Section 11_19

Stages of Language Development

• Language acquisition is a universal process.

• Typically developing children around the world follow the same stages in the same sequence:

  • This is applicable to both spoken and signed languages.

Universal Stages of Language Acquisition

• Crying (0-1 month):

  • Primary means of communication; includes cries, burps, and grunts.

• Cooing (2-3 months):

  • Vowel-like sounds; includes coo/goo sounds and gurgling.

  • Early exploration of vocalization involving velar sounds (back vowels).

• Vocal Play (3-4 months):

  • Development of more varied sounds; includes raspberries, squeals, yells.

• Babbling (4-12 months):

  • Starts with CV monosyllables (4-6 months).

  • Progresses to canonical babbling (7-10 months).

  • Culminates in variegated babbling (10-12 months).

• One-Word Stage (1-1.5 years):

  • Lexicon consists of less than 50 words; overlaps with babbling.

  • Simple phonology; mainly includes nouns and verbs; uses holophrases (e.g., "want!", "more!").

• Two-Word Stage (1.5-2 years):

  • Lexicon increases to over 50 words; combinations start to make semantic sense.

  • Not necessarily syntactically correct; focuses on meaning rather than grammatical structure.

• Telegraphic Speech (2+ years):

  • Combinations of two or more words; begins to use content words over function words.

  • Word order begins to show patterns; function morphemes are acquired consistently over time.

Features of Language Acquisition

• Child-Directed Speech (CDS):

  • Speech directed to children; characterized by exaggerated pitch and prosody (parentese).

• Holophrases:

  • One-word utterances that convey complex ideas.

True or False Section

• Children generally produce more language than they understand; False.

• Newborns can distinguish their native dialect by around 5 months; False.

• Canonical babbling occurs before variegated babbling; True.

• Babies in utero cannot hear language; True.

The Brain and Language

• Corpus Callosum:

  • Thick fiber bundle connecting the left and right hemispheres of the brain.

  • Right hemisphere is involved in visual-spatial tasks, non-speech sounds, and music.

  • Left hemisphere primarily responsible for language and analytical processing.

• Localization:

  • Different brain regions perform different functions.

  • The brain's organization is contralateral; each hemisphere controls the opposite body side.

Language Disorders

• Aphasia:

  • Language disorder resulting from brain damage (e.g., trauma, stroke).

  • Broca’s Aphasia: Broken but comprehensible speech; struggles with word retrieval.

  • Wernicke’s Aphasia: Fluent speech filled with lexical errors, often incomprehensible.

Quiz 7 & Homework Reminders

• Topics for the quiz include:

  • Stages of language acquisition.

  • Theories of language acquisition in different contexts.

  • Age determination based on language ability.

  • Recognition of Broca’s vs. Wernicke’s aphasia cases.

• Homework due involves language acquisition and brain functions.

  • Ensure familiarity with the stages and abilities related to children’s language.

Conclusion

• Language acquisition involves complex interaction between developmental stages and brain functions, highlighting the biological basis of language and its cognitive processes.