Nature and Nurture in Children Language Development Essay Example
Nature and Nurture in Children Language Development Essay Example

Nature and Nurture in Children Language Development Essay Example

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  • Pages: 6 (1391 words)
  • Published: December 15, 2021
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Behavioral theory touching on the growth of children assumes that, for the children to be able to speak first words they usually imitate on what they hear. Due to the continuous reinforcement on what they are able to hear on a daily basis, then children are able to learn to speak a certain language. The phenomenon of the learning of speaking of a language is influenced by the nature and the environment of a child as discussed by many linguist. The mind of a human being cannot follow a certain path for cases of development only. There are transformation which happen to the brain of a child which are sometime unpredictable due to the neurobiological processes of the brain.

There are complex interrelation of the time and the dynamics that lead to a child speaking their langua

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ge. The effects that nature and nurture have are clear and will be discussed in this paper. Nature is inseparable from nature, therefore both of them have effects to the language development of a child. When a child is born, the environment in which they are brought up helps mold the child into a certain kind of a human being. The interaction that come up at the early stages of the development of a child help in the enhancement of the language of a child (Hoff, 2013).

The behaviors in a child environment can help in the acquisition of the language. Behavior is an important aspect in the acquitting of the language in which a person speaks. In most cases the first language that is acquired by a child is a result of speech imitations. In the process of imitations, children’

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are not able to imitate everything that they may want to imitate but instead imitate some of the things they see. A child is able to learn the first language they speak at a tender age. The theories that of the influence of nature on the language acquired. Children are able to say things which also may not be adult imitations. This may be in instances where a child wants to say a certain word but they are not proficient enough to utter any words. A child can be able to come up with a language that is not grammatically correct. For example a child may say “where we going?” instead of saying grammatically saying “where are we going?” The process of acquiring of language is due to the habit of the nature of how a child will be able to hear something will also help in the molding in the language they speak. Due to the rules of utterances that are of a language a child can be able to mold on the language that they learn from the utterances to be able to speak.

In terms of nature the idea that language acquisition is as a result an innate called nativism. The support of this view is a result of believes that human brain is prewired in terms of acquiring of language and the use of the language acquired. The grammar that is used by a child in the world can be termed as universal. This may be due to the influences nature in the world surroundings. Since the language that is used universally nature is considered to be a stimuli for the use

of language in children. The fact during the growth and the expansion of different culture that each society was able to develop a certain kind of language. This was influenced by the nature of the surroundings (Hart et al, 2103).All the human languages that are used in the world seem to have certain characteristics that are the same. Some of the vocabularies that are used in these different languages have meanings that can be determined through a mediated phonological system. The languages of the world that are used by children have ways in which words can be combined in order to be able to make sense. The words that are used are able to change with time due to the coming up of the use of new words.

Nurture can be due to the ability of a child brain to be able to learn a new language. Physiologist believe that humans are able to learn new languages due to possession of the brain which is able to make understanding and interpretation of what we hear. The benefit of the use of language helps in the spread of use of any language. The other issue that is discussed is due to the brains of a child when they are born. A child will be excited and due to this excitement the child will learn a language more easily as compared to an adult.

The aspects of speaking of language by children can be due to the relation of nature and nurture. This can be explained in terms of genetic or environmental aspects. The generic aspects are due to having a large brain where a child is able to

learn a language easily. This is due to high level of intelligence which enables them to be able to gasp a concept easily. The environmental factors are due to the social set up in which a child is brought up. There is a way each society has interactions between its children and the persons who bring up the children. Upbringing and the use of symbols are as a result of the environment surrounding a child. Environmental influences help the children to learn via the influences that they gain any influences they get every day. The adults that are in the children enable the children to be able to learn words and syntax through reinforcing correct speech as children grow.

Nature and nurture can be as a result of biological influences in the language development of a child. According to this theory, children are born with a universal language and a way that they are able to pronounce language. This makes the children to be easily receptive to certain language. According to this theory children will be able to pick on certain grammar that they are exposed to (Kandler, 2014). It is important to acknowledge that nature and nurture play a role in the language development of a child. Both nature and nurture are sources of the human growth and therefore expose any problem that a society is able to face in terms of dysfunction and problematic behavior.

In the above discussion it can be shown clearly that once a child is born they can be molded by the environment that are in, the social and physical system and the cognitive interaction for the child. Studies however show

that some brains are more triggered to able to develop their language easily than the rest. Some of the children are more easily triggered will be able to respond to experiences differently. These kind of children are more vulnerable to experiences they face. This makes them learn easily a language. Having experiences such as family violence, abuse and poverty will have an influence on the language they learn. These kind of influences are not good for a child development. A child in this kind of case needs counselling and growth in a stable environment. Nature and nurture have influence on the pathway of a child as they develop (Rice, 2016).

References

  • Hoff, E. (2013). Language development. Cengage Learning.
  • Rice, M. L. (2016, November). Children with Specific Language Impairment and Their Families: A Future View of Nature Plus Nurture and New Technologies for Comprehensive Language Intervention Strategies. In Seminars in Speech and Language (Vol. 37, No. 04, pp. 310-318).
  • Thieme Medical Publishers. Bornstein, M. H., & Bradley, R. H. (Eds.). (2014). Socioeconomic status, parenting, and child development. Routledge.
  • Fagard, J. (2013). The nature and nurture of human infant hand preference. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1288 (1), 114-123. Haworth, C. M., Davis, O. S., & Plomin, R. (2013).
  • Twins Early Development Study (TEDS): a genetically sensitive investigation of cognitive and behavioral development from childhood to young adulthood. Twin Research and Human Genetics, 16 (01), 117 125.
  • Hart, S. A., Logan, J. A., Soden-Hensler, B., Kershaw, S., Taylor, J., & Schatschneider, C. (2013).
  • Exploring how nature and nurture affect the development of reading: An analysis of the
    Florida Twin Project on Reading. Developmental psychology, 49 (10),

1971. Gass, S. M. (2013). Input, interaction, and the second language learner. Routledge.

  • Kandler, C. (2014). Personality development between nature and nurture. Personality and Individual Differences, (60), S81-S82.
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