Paul Roberts writes that, "Baby talk is not so much invented by the child as sponsored by the parent." This makes sense since we are just excited to hear children speak at all, and any nuances they have are deemed cute. I've rarely been around young children, so it's easy for me to talk, but I wonder why adults positively reinforce incorrect speech (such as the muzzer-mother example used). They must realize that as soon as their children enter the "real world" of kindergarten, they're going to be isolated for their speech differences. Adults also seem to lay the groundwork for baby talk when they goo-goo at babies. If those are some of the first words that newborns hear, then why shouldn't they assume that those sounds have actual meanings? In fact, I imagine it wouldn't be too far fetched for babies to think that their names might be goo-goo since adults usually say that into their faces and don't use it in conversation if the baby isn't around. This whole concept probably is the cause of the speech patterns that occur between twins. I don't know much about it, but I think that different types of speech are more prevalent in twins because they reinforce whatever speech oddities the other might have by just reflecting them back to each other. Since the public will be quick to pounce on these unusual patterns, and they will be more heartless about it, shouldn't parents try to correct these issues early and eliminate the problem? Or do they become so used to them they don't consider them "incorrect" any longer?
Comments (1)
We know that before speaking words, babies practice the sounds and intonations of language. Through interactions with parents, babies will mirror and learn early language skills. I think that much of this relates to the way that parents react and respond to the communication attempts of the baby. It seems as if adults often adjust their speech to children by using â??baby-talkâ?? to help them better understand, and I think that doing so can also help to socialize children with simplified language and to introduce them gradually to adult language.
It has been shown that babies prefer this infant-directed speech to normal talk. The exaggerated intonation of â??baby talkâ?? seems to attract and hold a babyâ??s attention. I think that using infant-directed speech does in fact help infants learn language by slowly preparing them for adult language. In a way, it must be effective because look at us today. Iâ??m sure at some point in our infancy someone spoke â??baby talkâ?? to us, and we have in fact developed adult language. This speech is also seen in many different languages, adding to its support.
Posted by Michele Tanous | February 28, 2008 8:47 PM
Posted on February 28, 2008 20:47