Linguistic and Literacy Development of Children




There had been no definite sequence on how a child could acquire language until the birth of child psychology that formulated many theories which led to some information on how a child develops his language.

One of the principles in the natural history of language development is the principle of reinforcement.  In this principle the consequences of an action will influence future behavior. For instance, if the parent constantly reminds the child of the correct sentence construction, then the child would have a greater possibility of acquiring a logical language as he grows. However, if the child is constantly taught of a baby-talk, he could have the chance of acquiring poor language.

The second principle is through imitation. This is the child’s production of words or sentences after being heard from his parents or peers.

Meanwhile, Noam Chomsky is known for his nativist theory of language acquisition. He proposed that every child is born with a Language Acquisition Device (LAD) which is a special language-learning mechanism embodying knowledge about the general nature of grammars. In other words, language learning is already innate to a child.

However, with the social interactionist view, language acquisition is believed to be both biological and social. Moreover, it states that language learning is influenced by a child’s desire to communicate with others.

On the other hand, Jerome Bruner theorized the Language Acquisition Support System (LASS) which emphasizes the critical roles in which the parents and other caregivers have in the language acquisition process. He believed that a child learns language by the support of the people around him.

As a language teacher, the theories on language acquisition could help me compare and contrast the factors that led a child to develop his language. Learning these theories, I realize the importance of the biological and social dimension of the child. These dimensions are the agents that help a child logically and rationally produce language.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What Kind of Listener Are You?

Image
Photo from Google Every one of us listens and tries to relate to some of the conversations which we may belong. We listen, yet all of us do not have the same reason why we do this. In addition, we also do not have the uniform way of listening to someone. Yes, the skill that we perform is the same but our intention or manner of doing this varies in some different ways. Perhaps, you have not heard nor grasped the categories or types of listeners yet, but this article will surely help you to be mindful on this matter. The following classifications are enlisted by Bernales (2010): a. Eager Beaver This kind of listener presumes that he really has the heart of listening. He, most of the time, looks straightly to the one talking to him and sometimes nods and smiles as if he fully understands the words being said. The act of this particular listener is very deceiving but if he surely understands what he is listening of, that should be a very big question mark. b. Sleeper
Read more

Launching Soon: UpTraining

Image
They say, "Go wherever your heart desires," and then one night, when I was reflecting on some LinkedIn contents, I realized I have always been inspired by these posts and people behind them, so I thought I would want to do the same for others. Since I have this Blogspot I created years ago, and have been idle for too long, I thought I'd use this as a platform to get started. In the coming days, I would start posting useful and inspiring articles specially targeted to call center trainers like me, those who work in Training and Development department, and even those who are wanting to become one in the future. Furthermore, I'd be featuring Day of a Life of a Trainer, professional tips and advices, best practices, and a lot more. I am naming this blog: UpTraining , which is a common yet relatable term to anyone in this profession. I am so excited to launch this personal project, and I hope to learning with you soon. See you!
Read more