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ELE 124
MODULE 1 OVERVIEW

Specific Objectives:

1. To familiarize and relate in detail what it means to know a human

language.
2. To analyze the theoretical findings regarding the nature of language
acquisition.
3. To identify various theories in first and second language acquisition.
4. To demonstrate an understanding of the nature of language and the
role of the first language in learning a second language.

Lesson 1: THEORIES OF THE ORIGIN OF HUMAN LANGUAGE

No other species has anything resembling the human language and it seems
like there is no other communication system that could possibly match human
language in flexibility, capacity, and diversity.

But when did humans develop language? We will probably know as spoken
language leaves no traces in the historic record. Although the ultimate origin of
language is likely to remain unknown several scientific approaches have been
made that lead to various theories concerning the development of human
language.
How did language begin? Words don’t leave artifacts behind—writings began
long after language did- so theories of language origins have generally been
based on hunches. For centuries there have been so much fruitless speculation
over the question of how language began that when the Paris Linguistic Society
was founded in 1866, its by-laws included a ban on any discussions of it. The
early theories are now referred to by the nicknames given to them by language
scholars fed up unsupportable just-so stories.

It is an intriguing question, to which we may never have a complete answer.

How did we get from animal vocalization (barks, howls, etc.) to human language?
Animals make use of signs, which point to what they represent, but they don’t
use symbols, which arbitrary and conventional. Examples of signs include
sniffles as a sign of an on-coming cold, clouds as a sign of rain, or a scent as a
sign of territory. Symbols include things like the words we use. Dog, Hund,
chien, cane, perro—these are symbols that refer to the creature so named, yet
each one contains nothing in it that in anyway indicates that creature.

1.1 The Bow-wow Theory

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The Bow-wow theory is any of the theories by various scholars, including

Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Johann Gottfried, on the origins of human
language. Bow-wow theories suggest that the first human languages developed
as onomatopoeia, imitations of natural sounds.
It is known as The Bow-Wow Theory by British philologist Friedrich Muller,
who proposed it in the 19 th century. He suggested that language arose as the
result of onomatopoeia, the emulation of sounds occurring naturally around man,
thunder, sneeze, splash, etc.
The basic idea of this theory, from the natural-sound-source, is that early
primitive words could have been imitations of natural sounds which were heard by
the first human and echoed to mimic the sounds of the world around them.
The idea behind this theory is that the first humans imitated animal sounds in
order to refer to a certain animal. So, when the first humans heard a bird making
a tweet-sound, they could have imitated that sound to tell one of their fellows,
“Hey, a bird just flew by.”

Unfortunately, this theory only works to a limited extent as if becomes

quite difficult to imitate the sound of a rock, a tree or a cave. The bow-wow
theory does not adequately explain the creation of words for inanimate or
soundless objects nor does it explain how grammar or syntax developed. The
bow-wow theory seems to assume that a language is only based on a set of
words naming objects, therefore, it is not considered to be a complete explanation
for the origin of language.

1.2 The Pooh-pooh Theory

An another version of language developing from natural sounds is provided by

the pooh-pooh theory. According to this hypothesis the first words developed
from the natural cries of emotion made by the first humans. Exclamations of joy,
anger, pain or surprise such as Ouch!, Ah!, Wow!, or Hey! might have been the
very first utterances of our ancestors.

But, like the bow-woe theory, this is also just an assumption and rather
restricted explanation for the origins of language. Emotional expressions such as
Ah! Are mostly produced with sudden intakes of brain and happen rather
unintentionally. The expressive noises people make as an emotional reaction
can hardly be considered as words and are therefore, unlikely to be the source of
language.

1.3 The Yo-heave-ho Theory

According this theory, language arouse in rhythmic chants and vocalisms

uttered by people involved in communal labor. The first humans might have
developed a set of various grunts or calls that were uttered in a certain
rhythmic order to provide a group with instructions. Those work songs would
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have to match the rhythm of the work that had to be done. “Yo-heave-ho” for
example could have been used when a group of humans was trying to lift
something up.

Although it’s an interesting idea it does not explain the origins of the
sounds that were produced. It is uncertain form this hypothesis how
meanings came to be associated with the calls uttered by the workers.

