Theories of acquisition and CDS Flashcards
imitation and reinforcement
acquiring language by imitating others
approval is encouragement leads to motivation
theory for imitation and reinforcement
Skinner 1957
pleasurable consequences leads to repetition of an action
imitation plays a big part in phonological development
e.g. regional accents is a result of it
3 criticisms of skinner
all children pass through the same language stages regardless of reinforcement
trying to apply consistent grammar rules even in irregular cases which is not imitation
don’t seem to be limited by heard sentences
what is an alternative to imitation and reinforcement
innateness
who criticised skinner
Chomsky
what is the theory against imitation and reinforcement
Chomsky 1965
‘language acquisition device’ / innateness
born ability to understand rules in language around them
3 ponts in support of LAD
(language acquisition devise)
- children learn to talk at an impressive speed
- children from all cultures pass through the same stages
- linguistic universals: grammatical features common to all languages
what is a weakness of LAD
undermines role of interaction in language development
what is a case study against innateness
Bard and Sachs 1977
Jim had deaf parents
speech development was seriously retarded despite TV and radio
was ready to speak, needed competent human interaction
what is cognitive development
of mental abilities and skills
what could you suggest cognitive development is doing
overriding influence on development of language
who is the main theorist in cognitive development
Piget
example of cognitive development to do with objects
object permanence, independant existence
18 months
prior, children believe object is gone if they can’t see it
next step is to learn object names
example of cognitive development to do with size
ability to arrange things in size order
children who can use comparative terms
what is a weakness of condition theories
many argue this is overstated by theorists
some linguistic development appears to separate to this
what is the input theory
a child’s language acquisition depends on input of parents etc
what are 4 features of input theory
parents speak slowly and in a more simplified manner to children, makes imitation easier
expand children’s speech/correct them
introduce new words with familiar sentence structure, “what’s this”, draws child’s attention to a new word
introducing conventions of conversation which helps pragmatic development
what is a weakness of input theory
hard to know what causes linguistic development
what is most likely
that all factors contribute
what is the term for the war parents use language for children
child-directed speech
motherese
fatherese
parentese
what are the phonology features of CDS (4)
slow, clear pronunciation
higher pitch
more pauses
exaggerated intonation and prosody
what are the lexis features of CDS (3)
simpler and restricted vocabulary
diminutive forms
concrete language, referring to child’s immediate environment
what are the grammar features of CDS (5)
simpler contractions
questions
frequent imperatives
personal names instead of pronouns
repetition
what are the effects of CDS (4)
makes language more accessible for a child, e.g. understanding word meaning with physical object and repetition
retains child’s attention
questions include more auxiliary verbs
baby talk interferes with development
what is a weakness of CDS
not essential
wha are either contexts of CDS usage
lovers, talking to pets, carers to the elderly
