The acquisition of English functional categories by native speakers of Inuktitut /
Several current studies in language acquisition have focussed on the emergence of functional categories in first and second languages. The properties of functional categories can be exhibited through movement, inflections, case marking and the use of functional elements such as determiners and compl...
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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McGill University
1993
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| Online Access: | http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=69632 |
| Summary: | Several current studies in language acquisition have focussed on the emergence of functional categories in first and second languages. The properties of functional categories can be exhibited through movement, inflections, case marking and the use of functional elements such as determiners and complementizers. This pilot study investigated the English second language of two groups of Inuktitut speaking schoolchildren at the beginning of the school year to see whether the properties of functional categories in English emerged in the same way as they do for first language speakers. While some of the Kindergarten children showed no access to these properties, others showed partial or complete access to them. Those children who had been in school one year demonstrated access to all of the properties under investigation. The results are discussed with respect to future research methodologies and studies of acquisition. |
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