Main theories and arguments Flashcards
What did Skinner believe in?
A behaviourist approach to language
- a nurture approach
What did Skinner say about language?
It was another form of learned behaviour
- children learn through positive and negative reinforcement
- rewarded for accurate use
– punished for incorrect use
What did Chomsky argue?
That caregivers are more interested in the truth of the childs utterance rather than whether or not it is grammatically/semantically correct
- happy that they recognise something to be true rather than being annoyed that the utterance was non-standard
What concept did Chomsky introduce?
A new notion of innateness
NATURE- Language Acquisition device that controls their development of language, already there when we are born
‘rich internal structure’ not a blank slate
- child assembles a set of rules as they hear language around them
What did Chomsky mean by linguistic creativity?
The ability to utter expressions they have never heard before
- focus on rules rather than imitating
- must be some input to trigger this
- recognise some input is needed, computers
How does research support Chomsky innateness theory?
Indicates there are specific areas of the brain which control language
How was the behaviourist approach disproved on its central idea of correction?
(a form of reinforcement)
Research found that correcting a childs grammatically non-standard utterances may actually impede their language development
Argument against correction
Over-generalisations, naturally go through stages which consist of virtuous errors
- clues to understand their progress
- actively applying rules of grammar to their speech
Why is it argued that imitation does have some kind of role to play in CLA?
We tend to imitate the phonology of language used around us
e.g. similar accents, repeat swear words, copy intonation
How does Jean Aitchison criticise Chomsky?
When he suggests that children are born with detailed linguistic knowledge which is triggered by only minimal exposure to language , Aitchison believed that children are born with ‘puzzle solving equipment’
What did Aitchison mean by the idea that children are born with a ‘puzzle solving equipment’?
It allows them to process language they hear around them and make sense of its rules
Piaget
Focus on different aspects of childs environment and development
COGNITIVE approach
Language Acquisition is part of a childs wider development
Piaget
The cognitive approach
Language comes with understanding
- a child cannot articulate concepts they don’t understand
e.g. grasp the concept of relative sizes, use superlatives and comparatives
e.g. grasp the concept of time, use adverbs
How can we refute the cognitive approach?
Children with cognitive problems still use language beyond their apparent understanding
How does research support the cognitive approach?
Not as linked but there are clearly connections between language development and other aspects of overall development
- why everyone’s language is unique and distinct from one another
