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The English language is part of what language family?
The Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family
The Indo-European family of languages includes...
Danish, Dutch and German
Where was the English language originally confined to?
Britain
What are the three periods of historical development in English?
Old English
Middle English
Modern English
What do scholars believe to be the origins of English?
A now extinct language called Indo-European that most like originated in northeast Europe or around Black Sea 3000-2000BCE
How did English evolve from Indo-European to English language?
After 2000BCE the IE language seemed to split into several languages because of migration and normal linguistic changes --> Primitive German (in Scandinavia & North Germany) branch. This included a smaller eastern branch called Gothic and a larger western branch which became English, Dutch and German
How did Old English develop?
From Germanic dialects from tribal migrations from northern Europe, referred to by some historians as Angles, Saxons & Jutes. Their language developed into 4 major regional dialects of Old English: Northumbrian, Kentish, Mercian, West Saxon
The Viking invasions also caused Old Norse & Danish to share many words with old English. Much of everyday English had roots in Old Norse, influenced by Danish invaders and indigenous people
What were the four major dialects of old English?
Northumbrian (north)
Mercian (midlands)
West Saxon (south & west)
Kentish (southeast)
Which old English dialect became the literacy standard?
West Saxon dialect
Why does old English look so stranger to our modern eyes?
It was written in runic characters that don't exist in our alphabet. When Anglo-Saxons converted to Christianity they began to use a combination of runes & Latin letters. Old English couldn't compete with Latin as a day-to-day language but existed as a literary expression (Beowulf).
What event changed English language?
Norman Conquest of 1066 brought new French influence to English life
How did Middle English develop?
-Norman Conquest 1066 considered start of Middle English. Brought French influence, with the aristocracy speaking Old French dialect of Anglo-Norman that combined with the Germanic dialect of commoners.
-System of cases, genders, numbers disappeared from articles and adj - simplified nouns. Shall & will used to refer to future
-1250 large vocabulary changes begin as Norman nobles settle in English courts & bring French words. Middle Engl est amongst merchant classes. 10,000 French words adopted.
-Becomes Germanic-Romance language hybrid
-1362 Statute of Pleading makes English the official language of England's legal proceedings
How did Chaucer influence English language?
late 1300s Chaucer used East Midland (London) dialect for Canterbury tales. Compromised London dialect with heavy French influence. This became standard english.
When was Early Modern English dominant & what influenced it?
1500-1800
English Renaissance - Wordsworth
Renaissance emphasis on Greek/Roman lit brings Greek and Latin words into the language. Renaissance sees people incorporating common languages into everyday writing, Engl est as vehicle for popular lit
Late 1500s Shakespeare & other playwrights introduce many "inkhorn terms" which were more abstract, multi-syllable Latinate words. Many still used today (submerge, profitless). 26,000+ new words entered the language 1500-1660
Great Vowel Shift
Printed books. English press introduced in 1476 by William Caxton, printing from moveable type. Huge increase in English books, cheaper books and standard version of english.
The Great Vowel Shift
a change in the pronunciation of the English language that took place between 1400 and 1600 (late Middle Engl to Renaissance)
A change in phonology (sound patterns) changed the way long vowels were pronounced, with a higher tongue placement in the mouth. Letter E at the end of word--> silent. Ex: lyf ("leef) --> ("life")
Responsible for sometimes random use of vowels in spelling because common spellings no longer correspond to their sounds
The printing press
Introduced to England by William Caxton 1476
Printing from movable type
--> huge increase in # of books, cheaper books to more people, and helped promote uniform English language (bc printers/publishers centered in London, London dialect became standard)
Milestones: King James Bible (1611), First Folio of Shakespeare's plays (1623)
The Late Modern English Period
1800-present
Industrial Revolution & new tech --> expansion of vocab with more scientific words & combinations of english roots (vaccine, horsepower, type-writer, oxygen)
English naval dominance & global trade --> more foreign words in English (ex: tycoon from Japan). Military introduces new words like grenade, camouflage.
17th cent+ we see a deviation from British pronunciations and spellings, influences of Native languages (barbecue), Spanish (stampede), Hebrew, Russian, tech, etc.
