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<p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><b><font size=3 face=Arial><span
lang=EN-GB style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-weight:bold'>From an
InfoCHILDES correspondent of Susanna Bartsch</span></font></b><b><font size=2
face="Courier New"><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Courier New";
font-weight:bold'>:<o:p></o:p></span></font></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><i><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-style:italic'>“my
principal business these days is antiques. If you happen to have any acquaintances
who might be interested in purchasing, say, vintage costume jewelry ...... I
would be very appreciative if you would put us in touch with each other.”<o:p></o:p></span></font></i></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'>I wonder, is this somehow connected with the discussion
of Chomsky? On which subject, I’ve been adding lots to my stock of learning
on the academic culture and history of child language research this past couple
of days.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'>In general, I find the discussion about Chomsky’s
putative obsolescence quite depressing. Internecine struggles that have lasted
for decades (including, for example, book-length treatments of the “Language
War”) are depressing. But more depressing is the relative lack of
empirical maturity in the field of child language. In this, I agree with what Brian
MacWhinney has to say (and, of course, applaud the efforts of CHILDES as a step
in the right direction). Many studies on child language still have sample sizes
that look derisory compared with other branches of the human sciences (</span></font><i><font
face=Arial><span lang=LA style='font-family:Arial;font-style:italic'>mea</span></font></i><i><font
face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-family:Arial;font-style:italic'> culpa
maxima</span></font></i><font face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-family:
Arial'>).<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'>It is an easy matter to demonstrate that language is fundamental
to the human experience. It is also relatively straightforward to demonstrate
that research on language development is vitally important. To pluck just two
examples from the air: (1) at least 7% of children have serious difficulty with
first language acquisition (Tomblin et al., 1997); and (2) 2nd language
learning is a multi-billion dollar global industry. And so on. Why, therefore,
are politicians and businesses not throwing huge amounts of money at us to do both
basic and applied research on language acquisition? I think there is a
connection between the culture of open warfare and relative lack of funding. We
betray ourselves to the wider world as members of an academic discipline that
is unhealthily polarised, relatively immature in its empirical base and academically
peripheral (not quite linguistics, not quite psychology, not quite....). And
this is the case several decades after Chomsky (and Roger Brown) got people
interested.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'>But how did we get on to this? Oh yes: Robin Campbell
diverted us from my original question about the competence-performance
distinction. On which, I’ve had some very helpful and interesting replies
and will, of course, post a summary.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'>Now, how <i><span style='font-style:italic'>does</span></i>
one get into the antiques business...........?<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'>Regards,<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'>Matthew.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'>*********************************************************************</span></font><span
lang=EN-GB><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'>Matthew Saxton MA, MSc, DPhil</span></font><span
lang=EN-GB><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceType w:st="on"><font size=3
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<p class=MsoNormal><st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on"><font size=3
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lang=EN-GB><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'>WC1H 0AA.</span></font><span lang=EN-GB><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:Arial'>U.K.</span></font></st1:place></st1:country-region><span
lang=EN-GB><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span lang=EN-GB
style='font-size:12.0pt'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'>Tel: +44 (0) 20 7612 6509</span></font><span
lang=EN-GB><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'>Fax: +44 (0) 20 7612 6304</span></font><span
lang=EN-GB><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span lang=EN-GB
style='font-size:12.0pt'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial'><a
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