Speech

The extracts in which I have analysed are conversations between a young child, Danny and his mother. The three stages are approximately 3 months apart from each other. Stage A at 21 months, Stage B at 24 months, and Stage C at 27 months.

All children are unique in their language development and they’re difficult to study. Their concentration p usually affects how they can be studied, often the child will wander off or just simply be uncooperative in any way possible.

Children are usually very inconsistent and sometimes it is difficult to determine whether the child is actually learning language or whether imitative behaviour is playing a role. E.g. “Hello” “Hello.”

Everybody has a limited vocabulary, this is especially obvious in young children often the evidence of a child putting a sentence together is ambiguous. E.g. “I doing like this all day” depending on the context and the tone of voice this sentence could mean He likes doing something all day (with incorrect word order) Or he’s behaving like this all the time (where the problem may be a limited vocabulary)

Finally, there is a time lag between understanding language and production of language, especially where children are concerned they can always take in more than they can produce in their own language.

Concerning language theories it is difficult to determine at what age a child should be able to a specific skill, however below is a guideline of which acquisition skills are usually achieved and at what age.

6-8 weeks: cooing (repeating vowel sounds)

6-7 months: babbling (consonants and intonation) Reduplicated babbling (babababa)

10 months: gestures, pointing

11-12 months: variegated babbling (bigodabu)

12 months: one-word utterances “ball,” “water,” “up”

18 months: Telegraphic speech Two-word utterances in their simplest form (“baby cry,” “push truck”)

2 – 3 years Morphology Use of function words, prefixes, suffixes (ing endings prepositions, plural) Over-regularisation’s, Syntax Sentences gradually become longer, more complex “Daddy ball” “Daddy throw ball” “Will you throw the ball, Daddy?”

Below are some theories of Language Development

Nativistic-There is an inborn language acquisition devise (LAD) that transforms the surface structure of language into an internal deep structure that the child readily understands.

Cognitive-Developmental- Cognitive and language development progress together. Children are analysing content prior to extracting grammatical structures.

Environmental Learning – The environment provides children with requisite learning experiences to acquire language. Parents facilitate language acquisition by providing a language acquisition support system (LASS).

The preverbal period – Speech Perception – Babies are born with categorical perception of many speech contrasts, including many that do not occur in their own language. Exposure to specific contrasts of their own language facilitates discrimination ability, such that older children and adults can no longer hear many speech contrasts that young infants can discriminate. Babies prefer speech sounds to other sounds, particularly the rising and falling intonations many adults use when speaking to young children (i.e. “motherese”). The preverbal period – Early Sounds and Gestures. The first sounds are cries and guttural physiological noises. – Cooing appears at about 2 months, while reduplicated babbling begins at 6 months. Near the end of the first year, babbling becomes more speech-like in sound and intonation. Gestures serve many pragmatic functions for infants, initially taking the form of requests (e.g., gesture to be picked up) and referential communication (pointing), and later functioning as symbols to label objects, events, and attributes.

At approximately 12-months children utter what is recognised by most parents to be their first words. While the first word utterance may appear sudden and discontinuous, it is in fact part of a gradual and continuous process. At approximately 18-months, children’s vocabularies increase rapidly, with nouns comprising the majority of children’s first words. This has been called the naming explosion. There are large individual differences in the proportion of nouns children use. Some children use a high proportion of nouns in what is termed a “referential style.” Others use more of a mix of phrases, including frozen phrases such as “What’s that?” and “Lemmee see,” that characterise what has been termed an “expressive style.” This latter style emphasises pragmatic functions of language rather than labelling. Some research suggests that girls are more likely to use a referential style and some researchers believe that this may be related to differences in rearing environments for boys and girls. Doll play may involve more labelling than truck play.

The nature of children’s early words � Overextensions- calling the cat a “doggie” � Underextensions – less common than overextensions, calling a pigeon robin a bird but not calling a robin a bird.

Coining – children create new words that are not part of adult language � First Word Combinations occur as children begin to approach 24-months of age. There is tremendous cross-language commonality in the occurrence of two-word combinations and other aspects of language unfolding.

In the case of Danny at 2 years (24 months) he shows inconsistency in coherence and grammar. Danny is at the two-word stage “more statue” however he does not fully understand the use of plurals and verbs and therefore cannot produce a correct sentence. He finds it difficult to produce a long sentence due to lack of conjunctions “and” therefore he uses fillers and stutters to keep his turns going. His pronunciation is not good he is not fluent and stutters in some parts of the conversation “the big long lo long long train” which may be down to his limited lexis. However towards the end of the conversation his pronunciation develops “fast car vintage” as a direct cause of new lexis being learnt. His word order is incorrect in most sentences however, this does improve towards the end of the conversation which could be due to imitative behaviour “splash piggy” or that Danny has actually understood the language “Becca draw on there” his word order improves but areas of speech such as tenses prove difficult for Danny.

