Compare and contrast theories of language development proposed by early learning theorists and by linguist Noam Chomsky, highlighting contributions and criticisms of the theories.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

The ideal answer should include:
1. Prior to the 1960s, learning theorists proposed that children learn language by processes of reinforcement and imitation.
2. These processes may account for learning how to pronounce new words and learning something of the meaning of words.
3. However, using such simple mechanisms, it is difficult to explain how speakers of a language learn grammatical rules that enable them to produce sentences that they did not hear spoken, or that contain different rules or violations of the rules found in adult speech.
4. Chomsky argued that the ability to learn grammar is built into the brain, something he called a language acquisition device.
5. There is evidence that certain brain structures are operating early in infancy, and that they are responsible for functions such as creating grammatically correct statements and understanding meaning.