1.4 The Gesture Theory

A quite different approach trying to reveal the origins of language is made

by the theory of an oral-gesture source. It suggests that the evolution of sounds
involves a connection between physical gestures and orally produced sounds.

Most of our physical gestures are means of communication. Even with

the ability of speech, we frequently use our hands, face and body to express
certain emotions and intentions. The oral-gesture theory assumes a very close
link between physical and oral gesture.

The idea behind this is that the first humans possessed a set of physical
gestures that could be used to communicate with each other. As time passed by
oral gestures developed that resembled the movements made with hands and
body. Those oral gestures, particularly involving tongue, lips, and mouth, used
patterns that were similar to physical gestures such as waving. So, instead of
saying “Goodbye” by waving a hand, it is proposed that early humans started
waving their tongues.

This theory is rather questionable as oral and physical gestures are very
limited in expressing various intentions. Although it is possibly to mime simple
expressions, it remains quite difficult to visualize long and complex sentences
such as “My car is broken so I took my wife’s car to get to work.” The theory of
an oral-gesture source may be reasonable to some extent but, it does not expose
the origins of language completely.

1.5 The Glossogenetics

The speculations about the origins of language known under the name
glossogenetics focus particularly on the biological basis and evolution of
language, assuming that some distinctive physical features enable us to link.

It all starts with the ability of two-legged locomotion that distinguishes us from
other primates and probably led to other physical changes required for producing
words. If we compare a human’s mouth to an ape, we will notice certain
differences:

-Unlike an ape’s teet, those of humans are upright which is quite helpful in
producing such sounds as f, v, and th.
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-The human mouth is rather small and can be opened and closed rapidly,
human lips are more flexible than those of apes and can produce p and b sounds.

-The human tongue is very flexible and can be used to produce a large variety
of different sounds such as I.

An essential organ in producing sounds is the larynx, or voice box. Due to the
human’s upright posture, the larynx differs in position from that of apes. The
human larynx has moved lower what created a bigger cavity, called pharynx
which marks as an resonator for sounds produced in the larynx and enables us to
produce a larger range of different sounds.

There are obviously many physical features that were crucial in the
development of speech but unfortunately, one of them gives us exact insight how
the human communication system including syntax and other grammatical
practices or abstract concepts was created.

1.6 Ding-dong Theory

A theory that language originated out a natural correspondence between

objects of sense perception and the vocal noises which were part of early
human’s reaction to them –comparable to the bow-wow, pooh-pooh theories.

The one who proposed this theory was Max Muller, a linguist. The pooh-pooh
theory saw the first words as emotional interjections and exclamations triggered
by pain, pleasure, surprise, etc. which are associated with ding-dong. He
suggested what he called the ding-dong theory which states that all things have
a vibrating natural resonance, echoed somehow by man in his earliest words.

1.7 The sing-song theory

This contends that human speech arose from rhythmic primitive chnats
associated with ritual dance. Naturally, without language , no early humans wrote
down a specific beginning.

The sing-song theory suggested that language comes out of play, laughter,
cooing, courtship, emotional muttherings, and the like. It is suggested that
contrary to other theories, perhaps some of our first words are actually long and
musical, rather than the short grunts many assume we started with.

1.8 The Goo-goo Theory

Florida scientists believe the know why complex language evolved.

Blame it to the baby talk. At least 1.6 m years ago, some human ancestor
mothers started saying goo-goo and ba-ba to ther babies as a way of keeping in
touch. This may hold the key to the emergence of language.

1.9 The Divine Source

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In most religions, it is believed that languages is a God-given gift to human

species. So, God punished them by separating their languages. People tried to
discover the original language which was spoken by our most ancient ancestors.

1.10 The Biblical Theory

The Hebrew Bible attributes the origin of language per se to humans, with
Adam being asked to name the creatures that God had created. The Tower of
Babel passage from Genesis tells of God punishing humanity for arrogance and
disobedience by means of the confusion of tongues.