At this stage Danny’s mum’s input is sometimes quite confusing and seems to leave Danny more confused than anything “What’s he lifting up? What’s the crane lifting up?” this could be because she is trying to find the correct level to come into the conversation at, however Danny is left simply confused. On many occasions her sentences are far too complex for Danny or even a more advanced 2-year-old “What do you think it’s doing if it’s got brushes on the car?” “What do you think he’s putting the water on the road for?” His mother uses prompt “isn’t it?” she attempts to involve Danny in the conversation whenever possible she also repetition and imitation to back up what he says whether it be correct or nearly “fast car vintage.” this is a successful technique because instead of trying to rush his development by correcting every small error she looks for sentences where a part of speech is correct. E.g. word order may be correct but he fails to use tenses, instead of confusing Danny completely she picks up on the good parts of his speech. For the first time Danny uses endings “ing” and “s” and produces his first perfect sentence “look there’s one” although it is basic statement it shows Danny is improving every day. He uses a double negative “no not sitting” because he is yet to develop the skill of disagreement. Danny even corrects his mother “Daddy sit there” this shows a growing confidence in the youngster and growing ability.

Towards the end of the conversation he becomes more coherent, his grammar improves, his vocabulary becomes wider and he begins to develop the skill of turntaking.

At 27 months Danny produces longer turns “I don’t want to go to Watchett” he is more coherent and his understanding develops immensely. As regards imitation, Danny leads the conversation, which shows how he has developed in a mere three months. In parts he uses telegraphic language “I got a library book” However, he uses self correction to again show how his understanding has developed “I…we don’t want go and see them.” Another development from 24 months is the use of conjunctions “no I don’t want I want to go when I get bigger want to go on my own a a Watchett.” This example is a long turn for Danny with fairly complex features, he incorporates a new learnt ending “er” which he uses correctly and doesn’t mix it up.

Adults tend to use “we” instead of “I” It is evident with Danny that children do pick up on this. “We’re going to be good today aren’t we?” The child doesn’t understand why the “we” is used and simply imitates it because it is believed to be correct. Danny uses three verbs in one sentence “I don’t want to go to Watchett” which is an incredible achievement from three months previous. Danny begins to incorporate his own vocabulary into the conversation “television” he sets the agenda in the conversation, his mother however, still takes the lead but not as directly. Danny uses past and future “when get bigger” tenses towards the end of the conversation however cannot quite master perfect tense although they are not completely grammatically correct it is evident that Danny really is learning competently and steadily.

His mother uses tag questions to prompt Danny “called Harry isn’t he?” this is effective to a certain degree as Danny replies “Harry” whether this is due to knowledge or simply imitation is not evident. She tries to help Danny to develop his labelling skills “that dog” however, this technique isn’t as successful as others are possibly because Danny is too young or maybe he simply doesn’t understand what his mother is trying to do. She seems to make more sense to Danny in this particular conversation, and is no longer needed to over power Danny as leader of the conversation they are more equal, which brings out the best in Danny it is almost as though they are socialising and taking part in a proper conversation instead of Danny’s mum trying to get the best out of Danny by constantly prompting and correcting her son.

To conclude, the major developments made have been the endings learnt, the expansion on vocabulary without imitation, the use of tenses, longer more correct turns and understanding. Danny’s progress is evident in most aspects of speech. Compared to the guidelines of how a child’s speech should have improved with age Danny is slightly behind, this isn’t because he is less intelligent or has a problem it is simply because no child is average, no one has the same learning speed because this is part of being an individual.

Danny’s mum became less in charge as Danny got older, she was no longer needed to lead the conversation and therefore both Danny and his mum were on more of an equal status, she no longer needed to correct Danny because towards the end he began to understand her. The turns of both Danny and his mum became longer as he aged this shows the major development in Danny’s language acquisition that he is no longer dependent on his mother and has his own be it small vocabulary.

Danny is still to learn a more vast vocabulary but this will come with age and experience, he is yet to perfect his use of tenses and sometimes telegraphic language plays a part in his turns. The majority of his language is good but not perfect, but even teenagers have difficulty in this area nobody’s language is ever perfect. He has to improve fluency but this will come once he has a wider vocabulary.

