Topic > Children's First Language Acquisition within Noam Chomsky's Nativist Theory

Index IntroductionResearch ObjectiveMethodologyTheoretical FrameworkResearch CorpusData Analysis/Corporate AnalysisResults and ConclusionsReferencesIntroductionIn the field of psycholinguistics, language acquisition is a sensitive topic on which illustrious scientists have discussed. In (1957) in the book BF Skinner - one of the pioneers of behaviorism - proposed one of the first scientific explanations regarding the topic of language acquisition; his theory states that children learn language based on behaviorist principles of reinforcement by associating words with meanings. However, Skinner's approach has been strongly criticized by Noam Chomsky (1972), considered the most famous linguist in the world to date, and his theory which he proposes in his book Language and Mind. This theory, which serves as a counterargument to Skinner, states that there are innate structures in our brain which he called language acquisition device (LAD) which assumes that children have a propensity to organize what we hear into the correct fields and even to form original sentences despite lacking all the information necessary to do so. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay This research paper sheds light on Chomsky's nativist theory and applies his hypothesis to the corpus material, in an attempt to prove his theory of how children acquire their first language by supporting it with evidence. Research Objective The research aims to shed light on Noam Chomsky's (1972) nativist theory by observing the process of children's language acquisition at different stages and finding evidence to support his theory. Methodology Theoretical Framework In Noam Chomsky's (1972) book Language and Mind, he stated: "When we study human language, we come closer to what some might call 'the human essence,' the distinctive qualities of the mind that are, as far as we know, unique to man.' Chomsky formulated a theory that discusses how the mind develops during the acquisition of a language Chomsky (1972) Nativist theory dictates that children have an innate ability to acquire a language birth. They adapt to the language very quickly because they have a universal grammar. Chomsky shows that children know the basics of language, but they don't have enough vocabulary to start speaking. And that's what he's starting to understand by observing others is that there is a basic grammar in our brain called LAD language acquisition device Those which facilitate language learning.Research CorpusThe research paper will focus on the common features between the various Corpora in order to serve the purpose of presenting. Chomsky's nativist theory (1972) with evidence provided. Acquiring a first language is such a simple process with the innate ability to state that any native language can be learned in the same way as all children have a common basic grammar ( universal) that helps them achieve some understanding throughout their first language learning education. The purpose of choosing the titled homemade videos (“Two-year-old learns to speak Korean” and “Baby Learn Dua – Funny”) is mainly to serve the main purpose of our research paper which sheds light on the theory of Chomsky applying it to visual material that has common learning characteristics, making it clear that the theory is very reliable when it comes to first language acquisition. Data Analysis/Corporate Analysis The two materials