新编简明英语语言学 Chapter 10 Language acquisition

Chapter 10 Language acquisition语言习得

知识点：

1.*Definition: language acquisition; overextention; telegraphic speech

2.*Theories of child language acquisition: behaviorist view; innatist view;

interactionist view

ive factors in child language development

Critical Period Hypothesis

5.*Stages in child language development

考核目标：

识记：Definition: language acquisition; overextention; telegraphic speech

领会：Cognitive factors in child language development; The Critical Period

Hypothesis; Stages in child language development

简单应用：Theories of child language acquisition: behaviorist view; innatist view;

interactionist view

一、 定义

1. Language acquisition语言习得----refers to the child’s acquisition of his

mother tongue, i.e. how the child comes to understand and speak the language of

his community. 指儿童对其母语的习得，也就是儿童是如何逐渐理解和说其社区的语言。

2. Over-extension过分延伸：based on both the extension of categories ['kæt

ɪg(ə)rɪz] （apple for all fruit）or analogies (apple for anything round) and the

extension of family resemblances(儿童称所有成人为daddy).过分延伸是基于范畴或

类比的延伸，和族相似的延伸。

3. telegraphic speech电报式语言：around the age of two, children begin to

produce two-word utterances. This kind of speech contains content words which

provide listeners with some information and lack of the function elements, or

function words which by themselves tell nothing.在两岁左右的时候，儿童开始发出两

个词的话语.。这种语言包括给予我们信息，但缺乏功能成分的实词，或者其自身不能告诉

我们任何东西的功能词。

二、 知识点

10.2 Theories of child language acquisition 儿童语言习得的理论

✿10.2.1 A behaviorist view of language acquisition [,ækwɪ'zɪʃ(ə)n]

行为主义者的语言习得观(代表人物：rs)

Traditional behaviorists view language as behavior and believe that language

learning is simply a matter of imitation and habit formation. 传统的行为主意者把语

言看作是行为，并且相信语言学习仅仅是简单的模仿和习惯形成。

Language input the learner imitation语言输入学习者模仿:

Stimulus刺激物（语言）——organis有机体（学习者）——response反应（模

仿）

Four steps for a children to acquire获得：

Imitation模仿 →repetition重复 → habituation熟练——

good(correct)/bad(error)

The inadequacy of behaviorist view lies in explaining how children acquire

complex language system. 行为主义观点的不足在于解释儿童语言获得复杂系统。

✿10.2.2 An innatist view of language acquisition（by Chomsky)

语法天生主义者的语言学习观（内在主意观念）

According to the innatist view of language acquisition, human beings are

biologically programmed for language and that the language develops in the child

just as other biological functions such as walking. 根据语法天生主义者语言习得的观

点,人天生就具有语言能力，而且语言的发展是和儿童的其他生物功能的发展一样，如行走。

(乔姆斯基把这种天生的语言能力称为语言习得机制Language Acquistion

Device,LAD)

The logical problem语言习得逻辑问题：

儿童所知道的其语言的结构要比人们按常理期望他们从所听到的语言样本中学到的东

西要多。儿童因为天生具有UG（普遍语法），当信息没有被纠正或改正的时候，能自己发

现构成语言系统的规则的基础。

✿10.2.3 An interactionist [,intə'ækʃənizəm] view of language acquisition

互动主义者的语言习得观

The interactionist view互动主义者观：holds that language develops as a result

of the complex interplay between the human characteristics of the child and the

environment in which the child develops. Integrated with the innatist view, the

interactionist further claims that the modified language which is suitable for the

child’s capability is crucial in his language acquisition.认为语言的发展儿童身上人类

的特点与儿童发展所在的环境之间复杂的相互作用的结果。与innatist view构成一个整

体，the interactionist view进一步声称适合儿童能力的经过限定的语言在他的语言习得

中是至关重要的。

motherese妈妈语/child directed speech(CDS)针对儿童的语言/caretaker talk

保姆式谈话：简单重复的语言类型，伴有夸张的语调和节奏，通常在成年人对婴儿讲话时

使用)

10.3 Cognitive development in child language development

儿童语言发展中的认知因素

The cognitive development relates to language acquisition mainly in two

ways 认知因素与语言习得主要在两种方式上相关:

1) Language development is dependent on both the concepts children

form about the world and what they feel stimulated to communicate at the early

and later stages of their language development. (e.g. the acquisition of perfect

tense and the concept of present relevance)语言发展既依赖于儿童对周围世界形成是

概念，也依赖于在他们语言发展的早期和晚期所感到的刺激他们进行交际的事物。（e.g.英

语完成时的观点 和现在相关的概念）

2) The cognitive factors determine how the child makes sense of the

linguistic system himself instead of what meanings the child perceives and

expresses. ( acquisition of negative form)认知因素决定了儿童如何自己弄清语

言系统的意义，而不是儿童所感受的和表达的意义。（e.g.儿童如何习得否定形式）

10.4 Language environment & the critical period hypothesis

语言环境和临界期假说

❀Two important factors两个重要的因素: 1）the linguistic environment children

are exposed 儿童所处的语言环境， 2）and the age they start to learn the language.

