language acquisition [WAS: that]

Skitt <skitt99@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Matthew Huntbach wrote:

If you haven't read it Steven Pinker's "The Language Instinct" is very
good on this. He preents fairly convincing evidence that for most
people there is an age at which the ability to pick up and use
without thought the exact phonetics of a langauge is switched off, and an
age at
which the ability to pick up and use without thought the exact
grammar of a language is switched off.

I have no argument with that. You did say "for most people", and you did
not state a specific age. I am not necessarily one of the "most people",
and for me the switch-off age apparently was later than fourteen. Later
than seventeen, actually.

I thought I had a copy of the book around the house but I don't find it.
I may be going beyond what Pinker said to what others said also, but I
think this "switch-on switch-off" is way too simplistic of a summary.
Flipping a switch suggests altering states in one instant of time, while
actually the ability to acquire extra languages seems to diminish over
decades, and at different rates for different people.

If by "flip a switch" you mean "begin a long and gradual decline," well,
I think you need a different metaphor.

In a review of the book here, someone mentions "it seems virtually
impossible to acquire language after early adolescence if none was
learned before." Notice, that refers to learning a *first* language, so
it's talking about the Wild Child sort of upbringings. Not about whether
you can pick up Italian when you go to Tuscany in your retirement years.

--
Best -- Donna Richoux

.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Do children learn language more easily?
    ... Certainly, some child-specific needs exist, such as stimuli for normal development of various organs and systems, but I doubt children are consciously aware of these needs to the degree required to properly account for Rosenfelder's idea of an active, need-based, motivational model of language acquisition, especially since the critical periods for most types of stimulus-driven development end well before children achieve adult linguistic competency. ... I think that it might be a mistake not to argue the *drive* to acquire language separately from the *ability* to acquire language. ... children may be so good at deriving language from their environments that they don't require any more impetus than their normal socialization needs. ... I've seen several references to the age 10 being a cutoff for ease of socialization. ...
    (sci.lang)
  • Re: that
    ... picks up language but which only operates when we are children. ... people there is an age at which the ability to pick up and use ... without thought the exact phonetics of a langauge is switched off, ... I am not necessarily one of the "most people", and for me the switch-off age apparently was later than fourteen. ...
    (alt.usage.english)
  • Re: Do children learn language more easily?
    ... The ability to start your *first* language does not last ... past about age 5. ... Is it possible that the loss of the ability to learn a native ... it's the focus of L1 acquisition research. ...
    (sci.lang)
  • Re: language acquisition [WAS: that]
    ... people there is an age at which the ability to pick up and use ... grammar of a language is switched off. ... and for me the switch-off age apparently was later ...
    (alt.usage.english)
  • Re: Do children learn language more easily?
    ... The ability to start your *first* language does not last ... past about age 5. ... Does the last sentence hold because there is some specific ability ... This apparent critical period might be due to some innate linguistic ...
    (sci.lang)