Dialect
a variation of language characterized by its own grammar and vocabulary. Spoken by inhabitants of a particular geographic area. Large groups can even have their own subdialects
Some are est and have institutional support: AAVE, Hawaiian Engl, Southern AE
Pidgin
a contact language that blends elements of at least two languages and that emerges when people with different languages need to communicate. Used originally by traders, plantation workers, Europeans + Indigenous ppl.
Came from Chinese word for Business
Negative connotation, but help bridge gap between ppl w/o common language
Simple vocab and grammar structures
Pidgin English
A dialect mixing English and a local language. Characterized by small vocab and simple grammar structures
Creolization
the process by which two or more languages merge into a common language. Pidgin keeps developing over time and acquire NATIVE speakers. New vocab and more complex linguistic principles are adopted until it is more complex.
Ex: French and African languages merged in Lousiiana --> Creole
linguistics
the systematic study of language to find general principles and structures that link human languages. Studies language form, meaning and context
What are the seven branches of linguistic study?
Morphology - composition of words
Syntax - composition of sentences
Phonology - sound patterns of words/phrases
Phonetics - properties of speech & non-speech sounds
Semantics - meaning of words
Pragmatics - language usage in context
Sociolinguistics - language & society
Morphology, syntax, and phonology are all part of the _______ of a language
grammar
What was the ATOMISTIC view of language?
most 1800s linguists thought of language as a collection of speech sounds, words and grammatical endings
What was the STRUCTURALIST view of language?
in the early 20th century, Ferdinand de Saussure (Swiss linguist) viewed language as a system where each element of sound and meaning is defined by how it relates to other elements
Revolutionized the field of linguistics
What is the theory of generative grammar?
Developed by Noam Chomsky in mid 20th century (Grandfather of linguistics)
People share an innate and universal set of linguistic structures. This is why young children can learn a new language so easily
People have a genetic predisposition to language
What is the concept of Universal Grammar?
Developed by Noam Chomsky (grandfather of linguistics)
Principles that apply to all languages and are unconsciously accessible to every human language user. There are similarities across human languages due to common human experiences - all human languages have word for "water" due to all needing water. Similarities can be due to patterns of descent. (Spanish and Italian languages are similar as descendants of Latin)
What is the concept of transformational grammar?
Developed by Noam Chomsky
Languages have a shared deep structure and a variable surface structure. Tries to explain how contact between cultures led to shared words and sentence structures
Phonology
study of how sounds are organized and used in languages
phoneme
smallest unit of speech sound that combines with other units of speech sound to form a word
phonetics
the study of how speech sounds are made and understood
ex: dictionaries have phonetic spellings of words
morphology
study of the internal structure and forms of words. Concerned with rules for the use of morphemes
Ex: morphology of English includes the rules of plural endings. Plural endings depend on the last sound of the word stem
(Spatula -> spatulas
Patch -> patches)
morphemes
The smallest units of meaning in a language.
context clues
words and sentences around the unfamiliar word that often provide clues to its meaning. A method of word analysis to decode unfamiliar words.
morphemic analysis
A method of word analysis to decode unfamiliar words.
Students learn to recognize prefixes, roots, and suffixes and know their meanings, as many prefixes/suffixes in Greek & Latin have specific meanings
word family
a category of words build around the same word part that can help students analyze an unfamiliar word.
Ex: chron - (time) --> anachronism, chronicle, chronometer, chronological
compound words
words made up of two or more smaller words.
Can be decoded by noticing meanings of the smaller words
borrowed words
words imported from other languages
ex: taboo, avant-garde
inflectional affixes
Word endings that serve various grammatical purposes but don't change the meaning of a word.
-s, -es (plural)
-'s (possessive)
-s (verb, present tense, 3rd person singular: thrives)
-ing (verb, present participle)
-ed (verb simple past tense)
-en (verb, past perfect participle)
-er (adjective, comparative)
-est (adjective, superlative)
derivational affixes
Affixes added to base words that alter the meaning
anti- (against)
de- (undo)
ex- (former)
mis- (in a faulty manner)
re- (do again)
-ly (characteristic of; slowly)
-er/-or (person or profession)
-ion/-tion/-ation/-ition/-siion (process or action)
-ible/-able (ability to do something)
-al/-ial/-ical (whith characteristics of: natural)
-y (characterized by: leafy)
-ness (condition or state of: happiness)
-ty/-ity (state or quality of: creativity)
-ment (action or process: establishment)
-ic (having characteristics of: artistic)
-ous/-eous/-ious (having the qualities of: curious)
-en (made of or like: leaden)
-ive/-ative/-itive (adj form of a verb: inquisitive)
-ful (full of: joyful)
-less (lacking or without: pointless)
syntax
rules & principles for constructing sentences in a language/sentence structure.
