6 VYGOTSKY AND PIAGET: THOUGHT AND LANGUAGE
when only two colours are identified by name in a language, they are black and white.
Exercise B
In this exercise, students are required to use all they have practised about sentence structure as well as revise what they know about topic sentences and paragraphing.
Set for pairwork. Do not feed back after each question but allow students to work through the questions, proceeding to write up the whole text. They will need to decide where the best place for the paragraph in Exercise A is, and should also add this to their text. Students can change the wording and add extra phrases to help the flow of the text, as long as the sense remains the same.
If possible, pairs should write their text on an OHT. Select two or three OHTs for display and comment by the whole class. Make any corrections on the text yourself with a coloured pen. Alternatively, circulate the transparencies for other pairs to correct and comment on. These pairs then display the corrected work and explain why they have made the corrections.
Answers Possible answers:
1/2 Paragraph divisions are given below, with the possible controlling ideas for topic sentences underlined. Note that other answers may be possible.
3 Between 1929 and 1956 Sapir and Whorf developed their ‘linguistic relativity hypothesis’. The fundamental theory supporting the LRH is that language defines thinking. Following the strong version of this hypothesis, language controls the mental categories we create from our experience. In other words, language organizes our
experience and we are unable to understand concepts without the language to describe them. A logical extension of this idea is that speakers of different languages will perceive things in different ways. Under the weak version, however, language only influences our perception of objects; it does not prevent us from understanding them.
For example, research into linguistic relativity has investigated the labelling of colours across cultures. It has established that a total of eleven ‘focal’ colours are referred to across all cultures, including black, white, red, green and yellow. A study carried out in 1995 discovered that when only two colours are identified by name in a language, they are black and white.
As early as 1954, Brown and Lennenberg conducted an experiment to test the ability of three groups to differentiate between colours. Group A was monolingual in language A, which had one word for yellow and orange. Group B was monolingual in language B, which had different words for yellow and orange, and Group C was bilingual in languages A and B. Brown and Lennenberg discovered that Group A did not make a distinction between the two colours, Group B did differentiate and Group C sometimes distinguished between them. The researchers concluded that language affected the ability to label different concepts.
Recent research, using brain scan technology has found that colours that are easy to name produce a stronger stimulus in the part of the brain associated with language. This study has concluded that colours that have a label in a language are easier to recognize, and that consequently language influences colour perception.
Language and thought • Sapir & Whorf – 1929 - 1956 –linguistic relativity hypothesis (LRH) = theory = language defines thinking
• strong version = language controls mental categories + organizes experience →cannot understand concepts w.out lang.
• diff. cultures and languages = diff. words + diff. categories – lang. affect ways people perceive concepts • BUT weak version of theory = language influences perception of objects →we can understand unknown concepts
• e.g. research into LRH looked at labelling colours across cultures (controlling idea for topic sentence from Exercise A) • 11 focal colours across cultures: incl. black, white, red, green + yellow • 1995 research = some cultures hv. words for: ONLY 2 colrs. = black and white
• Brown and Lennenberg (1954): experiment to test ability of 3 groups to differentiate btwn. colrs.
• Group A: monolingual (Lang.A) (1 word for yellow + orange) Group B: monolingual (Lang.B) (2 words, 1 for yellow, 1 for orange)
• Group C: bilingual (Lang. A + B) • Group A - not differentiate/Group B – differentiate/Group C – sometimes differentiate • conclusion: lang. affects ability to label concepts
• recent research wth. brain scans = easy-to-name colours produce stronger stimulus in areas of brain assoc. wth. lang.
• conclusion: colours with label in a lang. = easier to recognize • ∴ language influences colour perception
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