Development of vocabulary and grammar in young German-speaking children                 assessed with a German language development inventory

Szagun, Gisela; Steinbrink, Claudia; Franik, Melanie; Stumper, Barbara

doi:10.1177/0142723706056475

Cited by 48 publications

(48 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…The results also indicated that recognizing vocabulary items in the PPVT test benefited both language groups’ grammar recognition. This finding is in line with a basic assumption of usage‐based approaches to language, namely, that a strict separation between lexis and grammar is unattainable (Langacker, ), and with the findings of research on L1 acquisition showing the interdependence of lexicon and grammar in early language development (e.g., Bates et al., ; Bates & Goodman, ; Marchman & Bates, ; Szagun et al., ).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

Different Starting Points for English Language Learning: A Comparative Study of Danish and Spanish Young Learners

2018

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This study compared receptive English grammar skills of two groups of 7‐ and 9‐year‐old Danish children at the beginning of second language (L2) instruction in English, and two groups of Spanish/Catalan children of the same age after several years of instruction. The study examined the influence of two language‐related factors (receptive vocabulary skills, cognate linguistic distance) and two context‐related factors (amount of formal instruction, frequency of exposure to English outside school), additionally focusing on the gender variable. Results revealed that the amount of formal instruction had a lesser role in the children's receptive grammar knowledge than cognate linguistic distance and out‐of‐school contact with English (particularly with audiovisual material). These factors may explain why Danish children's receptive knowledge of English prior to school instruction is largely similar to that of Spanish children after several years of instruction, revealing a sharp contrast in their respective starting points for L2 learning.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

Different Starting Points for English Language Learning: A Comparative Study of Danish and Spanish Young Learners

2018

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“…Contrary to popular perception, the child’s gender usually only explains about 1% to 3% of reported variance in vocabulary size or related variables (Ardila, Rosselli, Matute, & Inozemtseva, 2011 ; Szagun, Steinbrink, Franik, & Stumper, 2006 ; for a review see Hyde, 2014). This makes gender differences likely to be detectable in large samples only (e.g., Berglund et al., 2005 ; Bornstein et al, 2004 ; Leaper & Smith, 2004), but even a recent study that included more than 5,000 one- to six-year olds did not find reliable differences with regard to boys’ and girls’ language skills (Luijk et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 73%

Early Vocabulary in Relation to Gender, Bilingualism, Type, and Duration of Childcare

Stolarova¹,

Brielmann²,

Wolf³

et al. 2016

ACP

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This study investigates the predictive value of child-related and environmental characteristics for early lexical development. The German productive vocabulary of 51 2-year-olds (27 girls), assessed via parental report, was analyzed taking children’s gender, the type of early care they experienced, and their mono- versus bilingual language composition into consideration. The children were from an educationally homogeneous group of families and state-regulated daycare facilities with high structural quality. All investigated subgroups exhibited German vocabulary size within the expected normative range. Gender differences in vocabulary composition, but not in size, were observed. There were no general differences in vocabulary size or composition between the 2 care groups. An interaction between the predictors gender and care arrangement showed that girls without regular daycare experience before the age of 2 years had a somewhat larger vocabulary than all other investigated subgroups of children. The vocabulary size of the 2-year-old children in daycare correlated positively with the duration of their daycare experience prior to testing. The small subgroup of bilingual children investigated exhibited slightly lower but still normative German expressive vocabulary size and a different vocabulary composition compared to the monolingual children. This study expands current knowledge about relevant predictors of early vocabulary. It shows that in the absence of educational disadvantages the duration of early daycare experience of high structural quality is positively associated with vocabulary size but also points to the fact that environmental characteristics, such as type of care, might affect boys’ and girls’ early vocabulary in different ways.

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“…The effect of gender on early lexical acquisition (rate) has been widely investigated and demonstrated consistently over a wide range of studies. Studies based on CDI data or comparable vocabulary measures of a rather large sample size have found a slightly but consistently higher acquisition rate in girls than in boys for both comprehension and production (e.g., Bornstein, Hahn & Haynes, 2004a;Fenson et al 1994;Maital, Dromi, Sagi & Bornstein, 2000;Szagun, Steinbrink, Franik & Stumper, 2006). The effect of birth order on lexical acquisition seems less marked and consistent.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Girls talk about dolls and boys about cars? Analyses of group and individual variation in Danish children's first words

et al. 2008

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Based on data from the Danish Longitudinal CDI study on 182 Danish children, we analyse aspects of variation in the children's first 100 words (produced). First, we demonstrate the effect of gender and birth order (number of siblings) on acquisition times of first words by identifying single words which are significantly earlier in the productive repertoire of, for instance, girls versus boys. We also investigate the effect of the same factors on the composition of the vocabulary where the definition of categories (word classes) is based on the CDI's thematic categorization. Finally, we investigate the individuality of the lexicon's composition and find time-persistent differences between children for some word classes at this early stage.

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Development of vocabulary and grammar in young German-speaking children assessed with a German language development inventory

Cited by 48 publications

References 20 publications

Different Starting Points for English Language Learning: A Comparative Study of Danish and Spanish Young Learners

Different Starting Points for English Language Learning: A Comparative Study of Danish and Spanish Young Learners

Early Vocabulary in Relation to Gender, Bilingualism, Type, and Duration of Childcare

Girls talk about dolls and boys about cars? Analyses of group and individual variation in Danish children's first words

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