Language Development, Essay Example

The concept of language development remains to be among the most awe-inspiring procedures of human growth. Among any other creatures, the capacity of humans to speak and communicate is one specific characteristic that humans enjoy. Relatively, such a capacity involves a certain process of development that humans basically undergo. It could be understood that through research, it has been discovered that language acquisition among humans start as early as the first two to three months from birth. The exceptional capacity of the human brain to incur massive amounts of developments within these specific growth months specifically implicates a strong indication on how language acquisitions differentiate humans from other creations as far more superior specie.

For the case of Tom, it could be realized how his parents put a lot into the process to make sure that his language would be of a great part of his development. Buying different toys and even programs for the sake of assisting their child acquire language at a fast and accurate pace points out the fact that these parents are far more concerned on the manner by which their child would be able to incur good language skills making it easier for him to communicate later on. Question is, what specific procedures of language acquisition would actually make it possible for a child as young as Tom to acquire good communication skills through determining good language development? Through four stages of self reflection, several points of understanding the concept of language acquisition in relation to early childhood development have provided a distinct source of trustworthy information that could help resolve the overall concept of effective learning that is needed to assist Tom acquire the best process of language development that his parents want for him.

During the first stage of self-reflection, particular lessons on human-to-animal communication have been given attention to. This particular aspect of the learning process insists on the concept of non verbal communication. This means that meanings of particular conversations are given specific attention to without the necessity of the existence of words. With the use of emotion and connection with the animals, humans are able to create a functioning relationship with them. Without any words, the human [known as the caretaker of the animals] are able to command the animals to act upon a particular gesture. For a dog for instance, the word ‘sit’ might not yet mean anything, however, the gesture of pointing towards the dog and making downward gesture suggests such action, hence, the dog follows through. Consider that the dog’s brain is much less complicated than that of the human brain. Hence, if a dog of at least two to three months old could actually respond to such commandment without being able to fully comprehend with word, how much more would the brain of a developing child appeal to such concept.

Through observation and research, it has been found out that the first six months of a young infant’s life is one of its most formative stages. The brain develops fast allowing the child to accomplish several milestones that are able to greatly reflect the child’s capacity to adapt to the environment around him. Nevertheless, the concept of non-verbal communication plays a great role in such process of development. Notably, infants, even without being commanded to copy sounds or make their own ones  begin to babble and coo. It is said that such development begins in the mother’s womb, even before the child is born. The developing baby inside the mother’s womb could already recognize sounds surrounding him, the voice of his mother being the most prominent ones. Hence, as the mother speaks, the unborn child begins to recognize such sounds and is able to connect them with particular emotional bearings that the mother feels. As the child begins to explore the world outside his mother’s womb, he goes back to the old sounds he recognizes while he was not yet being born. Such recall allows him to connect the sound with the emotions he sees from his parents’ faces and the tone of their voice as they speak. This is the reason why it is implicated among parenting seminars that their connection, their communication and the way they behave at home and around their newly born child would actually affect his attitude as he grows and of course the way he learns language at an early age.

Through this realization, it could then be realized that like the human-to-animal talk approach, young infants also follow the same pattern especially when it comes to determining the meaning of conversation and/or simple words towards the tone and the feeling that each sentence suggests. The infant might not be able to understand the whole meaning of the sentences fully yet, nevertheless, the distinct concept of relative connection between particular elements of communication defines the proper manner by which young children develop through time.

The second lesson in the first stage of self reflection intended to focus on personal language development is given attention to. As for myself, my parents told me that my first words ‘mama’ and ‘dada’ came out when I was eight months old. The cooing and the babbling stage were among the primary foundations that defined the way I acquired language. My mother told me that my ‘oooo’ sound usually meant I was hungry; not that she knew about it immediately, but she was able to observe that every time I make such sound, I point to her breast or later on to the milk bottle. Since my father was working out of the house, I usually stayed with my mother. She cared for my every need, a reason why my mother believes that we had a special communication process when I was still a baby. Every movement of my hand, my head or any other body language a make meant something. Perhaps part of the mother’s instinct, my mother kept a constant point of observation that allowed her to explore my language which allowed her to communicate with me quite well.

When I asked my mother about discipline through language at such an early age, she mentioned how I responded accordingly to the change of the tone in her voice. Unlike other children who were brought up under the care of their nannies, I was able to recognize the authority in my mother’s voice and usually respond accordingly. For instance, when I cry so much to have my bottle prepared or to be fed somehow, my mother lowers her voice-tone down and matches it with her eyes and tells me gently ‘you wait for mommy to finish’, I begin to lower down my voice and begin to fiddle with my hands as I wait for her to finish the preparation of my food or my milk bottle. The constant connection we had with each other made our communication much easier to contend with. From this point of personal experience [as told to me by my mom] suggests that parents , especially the mother has a great role when it comes to determining the process of understanding that an infant [as young as four to six months old] takes into account.

