Describe Noam Chomsky's theory of language development, noting challenges to his perspective
What will be an ideal response?
Linguist Noam Chomsky believed that language is etched into the structure of the brain. Focusing on grammar, Chomsky reasoned that the rules of sentence organization are too complex to be directly taught to or discovered by even a cognitively sophisticated young child. Rather, he proposed that all children have a language acquisition device (LAD), an innate system that contains a universal grammar, or set of rules common to all languages. It enables children, no matter which language they hear, to understand and speak in a rule-oriented fashion as soon as they pick up enough words. Evidence that childhood is a sensitive period for language acquisition is consistent with Chomsky's idea of a biologically based language program. But challenges to Chomsky's theory suggest that it, too, provides only a partial account of language development. First, researchers have had great difficulty specifying Chomsky's universal grammar. Critics doubt that one set of rules can account for the extraordinary variation in grammatical forms among the world's 5,000 to 8,000 languages. Second, children's progress in mastering many sentence constructions is gradual, with errors along the way, indicating more learning and discovery than Chomsky assumed.
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Which of the following is NOT the correct pairing between the neurotransmitter and its major functions?
a. Serotonin; processing of information, regulation of mood, behavior, and thought processes b. Norepinephrine; regulation of arousal, mood, behavior, and sleep c. Dopamine; learning and memory d. Acetylcholine; motor behavior, reward, attention
How does drawing change by the time a child is in early childhood?
What will be an ideal response?
What does theory of mind or reciprocal thinking allow children to experience socially?
a. Reciprocal friendships b. Cooperation c. Attachment d. Deductive reasoning
Fatima is consistently tired and feels stressed with her job. She works long hours and has difficulty managing all of her responsibilities. She has recently come down with a flu, which is also stressful as she feels that she will fall behind. Which among the following likely illustrates how Fatima’s body responds to her workload?
A. Her body will likely adapt to the stress and in time she will be physically stronger. B. Her body will likely demonstrate resilience and she will be back to work tomorrow. C. Her body’s immune system has likely been affected by her stress and she is more prone to infection. D. In time, her body’s stress response is likely to give her increased energy so she will be able to handle stress and difficult situations better.