Simple sentence
aka independent clause
contains a subject and verb and expresses a complete thought.
Ex: Apples and pears make a refreshing snack on hot days.
Linda goes to the school library.
compound sentence
Contains two independent clauses joined by a coordinator (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so)
Ex: I hoped to finish first, but Joel won the race.
complex sentence
an independent clause joined by one or more dependent clauses. always has a subordinator (since, because, after, although or when) or a relative pronoun (who, which or that)
Ex: WHEN I saw the dark clouds massed in the west, I knew a storm was on its way.
semantics
the study of meaning in language, both oral and contextual. Can deal with word meanings, sentence meanings and contextual understanding
pragmatics
focuses on language as a tool for communication and is concerned with how different types of sentences or phrases are used in different contexts and for different purposes. A pragmatic theory is concerned with a speakers intended meaning rather than the literal meaning of an utterance
pragmatic competence
A reader or listener understands the true meaning of a passage or utterance.
Ex: Mark Antony claims that Brutus is an "honorable man" but the reader knows her means the opposite
etymology
word origin that appears in square brackets after the pronunciation and part of speech of the word
Ex: diction origin entry traces the lineage to Old English, Latin & Greek
can be used to show what words share common etymology
orthography
standardized system for writing words with the proper letters according to accepted rules of usage. includes spelling rules for a language
A difficulty with spelling words in English is that not all syllables & sounds correspond perfectly. Ex: the K in knot is just pronounced as N. The Great Vowel Shift in Middle English period changed sounds of words that originally had spellings that matched up with sound.
American spelling differs from English spelling since many NE settlers adopted Noah Webster's rules for spelling. American spelling doesn't use u in many -our words (honor/honour) and tends not to have double consonants in second syllables (traveler/traveller). American spelling also uses -ize instead of -ise in many words (organize/organise).
language acquisition
the process by which people acquire the ability to understand and use words
Toddlers move quickly (months) from single words to speaking in complete sentences. Explained by the Universal Grammar theory
language acquisition device
aka Chomsky's theory of Universal Grammar
While many rules of grammar are too complex for young children, they still manage to use language grammatically. This must be a genetically endowed or innate capability, since it can't have been learned (via environment).
How do theorists largely agree that children acquire language?
Children acquire language in series of imitative stages that are roughly the same (but NOT identical) and that overlap in sequence.
Most children begin babbling around age 2 and have vocab of about 50 words.
This then increases to more than 200 words, after which word learning proceeds very rapidly with child increasingly using prepositions and articles.
By preschool, child uses fairly sophisticated sentence patterns and vocab (size, location, time quantity).
By age 4-6, child mastered basic sentence grammar and proceeds to use language more creatively and efficiently (narratives, conversations).
While there are different rates of development across these stages, the sequence is standard
Which factors affect language development?
a combination of biological and environmental factors:
Genetic Predisposition/Innate Capacity
Social Interaction
Sociocultural Factors
Affective Factors
Genetic Predisposition/Innate Capacity
Chomsky's theory of a universal grammar that is programmed into every human brain and facilitates language development
Social interaction
Some experts believe child's environment is crucial to language development
Adults provide children with examples of language usage to imitate
Children surrounded by more complex vocab/sentence structures are likely to develop language skills quicker
Being in an environment where you use language instead of just hearing it helps you acquire language (1st or 2nd) faster
Sociocultural factors
Social class - different language uses and codes
How stories are told/structured - different based on backgrounds (open ended stories developed through free association vs central topic/conclusive stories)
Gender/ethnic discrimination also can affect language development, esp learning a second language
affective factors
personal qualities such as empathy, self-esteem, extroversion, lack of inhibition or anxiety, ability to imitate, and overall outlook that would positively affect acquisition of language skills
Lack of these qualities can negatively impact a child's ability to learn a second language, since language usage (at home/school) is critical to learning a second language.
learning a second language - bilingualism
a system in which students are taught in their native language
learning a second language - transitional system
students are taught in their native language until they have learned enough English to participate in English-only classes
learning a second language - total immersion system
students must immediately take part in English-only classes with no transitional period
sink or swim approach
The goal of American educators is to...
teach all students to use Standard English effectively
Research shows that Standard English can be a reliable indicator of
academic and economic success in society.
