Running head: LANGUAGE ACQUISITION AUTOBIOGRAPHY 1

Language Acquisition Autobiography

Jennifer Torres

Los Angeles Pacific University

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Language Memories

It’s crazy to actually sit here and try to trickle down the exact moment I spoke or when I

was spoken to, but I can tell you that the memories I do remember are more bittersweet than

happy ones. I guess it’s common to remember more of our memories that involve experiences

that we never wanted to do in the first place. If I can come up with one early moment, it would

be my kindergarten teacher aide, Mrs. Martinez, telling me how to trace my full name. I can even

still feel her breathe brushing against my face as she whispers to me how to write the letters of

my name. I remember being scared to tell my parents that I broke something or did something I

wasn’t supposed to. I remember a short piece of the conversation I had with my biological father

after being pulled out of my kindergarten class. It is funny to think that the times I was scolded

as a child leading up to now, are the times I will remember the most. Language wasn’t really a

priority in my family until it actually came to going to school. Being introduced to books was

something that was shown to me by a teacher. I was always intrigued to read but didn’t get

around to it because I already knew the big books I was looking at, wasn’t in my language level.

I can say though I enjoyed spelling tests or any chance I got at reading out loud, I was the first

one to raise my hand. Correcting others with their literacy is something that I have carried on to

this very day. I try to do it in the best way that doesn’t seem like I am trying to be rude, because I

am very serious when I correct people.

These memories almost channel a familiar feeling, as I’m sure it happens to everyone that

when we hear a certain word or a phrase we think back to when and where we first heard it. I

have never looked at the importance of language acquisition until now. I didn’t know the process

in which we master our first language and how crucial it is to everything around us. According to

an article found on University of the People, “Language is a vital part of human connection.
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Although all species have their ways of communicating, humans are the only ones that have

mastered cognitive language communication. Language allows us to share our ideas, thoughts,

and feelings with others.’ (Lewison, 2020) My experiences with language fall within my career

path of teaching and eventually becoming a speech pathologist. I’ve grown very close to the

process of language and how it works, not just with ourselves, but with those who we are

surrounded by. It’s interesting to see that the language of others can reflect off on our language

because we have grown familiar with one’s way of speaking. Have you ever caught yourself

saying things either one of your relatives or spouse says? It’s because, hello we are always with

them. Becoming a teacher involves mastering the ways of language and how to deal with those

around us that might not understand our language. Speech therapy obviously calls for a great

amount of the study of language.

Personally, I wasn’t exposed to consistent language acquisition, meaning, I didn’t have

someone take the time to practice my speech with me, at least from what I remember. Early

language expose is very important. So important that, what we say to children, especially in the

first 6 years of life is, can have a big impact on how they begin their language acquisition.

According to Perry, “It is a misconception that children learn language passively. Language

acquisition is a product of active, repetitive, and complex learning. The child’s brain is learning

and changing more during language acquisition in the first six years of life than during any other

cognitive ability he is working to acquire. How much easier this learning process can be for

children when adults are active participants!” (Perry, 2020) Children learn language almost

naturally and as we grow it gets harder. This is where lateralization comes into the picture.

Lateralization is the apparent specialization of the left hemisphere (one-sidedness). This starts in

early childhood when there is a period when our brain is ready to receive input and learn
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language. This is also called the critical period which starts from birth and ends during puberty.

If for some reason a child doesn’t gain the language they need or want to learn, it will be way

harder for them after the fact. This only pushes me to push early language acquisition to my

future children, it’s almost saddening to know the fact that there are children, even adults, that

have been deprived of language and struggle so much just to catch up. Even though I am lucky

enough to be as advanced as I am in my English, I still wish I was fluent in Spanish like I was in

my early childhood years. Spanish is my first language and as time went on, English was all

around me whether it was with school or with my parents adapting to a language that they were

already used to.

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References

How Young Children Learn Language. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/articles/teaching-content/how-young-children-learn-

language/

Lewison, K. (2020, June 09). Why Is Language Important? Your Guide To The Spoken Word.

Retrieved from https://www.uopeople.edu/blog/why-is-language-important/

YULE, G. (2020). STUDY OF LANGUAGE. Place of publication not identified: CAMBRIDGE

UNIV Press.