PRINCIPLES AND THEORIES OF LANGUAGE

ACQUISITION AND LEARNING

MODULE 2:
Theories of Language Development
COMPETENCY # 3

MA. AIZA O. PENTECOSTES

Instructor
 OVERVIEW

Language development in humans is a process starting early in life. Infants start without knowing a
language, yet by 10 months, babies can distinguish speech sounds and engage in babbling. Some research
has shown that the earliest learning begins in utero when the fetus starts to recognize the sounds and speech
patterns of its mother's voice and differentiate them from other sounds after birth. In the previous module we
have explore the nature of language and language acquisition. In this module we are going to dig deeper into
the different views and theories about language acquisition.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Upon completing the module you are expected to;

 Understand the different theories of language development
 Distinguish and explain the different theories of language development

DEFINITION OF TERMS
 Innateness- inborn, natural.
 Stimulus- In physiology, a stimulus is a detectable change in the physical or chemical structure of an
organism's internal or external environment.
 Interaction- interaction is a kind of action that occurs as two or more objects have an effect upon one
another. The idea of a two-way effect is essential in the concept of interaction, as opposed to a one-
way causal effect.

CONTEXT

Psychological theories of language learning differ in terms of the importance they place on nature and nurture.
Remember that we are a product of both nature and nurture. Researchers now believe that language
acquisition is partially inborn and partially learned through our interactions with our linguistic environment
(Gleitman & Newport, 1995; Stork & Widdowson, 1974).
GENERATIVISM OR THEORY OF INNATENESS (NATIVIST)
Generativism is rejection of B.F.Skinner’s Behaviourism and usually presented as having developed out of and
in reaction to the previously dominant school of post-Bloomfieldian American descriptivism: a particular version
of structuralism. Up to a point, it is historically justifiable to see the origin of generativism within linguistics in
this light. But, as Chomsky himself came to realize later, there are many respects in which generativism
constitutes a return to older and more traditional views about language
 The term “Generativism” is being used here to refer to the theory of language that has been developed, over
the years or so, by Avram Noam Chomsky and his followers.
 Indeed, relatively few of the linguists, who were
impressed by the technical advantages and
heuristic value of Chomsky’s system of
transformational-generative grammar when he first
put this forward in the late 1950s, have ever
explicitly associated themselves with the body of
assumptions and doctrines that is now identifiable
as Generativism.
GENERATIVISM
Chomsky pointed out poverty of stimulus for the acquisition of language. He was against stimulus play
vital role in language learning.
He held hypothesis that language is free from stimulus control.
He opines that human language is innate and pre-wired in human brain.
A child acquires language in three years.
Language Acquisition Device (LAD) is the prime source of learning language.
The innate body of linguistic knowledge is termed as “Universal Grammar” (UG).
Strongest evidence for the existence of UG is simply the fact that children successfully acquire their
native language in a short time.

COMPETENCE AND PERFORMANCE

The competence-performance distinction is at the heart of generativism.

Distinction between competence & performance similar to Saussure’s distinction between langue and
parole
Chomskyan generativism closer to Saussurean and Post- Saussurean structuralim

CREATIVITY AND PRODUCTIVITY

Creativity, in Chomsky’s view, is a peculiarly human attribute, which distinguishes men from machine
and as far as we know from animals.
It is rule governed creativity and this is where generative grammar comes into own.
The utterances that we produce have a certain grammatical structure: they conform to identifiable rules
of well-formedness.
Productivity makes possible exercise of creativity.
Productivity is not to be identified with creativity but there is an intrinsic connection between them.
 "Generativism can designate an approach for relating language to the intuitive knowledge of speakers
and to the mental capacities of humans at large.” (Robert de Beaugrande) Mid - Late 20th Century
(1960s).

GENERATIVE GRAMMAR

This term was used in 1950s by Chomsky.

Generative Grammar is a grammar in which a set of formal rules are used to generate or define the
membership of an infinite set of grammatical sentences in a language. Instead of analyzing a single
sentence, this grammar devises a set of rules of construction that may help in generating sentences or
structures in an infinitely large number. This grammar attempts to produce all and only grammatical
sentences of language. (all and only means that our analysis must account for all the grammatical
correct phrases and sentences and only those grammatical correct phrases and sentences in whatever
language we are analyzing.)
We have a rule such as “a prepositional phrase in English consists of a preposition followed by a noun
phrase”. We can produce a large number of (infinite) phrase using this rule. e.g. in the zoo, on the
table, near the window.