Students who speak with a dialect that differs from standard patterns of English speech in vocab, grammar or pronunciation may face lowered expectations from teachers. Teachers should avoid embarrassing/demeaning students who speak in a dialect/accent while still working to enhance their abilities to speak SAE
What are the five hypotheses in Krashen's Theory of Second Language Acquisition?
Stephen Krashen's studies in linguistics & language acquisition led to ...
1. Acquisition Learning hypothesis
2. Monitor hypothesis
3. Natural order hypothesis
4. The input hypothesis.
5. The Affective filter hypothesis
The acquisition-learning hypothesis
*most fundamental of Krashen's ideas
There are two independent systems for learning a second language: the acquired system and the learned system. The acquired system uses a subconscious process like the one children go through in learning a first language - depends on natural, meaningful communication in the target language so that the speaker focuses on communicating instead of forming sentences.
The learning system is traditional form instruction in the language (form and structure).
The acquisition is significantly more important than learning.
The monitor hypothesis
acquisition and learning are related, with acquisition being the initiator of an utterance and the latter being its monitor/editor. Krashen believes that role of the monitor is/should be minor, useful only in correcting deviations form standard speech and giving speech more polished look. Monitor function is only uses when the learner of 2nd language has time to monitor, focus on form or correctness and a knowledge of the rule to be monitored.
the input hypothesis
a second language learner makes progress along the natural order of development. each time he or she receives input from the second language that is one step beyond his/her current level of competence in the language.
Acquisition is more important than learning (experience is the ultimate source of concepts/knowledge - empricist view)
the natural order hypothesis
acquiring grammar structures in second language follows a natural order, regardless of student's age, first language, and conditions of exposure to 2nd language.
the affective filter hypothesis
Krashen's idea that a number of affective variables (motivation, self confidence, anxiety) play an important facilitative but non-causal role in language acquisition.
Low motivation, self esteem and high levels of anxiety act as filters that form a mental block, preventing student from using comprehensible input for acquisition (ex: fear of embarrassment from possible mistakes, forming sentences mentally first)
how does a first language influence second language development?
-syntactical errors: applying syntactical rules from 1st to 2nd language that don't match (ex: shirt blue instead of blue shirt)
-interlanguage: students learning a language radically different from their first, internalize systemic set of rules to use in understanding the second language. Step between the native and target language
-prior knowledge of second language
-prior dialects (& their socioeconomic backgrounds) that have different speech patterns
-peer pressure
-support at home & from other second language learners
-age (second language learners under 15 achieve greater proficiency)
the critical period hypothesis
a person's ability to learn a language peaks in early childhood, with learners under 15 tending to be more proficient in language grammar, pronunciation, vocab, and comprehension than adult learners.
Brains language faculty shuts down or becomes less accessible after a certain age - adults must use other cognitive mechanisms to learn second language.
There's a limited period where infants can discriminate between all phonemes in human speech - which makes it easier for them to recognize certain sounds in a second language than older learners, who still retain an accent.
Transfer
when a speaker uses their second language in a way that is semantically or syntactically appropriate for the first language but not the second
negative tansfer
when a speaker uses skills from a previously learned behavior/topic but applies them incorrectly to a new topic.
Ex: fake --> faked so take must --> taked.
hypercorrection
when a person who has been corrected for a mistake in usage makes further mistakes in trying to avoid the original error
ex: Me and him" = error so student avoids me altogether event when it's correct "The teacher gave he and I an assignment"
borrowing
when a speaker switches into their first language and borrows single words/phrases they do not know the equivalent for the in second language
makes a hybrid kind of like Spanglish
semantic mapping
the teacher guides the students in the creation of a diagram demonstrating the relationships between the new word and other known words. Teacher solicits responds to a word/phrase through brainstorming or free association. Might write word on blackboard and ask students to suggest other words they think of
Graphic organizers can also be used: diagrams, clusters, word trees
semantic feature analysis
A reading comprehension activity for which students use a chart to organize information by categories, analyze ideas, compare concepts, and make inferences about a written text.
