ENG235

This course considers the acquisition of human language as a biologically based and species-specific communication system. The interaction, from infancy through early and later childhood, between biological preparedness and environmental influence is studied, as is the development of phonology (sound system), lexicon (vocabulary), syntax (sentence structure), and pragmatics (language use). The developmental phases through which a young learner passes as the language systems develop are also studied in this course. Bilingualism, dialect, language disorder, and early written language development are considered.