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Critical Period Hypothesis (What is it? (Ideal ages to learn a language…
Critical Period Hypothesis
What is it?
Ideal ages to learn a language
After a certaing age it requires more effort
Acquiring a native level of fluency, requires starting before a certain age
Critical period ends around puberty
There are different crucial periods for grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation learning
After this period, humans use different learning techniques that are not as effective
Who invented it?
Wilder Penfield & Lamar Roberts
Book
'Speech and Brain Mechanisms’
in 1959 focused on the neuroscience of language
It's easier for children to learn multiple languages
Until 13 years of age, language is present in both hemispheres of the brain
Examples
Victor (
The wild child
)
In 1799 a 12 year old child was found in the woods
For the next 5 years, experts tried to teach them how to socialize and speak
Genie
She spent 11 years tied to a chair in a dark room, her father only barked and growled at her
She was found when she was 23
In both cases, after years of and rehabilitation they were not able to achieve a good level of language
Other factors should be taken into account for this to be conclusive evidence
Criticisms
Native accents don't define a level of language
Hypothesis is too broad and evidence does not support it fully
Different interpretations of this hypothesis
Children are prone to learning languages with ease due to their need to survive
It is argued that if we have to live through a foreign language this natural urge can be triggered