BEHAVIOURISM
 Behavioural theory remained dominant in the first half of 20th century. It is an approach to psychology and
learning. It stresses on observable and measureable behaviours. In behaviourism, the learners are viewed as
passively adopting to their environment.
 According to the belief of the theory, free will is an illusion. In other words, human beings are shaped entirely
by their external environment.
 The behaviourists, tried to explain learning without referring to mental process. This theory sees the
language learner as “Tabula Rasa” (blank slate).
GENERATIVISM OBJECTS BEHAVIOURISM
 Chomsky has done more than anyone else to demonstrate the sterility of the behaviourists’ theory of
language.
 He has pointed out that much of the technical vocabulary of behaviourism (‘stimulus’, ‘response’,
‘conditioning’, ‘reinforcement’ etc.), if taken seriously, cannot be shown to have any relevance to the acquisition
and the use of language.
INFLUENCE OF GENERATIVISM ON LINGUISTICS AND OTHER DISCIPLINES
 Generativism has been enormously influential, not only in linguistics, but also in philosophy, psychology and
other disciplines concerned with language.
 Influence of Chomskyan generativism upon all modern linguistics theory has been so deep and so pervasive
that even those who reject this or that aspects of it tend to do so in terms that Chomsky has made available to
them.
 SOCIAL INTERACTIONIST THEORY EXPLAINED
Instructional Scaffolding Instructional Scaffolding is the concept of providing assistance and support to foster
learning of new concepts and skills in students with the intention of helping them achieve their learning goals.
The concept is adopted by Jerome Bruner from Lev Vygotsky's Social Interactionist Theory.
Lev Vygotsky was a renowned Russian
psychologist who gained popularity for his in-
depth study on human development. Vygotsky
through his intense research in the field
hypothesized that the development of higher
cognitive processes from basic abilities
(attention, sensation, perception, and memory)
emerged from social interaction and
communication.

Vygotsky's theory completely contradicts Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development. Piaget suggests that
development in the cognitive ability of a child is a result of independent exploration and personal experiences.
On the contrary, Vygotsky in his theory reasons the development in cognitive ability as a result of learning via
increasing social interaction and communication. Unlike Piaget's view that development must necessarily
precede learning, Vygotsky stated that learning was a stepping stone to a higher level of cognitive abilities, and
hence, development succeeds learning.
Vygotsky's Social Interactionist theory is based upon certain fundamental aspects, which are explained below.
Take a look. What is the Social Interactionist Theory?
The theory reasons the development of language with greater emphasis on the effects of social interaction
between the developing child and linguistically superior adult.

Effects of Culture and Social Influences

According to Vygotsky, most of the interaction by a child during early childhood is completely need- based;
however it's internalization by the child gives it meaning, thus, forming the roots of linguistic development.
The language and cognitive development of every child is carried on in a unique way, says Vygotsky. This is
because every child grows within a unique set of morals and values, and is influenced by different cultures. For
instance, minor differences in speech show how culture plays an important role in the cognitive development of
an individual. The western cultures emphasize more on the individual than the group, which is the opposite in
case of Asians. An American with a group of friends would say, "I'd like to have a beer, would anybody like
some?". On the other hand, an Asian would say "Shall we have beer?" or "How about some beer?" Notice that
in the former, the emphasis is more on the self, while in the latter, it is more on the group. Let's take another
example that's universal to all cultures. When a person receives a phone call or makes one, the first thing that
he/she utters is a 'hello'. The parents are very excited to make their babies talk over the phone to a relative or
a friend. When they stick the phone to the child's ear, they ask him/her to say hello; the person on the other
end also says 'hello' to the child. The child doesn't know what exactly is happening, who's yelling from the
other side of this small, plastic, light-flashing device. However, with a little observation and assistance from his/
her parents who are constantly trying to make him/her speak, the child tries to internalize and derive meaning
from the data he/she receives, and tries to blabber or utter something imitating the parents. This act is
reinforced, and hence, is learned quickly and fosters to linguistic development.
More Knowledgeable Other (MKO)

As the name suggests, this is any person or thing like a computer, which is more knowledgeable than the
learner. In a child's case, this refers to his parents or teachers. Vygotsky, by this aspect, tries to explain that
any person, who has a better understanding of a certain thing, when assists another who doesn't have any
idea of it is likely to foster the process of learning resulting in cognitive development.
He believes that the number of things that can be done by the guidance of a MKO exceed those that can be
attained alone. Zone of Proximal Development The zone of proximal development is reached when a learner
attains a skill that he couldn't independently, with assistance from a MKO. For example, a child is not able to
draw a house, but he can draw straight lines and circles. The child's father assists him/her by laying a set of
dots on paper, and asking the child to connect them, which forms the drawing of a house. After a few
repetitions of connecting the dots, the child can draw a house without the dots, and eventually perfects the skill
by drawing more and more houses.
The zone of proximal development lies between what is known and what is not known.

Linguistic Development
Vygotsky classifies language into three forms:
(i) social speech which refers to communication used to talk to others (evident from age two);
(ii) private speech which refers to self-directed speech (evident from age three); and
(iii) silent inner speech which refers to constructive thinking.

The first two forms of speech are completely need-based. In social speech, the child communicates to suffice
its needs. Communication could be crying or other peculiar gestures understood by the parents. Private
speech develops when the child has learned to speak certain syllables and words. The child would then speak
to him/herself when playing alone. Children mostly indulge in private speech when performing tricky or difficult
tasks, especially to guide their own self or regulate their own behavior. Private speech is believed to enhance
memory, provide motivation at difficult tasks, foster better communication abilities, and promote creativity in
children.