There are other theories about the origins of language. Many of these have
traditional amusing names (invented by Max Muller and George Romanes a
century ago).

a. The ta-ta theory - The idea that speech came from the use of tongue
and mouth gestures to mimic manual gestures. For example, saying ta-at
is like waving goodbye with your tongue, but most of the things we talk
about do not have characteristic gestures associated with them, much
less gestures you can imitate with the tongue and mouth.
b. The la-la theory – The idea that speech emerged from the sounds of
inspired playfulness, love, poetic sensibility, and song. This one is lovely,
and no more or less likely than any of the others.
c. The ma-ma or da-da theory – Determines that children begin to
comprehend the meaning of words as early as 6 months of age. Within
the first babbing streams of chaotic baby talk, infants normally Manage to
disgorge two real words: Mama and Dada

CONCLUSION:

Although all of the theories presented seem to be quite sensible, none of them
can be named as the ultimate origin of language. Human language perhaps
developed from a combination of all theories we just do not know whether
language emerged in one of the several place or at different times in our history.
It seems that language appeared from nowhere, since no other species has
anything resembling human language. However, other animals do possess basic
systems for perceiving and producing sounds that enable them to communicate.
These systems may have been in place before the appearance of language. The
mystery of language may be hidden in our genes, waiting for scientists to identify
the genetic program responsible for the uniquely human ability.
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EXERCISE 1:

1. Present the your concluding statements to the following theories: Divine

source, ta-ta, goo-goo, biblical, and sing-song.
NOTE: Please copy the essay questions in your answer sheet/s, do not
forget to write your name.

Lesson 2: KEY CONCEPTS ON LANGUAGE LEARNING AND ACQUISITION

It is necessary to establish the meaning of two key terms: acquisition and

learning. The process of learning a second language is distinguished from
acquisition, with the latter being a subconscious process of gradual development
of ability through use in natural communicative situations with other speakers.
The focus is not the form of the speaker’s utterances, but meaningful interaction
through the act of communication itself, meaning that language users are largely
unaware of the rate or sequence of their development. Lightbown and Spada
(2001) observe that acquisition occurs during the formative years of one’s life -
usually commencing in early childhood before age three - and that it is learned as
part of growing up among people who speak it fluently. In contrast, learning is
differentiated as a more conscious and explicitly sequenced process of
‘accumulating knowledge of linguistic features such as vocabulary, sentence
structure and grammar, typically in an institutional setting. The difference between
these ways of developing language competence is manifest most clearly in their
outcomes: through acquisition the contextual understanding of the language is
gained, and through learning, knowledge ‘about’ the language: ‘knowing the rules,
being aware of them, and being able to talk about them.

2.1 The Innateness of a Human Person

Language is not an autonomous system for communication. It is

embedded in and supplemented by gesture, gaze, stance, facial expression,
voice quality in the full array of options people can use for communicating.
Learning is complex and the context where it takes place is influenced by our
learning experience due to our different experiences. Moreover, Chomsky (2009)
argues that language learning is not really something that the child does; it is
something that happens to the child placed in an appropriate environment much
as the child’s body grows and matures in a predetermined way when provided
with appropriate nutrition and environmental stimulation.
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Is the process by which humans acquire the capacity to perceive and

comprehend language, as well as to produce and use words and sentences to
communicate. Language acquisition involves structures, rules, and
representation. For example, isf a baby hears the word “milk” often enough right
before being fed from the bottle, he’ll soon learn what that word means. Through
a process of trial and error, a child (of a second language learner) will be able to
learn correct grammar.

The language acquisition theory states that children are able to

communicate with their surrounding environment and world. Language thus is
dependent upon and emerges from social interaction. Chomsky based his theory
on the idea that all languages contain similar structures and rules (a universal
grammar), and the fact that children everywhere acquire language the same way,
and without much effort, seems to indicate that we’re born wired with the basics
already present in our brains.

5 types of language acquisition

1. Preproduction
2. Early Production
3. Speech Emergence
4. Intermediate Fluency
5. Advanced Fluency

2.3 Language Learning

Language learning is the process by which humans acquire the capacity

to use language. The fundamental difference to the language acquisition is that
the learning is the result of the direct instruction in the rules of language. In
language acquisition, learning is acquired through subconscious process during
which they are unaware of grammatical rules.

Studies have shown that learning another language can enhance

knowledge of English structure and vocabulary, as well as help students score
significantly higher in math and language arts.

The connection between language, thought and knowledge is so profound

that is also leads to a connection between language and power. Through
language you can influence and shape thought. You may subconsciously after
the way people speak and think.

