Republic of the Philippines

SOUTHERN LEYTE STATE UNIVERSITY

Main Campus, Sogod, Southern Leyte
website: www.slsuonline.edu.ph
email: slsumaincampus@gmail.com/
op@slsuonline.edu.ph telefax: (053) 577-8299

THE CHILD
AND
ADOLESCENT
LEARNER
AND
LEARNING
PRINCIPLES

MODULE 3
ELVIE DIPUTADO DURAN, Ed. D.
Associate Professor 5
 SOUTHERN LEYTE STATE UNIVERSITY – MAIN CAMPUS
INSTITUTE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES

M O D U L E G UCI D E
This module will make you understand how the language of the child develops. You will
learn to know that language has its own history based on the different theories that evolve as
the authors made their study on the history of language development. As we move from one
lesson to another you will learn to distinguish the patterns of language development and
discover that every child has its own rate of development. Your understanding of raising
bilingual children will be deepened as we give focus on how parents raise their bilingual
children. The importance of storytelling is also given attention including the two exceptional
development: aphasia and dyslexia.

KEYWORDS TO C
REMEMBER
Linguistic – is the scientific study of language (Wikipedia)

Literacy - is usually thought of as the ability to read and write.

Language - is a natural system of communication that a group of people use to
express thoughts, feelings, ideas – to talk about themselves and the
world.

INTENDED LEARNING C
OUTCOMES W
Determine how children develop their speaking and listening skills

DISCUSSION
C
INTRODUCTION
Speaking and listening skills are fundamentals in building for literacy. Children’s
exposure to the social environment that provides learning experiences and allow them to
express their thoughts and feelings in a verbal or non-verbal way will help improve their
communication and comprehension skills.

LESSON 1: Natural history of language

C
development W
Language encompasses all forms of communication in which ideas and feelings are given
meaning for the people to understand each other. At birth the baby could not speak, he starts
without language, but with the help of the people around him who give him warm and loving
environment his cognitive and comprehension skills develop. The development of this area
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INSTITUTE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES

moves from simple to complex. By four months of age, babies can read lips and distinguish
speech sounds. Their sense organs are already capable of receiving information from the
outside world. They react to something they hear and see. Exposure to various activities using
their senses, sight and hearing will improve their ability to understand language.
Infant’s means of communication in expressing their needs and wants is through crying,
Crying means many things, maybe the baby is thirsty; his diaper is wet, or he wants his mother
to cuddle him. Aside from crying the baby also makes many sounds during the first month of life
and this sounds known as cooing. Development of different sounds is noticeable as the baby
continue growing. Consonants and vowel sounds are combined, which lead to the formation of
speech sounds called babbling. Babbling is the first language that infant speaks. At first, it has no
meaning, but as the baby continue exploring his environment, this simple sounds will form into
words then more and more words will be created thereby increases children’s vocabulary.
Language development like other aspects of development has a theoretical basis that explains
how it evolves.

Four Major Theories of Language Development

THEORY ADVOCATOR/IDEAS
 BF Skinner is the advocator of this theory and the father of
behaviorism.
 He believed that language is learned through operant
conditioning: reinforcement and imitation.
 He said that language is behavior, and, just like any other
THE BEHAVIORIST behavior, it is learned.
THEORY  This learning occurs through "reinforcement or successive
approximations.”
 It emphasizes that children learn best if the newly learned
behavior is reinforced with rewards like; praises, hugs and
other forms of reward given for every correct responses or
desirable behavior shown.
 Noam Chomsky an American linguist is the advocator of this
theory who stated that language is a unique human
accomplishment.
 He believes that language is not learned but inborn. He insists
the idea that children have innate ability to acquire and learn
the language.
 According to Chomsky children have an inborn Language
Acquisition Device (LAD) that automatically function while
THE NATIVIST children are learning to form words and sentences.
THEORY  His claim was founded on his beliefs that children’s
competence of understanding what they hear from the people
around them is not enough to describe how they learn and
understand language.
 According to him, the ability to produce a variety of sentences
cannot be explained by any theory involving learning by
experience and observation.
 He asserts that such ability relies on innate knowledge of the
linguistic rules for sentence formation.
THE EMPIRICIST  Empiricists Thomas Hobbes and John Locke disagree with the
THEORY idea of Noam Chomsky that children are born with Language