Overall Danny has progressed competently in all areas of speech, he is not ahead for his age but as explained we are all individuals and do not follow a trend by any means.

Before beginning, I’d like to offer my sincerest gratitude to ChMlotte and Justin for allowing me 10 to be a pan of his special occasion. Aho, I would like to say thank you  Charlotte “parent for that you’ve done to make this!”. He special day that! And, of course. my gntefuln~ to Justin’ s parentS for all your support and all that you’ve done to make this, by all accounts, the perfect day. I love 1 wedding – especially when it happens to such great people.

We’ve come to know one another so wen, that we have an undemanding that goes beyond words. We don’t judge. and we don’t have 10 explain. So. when Clwiotte found her soul-mate, she didn’t really have 10 say much to make it clear to me that Justin was the one and only for her. The love in her heart and the joy in ber spirit were obvious from the beginning. I’ve seen that same Jove and happiness in Justin. Charlotte and Justin, I am extremely happy for both of you. You truly complement one another. You rod u friends and it evolved into a love that so many people find today. Love doesn’t make the world go around …

Love is what makes the ride worthwhile. And it’s a wonderful thing when two people who were made for each other manage to find each other and ! all io love. So, I’d like to make a toast. And I’d like to make it with this thought in mind: If there is such a thing as a good marriage, then it comes from unconditional and enduring love that grows from commitment and friendship. So this is to you, Justin and Charlotte, your love And friendship have always been special and your future as husband and wife promises to be bright. Here’s to a wonderful, enchanted life together rich with love and happiness.

The issues of the abortions

Each day, thousands of women abort their unborn children. Most women and couples decide to have abortions without educating themselves on the subject of abortion. There are two different types of abortion procedures, medical and surgical, used to abort a fetus in each trimester of pregnancy. With these procedures come numerous potential physical and psychological risks that women and couples should educate themselves about before deciding to go through with an abortion. There are also contrasting views on abortion that women and couples should take into account that may help them make a decision on either to abort their baby or go on and raise their baby. In order to understand abortion, one must examine the different procedures used to abort the fetus, risks that follow the procedures, and the contrasting views on abortion.

In order to understand abortion, one must examine the different procedures used to abort the fetus. Abortion procedures used during the first trimester of pregnancy include options between medical and surgical procedures to terminate a pregnancy (“Description”). Medical abortion, also known as chemical abortion, is the use of pills to terminate a pregnancy (“Description”). Mifepristone, also known as the abortion pill or RU-486, is a drug that can be used up to the second month of pregnancy (“Description”, “There are”). When taken, the abortion pill blocks a necessary pregnancy hormone called progesterone from producing food, fluids and oxygen for the developing fetus (“There Are”).

Two days later a second drug called prostaglandin is taken to induce labor to expel the dead fetus. In comparison to medical abortion, surgical abortion is the use of localized anesthesia and special tools to remove the fetus prematurely. One of the surgical procedures used during the first trimester of pregnancy is aspiration, which can be used up to sixteen weeks of pregnancy (“Abortion Procedures”). Before the procedure is started, the cervix is given a local anesthesia for pain and opened enough for the tools to be inserted into the uterus for the procedure (“There Are”).

This procedure requires a suctioning device to vacuum the fetus out of the uterus (“Description”). After the fetus is vacuumed out of the uterus, a curette, atool with a knife like end used to cut and scrape, is used to remove any remaining parts of the fetus or placenta off of the uterine wall (“Description”, “There Are”). The procedures used during the first trimester of pregnancy can range from a simple pill to a complicated and painful procedure. Women and couples in the first trimester of pregnancy should research the types of abortion procedures before having an abortion to decide which procedure would be best for them.

Abortion procedures during the second trimester of pregnancy use only surgical procedures to terminate a pregnancy. Medical procedures cannot be used in the second trimester because the fetus is too large making medical procedures ineffective. One of the abortion procedures used in the second trimester of pregnancy is dilation and curettage, also called D and C. Dilation and curettage is a surgical procedure used at sixteen weeks of pregnancy (“There Are”, “Abortion Procedures”).

In this procedure, the cervix is put on a local anesthesia for pain. The cervix is then dilated, and a curette is inserted into the uterus. Both the fetus and placenta are torn apart by the curette and put into a container (“There Are”). Another surgical procedure used at sixteen weeks during the second trimester of pregnancy is dilation and evacuation, also known as D and E (“Abortion Procedures”, “There Are”). Like dilation and curettage, the cervix is put on a local anesthesia for pain in dilation and evacuation.

