Understanding Complex Sentences: Native Speaker Variation in Syntactic Competence

by N. Chipere

Overview

Is native speaker variation in understanding complex sentences due to individual differences in working memory capacity or in syntactic competence? The answer to this question has very important consequences for both theoretical and applied concerns in linguistics and education. This book is distinctive in giving an historical and interdisciplinary perspective on the rule- based and experience-based debate and in supporting an integrated account. In the study reported here, variation was found to be due to differences in syntactic competence and the author argues that sentence comprehension is a learned skill, displaying many of the general characteristics of cognitive skills. The book will be stimulating reading for psycholinguists, theoretical linguists, applied linguists and educators.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781349431021
Publisher:	Palgrave Macmillan UK
Publication date:	01/01/2003
Edition description:	Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 2003
Pages:	248
Product dimensions:	5.51(w) x 8.50(h) x (d)

About the Author

DR NGONI CHIPERE is Research Fellow in the Department of Education at Reading University, working on child language development. His doctoral research in sentence comprehension was undertaken at Cambridge University and he held a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate prior to his current post . He has extensive teaching experience in schools.

Table of Contents

List of Figures List of Tables Preface Acknowledgements Introduction Finite State and Generative Models Early Experimental Studies Connectionist and Symbolic Models Current Theories of Individual Differences Long-Term Working Memory Saussure's Theory of Language Patterns of Individual Differences Effects of Recall Training and Comprehension Training Conclusion Notes Appendix Bibliography Index

Editorial Reviews

'There is no doubt that [Chipere's] work...will attract a lot of interest in linguistic and educational circles worldwide...The book will be of interest to psycholinguists, applied linguists and educators.' - Richard Hudson, University College London

From the Publisher