Individual Variation

Question 1

What to consider concerning variations in Language Learning

Answer 1

vocab spurt: when and how many new words per week or month

range of variation: 2 girls at 24 months of age, 15 productions from lang samples during the child’s first 50 words. Jane has a 19-word spurt in the first month and starts 2-word combos the next month. Jessica has a vocab spurt and at 15 months she is making unanalyzed social phrases- like “Thank you”, no random combo of 2 words, it is a basic unit- acts as one word (holophrase). Things that caught Jessica’s attention were different and more expressive to talk about connectedness.

Question 2

What does this prove?

Answer 2

children VARY on every dimension, in this case lexically.

Question 3

Early Words: Difference in Context

Answer 3

Referential: Labeling things (Nominals)
vs
Expressive: Expressing Social Interactions

Referential more object words, Expressive more pronouns, function words, and social expressions (connectedness)

Expressive- thank you, please, help

Referential is less adequate to convey social interactions

Labeling vs Social Interaction

Question 4

Language Use: USE

Answer 4

Code-oriented vs Message-oriented

Trying to get words right vs Trying to get the goal met

Practicing words (repeat and practice more, repeat correctly) vs Achieving function of language (using words to accomplish a social goal/interactive goal)

Question 5

Speech (Speech Sound Production): FORM

Answer 5

Analytic vs Holistic

More careful or thoughtful about pronunciation vs less careful enunciation and variable

Question 6

Early Sentences

Answer 6

Nominal Combos vs Pronominal Combos

Specific names/labels together (dog bark, mommy kitchen, daddy go) vs general words (verbs, pronouns all generic, a lotta bang for your buck) (put those, want that, do that, you happy)

All kiddos make combinations it’s just what they put in them that varies

Question 7

Rate

Answer 7

Early talkers vs Late talkers

50% of late talkers go on to catch up to their peers

1st word vocab spurt around 18mos (varies by 33%)
2 yo child with less than 50 words Anything before 18mos is early

Other considerations: Interactive Style (Mark Fey)-Assertive/Passive, Initiator/Responder; Amount of Talking- Self Talk/Audience; Interests

A position on one continuum does not predict where the child may be on the other factors continuum.

Question 8

Contributing

Answer 8

Within child differences

perseverance, curiosity, sociability, independence, etc.

Question 9

What is regression to the mean

Answer 9

Over time children move closer to the center of the continuum

Question 10

Environment

Answer 10

Child differences also influence the ways other people interact with the child to affect the amount and kind of input the child receives.

Question 11

What is the vygotsky bidirectional

Answer 11

Mothers who use more nouns in their discussions with their children will have more nouns in their vocabulary

Question 12

Gender

Answer 12

Parents engage with boys and girls differently (conversationally, and toys)

Question 13

Nature of language

Answer 13

Developmental differences in the words of their native language where they are learning- we learning what is first and last in words (Korean- vowels at end of words, whereas in English we have more consonants at beginning and end of words)

Question 14

What is normal?

Answer 14

Wide range of performance

• Very few true extremes
• Example: Expressive Vocabulary

“Late Talkers”

• Not simply a rate issue
• Wide range of normal

Implications for assessment:
Lots of variation that we need to be able to account for amongst individuals