In this procedure, the cervix is dilated and forceps, a tool used to grasp objects, tears the fetus apart and pulls it out of the uterus until only the fetus’s head remains. The remaining skull of the baby is crushed by the forceps and taken out of the uterus carefully so the uterus or cervix is not injured. After the uterus is emptied of all of the fetal and placenta parts, the body is put back together to make sure all of the parts are accounted for, and that nothing was left inside the uterus (“There Are”). From the description of these two procedures, one can conclude that they are painful alternatives to having a baby, and women and couples in the second trimester should educate themselves with all of these procedures before deciding on which abortion procedure they want to have.

Similarly, abortion procedures during the third trimester of pregnancy use only surgical procedures to terminate a pregnancy. Third trimester abortion procedures, also called late term abortions, are illegal in the United States, as determined by the state, except in special circumstances, and are rarely used (“Abortion Procedures”). Induction abortion is a rare procedure in which the cervix is put on a local anesthesia and dilated. A needle is then inserted into the woman’s abdomen.

The amniotic fluid is extracted from the uterus and replaced with saline to kill the fetus by suffocating it, after which the dead fetus is delivered vaginally, with or without local anesthesia, depending on the woman (“Description”). Urea or potassium chloride may also be used in place of saline in this procedure (“Abortion Procedures”). Another late term abortion procedure that is used is dilation and extraction, also known as D and X (“There Are”). In this procedure the cervix is put on a local anesthesia and dilated for birth. An abortionist will use forceps to deliver the baby in breech position up to its head. One must keep in mind that the baby is alive.

The abortionist cuts into the base of the baby’s skull and vacuums its brain out until the skull collapses, and the head is delivered. This procedure is also called partial birth abortion, and it is illegal in the United States except in special circumstances as determined by the state in which the woman lives (“There Are”, “Description”). One must understand that to abort a fetus during the third trimester requires special circumstances due to the mother’s health and the fact that the baby is partially born and almost to full term.

In order to understand abortion, one must examine the possible risks that follow abortion procedures. There are physical risks after having an abortion that affects women that must be considered. Ten percent of first time abortions have major complications due to incomplete evacuation of the fetus and placenta, or infection or injury to the uterus or cervix (“Abortion Risks”). Anticipated minor side effects of abortion include cramping, nausea, and minimal bleeding.

These side effects vary among different women and can happen anywhere from two to four weeks after an abortion takes place (“Possible Physical”). There are also major side effects following an abortion that can cause serious and permanent damage. Excessive bleeding is one of the major side effects of abortion and is usually a result from a puncture or tare in the uterine wall or cervix. If the bleeding is not controlled, a blood transfusion may be required (“Abortion Risks”). Another side effect of abortion is infection. Out of an observed one thousand eighty-two abortions, twenty-seven percent acquired post-abortion infection (“Abortion Risks”).

A type of infection that may happen after an abortion is pelvic inflammatory disease, also known as PID. PID is caused by infectious bacteria and can spread to the uterus, fallopian tubes, and ovaries if it is not controlled. Fetal or placenta parts that are accidentally left in the uterus can also cause this disease and a second abortion procedure may be required to correct the problem (“Abortion Risks”). Abortions can cause numerous physical side effects, and women and couples should consider them before deciding to have an abortion.

There are psychological risks to women after having an abortion that people should be aware of.Psychological side effects are more common than physical side effects and they vary depending on the woman (“Abortion Emotional”). Over eighty-five percent of women who have an abortion report experiencing at least one negative psychological problem.

One of the psychological risks after having an abortion is post abortion stress syndrome, also known as PASS. Post abortion stress syndrome is triggered by a traumatic abortion experience and diagnosed with a specific set of symptoms. The symptoms of women with post abortion stress syndromeare depressed, cannot function normally or manage their responsibilities, harm themselves, have suicidal thoughts and actions, and have the desire to be or become pregnant (“Abortion Risks”).

Another psychological risk after having an abortion is depression and anxiety. Sixty-five present of women who choose to have an abortion are at higher risk for long-term clinical depression than women who do not choose to have an abortion.Pregnant women who have no prior anxiety issues and choose to have an abortion are thirty percent more likely to acquire general anxiety than pregnant women who choose not to have an abortion (“Abortion Risks”). Women and couples should educate themselves and consider all of the possible psychological side effects after having an abortion before deciding whether to go on with a pregnancy or have an abortion.

In order to understand abortion, one must examine the different views on abortion. People who strongly disagree with abortion and want it to be illegal are called pro-life supporters. Pro-life supporters argue, through research,that life begins at conception and that abortion is the murdering of a human being whose right to life should be protected (“Abortion” Current).

