Child Language Acquisition Sahil Thapa Amit Kumar Upadhyay Prakhar Goyal Naineet Patel

Child Language Acquisition Child Language Acquisition

Sahil Thapa

Amit Kumar Upadhyay

Prakhar Goyal

Naineet Patel

Language AcquisitionLanguage Acquisition

Ponder on Language Acquisition A complex task Encompasses research fields :

◦ Natural Language Processing ◦ Neural networks ◦ Psychology ◦ Statistics …and other related fields

Language Acquisition- Language Acquisition- The The meaning..meaning..

Language acquisition - process by which the language capability develops in a human.

First language acquisition or ‘Child Language Acquisition’ concerns the development of language in children.

da --> daddy --> daddy loves me ..

Why to learn that !!Why to learn that !!

Long range influences on adult behaviour: as

the twig is bent, so grows the tree !!

Children change so rapidly compared to us

adults.

Insights into complex adult processes.

Interesting subject matter.

Lets learn How ‘Krish’ learns to talkLets learn How ‘Krish’ learns to talk

1 Week "WAAAAAAAA!"Translation - "I'm hungry!"Krish learns that people pay attention to you

when you make noises

Lets learn How Krish learns to talkLets learn How Krish learns to talk

6 Months "Babadadagugubaba" Translation - none.Krish has learned that making noises is fun.


1 Year "paalle - g" Translation – "I want biscuit" (First time he

ate ‘Parle G’ biscuit, although this time, it is a different biscuit now)

Krish has learned that you don't always have to point to show people things.

You can correlate one type of thing to its similar type.


2-3 Years "Chacha Choudhry hit boy. Stick daddy. No Talks !!"

Translation – Chacha Choudhry hitting boy with his stick. And stop reading this story daddy! ( Because I'm scared)

He has learned that language helps you be quite specific about what you feel and what you want.


5 Years "Papa, mai yeh kaam karna chahta huun!"

Finally he has learned the core structure and grammar of the language.

By now, he is almost able to communicate with his fellow people and from now onwards he will try expanding the vocabulary and knowledge of the language.

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Motivation & MeaningSome facts about language acquisitionTheories explaining Child Language Acquisition Imp Stages in CLACHILDES

3 imp facts about CLA3 imp facts about CLA

1. REGARDLESS OF THE LANGUAGE KIDS ARE

EXPOSED TO....

◦ at 6 weeks they coo

◦ at 6 months they babble

◦ at 1 year they produce their first word

◦ at 2 years they construct 2 word sentences

◦ at 5 years they have almost acquired the core

grammar of their language

3 imp facts about CLA3 imp facts about CLA

2. Universal phenomenon phonologically,

syntactically, and semantically.

3 . A natural process◦ Their syntax is very rarely explicitly corrected, and

attempts at such correction are almost invariably unsuccessful.

Outline Outline


Theories of Language Acquisition

Theories

Nativist Non Nativist

Chomsky Cognitive Behaviorist

PiagetVyogtsky Skinner

Chomsky’s Universal Grammar Theory“Language is a process of free creation; its

laws and principles are fixed, but the manner in which the principles of generation are used is free and infinitely varied. Even the interpretation and use of words involves a process of free creation“

-- Avram Noam Chomsky

Chomsky’s Universal Grammar TheoryLanguage acquisition is influenced by

language, not controlled by it !!!Arguments:

◦ Language is complicated ◦ No formal instruction.◦ Always succeed and that too in a short period of

time◦ Independent of other mental tasks.◦ Use deduction rather than by imitation or

memorization.

Chomsky’s Universal Grammar Theory

Neurological system in human brains that supports language acquisition. “Language Acquisition Device” or LAD.

Children are exposed to infinite data and given data LAD produce a finite set of grammar rules.

L.A.D.Data as Input

Grammar Output


Children learn language by applying this unconscious universal grammar to the sounds they hear.