As per Vygotsky, there isn't any connection between thought and speech in the initial years of life.
Speech and thought become interdependent after the age of three, wherein the child learns to internalize the
learned language fostering cognitive development. The internalization or disappearance of private speech is
observed when the child begins schooling.
Criticism
Although Vygotsky's work provides an altogether different perspective on the topic of cognitive development,
there are certain weaknesses to his theory that should not be overlooked. Critics are of the opinion that the
concept of the 'Zone of Proximal Development' is somewhat vague; firstly, because it doesn't provide a precise
picture of the learning ability, style, and pace of learning or the current level of development, it doesn't take into
consideration individual differences, and it is too general. This is also evident from the absence of a common
metric scale to measure an individual child's zone.
Secondly, the theory underestimates the abilities of the individual showing much greater emphasis on
sociocultural effects. Too much help and assistance could make the individual lazy and habituated to expecting
help in tasks, which he/she can easily accomplish.
Thirdly, as the theory gives a single model of development, it fails to take into consideration different
developmental levels. Children's interests, needs, and abilities vary at different ages, which influence the type
of learning they seek out, and the effects it has on them. Hence, each developmental level proves to be of
great significance in the child's cognitive development as a whole.
 SAQ #1: (5 points each)

1. In what aspect/aspects of their theories does Chomsky and Vygotsky coincides? Explain your answer.

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2. What is the major difference, in terms of emphasis, between Generativism and Social Interactionist Theory?

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USAGE-BASED LANGUAGE LEARNING

The fundamental claim of usage-based language learning theory is that language acquisition emerges from
language use. In other words, we learn language structures and words by using language and by
understanding the language that other people use. It’s essentially a first language acquisition theory, but it has
ramifications for second language learning.
The theory argues that infants start to develop the cognitive skills necessary for language acquisition between
the ages of 9 and 12 months. These cognitive skills, together with opportunities to connect language with
experience, are really all they need to acquire their mother tongue. There are two broad sets of cognitive skills
that come into play around this time:
Intention Reading Skills
Intention reading is a social-pragmatic skill in which you try to manipulate the intentions or mental states of
another person. Even before they can speak, infants are able to do this. By about 9 months, babies will follow
the direction of a pointing finger to another object or event and, during their first year, will start to point at
things, hold things up and use other gestures to direct the attention of other people towards objects and
events, both in the realm of an immediate activity such as a toy they are both playing with, and towards an
object or event outside of their interaction.

ENRICHMENT: To further understand this concept watch the video on the link below.

Pointing - YouTube
This is fledgling communication. Gestures such as pointing are prelinguistic communication
symbols that pave the way for language (in fact, in the early stages of language use, pointing will
often accompany words).

Pattern Spotting
Humans are natural spotters of patterns, and there is a growing body of evidence to suggest that the learning
of language structures is about spotting patterns in the ‘noise’ of language rather than learning rules. While
learning rules (or patterns) might speed up the language learning process for adults and older children, it’s not
an option for infants. Luckily, their ability to spot patterns in the language they are hearing is enough for them
to grasp language structures.
Pattern spotting involves skills like the ability to categorize objects and events, and the ability to make
analogies, and it enables young children to notice patterns in the language they hear.
These skills are necessary for children to acquire the appropriate use of any and all linguistic symbols.-
Michael Tomasello (2012).

How it works
According to usage-based language learning theory, children don’t learn words directly. Instead, they try to
comprehend things said to them (utterances). If they hear their Dad saying “throw the ball”, the first thing a
young child must do is to understand that Dad wants her to throw the ball, possibly to him depending on the
context. But these utterances are not a random collection of words, they have a structure. and within this
structure, individual words have specific functions which add to the meaning of the whole utterance. In
understanding the utterance, children have to work out the functions of its individual words, or at least some of
them. Learning specific words and their function within an utterance probably comes through repeated
exposure to the word, such as in utterances like “where’s the ball?”, “that’s my ball”, “gimme the ball”, “that ball
is Katya’s” and “the ball’s in the bush”. Adults can often be a big help in this by stressing key words. Eventually,
“ball” becomes a useful word for a young child who wants to say something about a ball, whether it be about
throwing or looking or wanting to play with a ball. The single word “ball” is used for anything to do with a ball.
So usage-based language learning theory (UBLLT) says that words emerge from utterances, and language
structures also emerge from utterances because words and structures both have meaning.
In UBLLT, language meaning is language use. And out of meaning emerges language. Simply put, language
acquisition emerges from language use.
Usage-based learning theory is based around the idea that we learn language by using it. Language is
essentially a collection of words and structures that have meaning, and we learn these meanings by using
them.
Usage-based learning theory has been developed in the field of cognitive linguistics, a relatively new branch of
linguistic study. It’s about 20 years old.

Universal Grammar
It rejects the idea of Universal Grammar. UG is the idea that humans are born with a language blueprint, made
up of general principles of language that guides the development of a child’s mother tongue. The argument,
made by Chomsky and other proponents of UG, is that infants need to be born with this language blueprint
because they don’t have the cognitive skills to be able to grasp the abstract grammar of their own languages
and, in any case, they don’t receive the right kind of language input to be able to work out these rules for
themselves – what’s called the ‘poverty of the input’ hypothesis. Therefore, babies must be born with a
rudimentary grammar in their head, but one that applies to all languages – a universal grammar – which infants
can then modify based on input from their own mother tongue.

