The effect of perceptual similarity and linguistic input on children's acquisition of object labels

1997 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 695-717 ◽  
Author(s):  
GIL DIESENDRUCK ◽  
MARILYN SHATZ
Keyword(s):  
Word Meaning ◽  
Semantic Relations ◽  
Perceptual Similarity ◽  
Linguistic Information ◽  
Lexical Development ◽  
New Words ◽  
Linguistic Input

This study investigated whether and when children establish various semantic relations between old and new words. Fifty two-year-olds were taught labels for objects previously referred to by an overextended term. We found that children were more likely to learn a new label when (a) it referred to a new object that was perceptually dissimilar, rather than similar, to a known one, and (b) when linguistic information indicated it had an inclusion, rather than a mutually exclusive, relation to a known label. Children were more likely to interpret a new label as mutually exclusive to a known one when their referents were perceptually dissimilar. These findings are discussed in light of theories of lexical development, particularly with regard to conceptualizations of constraints on the acquisition of word meaning.

Linguistic input and early word meaning

1988 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margaret Harris ◽  
Martyn Barrett ◽  
David Jones ◽  
Susan Brookes
Keyword(s):  
Longitudinal Study ◽  
Word Meaning ◽  
Strong Relationship ◽  
Lexical Development ◽  
Linguistic Input ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
First Words

ABSTRACTFour mother–child dyads were videotaped in a longitudinal study of the relationship between linguistic input to children and early lexical development. Diary records were also kept by the mothers and, together with the videorecordings, were used to identify the contexts in which the children produced their first words. These were compared with the contexts in which the mothers used these same words. It was found that there was a strong relationship between the children's initial use of words and the most frequently occurring use of these words by the mothers. It was also found that although the majority of the children's first words were context-bound, a significant number were referential. The implications of these findings for current theoretical proposals concerning early lexical development are discussed.

scholarly journals On the benefits of multimodal annotations for vocabulary uptake from reading

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
F Boers ◽  
Paul Warren ◽  
Georgina Grimshaw ◽  
Anna Siyanova
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Coding Theory ◽  
Word Meaning ◽  
Single Mode ◽  
Dual Coding ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Computer Assisted Language Learning ◽  
Dual Coding Theory ◽  
New Words

© 2017 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. Several research articles published in the realm of Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) have reported evidence of the benefits of multimodal annotations, i.e. the provision of pictorial as well as verbal clarifications, for vocabulary uptake from reading. Almost invariably, these publications account for the observed benefits with reference to Paivio's Dual Coding Theory, suggesting it is the visual illustration of word meaning that enhances the quality of processing and hence makes new words more memorable. In this discussion article, we explore the possibility that it is not necessarily the multimodality per se that accounts for the reported benefits. Instead, we argue that the provision of multimodal annotations is one of several possible means of inviting more and/or longer attention to the annotations–with amounts of attention given to words being a significant predictor of their retention in memory. After reviewing the available research on the subject and questioning whether invoking Paivio's Dual Coding Theory is an optimal account for reported findings, we report an eye-tracking study the results of which are consistent with the alternative thesis that the advantage of multimodal glosses for word learning lies with the greater quantity of attention these glosses attract in comparison with single-mode glosses. We conclude with a call for further research on combinations and sequences of annotation types, regardless of multimodality, as ways of promoting vocabulary uptake from reading.

The Type, but Not the Amount, of Information Available Influences Toddlers' Fast Mapping and Retention of New Words

2014 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 120-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn W. Brady ◽  
Judith C. Goodman
Keyword(s):  
Word Learning ◽  
Word Meaning ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Fast Mapping ◽  
New Words ◽  
Amount Of Information ◽  
Significant Rate ◽  
Mapping Task ◽  
Novel Words

Purpose The authors of this study examined whether the type and number of word-learning cues affect how children infer and retain word-meaning mappings and whether the use of these cues changes with age. Method Forty-eight 18- to 36-month-old children with typical language participated in a fast-mapping task in which 6 novel words were presented with 3 types of cues to the words' referents, either singly or in pairs. One day later, children were tested for retention of the novel words. Results By 24 months of age, children correctly inferred the referents of the novel words at a significant level. Children retained the meanings of words at a significant rate by 30 months of age. Children retained the first 3 of the 6 word-meaning mappings by 24 months of age. For both fast mapping and retention, the efficacy of different cue types changed with development, but children were equally successful whether the novel words were presented with 1 or 2 cues. Conclusion The type of information available to children at fast mapping affects their ability to both form and retain word-meaning associations. Providing children with more information in the form of paired cues had no effect on either fast mapping or retention.

