CLA: Cognitivism

Question 1

Cognitivism

Answer 1

Children need to be cognitively adept to talk about things, they cannot express what they don’t understand.

Question 2

Piaget

Answer 2

• Argues that until children learn the rule of object permanence (that things still exist when you can’t see them), they struggle to name things.
• This explains why children’s language starts to be acquired properly at around a year.
• Stages of cognitive development which are present before displayed.
• Sensori-motor stage – 0 to 24 months – object permanence.
• Pre-operational stage – 2 to 7 yrs – symbolic thought.
• Concrete operational stage – 7 to 11 yrs – logical thought.
• Formal operational stage – 11+ yrs – scientific reasoning.

Question 3

Vygotsky

Answer 3

Can also be applied as a cognitivist – believes children have a cognitive deficiency which the caregiver / more knowledgeable other fills for them.

Question 4

Eve Clark

Answer 4

• Overextension – where a child may use a word more broadly e.g garden for everywhere outside.
• Analogical overextension – making links between different objects based on similar properties e.g everything circular is a ball.
• Categorical overextension – all objects within the same category e.g all types of clothing are a dress.
• Developing cognitive understanding of the world to develop language acquisition.

Question 5

Katherine Nelson’s study of first word utterences

Answer 5

• Categorised the words (naming things / actions / events / personal)
• Found that the first words tend to be naming things.
• Studied 18 children.