Teresa Satterfield

Toward a Sociogenetic Solution Examining Language Formation Processes Through SWARM Modeling

Creole languages are often a point of contention for theoretical linguistics. Broadly defined, creoles result from an amalgamation of two or more languages, when speakers of differing mother tongues need rudimentary communication during economic or social transactions. Creolization occurs if the “invented” system becomes the native language of the speech community. There are several hypotheses for how biological linguistic properties and social contact each bear on the formation of creoles; however, until recently, no reliable method for testing these complex interactions existed. Implementing SWARM 2.1.1, the current model consists of a multiagent population drawn from historical records of Surinamese sugar cane plantations. Each agent in this artificial society is endowed with a demographic profile and linguistic parameters. Three experiments using the SWARM model are described. The results provide viable motivation for advancing a “sociogenetic” solution for the emergence of prototypical creole languages.

Understanding the Impact of Heritage Language on Ethnic Identity Formation and Literacy for u.s. Latino Children

Studies show positive associations between ethnic identity, socio-emotional health and academic success. However, most work is carried out with adolescents and few have examined how young children develop an ethnic identity, particularly U.S. Latino children. The present study represents a first-pass investigation of children’s ethnic identity mechanisms and their relation to academic success. We carried out semi-structured interviews in Spanish with 25 Latino children (ages 5–12). Open-ended questions addressed items on the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure and Ethnic Identity Scale, incorporating a mixed qualitative (i.e., themes) and quantitative (i.e., scoring) analysis. Results revealed that children provide great detail when discussing their ethnic background. Additionally, Latino children’s bilingualism and Spanish-language proficiency were significant markers of ethnic identity formation, which in turn were positively associated with affect and Spanish literacy. These findings shed light on the complexities of ethnic identity construction during children’s early years, and establish a path for further investigation of Latino children’s socio-emotional health and academic achievement.

The effects of Spanish heritage language literacy on English reading for Spanish–English bilingual children in the US

ABSTRACT Models of monolingual literacy propose that reading acquisition builds upon children’s semantic, phonological, and orthographic knowledge. The relationships between these components vary cross-linguistically, yet it is generally unknown how these differences impact bilingual children’s literacy. A comparison between Spanish–English bilingual and English monolingual children (ages 6–13, N = 70) from the US revealed that bilinguals had stronger associations between phonological and orthographic representations than monolinguals during English reading. While vocabulary was the strongest predictor of English word reading for both groups, phonology and morphosyntax were the best predictors of Spanish reading for bilinguals. This comparison reveals distinct developmental processes across learners and languages, and suggests that early and systematic biliteracy exposure at home and through afterschool programs can influence children’s sound-to-print associations even in the context of language-specific (monolingual) reading instruction. These findings have important implications for bilingual education as well as theories that aim to explain how learning to read across languages has a positive impact on the acquisition of literacy.

Language acquisition recapitulates language evolution

Christiansen & Chater (C&C) focus solely on general-purpose cognitive processes in their elegant conceptualization of language evolution. However, numerous developmental facts attested in L1 acquisition confound C&Cs subsequent claim that the logical problem of language acquisition now plausibly recapitulates that of language evolution. I argue that language acquisition should be viewed instead as a multi-layered construction involving the interplay of general and domain-specific learning mechanisms.

Book Reviews: A minimalist approach to intrasentential code switching: Jeff MacSwan (1999) New York: Garland Publishing. ISBN 0-8153-3274-2 (hardback); pp. 306

language in the official category “Indian” which defines Tamil as its mother tongue. For this group as well as for others, mundane concerns have to deal with the negotiation of the second language topic. However the first language, which is English, is not negotiated due to its primacy as a world language. Negotiation of a mother tongue is related to language on life trajectory in every day practices. Life trajectory reflects the importance of a gender issue based on the way male and female rules are perceives. Negotiation of Tamil as a mother language follows from the principle of male dominance and female dependency and the fact that the male has the power of decision making. A person’s race and mother tongue are determined by his/her father’s mother tongue. This is generated by the tradition which assumes that ethnicity is handed from son to father as a women marries out of the family. It is therefore easier for a man to marry from outside the family while a female’s choice is restricted by race or ethnicity. Whether a woman speaks the language or not becomes a fundamental issue when there is a child/children. The notion of a mother tongue is also related to its relevances in couple’s lives and its place in their home. In any case, choice of a second language is determined by the fact that in language negotiation the power to decide is male. Therefore, this book helps understanding of the intersection of race, language, and gender and the way these categories are manipulated to maintain and reproduce social inequalities.

Genetic Algorithms and Language Learning Models

The previous chapter identified several capabilities that a parameter-setting strategy needs if it is to bring about language learning with reasonable efficiency. In this chapter, I describe an approach to parameter setting which stems from the use of genetic algorithms (GAs) in the optimization of search procedures. To understand how this alternative approach compares to the possible solutions to the learning problem as explored in Chapter Two, we consider the merits of incorporating Darwin’s (1859) theory of survival-of-the-fittest within natural genetics. This is a fairly involved chapter, as it covers a lot of pertinent background information before arriving at the actual description of the proposed bilingual model; therefore, it may be useful to preview the course of exposition.

Background for Research

In order to construct a working model for the bilingual learning system, this investigation is, by necessity, cross-disciplinary in nature. In addition to formal learnability theory, in this chapter I rely heavily on concepts found in theoretical linguistics, psycholinguistics, and language acquisition theory. In subsequent chapters, techniques found in computational (mathematical) theory and biology are utilized.

Analysis of Null Subjects

Before proceeding to a simulation of bilingual learning, it is important to present a pivotal feature of this inquiry. While I am examining Spanish-English and Chinese-English grammars acquire of the current theories of parameter-setting within the UG framework d by bilingual children, the key focus is on the Null Subject Parameter (NSP).57