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 SOUTHERN LEYTE STATE UNIVERSITY – MAIN CAMPUS
INSTITUTE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES

Acquisition Device.
 They emphasize that children have sufficient language
information receive through their sense impressions from the
outside world, as they interact with the people around them.
 They believe that the source of knowledge is taken from real
experience not only through imagination. Children’s speaking
ability improves rapidly by imitating how adult behave and
response to others.
 To the empiricists, the environment has great influence in the
development of language.
 Lev Vygotsky is the advocator of this theory.
 This theory is a combination of the two theories: nativist and
behaviorist which is sometimes called social interactionist
approach.
 He believed that the biological and social factors interact
with each other in order for children to learn the language.
THE
 It is a fact that children have the strong desire to
INTERACTIONIS
communicate with others which are very influential in
TS THEORY
learning to understand others as well as being understood by
them.
 The main proponent associated with this theory is Lev
Vygotsky.
 Vygotsky is the advocate of the importance of social
interaction in the development of children

LESSON 2: Language
C Acquisition
Language acquisition is the process of learning a new language. The first language of the
child is learned through socialization with the members of the family. As the child grows older,
he learns to interact with his peers, in school and the people in the community using another
language. The learning of new language from his interaction with people outside the home is
known as the second language acquisition.
Language Develop in an orderly manner. The following are the patterns of language
development.

AGE DEVELOPMENTAL MILESTONES

Birth to 1 year  The baby starts to make speech sounds

 At around 2 to 3 months the baby will engage in cooing
which will later turn into babbling (a combination of
consonant and vowel).
 At 4 to 6 months the baby starts to make sounds by
combining vowel and consonant letters. This is the
babbling stage
 At 7 months to 1 year, they try to imitate the sounds of the

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INSTITUTE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES

adult talking to them as it is pronounced repetitively.

Babies have inborn tendencies to pay attention to
somebody talking to them especially to their mother's
voice.
 At this stage babies understand more than they are to say
 At this stage, the child can recognize the correct
pronunciation of familiar words and some children can
already pronounce the word correctly. Example:
banana….nana, …milk ..mik or instead of saying nana…the
child says banana
1 to 2 years  More and more words are added and recognized as the
child continue learning. The child has now the ability to
think fast and understand so quickly, this is what is called
fast mapping.
 Children start to use two-word combination. For example,
throw ball, eat rice, go mall and etc.
 Acquisition of language continues to grow as the child
communicate with the people around him. The child has
3 to 5 years
now the eagerness to communicate with his peers and
adults.
* Every word used by children at this stage is now given
6–10 years
meaning which is based on their understanding.

LESSON 3: Raising C Bilingual

Children
According to Rosenberg, Marsha bilingualism is not something that just happens, it
needs careful planning and learning to be successful in raising children who could speak more
than one language. Today, raising bilingual children is common to families whose children are
into the use of modern technology. Children love to imitate the English conversation seen in the
television like movies using cartoon characters. Children speak the language that they always
hear in the television and in listening to the conversation of adults. Sometimes parents wonder
why they could speak English fluently even if they were not taught to it. They become fluent in
using not only the language used at home but as well as other languages they acquire from
interaction with other people. They possess about same fluency in using two languages at the
same time which is known as balanced bilingualism. Those who have difficulty in using both
languages is called semi-bilingualism.
Balanced bilinguals are people who could speak in two languages anywhere they go
without difficulty. Some, though they could speak both languages but might have difficulty in
using one language in communicating to others and the other language is used with fluency,
these people are semi-bilinguals. Parents who want their children to speak two languages must
identify what type of bilingualism should be used at home and in their interaction with the
people around them. They also have to think on what strategy to use to develop the ability of
their children in using the two languages.