Universal Grammar argues that grammar is the driving force behind language, that grammar generates
language. It places grammar at the heart of language development, with things like the lexicon and pragmatics
subservient to grammar. If you know the rules of grammar, say exponents of what is called generative
grammar, you can construct an almost limitless array of language.
But in the last 20 years, a new view of language learning has emerged, one claiming that grammatical rules
are simply patterns that occur in language and that an understanding of these patterns comes from language
use. In other words, language use generates grammar.
If grammar is really just a way of describing patterns in language, then all a child needs to learn their mother
tongue is the ability to spot patterns. And children develop the ability to spot patterns towards the end of their
first year, so they don’t need Universal Grammar to help them learn language.
In any case, grammar isn’t really a bunch of abstract rules. Grammar has meaning: ‘the girl kicked’ has a
different meaning to ‘the girl was kicked’. Because they have meaning, children learn grammatical structures in
pretty much the same way as they learn the meaning of individual words. They don’t learn the passive as “NP
+ to be + past participle”, they learn the passive by associating meaning to it.

FURTHER READING AND WATCHING:

"Usage-based Language: Investigating the Latent Structures that Underpin Acquisition," by Nick Ellis - YouTube

THORNDIKE'S CONNECTIONISM THEORY

Edward L. Thorndike's pioneer investigations in the fields of
human and animal learning are among the most influential in the history
of Psychology. In 1912, he was recognized for his accomplishments and
elected president of the American Psychological Association. In 1934, the
American Association for the Advancement of Science elected Thorndike
as the only social scientist to head this professional organization.
Thorndike retired in 1939, but worked actively until his death in 1949. His
work was a major influence on B.F.Skinner. (Lefrancois, 1972) Kearsley,
G. (n.d.) Connectionism (E. Thorndike).

The learning theory of Thorndike represents the original S- R framework

of behavioral psychology: Learning is the result of associations forming
between stimuli and responses. Such associations or "habits" become
strengthened or weakened by the nature and frequency of the S-R
pairings. The paradigm for S-R theory was trial and error learning in
which certain responses come to dominate others due to rewards. The
hallmark of connectionism (like all behavioral theory) was that learning could be adequately explained without
referring to any unobservable internal states.
THREE LAWS OF LEARNING:
 Law of Readiness
 Law of Exercise
 Law of Effect

LAW OF READINESS

First primary law of learning, according to him, is the ‘Law of Readiness’ or the ‘Law of Action Tendency’,
which means that learning takes place when an action tendency is aroused through preparatory adjustment,
set or attitude. Readiness means a preparation of action. If one is not prepared to learn, learning cannot be
automatically instilled in him, for example, unless the typist, in order to learn typing prepares himself to start, he
would not make much progress in a lethargic & unprepared manner.

LAW OF EXERCISE
The law of exercise had two parts: (a) the law of use and (b) the law of disuse. This law stated that connections
grow stronger when used—where strength is defined as “vigor and duration as well as the frequency of its
making”—and grow weaker when not used.
Many examples of this case are found in case of human learning. Learning to drive a motor-car, typewriting,
singing or memorizing a poem or a mathematical table, and music etc. need exercise and repetition of various
movements and actions many times.

LAW OF EFFECT

States that responses which occur just prior to a satisfying state of affairs are more likely to be repeated, and
responses just prior to an annoying state of affairs are more likely NOT to be repeated. The second
contribution was his rejection of the notion that man is simply another animal that can reason. He believed
intelligence should be defined solely in terms of greater or lesser ability to form connections.

Thorndike’s Puzzle-Box.
The graph demonstrates the general decreasing trend of the cat’s response times with each successive trial
Thorndike emphasized the importance of the situation in eliciting a response; the cat would not go about
making the lever-pressing movement if it was not in the puzzle box but was merely in a place where the
response had never been reinforced. The situation involves not just the cat’s location but also the stimuli it is
exposed to, for example, the hunger and the desire for freedom. The cat recognizes the inside of the box, the
bars, and the lever and remembers what it needs to do to produce the correct response.
IMPLICATIONS
1) According to this theory the task can be started from the easier aspect towards its difficult side. This
approach will benefit the weaker and backward children.
2) A small child learns some skills through trial and error method only such as sitting, standing, walking,
running etc. In teaching also the child rectifies the writing after committing mistakes.
3) In this theory more emphasis has been laid on motivation. Thus, before starting teaching in the classroom
the students should be properly motivated.
4) Practice leads a man towards maturity. Practice is the main feature of trial and error method. Practice helps
in reducing the errors committed by the child in learning any concept.
5) Habits are formed as a result of repetition. With the help of this theory the wrong habits of the children can
be modified and the good habits strengthened.
6) The effects of rewards and punishment also affect the learning of the child. Thus, the theory lays emphasis
on the use of reward and punishment in the class by the teacher.
7) The theory may be found quite helpful in changing the behavior of the delinquent children. The teacher
should cure such children making use of this theory.
8) With the help of this theory the teacher can control the negative emotions of the children such as anger,
jealousy etc.
9) The teacher can improve his teaching methods making use of this theory. He must observe the effects of his
teaching methods on the students and should not hesitate to make necessary changes in them, if required.
10) The theory pays more emphasis on oral drill work. Thus, a teacher should conduct oral drill of the taught
contents. This help in strengthening the learning more.

