LANGUAGE LEARNING 2

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LANGUAGE LEARNING 2

• Communicative competence is the knowledge of
  cultural rules for appropriate use of language in
  social interactions. It includes the ability to
  utilize these rules in situated speech events,
  recognizing the intentions of speakers and the
  needs and rights of listeners (Bonvillain, 2003
  295).

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Last Class

• How is this communicative competence acquired?
• 2. How are children socialised into appropriate
  linguistic behaviour?
• 3. How linguistic practices are made to seem
  natural?

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Three examples

• White-middle-class, Samoan, Kaluli
• Socialization and enactment of roles
• Learning social rules differ from culture to
  culture
• Family important factor in socialization of rules

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Communicative Styles

• the overall basic normative principles which
  guide the form and use of languages in different
  speech communities (linguistic habitus)

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Models of language based on social functions
((M.A. K Halliday (1973)

• Instrumental
• Regulatory
• Interactional
• Personal
• Heuristic
• Imaginative
• Representational

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Social functions are universal, methods to
achieve them are not.
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Acquisition of communicative norms

• Differs from culture to culture
• Japanese emphasizes empathy
• Language to reinforce social harmony
• Protection of other peoples feelings
• Monitoring ones speech

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Different ways to teach norms (Japan)

• Patricia Clancy, (1986)
• Attention to others speech
• --Adult Are you eating something? What is in
  there?
• Child (no response)
• Mother I wonder what could be in there. Older
  sister is asking what is in there?
• Child Pudding

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Children are taught to respond positively

• Mother Do you say No? You must lend one to
  Hirochan, saying Help yourself. The baby is
  cute, isnt he?

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Through language socialisation people learn to
enact in language the range of social roles
available to them

• 1. A Kaluli person
• 2. A canadian politician

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Family and social and linguistic norms

• Provides models for
• Appropriate behaviour
• Social norms
• Gender relations
• Linguistic rules

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Linguistic socialisation of Gender roles

• Family instrumental is socialization of gender
  roles
• Example Socialization of directive speech acts
• ----Direct command get out of here
• ----Negative politeness would you mind leaving,
  Ive got a lot of work to finish

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Gleason (1987) direct speech acts

• Fathers
• --bald imperatives
• --directed to boys
• Ex Dont go in there or Ill break your head
• Mothers
• --used redressive techniques
• --spoke more, longer utterances

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Anderson (1986) role playing

• Similar results to Gleasons study
• Father puppets used more bald imperatives, took
  longer shorter turns
• Mother puppets used endearment, baby talk
  redressive action, took longer turns

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Child Tell me a story.Father Mommy
will.Child No, I want you toFather All
right. Sit down. Once upon a time. The
endChild Mommy, Im all done.Mother OK,
sweetie. Now its time for your naptime.Mother
Gotta get the baby tucked into beddy bye. Shes
not a sleepy. (to baby) Go to Sleep,
sleep, sleep, darling. Go to sleep. (Turn to
father) Dont you think its time to go to bed?
It is midnightwe should go to bed.
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Children Awareness of social meanings

• Use of linguistic directives appropriately
• --Example Expressing desire or need
• I need a match
• Give me a match directed to subordinates or
  equals
• Could you give me a match? directed to those of
  higher status than the speaker

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Similar results cross culturally

• Platt (1986) in Samoan society
• Properly sue of verb sau come
• Awareness of of social meaning embedded in
  language
• Contrary to imperative aumai give

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Summary

• Social norms ? linguistic styles ? communicative
  competence
• Language fulfills diverse functions for children
• Acquire communicative norms
• Such as linguistic gender styles

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Discussion Question

• Why is it anthropologically important to
  understand the different ways in which people in
  various cultures acquire communicative norms?

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