masraum |
03-22-2024 08:51 AM |
Quote:
Originally Posted by oldE
(Post 12217931)
I will refrain from saying what I really think of the opinions stated in half a dozen articles and just pose this question:
What is the point of indoctrinating a child in a particular speech pattern only to switch in a few years?
Start them off with language spoken as you wish to hear them speak. Then if you want to challenge them, add another language, French or Spanish or Mandarin. Don't waste their time when they have such ability to learn.
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I think the target of those articles is actual babies, <1 or maybe 2yo, so when they are not yet communicating other than making noises. And the theory is that high pitched speech is more engaging/attractive to their brains. I assume that as they get older, and start speaking (actual words) that you would/should transition into natural speech.
I can see how babies brains may be predisposed to be drawn to sounds with some qualities more or differently than other sounds. I think a baby may be happier to hear some sounds than a low dogs growl, for instance. I think at that age, their brains are potentially VERY different than an older child or adult's brain.
Quote:
On a side note, when I worked in the interpretive center, I had some visitors state their opinion that I must not be from Nova Scotia, as they were able to understand me. I would assure them I was indeed a native Nova Scotian, but I minored in English in university, then worked in sales and management for 25 years before starting this position. My purpose here was to be able to communicate with our visitors and I appreciated my efforts were successful.
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I worked with a guy that's from a fairly rural area of Texas, but has virtually no Texas accent. I knew a girl that was from Texas and moved to England for several years. She came back from Britain and had a fairly strong British accent. I've also met folks that moved to the US from various countries in Asia that spoke English with very little accent after only a handful of years (<5yrs), and have known folks that have have lived in the US for 40 years with foreign accents so thick that I had to concentrate to understand them.
I think a lot of that is down to specific traits that some folks have at different levels from other folks. In my mind it's a strong ability to hear and also to mimic vs a low ability to mimic those around you.
I've also known folks that have a very hard time understanding people speaking English with a foreign accent. I think that comes down to some wiring in their brain rather than intelligence, exposure to foreign languages, etc....
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