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Simultaneous bilingualism and sequential or successive bilingualism are the two types
of childhood bilingualism. Simultaneous learning of two languages tends to affect the four key
factors which are the following:
1. Ability to speak two languages. The ability of the parents to talk to the two languages
is essential in nurturing bilingual children.
2. Daily use of the language. The preferred language that parents want their children to
use in their conversation at home are being practiced every day.
3. The Language spoken at home should be true to all. All members of the family
should use the same language and use it in their daily conversation at home or in all
situations.
4. The language use in the community is also another factor that affects the child
capacity to learn the language.
Sequential bilingualism. This type of bilingualism occurs when the child has
learned one language before learning the second language. Children learn to speak the
second language by listening to the conversation of adults and viewing television
channel using the English language. Children love to see cartoon network, they try to
imitate the way cartoon characters talk and behave. Some children learn the second
language when they are already in their formal schooling or in the community where the
language used is different at home.
In raising bilingual children, careful planning is necessary. Both parents should
have knowledge in two languages to achieve the desired result. They need to consider as
well the language spoken in the community and school where children are enrolled.
Professionals in this field said when parents are teaching their children to speak
two languages simultaneously they have to work on strategy that will determine which
language will be applied at the given time and which is not Proper time scheduling in
using the two languages is important to avoid confusion in the child’s mind.
Consistency in using two or more languages is an important key to early
language learning. Mixing the two languages at the same time while having a
conversation with the child is less effective. Parents should be consistent and learn to
balance the use of the two languages.
The Quality of language interaction is another important thing that parents should take note.
Parents should use simple easy to understand words and avoid using complicated words. They
should make sure that they will give time listening to their children when they are talking to
them. The introduction of more meaningful words to children during the conversation will
enhance their learning ability to speak to the desired language. The provision of learning
materials are advised, like: Videos, English books are also necessary in learning two languages.
Children differ on how they learn. Some learn easily and other needs more time learning the
language. The following factors could be the reasons for these.
1. A stable community. Parents who stay in a place with their children at a longer
period will adapt the language use in that community compared to a family who is
always moving from one place to another.

2. Close family relationship. A family close to each other have the bonding through
sharing of ideas using language. Daily conversation helps develop the language of
the child.

3. Positive Attitude. The willingness of parents and members of the family in training
the child to speak the second language is vital. The stimulating environment
provides a good learning experience on the part of the child learning the second
language. Children have the eagerness to communicate when their experiences are
meaningful.

The advantages of raising bilingual children.

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INSTITUTE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES

1. Children have the opportunity to learn the culture of other group and communicate to
different people.

2. Bilingual children as shown in research studies have advantages in thinking skills, can
solve complicated problems and artistic compared to non-bilinguals.

Though, learning two or more languages is advantageous to bilingual children it is very

necessary that parents should know the importance of the child’s capacity to learn and the
factors involve in learning the language.
Recommendations for parents

Some important points in raising bilingual children.

1. Proper Environment. The right environment creates opportunities for children to

practice the language that parents desire them to use. Parents should be a good
listener and provider in enriching the vocabulary of children. Exposing their
children to videos, music, and books in two languages is needed

2. Use the same language as means of communication when talking to children at home
and in interacting with other members of the family.

3. Proper planning on what language to use is important. The rash decision in using
different
language will affect the child’s language development.

4. Using two languages needs strong motivation on the part of the parents to awaken
the interest of children for learning to be effective.

5. Consistency in using two languages help develop the ability of the child to speak the
language. Parents should be consistent in what pattern they choose and stick to it.

6. In using bilingualism make it as natural as can be so that children will enjoy being
bilingual.

7. Children learn at a different phase. Each child learns at his speed.

There is a claimed by some speech specialists and medical doctors that using two languages
at an early age affect the language development of children who is learning how to talk. They
further stated, that the child when hearing two languages create confusion in their mind that
cause delay in speaking Nonetheless, the claim has no scientific basis that using two languages
has an effect on the language development of children. Lots of children bilinguals now, acquire
language as normal children do without showing difficulty learning the two languages.

