Comparison of transcripts

In the first transcript Zach is 28 months of age and in the second one he is 41 months old, in this 13 month time gap its noticeable that Zach' language has significantly developed and improved. With his language being very simple and minimal in the first transcript with him only using simple sentences and he would frequently repeat his grammatical errors compared to the second transcript where he doesn't make these errors frequently he seems to be coming to terms with sentence structures and his language is beginning to develop and expand.Throughout both of the transcripts is scaffolding which is an idea developed by Vygotsky. He states that children have a zone of proximal development and there is a gap between what a child already knows and can do and what they can know and do with the help of scaffolding from their care giver. Zach's mother puts this in place and uses it to help him expand his language and the way he develops. Scaffolding if the support that the child care giver provides to help them to learn language which can be done by prompting and asking questions frequently.

Being that Zach is 28 months old in the 'Zachy 2;4 drawing a banana' transcript we would commonly expect to see the telegraphic stage of the child language acquisition but however we are already seeing sings of the multi-word stage. For example, "I got food on the floor" would be evidence in proving that Zach has started to enter the multi-word stage, as we would expect him to be in the telegraphic stage we would expect to see hum using a similar phrase like "got food floor" as an alternative. This contradicts Piaget's theory and idea that children cant advance their language unless they go through the 4 stages and have reached a certain age. 

Looking at Halliday's and Dore's child language functions, ive noticed that throughout the first transcript the function answering (responding to an utterance of another speaker) is more common and apparent as well as him often using the imaginative function. For example "Its got lots of hurt all the way down (.) so i put lots of (0.5) sellotape on it (.) so it could feel better". Compared to in the second transcript where the functions requesting an action and protesting are more frequent. An example of Zach requesting an action is when he says "please can you pick it up","can you do it mummy?" and when he says "we cant (.) we'll just have to wait an wait an wait".

In the time between the first and the second transcript Zach as also developed polite forms which also shows how much is language has developed and is continuing to do so like i stated above, such as "please" and "thank you". Children learn and develop manners from those around them specifically their main care givers which is exactly what has happened in Zach's case. When his mother says "you might need the magic word then" Zach instantly responds with "please" showing he understand what the magic word means and what he is being asked to do. This also shows that his mother formed his understanding of the correct words he must use when he is asking for something, being "please" and using the polite expression "thank you".

Comparing both of the transcripts together Skinner’s operant conditioning theory of positive reinforcement could be applied to both and how Zach's mother is encouraging him to proceed with his language development and to continue repeating what he is doing well. For example, phrases such as "well done”, “very good” are used by his mother to applause him and praise him. By using positive reinforcement in both of the transcripts its helped to enable Zach's use of language to develop and continue to expand to a greater extend. This will ensure that Zach knows what he is doing well and give him that extra boost to continue the way he is doing so. 

Analysis of Zach 2;4 transcript

Analysis of Zach 2;4 transcript 

I have annotated the transcript with several key terms and terminology and I've noticed that Zach uses over-extension by category several times throughout the transcript when he says; Z: "what's this lasagna" H: "It does look a bit like lasagne (.) its bolognaise on some potato" Z: "I don't like bolognay". This is an example of Zach using over extension by category as hes comparing both bolognaise and lasagne together and has noticed the similarities they have such as the fact that they are both a food and of a similar content.

Back channeling is another feature that i have noticed Zach uses in this transcript and an example of this is when he says "/yeah (7)" after his mother says "so it doesn't get sharp?/". Again, another feature that i have analysed within this transcript is adjacency pairs which is when there is an question with a clear answer. One example of this term is when his mother says "what have you eaten today?" with the response from Zach being "bananas". 

I also started to look at the transcript and began to analyse and pick out features from the Halliday and Dore research. Zach uses 'labeling' in this transcript and an example of this is when he says "some biscuits" as he is picking out and naming that particular piece of food that he has eaten. When Zach responds to a question that his mum has just asked him about what happened earlier with his food and says "I got food on the floor" is an example of him 'answering'. An example of when Zach is 'requesting action' is when he asks "where's my little pad gone?" and this is because Zach is requesting assistance from his mum and is wanting help. Zach also uses the function of 'protesting' when he says "I don't like bolognay".

The contextual factors that might affect the language used include age, the environment in which the dialogue is taking place, when it is taking place, gender and social class.

Investigation methodology

Skinner's operant conditioning theory-
In my investigation I will be testing Skinner's operant conditioning theory of the impact that positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement given by the caregiver has on the child.

• Positive reinforcement
• Negative reinforcement

Male, aged 3 - record the caregiver and the child doing 3 different tasks carried out on different days but keeping the contextual factors the same where possible

Skinner says that using positive reinforcement means that the child is more likely to repeat this behavior that they are being praised for or rewarded for In the future. He also says that negative reinforcement being when the praise or the reward is removed and not given will stop the same behavior from happening again. 

Ethicality:
I will gain initial verbal consent from the caregiver to collect the data for my investigation as well as a written form explaining the use of the data I will be collecting and also the participants' right to withdraw their previous permission at any time throughout my investigation. I will also make sure that my recordings do not impact the child's usual activities and that he doesn't feel imposed to do something different to what he is used too by not agreeing to any specific tasks/activities to take place.

Comparability:
Throughout the data that I collect I will ensure that the same care giver and child are used at all times and that all transcripts are recorded in the same home environment each time. I will also collect my data over quite a short period of time of hopefully a week or two as children develop very rapidly and I don't want this to impact my results/data.

Reliability:
I will collect 3 transcripts which i will ensure that they are at least 3 minutes long and to make sure it natural I will record the data when it is least expected and also not making it so noticeable or obvious that i am recording as this could dictate the result due to it affecting what is being said and done throughout all of my recordings.

Theory revision - accent and dialect

Accent and Dialect

• Accent - features of pronunciation (the speech sounds) that show regional and/or social identity
• Dialect - features of lexis and grammar that show the regional or social background of the speaker (your accent is part of your dialect)
• Overt prestige - talking properly/trying to speak and use standard English
• Covert prestige - using your regional dialect and using your dialect for status

Bristolian Accent and Dialect – Beast Clothing. Although the west-country accent is frowned upon by some people due to emphasis on ‘r’s and made-up language, Beast Clothing take pride in these phrases and print them on merchandise like tops and mugs. This has become a very popular business which is seen as inspiring and humorous

Estuary English – This is an accent that is common for using ‘proper English’ but only in certain regions like London as well as Reading and Oxford. Although slang isn’t common within this accent, they still have features to make their accent. For example:

• T-gottaling – t’s are missed out in phrases and lexis
• L-Vocalization – the ‘L’ sounds become ‘w’ sounds
• Vowel Shift (typical for Londoners)

Cockney Dialect – the famous accent for Londoners. They say you can only be a true cockney if you’re born within the sound of the Bow Bells. It was the original code criminals used to trick police officers – but now it’s used all over the country (dialect levelling). They have their own language for some nouns such as:

• Rosie lee means ‘cup of tea’

Although it’s dying down, many dialect phrases of the cockney accent still exist world-wide such as ‘Porky Pies’ meaning ‘lies’. Some main features the cockney accent includes:

• ‘Schwa’ sound – these are more strongly pronounced, e.g ‘DoctA’ instead of ‘Doctor’
• ‘H Dropping’ – removing lexis that starts with H
• My instead of Me – ‘my throat hurts’ > ‘me throat hurts’