SAQ #2: (5 Points)

1. What is the difference between the Usage based language learning theory and the universal grammar theory?

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BEHAVIORISM
Behaviorism Overview
Behaviorism is an approach to psychology that combines elements of philosophy, methodology, and theory. It
emerged in the early twentieth century as a reaction to mentalistic psychology, which often had difficulty
making predictions that could be tested using rigorous experimental methods. The primary tenet of
behaviorism, as expressed in the writings of John B. Watson, B. F. Skinner, and others, is that psychology
should concern itself with the observable behavior of people and animals, not with unobservable events that
take place in their minds. The behaviorist school of thought maintains that behaviors as such can be described
scientifically without recourse either to internal physiological events or to hypothetical constructs such as
thoughts and beliefs. From early psychology in the 19th century, the behaviorist school of thought ran
concurrently and shared commonalities with the psychoanalytic and Gestalt movements in psychology into the
20th century; but also differed from the mental philosophy of the Gestalt psychologists in critical ways. Its main
influences were Ivan Pavlov, who investigated classical conditioning although he did not necessarily agree with
behaviorism or behaviorists, Edward Lee Thorndike, John B. Watson who rejected introspective methods and
sought to restrict psychology to experimental methods, and B.F. Skinner who conducted research on operant
conditioning.
In the second half of the 20th century, behaviorism was largely eclipsed as a result of the cognitive revolution.
While behaviorism and cognitive schools of psychological thought may not agree theoretically, they have
complemented each other in practical therapeutic applications, such as in cognitive–behavioral therapy that
has demonstrable utility in treating certain pathologies, such as simple phobias, PTSD, and addiction. In
addition, behaviorism sought to create a comprehensive model of the stream of behavior from the birth of a
human to their death. Behaviorism focuses on one particular view of learning: a change in external behavior
achieved through a large amount of repetition of desired actions, the reward of good habits and the
discouragement of bad habits. In the classroom this view of learning led to a great deal of repetitive actions,
praise for correct outcomes and immediate correction of mistakes. In the field of language learning this type of
teaching was called the audio-lingual method, characterized by the whole class using choral chanting of key
phrases, dialogues and immediate correction.

Classical Conditioning
Classical conditioning (also Pavlovian conditioning or respondent conditioning) is a kind of learning that occurs
when a conditioned stimulus (CS) is paired with an unconditioned stimulus (US). Usually, the CS is a neutral
stimulus (e.g., the sound of a tuning fork), the US is biologically potent (e.g., the taste of food) and the
unconditioned response (UR) to the US is an unlearned reflex response (e.g., salivation). After pairing is
repeated (some learning may occur already after only one pairing), the organism exhibits a conditioned
response (CR) to the CS when the CS is presented alone. The CR is usually similar to the UR, but unlike the
UR, it must be acquired through experience and is relatively impermanent. Classical conditioning differs from
operant or instrumental conditioning, in which a behavior is strengthened or weakened, depending on its
consequences (i.e., reward or punishment).
A classic experiment by Pavlov exemplifies the standard procedure used in classical conditioning. First Pavlov
observed the UR (salivation) produced when meat powder (US) was placed in the dog's mouth. He then rang a
bell (CS) before giving the meat powder. After some repetitions of this pairing of bell and meat the dog
salivated to the bell alone, demonstrating what Pavlov called a conditional response, now commonly termed
conditioned response or CR. Ivan Pavlov provided the most famous example of classical conditioning. During
his research on the physiology of digestion in dogs, Pavlov developed a procedure that enabled him to study
the digestive processes of animals over long periods of time. He redirected the animal’s digestive fluids outside
the body, where they could be measured. Pavlov noticed that the dogs in the experiment began to salivate in
the presence of the technician who normally fed them, rather than simply salivating in the presence of food.
Pavlov called the dogs' anticipated salivation, psychic secretion. From his observations he predicted that a
stimulus could become associated with food and cause salivation on its own, if a particular stimulus in the
dog's surroundings was present when the dog was given food. In his initial experiments, Pavlov rang a bell and
then gave the dog food; after a few repetitions, the dogs started to salivate in response to the bell. Pavlov
called the bell the conditioned (or conditional) stimulus (CS) because its effects depend on its association with
food. He called the food the unconditioned stimulus (US) because its effects did not depend on previous
experience. Likewise, the response to the CS was the conditioned response (CR) and that to the US was the
unconditioned response (UR). The timing between the presentation of the CS and US affects both the learning
and the performance of the conditioned response. Pavlov found that the shorter the interval between the
ringing of the bell and the appearance of the food, the stronger and quicker the dog learned the conditioned
response.