Multisign Combinations by Children With Intellectual Impairments

2000 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 309-323 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicola Grove ◽  
Julie Dockrell
Keyword(s):  
Word Order ◽  
Stage I ◽  
Semantic Relations ◽  
Lexical Development ◽  
Linguistic Development ◽  
Linguistic Representation ◽  
Manual Signs ◽  
Utterance Length ◽  
Language Input

Research suggests that people with intellectual impairments who use manual signs to augment or substitute for speech rarely progress beyond the stage of single signs and that word order is particularly problematic. However, the majority of studies have focused on experimental tasks, and relatively little is known about spontaneous sign production in naturalistic settings. The present study explored the linguistic development in sign and speech of 10 children who relied on manual signs (the Makaton vocabulary) as their main means of communication. Mean utterance length in sign ranged from 1.0 to 2.5, and analysis of semantic relations, lexical development, and word order suggested that the children had not developed their language beyond MLU Stage I. Examination of their abilities within the modality of sign indicated that some children were able to manipulate features of sign at a sublexical level. The results are discussed in relation to the language input by teachers, and inferences are drawn regarding the underlying modality of linguistic representation in children who use manual signs.

scholarly journals On the benefits of multimodal annotations for vocabulary uptake from reading

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
F Boers ◽  
Paul Warren ◽  
Georgina Grimshaw ◽  
Anna Siyanova
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Coding Theory ◽  
Word Meaning ◽  
Single Mode ◽  
Dual Coding ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Computer Assisted Language Learning ◽  
Dual Coding Theory ◽  
New Words

© 2017 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. Several research articles published in the realm of Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) have reported evidence of the benefits of multimodal annotations, i.e. the provision of pictorial as well as verbal clarifications, for vocabulary uptake from reading. Almost invariably, these publications account for the observed benefits with reference to Paivio's Dual Coding Theory, suggesting it is the visual illustration of word meaning that enhances the quality of processing and hence makes new words more memorable. In this discussion article, we explore the possibility that it is not necessarily the multimodality per se that accounts for the reported benefits. Instead, we argue that the provision of multimodal annotations is one of several possible means of inviting more and/or longer attention to the annotations–with amounts of attention given to words being a significant predictor of their retention in memory. After reviewing the available research on the subject and questioning whether invoking Paivio's Dual Coding Theory is an optimal account for reported findings, we report an eye-tracking study the results of which are consistent with the alternative thesis that the advantage of multimodal glosses for word learning lies with the greater quantity of attention these glosses attract in comparison with single-mode glosses. We conclude with a call for further research on combinations and sequences of annotation types, regardless of multimodality, as ways of promoting vocabulary uptake from reading.

A connection in lexical development

2001 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 157-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marja van Helden-Lankhaar
Keyword(s):  
Word Association ◽  
Word Meaning ◽  
Naming Task ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Lexical Development ◽  
Word Meanings ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Novel Concept ◽  
Lexical Relations ◽  
The Relationship

The relationship is examined between two different domains of lexical development: innovative compounding and access to abstract lexical relations. The creation of novel compounds as appropriate labels for novel concepts requires the accessibility of relatively abstract relations between word meanings in the mental lexicon. In a picture naming task in which novel concepts have to be labeled (e.g., a vehicle that can both sail and drive) children’s production of appropriate novel compounds (e.g., car-boat) increases with age. This compound production is, independently of age, related to children’s ability to access coordinate lexical relations (such as between cat and dog) in a contrastive word association task (‘a cat is not a...?’). It is proposed that this connection between innovative compounding and access to coordinate relations is cognitive in nature and involves a common ability for lexical comparisons. Innovative compounding reflects comparison ‘on the spot’ between the novel concept and available related word meaning knowledge, and contrastive coordinate production reflects the results of developmentally earlier comparison processes evoked by adult contrastive input.

scholarly journals Children's use of information in word learning

1990 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 393-416 ◽  
Author(s):  
Terry Kit-Fong Au
Keyword(s):  
Prior Knowledge ◽  
Word Learning ◽  
Word Meaning ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Linguistic Information ◽  
Word Meanings ◽  
Knowledge And Beliefs ◽  
Novel Material ◽  
Children's Beliefs

ABSTRACTWhenever children hear a novel word, the context supplies information about its meaning. One way children may cope with so much information is to use whatever seems to make sense, given their prior knowledge and beliefs, while ignoring or quickly forgetting the rest. This work examined if and how children's beliefs about word meanings may affect their use of contrastive linguistic information in the input in word learning. In Study 1, some 3- and 4-year-olds were introduced to a novel material or shape name and heard it contrasted with familiar words. Others merely heard the novel word used for referring to an object. These children were then tested to determine what they had learned about their new word meaning. In Study 2, another group of 3-and 4-year-olds were asked to name the materials and shapes used for introducing these novel terms. Children made use of linguistic contrast only in some situations. They benefited more when the novel term did not overlap much in denotation with any terms commonly known by 3-and 4-year-olds. These results suggest that children can use information in the input very efficiently in learning a term for an as-yet-unnamed category, but not in learning a term similar in denotation to a word they already know. Thus, the results are consistent with the claim that children believe every word has a unique denotation.

