Period For Language Acquisition Research Articles

日本語世代の日記にみられる第二言語習得期の変異 - 初等教育修了後の就業層を中心に -

日本語世代の日記にみられる第二言語習得期の変異 - 初等教育修了後の就業層を中心に -

The Development of Predictive Gender Processing Strategies During Noun Phrase Decoding: An Eye-Tracking Study With German 5- to 10-Year-Old Children.

Many models of language comprehension assume that listeners predict the continuation of an incoming linguistic stimulus immediately after its onset, based on only partial linguistic and contextual information. Their related developmental models try to determine which cues (e.g., semantic or morphosyntactic) trigger such prediction, and to which extent, during different periods of language acquisition. One morphosyntactic cue utilized predictively in many languages, inter alia German, is grammatical gender. However, studies of the developmental trajectories of the acquisition of predictive gender processing in German remain a few. This study attempts to shed light on such processing strategies used in noun phrase decoding among children acquiring German as their first language by examining their eye movements during a language-picture matching task (N = 78, 5-10 years old). Its aim was to confirm whether the eye movements indicated the presence of age-specific differences in the processing of a gender cue, provided either in isolation or in combination with a semantic cue. The results revealed that German children made use of predictive gender processing strategies from the age of 5 years onward; however, the pace of online gender processing, as well as confidence in the predicted continuation, increased up to the age of 10 years. Predictive processing of gender cues plays a role in German language comprehension even in children younger than 8 years.

Imprinting and Critical Period of Language Acquisition

In language acquisition, imprinting during the critical period helps people to encode the information and influences received from outside more actively. It provides opportunity for people, especially children, to be socialized and have closer interactions with their environment, later forms social attachment. After the critical period, people still can learn new languages but requires more effort for the same outcome.

Blame Shifting: A Unique Phase in Bengali Children’s Meaning Acquisition Process

‘Blame shifting’ or ‘deflection’ is generally a psychological process where something is passed over to someone else in an attempt to draw attention away. It is a type of defense regarded as emotionally unmannerly. But in this paper, blame shifting has been presented as a positive aspect, representing a general phase that children go through during their first language acquisition period. When children acquire meaning, they shift blame, that starts as a psychological process but linguistically represents the creative use of language in different ways. In this paper, I tried to present the phase of blame shifting of ten participant children as a medium of meaning construction in their first language acquisition process. In an attempt to break the stereotypical assumption of the term ‘blame’, this paper would try to reflect how children shift blame on others as a part of their language development by manipulating language use and cognitive intelligence.
 Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bangladesh (Hum.), Vol. 68(1), 2023, pp. 99-118

Uncovering How Musicians Develop Perfect Pitch: A Literature Review

Introduction: Absolute pitch (AP), or more commonly known as “perfect pitch”, is the rare ability to label pitches without needing a reference note. While its mechanisms are still unknown, there are many different theories regarding how and why some individuals develop AP, while others do not. Some argue that the ability is genetically inherited, while others argue that AP is a skill preferentially learned at a young age, with links to musical training and tonal language learning. This review investigates the possible factors that lead to AP development, as well as possible neurobiological underpinnings of the ability. Methods: A literature search was conducted using scientific databases to reveal studies examining the impact of genetic, learning, musical training, language, and neuroimaging on AP development. Empirical studies written in English were examined for this review, with emphasis on how AP is differentially reflected in developmental and neuroimaging perspectives. Results: Genetics, learning, musical training, and language all play a role in AP development, with some having a greater impact than others. Young children are easily taught absolute pitch using training programs, while it is much more difficult in adults. Furthermore, the apparent critical period for AP development closely resembles the time frame of the critical period of language acquisition. The phenomenon of AP is apparent through localized brain function, which differs from non-AP individuals. Discussion: Genetic, musical training, and language all play an interconnected role in the development of AP. However, neuroimaging research is vastly separate, not integrating findings from other areas. Overall, looking at the various factors combined allows for a more complete understanding of AP. Conclusion: Currently, there is a lack of research linking genetic and environmental influences on AP development with specific brain structure and function, which future neuroimaging research should seek to do. Understanding AP development benefits musicians and furthers an understanding of human perception of the auditory environment.

