Early Childhood Studies - Essay Example

?Part The first part of the paper seeks to describe what is being said by the in a chapter drawn from the book by Grady (2005) en d How children learn language. The paper will also discuss the author’s idea which is supported by relevant reading. The second part of the paper is a biography which also looks at what other scholars think about the topic being discussed by Grady in this particular book. This section tries to discuss critically the ideas and myths pertaining to language acquisition that are suggested by different authors. The author of this book chapter starts by introducing an intricate topic about language acquisition by children which has been interpreted in different ways by various people. Indeed, children are born in a world that is characterised by different sounds but how they acquire language is still a contested subject given that there are various conceptions that exist with regards to this topic. For instance, it is widely believed that children learn a language through imitating their adults. The author argues that children do not necessarily acquire language through imitation of their parents though there is an element of copying a few words from them. Children often construct meaningful sentences without using the same words from their parents which brings us to the conclusion that language acquisition is not an art of imitation. In most cases, children barely imitate their parents but they can still manage to learn a language. Other people also believe that children are taught language by their parents but the author of the excerpt from the above mentioned book refutes this assertion. In actual fact, parents do not directly teach or correct their children to speak though they at times do. In most cases, children spend the greater part of their childhood trying to learn language from their surroundings. The author argues that instruction is neither effective enough to have a major impact on language learning. According to Lopez (2003), children often learn a language from the social disposition around them. People belong to different social groups and they often create meaning from different things in the world around them and this plays a significant role in the way children acquire language. The author goes on to argue that the mother often recasts poorly constructed utterances by their children though this is not very common. However, research has shown that this does not have immediate effect on speech development in children hence they are not necessary though they are helpful. From the above argument, it has been suggested that language acquisition by children is promoted through speaking to children in special way. Mothers often speak in a slow way such that they carefully articulate basic vocabulary which is easier to understand by the children. Grady (2005) calls this motherese where the mother speaks in a slow way so the child can grasp the meaning of speech or the words uttered. To a greater extent, it can be noted that this aspect of speech development is very important given that it is commonly believed that the child adopts a language from the mother. This is the reason why the child’s first language is called the mother tongue in different social dispositions. Though this aspect of motherese is not necessary in speech development, it has been observed that it significantly contributes to the development of speech in young children. In some cultures, adults do not simplify their language when they are talking to the children but these children still learn their language perfectly. There is a misconception among people that children require special instructions for them to learn a language. According to the author of the given article, children can still learn a language without special help from the parent but there is one external condition that has to exist in as far as language acquisition is concerned. The author argues that children need to hear sentences they can actually understand before they know a lot about the language they are learning. There is need for the children to be in contact with the language they are learning in order for them to quickly acquire it. Children also need to listen to others speak for them to learn a language faster. The author also argues from a biological point of view with regards to language acquisition. The author suggests that human beings contain a special DNA that makes it possible for them to create speech which may not be possible in animals since they do not possess special organs that can be used in speech development. In other words, the author argues that language is inherited from the parents. In some cases, there is an inherited language disorder which is apparent in some cases involving children from different backgrounds. Other people from the same background can still experience the same disorder which can be attributed to genes that are inherited. Research has shown that the capability for people from affected families to acquire a language is comparatively lower than those from families which are not affected. The other argument suggests that people including children have an acquisition device which enables them to acquire a language. This is inborn and it exposes every child to a ready environment that allows him or her to acquire a language from those around him. The acquisition device in children tells them about different words and their specific functions which enable them to grasp the meaning of certain words quickly. This argument suggests that language is acquired naturally given that it is the means of communication between people and children as well have a special way of communicating with their parents. Thus, language acquisition is seen as hereditary given that it can be inherited from the parent. However, though there are different conceptions attributed to language acquisition, the aspect of learning cannot be ignored given that it has a significant impact on the way a child acquires a language. The children learn a language through generalisation of particular terms since this makes them easier to understand. It is suggested that children are able to figure out statements that are not said by other people and they are in a better position to correct themselves which is very essential in learning a language. A child often learns from his or her mistake after realising that other people are not making that same mistake. To a larger extent, it can be noted that learning plays a significant role in helping the children acquire a language. The author also suggests that the principle of contrast is very effective in as far as language acquisition in children is concerned. There are words which look similar but upon a closer look, it can be observed that they mean different things. This enables the children to learn how language and speech are structured. Through observation, children are also in a better position to acquire new knowledge with regards to speech development. It can be seen that from the above argument, language acquisition is a learned process though it is not