Learning is fastest in forward conditioning. During forward conditioning, the onset of the CS precedes the onset
of the US in order to signal that the US will follow.
Two common forms of forward conditioning are delay and trace conditioning.
Delay conditioning: In delay conditioning the CS is presented and is overlapped by the presentation of
the US.
Trace conditioning: During trace conditioning the CS and US do not overlap. Instead, the CS begins
and ends before the US is presented. The stimulus-free period is called the trace interval. It may also
be called the conditioning interval.

Operant Conditioning

Operant conditioning (or instrumental conditioning) is a type of learning in which an individual's behavior is
modified by its antecedents and consequences. Mechanisms of instrumental conditioning suggest that the
behavior may change in form, frequency, or strength. The expressions operant behavior and respondent
behavior were popularized by B. F. Skinner. The former refers to an item of behavior that is initially
spontaneous, rather than a response to a prior stimulus, but whose consequences may reinforce or inhibit
recurrence of that behavior. Operant conditioning is distinguished from classical conditioning (or
respondent conditioning) in that operant conditioning deals with the reinforcement and punishment to
change behavior.

Operant behavior operates on the environment and is maintained by conditioning of reflexive (reflex)
behaviors which are also elicited by antecedent conditions, while classical conditioning is maintained by its
antecedents and consequences. Behaviors conditioned through a classical conditioning procedure are not
maintained by consequences. They both, however, form the core of behavior analysis and have grown into
professional practices.
B.F. Skinner is the person whose work is most often cited in connection with operant conditioning. To
implement his empirical approach, Skinner invented the operant conditioning chamber in which subjects such
as pigeons and rats were isolated from extraneous stimuli and free to make one or two simple, repeatable
responses. Another invention, the cumulative recorder, produced a graphical record of these responses from
which response rates could be estimated. These records were the primary data that Skinner and his
colleagues used to explore the effects on response rate of various reinforcement schedules. A reinforcement
schedule may be defined as any procedure that delivers a reinforce to an organism according to some well-
defined rule. The effects of schedules became, in turn, the basic experimental data from which Skinner
developed his account of operant conditioning. He also drew on many less formal observations of human and
animal behavior.

Social Learning Theory

Social learning theory states that learning is a cognitive process that takes place in a social context and can
occur purely through observation or direct instruction, even in the absence of motor reproduction or direct
reinforcement. In addition to the observation of behavior, learning also occurs through the observation of
rewards and punishments, a process known as vicarious reinforcement. The theory expands on traditional
behavioral theories, in which behavior is governed solely by reinforcements, by placing emphasis on the
important roles of various internal processes in the learning individual. Within this context, Albert Bandura
studied learning processes that occurred in interpersonal contexts and were not adequately explained by
theories of operant conditioning or existing models of social learning, such as the work of Julian Rotter.
Specifically, Bandura argued that the weaknesses of learning approaches that discount the influence of social
variables are nowhere more clearly revealed than in their treatment of the acquisition of novel responses.
Skinner's explanation of the acquisition of new responses relied on the process of successive approximation,
which required multiple trials, reinforcement for components of behavior, and gradual change. Rotter's theory
proposed that the likelihood of a behavior occurring was a function of the subjective expectancy and value of
the reinforcement. This model assumed a hierarchy of existing responses and thus did not (according to
Bandura) account for a response that had not yet been learned. Bandura began to conduct studies of the rapid
acquisition of novel behaviors via social observation, the most famous of which were the Bobo doll
experiments. Social learning theory integrated behavioral and cognitive theories of learning in order to provide
a comprehensive model that could account for the wide range of learning experiences that occur in the real
world. As initially outlined by Bandura, key tenets of social learning theory are as follows:
1. Learning is not purely behavioral; rather, it is a cognitive process that takes place in a social context.
2. Learning can occur by observing a behavior and by observing the consequences of the behavior (vicarious
reinforcement).
3. Learning involves observation, extraction of information from those observations, and making decisions
about the performance of the behavior (observational learning or modeling). Thus, learning can occur without
an observable change in behavior.
4. Reinforcement plays a role in learning but is not entirely responsible for learning.
5. The learner is not a passive recipient of information. Cognition, environment, and behavior all mutually
influence each other (reciprocal determinism).
Social learning theory draws heavily on the concept of modeling, or learning by observing a behavior. Bandura
outlined three types of modeling stimuli:
 Live model in which an actual person is demonstrating the desired behavior
Verbal instruction in which an individual describes the desired behavior in detail and instructs the
participant in how to engage in the behavior
Symbolic in which modeling occurs by means of the media, including movies, television, Internet,
literature, and radio. Stimuli can be either real or fictional characters.
Exactly what information is gleaned from observation is influenced by the type of model, as well as a series of
cognitive and behavioral processes, including:
Attention - In order to learn, observers must attend to the modeled behavior. Attention is impacted by
characteristics of the observer (e.g., perceptual abilities, cognitive abilities, arousal, past performance)
and characteristics of the behavior or event (e.g., relevance, novelty, affective valence, and functional
value).
Retention - In order to reproduce an observed behavior, observers must be able to remember features
of the behavior. Again, this process is influenced by observer characteristics (cognitive capabilities,
cognitive rehearsal) and event characteristics (complexity).
Reproduction - To reproduce a behavior, the observer must organize responses in accordance with
the model. Observer characteristics affecting reproduction include physical and cognitive capabilities
and previous performance.
Motivation - The decision to reproduce (or refrain from reproducing) an observed behavior is
dependent on the motivations and expectations of the observer, including anticipated consequences
and internal standards.

