Nurture Debate

Question 1

Bruner (Social Interactionist Model)

Answer 1

-states that there is a Language Acquisition Support System (LASS) which helps children to learn
-emphasis on caregiver
-he studied ritualised daily activities-mealtimes, bedtimes, reading and how carers make the rules and meanings of these interactions explicit and predictable so that children can learn turn-taking, formulaic utterances and syntax

Question 2

Child Directed Speech (CDS)- Bruner

Answer 2

The speech that parents and caregivers use when communicating with children.

Question 3

List features of CDS

Answer 3

-repetition of grammatical frames
-a higher pitch
-nouns rather than pronouns
-concrete nouns
-questions/ tag questions
-mitigated imperatives
-expansions
-recasts
-diminutives

Question 4

What is the effect of questions/tag questions?

Answer 4

-it initiates turn-taking
-it encourages the child to speak and expand/develop answer in further detail

Question 5

What is the effect of mitigated imperatives?

Answer 5

-it is a command disguised in the form of a question, e.g. ‘Shall we get this homework done then?’
-the modal verb, ‘shall’ and the first person plural pronoun ‘we’ teaches the child politeness and cooperation

Question 6

What is the effect of expansion?

Answer 6

-the development of a child’s utterances into a longer, more meaningful form
-e.g. encouraging the building on noun phrases

Question 7

What is the effect of recast?

Answer 7

• commenting on, and rephrasing of a child’s utterances to make them more grammatically accurate
  -providing them with correct model/form

Question 8

What is the effect of diminutives?

Answer 8

-adopt child’s own words (doggie, kitty)
-sound childlike/cute

Question 9

Challenge CDS case study?

Answer 9

The Kaluli tribe in Papua New Guinea
-in their particular speech community , caregivers were found to not have used any features of the CDS and yet their children didn’t experience late/impaired language development as a result-no detrimental effect

Question 10

Skinner(Behaviourist model)

Answer 10

-places emphasis on caregiver and imitation
-language develops through operant conditioning as he argues children hear language and attempt to imitate it and it would either be positively reinforced by their caregivers (praised/attention) or negatively reinforced (form of correction-recast)
-by selectively reinforcing accurate speech forms, caregivers would help child utterances towards the correct version of adult speech

Question 11

Lenneberg’s Critical Period Hypothesis

Answer 11

-the extent to which the ability to acquire language is biologically linked to age
-an ideal time window to acquire language in a linguistically rich environment, after which further language development becomes much more difficult
-states the first few years of life is the crucial time if presented with the adequate stimuli
-if a child doesn’t have early exposure to interaction with caregivers by adolescence - unable to reach the post telegraphic stage

Question 12

Penfield and Roberts supporting Lenneberg

Answer 12

• states language acquisition occurs exclusively during childhood as the brain loses plasticity after a certain age
  -it then becomes rigid and fixed, and loses the ability for adaptation and reorganisation, making language learning difficult
  -claim children under nine can learn up to three languages: early exposure to different languages activates a reflex in the brain allowing them to switch between languages without confusion

Question 13

Case study: Genie supports critical period

Answer 13

-Genie was a feral child (not exposed to language and brought up in isolation/confinement)
-she was deprived of social interaction from birth until discovered at the age of 13
-working with speech therapists, she was able to acquire and understand new vocabulary
-but was never able to formulate utterances beyond the two-word stage

Question 14

Additional contextual factor to consider of Genie’s case

Answer 14

Genie’s case is not entirely valid due to the severe nature of the abuse and the claim by her father that she was mentally deficient from birth will most likely have contributed to her lack of development.

Question 15

Case study: Isabelle supports critical period

Answer 15

-She was incarcerated(confined) with her deaf-mute mother until the age of 6 and a half(pre-pubescent).
-She also had no language skills, but unlike Genie, she quickly acquired normal language abilities through systematic specialist training.

Question 16

Case study: Jim supports social interaction

Answer 16

-Bard and Sachs studied a boy called ;Jim’, the son of two deaf parents.
-Although he was exposed to TV and radio(passively learnt language not actively) his speech development was severely impaired until he attended sessions with a speech therapist.

Question 17

Why is social interaction important for language development?

Answer 17

While the fundamental building blocks of grammar are present from a young age, they need to be stimulated through verbal interaction with others in order for a child to develop to the standard rate. As it is nearly impossible to generate/establish our language without building on our innate grammar rules to maintain our fluency and natural aspect of language.

Question 18

Vygotsky: MKO

Answer 18

His view is that interaction with others is important, what he termed a More Knowledgeable Other(MKO-parent, teacher, older sibling) who had greater experience and could therefore help the child develop language to a higher level- move into the zone of proximal development.