language acq. textbook list

[cx49 at musica.mcgill.ca]

Listed below are responses to my recent post re: a language and/or cognitive
development textbook.  My original request is at the end.  I'm excited about
checking these all out and will also let you know if I find other resources.
Many thanks,
Diane Pesco

(1) For language development only, try Peter Reich's textbook ('Language
Development', Prentice-Hall) which is pitched at a good level and is not
over-burdened with Chomskyan bullshit.  For both, you are struggling. Flavell
Miller & Miller ('Cognitive Development', Prentice-Hall) is up-to-date and
smart, but not very readable and probably too hard anyway
for first year students.  I used McShane ('Cognitive Development', Blackwell)
for a while: it's easy enough, but it's now pretty out of date.

Dr Robin N Campbell
Dept of Psychology, University of Stirling
STIRLING FK9 4LA, Scotland
tele: 01786-467649  facs: 01786-467641
email: r.n.campbell at stir.ac.uk
http://www.stir.ac.uk/departments/humansciences/psychology/Staff/rnc1/



(2) Hi,
I teach an undergraduate course in communicative development to prospective
teachers and I use the little text by Rita Naremore and Robert Hopper:
Children Learning Language.  Its small and not intimidating and has nice
chapters on the development of meaning, language & cognition and language
diversity.  The biggest problem is that the book is out of print,
but the publisher is very nice about giving permission to copy the text and
out bookstore just adds the copyright fee onto the cost of the "reader."  The
publisher was Harper & Row.

I supplement the text with readings, as the text is a bit too simple & does
not give a grounding in methodology that my students need.   Good luck...and
let me know if you find a newer good text out there.

Carolyn Chaney

(3) Hi Diane--have you looked at the second edition of How Languages Are
Learned by Patsy Lightbown and Nina Spada? The only thing you mention that it
doesn't have in spades is the "cultural diversity in development" thing, but
the 2nd edition has more than the 1st. It's Oxford U.P., 1999.  Undergraduates
love it. Lots of our Concordia undergrads are not English L1 and the reading
level is perfect--packed without being dense. Highly recommended. Hope you get
a chance to check it out.

Mela Sarkar
TESL Centre
Concordia University

(4) Hi Diane! I am using my own, popular press book in my intro education
course this semester. It goes from before birth to age 3 and is fun reading.
Has an applied bent in that we included "Try Thises" (things to do with your
kid) and Scientific Sleuthing Pays Off (the practical implications of the
research). It's called How Babies Talk and is published by Dutton/Penguin. You
could probably get a comp copy by writing or calling them.
All best, Roberta
Roberta Michnick Golinkoff, Ph.D.
H. Rodney Sharp Professor
School of Education and Departments of Psychology and Linguistics
University of Delaware, Newark, DE 19716
Phone:  (302) 831-1634    Fax:  (302) 831-4445    E-mail:   Roberta at udel.edu


(5)The Meaning Makers, Heinemann 1986 has been successfully used in quite a
number of undergraduate courses.  It's not a text book, but it is fairly easy
reading and, as well as describing language development in the preschool years
on the basis of a large longitudinal study carried out in England, it raises
some important issues about language and education.
Gordon Wells,
OISE/University of Toronto

(6) Dear Diane:
I think my new textbook on language acquisition, called An Introduction to
Child Language Development  (Longman, 1999) meets most of the criteria you
mention, but only for language acquisition, obviously; not cognitive
development.  It is designed for beginning level undergraduates and, while not
dealing directly with educational issues in any great depth (although there is
a discussion of reading and writing), it tries to survey the field in an
accessible, non-technical way.  It is short (just over 200 pages) and has lots
of practical activities and data samples to analyse.  It covers from
pre-linguistic communication to well into school age, and does have a chapter
on the acquisition of different languages. There are even some Navajo examples
among the linguistic samples. Cross-cultural stuff comes up under issues of
input/motherese.
Susan Foster-Cohen

(7)
Try, Born to Talk, by Hulit & Howard (2nd ed.)1997, Allyn & Bacon.
lhewitt at bgnet.bgsu.edu
Good luck.


My original post:

>Dear CHILDES readers:
>
>Does anyone out there have any good leads re: a textbook (or edited
>volume) on language and cognitive development that meets most/some of the
criteria below?
>I just can't find what I'm looking for on my own ...
>
>-Appropriate for first year undergrad (students are Native Canadians in a
>teacher certificate program)
>
>-Appropriate for or directed to educators
>
>-Not too long & relatively easy reading level (some students have limited
>English proficiency)
>
>-Includes information on cultural diversity in development
>
>-Covers development from birth to school-age
>
>
>Demanding, eh? If anyone knows of a text that meets the criteria for language
>development only but not cognitive development, those ideas would be
>appreciated.
>
>
>Many thanks.
>
>
>Diane Pesco
>McGill University
>Office of First Nations and Inuit Education
>cx4 at musica.mcgill.ca