他们开始学习语言的年龄

❀In behaviorist approach, language environment plays a major role in

providing both language models to be imitated and necessary feedbacks.在行为主

义者理论中，语言环境在提供被模仿的语言模式和必要的反馈中起到了主要的作用。

❀The innatist view emphasizes more on children’s internal processing of the

language items to be learnt. The environment functions as a stimulus that triggers

and activates the pre-equipped LAD to process the materials provided by the

linguistic environment around the children.语法天生主义者观更强调儿童对于要学的

语言项的内在处理。环境的功能起刺激作用，它触发和激活先天具备的语言习得机制（LAD）

来处理由儿童周围的语言环境所提供的材料。

❀The interactionist view calls for the quality of the language samples available

in the linguistic environment, only when the language is modified and adjusted to

the level of children’s comprehension, do they process and internalize the

language items. 互动主义者观讲求语言环境中语言样本的质量，只有将语言限定或调整

到儿童可以理解的水平时，他们才能处理语言项目，并将其内在化。

✿Critical Period Hypothesis (CPH) 关键期假说（例子：狼孩的故事）

---- Eric Lenneberg argues that the LAD, like other biological functions, works

successfully only when it is stimulated at the right time ---- a specific and limited

time period for language acquisition.生物学家Eric认为LAD像其他生物功能一样，只

有在恰当时间——语言习得的一个特定的有限时间段，受到刺激才能成功运行。

Two verdions of the CPH：

1. The strong version of CPH suggests that children must acquire their first

language by puberty or they will never be able to learn from subsequent exposure.

强版认为儿童必须在青春期之前习得第一语言，否则在以后的语言环境中再也无法学到。

2. The weak version holds that language learning will be more difficult and

incomplete after puberty. (Support in Victor’s and Genie’s cases) 弱版认为，

过了青春期之后，语言学习将会更困难，更不完整。

10.5 Stages in child language development儿童语言发展的阶段

10.5.1 Phonological development 音位的发展

儿童语音的发展始于婴儿的咿呀学语阶段。儿童早期所习得的声音不受儿童语言环境

的影响，所发出的音也不局限于某一特定的语言中。在早期发出的音包括/b/,/m/,/d/,/k/

等相对简单的音，而在发音的后期，才出现发音较难的音，如/θ/。

10.5.2 Vocabulary development 词汇的发展

1) Under-extension外延缩小（语义不足，大词小用）

e.g. denial that birls are animals 否定鸟是动物，denial that the color of white

can be used for paper 儿童最初以为白色是雪，当白色被用来指纸的时候会感到糊涂。

2) Over-extension过分延伸：based on both the extension of categories（apple

for all fruit）or analogies (apple for anything round) and the extension of family

resemblances(儿童称所有成人为daddy).过分延伸是基于范畴或类比的延伸，和族相似

的延伸。

e.g. apple for all fruit, dog for all animal, apple for aything round

3)lexical contrast词汇对照理论(SEE)

4) Prototype theory 原型理论(SEE)

10.5.3 Grammatical development 语法的发展（p357-359中）

1) Telegraphic speech 电报式语言：around the age of two, children begin to

produce two-word utterances. This kind of speech contains content words which

provide listeners with some information and lack of the function elements, or

function words which by themselves tell nothing.在两岁左右的时候，儿童开始发出两

个词的话语.。这种语言包括给予我们信息，但缺乏功能成分的实词，或者其自身不能告诉

我们任何东西的功能词。

e.g.

Mama book.

Toy mine.

Milk me.

Sock pretty

句子的各种词序表达了各种语法关系和语义关系。如，

1) 拥有者与被拥有事物的关系：Mama book.

2) 主谓关系：Daddy go.

除此之外，双词句具有以下特征：

1） 双词句缺少表示句法关系的形态形式。

2） 双词句中的代词使用很罕见。

3) 同时根据表达的语境不同，双词句可以表示不同的语义关系和功能，如: Mama

Book可表示以下的语义：

(1) This is Mama’s book.

(2) Mama gave me the book.

(3) Mama is reading the book.

通过使用双词句，儿童积极主动与成年人进行交际。这种交际大大有助于儿童的语言

习得。

2) Sentences of three main elements 6个月之后，两字话语阶段发展成为包含三

个主要成分的句子阶段（三词句阶段）

e.g.

daddy kick ball

that big bad

put truck window

10.5.4 Pragmatic development 语用的发展

10.6 Atypical development 非典型发展

Atypical or abnormal language development occurs due to trauma or injury.

Atypical language development includes非典型的语言发展（或不正常语言的发展）

可能会由于精神上的创伤或伤害而造成:

Hearing impairment听力受损

Mental retardation思维障碍

Autism 臆想症

stuttering 口吃

Aphasia失语症

Dyslexia and dysgraphia 失读症和书写困难症