2.4 First Language Acquisition

Language acquisition is the process whereby children acquire their first

languages. All humans (without exceptional physical or mental disabilities) have
an innate capability to acquire language. Children may acquire one or more first
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languages. For example, children who grow up in an environment in which only

English is spoken and heard will acquire only English as their first language.

However, children who grow up in an environment in which both German

and English as their first languages. Acquisition occurs passively and
unconsciously through implicit learning. In other words, children do not need
explicit instruction to learn their first languages but rather than seem to just “pick
up” language in the same way they learn to roll over, crawl, and walk. Language
acquisition in children just seems to happen.

Acquisition (as opposed to learning) depends on children receiving

linguistic input during the critical period. The critical period is defined as the
window of time, up to about the age of twelve or puberty, in which humans can
acquire first languages. Children must receive adequate linguistic input including
phonology (speech sounds), semantics (vocabulary and learning), grammar
(syntax or word order and morphology or grammatical markers), and pragmatics
(use and context) and prosody (intonation, rhythm, stress) before the end of the
crucial period in order to acquire their first languages. If linguistic input is not
adequate, children will never fully acquire language. Language acquisition
cannot normally occur after the critical period because the brain becomes
“hardwired” to the first language.

2.5 Second Language Learning

Language learning, in contrast to language acquisition, is the process

whereby humans past the critical period learn second languages. All humans
have the ability to learn additional languages although, just as with other areas of
study like math or science, some people are better at learning second languages
than others. Older children and adults may learn one or more second languages.
For example, a woman who acquired French as a child and learned English as an
adult would have one first language (French) and one second language (English).
Similarly, a man who acquired Japanese as a child and learned English and
Spanish as an adult would also have one first language (Japanese) but two
second languages (English and Spanish).

As opposed to acquisition, learning occurs actively and unconsciously

through explicit instruction and education. In other words, older children and
adults past the critical period need explicit teaching to learn their second
languages. Language learning requires explicit instruction in speaking and
hearing additional languages. For example, while children who acquire English
as their first language just seem unconsciously and without instruction to “know”
that most adjectives precede nouns in English, those same children as adults
must be taught that most adjectives follow nouns in Spanish. The brains of first
language English speakers have become “hardwired” to innately accept only an
adjective-noun pattern; in order to successfully learn Spanish as second
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language, those English speakers must consciously learn the different pattern of
noun-adjective. Or rather, second language learners must “retrain” the brain to
accept language systems outside the confines of the first language.

2.6 Language Immersion

Language immersion is a second language learning methods in which

language learners immerse themselves in the target (second) language. For
example, Spanish language learners might plan a Spanish immersion experience
through an extended vacation to a Spanish-speaking country and communicate
only with the Spanish language. Parents who want their children to learn French
as a second language might enroll their children into a school with a language
immersion program that teaches all subjects (match, science, social studies) in
the French language. The goal of language immersion is to create a linguistic
environment that mimics the environment of the first language acquisition. The
idea behind language immersion is that, if all incoming (auditory) communication
is in the target language, the students will eventually be compelled to use the
target language for all outgoing (spoken) communication. The outcome of
language immersion is language learning, not language acquisition.

2.7 Second Language Acquisition

The theory behind language learning programs is that adults pastthe

critical period can acquire language. Although some older children and adults
san seemingly acquire languages in addition to their first, people must learn
second languages. Such language learning programs fail to take into account
that people learn second languages differently from the acquisition of first
languages, by ignoring the differences between language acquisition and
language learning. While all children before the critical period can innately
acquire their first languages, most adults past the critical period must learn
second languages through explicit education and instruction.

In addition to the problems with the claim of second language acquisition,

any language learning programs also mistakenly claim to teach second
languages through language immersion. For example, Rosetta Stone proclaims
that its language learning programs help people learn second languages naturally
by providing a “completely immersive environment” that creates on the computer
the childhood experience of “speaking instinctively by experiencing the world.”
Instant immersion similarly claims to “immerse learners in authentic dialogue and
traditions” through its language learning programs. However, authentic language
immersion cannot happen through a computer program. Instead, real language
learning through language immersion can only occur when language learners
physically and mentally immerse themselves in a linguistic environment with
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adequate linguistic input from the target language. Computer software cannot
replicate actual linguistic interactions.

