4C. Theories of language: learning including Skinner; nativist including Chomsky's language acquisition device (LAD); interactionist including Vygotsky

Chomsky’s language acquisition device (LAD)

Children learn with principles of language + grammar → learn vocabulary + apply the grammar

Key principles

• Everybody is born → with capacity to develop + learn any language

• Language development = instinctive → naturally/automatically

• Every child has a LAD → found in the brain→ enables child to rapidly develop rules of language

• Role of LAD = encode major skills → involved in language learning → with focus on grammar encoding

• Grammar = vital skill → needed for children → to learn language

Applications

• Children → often heard making grammatical errors → e.g. “I sawed”, “sheeps” → learned from hearing adults communicate

  • Shows child using LAD → to get to grips → with rules of language

• Once child has mastered this skill → need of learning new words → then apply to rules of grammar → from LAD → to form sentences

• Chomsky proposed → native-speaking children → would become fluent → by 10

Strength → model can be proven in everyday life

E.g. young children → calling a group of geese “gooses”

Weaknesses

• Lack of scientific evidence → to support the theory

• Overemphasis on grammar → in sentence structure

• Not enough info → on how children construct meaning → from their sentences

• Does not take into consideration → children with conditions → e.g. Down syndrom or autism → that may affect/delay language development