Language Acquisition for Children

This article will examine a few qualities and characteristics concerning the acquisition of language for children. It will focus on children between the ages of two and six. Language acquisition for these children will be considered from biosocial, cognitive, and psychosocial perspectives.

From a biosocial context, psychologist Kathleen Berger states, "Advances in prefrontal cortex development occur at about age 3 or 4, making control of impulses more likely and formal education more possible" (201). Thus, the prefrontal cortex is invaluable to education and growing maturity. However, the development of this portion of the brain also serves an essential function to the acquisition of language itself. In particular, the prefrontal cortex allows children to control what language or symbol to attribute to an idea. It "is partly responsible for the biased learning that enables humans to employ symbolic representation" to their ideas (Villiers 102). Certainly, one would think that without the prefrontal cortex, language acquisition would be quite difficult. In sum, the prefrontal cortex aids in a child's ability to make sense of the world, and, in turn, attribute symbolic meaning to it.

Next, for a cognitive context, we turn to the concept of fast mapping. Fast mapping is the "process of acquiring vocabulary by mentally charting new words into interconnected categories" (Berger 226). It is through fast mapping that young children are able to learn so many words so quickly. Not surprisingly, fast mapping seems to be a universal process that occurs with all languages around the world. Grammar--the standardized rules that apply when words are grouped into a sentence--may have universal qualities, as well. For example, studies have shown, "No language [from any culture] shows more agreement with its objects than with its subjects" (Baker 109). Thus far, this does seem to be a universal quality all languages share. Moreover, in the mind of one linguist concerning language acquisition, "It is plausible to think that children's minds come equipped with an innate phrase-building mechanism, which stands ready to group whatever words the child happens to learn into larger phrases" (Baker 104). In sum, it appears that children can vary in what language(s) they do learn. This is cultural. The language chosen for a child to learn will vary from culture to culture and from parent to parent. However, the processes of fast mapping and phrase-building seem to be cognitive processes that are shared by all children.

Finally, from a psychosocial aspect, the language a child does learn to speak is determined by the environment--in particular, by the parents, peers, and tutors the child is exposed to. Certainly, since a child does not pop out of the womb speaking Japanese or English or German, it is up to the child's environment to dictate which language a child will learn to speak and comprehend. From a social perspective, it is up to parents, extended family, tutors, and peers to expose children to as much language as possible during early and later language development. According to Stephen Pinker, a well-known professor of brain and cognitive sciences, "A word is a quintessential symbol. Its power comes from the fact that every member of a linguistic community uses it interchangeably in speaking and understanding" (Pinker 145). Indeed, words are extremely powerful, and, due to the power language holds in any given culture, it is easy to see that proper language development is crucial to the psychosocial development of a child. So, how do we go about teaching our children to speak? "By far the best way for a parent to teach a young child new vocabulary is by reading [to them] aloud" (Berger 226). No child can learn a language on its own. It requires the active and social involvement of parents and peers. In sum, the acquisition of language remains just as much a social process as it does anything else.

To conclude: 1) The prefrontal cortex plays an active role in language acquisition. 2) Language acquisition does seem to share universal characteristics. 3) Language acquisition has a social dynamic that cannot be ignored. Concerning the research presented here, the sources are credible. The observations of Kathleen Berger, the peer-reviewed journals, and the words of Stephen Pinker are academic and thought-provoking. We can all be sure that linguists, anthropologists, and psychologists will continue to contribute to this ongoing discussion of language acquisition for children.

Works Cited

Baker, Mark C. "Mapping the Terrain of Language Learning." Language Learning & Development. 1.1 (2005): 93-129.

Berger, Kathleen S. The Developing Person Through the Lifespan (Sixth Edition). New York: Worth, 2005.

Pinker, Steven. The Language Instinct. New York: Harper, 1995.

Villiers, Tanya. "Why Pierce Matters: The Symbol in Deacon's Symbolic Species." Language Direct. 29 (2007): 88-108.