stages of vocabulary growth
main stages in language development
babbling (4-9mo)
holophrastic/one word (9-18mo)
two-word (18-24mo)
telegraphic (24-30mo)
babbling stage
meaningless, speechlike vocalisations with simple reduplicated CV structure
becomes more language-specific over time
-phonetic content found in this stage overlaps with phonetic preferences in later meaningful speech
holophrastic stage
two-word stage
different from idiomatic expressions, most often nouns and verbs
lack of grammatical markers and beginning of syntax
combines words together>expresses ideas more
telegraphic stage
three-word expressions
absence of function words( e.g. ‘the’) auxiliary verbs (e.g. are) , prepositions, and tense morphemes
-quick progression
foetuses and hearing in the womb
can hear impoverished sounds due to high frequencies being blocked by amniotic fluid
evidence of early speech perception
1yo using categorical perception- sensitive to speech sounds when distinguishing between sounds in other languages
evidence of early speech production
-crying, cooing, and laughing as involuntary responses to emotional states (Universal)
- vocal play between 4-7 months, these are speech like sounds
Babbling
the repetition of syllables
- universal sounds > deaf children babble with their hands
- we produce easy front of the mouth sounds first then learn harder sounds
fast mapping
children learn new words for objects after one experience of exposure
how do newborns contribute to communication?
how do 1-4mo contribute to communication?
how do 3-9mo contribute to communication?
how do 8-12mo contribute to communication?
what do CDS and motherese show?
contribution of the parent to communication
phonological differences in motherese
higher pitch, exaggerated intonation, segmented, slower
lots of repetition and diminutives (e.g. doggie) to acquire noun morphology
is CDS essential?why
language acquisition theories
behaviourist accounts (skinner)
language is used in response to stimuli and learned by children through imitation and reinforcement
Problems of the behaviorist account
-poverty of stimulus– > input is full of degenerate (dysfluencies) and insufficient meaning there are not enough instances children are exposed to underlying rules of words
nativist accounts (chomsky, pinker)
language capacity is innate (LAD) and children learn worldwide universal grammar without explicit instruction at approx same age
constructivist and cognitive accounts (piaget)
language learning is driven by cognitive development of mental schemas
social accounts (vygotsky, bruner)
-language has a social origin; high importance of social interaction and learning
adults model concepts and culture to children