Relations between segmental and prosodic structure in first language acquisition

Abstract

In this paper, I discuss a number of relations that take place between melodic content and higher prosodic structure in first language phonological development. I explore acquisition patterns found in data on the acquisition of Québec French. Starting with the observation that prosodic structure and, more specifically, stressed syllables, play a central role in phonological acquisition, I hypothesize that the inter-relations between prosodic and segmental structure posited by formal models of phonological organisation should be witnessed within and across developmental stages. I support this hypothesis through two findings from the French data. First, complex onsets emerge in stressed syllables before unstressed ones. Second, different types of consonants (placeless versus place-specified) emerge in word-final position at different stages. From these observations, I argue that the phenomena observed in these data are best captured in an analysis based on constituent structure and relationships between feature specification and prosodic constituency, which are governed by universal markedness.

Error Patterns of Dorsal Rhotics: Evidence from Hebrew-Speaking Children

“…It is also important to note that studies dealing with stress effects on nonrhotic consonants also revealed inconsistent findings. That is, whereas some studies reported better consonant accuracy in stressed syllables [44][45][46], others found no significant difference in consonant production between stressed and unstressed syllables [47]. Thus, further investigation is recommended.…”

Effects of Word Position and Stress on Onset Cluster Production: Evidence from Typical Development, Specific Language Impairment, and Dyslexia

“…There is some evidence that stress affects the acquisition of onset clusters. In a longitudinal study of two Québécois-French children, aged between one and four years old, Rose found that stop ‫ם‬ liquid onset clusters in real words were realized in stressed syllables before unstressed syllables (Rose 2002). There are also instances of stress effects on onset clusters in adult language: for example, in south-eastern Brazilian Portuguese, underlying clusters surface in stressed syllables but not in unstressed ones (Harris 1997).…”

Learning to Parse Second Language Consonant Clusters

“…Both Rose (2002) and Steele (2002) demonstrate that complexity emerges in heads before it does in dependents (see also Harris 1997). Rose (2002) illustrates how children learning Quebec French as a first language acquire branching onsets in stressed syllables before they acquire branching onsets in unstressed syllables. He also argues that heads have greater featural complexity than non-heads for children.…”