The Cultivation of Oral Expression Ability in the Process of Learning English in Secondary Schools

In the context of globalization, the English proficiency requirements for middle school students are no longer limited to simple listening, reading and writing, and the importance of spoken language is becoming increasingly apparent. Secondary school is also an important period of language acquisition, so it is particularly important to develop students’ oral expression skills in the process of learning English in secondary school. So for secondary school English learning, how do we intersperse the development of oral expression skills? This article will examine the importance of oral learning, what is an effective and innovative oral learning method, as well as the design principles of oral classrooms, and the basic skills of oral expression. It aims to provide some effective oral expression training methods and classroom design ideas for the majority of secondary school English teachers, so as to improve the oral English expression ability of secondary school students.

Compreensão de estruturas sintáticas com movimento A’ e com movimento A em crianças portuguesas surdas com implante coclear: efeitos da idade de início de exposição ao input linguístico e do tempo de exposição à língua

In the period in which language should be acquired, auditory input deprivation compromises oral language exposure. The literature reports difficulties in the oral comprehension of syntactic dependencies resulting from A’ movement, but no difficulties in the acquisition of syntactic structures with A-movement in hearing-impaired children with hearing aids. Our study investigates the effects of the total deprivation of linguistic input during the first year(s) of life (critical period of language acquisition) and length of language exposure on the comprehension of dependencies with A and A-bar movement (Wh- questions, relative clauses, and passives) in 47 Portuguese hearing-impaired children with cochlear implants. The results reveal that CI activation before age 3 combined with at least 6 years of language exposure determines comprehension of Wh- questions and relatives at the same level as the control group. The same does not happen with the comprehension of passives, that remain problematic in this population even after prolonged exposure. We discuss these findings in light of theoretical proposals that attribute the acquisition of passives to maturational constraints.

Lexical Cohesion and Corpus Construction in Primary and Secondary School English Teaching

English learning in primary and secondary schools is the critical period of language acquisition, which is very important for developing students' language ability. Among them, vocabulary teaching cohesion is the basis of English learning, which affects students' learning at different stages to a great extent. In the process of English learning, if the teaching vocabulary cohesion is not reasonable, it will not only reduce students' learning efficiency, but also affect students' ability training in listening, speaking, reading and writing skills. This paper studies the lexical cohesion in primary and secondary school English teaching and constructs the corresponding lexical corpus.

Benefits of Visual Language: How Acquisition of Signed Language Complements Spoken Language Development

Purpose: This article provides evidence to refute an assumption often made regarding speech-language pathologists' (SLPs') role in developing language skills in children who are deaf. SLPs are experts in both speech and language development and disorders. When working with children who are deaf, their primary focus is often on developing speech and listening skills with the assumption that this will transfer to overall language development. The intent of this article is to provide evidence that language is dissociable from both speech and listening and that its development can be bolstered through exposure to robust linguistic input in both the oral and signed modalities. Encouraging the use of a signed language alongside a spoken language during the period of language acquisition can be highly beneficial for a child who is deaf for a multitude of reasons. Because these children may not fully access the ambient spoken language in their environment despite the consistent use of listening devices, providing an accessible signed language can help them attain language fluency in at least one language. Conclusion: The author suggests that SLPs should be educating parents of children who are deaf on the benefits of bimodal bilingualism and the complementary nature of simultaneous signed and spoken language acquisition.

Prognosis of otitis media with effusion in pediatric patients with cleft palate during language-acquisition period treated by simultaneous tympanostomy tube placement with palatoplasty

ObjectiveCleft palate (CP) in children is frequently complicated by otitis media with effusion (OME) due to Eustachian tube dysfunction. Although tympanostomy tube (TT) placement can be beneficial in the treatment of OME to prevent short-term hearing loss, there is no consensus regarding the indications for and timing of TT insertion. The present study was performed to define the safety and effectiveness of simultaneous TT placement with palatoplasty during the language-acquisition period. MethodsWe retrospectively reviewed the medical charts of pediatric patients who underwent palatoplasty for CP in a tertiary medical center, Kyoto University Hospital, from June 2010 to October 2018. The TT retention time was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. The incidence of OME recurrence was compared among four Veau classification groups based on the patients' sex, type of CP, median TT retention time, and type of fluid. ResultsSeventy-six subjects (150 ears) were enrolled in the study. The median follow-up duration was 48.7 months (range, 18.2–108.0 months) after the first TT placement. A first TT retention time of <20.1 months was a significant risk factor for OME recurrence. Subjects with maxillofacial anomaly complex and subjects with cleft lip and palate and an alveolar cleft showed a significantly higher OME recurrence rate than subjects with clefts only in the hard and/or soft palate. There was no significant difference in the occurrence of sequelae between subjects with only a single TT placement and subjects with more than one TT placement. ConclusionsBased on the findings of the present study, it is reasonable to perform TT insertion at the same time as palatoplasty on patients who meet the indications. This technique may reduce the number of times the patient requires general anesthesia and maintain good middle ear condition during the period of language acquisition between 1 and 3 years of age.