Universal grammar forms the foundation of all human language. A universal grammar can be equated with computer languages. There are many kinds of computer languages, but they all have some fundamental similarities

Language

Base Component

(Innate)

Transformational Component

(comes by interaction with society)


Deep

Structure

Surface

Structure

Base Rules

Lexicon

Transformation

Rules

Chomsky’s Universal Grammar TheoryTransformation rules are language specific.. Single Deep Structure can be expressed in

many different Surface Structures Ambiguity in the sentence:“I have seen eating a rabbit” – Deep

Structure I have seen someone eating a rabbit.. I have seen a rabbit eating something.

Chomsky’s Universal Grammar TheorySo how these transformation rules look like?• Subject-auxiliary inversion (SAI). X NP AUX Y ==> X AUX NP Y “Ram is eating an alphonso mango." “Is ram eating an alphonso mango?". the bird was killed by the cat the bird was

killed. “Deletion” A+B+C → A+ B:

• ‘Get out! Get out of here!; “addition”/”insertion”, A+B→ A+B+ C:• Mary up Call up Mary “permutation” A+B+C→ A+C+B Call

Theories of Language Acquisition(Revisiting..)

Theories

Nativist Non Nativist

Chomsky Cognitive Behaviorist

PiagetVyogtsky Skinner

The Cognitive Approach (Piaget)

• Children can only use certain linguistic structures when they understand fully the concepts surrounding them

A child can not use comparison of size if he/she does not understand

the concept of size. Can focus on only one aspect or dimension of problems. Example - row of 5 blocks and a row of 7 blocks can count the

blocks in each row and can tell number contained in each. But can’t tell

which is longer?

Progressive reorganization resulting from maturation and experience.

Based on discrepancies between what they already know and what they discover, they modify it.


Sensorimotor stage (0-2 yrs): Trial and error learning.

Behaviors become goal directed.

Object permanence.

Preoperational stage (2-7 yrs): mentally represent objects and events.

egocentric thoughts and communications.

unable to focus on more than one concepts simultaneously.


Concrete operational stage(7-11yrs):

Abilities of conversation and reversibility.

Organized and rational thinking.

can solve problems with more logical fashion.

Formal operational stage(11+ yrs):

More abstract thinking.

Higher order reasoning.

Can combine and classify in more sophisticated way.

The Cognitive Approach (Vygotsky)

Knowledge from external world transformed and internalized.

Not isolated 'lone thinker', culture and society are more important for a child's thought.

Social Interaction and then cognition:Development first on a social plane. Learn

from parents' behavior, their speech, imitate them. Parents correct them.

Afterwards information becomes internalized.

Language is now inner speech.

The Behaviorist Approach (Skinner)

language is acquired by conditioning and reinforcement

Learns through rewards and punishments. Children learn to speak by imitation. Parents

then reinforce or correct their speech. Children don’t imitate perfectly they may say words similar to what they hear around them.

Problems : 1. They over-extend language patterns they

already know; Steal > stealed > instead of stole Drive > drived > instead of drove This is not imitation instead it is an extension as adults doPoverty of the Stimulus

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Significant stages in Child Language Significant stages in Child Language

AcquisitionAcquisition

Function Meaning &

Examples

Structure

What children try to do with the language:- request, ask questions,

etc..

States, events & relationships

about which they talk.

Some interesting examples too !!

The way in which their

language is put together –

ultimately the ‘Grammar’ !!



Function Meaning &

Examples

Structure

First utterances:

Purpose:-

•To get someone’s attention.

•To direct attention to an object or event.

Commonly called as “naming insight”.

They relate objects to other things, places and people.

Mummy

Daddy car

-Single words such as ‘look’ ‘car’ – known as “operators”.

- Other sentences consist of 2 words:

Daddy car

(Obj Name + Operator)

Stage - 1Stage - 1



Function Meaning &

Examples

Structure

Ask questions

“where” & “what” questions appear first..

Purpose:-

•They try to fulfill the desire of naming & classifying things.

•They may begin to talk about locations changing and actions. daddy sitting car

•Curious to know about ‘where’ and ‘what’ of object !

where ball

- Sentences follow:

interrogative pronoun + (object or verb)

(where ball)

- Other sentences: Articles (a/an, the) appear before noun:

A man

Stage - 2Stage - 2



Function Meaning &

Examples

Structure

•Start asking lots of questions !

