Compare and contrast the perspectives of language teaching proposed by the behaviourist and the nativist theorists. Illustrate their arguments with practical examples?
Compare and contrast the perspectives of language teaching proposed by the behaviourist and the nativist theorists. Illustrate their arguments with practical examples?
Behaviourist Perspective
The behaviourist perspective, largely influenced by B.F. Skinner, posits that language acquisition is a result of habit formation through stimulus-response associations. The fundamental principles are:
1. Imitation:
Children learn to speak by imitating the sounds and words spoken by adults.
- Example: A child hears “apple” and repeats the sound. If correctly articulated, the adult’s affirmation reinforces the correct pronunciation.
2. Reinforcement:
Correct utterances are positively reinforced through rewards or praise, encouraging the child to use them again.
- Example: When a child correctly uses “please” and “thank you,” parents smile, nod, or give verbal praise, reinforcing these polite expressions.
3. Conditioning:
Language learning is seen as a conditioned response. Through repetition and reinforcement, certain verbal behaviors are strengthened.
- Example: A child is consistently reinforced to say, “I want water” instead of pointing or crying, reinforcing the linguistic behavior.
Nativist Perspective
The nativist perspective, championed by Noam Chomsky, argues that humans are biologically predisposed to acquire language. Chomsky introduced the concept of the Language Acquisition Device (LAD), an innate mechanism or process that facilitates the learning of language. The key principles are:
1. Innateness Hypothesis:
Children are born with an inherent ability to acquire language, possessing a universal grammar underlying all languages.
- Example: Regardless of whether a child grows up in Japan or Italy, they tend to make similar kinds of grammatical structures naturally, as seen in overgeneralizations like “goed” instead of “went.”
2. Critical Period Hypothesis:
There is an optimal window (around early childhood) during which language acquisition occurs most easily. After this period, the ability to learn language diminishes.
- Example: Children who are exposed to multiple languages before adolescence often achieve fluency unobtainable by adults learning a second language.
3. Universal Grammar:
All human languages share a common underlying structure, which the LAD allows children to tap into.
- Example: Across different languages, the concepts of subjects, predicates, and modifiers are present, indicating a deep-seated grammatical framework common to human cognition.
Comparative Analysis with Practical Examples
Imitation and Reinforcement vs. Innate Structure:
- Behaviourist Example: A class where students repeat phrases after the teacher, with correct repetitions being rewarded with positive reinforcement (e.g., stickers or praise).
- Nativist Example: A child spontaneously generates sentences they have never heard before, like “The cat’s food bowl is empty,” demonstrating internalized rules rather than mere imitation.
Learning Environment vs. Biological Predisposition:
- Behaviourist Example: Language labs with tapes for repetition and practice, focusing on habit formation through drills.
- Nativist Example: Children from multilingual households switching between languages effortlessly without formal instruction, highlighting the role of innate faculties.
Error Correction:
- Behaviourist Example: When a student says “I goed to the store,” a teacher corrects with “I went to the store,” reinforcing the correct form.
- Nativist Example: A child self-corrects “I goed” to “I went” over time, reflecting an internal grasp of irregular verbs, which supports the notion of a built-in grammatical understanding.
Summary
In sum, behaviourists view language learning as an external process heavily influenced by environmental factors, imitation, and reinforcement. Nativists, on the other hand, argue for an inborn capacity for language acquisition governed by innate principles and structures. While behaviourist methods can be effective in teaching specific language patterns, the nativist perspective provides a compelling explanation for the universal capacity of humans to learn language naturally and with remarkable consistency across different linguistic environments.