2.8 Language Competence

Is the ability to do something successfully or efficiently. In linguistics, it is

the speaker’s subconscious, intuitive knowledge of the rules of language. The
term language competence refers to the unconscious knowledge of grammar that
allows a speaker to use and understand a language. Also, known as
grammatical competence that simply refers to the innate knowledge of a person
to match sounds and meanings.

2.9 Language Performance

It is the speaker’s creativity to understand and use the language in a

certain situation even not totally following the rules of language. The human
creative ability in language use is not just what we choose to say at a particular
moment in a particular situation. Our creative ability is reflected not only in what
we say but also includes our understanding of the language. Simple
memorization of all the possible sentences in a performance is impossible in this
principle of language performance.

CONCLUSION

First language acquisition differs from second language learning in that children
acquire first languages innately and passively while adults learn second
languages actively through explicit education and instruction. Older children and
adults past the critical period can successfully learn second language through
language immersion. However, many language learning programs that promise
language acquisition through immersion fall to take into account the differences
between first language acquisition and second language learning as well as the
necessary linguistic environment for authentic language immersion programs can
reinforce the learning that language linguistic environment for authentic language
immersion. Nonetheless, language immersion programs can reinforce the
learning that language learners gained through explicit second language
education and instruction.

2.10 Features Common to All Languages

There are a lot of questions that can be asked about language, some
scientific, some not. One such question is: Which is the oldest language in the
world? Several centuries ago, researchers were much concerned with this
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question, however, it does not have a reliable answer, simply because we cannot
go so far into the history of humanity.
Another often asked question is about the features that all natural human
languages share. The American linguist Charles Hockett has pointed out a
number of such properties. Here are some of them:
a) all languages have vowels and consonants;
b) all languages have words;
c) all languages can create new words when required and modify their
meanings;
d) all languages are open-ended in the sense that they can produce totally
new utterances which are understood by the users of the language;
e) all languages can form questions;
f) in all languages it is possible to talk about things and situations that are
removed from the immediate situation of the speaker (this is called displacement);
g) in all languages we can use hypothetical, unreal, and fictional
utterances.
Thus, as we can see, human linguistic knowledge involves numerous
different aspects. People are able to produce sounds and to understand the
sounds produced by others, and those sequences of sounds signify meanings.
The relation between the linguistic form (written or spoken word or expression)
and meaning is arbitrary, i.e. there is no direct physical correspondence between
a linguistic expression and the entity in the world to which that expression refers.
For example, there is no explicit relationship between the English word window
and the object itself. In other languages the same concept is represented
differently (e.g. langas in Lithuanian, okno in Russian, das Fenster in German,
etc.). There are certain words in most languages whose pronunciation to some
extent suggests their meaning. These are onomatopoeic words that imitate the
sounds associated with the things, creatures or actions that they refer to. For
instance, meow imitates the sound made by a cat, splash imitates the sound of
liquid hitting something or being moved around quickly, whoosh means to move
very fast with a soft rushing sound. However, even onomatopoeic words are not
exact phonetic imitations of natural sounds. Therefore, their forms often differ
from language to language (compare the English bow-wow and the Lithuanian
au-au as imitations of dog barking).
All natural languages are creative, because they allow innovation in
response to new experiences, situations, and scientific discoveries. Creativity is a
very important feature of all natural human languages. The human creative ability
in language use is not just what we choose to say at a particular moment in a
particular situation but also includes our understanding of a new sentence that we
have never heard before. According to Fromkin et al., the sentence “Daniel
Boone decided to become a pioneer because he dreamed of pigeon-toed giraffes
and cross-eyed elephants dancing in pink skirts and green berets on the wind-
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swept plains of the Midwest” will be understood by the native speakers of English.
Most likely, no one will believe the sentence; its logic will surely be questioned;
but everyone speaking English can understand it, though it was probably never
produced before. Noam Chomsky was one of the first to speak about this human
ability to understand new sentences as part of the creative aspect of language
use.
Another example of language creativity can be given on the lexical level.
Imagine that a new substance has been created that helps to preserve food
ecologically and for a long time. Imagine that this substance has been called
sperte; then the food preserved in such a way would be spertical, and the process
of preservation would be called spertcalization. This example illustrates the
possibility to create completely new words but, on the other hand, the limitations
of creativity, since the derived words of the new coinage follow the already
established rules of affixation in English.
Natural languages are also often redundant, that is, the same meaning
may be signalled more than once. First of all, redundancy may be external, i.e.
indicated through gestures and facial expressions. If I say: “He is my cousin” and
at the same time point at the only man in the room, I am using external
redundancy of gestures. If I say: “I don’t like the taste of this salad” and at the
same time frown, I am indicating my dislike through both my facial expression and
the use of the words “don’t like”. Redundancy may be internal, i.e. expressed just
through language. For example, in the sentence “John likes to check his e-mail
twice a day”, the information about the masculine gender of the agent is given in
the use of the personal name and in the pronoun his; singularity is signalled
through the subject and the verb form (likes) and the singular form of the pronoun
his.
All languages are systematic. In other words, they consist of patterns,
which recur in various combinations, and rules, which are applied to produce
these patterns. Without rules, it would be impossible to learn and use languages.
Every native speaker of English knows when to use the alternative forms of the
indefinite article a or an and uses them without conscious effort. Similarly, a
native speaker would use the form could have been asked but would not say
*been have could asked because this is also a native speaker’s intuitive
knowledge of the rules in the language.
All languages change. Of course, they may change in different ways
depending on social, political and other circumstances. Thus, their histories are
individual and different. English, for example, has borrowed words, especially
from French and Latin, to such an extent that purely native Anglo-Saxon words
hardly constitute the majority of present-day English.