formal. Basically, learning can be described as the process of acquiring knowledge through experience which leads to a change in behaviour (Torrington, Hall & Taylor, 2008). In this particular case, it can be noted that children learn a language through the experience they have with the world around them particularly speech by the people around them. From the above discussion, it is my strong conviction that language is acquired through learning though this particular type of learning is not formal. Learning can be done through listening, observing as well as socialisation where different people interact using speech. This greatly enhances the child’s chances of acquiring a language. The environment in which the child is exposed also plays a contributory factor in the way a child learns or acquires a language. A child learns the mother tongue because it is commonly used around him and it is easier to quickly master this particular language which is used quite often. As noted, there is very early ability by children to distinguish speech sounds from other types of sounds. This is the first step which enables the children to learn a language. The exposure the children have to the world around them plays a significant role in learning a language that is shared by the people around them. However, besides these arguments above, there is still no agreed answer as to how children learn a language given that there are various myths that exist with regards to language development in children. It seems that millions of children from different parts of the world acquire their mothers’ languages with relatively ease though there is no definite answer as to how they do it. Part 2 According to Lopez (2003, p. 66), “every group in society shares a system of norms, preferences, and expectations that organise the linguistic structure of the group’s language.” Children learn language from sounds to words as well as utterances to express, meditate and manage actions, emotions as well as knowledge. Thus, acquiring language is a process that is inextricably linked to local social and cognitive experience. Broadly speaking, it involves learning of symbolic systems that are shared by members of a particular cultural group and these often depict reality in their own world view. From this argument, it can be noted that there are different factors which influence language learning and these include the environment and motivation as well as culture which encompasses the willingness to learn. Ostrander (1994) posits to the effect that the success of learning a language depends on what has to be learned. I strongly believe that culture has a bearing on the way one acquires language. In this context, a learner is aware of what is being learnt and the environment plays a significant role in determining the rate at which the child learns a language. Hall et al (2003) also suggests that culture plays a significant role in learning a language by the children. In most cases, language is experienced by the child when it firsts comes into contact with it. A child is in a position to detect sounds around it and make a distinction between speech sounds from other ordinary sounds. Therefore speech is developed through constant attachment to the people in a particular society. To a certain extent, culture plays a significant role in development of language among the children. Basically, culture and values are processes that are learned and they significantly contribute to the rate at which the child learns a language from the people around it. Learning is a concept which entails that cultural factors obtaining in the environment plays a significant role in acquisition of a language by the child. This notion of language learning is also supported by the work of Vygotsky (1978) who posits to the effect that in most cases, the learner is aware of the reason why he is learning which can be attributed to the Behavioural Theory to learning. There is a misconception that language is learned by children of which I dispute that perception. Learning is designed to influence behaviour change among the learner where an external stimulant to learning is required for the learner to be aware of the benefits of undergoing that process. Formal learning is actually designed to change the behaviour of the people so that they achieve something. To a certain extent, it contributes to language acquisition by children though there are also some factors which can contribute to language development in youngsters. In theory, it can be observed that human behaviour with regards to learning is greatly influenced by both external as well as other mental factors which work in conjunction in order to produce desirable results in the learner. In as far as the process of learning is concerned, can be argued that human behaviour in relation to learning is to a larger extent influenced by both external and mental factors which work in conjunction to produce positive results to the learner. A learner often gets assistance from a mentor during the learning process. However, in my own opinion, I think the concept of learning cannot be fully attributed as responsible for language development in children as a result of different reasons. According to the behaviour theory of learning, it can be noted that a child may be too young to be aware of the essence of learning hence it may subconsciously acquire a language. It may also be difficult and challenging to teach a child something new given that the mind is still young and incapable of learning complicated things. Thus, language development is a process which partly involves learning which in most cases can be regarded as informal. It may be too early to believe that an infant is motivated to learn a language given that its mind is too young to be reasonable as to be able to construct meaning of the world around it at that tender age. It is considered that a child is not yet capable of possessing a body of knowledge hence the conventional theory of learning may be difficult to apply to the process through which the child develops a language. In some instances, the parent may correct the child when it wrongly utters some words but it has been seen that a child develops a language through constant interaction with the people around it. There is also a misconception with regards to learning and acquiring a first language which is often treated as one concept though they are quite different. Psychologists define learning as any change in behaviour as the result of experience (Wilson, 1964). To a certain extent, children learn a language as a result of their experience with it. However, it is now widely acceptable to speak of acquiring a language than learning it as a result of the revolution of 1960s which can be attributed to the work of an American linguist Naom Chomsky (1959). Chomsky argued that we do not learn a language but grammar develops or grows in the mind especially of the children. To a greater extent, I agree with this assertion. In as far as indigenous language is concerned, it can be noted that it is easier for children to grasp the language compared to a