An important factor in social learning theory is the concept of reciprocal determinism. This notion states that
just as an individual’s behavior is influenced by the environment, the environment is also influenced by the
individual’s behavior. In other words, a person’s behavior, environment, and personal qualities all reciprocally
influence each other. For example, a child who plays violent video games will likely influence their peers to play
as well, which then encourages the child to play more often. This could lead to the child becoming desensitized
to violence, which in turn will likely affect the child’s real life behaviors

SAQ #3 : 5 Points

1. What theorist became famous for his behaviorism on dogs?

a. Ivan Pavlov b. B.F. Skinner c. Albert Bandura
2. Behaviourism is measured on external behaviour, as opposed to internal like thinking and emotion.
a. True b. False
3. A pupil is late for class four days in a row, the teacher says he will be in detention after school for
every day he has been late. Which Conditioning is this?
a. Operant b. Classical
4. If a teacher is consistent and repetitive with stimuli, eventually the students will come to learn to
behave properly through classical conditioning?
a. True b. False
5. Which of the following is part of the definition of learning?
a. Change in behavior b. Disrupting others c. None of the above
 SUMMARY/ HIGHLIGHTS

Theories of language development fall into one of two camps: empiricist or nativist. Empiricists believe
language is a learnt behaviour. Nativists, on the other hand, believe we are born with some innate language
ability. Empirical researchers focus on learning theories to understand how children acquire language skills,
while nativists look for biological components responsible for the universal rules underlying all of the languages
spoken by people.
Vygotsky
For Lev Vygotsky---a Russian psychology researcher who began developing his empirical theories of cognitive
development after the Russian Revolution in the early 20th century---children learn by solving problems with
the help of other people, such as parents and siblings. Language develops as a tool for helping them solve
problems more effectively. They learn the skill by practicing or modelling the language behaviours they hear
being used around them. In his theory, language development is closely tied to social behaviour, putting him in
the empiricist camp
Skinner
B. F. Skinner, an American psychologist best known for his work in behaviourism, proposed behaviourism as
the basis for language development in a book published in 1957 . The core of behaviourism is learning through
reinforcement. The reinforcement takes different forms. For example, if a parent says to the child, "Can you
say mummy?" and the child responds accordingly, the parent provides positive reinforcement. If the child uses
language to make demands, such as asking for a biscuit, and the demand is granted, the child receives
positive reinforcement for using language. This approach places Skinner in the empiricist camp of language
development
Piaget
According to empiricist Jean Piaget, a Swiss psychologist known for studying how knowledge develops in
children and in adults during the first half of the 20th century, language development is connected to a child's
cognitive.As the child moves through the different stages of cognitive development---sensorimotor, pre-
operational, concrete operational and formal operational---his language skills change, too . For example,
during the pre-operational stage, children can grasp the existence of things even when they cannot see those
things. Likewise, they can use language to think about those non-present things.
Chomsky
Noam Chomsky, an American linguist and cognitive scientist, believes children are born with innate knowledge
of the rules governing language. This makes him a nativist. His research during the late 20th century also
suggests that the rules are universal among the known human languages. For example, Japanese and English
seem very different, but both languages include verbs and in both languages verbs take an object. The
difference is where the object of the verb is placed in the sentence. According to Chomsky, the reason children
learn language so quickly is because they already know its rules.
Bruner
Jerome Bruner, a nativist and American cognitive psychologist, believed language development comes easier
to most children because of a combination of innate biological "endowments" and social encouragement.
Bruner's research on the subject began in the 1960s. Bruner notes that even children who cannot distinguish
between their thoughts and things attempt to use language, suggesting they are born with an inclination
towards communication. The role of encouragement is to provide necessary support as the child develops
linguistically.

EVALUATION (10 points)

Choose the letter of your answer.

1. Language acquisition is
a. best understood by watching animals communicate.
b. is a theory that is agreed upon by the psychological community.
c. cannot happen among the deaf community.
d. is the process by which we learn to communicate in meaningful ways.
2. Which of the following is NOT an example of language acquisition from a behaviorist perspective?
a. Babies learn language by repeatedly associating the object 'dog' with the word 'dog.'
b. Babies learn language by imitating adult patterns of speech.
c. Babies are born with an innate ability to learn language.
d. Babies are rewarded for attempts at speech when their caregivers smile and applaud their
efforts.
3. Noam Chomsky argues that babies acquire language
a. because humans are born with the ability to learn language.
b. when caregivers speak softly to infants.
c. by watching adults interact.
d. by repeated exposure to sounds that have meaning.
4. Who is the proponent of Behavioral Theory?
a. Chomsky b. B.F Skinner c. Vygotsky d. Piaget
5. Behavioral theory explains acquisition of VERBAL BEHAVIOR (not language).
a. True b. False
6. Nativist theory states children are born with LAD (language acquisition device).
a. True b. False
7. Chomsky/Nativist theory stated that Syntactic structures are the essence of language and that
language is a product of the unique human mind. Universal rules of grammar exist that apply to all
languages
a. True b. False
8. Children need to hear sentences that they can understand without knowing a lot about the language
they’re trying to learn. This view can be refered to that
a. the language needs to be useful for a kid.
b. the language has to be meaningful for the child.
c. the language must be adaptable for toddlers.
9. We acquire a second language the same way we acquire our mother tongue.
a. True b. False
10. Some scholars have given fundamental importance to learner’s innate capacity for language
acquisition, while others insinuated the role of the environment. What does innate mean?
a. Incidental
b. Intuitive
c. Learned
d. acquired

