Language Development Exam 1

These flashcards cover the key concepts, characteristics, and theories of language development and communication based on the lecture notes.

Language

A complex system of conventional symbols used for thought and communication.

Characteristics of Language

Language is a code, dynamic, conventional, and a tool for human communication.

code

language is a ___: as the word-referent relationships are arbitrary, yet we assign them meaning

dynamic

language is ______:  it is constantly changing (new words, slang, speech style - even reading the English language in novels written at the beginning of the last century can be very difficult)

conventional

language is _____: there are certain rules to be followed when speaking a language

tool

language is a ____:  for human communication - makes the human species unique, makes hunting and gathering easier

how are speech and language related?

Language is not dependent upon speech (can be written, signed, etc.) but speech is dependent upon language 

Imaginative Communication

purpose of communication, telling stores / roleplay

ex: telling a child a lighthearted bedtime story to help them sleep

Regulatory Communication

Purpose of communication, direct others / give directions

ex: lab instructor explaining lab procedures to students

Interactional Communication

Purpose of communication, social conversations

ex: catching up with a friend over lunch, talking about daily lives

Personal communication

purpose of communication, expressing state of mind / feelings

ex: seeing a therapist, having a deep conversation with a close friend or partner

heuristic communication

purpose of communication, inquire / find out information about something

ex: ask admissions counselor questions about a college you are considering attending

informative communication

purpose of communication, organized description of an event

ex: recounting the details of a crime on the witness stand

instrumental communication

purpose of communication, ask / request something

ex: order food at a restaurant

form, content, use

3 domains of language

phonology, morphology, syntax

component(s) of form

semantics

component(s) of content

pragmatics

component(s) of use

Phonology

rules that govern sounds becoming syllables and words

Morphology

rules that govern the structures of words

Syntax

rules that govern the structure of sentences

Semantics

rules that govern the meaning of words and combinations of words

Pragmatics

rules that govern language used for social purposes

why is language remarkable?

species specificity, acquisition rate, universality, semanticity, productivity

species specificity

language is uniquely human! Even when some animals manage to use english words (dogs understanding, gorillas using sign) they are using human language taught by humans

acquisition rate

humans learn languages quickly. Children pick up new words at remarkably quick rates, and can even pick up and distinguish multiple languages

universality

it is the same cognitive process used to learn all languages

semanticity

 ability to represent deconstructionalized events - can imagine / speak of things not happening right in front of us

productivity

infinite combination of words possible - we can say more sentence combinations than anyone could express in one lifetime!

Language Differences

Natural variation in language abilities, like dialects and bilingualism.

Language Disorders

Significant difficulties in language achievement, often genetically linked or due to developmental disabilities (ASD, down syndrome)

rule governed, impairments

differences are ____ ______, while disorders are _____________

Mean Length of Utterance (MLU)

An important measure of a child's language development, reflecting syntactic complexity.

prosodic cues, phonotactic cues

what are the two ways in which infants begin to segment speech streams into individual words?

prosodic cues

• infants draw on familiarity with word and syllable stress patterns, or the rhythm of language

• Infants are sensitive to the way in which pauses within a speech stream marks linguistic boundaries and allows them to determine words within the stream

phonotactic cues

• infants become sensitive to the probability that certain sounds will occur in both general and specific positions of words

• “Legal” orders of sounds in syllables and words and the places where specific phonemes can and cannot occur

• /l/ + /h/ together is ‘illegal’ in English, /t/ + /s/ won’t occur in the beginning of a word, /gz/ would only occur in final position of words (e.g. dogs)

importance of good phonological awareness

allows children to acquire the rules of language that govern the sound structure of syllables and words. This builds the foundation for learning to read and spell, as it allows children to hear, identify, and manipulate sounds in spoken languages.

Phonological Awareness

The ability to attend to the phonological units of speech. It can be implicit or explicit, and is an auditory skill - a child does not need to read to have phonological awareness.

→ awareness that language can be broken into smaller parts

Phonemic Awareness

Awareness of individual phonemes in words and the ability to manipulate them.