scholarly journals The Effects of Semantics in the Language Development of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) Learners

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 138
Author(s):  
Fatimah Alsayed
Keyword(s):  
Language Development ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Word Meaning ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Human Communication ◽  
Lexical Development ◽  
Vocabulary Strategies ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Key Terms

The study of Semantics is an important area of word meaning, references, senses, logic, and perlocutions and illocutions. That is, the study of Semantics increases students’ understanding and awareness of word meaning, sentence relationships, and discourse and context. It also enables students to create and improve their Semantics maps which are webs of words visually display the meaning-based connections between a word or phrase and a set of related words or concepts. This paper is a product of effort that I make to implement some theoretically-sound strategies in planning and teaching a Semantic course for English Foreign language learners (EFL). The aim of this paper is to show that utilizing the mechanisms of meaning is vital to successful human communication. Alongside with that, lexical development will solidify students’ understanding of language meaning and sense relations. The purpose of the course is to concentrate on teaching key terms in Semantics, Semantics Analysis of Writing Approach (SAW) and ‘agent-action-goal with real-life action’ technique and then employed the knowledge of these terms to improve students’ vocabulary in the short-term, and their language proficiency in the long-term. Scaffolding the Semantics information with L2 vocabulary strategies is pivotal in language development. Implementing semantics strategies in an attempt to expose the relationship between teaching Semantics and improving ELLs’ language skills.

Early acquisition of verbs in Korean: a cross-linguistic study

1995 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 497-529 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soonja Choi ◽  
Alison Gopnik
Keyword(s):  
Single Word ◽  
Lexical Development ◽  
Korean Children ◽  
Linguistic Study ◽  
Korean Mothers ◽  
Early Acquisition ◽  
Linguistic Input ◽  
Maternal Reports ◽  
Action Verbs ◽  
Do So

ABSTRACTThis cross-linguistic study investigates children's early lexical development in English and Korean, and compares caregivers' linguistic input in the two languages. In Study 1, the lexical development of nine Korean children was followed from 1;2 to 1;10 by monthly visits and maternal reports. These Korean data were compared to previously collected English longitudinal data. We find that: (1) Korean children as young as 1;3 use verbs productively with appropriate inflections. (2) Seven of the nine children show a verb spurt at around 1;7; for six of these children the verb spurt occurs before the noun spurt. No such early verb spurt is found in the English data. Unlike in English, both verbs and nouns in Korean are dominant categories from the single-word stage. (3) Korean children express language-specific distinctions of locative actions with verbs. Study 2, a crosslinguistic study of caregivers' input in English and Korean, shows that Korean mothers provide more action verbs but fewer object nouns than American mothers. Also, Korean mothers engage in activity-oriented discourse significantly more than American mothers. Our study suggests that verbs are accessible to children from the beginning, and that they may be acquired early in children who are encouraged to do so by their language-specific grammar and input.

scholarly journals Diversity not quantity in caregiver speech: Using computational modeling to isolate the effects of the quantity and the diversity of the input on vocabulary growth

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary Jones ◽  
Caroline F Rowland
Keyword(s):  
Nonword Repetition ◽  
Word Knowledge ◽  
Lexical Knowledge ◽  
Input Quantity ◽  
Lexical Diversity ◽  
New Words ◽  
Language Tests ◽  
Vocabulary Growth ◽  
Linguistic Input

Children who hear large amounts of diverse speech learn language more quickly than children who do not. However, high correlations between the amount and the diversity of the input in speech samples makes it difficult to isolate the influence of each. We overcame this problem by controlling the input to a computational model so that amount of exposure to linguistic input (quantity) and the quality of that input (lexical diversity) were independently manipulated. Sublexical, lexical, and multi-word knowledge were charted across development (Study 1), showing that while input quantity may be important early in learning, lexical diversity is ultimately more crucial, a prediction confirmed against children’s data (Study 2). The model trained on a lexically diverse input also performed better on nonword repetition and sentence recall tests (Study 3) and was quicker to learn new words over time (Study 4). A language input that is rich in lexical diversity outperforms equivalent richness in quantity for learned sublexical and lexical knowledge, for well-established language tests, and for acquiring words that have never been encountered before.

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