second language. The mother tongue which is the first language can be acquired naturally by the child and it will develop the same tone or accent with the mother. In my own case, I was brought up in a Gujarati family and our first language is Gujarati though we also speak English but I can speak my mother tongue fluently compared to English. Indeed, my spoken English is good but I pronounce some terms with an accent closely related to Gujarati. Thus, it can be observed that children utilise the grammar that grows in their minds and they often try to make sense from that vocabulary and communicate meaningfully. However, they may not yet be aware of the logic of constructing meaningful sentences but they are likely to develop language from the little vocabulary they acquire from their parents. To a certain extent, it can be argued that language is acquired given that in some instances, it may not be possible to create a formal learning environment for infants whose minds are still very young to be reasonable enough to learn a language at a faster rate. It is pretty difficult for a child to be taught to create a meaningful sentence at a tender age as this can be confusing. Somehow, a child naturally acquires language from the people around especially the siblings who often repeat certain phrases for the kid to understand. From this argument, it can be noted that language acquisition is more like a hereditary process where the child inherits speech from the parents. The child is quick to acquire a first language given that there is a chance of biological connotation with regards to speech development. It is easier to pass a language from the mother to the child since there is a strong tie between the two. Just like values which are passed from generation to generation, the same applies to language acquisition given that it is passed through different generations. The aspect of language acquisition can be said to be authentic compared to that of learning which is sometimes silent about the exact learning environment with regards to children. In a formal learning environment, the teacher is a person who is qualified to teach while the learner has the potential to learn (Swartz 2004). The teacher has a role to motivate the children to learn while the learners are expected to reciprocate through listening to the teacher. An infant may not be formally taught a language given that there is no mutual understanding between the parties involved. In actual fact, the kid can acquire a language not through formal or informal learning which is designed create a body of new knowledge in the party involved. However, learning can be applicable to the aspect of literacy development among young children. According to Orlson & Torrance (1991), literacy does not cause a new mode of thought or social change but being able to read and write can be vital in playing certain roles in an industrial society. Thus, in this particular case, it can be noted that the teacher has a role to motivate the learners to have confidence that they can read and write which is another discourse of learning. Language development must take precedence before a child learns to read or write since it is concerned with a critical understanding of grammatical structures in language. Speech development and literacy development are two different concepts which are somehow related to the aspect of language development. However, the method of learning these two differs in that speech can be developed in an informal setting while literacy development requires a formal setting where the teacher plays a pivotal role in imparting knowledge to the learners in order for them to be literate. According to Hall et al (2003), formal learning is mainly applicable to children around five years as they begin to learn written texts. Literacy development and language acquisition are two different concepts though they are often confused as synonymous. One may be fluent in a particular language but that same person may not be able to read and write that particular language. Apparently, this entails that aspects like grammar and syntax may not need to be taught to someone during the process of acquiring a language as these can be adopted naturally as well as through learning. In order to be able to read and write, there is need for that person involved to undergo formal lessons unlike speech development which does not require any formality. Over and above, it can be observed that there are different misconceptions with regards to language acquisition and learning in children. Some scholars believe that language is acquired naturally while others believe that it is learnt from the people around. However, a closer analysis of different concepts proposed by different scholars show that there is no agreed way about how children learn a language. It can also be said that the external environment has a bearing on the way children learn or acquire their first language. The culture of a particular group has a strong influence on the way at which a child acquires a language. Normally, the behaviour of people is shaped by their cultural values as well as their language. It has also been observed that another method that is effective in as far as language acquisition by children is concerned is the aspect of generalisations. I think there is need for the parents to generalise some statements so that it becomes easier for the children to grasp the context of what is being said. It is also easier for the children to learn to construct meaningful sentences through the guidance of someone but this does not necessarily mean to say that they have to undergo a formal learning programme as this can be done subconsciously. Young children are capable of learning from the social environment around them. Bibliography Chomsky, N 1959, Review of Verbal Behaviour By BF Skinner language 35:26-58. Donaldson, M 1978, Children’s Mind, Fontana Press, London. Eileen, J 2003, Classworks literacy, Nelson Thornes Ltd, London. Eloff, I & Ebersohn, L 2004, Keys To Educational Psychology, UCT, CT. Hall, N et al 2003, Handbook for early childhood literacy, Sage Publications, London. Kaluger, G & Kaluger, M 1984, Human Development: The Span of Life, Merril Publishing Company, Columbus Ohio. Kritzinger E., Bowler A. and Goliath D (2003), Effective Communication: Getting the message across in business, Afritech: CT. Lopez, PB 2003, Language, literacy and community, Sage Publications. London. Orlson, DR & Torrance, N 1991, Literacy & orality, Cambridge University Press, New York: NY. Richards, JC & Rogers, TH 2001, Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching: A description and analysis, 2nd Edition, Cambridge University Press, Viewed from 04 April, 2012 . Swartz, L et al 2004, Psychology: an introduction, Oxford University Press, New York: NY. Torrington, T & Taylor, H 2008, Human Resource Management, 7th ed, Financial Times / Prentice Hall: London. Wilson, JR 1964, The Mind, Time-Life International, Netherlands. Vygotsky, LS 1978, Mind in Society: The development of higher Psychological Processes, University Press: Boston. Read More