LESSON 4: Storytelling in Early Literacy

C
Development
Storytelling is telling stories to a person or group of people about something like people,
places, and their experiences in narrative form. In telling a story, the storyteller makes use of
their voice and body to portray the character of the story.

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INSTITUTE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES

Important Facts about Storytelling

1. Storytelling acts as an efficient building block in facilitating learning making the

journey easy from oracy (proficiency in oral expression and comprehension) to
literacy. Literacy (the ability to read and write) is a second order language system
that requires oral competency as a prerequisite and, as a sophisticated oral art
form.

2. Storytelling if done regularly increases young children’s vocabulary, as they

encounter lots of new words while listening to the storyteller that would lead to
the development of their written vocabulary. 

3. Storytelling as an art form also employs a literary way of doing things that are
accepted and followed such as point of view, plot, style, characterization, setting,
and theme. The storyteller’s way of portraying and expressing the story will create
children’s understanding of what the story is all about. This serves as the
foundation on how they understand the content of the story.

4. Storytelling also enhances comprehension skills which are highly useful for
reading comprehension.  

LESSON 5: Early Language Stimulation and Literate

Environment W C
A Literate Environment and early language stimulation have a great impact on the
language development of the child. Many parents today are aware that loving, everyday
interactions — embracing infants tightly or singing to toddlers and exposing them to a learning
environment help children learn faster not only in learning how to talk but as well as the other
aspects of development.
The first ten years of children’s life is the period of fast acquisition of language. It is
through daily interaction with adults or other children that language can learn best. Social
interaction with knowledgeable adults leads to the production of more meaningful words that
are added to the vocabulary of children as they grow older.
Good human relations when practiced in the first stage of development, produce a
friendly environment that would lead to the creation of a loving, kind and healthy relationship
with the children as they mingle with the people around them until their late adult stage.

LESSON 6: Exceptional development: Aphasia and

Dyslexia C
Aphasia is a communication disorder that has something to do with language. A disorder
in which the part of the brain responsible for language located in the frontal lobe is damaged or
failed to develop. People suffering from this disorder have difficulty understanding, reading,
speaking and writing. It is often the result of stroke or head injury in adults and failure to
develop on the area of the brain responsible for language to children with aphasia.
Dyslexia is a learning disorder that characterizes with difficulties in word recognition, spelling,
and decoding. Children with this disorder have difficulty in reading. The cause of this might
have something to do with the brain’s failure to translate images received from the eyes and
ears into understandable language. Dyslexia is not evident in the early grades of schooling. The
child can become frustrated by the difficulty in learning how to read and may dislike coming to
school.

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INSTITUTE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES

The following are suggestions for parents to do if their child has a learning disability.
1. Set a schedule of a visit with a specialist for a general physical exam that should
include vision and hearing tests.
2. Parents should see to it that appointment is schedule with the child teacher to
discuss whatever issues or concerns. All concerns must be given attention
(classroom and school assignments). Supportive parents, offer help and create
friendly atmosphere while working with the teacher.
3. Providing and maintaining a conducive learning environment and adult’s
willingness to give assistance to children with disability especially in attending
their needs not only at home but also in the school, particularly in organizing
their things are already of big help to them.

ASSESSMENT C

R E F E R E N C EC
Acero, Victotorino O., et. al. 2004. “Human Growth Development and
Learning.”Quezon City:Rex Printing Company, Inc.
Ormrod, Jeanne E. 2008. “Educational Psychology: Developing Learners.” Pearson:
Merill Prentice Hall.
Siruno, R. & Siruno, E. 2002. “Child Growth and Development.” Phillipines: Rex
Bookstore.
Anonat, R. 2009. “Child and Adolescent Development. Mandaluyong City: Books
ATBP. Publishing Corporation.
(NoAuthor). Milestones. Available @pathways.org › all-ages › milestones

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