Lesson 7: First Language Acquisition

Question 1

Who is the teacher in first language acquisition?

Answer 1

no instruction is involved

Question 2

What is the input data in first language acquisition?

Answer 2

no negative evidence (ungrammatical sentences) are available; only positive evidence

Question 3

How do children interpret novel data?

Answer 3

finite input, but infinite productivity

Question 4

What errors do children make?

Answer 4

non-adult-like errors, but limited

Question 5

Poverty of the Stimulus

Answer 5

input from the child’s linguistic environment doesn’t seem to be enough for first language acquisition

Question 6

Theory of Imitation

Answer 6

children imitate what adults say

Question 7

arguments for Theory of Imitation

Answer 7

children sometimes imitate adults’ actions

Question 8

arguments against Theory of Imitation

Answer 8

children make errors that adults don’t make

Question 9

We ____ the Theory of Imitation.

Answer 9

reject

Question 10

Theory of Correction/Reinforcement

Answer 10

language learning is based on the correction and negative reinforcement of ‘bad’ sentences, and positive reinforcement of ‘good’ sentences by adults

Question 11

arguments for Theory of Correction/Reinforcement

Answer 11

correction/reinforcement works in a behavioral context

Question 12

arguments against Theory of Correction/Reinforcement

Answer 12

• no systematic positive or negative reinforcement from adults
• certain cultures don’t engage in speech/baby talk with children

Question 13

We ____ the Theory of Correction/Reinforcement.

Answer 13

reject

Question 14

Theory of Innateness

Answer 14

our knowledge of language is innately specified and universal among human beings

Question 15

True or False:
Universal grammar is a blueprint and an innate knowledge of language.

Answer 15

True

Question 16

innate properties of language

universal properties of all human language

Answer 16

• categories of linguistic expressions
• structured sentences and phrases

Question 17

learned properties of language

properties specific to the acquired language

Answer 17

• word order
• phonetics/phonology

Question 18

We ____ the Theory of Innateness.

Answer 18

accept

Question 19

All children should be able to:

Answer 19

• acquire language of their environment
• acquire language rapidly and spontaneously
• exhibit linguistic creativity
• pass through similar stages of development

Question 20

critical period

Answer 20

the limited developmental time period during which it’s possible to acquire language to native-like levels

Question 21

True or False:
Like humans, birds cannot acquire their birdsong after a certain time period without exposure.

Answer 21

True

Question 22

True or False:
The critical period for language acquisition in humans is around birth - 21 years old.

Answer 22

False
Critical period is from birth - puberty

Question 23

How does Victor of Aveyron show evidence of the Critical Period Hypothesis?

Answer 23

unable to produce intelligible language and communicated thru grunts and howls

Question 24

True or False:
By age 17, Genie had the vocabulary of a 5 year-old due to severe child abuse.

Answer 24

True

Question 25

True or False:
Chelsea was born deaf into an abusive family.

Answer 25

False
She was born into a loving family but did not receive any linguistic input because she was thought to be “mentally retarded.”

Question 26

True or False:
By age 31, Chelsea was still not able to acquire simple word order and complex syntax.

Answer 26

True

Question 27

True or False:
ASL learners who learned ASL later on in life can still sign just as well as those who are native signers.

Answer 27

False
Native signers perform better at signing than those who learned later on.

Question 28

True or False:
In second language learners, age of arrival is a better predictor of accent and comprehension than number of years speaking English.

Answer 28

True

Question 29

True or False:
In childhood aphasia, recovery is faster than adult aphasia the later the aphasia develops.

Answer 29

False
Recovery is faster the earlier the aphasia develops.

Question 30

Why is it significant that there are particular kinds of grammatical errors that children do not make?

A. It suggests that language acquisition is guided by an innate mechanism.
B. This provides support for the idea that children acquire the language indirectly from the adults around them, not through explicit instruction.
C. This is evidence that even very young children have grammars, although those grammars may be different than the adult grammar.
D. A and B
E. B and C
F. A and C

Answer 30

F. A and C

Question 31

What is meant by the “logical problem of language acquisition”?

A. Children are able to acquire language easier than adults.
B. Children are able to acquire signed languages faster than spoken languages.
C. Children do not receive enough linguistic input to explain the complex knowledge of language that speakers have.
D. Children are born ready to acquire any human language. However, they typically only acquire the one(s) in their environment.
E. Despite differences in culture and child-rearing practices, children all over the world still pass through identical stages of language development.

Answer 31

C. Children do not receive enough linguistic input to explain the complex knowledge of language that speakers have.

Question 32

Why do we think that Universal Grammar plays a central role in first language acquisition?

A. The Poverty of the Stimulus
B. The rapidity of acquisition and the depth of grammatical knowledge attained
C. Similar stages of language acquisition for both spoken and signed languages
D. A and B
E. A and C
F. All of the above

Answer 32

F. All of the above

Question 33

Does the case of Genie provide evidence for or against the existence of a critical period for language?

A. For. Genie has been unable to acquire English to native-like levels since she began acquiring language at the end of the critical period.
B. Against. Genie has been able to acquire an extensive English vocabulary, despite acquiring English at the end of the critical period.
C. For. Although Genie has learned English syntax and phonetics after puberty, she struggles with morphology.
D. Against. Although Genie has acquired limited English morphology after puberty, her knowledge of the phonetics and syntax is native-like.
E. For. Only after extensive training was Genie able to acquire English to native-like levels. This is unlike what happens to children before the critical period.
F. Against. Once Genie began to receive language input, she was able to attain native levels of English proficiency, even in the absence of explicit training.

Answer 33

A. For. Genie has been unable to acquire English to native-like levels since she began acquiring language at the end of the critical period.

Question 34

Comparing the cases of Genie and Chelsea, which one is more likely a better candidate to test the Critical Period Hypothesis for Language?

A. Genie is better. The fact that she was raised in an abusive environment provides us a clearer picture of what can be attained linguistically under such extreme circumstances.
B. Chelsea is better because she was given explicit language training, unlike Genie. Therefore we know exactly how much progress she made.
C. Genie is better. She did not receive explicit language training, unlike Chelsea.
D. Chelsea is better because her first linguistic input preceded the onset of puberty. Her level of attainment is a direct test of the Critical Period Hypothesis.
E. Genie is better. Dichotic listening tests show that her language is right-lateralized. The Critical Period Hypothesis predicts this to be the case.
F. Chelsea is better. She was brought up in a non-abusive environment so we know that psychological factors do not play a role.

Answer 34

F. Chelsea is better. She was brought up in a non-abusive environment so we know that psychological factors do not play a role.

Question 35

Studies of the acquisition of American Sign Language suggest that…

A. both the age of exposure to ASL and the length of exposure determine the eventual level of attainment in ASL, unlike spoken language.
B. the critical period applies to sign languages, just as with spoken languages.
C. it is the mirror image of what is found in spoken language. The earlier the exposure, the lower the levels of eventual proficiency.
D. the length of exposure to ASL is crucial, not the age when a person is exposed to it. The Critical Period Hypothesis is not relevant.
E. the length of exposure to ASL is not crucial and neither is the age of exposure. The amount of explicit instruction in ASL determines the eventual proficiency for native signers.

Answer 35

B. the critical period applies to sign languages, just as with spoken languages.