The story of Genie, a girl who was isolated and deprived of normal human interaction for the first thirteen years of her life, supports the hypothesis that there are sensitive periods for learning language. Her difficulties in acquiring language after being rescued suggest that there is a critical period during which language acquisition occurs most effectively.

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The Story of Genie

Question 10

Multiple Choice

The story of Genie

A) shows the effects of teaching American Sign Language (ASL) to young children.
B) provides evidence for the existence of a language acquisition device (LAD) .
C) proves that language acquisition is genetically determined and not dependent upon the environment.
D) supports the hypothesis that there are sensitive periods for learning language.

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