On conceptualizing grammatical change in a Darwinian framework

Abstract Approaching language change within a Darwinian framework constitutes a long-standing tradition within the literature of diachronic linguistics. However, many publications remain vague, omitting conceptual details or missing necessary terminology. For example, phylogenetic trees of language families are regularly compared to biological speciation, but definitions on mechanisms of inheritance, i.e. how linguistic information is transferred between individuals and cohorts, or on the linguistic correlates to genotype and phenotype are often missing or lacking. In light of this, Haider’s attempts to develop this approach into a theoretically more precise position, closely mirroring principles of Darwinian natural selection in the dimension of diachronic grammatical change, but contrasting this with non-Darwinian lexical change. He draws a comparison to viral replication, essentially positing that grammar variants act as mental viruses, competing for replication in new hosts, i.e. children during critical periods of language acquisition. Haider proposes that in light of this competition for replication, the unconscious fixation of an individual’s grammar leads to diachronic grammatical change largely mirroring Darwinian natural selection. Despite the intuitive appeal this mode of reasoning may feature, the following response paper identifies and discusses a suit of shortcomings to this conceptualization. Some problems arise from underspecified theoretical notions, others due to the incomplete or inaccurate adoption of biological principles, and yet more through a partial incompatibility with empirical data. These criticisms do not amount to a dismissal of the Darwinian framework Haider is following, but to a rejection of Haider’s current position. Albeit it remains unclear if a truly Darwinian approach to language change can be reached, suggestions on how Haider’s theoretical notions could be further developed are made and pertinent efforts may ultimately lead to a productive theory.

On the acquisition of potential verbs and conjugation types of verbs in Japanese

Abstract It is well-known that children whose native language is Japanese first begin vocalizing potential verbs at about the age of 2 years and continue to utter ungrammatical forms which are not used in adults’ speech as well as correct ones until approximately at the age of 5 years when their acquisition of potential verbs completes, with virtually no erroneous uses observed. Interestingly enough, the process of the acquisition of potential verbs proceeds in a manner parallel with that of causative/inchoative alternation. In this study, based on children’s natural speech data reported in previous research, we argue that the approach put forth in Fuji, Hashimoto, and Murasugi (2008a. “A VP-shell analysis for the undergeneration and the overgeneration in the acquisition of Japanese causatives and potentials.” Nanzan Linguistics 4: 21–41; 2008b. “VP-shell analysis for the acquisition of Japanese potentials.” Nanzan Linguistics: Special Issue 3(2): 65–102) is not empirically valid in that it cannot correctly predict changes in morphological patterns of potential verbs uttered by children along the period of language acquisition. Moreover, in the course of our discussion, it is shown that the acquisition process of the potential morpheme e by children can be identified as that of (in)transitive morpheme e which forms the class of mono-grade vowel-ending verbs.

Early language intervention in deaf children of hearing parents

Language development is often hampered by the fact that 90 per cent of deaf children are born into hearing families who do not know Sign language (SL) or haven't had any previous contact with the deaf world. Such parents often use only spoken language to communicate with the child, which results in no or very little language exposure. Many deaf children only start to learn a language, signed or spoken, when they start attending school, usually between the ages of three and seven. As a result, the deaf child has a delay in cognitive and language development and finds it hard to learn a SL, like South African Sign Language (SASL), as well as a written language (e.g., English). This late exposure to SL proves to be a serious cognitive problem for deaf children when compared to those children who acquired language from birth. This problem led to the research question namely, whether deaf children’s language and cognition can still develop to the required level for school readiness if early language intervention (ELI) takes place within the critical period of language acquisition. To answer the question, a case study was done at a school for the deaf and blind with a small group of deaf learners in the foundation phase. The results show that the little language exposure these children received in only one year of school already made a huge difference to their language and cognitive development. This article also makes recommendations to the various stakeholders in deaf education.

