilingual educationHalf day in English, half in second languageBeneficial for both students with limited
English proficiency and students fluent in English