Language, Mind, and Brain by Ewa Dabrowska Chapter 3: Language acquisition: robustness

Innate or not? Strong patterns in the acquisition of language by children have led to hypothesis that there is “an innate universal grammar which develops according to a biologically determined timetable and does not depend on other cognitive subsystems”. Dabrowska, however, will show us evidence that this is not the case.

1. Individual differences Q: What does Dabrowska say about the “remarkable uniformities” in language acquisition?

1. Individual differences Q: What does Dabrowska say about the “remarkable uniformities” in language acquisition? A: –Not so remarkable – shorter > longer –Many can be explained by complexity, salience, frequency –Individual differences can be vast

1. Individual differences Q: What does this mean for innateness/nativist theories?

1. Individual differences Q: What does this mean for innateness/nativist theories? A: –Acquisition is not uniform, so uniformity cannot be an argument for innateness –Large individual differences suggest that the genetic program is “open”, not firmly set

2. The role of input Q: It has often been argued that there is a “poverty of input” for children, and that input is merely a trigger, but language is innate. What does Dabrowska say about this?

2. The role of input Q: It has often been argued that there is a “poverty of input” for children, and that input is merely a trigger, but language is innate. What does Dabrowska say about this? A: Typical input is over 6.5M utterances between ages 1-4, which is not insignificant. Non-linguistic cognition is relevant, so is input.

3. Language development in blind children Q: According to nativist theories, there should be no difference in acqusition between blind and sighted children, but what are the facts?

3. Language development in blind children Q: According to nativist theories, there should be no difference in acqusition between blind and sighted children, but what are the facts? A: Blind children do show some delay, and they have different strategies since they need to make up for all the observations that they cannot make with their eyes, so their utterances often violate supposed universals. They usually develop normal language, but do so via a different route.

4. Robustness of language Q: What is the most striking feature of language acquisition?

4. Robustness of language Q: What is the most striking feature of language acquisition? A: Its robustness – it happens despite cognitive and sensory obstacles, and via very different strategies. Clearly acquisition is very flexible. These facts are incompatible with theories of innateness. “Languages are learned, not acquired.”