sentences and atypical language development Flashcards
two main components of grammar
syntax and morphology
grammar: syntax - what and testing
word order, organising into large structures
noun and verb phrases etc.
test = novel words used so word order must be used to infer scenario - agent-patient relations (who did what to whom) e.g. the dog chased the cat - dog is doing the action
grammar: morphology - what and testing
analysis of word structure
english uses inflectional morphology to mark things:
tense - walk –> walked
person - i, you, she
number - dog, dogs
possession - -‘s
test understanding of inflectional morphemes = wug test e.g. this is a wug there are two [wugs]
grammar: morphology - 4 stage developmental trajectory
- error of omission = not using -s to mean plural
- learn inflection = know -s is for plural
- over application/ overregularisations = mouses instead of mice
- balance applying inflection productively and understanding exceptions
– this reflects statistical structure of input - how common it is as to how likely you are to use it in novel situations
two approaches to language learning (brief idea)
nativist = language and grammar is too complex to just learn from hearing it around you, universal grammar is innate
constructivist = grammar is learnable and based on statistical learning from social interaction
nativist approach to language learning
language cannot be learnt by creative copying of what is heard around you due to:
- poverty stimulus problem = not exposed to enough rich data in life to learn all features of language
- no negative evidence = children don’t have evidence to eliminate ungrammatical speech errors
universal grammar - categories and principles used to generate grammatical sentences of worlds languages - innate and guides language aquisition from the start
- combats the idea that language is too complex to learn and so must have innate element
nativist approach limitations
no complete account of:
- what innate knowledge makes up UG
- how this specific info can be used for all >6000 languages
- little consideration for learning algorithms or the child as a social being
constructivist approach to language learning
no problem of poverty of stimulus nor of no negative evidence and no universal grammar
grammar is learnable and based on statistical learning from social interaction
gained popularity following language database analysis
learning mechanisms - intention reading, imitation, statistical learning, generalisation, analogy making
constructivist approach limitations
no fully worked out account of how different mechanisms interact for language production based on what is previously heard
what is pragmatics
language component - varying linguistic forms depending on who we are speaking to and the context
effective and appropriate language use with a social partner so communication goals don’t cause offense or misunderstandings
morris’ semiotic triangle
real world conditions, signs (e.g. words), and the speaker/listener (users)
3 things pragmatic skills require
context, mutual awareness of communication effects, communicative moves in sequence
pragmatic skill: context
awareness of interlocutor’s state and aspects of physical context relevant to current goal and what is in common ground
referring expressions in different levels of specificity to be used in context e.g. pointing, it, that, the dog, the brown dog etc
children can be ambiguous but respond well to requests for clarification using feedback - helps them to be more explicit in the future and can help ToM (know others don’t understand what they’re talking about without more explicit context)
pragmatic skill: mutual awareness of communication effects
intentions, inferences
querying intetions - 5 year olds query when someone says something that doesn’t fit their predictive model of language
e.g. saying “car with wheels” is unexpected so they assume there must be a car without wheels and search for it even after looking at correct image
pragmatic skill: communicative moves in sequence
making multiple communicative moves in sequence as a conversation unfolds
efficiency of talking about something so human info processing can manage steady info flow
e.g. introducing person by name and then using a pronoun, might reinstate who it is later for clarity too
understanding that other person doesn’t know everything they do so make effort to provide info to be understood
