The paper first traces the history of thinking about language from the Greek writers of the fifth century BC to the development of the first Greek grammar in about 100 BC. Since the glories of Ancient Greek literature predate the development of grammar, there is every reason to doubt the received wisdom that one must have an explicit knowledge of…

This paper examines cross-linguistic influence in third language acquisition relative to language typology, psychotypology and proficiency level. In particular, it observes how learners make use of their background languages when faced with a language they know little to nothing about. The participants, native French speakers with English as a…

In this study, we use corpus analysis and computational modelling techniques to compare two recent accounts of the OI stage: Legate & Yang's (2007) Variational Learning Model and Freudenthal, Pine & Gobet's (2006) Model of Syntax Acquisition in Children. We first assess the extent to which each of these accounts can explain the level of OI errors…

In this article we describe an Australian project in which linguists, signed language interpreters, medical and health care professionals, and members of the Deaf community use the technology of the Internet to facilitate cooperative language development. A web-based, interactive multimedia lexicon, an encyclopedic dictionary, and a database of…

This study examined the development of language in low-SES rural Appalachian children from kindergarten through middle childhood. Findings showed that the children's language skills improved significantly between kindergarten and middle childhood, with all middle childhood language means within the average range. However, all areas of language…

Is it possible to undo or reverse language attrition? In other words, has there been, in the case of attrition, a permanent change with respect to the speaker's L1 knowledge, or do we only see temporary effects on the control of that knowledge? It is proposed here that the concept of attrition should include the temporary loss of language skills…

In an attempt to understand and explain first language (L1) acquisition and second language (L2) acquisition scholars have put forward many theories. These theories can aid language teachers to understand language learning and to assist their students in their language learning process. The current paper will first look at the similarities between…

Purpose: The study of auxiliary acquisition is central to work on language development and has attracted theoretical work from both nativist and constructivist approaches. This study is part of a 2-part companion set that represents a unique attempt to trace the development of auxiliary syntax by using a longitudinal elicitation methodology. The…

Background: Non-word repetition in children is a skill related to, but separable from grammatical ability. Lexical skill may bridge the gap between these two abilities. Aims: The main aim was to determine whether real-word-repetition tasks could be better as predictors of grammatical ability than non-word-repetition tasks in children with typical…

Two studies examined the role of phonological cues in the lexical categorization of new words when children could also rely on learning by exclusion and whether the role of phonology depends on extensive experience with a language. Phonological cues were assessed via phonological typicality--an aggregate measure of the relationship between the…

An effective classroom, where teachers and students are communicating optimally, is dependent on using constructivist strategies, tools and practices. There are two major types of constructivism in the classroom: (1) Cognitive or individual constructivism depending on Piaget's theory, and (2) Social constructivism depending on Vygotsky's theory.…

Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is the leading inherited cause of intellectual disability. The syndrome is caused by a single gene mutation on the X chromosome. Although individual differences are large, most individuals with FXS display weaknesses across all language and literacy domains compared with peers of the same chronological age with typical…

We compared the cognitive and language development at 4, 14, 24, 36, 54 months, and 7 years of siblings of children with autism (SIBS-A) to that of siblings of children with typical development (SIBS-TD) using growth curve analyses. At 7 years, 40% of the SIBS-A, compared to 16% of SIBS-TD, were identified with cognitive, language and/or academic…

This paper presents an interview with Dr. Alice Sterling Honig which took place in Syracuse, New York, in May 2009. Michele Jachim Barrett of Syracuse University conducted the interview using questions prepared by the editors of "ECRP." Dr. Honig is currently Professor Emerita at Syracuse University. Her work in early childhood development, care,…

This article reports the findings of a study whose objective was to investigate whether there was a likelihood of a language shift (or loss) from Ikalanga (a minority language spoken in Botswana) to either Setswana or English. The focus of the investigation was 17-25 year olds. The findings indicate that although Ikalanga (unlike indigenous…