repeated oral reading
student repeatedly reads aloud a short text, helps improve a student's fluency and reading rate regardless of reading level
note taking
helps a reader to paraphrase what has been read and thus focus on meaning and interpretation
word analogies
compare two or more things by analyzing how they are alike or different. Teacher might ask "What features does this word share with order words you have seen?"
visual imaging skills
the student's ability to use personal images or experiences to comprehend a word's meaning. Teacher might ask: can you describe an incident from your own life that reminded you of this word?
cohesion analysis
A method of analyzing how all the parts of a work come together to create an overall effect or convey a message. A reader might read ahead or review previous section to see how a difficult passage fits into the whole
Standard English
the form of the English language widely accepted as the usual correct form. Ideally free of regional/class differences and accomplishes a consensus of proper word order, punctuation and spelling. Usual for guiding proper formal usage.
One of most important predictors of success in school and commercial world. Ability to know what kind of language to use (essay vs email to teacher) is essential to writing clearly, directly and appropriately
code-switching
when a person changes dialects or switches from formal to informal speech depending on which group he or she is interacting with.
What are cognitive elements of reading and writing that students must be taught to use for comprehension in order to read and write effectively?
-Understand differences between formal and informal language
-Use explicit comprehension to understand literal meaning of text
-Using inferential comprehension to understand inferred meaning of text (read in between the lines)
-Understand variety of genres
-Have awareness of different authorial voices (1st person, 3rd person, etc.)
-Recognize styles and purposes of writing (informative, entertainment, persuasive)
-Recognize organizational patterns of writing (time order, compare/contrast, problem/solution, enumeration and description, definition and example)
What are cognitive approaches to writing that students should think about before writing?
-What is the appropriate tone & style of rhetoric for my audience
-The steps of the writing process: planning, drafting, revising, editing & sharing
-How does my writing seek to affect and is affected by different communities (teacher, family, peers, disciplines it refers to/reflects)
-Awareness of their own thought process while writing
-Evaluation of how well their writing fulfills its original intention and meets the needs of its intended audience
metacognition
self awareness during the reading process ensures that a student's mind is engaged and they are ready to use a variety of tools to unlock meaning of a text
What are some metacognitive strategies for understanding a text?
-Pre-reading strategies (reviewing background knowledge, seeking info that enriches the reading)
-Predicting (making predictions about text before/during the reading)
-Questioning (asking questions about text during the reading process)
-Word analysis (Decoding unfamiliar words in a text)
-Concept formation (used during and after reading to connect and categorize ideas and reflect on material's overall meaning and effect)
What are the three levels of reading comprehension?
Literal Comprehension (basic facts & details of story)
Inferential comprehension (make inferences and draw conclusions about the story)
Applied comprehension (ability to move beyond story to think critically and creatively about its implications and larger meaning)
coordinating conjunction
FANBOYS=for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so
subordinating conjunction
a conjunction/subordinator that combines simple sentences to create a complex sentence with a dependent clause. The dependent clause contains the subordinate conjunction.
After, Although, As, As if, Because, Before, Even though, If, Since, Unless, When, Whenever, Until, While
clausal modifier
a clause that acts like an adverb or adjective and adds detail to a sentence
adverb clause
A phrase that begins with a subordinating conjunction and modifies a verb, adjective, or other adverb.
adjective clause
a clause that modifies a noun or pronoun or other adjective
phrasal modifier
a phrase that functions as an adjective or adverb in a sentence
appositional phrases
identifies or describes a nearby noun. it may be embedded in the sentence instead of at the beginning or end
Kevin Durant, my favorite basketball player, was voted MVP.
count nouns
things that can be divided up into smaller units that are separate from one another. May be preceded in indefinite constructions by modifiers like a or one
Can be pluralized by a final -s
noncount nouns
refer to things that cannot be counted because they are regarded as wholes that cannot be divided into parts. Preceded by much or some in indefinite constructions
Cannot be pluralized
determiner system
made up of modifying words called determiners that are always followed by a noun
-ARTICLES: a, an, the
-POSSESSIVE NOUNS: Susan's, my uncle's, the building's
-POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS: your, my, his, whose, etc.
-NUMBERS: one, two, etc.
-INDEFINITE PRONOUNS: few, more, every, each, either, all, both, some, any, etc.