Language Acquisition in Infancy: A Basis for Assessment Through Observation

The period of infancy, which is here defined as the age range from birth to 30 months, is perhaps the most exciting yet perplexing stage of human development to be observed and studied. Of the growth areas evident during this developmental phase, one of the most complex is the acquisition of language and speech. Although there are many questions that remain unanswered, there is much information currently available to the infant interventionist charged with the task of evaluating, monitoring and stimulating language and speech development in very young children. In a program designed to service infants with diagnosed or suspected delay related to language, the central purpose in the linguistic evaluation is to determine where along the continuum of language acquisition a child is presently functioning in order that language instruction or stimulation might be facilitated. Therefore, we are looking for regularities in the linguistic system which will reveal the hypotheses, rules or strategies the child is using in his language function. We are inferring, in linguistic evaluation, what the child "knows" about language in order to initiate a program that will enhance or insure progress in this area of development. Knowledge of linguistic acquisition stages or levels and the sequence of development that occur in normal children is extremely valuable and will serve as a guideline in early language evaluation and intervention programs. The purpose of this article is to present pertinent information related to the very early stages of language acquisition that may be employed by the clinician, teacher or other professional concerned with the period of infancy and linguistic growth.