The Mother Tongue
What is Noam Chomsky's position on how children learn language as noted in the nonfiction book, The Mother Tongue?
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Asked by
Jill W
Last updated by
Jill W
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Noam Chomsky contends that children bring with them certain "ground rules" that help them learn language. This theory is based on the idea that children have an inherent interest in speech sounds as opposed to other sounds. Furthermore, children from different language backgrounds go through many of the same stages when learning to speak, showing a clear progression toward a grammatical complexity and fluency. Such learning is not explained simply by the contact that children have with parents.
The Mother Tongue