→ there are individual sounds in words that can be changed to form new words

native language, linguistic experience

what influences phonological development?

gender, language exposure

what influences semantic development?

temperament, social & cultural contexts

what influences pragmatic development?

second language acquisition, dialects

what influences morphological development?

all 5

language impairments can affect which of the 5 components of language?

language-from-input-hypothesis, child-directed speech (CDS), exposure

what influences syntactic development?

language-from-input hypothesis

the grammatical properties of children’s language use depends on exposure to properties in CDS

Child-directed Speech (CDS)

the talk directed to children by others

ing

what is the first morpheme that develops?

Mean Length of Utterance (MLU)

• mean number of morphemes per utterance

• important in assessing a child's language development as it helps to estimate the syntactic complexity of children's language in the first 5 years of their development

• reliable way of tracking a child's grammatical development and syntactic complexity

morphology, syntax

parts of language that make up grammar

→ Without proper grammar understanding, children do not have the foundation to understand the rules governing words and sentences

science, theory

______: generating and testing theories

______: descriptive statements or principles devised to explain a group of facts or a phenomena, repeated and tested with the scientific method

relationship between science and theory

science generates the data to construct theories, and theories guide further scientific research

Nativist / Innatist Theory

• Children are born with the ability to learn language

• Associated with Noam Chomsky

• Humans have a LAD (Language Acquisition Device)

• Thought all languages had the same basic grammar

• ‘Critical period’ - child is most able to learn a language, as LAD hasn’t specified to one language yet

nurture

behaviorist theory is ______-inspired

nature

nativist/universal grammar theory is ______-inspired

nature, nurture, interactionist

social-interactionist theory is inspired by _______ and ________: it is __________

Behaviorist Theory

• B.F. Skinner

• Learning through operant conditioning and reinforcement 

  • Reinforced behaviors are strengthened and punished behaviors are suppressed

Cognitive Theory

• Jean Piaget

• Children construct their knowledge of the world through schemas (their views, their cognitive thought process on how things happen)

• There are 4 stages of cognitive development

  • Sensorimotor (0-2 years), preoperational (2-7 years), concrete operations (7-11 years), formal operations (11 years +)

Interactionist Theory

• Lev Vygotsky

• Biological and social factors have to interact in order for children to learn language

• Children strongly desire to communicate with others, such as the adults in their lives. And that desire motivates them to learn to communicate via language

B.F. Skinner

The Behaviorist Theory

Noam Chomsky

The Nativist / Universal Grammar Theory

Lev Vygotsky

The Social-Interactionist Theory

Jean Piaget

Cognitive Theory

4 main theories of language development

Behaviorist, Nativist/Universal Grammar, Social-interactionist, Cognitive theory

Behaviorist Theory

• nurture inspired theory

• language development, like other forms of learning, occurs through operant conditioning and reinforcement

  • Those behaviors which are reinforced will be strengthened, and those punished will be suppressed

• did not believe language is innate - and said nothing in the brain makes us predisposed to learn language

• To best learn language, children need environmental stimuli and adult reinforcement of their vocalizations. 

Nativist / Universal Grammar theory

• existence of an innate language module in children, which he called a Language Acquisition Device

• children are born with universal grammar, a basic set of grammatical rules that are universal across languages, which will narrow down to their specific language

social-interactionist theory

• used in school classrooms and by SLPs often

• children learn through their experiences and social interactions, and learning takes place in the child's zone of proximal development, which is the difference between what a learner can learn independently and what they gain learning through guidance from a knowledgeable other

• Language is a social phenomenon requiring the structured support of scaffolding

• Learning language through social interactions helps to support cognitive abilities, as well

auditory skills

what is the only skill needed to complete phonological awareness tasks?

zone of proximal development

difference between child’s actual and potential development

cognitive theory

• language theory was based on 4 stages of cognitive development, which follow children from the ages of 0 to 11+ years

• language development is the product of the child's experiences with the physical environment and their cognitive development.

• As children gain more cognitive skills, they will then develop the language skills needed to express their thoughts. Children construct their knowledge of the world through schemas, which they have an active role in constructing. 

speech

neuromuscular process by which humans turn language into a sound signal that is transmitted through the air to a receiver

hearing

sensory system allowing speech to enter/be processed by the brain