2.11 Linguistic Knowledge

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Do we know only what we see, or do we see what we somehow already

know? – CYNTHIA OZICK, 2003.

When you know a language, you can speak and be understood by others
who know that language. This means that you have the capacity to produce
sounds that signify certain meanings and to understand and interpret the sounds
produced by others. But language is much more than speech. Deaf people
produce and understand sign languages just as hearing persons produce and
understand spoken languages. The language of the deaf communities
throughout the world are equivalent to spoken languages, differing only in their
modality of repression.
Most everyone knows at least one language. Five-year old children are
nearly as proficient at speaking and understanding as their parents. Yet the
ability to carry out the simplest conversation requires profound knowledge that
most speakers are unaware of. This is true for speakers of all languages, from
Albanian to Zulu. A speaker of English can produce a sentence having two
relative clauses without knowing what a relative clause is, such as
My goddaughter who was born in Manila and who now lives in Cebu is
Desha, after a Flores the Mayo queen.
In a parallel fashion, a child can talk without understanding of being able
to explain the principles of balance and support or the neurophysiological control
mechanisms that permit one to do so. The fact that we know something
unconsciously is not unique to language.

2.12 Knowledge of Words

Knowing the sounds and sound patterns in our language constitutes only
one part of our linguistic knowledge. Knowing a language means also knowing
that certain sequences of sounds signify certain concepts or meanings. Speakers
of English know what boy means, and that it means something different from toy
and boy are words, but moy is not. When you know a language, you know words
in that language , that is, which sequences of sounds are related to specific
meanings and which are not.
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EXERCISE 2 :

1. What are the opportunities of being language competent?

2. Provide explanations of the five types of language acquisition.

NOTE: Please copy the essay questions in your answer sheet/s, do not
forget to write your name.

TIMEFRAME FOR DISCUSSIONS

Coverage Topic/s Page Allotted Dates Remarks
Number/s
Lesson 1 1. THEORIES OF 1-5
ORIGIN OF
HUMAN
LANGUAGE
Lesson 2 2. KEY 6-15
CONCEPTS ON
LANGUAGE
LEARNING AND
ACQUISITION

SUMMARY OF EXERCISES

No. Detail/s Coverage Page Due Date Remarks

Number/s
1 Exercises 1. THEORIES OF 6
ORIGIN OF HUMAN
LANGUAGE
2 Exercises 2. KEY CONCEPTS 14
ON LANGUAGE
LEARNING AND
ACQUISITION
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NOTES:
a. All answers must be written on a clean sheet of paper (yellow paper or
long bond paper.
b. Provide a long-sized blue envelop with the following information in bold
letters:
b.1 Full name
b.2 Course and Year
b.3 Cellular Telephone Number
b.4 Address
b.5 Write the name of your instructor
GAUDENCIO M. ALAYA-AY, JR., PhD
c. Place inside the envelop all your answers. (OPTIONAL)
d. Drop your envelop in the designated center of your place.
******GOOD LUCK*****