✅ The argument for
Name Senghas (1995). Say that deaf children with no language to copy created a grammatical language, and the younger learners made a richer one. Link this to the LAD, universal grammar and the critical period.
Biological Explanation of Language Acquisition » Arguments Against Chomsky and Application
What you'll learn this session
Study time: 30 minutes
Cambridge spec: 6.2.6, 6.2.7
- The argument against Chomsky: language is not just down to biology
- How culture and social contact shape the language, accent and words a child learns
- How to apply the biological explanation to new scenarios
- How to build a strong 8-mark answer with an argument for and an argument against
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Unlock This CourseThe argument against Chomsky
In the last few lessons you met the biological explanation of language acquisition. Chomsky said children are born with a language acquisition device (LAD) that holds universal grammar, and that there is a critical period for learning language. In the last lesson, Senghas (1995) gave an argument for this idea.
The syllabus gives one argument against it: language acquisition is not just influenced by biology. Cultural and social factors matter too.
Key terms:
- Cultural factors: the language, customs and ways of speaking of the community a child grows up in.
- Social factors: the people a child talks and plays with, and how much they talk to the child.
Why biology is not the whole story
Chomsky's theory says the brain is ready for language. But being ready is not the same as knowing a particular language. A baby is not born knowing English, Urdu or Mandarin. The child has to learn which one is spoken around them.
🗣 Language
Children learn the language of the people around them. A child in Poland learns Polish. A child in Kenya may learn Swahili. Biology alone cannot explain this.
🎤 Accent
Children copy the accent they hear. Two children with the same brain structure sound different if they grow up in Glasgow and in Cardiff.
📚 Words
Children pick up the words used at home, at school and by friends. Local words, family words and slang all come from the people around them.
Social contact matters too. Children who have lots of conversations with adults hear more words and have more chances to practise. A child who is talked to very little has fewer chances to learn, even though they have the same inborn ability.
Learn this
Argument against Chomsky: language acquisition is not just influenced by biology. Cultural and social factors, such as the language, accent and words of the people around the child and how much adults talk with them, also shape what a child learns.
The alternative explanation, learning theory, puts more weight on the environment. It is the next topic, so we only mention it here.
Applying the biological explanation
The exam often gives you a short scenario about a person and asks you to use the biological explanation. Follow three steps:
- Spot the clue. Is it about a brain area, aphasia, the LAD, universal grammar or the critical period?
- Name the idea. Use the correct key term.
- Link it to the scenario. Use details from the scenario to explain the link.
Scenario 1: Mr Okafor
Mr Okafor has a serious illness that damages part of his brain. Afterwards he understands everything people say to him, but his speech is slow, with few words, and he finds it very hard to say what he wants. Which type of aphasia might he have? Explain your answer. [2 marks]
Model answer
He might have Broca's aphasia (1). His understanding is fine but his speech is slow and hard, which fits damage to Broca's area, the brain area for speech production (1).
Scenario 2: Mia
Mia is 2 years old. Nobody has taught her grammar rules, but she is starting to put words in a sensible order, such as "want milk". Use the biological explanation to explain why. [2 marks]
Model answer
Chomsky said children are born with a language acquisition device (1). It holds universal grammar, so Mia is ready to use grammar rules without being taught them (1).
Scenario 3: Tomasz
Tomasz is 14. He moved to a new country when he was 13 and had never heard the local language before. His younger sister, aged 4, now speaks it easily, but Tomasz finds it much harder. Use the biological explanation to explain the difference. [2 marks]
Model answer
Chomsky suggested there is a critical period when language is learned most easily (1). Tomasz is past the critical period, so learning a language is harder for him, while his sister is still within it (1).
Building the 8-mark answer
Some questions ask you to discuss the biological explanation. A strong answer has a balance of both sides, then a conclusion.
❌ The argument against
Say that language acquisition is not just biology. Give an example of cultural or social factors, such as children learning the language, accent and words of the people around them.
Finish with a short conclusion that says which side you find stronger and why. A good conclusion might say that biology gives the ability, but the environment decides which language is learned.
Common mistakes
- Saying the argument against is that children are not born with any ability. The syllabus argument is that biology is not the only influence.
- Repeating the general strengths and limitations lists from earlier lessons. Use the one argument the syllabus gives.
- Writing "children learn language" without an example. Say what is learned: the language, the accent or the words.
- In a scenario, naming the idea but not linking it to the person. Always use details from the scenario.
Exam-style question
(a) Describe one argument against Chomsky's biological explanation of language acquisition. [2 marks]
(b) Sana is 5. She has just started at a new school, and her accent has begun to change to sound like her friends. Explain what this suggests about Chomsky's biological explanation. [2 marks]
Model answer
(a) Language acquisition is not just influenced by biology (1). Cultural and social factors matter too, for example children learn the language and words of the people around them (1).
(b) It suggests that social factors also affect language (1). Sana is copying the accent of the people around her, so biology cannot be the only influence (1).
Exam tip
In part (b), use the details in the question (the new school and her friends). Answers that only repeat the argument without using the scenario lose marks.