Child Development - Language

Question 1

What 4 things does a proficient user of language have a knowledge of?

Answer 1

Phonology
Semantics
Syntax
Pragmatics

Question 2

Define phonology

Answer 2

Sound system associated with a language and the rules used to combine the units of sound - relationships between speech sounds that form meaningful speech
e.g. st or sk work in english but sb or sg wouldn’t

Question 3

Define semantics

Answer 3

The expressed MEANING of words and sentences

Question 4

Define syntax

Answer 4

The form of structure of a language; uses combination rules that form meaningful sentences

Question 5

Define pragmatics

Answer 5

Rules about language in social context - what to say and how to say it e.g. please and thank you

Question 6

What are morphemes?

Answer 6

The smallest linguistic units that carry meaning e.g. in - come - ing = incoming

Question 7

What age is the pre-linguistic period?

Answer 7

0-12 months

Question 8

What 3 forms of vocalisation occur in the pre-linguistc period of development? What age is this?

Answer 8

0-12 months
crying
cooing
babbling

Question 9

At what age will a baby start to coo?

Answer 9

3-5 weeks

Question 10

at what age will a baby start to babble?

Answer 10

3-4 months

Question 11

What is an important feature of the pre-linguistic period? Why is this important?

Answer 11

Dialogue being returned by adults , which helps the child to learn other features such as turn taking and intonation

Question 12

What language skills does a child learn by 8-12 months?

Answer 12

associating objects with names

verbal labels

Question 13

What 2 language skills does a child learn by 18 months?

Answer 13

true symbolic representation

words as substitutes for objects

Question 14

What does a child at 18 months tend to do when using words as representations of objects?

Answer 14

overextend

e.g. “doggy” is any four legged animal

Question 15

What type of speech occurs at 18-24 months?

Answer 15

Telegraphic speech

Question 16

What is telegraphic speech? When does it occur?

Answer 16

Starting to put words together to form small sentences to communicate
“more cereal”
“all gone”
“water off”

18-24 months

Question 17

When do children start to add complexity to speech?

Answer 17

2 years +

Question 18

Give 3 ways children start to add complexity to speech at 2+ years

Answer 18

adding verbs
compound sentences
past tense

Question 19

What language skills are gained between 3-5 years? What does this show the emergence of?

Answer 19

interest in rhymes and songs
commentaries during play
pre-sleep monologues

NARRATIVE

Question 20

At what age does a child start to use a narrative?

Answer 20

3-5 years

Question 21

What are the two different modes of thought?

Answer 21

Propositional - verbal language

Imaginal - visual imagery

Question 22

How is language conceptualised and categorised?

Answer 22

Prototypes - grouping things together
Core properties
Hierarchies of concepts

Question 23

What is Skinner’s view of language acquisition?

Answer 23

Language is learned through imitation and progressive reinforcement

Question 24

What increases how quickly children will learn language?

Answer 24

Social input from adults

One-to-one sessions with a sensitive adult

Question 25

Give 4 important factors for interaction to help children learn language?

Answer 25

Adopting helpful speech styles

Attention eliciting techniques (ask them questions)

Timing of verbal input (when child is interested or tired)

Child-directed speech (change phonetics, smaller words, smaller sentences)

Question 26

What is motherese?

Answer 26

Using child directed speech - changing phonetics (high pitched), shortening sentences etc

Question 27

Is social interaction and language acquisition necessary or just pleasurable?

Answer 27

Unsure

Question 28

What is Chomsky’s language acquisition theory?

Answer 28

Language acquisition device - part of the brain is devoted to language and there are innate shared linguistic principles; everyone will produce language

Question 29

Who believes that language is biologically programmed?

Answer 29

Chomsky

Question 30

What does spontaneity of language mean? Who’s theory does this support?

Answer 30

Children reinvent language generation after generation - children in poverty without a natural language will develop their own language

This supports Chomsky’s theory of a language acquisition device

Question 31

What is the critical period for language?

Answer 31

Before age 12 - child will become bilingual with no language.

Question 32

Who came up with the critical period hypothesis?

Answer 32

Lenneberg

Question 33

What is different between animal and human communication?

Answer 33

poor syntax (esp. word order)
Basic acquisition of language skills (mainly telegraphic speech when taught)

Question 34

Do deaf children with deaf parents reach milestones at the same time as hearing parents?

Answer 34

yes

Question 35

Do deaf children with hearing parents reach milestones as easily?

Answer 35

No - social and clinical consequences

Question 36

Define expressive aphasia

Answer 36

Damage to Broca’s area
Speech halting, hesitance, difficulty finding words
comprehension (understanding) is largely unimpaired

Question 37

Define receptive aphasia

Answer 37

Damage to Wenicke’s area
Speech is fluent, gramatical, but no content and its nonsense
Comprehension (understanding) is seriously impaired

Question 38

Define aphasia

Answer 38

Complex language and communication disorder caused by damage to language centres (Broca’s area or Wernicke’s area)

Question 39

What does Broca’s area do?

Answer 39

Words are prepared to speech

Question 40

What does Wernicke’s area do?

Answer 40

Comprehension

Question 41

What is a lexigram?

Answer 41

A symbol that represents a word