Unlike what some adults believe, a young infant is able to observe and relate to the environment surrounding him. With such capacity to explore his surroundings without even stepping on the ground yet, invokes a sense of complication on how the human brain works within the first few months of development and exposure to people and the environment that exists around them. The correlative connection that infants form as they explore their surroundings make it easier for them to interpret communication and the aspect of meaning that each word would have on them and the way they connect with others especially their parents.

The third lesson invokes the development of understanding over the infant-to-child development. Infants, as noted earlier are considered to be able to differentiate sounds and meanings based on tone and the emotion that comes along with it. Young infants are very observant especially with the facial expressions of their parents and other people surrounding them. Cooing and babbling are among the first stages of communication among infants and understanding such communication approaches on the part of the parents play a great role on how the young ones would be able acquire language at a much determinable pace. Upon observation of child psychologists and language experts, it could be noted that there is a common trend that young infants follow through as they pass the stages from the first four months towards the first eighteen months of development.

One of the said developments includes the gradual random selection of phonemes that they are able to adapt to. This is the reason why some infants are noted to be talking of some specific words but are giving off the wrong sounds for particular letters. The capacity of the tongue to give-off specific vowel and consonant sounds follows a distinct process that determines the capacity of the child to determine specific phonemes. Nevertheless, this should not put aside the fact that the young infants are indeed able to give meanings to such words with a rather accurate indication of the real meaning of each term they aim to communicate to the people around them.

Mothers in particular create a protoconversational process that they and their young children could actually respond to. For instance, this particular conversation involves short phrases that are familiar with the child. The mother adjusts down to such level of communication to be able to make a connection with the infant. From such approach, the child is able to create a distinct interpretation of how the mother relates to him and thus reacts accordingly to such process. Forming less complex sentences when talking to infant gives the young one a chance to specifically give meaning to the conversation based on the things that are familiar to him and the matters that connect them to the communication process being formed.

At 12 to 18 months, the first words are already formed. This pace of development indicates a distinct consideration on how the infant has been given the chance to become more involved in the world and the people surrounding him. The eagerness to communicate with others empowers the young child to become more expressive especially when he wants something done for him. Usually infants entering this stage are notably able to recognize 50 to 100 words at a normal pace [although they may not be able to pronounce them properly yet]. The ones who acquire slower language development are able to recognize 20 to 50 words that they actually understand. Producing properly pronounced words usually do not come into realization until the first eighteen months; some others during the first 21^st months of their age.

Hence, for the case of Tom, there is no reason to panic. It could be that there is a specific point of slower development that Tom undergoes when it comes to language acquisition but it does not mean that he would never be able to cope up. There are infants who tend to develop more on comprehension than in the actual process of speaking. In this case, parental support is extremely important. Books and other programs or paraphernalia might help, but the context of parental assistance plays the greatest impact on the language acquisition of a child towards his toddler years. The parents of Tom could actually acquire the motherese language approach which inculcates into the system of conversation that the parents establish with young tom to be less complex. Sentences should be narrowed down to shorter phrases allowing the child to connect simple words that are familiar to him towards the emotional bearing or tone of the ones trying to communicate with him.

The fourth lesson is dedicated to toddler language development. Toddlers [beginning at the 24^th month or two years of age among young ones] usually undergo a particular pattern of speech. There are no more babbling or cooing patterns; but usually certain phonemes are still not fully established. The concept of determining words among these young individuals is now related not only to emotions or voice tones as they are already able to explore their surroundings. With books and aided conversational lessons, it could be understood how the toddlers are able to create connections from old learned words to newly discovered ones.

The establishment of correlation between one word towards another is also becoming evident as toddlers become involved in creating simple unstructured sentences. More like phrases, these forms of speech on the part of the young children is already a full presentation of their ideas. Parents, instead of expecting so much from their children at this age need to take into account to reward such communication patterns through trying to understand what they mean and give attention to what they actually want to happen. Pressuring them to give properly structured sentences might in some way hinder them from exploring language on their own.

It could be understood why at some point, Tom’s parents might be too anxious about the language development that their child undergoes. AS mentioned earlier, there are those who begin to speak clear words at the age of 18 months. Nevertheless, this does not mean that it is a common pattern for everyone else. There are those who take on the proper way of speaking specific words at the age of 24 months and they still do well when they grow older. While there is a pattern that language development intends to follow especially among young children, this does not mean that every child shall follow the same pace. There are those who might go faster and others who might go slower into the process.

The parents, being the primary mentors of the child, would not be able to help out in the process if they are to be as expecting as they are taking a closer look on how others develop. It should always be remembered that even the slower-developers in the aspect of language development intend to carry on good ways of comprehension and communication patterns as they age. What the parents must to is to simply assist the children through constantly conversing with them. Reading books aloud to them and allowing them to identify things that are familiar around them would help out as much as language programs would.

Tom’s parents should then be advised to be a little less anxious and view their son separate from the others. Observing him closely and trying to adjust to his way of speech and communication pattern might allow the parents to give the child a chance to develop a personal pattern of conversation that would work as much as the common communication pattern that others his age takes into account. Forming words and sentences should never be forced out of a child; development comes in naturally and a child who is guided accordingly would be able to accomplish language acquisition methods in a pace that best fits their brain development.