Chapter-10-Language-acquisition

Chapter10LanguageacquisitionKeypoints•Theoriesofchildlanguageacquisition•Cognitivedevelopmentinchildlanguagedevelopment•Languageenvironment&theCriticalPeriodHypothesis•StagesinchildlanguagedevelopmentIntroduction•Languageacquisition----referstothechild’sacquisitionofhismothertongue,i.e.howthechildcomestounderstandandspeakthelanguageofhiscommunity.•Secondlanguageacquisitionreferstotheacquisitionofasecondlanguagesubsequenttohisnativelanguage.DifferencesbetweenacquisitionandlearningUsesgrammaticalrulesTeachercontrolspacePresupposesteachingIntentionalprocesslearningUsesgrammaticalfeelChildcontrolspaceDoesnotpresupposeteachingUnconsciousprocessacquisition语言习得：通常指在自然的语言环境中，通过旨在沟通意义的言语交际活动，不自觉地，自然地掌握或获得第一语言。典型的例子是儿童习得第一语言。语言学习：通常指在学校环境下，有专门的教师指导，严格按照教学大纲和课本，通过讲解，练习，记忆等活动，有计划，有系统，有意识地对语言规则的掌握。典型的例子是成人在学校学习第二语言。Example:Mathematics？thesubjectMathematicsislearned,notacquired.•Mostchildrenacquirethelanguagequicklyandeffortlessly.Childrenallovertheworldlearntospeakataboutthesametimeunlesstheysufferfromextremeexternaldeficiency.•Howdochildrenaccomplishthis?DiscussionTheoriesofchildlanguageacquisition•Abehavioristviewoflanguageacquisition(Skinners)•Aninnatistviewoflanguageacquisition(Chomsky)•AninteractionistviewoflanguageacquisitionAbehavioristviewoflanguageacquisition•Traditionalbehavioristsviewlanguageasbehaviorandbelievethatlanguagelearningissimplyamatterofimitationandhabitformation.B.F.Skinners(斯金纳)Abehavioristviewoflanguageacquisition•ImitationRecognitionReinforcement•Imitationandpracticearepreliminary,discriminationandgeneralizationarekeytolanguagedevelopmentinthistheory.•pickoutwords/patternsgeneralizethemtonewcontextscreatenewformsornewusesofwordsfigureouthowtheformsareusedbyadultsBehavioristview•AdvantagesAlthoughthebehavioristviewisunderchallengeandcriticismbecauseofitsinadequacy,butitoffersareasonableaccountofhowchildrenacquiresomeoftheregularandroutineaspectsofthelanguage.Forexample,children'slearningofalanguageneedsimmitationandreinforcememt;it'snecessarytoformcertainhabitinordertomasteralanguage.•DisadvantagesItfailstoexplainhowchildrenacquiremorecomplexgrammaticalstructuresofthelanguage.Examples:a.John'smotherloveshim.b.HelovesJohn'smother.c.HismotherlovesJohn.Aninnatistviewoflanguageacquisition•Accordingtotheinnatistviewoflanguageacquisition,humanbeingsarebiologicallyprogrammedforlanguageandthatthelanguagedevelopsinthechildjustasotherbiologicalfunctionssuchaswalking.ChomskyInnatistview•Accordingtothisview,childrenarebornwithpotentialitiesforacquiringanylanguage,butalsowithknowledgeofthenatureoftheworldandspecificallywithknowledgeofthenatureoflanguage.Thisknowledgeisuniversal.•1st:Allchildrenvirtuallylearntheirnativelanguagewhichissocomplicatedatalmostthesametime.•2nd:Childrensuccessfullymasterthebasicstructureoftheirlanguageordialectinvariousconditions.•3rd:Thelanguagechildrenexposedtomaynotcontainexamplesofalltheinformationwhichtheyeventuallyknow.•Chomskybelievesthatlanguageissomewhatinnate,andthatchildrenarebornwithaLanguageAcquisitionDevice(LAD),whichisauniquekindofknowledgethatfitsthemforlanguagelearning.•ChomskyarguesthatLADprobablyconsistsofthreeelements:ahypothesis-maker,linguisticuniversal,andanevaluationprocedure.LAD-languageacquisitiondeviceLAD语言习得机制•Chomskyreferredtotheinnatelanguageabilityaslanguageacquisitiondevice(LAD).•TheLanguageAcquisitionDevice(LAD)isapostulated“organ”ofthebrainthatissupposedtofunctionasainborndeviceforlanguageacquisition.•UG普遍语法•LaterChomskyreferstothisinnateendowment(天资)asUniversalGrammar.•UniversalGrammarincludesasetofprincipleswhichcanbeusedtoexplainchildlanguageacquisition.•UGisanendowmentthatallchildrenarebornwith.Ifchildrenarepre-equippedwithUG,thenwhattheyhavetolearnisthewayinwhichtheirownlanguagemakesuseoftheseprinciples.•TG(Transformational-Generative)grammarseeslanguageasasystemofinnaterules.Anativespeakerpossessesalinguisticcompetence,oralanguageacquisitiondevice.•AlthoughChomskydoesnotintendtomakehismodelarepresentationofperformance,i.e.,thelanguageactuallyusedincommunication,appliedlinguisticsfindTGgrammarusefulincertainaspects.•Thisviewservesasananswertothelogicalproblemoflanguageacquisitionthatthebehavioristviewfailstorecognize.•LogicalProblemofLanguageAcquisition逻辑问题•Thelogicalproblemreferstothefactthatchildrencometoknowmoreabouttheirlanguagethanwhattheycouldreasonablybeexpectedtolearnfromtheirlivingenvironment.•Whenexposedtoconfusinginformationorwhenguidanceorcorrectionisnotavalable,childrencandiscoverforthemselvestheultimaterulesofthelanguagesystem.•Merit&Deficiency•Merit:inawayservesasananswertothelogicalproblemoflanguageacquisitionthatthebehavioristviewfailstorecognize.•Deficiency:noevidenceaboutwhattheUG(universalgrammar)isandhowdoesitwork.Aninteractionistviewoflanguageacquisition•Theinteractionistviewholdsthatlanguagedevelopsasaresultofthecomplexinterplaybetweenthehumancharacteristicsofthechildandtheenvironmentinwhichthechilddevelops.•Integratedwiththeinnatistview,theinteractionistfurtherclaimsthatthemodifiedlanguagewhichissuitableforthechild’