REFERENCES
“Language and Linguistics” by John Lyons
“Syntactic Structures” by Avram Noam Chomsky
Schacter, Gilbert, Wegner. (2011). "Psychology Second Edition" New York: Worth Publishers.
"Law of Effect". eNotes.com. Retrieved 2012-08-02.
Nevin, John (1999). "Analyzing Thorndike's Law of Effect: The Question of Stimulus - Response
Bonds". Journal of the Experiment Analysis of Behaviour. p. 448.
Connectionism. Thorndike, Edward.Q Retrieved Dec 10, 2010 https://www.youtube.com/watch?
feature=player_embedded&v=BDujDOLre-8
(Lefrancois, 1972) Kearsley, G. (n.d.) Connectionism (E. Thorndike). Retrieved March 8, 2021 from
http://tip.psychology.org/thorn.html (Merriam & Caffarella, 1991
(Lefrancois, 1972) Kearsley, G. (n.d.) Connectionism (E. Thorndike). Retrieved March 8, 2021 from
http://tip.psychology.org/thorn.html (Merriam & Caffarella, 1991)
Thorndike, E. L. (1898). Animal intelligence: An experimental study of the associative processes in
animals. Psychological Monographs: General and Applied, 2(4), i- 109.
eka1.wordpress.com
www.ualberta.ca
www.unm.edu
 PRINCIPLES AND THEORIES OF LANGUAGE ACQUISITION AND
DEVELOPMENT

ANSWER SHEET #1

Name of Student:
Score:
Course and Year:
Contact Number: Date:

STUDENT ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS (10%)

SAQ # 1 (10 points)

1. In what aspect/aspects of their theories does Chomsky and Vygotsky coincides? Explain your answer.
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
2. What is the major difference, in terms of emphasis, between Generativism and Social Interactionist Theory?
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________

SAQ #2 (5 points)

1. What is the difference between the Usage based language learning theory and the universal grammar
theory?
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________

SAQ # 3 (5 points)

1. What theorist became famous for his behaviorism on dogs?

a. Ivan Pavlov b. B.F. Skinner c. Albert Bandura
2. Behaviourism is measured on external behaviour, as opposed to internal like thinking and emotion.
a. True b. False
3. A pupil is late for class four days in a row, the teacher says he will be in detention after school for every day
he has been late. Which Conditioning is this?
a. Operant b. Classical
4. If a teacher is consistent and repetitive with stimuli, eventually the students will come to learn to behave
properly through classical conditioning?
a. True b. False
5. Which of the following is part of the definition of learning?
a. Change in behavior b. Disrupting others c. None of the above
 EVALUATION (20%)

Choose the letter of your answer.

1. Language acquisition is
e. best understood by watching animals communicate.
f. is a theory that is agreed upon by the psychological community.
g. cannot happen among the deaf community.
h. is the process by which we learn to communicate in meaningful ways.
2. Which of the following is NOT an example of language acquisition from a behaviorist perspective?
e. Babies learn language by repeatedly associating the object 'dog' with the word 'dog.'
f. Babies learn language by imitating adult patterns of speech.
g. Babies are born with an innate ability to learn language.
h. Babies are rewarded for attempts at speech when their caregivers smile and applaud their
efforts.
3. Noam Chomsky argues that babies acquire language
e. because humans are born with the ability to learn language.
f. when caregivers speak softly to infants.
g. by watching adults interact.
h. by repeated exposure to sounds that have meaning.
4. Who is the proponent of Behavioral Theory?
a. Chomsky b. B.F Skinner c. Vygotsky d. Piaget
5. Behavioral theory explains acquisition of VERBAL BEHAVIOR (not language).
a. True b. False
6. Nativist theory states children are born with LAD (language acquisition device).
a. True b. False
7. Chomsky/Nativist theory stated that Syntactic structures are the essence of language and that
language is a product of the unique human mind. Universal rules of grammar exist that apply to all
languages
a. True b. False
8. Children need to hear sentences that they can understand without knowing a lot about the language
they’re trying to learn. This view can be refered to that
d. the language needs to be useful for a kid.
e. the language has to be meaningful for the child.
f. the language must be adaptable for toddlers.
9. We acquire a second language the same way we acquire our mother tongue.
a. True b. False
10. Some scholars have given fundamental importance to learner’s innate capacity for language
acquisition, while others insinuated the role of the environment. What does innate mean?
e. Incidental
f. Intuitive
g. Learned
h. acquired