Type of Bilingual Acquisition of Balinese and Japanese Mixed Marriage in Bali

Japanese and Balinese mixed marriage children have become bilingual since the early years of the language acquisition period. They acquired the inheritance of the languages (Indonesian, Japanese, and Balinese) from their parents. This research was conducted to find type of language inheritance from parents to their children. Romaine’s six type of Bilingual Language Acquisition in childhood used to determine how the parent transmitting language to their children. The data was gathered using questionnaires and interviews, ten Balinese and Japanese mixed married. The result showed that one person-one language (type 1) approach was chosen by all families. The difference is in the strategy of parents passing on language to their children. Strategy 1 is the parents each speak their own language to the child, strategy 1a; the parents uses mixed code IL/JL/BL, strategy 1b; the parent use IL as father L1 which is dominant in community.

Lifelong Bilingualism and Literacy Skills Use Among Hispanic Adults

Literacy skills use in everyday life is associated with social (e.g., civic participation) and economic (e.g., higher wages) benefits throughout the life course. Yet, the use of literacy skills may be lower among immigrants and those with limited language proficiency. No prior research examined associations between bilingualism in early life — a critical period for language acquisition — English literacy skills, and the use of literacy skills in later life of Hispanic adults. The objective of this study is to determine whether lifelong bilingualism (i.e., learning a second language in childhood and still understanding today) is associated with Hispanics’ everyday use of literacy skills later in life. Nationally representative data (n = 412) of Hispanics 35 years and older were obtained from the 2012/2014 Program for International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC). A series of logistic regression models were used to examine the associations between lifelong bilingualism and several measures of literacy skills use in everyday life. Results showed that lifelong bilingualism (vs. being monolingual) was negatively associated with the daily use of letters, notes, and e-mails (Odds Ratio = 0.426, p< 0.05), reading financial statements (Odds Ratio = 0.474, p< 0.05), and reading diagrams (Odds Ratio = 0.391, p< 0.05). Additionally, literacy was a consistent predictor of skill use. While bilingualism is generally beneficial for aging adults, our findings suggest that, among Hispanics, lifelong bilingualism is associated with the less frequent use of literacy skills later in life. We discuss the possible theoretical and practice implications of these findings.

Global Regulatory Review Needed for Cochlear Implants: A Call for FDA Leadership.

Using the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as example, we argue that regulatory agencies worldwide should review their guidance on cochlear implants (CIs). This is a position paper, thus the methods are strictly argumentation. Here we give the motivation for our recommendation. The FDA's original approval of implantation in prelingually deaf children was granted without full benefit of information on language acquisition, on childcaregiver communication, and on the lived experience of being deaf. The CI clinical trials, accordingly, did not address risks of linguistic deprivation, especially when the caregiver's communication is not fully accessible to the prelingually deaf child. Wide variability in the effectiveness of CIs since initial and updated approval has been indicated but has not led to new guidance. Children need to be exposed frequently and regularly to accessible natural language while their brains are still plastic enough to become fluent in any language. For the youngest infants, who are not yet producing anything that could be called language although they might be producing salient social signals (Goldstein et al. Child Dev 80:636-644, 2009), good comprehension of communication from caregiver to infant is critical to the development of language. Sign languages are accessible natural languages that, because they are visual, allow full immersion for deaf infants, and they supply the necessary support for this comprehension. The main language contributor to health outcomes is this combination of natural visual language and comprehension in communication. Accordingly, in order to prevent possible language deprivation, all prelingually deaf children should be exposed to both sign and spoken languages when their auditory status is detected, with sign language being critical during infancy and early childhood. Additionally, all caregivers should be given support to learn a sign language if it is new to them so that they can comprehend their deaf children's language expressions fully. However, both languages should be made accessible in their own right, not combined in a simultaneous or total communication approach since speaking one language and signing the other at the same time is problematic. Again, because this is a position paper, our results are our recommendations. We call for the FDA (and similar agencies in other countries) to review its approval of cochlear implantation in prelingually deaf children who are within the sensitive period for language acquisition. In the meantime, the FDA should require manufacturers to add a highlighted warning to the effect that results with CI vary widely and CIs should not be relied upon to provide adequate auditory input for complete language development in all deaf children. Recent best information on users' experience with CIs (including abandonment) should be clearly provided so that informed decisions can be made. The FDA should require manufacturers' guidance and information materials to include encouragement to parents of deaf children to offer auditory input of a spoken language and visual input of a sign language and to have their child followed closely from birth by developmental specialists in language and cognition. In this way parents can align with providers to prioritize cognitive development and language access in both audio-vocal and visuo-gestural modalities. The arguments and recommendations in this paper are discussed at length as they come up.

How does the language acquisition period affect simultaneous interpreters’ language processing?

