Question 1

Describe the differences in the ability to differentiate among speech sounds for an infant and a 5-year-old child. What is the evolutionary purpose of the initial ability, and how does the ability change or disappear?

Accepted Answer

The ability to differentiate among speech sounds is significantly different between an infant and a 5-year-old child. Infants are born with the ability to distinguish between all speech sounds in all languages, but as they grow and are exposed to their native language, they start to lose the ability to differentiate between speech sounds that are not present in their language. This process is known as phonemic narrowing.

Infants have a remarkable ability to perceive and discriminate between speech sounds from all languages, regardless of whether those sounds are present in their native language or not. This ability is crucial for language acquisition, as it allows infants to learn the specific speech sounds of their native language. As they are exposed to their native language, they start to focus on the speech sounds that are relevant to their language and lose the ability to differentiate between speech sounds that are not used in their language.

By the age of 5, children have typically lost the ability to differentiate between speech sounds that are not present in their native language. This is why children who are exposed to multiple languages from a young age are able to differentiate between speech sounds from different languages, while children who are only exposed to one language may struggle to differentiate between speech sounds that are not present in their language.

The evolutionary purpose of this initial ability is to facilitate language acquisition. By being able to differentiate between all speech sounds, infants are able to learn the specific speech sounds of their native language. This ability allows them to develop the necessary phonemic awareness to understand and produce speech in their language.

As children are exposed to their native language and their phonemic awareness becomes more focused on the speech sounds of their language, they lose the ability to differentiate between speech sounds that are not present in their language. This is a natural process that allows children to become proficient in their native language and communicate effectively within their linguistic community.

Question 2

At a family gathering, parents are bragging that their 8-month-old daughter seems as if she is getting ready to talk. Her grandparents, however, insist that she has no idea that those around her are even talking and that she certainly is not preparing to speak at this young age. Help the parents and grandparents settle their disagreement by describing what is known about infants' perceptions of speech and what the 8-month-old is probably doing to prepare for speaking.

Accepted Answer

Infants are actually very perceptive to speech from a very young age. Research has shown that even newborns are able to recognize their mother's voice and can distinguish between different speech sounds. By 8 months old, infants are actively listening and processing speech, even if they are not yet able to speak themselves.

At 8 months old, the baby is likely engaging in prelinguistic behaviors such as babbling, imitating sounds, and experimenting with different mouth movements. These are all important steps in the process of learning to speak. While she may not be preparing to speak in the same way that an adult does, she is certainly laying the groundwork for language development.

It's important for the parents and grandparents to understand that the baby is indeed aware of the speech around her and is actively working on developing her own language skills. While she may not be ready to have a full conversation just yet, her actions and behaviors indicate that she is on the right track towards eventually speaking. Both the parents and grandparents can take comfort in knowing that the baby is progressing as expected in her language development.

Question 3

Can nonhuman primates learn language? Provide a brief description of research done on this topic and what the general results have been. Discuss three differences between human and nonhuman communicators.

Accepted Answer

Yes, nonhuman primates have been shown to be capable of learning and using language to some extent. Research in this area has primarily focused on teaching nonhuman primates to communicate using sign language or symbols, as well as studying their natural communication abilities in the wild.

One famous example of research in this area is the work done with a chimpanzee named Washoe in the 1960s and 1970s. Washoe was taught American Sign Language and was able to learn and use hundreds of signs to communicate with her human caregivers. This and other similar studies have shown that nonhuman primates have the ability to learn and use language to some extent.

However, there are several key differences between human and nonhuman communicators. Firstly, while nonhuman primates may be able to learn and use language to some extent, their communication abilities are still limited compared to humans. They may not have the same level of understanding of grammar and syntax, and their communication is often more focused on immediate needs and desires.

Secondly, nonhuman primates may not have the same level of intentionality in their communication as humans. While they can learn to use symbols or signs to communicate, their ability to convey abstract or complex ideas may be limited.

Finally, nonhuman primates may not have the same level of social and cultural context in their communication as humans. Human language is deeply intertwined with our social and cultural experiences, while nonhuman primate communication is more focused on immediate needs and interactions within their social groups.

Overall, while nonhuman primates have shown some ability to learn and use language, there are still significant differences between human and nonhuman communicators in terms of the complexity, intentionality, and social context of their communication.

Question 4

Describe the relative impact of nature and nurture on language development as proposed by Chomsky and Skinner. Provide descriptive examples.

Accepted Answer

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Question 5

Imagine that a family is planning a move to Japan. There are three children in the family-an infant, a 4-year-old, and a 10-year-old. Will the children become more or less proficient in Japanese than the adults in the family? Why? Will all of the children become similarly proficient, or will the children's proficiency differ? If it will differ, how will it differ among the children and why? Describe at least two pieces of evidence from research on language to support your answers.

Accepted Answer

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Question 6

Describe the concepts of intersubjectivity and joint attention and explain how they relate to language development. Provide an example of each one and explain how it will be likely to help the development of language.

Accepted Answer

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Question 7

Imagine a day in the life of a preschooler. Describe the symbols the child encounters in the course of the day. Choose three of the symbols, and for each one, discuss the factors involved in the child's comprehension of its symbolic representation. Be sure to use at least one example of a symbolic artifact.

Accepted Answer

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Question 8

Imagine that a babysitter for a toddler who is in the telegraphic speech stage decides to take the child on an outing, perhaps to the zoo, the beach, the park, or the city. The babysitter and child will probably encounter many sights that will be fascinating to the child. Describe what types of utterances the child is likely to make. Give five examples of "sentences" the child might say, and translate them into expressions an adult would probably use for the same thought.

Accepted Answer

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Question 9

Adults contribute to children's word learning in a number of ways, but children themselves also contribute to their word learning. Describe children's contributions. Be sure to include a description of at least three assumptions that children make about what new words must mean.

Accepted Answer

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Question 10

Give a detailed example of a conversation between an adult and a preschooler in which the adult is providing scaffolding for the child. Explain what the adult is trying to accomplish and how the adult is going about accomplishing it. Discuss whether the adult is likely to be successful, and why or why not.

Accepted Answer

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Question 11

Which comes first-language production or language comprehension? Provide at least two detailed examples to support your answer.

Accepted Answer

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Question 12

Discuss the influence of nurture on children's first spoken words. How might culture affect how quickly children begin to produce words as well as which words children say first?

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Question 13

Imagine that someone is trying to program a robot to speak infant-directed speech. Provide a description of four instructions that the person would give the robot.

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Question 14

Describe three similarities between the process of language acquisition for children learning a spoken language and the process for children learning a signed language. Why do you think this issue was such a recurrent focus of this chapter?

Accepted Answer

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Question 15

The development of language involves several areas of development-phonological, semantic, syntactic, and pragmatic. Briefly explain what development in each of these areas entails. Give one example of an advancement in each area that is typical of toddler language development and one example of an advancement in each area that is typical of a child who is at a more advanced level of language development.

Accepted Answer

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Question 16

Describe three pieces of evidence supporting the notion of a critical period for language acquisition. What implications does this evidence have for exposing congenitally deaf children to a sign language?

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Question 17

Define and provide two examples of (a) overregularization and (b) overextension. For each type of error, describe what a child's errors of this type tell us about her language development.

Accepted Answer

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Question 18

Describe the characteristics of older infants' babbling. Are these characteristics independent of or dependent on experience? Explain, and provide examples to support your position.

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Quiz 6: Development of Language and Symbol Use