Language Acquisitions Theories

Language Acquisitions Theories

Introduction

Language is any system of arbitrary symbols, signs, sounds, or gestures used to convey meaning (Fromkin et al., 2007). Language is also considered a shared system common to a people who are of the same community or nation, the same geographical area, or the same cultural tradition. Language is a medium by which cultural values, beliefs, and customs are maintained and perpetuated through generations (Fromkin et al., 2007; Goldstein, 2004).

The following paper based on the research article published by Palmer, et. al., (2007), in which the researchers focused on the English pharses due to which the English language learners struggled. Therefore, in this paper, the author highlighted the different literal interpretation. The concept of language development and bilingualism has been defined and interpreted in various ways by different theorists and researchers. Language development has traditionally been viewed through the lens of the major theorists such as Skinner, Chomsky, and Piaget. They suggest that language development is but one aspect of a child's cognitive growth. This notion reflects one of the two main camps of thought that divides researchers in theories of language development: language as biologically driven, or as sociocultural. Members within the school of thought that language development is biologically driven agree to some extent that the human brain is predisposed to “1) attend differentially to language input, 2) process that input according to preset principles, and 3) formulate unconscious rules for language comprehension and production” (Baca & Cervantes, 2004).

Discussion

Culture and Language Acquisition

The sociocultural perspective acknowledges the existence for language development but also recognizes the importance of the environment in language development. If language is the interpretation and meaning-making process of any given cultural system, then it must follow that language must draw from accounts of society and culture. The author refers to the process of language development as part of the sociocultural context of “language socialization.” However, socialization defines as the process by which one becomes a competent member of society and language socialization as “socialization through language and socialization to use language” (Baca & Cervantes, 2004).

Vygotsky was the first to suggest that language development plays a more active and central role. He viewed the interaction between the child and the caretakers as essential to the developmental process. These interactions provided the opportunity for guided practice using the conventions of the child's culture. Children became active participants in the construction of meaning. Vygotsky proposes that “human consciousness is mediated through culturally constructed and organized means” (Lantolf & Thorne, 2006, p. 60).

The sociocultural perspective is especially crucial when considering second language acquisition in young children. Children learn the “symbolic tools of their culture through goal-directed activity with adults” (Lantolf & Thorne, 2006, p. 25). Lantolf (2006) further explains that appropriation of language is implicit since the main goal of adult-child interaction is not to learn the language itself, but rather to learn how to participate appropriately in social activities which are culturally mediated. During the early language acquisition stages, children learn to produce ...