CLA Theory

Question 1

What are the 4 branches of Theory

Answer 1

Behaviourism (Skinner)
- Language is gained through mimicking others and gaining feedback
Social Interactionism (Bruner/Vygotsky)
- Children’s early language can be improved by carers adjusting their own speech patterns
Nativism (Chomsky)
- Language is innate and we are pre-programmed to acquire it.
Cognativism (Piaget/Tomasello)
- A child will develop their language along with their ideas about the world.

Question 2

What do the Behaviourists believe?

Answer 2

Skinner
Proposed a theory that all behaviour is a result of the conditioning we have experienced rather than freedom of choice
Children learn through positive and negative reinforcement

Question 3

What are the limitations of Behaviourism

Answer 3

Children might be more likely to be praised on their truth value of the statement rather than the linguistic accuracy.
If a child was imitating those around them, it would be expected that they produce grammatically complete standard English sentences which is not the case as instead they build up language gradually, refining speech as they develop

Question 4

What do the Nativists believe?

Answer 4

Chomsky
Language Acquisition Device: allows children to extract rules of the language through the structures they hear
Universal Grammar: all languages share a similar grammatical structure under the surface
Critical Period: Childrens LAD must be activated with sufficient input before the age of 12 otherwise their language will be impaired

Question 5

What is a Virtuous error

Answer 5

Used to justify Chomsky’s theory
A child makes errors in their grammar, inflections and syntax because they are attempting to apply rules that they recognise from the language around them

Question 6

Problems with Chomsky’s Theory

Answer 6

Does not place sufficient importance on the role of caregivers to influence language acquisition
Evidence suggests that children who lack sufficient exposure to language and acquisition will never really catch up with their language acquisition

Question 7

Genie Study Details

Answer 7

Locked up by her father between the ages of 20 months and 13 years and was exposed to no social interaction
She was found to have no speech and despite numerous attempts she was not able to acquire language beyond a very basic level

Question 8

What do cognitivists believe

Answer 8

Piaget
Children’s language level depends on their cognitive development
Language is a number of symbol systems rather than a single module of the mind (LAD)
Language is used to represent knowledge that a child has developed through interaction with their environment.

Question 9

What are the stages Piaget proposed?

Answer 9

Sensorimotor (0-2)
Pre-Operational (2-6/7)
Concrete Operational (6/7-11/12)
Formal Operational (11-16+)

Question 10

What happens in the Sensorimotor Stage

Answer 10

• environment interaction
• sense and physical movement
• egocentric

Question 11

What happens in the pre-operational stage?

Answer 11

• in play they become capable of representing the world symbolically
• remains egocentric
• struggles to understand things from points of view other than their own
• question frequently in attempt to develop an understanding things around them

Question 12

What happens in the concrete operational stage

Answer 12

• stops being egocentric
• begins to understand the points of view of others
• more capable of logical thought

Question 13

What happens in the Formal Operational Stage

Answer 13

• no longer a problem with logical thought
• thinking becomes increasingly abstract

Question 14

What do social interactionists believe

Answer 14

Bruner
Parents provide children with a Language Acquisition Support System
This is a collection of strategies a parent uses to support language learning
This can be through scaffolding (Vygotsky) which is the support provided by caregivers through modelling how speech ought to take place in order to help the childs language development

Question 15

Hallidays Functions

Answer 15

Instrumental
Regulatory
Interactional
Personal
Heuristic
Imaginative
Representational

Question 16

What was Tomasello’s theory

Answer 16

a cognitive linguistic approach - the ability to learn language is both primarily social and relies on using the same kinds of cognitive processes as other forms of learning e.g. walking, drawing etc

Question 17

How does a childs pattern forming ability aid them in learning language?

Answer 17

Children are able to build generalisations about how those words form larger syntactic constructions or schemas which become the building blocks for using various grammatical patterns

Question 18

Instrumental Function

Answer 18

where a child is trying to fulfill a need e.g. asking for a drink

Question 19

Regulatory Function

Answer 19

used to control the behaviour of someone e.g. telling caregiver where to sit

Question 20

Interactional Function

Answer 20

used to deliver relationships with others e.g. telling a sibling you love them

Question 21

Personal Function

Answer 21

used to express views and preferences e.g. me no like that

Question 22

Heuristic Function

Answer 22

used to explore the world around them e.g. what you doing mummy?

Question 23

Imaginative function

Answer 23

used to explore something creatively during play

Question 24

Representational Function

Answer 24

used to exchange information, to give or receive information

Question 25

What are the stages of learning to Speak?

Answer 25

Holophrastic Stage (9-18 Months)
Two Word Stage (18-30 Months)
Telegraphic Stage (2yr 6 months - 3 years)
Post Telegraphic Stage (4 Years onwards)

Question 26

What happens in the Holophrastic Stage and when does it occur?

Answer 26

9-18 Months
Single Word Utterances
Context is wholly important in this stage of learning to speak.
Semantic extensions (BROWN) may be used for phrases known by the child with similar semantic properties (might call both a dog and a sheep a woof as they have 4 legs and are fluffy) [This supports both innate and cognitive theories]

Question 27

What happens in the Two Word Stage and when does it occur?

Answer 27

18-30 Months
Marks the beginnings of forming syntax and grammar
Children with display virtuous errors through oversimplification of English

Question 28

What happens in the Telegraphic Stage and when does it occur?

Answer 28

2.5 Years - 3 Years
The child develops more grammatical words and develops syntax and adds inflections onto speech

Question 29

What happens in the Post Telegraphic Stage and when does it occur?

Answer 29

4 Years +
Lots of importance on the role of input, CDS, behaviourism and scaffolding as the child learns to speak in different contexts.
The child will be repetitive and imitate the MKO. The beginnings of a sociolect form
Conversational skills begin to develop such as turn-taking, adjacency pairs, and back channelling
The ‘Context of Gender’ will likely begin to affect what the child says and does.

Question 30

What are the types of Simplification a child may use to aid in Language learning

Answer 30

Addition: “Doggie” - This makes some harder guttural sounds easier to speak
Reduplication: “Dada” = Daddy. Repetition is easier than making the y sound
Consonant cluster reductions: “‘pider” for Spider - difficult for children to move from the fricative to the plosive
Deletion (of unstressed syllables): “nana” for Banana

Question 31

Why is Role Play so vital for children to learn language?

Answer 31

Important for personal, representational, imaginative functions
Allows children to practice social roles and conversation out-loud
‘Inner-Speech’ is developed as as egocentric speech is verbalised and awareness of social contexts is developed. This creates a sense of self, decentered, amongst social context

Question 32

What are the Sounds of English (w/ examples)

Answer 32

Monophthongs - bEAn, mOOn, shOOk, sIR, shORe (a single vowel)
Diphthongs - gO, dEAr, chOIce, lOUd (a double vowel sound - two vowel sounds in one)
Fricatives - First, THick, SHe, Hard, THese, caSual
Plosives - Pick, Team, Code, Get, Dine
Affricatives - CHoose, Jet
Approximants - Watch, Rug, Yet
Lateral Approximants - Look, taLL
Nasals - Mode, Neck, soNG