•More complexity appears in the sentences !

•They enquire about the state of the actions in a proper way.

Daddy sitting in car ?

•They start to ask about actions & events.

Sally play in garden ?

- Sentences follow:

subject + verb + object

(mai khaau use ??)

- Auxiliary verbs come into play. Use prepositions too !!

“daddy sitting in car”

Stage - 3Stage - 3



Function Meaning &

Examples

Structure

•Sentences become more complex:

•Start making requests.

•Ask for explanations too:

Why questions appear !

•Here, they begin to express meaning indirectly, replacing imperatives (Give me...) with questions (Can I have?) when these suit their purposes better.

kya main use khaun?

•They learn “grasp and use”

- Use question forms (Can I) & negations (doesn’t laugh) easily.

-They use (often implied) relative clauses

I know daddy is sitting in car.

(implied that after know) .

Stage - 4Stage - 4



Function Meaning &

Examples

Structure

•Learns to make actual use of language for all the things they do !

•Give & take info.

•Ask & answer questions.

•Express their feelings & attitudes.

•They are able to talk about things conditionally

If I study, I will score good

•They understand the conditions & answer.

Where is your bag?

-In my room.

I am very happy today.

-Multiple or complex clauses appear in statements.

-Up to now grammatical development has mostly added to the length of sentences. They know almost complete grammar.

Stage - 5Stage - 5

Significant stages in Child Language Significant stages in Child Language AcquisitionAcquisition

This model explains the process of language acquisition.

Variations possible among children at each stage but little variation in sequence of language learning.

From stage-5 on, what is learned increasingly depends upon experience and environment ◦ Opportunities to use language◦ And hearing it used.◦ Involves wide range of contexts and

corresponding environment.

Outline Outline


CHILDESCHILDES

CHIld Language Data Exchange System

Childes – Its relevance !!Childes – Its relevance !!

A system for transcribing and encoding children’s interactions.

It is developed at CMU. It helps in studying syntactic construct and

Part of Speech.Research on various language disorders.

A brief introductionA brief introduction

Founded : 1984 Director: Brian Mac Whinney

An international Database for the study of first and second language acquisition

Tools to analysis conversational interactionLinking data to digitized audio and video

4500 Members1500 published articles

ComponentsComponents

CHILDES includes three integrated components

◦ CHAT the system for discourse notation and coding

◦ CLAN (Child Language Analysis) the set of computer programs for searching

and manipulating the database◦ Database

language community from over sixty major projects in English and additional data from various other languages

An ExampleAn Example A picture description task

- the patient is mentioning animal in a set of pictures

- each picture having animal eating bananas.

- only single animal appears in each - “raw” form, the patient said was simply, rabbits, squirrel and monkeys

Here is how this is transcribed:

TranscriptionTranscription @g: 3a = bunny is eating banana *PAT: rabbits [*]. %mor: DET|0 N|rabbit-*PL %err: rabbits = rabbit $SUB; @g: 3b = squirrel eating banana *PAT: squirrel. %mor: DET|0 N|squirrel @g: 3c = monkey eating banana *PAT: monkeys [*]. %mor: DET|0 N|monkey-*PL. %err: monkeys = monkey $SUB ;

ReferencesReferences Manolson, Ayala It Takes Two to Talk, A Parent's Guide to

Helping Children Communicate. 1992 Communication and Cognition - Artificial Intelligence, Vol.

12, Nos. 1-2, pp. 45-61, Special Issue Self-Reference in Biological and Cognitive Systems, Luis Rocha

On the role of parameters in Universal Grammar: a reply to Newmeyer, Ian Roberts and Anders Holmberg, University of Cambridge/ University of Newcastle upon Tyne

A Working Paper on First Language Acquisition Research: Some Notes on Theory and Method, Joseph Galasso, San Diego State University (1999)

• The CHILDES System, Brain Mac Whinney, From: American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology,Vol.5,1996, Page 5-14

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Child Language Acquisition Sahil Thapa Amit Kumar Upadhyay Prakhar Goyal Naineet Patel