Pro-life supportersalso think on the ethical side of the problem. For example, supporters believe that when a doctor gives a woman an abortion, they are disobeying the Hippocratic oath, an oath all doctors take before being given their license to practice (“AbortionProCon”). In the modern version of the Hippocratic oath, written by Luis Lasagna in 1964, he says, “Above all, I must not play God” (“AbortionProCon”).

Pro-lifers argue that by helping a woman to abort a fetus, the doctor is taking away a baby’s right to life, which is directly playing God and disobeying the Hippocratic oath (“AbortionProCon”, “Should Abortion”). Not only do pro-life supporters believe that abortion murders a human being and is unethical, they also believe that abortions affect adoption.

Pro-life supporters say when women have an abortion they are bringing down the amount of adoptable babies for couples who cannot have children of their own, therefore should still have their baby and give it up for adoption to couples that cannot conceive a child (“Should Abortion”). These pro-life views may help pregnant women and couples to decide whether to have an abortion or have their child. Pro-life supporters are strictly against abortion, argue that it is unethical for a doctor to give an abortion and believe it should be illegal.

Some people agree with abortion and believe it should stay legal. People who agree with abortion are called pro-choice supporters. They argue that the government should not limit abortion, and that women have the right to choose what happens to their body (“AbortionProCon”).Pro-choice supporters argue that the government cannot force a woman to go through a pregnancy if she does not want to raise a child (“Should Abortion”). Supporters say if abortion becomes illegal there will be more back-street abortions, in which two hundred thousand women die from annually (“Should Abortion”, “Abortion” Current).

Supporters also think about the human status of the baby. Some pro-choice supporters, unlike pro-life supporters, argue that life begins at birth, and that a fetus has no rights to be protected; thereforethey think it is not wrong for a pregnant woman to have an abortion (“Abortion” Current). Not only do pro-choice supporters argue that the government should not limit abortion and a fetus is not a human until birth, they also keep the well being of the baby in mind.

For example, if a couple knows their baby will be born with a severe medical condition they may decide whether to have the baby or have an abortion. Supporters also argue if a baby is going to be born unwanted it should be aborted (“AbortionProCon”). These pro-choice views may help pregnant women and couples decide whether to have an abortion or have their child. Pro-choice supporters are for abortion, argue that the government has no place in telling pregnant women they have to have their baby, and believe that abortion should stay legal.

There are certain things women and couples should examine before deciding to have an abortion. There are different types of abortion procedures in each trimester; medical abortions, which use pills to abort a fetus and can only be used in the first trimester and surgical abortion, which use tools and anesthesia to abort a fetus and can be done in all trimesters.

Women should know where they are in their pregnancy, first, second, or third trimester, so they can determine which abortion procedure would be the best choice for her. There are minor and major physical risks that may follow an abortion such as nausea, cramping, and pelvic inflammatory disease. There are also psychological risks such as depression and anxiety and post abortion stress syndrome.

Women and couples should educate themselves with all of the potential physical and psychological risks of abortion before deciding to go through with a medical or surgical abortion procedure. Lastly, there are views on abortion such as pro-life, people strongly against abortion, and pro-choice, people who agree with abortion. Knowing the views on abortion can help women and couples to reassure themselves when they decide whether they want to go through with a pregnancy or have an abortion.

When one examines the types of abortion procedures, risks that may follow the procedures, and the different views, they will better understand abortion.

Works Cited

1. “Abortion.” Current Issues: Macmillan Social Science Library. Detroit: Gale, 2010. Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 8 Oct. 2013.
2. “Abortion Emotional Side Effects.” American Pregnancy Association. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2013.
3. “Abortion Procedures.”American Pregnancy Association. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2013.
4. “Abortion ProCon.org.” ProConorg Headlines. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Oct. 2013.
5. “Abortion Risks: Physical Risks, Emotional Risks, Documentation to Risks.” Abortion Risks: Physical Risks, Emotional Risks,
6. Documentation to Risks. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Oct. 2013.
7. “Description of Types of Abortions, Abortion Procedures, How They Work, What to Expect.” Description of Types of Abortions,
8. Abortion Procedures, How They Work, What to Expect. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2013.
9. “Possible Physical Side Affects.” American Pregnancy Association. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2013 .
10. “Should Abortion Be Legal?” The Premier Online Debate Website. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2013.
11. “There Are Many Different Abortion Procedures.”There Are Many Different Abortion Procedures. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2013.