How languages are learnt
How Languages Are Learned - Chapter 1 Summary
Language Learning in Early Childhood:
Begins prenatally; babies hear their mother's voice by 16 weeks.
Phonetic Discrimination:
Infants discern phonetic differences early; bilinguals retain these abilities longer.
Stages of L1 Acquisition:
Universal stages include crying, cooing (6-8 weeks), babbling (6-8 months), holophrastic stage (12-18 months), and telegraphic speech (around 2 years).
Vocabulary Development:
Overextension: Using a word too broadly (e.g., all animals as "dogs").
Underextension: Using a word too narrowly (e.g., "dog" for only the family pet).
Mismatch: Incorrectly using words (e.g., naming a telephone a "tractor").
Mean Length of Utterance (MLU):
Indicator of grammatical development; about MLU of 4.0 signals learning progress.
Grammatical Morphemes:
Stages of acquiring grammatical structures like negation and questions evolve over time.
Metalinguistic Development:
Understanding language as an object develops through reading.
Child-Directed Speech:
Higher pitch, slower tempo, and repetition characterize caregiver speech; varies culturally.
Language Development:
Typical ease in stages, though some may have disorders (e.g., dyslexia).
Bilingual and Second Language Acquisition:
Simultaneous vs. sequential bilingualism.
Perspectives on Language Acquisition:
Behaviourist: Learning via imitation and reinforcement.
Innatist: Relies on innate cognitive abilities (LAD & UG).
Interactionist: Focus on cognitive development and social interaction.
Connectionism/Usage-based: Language learning through patterns and associations.
How Languages Are Learned - Chapter 1 Summary
Language Learning in Early Childhood:
Begins prenatally; babies hear their mother's voice by 16 weeks.
Phonetic Discrimination:
Infants discern phonetic differences early; bilinguals retain these abilities longer.
Stages of L1 Acquisition:
Universal stages include crying, cooing (6-8 weeks), babbling (6-8 months), holophrastic stage (12-18 months), and telegraphic speech (around 2 years).
Vocabulary Development:
Overextension: Using a word too broadly (e.g., all animals as "dogs").
Underextension: Using a word too narrowly (e.g., "dog" for only the family pet).
Mismatch: Incorrectly using words (e.g., naming a telephone a "tractor").
Mean Length of Utterance (MLU):
Indicator of grammatical development; about MLU of 4.0 signals learning progress.
Grammatical Morphemes:
Stages of acquiring grammatical structures like negation and questions evolve over time.
Metalinguistic Development:
Understanding language as an object develops through reading.
Child-Directed Speech:
Higher pitch, slower tempo, and repetition characterize caregiver speech; varies culturally.
Language Development:
Typical ease in stages, though some may have disorders (e.g., dyslexia).
Bilingual and Second Language Acquisition:
Simultaneous vs. sequential bilingualism.
Perspectives on Language Acquisition:
Behaviourist: Learning via imitation and reinforcement.
Innatist: Relies on innate cognitive abilities (LAD & UG).
Interactionist: Focus on cognitive development and social interaction.
Connectionism/Usage-based: Language learning through patterns and associations.