Abstract This study aims to identify the similarities and differences in cognitive-psychological semantic (Translation Equivalent) mapping employed by early, and late balanced bilinguals at the adult level. The subjects of lexical-semantic recognition tasks were limited to fourth-semester learners at graduate school of interpreting and translation to analyze the effect that the L2 acquisition period (or Age of Acquisition, AOA) and immersive education may have on cross-language processing among highly-proficient bilinguals. The experimental words were composed of non-cognate abstract words with two levels, and in four language directions (L1 &gt; L1, L1 &gt; L2, L2 &gt; L1, L2 &gt; L2) to compare monolingual, and bilingual priming effects. Early, and Late Balanced Bilingual groups (i.e., EBB and LBB) were comparable in many ways. However, mid balanced bilinguals who had exposure of more than six years after the critical period showed distinctive features. With a low lexical difficulty in the L1 to L2 direction, Mid Balanced Bilingual group (MBB) showed a similar tendency with EBB, while it was analogous to LBB when the lexical difficulty was high, and the language direction was from L2 to L1. Such results can be interpreted as evidence against the critical period hypothesis, indicating that language dominance may change due to the L2 acquisition period and immersive education. In contrast to their subjective perception, the mother tongue of all subject groups turned out to be Korean since all subjects, without exception, were faster in deciding words from English to Korean. The parental factor was limited to be all Koreans in order to control biological differences, from which the parental factor is reversely inferred most influential for early balanced bilinguals’ language dominance.

Normative Forms and Synthetic Structure of Japanese in the Incubation Period of L2

In this paper, I examine the change mechanism of Japanese sentence-final forms (SFF) maintained by two Korean returnee sisters for over 10 years after the cessation of L2 contact, and focus on the negative formal style of verb sentences and its deviation from the actual use of norms (analysis form) and non-norms (synthetic form). Findings are based on a comparison of two Korean sisters’ Japanese with that of thirteen Korean adults’ colonial Japanese maintained for over 60 years, which is also in the incubation phase. In the sisters’ Japanese sentence-final forms that were incubating as their L2, they rarely used the non-norms, while the norms were stably maintained, and the retention of the synthetic structure of their returnee Japanese correlated with the duration of the language acquisition period and with the elapsed time of contact cessation. That is, the sisters used more of the norms in the Korean colonial Japanese SFF than they did in their Japanese; I attribute this to the sisters’ 10-year incubation period. Specifically, the Korean returnee sisters’ speech included interventions of the explanatory [N] in the past affirmation of -ta desu, heavy use of non-norms in adjective and noun sentences, and connecting sentence-final particles to further grammatical structures. However, there were fixed and conventional Norms in the Korean returnee sisters’ Japanese, and once these are acquired, masu forms are retained for long periods in mirror image, especially on elder A. To summarize, in terms of the format of the returnee Japanese SFF, the two Korean returnee sisters were slower to shift from norms (masu) to non-norms (desu) than were adult Korean speakers of colonial Japanese. The same shift is observed with synthetic structure even after cessation of the language contact.

Language Choice of Balinese and Japanese Mixed Marriage Children

Japanese and Balinese mixed marriage children have become bilingual since the early years of the language acquisition period. They acquired the inheritance of the languages (Indonesian, Japanese, and Balinese) from their parents. This research was conducted to find the language choice of mixed marriage children of Balinese and Japanese in Bali. The language use domain is divided into two: family and social. In each domain, the topic, the background of the situation, and the people involved are determined. The data was gathered using questionnaires employed to 10 mixed married families. The method includes observation and interviews. The result of data analysis showed that in the family domain there are variations of the children's language preferences when communicating. The children choose Indonesian when communicating with the father, and Japanese with the mother. However, there are also other options for using mixed code between Indonesian, Japanese and also English. In the social domain, the language choice is more homogeneous, which is Indonesian. Meanwhile, it was found that there was resistance towards the use of Balinese by Japanese-Balinese Mixed Marriage Family (JBMF) and the factors that affected the children's language choice were also discovered.

CRITICAL PERIOD HYPOTHESIS IN ACQUIRING THE SECOND LANGUAGE: THE CASE OF TWO UZBEK STUDENTS

Second language acquisition is considered to be as a process which requires special skills. A number of researches were conducted on analyzing the ways of acquiring the second language. The main purpose of these researches is directed to define the appropriate and effective period for learning the languages. One of the controversial topics in the field of SLA (second language acquisition) is Critical Period Hypothesis (CPH).This article reviews the case of second language acquisition period of two students in the context of Uzbekistan, leaning on the ideas and facts provided in the prior researches.